The next morning I woke up with renewed energy. It may've been the fact that my mom had been cheerful last night, it may've been the fact that I had a home cooked meal for once, or it may've just been the simple fact that today was Friday that put me in such a good mood.
I hopped out of bed, and pulled on some jeans and a cute top/jacket. I pulled my hair back into a tight pony tail, and even put in some earrings. Unfortunately, I still forgot to put on make up, so the zit was still showing.
I went downstairs to smell pancakes. Pancakes! My mom never made pancakes. I guessed that she was in a good mood too. Things were working out. There was hope.
I ate a pancake and patiently waited for Troy to show up. He was prompt and came to ring the doorbell in no time.
My mom answered it, "Are you Troy?" She asked sharply.
"Yes ma'am, I am Troy. You must be Gabriella's mother." Responded Troy politely. I stood by silently, curious to see what my mother would say and what Troy would say back. It could be interesting.
"Yes, you may call me Ms. Montez. My daughter told me that you drove her to school and back yesterday. Did you?'
"Yes ma'am, I saw her walking towards school and I offered her a ride. I'm sorry if it caused you to worry." Troy said back with a perfect mixture of honesty and defense of his actions. He added when my mom said nothing back, "If you are okay with it, I can continue to drive her to school for you. I'm a safe driver, and I promise to keep her in the utmost of care."
For some reason, this made me want to laugh. I was like some toy that Troy was borrowing from my mother. It was a 15 minute ride to school, not much can happen, yet my mom was so careful about it.
My mom replied, "We'll see. You can drive her today. Just take good care of her. Now you guys better hurry so that you're not late for school." She shooed us out of the house and I knew that that was her unsaid approval.
I followed Troy to his truck.
As he helped me in, I wondered if I ought to say sorry for my mother. Why should I, though? She was mom, it was her job. I chose not to say anything. Instead, I just smiled at Troy. He seemed surprised at first, then smiled back.
"Wow." He laughed, "Your mom sure is careful about you."
"I can kind of understand. I mean, this is a completely new place. She didn't know you, and I don't really know you...that well." I countered.
"True...true, I was just saying. I'm glad she let you ride with me, though. I like to be with you." He told me softly.
If what he said had deeper meaning, then I completely missed it, for all I said back was, "Yeah, it's nice having you drive me to school. I don't need to worry about my mom, um...being sick..."
Troy nodded and the rest of the ride was in silence. Not the awkward silence, but the peaceful, enjoyable silence. When we got to school, Troy was there, yet again, to help me out of his truck. I took his hand and climbed out. This time I remembered to say thank you.
Troy seemed like he was going to say something to me, but he was cut short by a girly squeal of, "Oh, Trooooy!" And then a flurry of pink was grabbing him and pulling him away. "Troy, oh Troy...Guess what! I got a new car! Come see it! Now you can ride with me to school, not with, well her."
"Hello, I'm right here." I snapped back.
"Sharpay, maybe later, I need to talk to Gabriella." Troy said to her quickly.
"No, you have to see it now! You can talk with her some other time. Come on!" Sharpay demanded, attempting to drag Troy away. Troy looked at me, then followed Sharpay.
I turned and went to my locker. There I found Taylor.
She had her hands on her hips, "You're riding with him again?"
"Uh-huh." I nodded, putting my books in my locker.
"It's only the third day, and you're already caught up with him and his drama."
"I'm sorry, but if he's going to give me a ride I'm taking it. Don't worry, though, that's it. A ride. We're not even really friends. I'm sitting with you at lunch, not him, I'm friends with you, not him, stop nagging."
"Wow."
"What?" I asked.
"Nothing, we just sounded like an old married couple."
We laughed, I yelled in an old man voice, "What? What did you say?"
The rest of the day was considerably nice. At homeroom, though, the seat Troy had saved for me was occupied by Sharpay. I shrugged and sat next to Taylor.
While our homeroom teacher wailed on about something, we talked.
"Are you getting dropped off by Troy again?" Asked Taylor.
"I'd assume so, since I don't have another ride."
"Why don't you take the bus, or why doesn't your mom drop you off?"
"First of all, I saw that bus, it's nasty. Nobody would ride in it by choice. You don't ride in it, do you?"
Taylor shook her head quickly, then asked again, "Then why doesn't your mom drive you?"
"She did, but then yesterday, she wasn't feeling too good, so I decided to walk...and...well, I'll explain it to you later, okay?"
"Fine, but when later?"
"Are you busy tonight? You could come to my house."
"I'll call my mom and find out, it'll probably be yes."
The bell rang. Taylor got the stuff from her locker, and then headed towards mine, and called her mom.
"She said yes. I just got to pick up my stuff from my house. Could you give me a ride? Oh, wait, Troy."
"I could ask him. He might be willing." inside I felt bad for offering him to drive us. It made me feel like I was using him, taking advantage of him. "Well, actually, never mind. I don't feel right asking him to do that. I can just call my mom instead."
"Either way's fine with me." Taylor told me as she said good bye to some friends.
I took out my phone and called my mom, "Hey mom, do you think you could pick me up from school...I invited Taylor, one of my friends from school, for a sleep over but she needs to get her stuff. I feel bad asking Troy to drive us there, so I thought you might...Okay...thank you...bye." I hung up and turned around to find not Taylor standing behind me, but Troy.
"Still up for the ride home?" He asked.
"Sorry, but my mom's picking me up."
"Why?" he asked
"Why does it matter so much?" Slipped out of my mouth before I realized what I even said.
