Disclaimer: I don't own HSM.

Inspiration: Two Princes by The Spin Doctors

Author: Alleycat

Story: My Pseudo Girlfriend

TG Troy Bolton is an NBA player who wants to appease his mom about his lifestyle choices by hiring a girlfriend for his visit to trick her. Enter Gabriella, who's both fun and enticing, and changes everything

So you found it? Even though it is now mature? That's dash cunning!

Chapter 3

Troy called her the next day so he didn't seem too desperate. Regardless of how truthful that sentiment was.

They planned to meet later that week because the leaving day was barely over a week away. Their meeting place was the same coffee shop they had met at to begin with. They were going to get some drinks and then walk around the neighborhood. They didn't want some place too public. She probably didn't want anyone to overhear, while Troy just wanted some time alone with her.

He waited until she left the restaurant to glance at the napkin. The corner was wet from her drink sitting on it. The napkin had six numbers plus an area code. Then in an elegant script, messy yet still distinctly feminine, was her name. Gabriella, he repeated softly to himself. It was a beautiful name and it fit her.

"Hey stranger," She was standing next to the table he was sitting at. She was wearing a short jean skirt with a blue loose tank. It had lace at the bust and she was wearing a long necklace with it.

"I got you a drink," He held it up as evidence, trying not to goggle at her. "I guessed it was mocha because of the brown that was always at the bottom."

"I'm impressed," Gabriella noted, grabbing the drink from him. She took a sip and made an appreciative noise that pleased Troy. He would've given his right arm to hear it again. "Thank you."

"Are you ready?" Troy asked, at her excited nod he stood up and pushed in his chair. "Let's go."

"So when are we leaving?" She asked as soon as they got outside. They just started walking down the street, looking at the shops and businesses.

Troy tried not to feel giddy at her use of 'we.' "We're supposed to be there in four days, and since we're driving-"

"We're driving?" She wondered, stopping and staring at him.

Troy stopped next to her. "Yeah, it's only 15 hours away nonstop." He didn't want to tell her that he had already bought an airplane ticket for himself. He could have easily bought one for her as well, but driving together meant more alone time together.

"That sounds reasonable," She said resuming walking, before shouting "Road trip!" and bouncing up and down.

He chuckled, amused at her childish behavior. "I'm assuming you've never been on one?"

"Nope," She said, popping the p. "Is it weird that I'm excited?"

"Not at all," He told her, watching her through the corner of his eyes as they walked. "I'm excited too."

She rolled her eyes playfully. "Of course you are it is your family after all."

He didn't want to burst her bubble but he was actually dreading the trip before she came along. It seemed like everything was more enjoyable when she was around.

She skipped ahead to a bench on the sidewalk. She sat down and patted the seat next to her. Troy laughed and jogged to it. He sat next to her and put his coffee on the bench. He sat as close as possible without raising her suspicions. She was smiling so brightly at him that Troy wished he had his sunglasses.

"Let's play 20 questions!" She announced randomly, before setting her drink on the ground. She turned slightly toward Troy on the bench.

Troy automatically felt her naked knee pressed against his. The reaction was so strong that he wondered what it feel like if he wasn't wearing pants. He cursed himself for not wearing shorts. "Okay," He said slowly, trying to gather his wits.

"Hey my boyfriend would know a lot about me," She defended. "How old are you?"

"Twenty-four and you?"

She huffed cutely and punched him slightly with her small fist. It made his heart ache more than his arm. "You can't ask the same question but I am twenty-one."

Troy's jaw dropped so fast that he was sure he heard his jaw pop. "You're that young?"

"Twenty-one is not young," Gabriella said quickly, using her pointer finger to shut Troy's mouth.

His chin tingling, he just stared at her.

"When is your birthday?" She changed the subject, but only slightly.

"May 17 and you?"

She pursed her lips in annoyance, which Troy thought was cute. "December 19th and what is your middle name?"

"Alexander," He answered, then looked at her expectantly.

"Isabela," She said to fill the uncomfortable silence. "What's your favorite color?"

"Blue and you?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Red, but it's your turn to think of a question," She scolded.

"Hmm," He didn't realize how hard it was to think of a question. He wanted to impress her with the one he chose, but the silence was making him look slow. "If you could only read three books for the rest of your life what would they be?"

She looked at him appreciatively. "That makes my questions look elementary. I would say Catch-22 by Joseph Heller, Middlemarch by George Eliot, and Ulysses by James Joyce."

"What?" He teased, leaning back on the bench. "No female authors? I am so surprised!"

She giggled loudly and threw her arms around Troy. He hugged her back, just revealing that she was in his arms. He didn't dare question it.

She squeezed him tightly once more before pulling back, still laughing. "Silly boy, George Eliot is a penname for Mary Anne or Marian Evans. Now, what would you be doing if you weren't playing basketball?"

Troy thought for a moment, "I think I would wanna be a coach, like my dad. My mom's a decorator," He added.

"Aw," She cooed while ruffling his hair. "That's sweet."

It took all of Troy's strength to not lean into her touch. "What do your parents do?"

She dropped her hand and looked to her hands, which were wringing in her lap. Her smile and her whole demeanor, which was very bright and cheerful, dimmed. Instantly, Troy knew he said something wrong. He lifted a hand to put on her shoulder and apologize when she suddenly looked up again. He froze.

The melancholy had passed, and Gabriella looked happier again. "My dad's dead," Her voice was still rueful. "My mom's a lawyer," She made a face, her lips scrunching in the most ridiculously attractive fashion. Troy just wanted to kiss the expression off of her face.

He pushed his hair out of his eyes so he could see her better. "And that's bad?" Troy questioned, just happy she wasn't sad.

Gabriella glanced at him briefly before returning her gaze to her hands. "My mom thinks that if I'm not a lawyer or a doctor, then I'm useless."

Troy cringed, "That's harsh." He wondered once again what type of comfort would be acceptable between strangers. He figured holding her hand was even out of the question.

"That my mom for you." She laughed genuinely while shrugging. "It used to bother me but it doesn't so much anymore. Did you know that my family is actually very rich? But until I wake up and get a real profession, I don't get a penny."

He didn't know what to say so he just stared at her. He didn't know if he could, for the lack of a better term, be as generous as she was with forgiveness. This reminded him why she was so special he thought affectionately.

She grinned and looked at him in such a way that Troy couldn't pinpoint the emotion. "I'm lucky that she is at least is willing to pay for my education." She laughed lightly. "It's really only because she approves of my school."

He leaned forward, eager for the question that had been plaguing his mind since she said she was in school. "What school?"

"Stanford," She replied so nonchalantly that Troy would have not believed that she mentioned one of the most prestigious schools in the country.

He tried not to look impressed. "What year?"

She got a sly look on her face before turning to him fully, he noticed immediately because she was wearing a skirt even though he couldn't see anything, "First year."

Troy sighed wistfully, "I remember life as a freshman in college."

She laughed again and pushed her hair behind her shoulders, "First year in grad school silly."

He gaped, "But you're so young!" He protested, she was way smarter than he originally assumed. "How is that even possible?"

"Well in high school I took a lot of college credits. Then I got accepted to an early honors program and Stanford goes by quarters not semesters. It's harder, but you get it done a lot faster. What school did you go to?"

"Berkeley."

"Oh my god," She stood up angrily and pointed at him. He wanted to nip at the point. "That is an amazing school! Why did you give me this look," She widened her eyes and let her mouth hang open for a few seconds, "when your school is as good as or better than mine!"

He stood up to his full height, an intimidating one but his wide smile betrayed him. "No one in their right mind would compare Berkeley," he made a silly face, "to Stanford!" He made a serious face.

"Let's go," Gabriella bent over, giggling, to grab her drink revealing the most delicious view of a behind Troy had ever seen. He looked away as his ears burned, and Troy cleared his throat to dispel the lump that had formed there. "Are you okay?" She asked while peering at his face.

"Yeah," He stepped back so he could gather his bearings and threw away his empty coffee. He had never been a big coffee drinker before he met Gabriella but now he was drinking it all the time. So much in fact, he was sure it wasn't healthy. They started walking back toward the café that they met at.

She kept giving him side glances as they walked. "I'm sorry I ruined the mood with my drama." She said after a few moments of silence.

Troy thought the silence was comfortable, but she obviously didn't think it was. "You didn't ruin the mood," He told her hoping to placate her.

She smiled at him affectionately. "You will make some woman very happy one day," She informed him softly.

He wanted to tell her that she could be the one. That he wanted her to be the one, but he thought it was too early in their relationship. He didn't want to scare her off. They had reached the café before he realized it. "I guess this is goodbye." He muttered, upset that they were parting.

Her brown eyes glittered. "Don't be so dramatic stranger," She reached up to kiss him on the cheek. "I'll see you in three days," Gabriella trailed off waiting for him to confirm it.

Troy resisted the urge to touch his hand to his cheek to feel where her lips had been. They felt softer than he could imagine and it made his chest ache painfully again. "I'll be at your place at like five in the morning." He promised.

She stepped back and ran her fingers through her hair in such a way that made Troy jealous of her fingers. "You're just lucky you're so handsome or else I would be sleeping in," She huffed but winked when she saw his face flush. "Bye boyfriend." With that, Troy was left alone watching her diminishing figure. He didn't get into his SUV until he couldn't see her anymore.

I thought this chapter was a little boring but they needed to learn about eachother soooo…

I'm having a really blah day… more like week. But your reviews made me smile so thank you! As always, please review! Until next time!

Thank you to everyone left me a note and are giving this story a chance:

Hopeful Extinction, CrazyBitch10, xZANESSA4LIFEx, LetsJustSing, OlympicBeliever, MissIndependentlyPerfect, iloooveyou, coolio1206, Lexi, xzanessaxtroyellax, zan lil, Anonymous, DaNcE iZ mY lIfE, AddyD90, bubzchoc, kristenkay0606, and Clembo29.