"I'm sorry, I was just wondering. No more questions." He pretended to zip his mouth shut.
"No, I didn't mean to say that. It just slipped out. The reason my mom is coming is because I didn't want to take advantage of you." I said quickly, my words stumbling out of my mouth without making any real sense.
"This sounds interesting. How so?"
"I invited Taylor over for a sleep over, but she needs to get her stuff, I didn't want to make you have to drive around just to drop us off."
"I understand, but you know I would've driven you."
"Yeah, I kind of guessed so, that's kind of the reason I didn't ask you..."
"So why didn't you just ask?"
"I don't know." I said back with my hands on my hips, "But fine, I'll ask you, if you so want to drive us. Will you drive me and Taylor to get her stuff and drop us off at my house?"
"Sure, I would love to."
"What a surprise. Let me just call my mom. Again." I groaned and pulled out my phone, "Hey mom, change of plans. It turns out that Troy is willing to drive us around, so you won't be needing to pick us up. Is that okay with you?...Okay...Wait, what do you mean you would have been tight on time otherwise? What are you doing tonight?...Don't tell me you're staying late for work...Okay, well then if you're not staying late for work then what are you doing tonight?...What does that mean? What plans do you have?...Fine, tell me later...Bye."
"So, was it a yes?" Troy asked, leaning on a locker.
"Yeah, let me just tell Taylor." I answered already heading over to grab her.
I told her what the new plans were. "Are you sure it's okay?" Taylor asked, looking uneasily at Troy.
"It's fine, now get in, I can't be late." Troy replied shuffling us towards his truck.
"Late for what?" Taylor asked bluntly.
"Sharpay and her family are coming over for a dinner my mom made. I wouldn't mind missing it, but everybody else would be angry if I did." Troy laughed. I was silent as I was squeezed in between the two. In the middle...again.
Taylor gave directions to her house, grabbed her stuff and came back in. Troy and Taylor talked the whole time, I listened every now and then, but spent most of the time thinking.
It was only the third day of school and I already had a good friend and a ride to school. Things were looking up, and I thought to myself, yet again, that maybe this new start was just what I needed.
When we reached my house, Troy helped Taylor and I out.
"Do you want me to walk you to the door?" Troy asked politely.
"Naw, I think I can find it myself. It is my house. Uh, thanks for the ride. Um...bye." I waved him off while I walked away. Another moment missed. Was there even an ounce of romance in me? I highly doubted it.
I opened the door to find my mom putting in earrings. She was wearing a pretty black and green dress with her hair pulled into a tight bun. She had make up on, a silver necklace with green gem stones and high heeled black shoes.
"Wow, mom, you look...very fancy." I remarked.
"Do you think it looks good? Not too fancy right? Just pretty?" My mom asked as she inspected herself in the mirror.
"yeah, you look fine. What's the occasion?" I asked.
"Oh nothing, just going out with a...friend."
"So what's for dinner? We're starving." I said back, not considering for a second who this "friend" could be.
"I left some money, you guys can order out." My mom replied, jumping on the distraction of food to keep me from asking any questions. It worked.
I motioned for Taylor to drop her stuff next to the couch and we were heading to the kitchen for a snack when a car pulled up outside. My mom didn't wait for the person to ring the doorbell. She gave a quick good bye as she quickly shuffled out the door to greet the person who was just now getting out of the car.
It was a man, and for some reason that made me uneasy. A man. Mom was nervous. She looked so pretty. Too pretty for just a friend. She was fluttery. He was dressed handsomely. They obviously knew each other well. My mom was so anxious to look good. Why did this make me uneasy? Maybe it was the way she was so quick to get out to him. Maybe it was the way he looked at her expectantly and so happily, yet with something else. I was afraid she looked back at him like that.
He greeted her with a kiss on the cheek. I didn't like that, at all. Why was the man kissing my mom? Why was she letting him? I was getting very nervous, I really didn't like this. Then again, it could be nothing. There was obviously a logical, and non-romantic, explanation behind it. Maybe he was just...Italian? Yes, that was it. He was just Italian, he greeted everybody like that. They were just friends, I shouldn't be paranoid. But when my mom turned to get in the car she was smiling goofily and blushing. Blushing? What did that mean? Why did she look so happy with him?
Ugh. I need to stop being so paranoid. It made me uncomfortable, though. Were they just friends?
They had to be, I mean, we've only been here for a week or two. Not much can happen. Not much did happen. Nothing happened. He was just a friend if even that. It was nothing. The car drove away. Nothing, I reassured myself.
"Uh, Gabriella? Do you want to order the pizza now, or what?" Taylor asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.
"What? Uh, yeah. I'm starving." I replied, pulling my eyes away from the window where my mom had just gone with that man. I dialed the number and ordered, pepperoni, sausage, peppers, and olives.
"Okay, fine...no olives." I groaned to Taylor after she strongly disapproved.
We ate the pizza in the living room watching some sappy chick flick off of Netflix. Taylor added her own comments every now and then, but I was too busy thinking of my mom and that man. I didn't like her being so comfortable with him.
When it was done Taylor and I talked and messed around with videogames. Taylor finally asked the question I knew she had been wondering about the whole time, "So, what do you want to explain to me?"
'I was...I was..." I paused trying to remember. I was going to explain to her about how Troy offered me a ride. I told it to her with as little detail as I could get away with.
"So you just hopped in?" Taylor asked incredulously.
"Well, yeah, but I wasn't feeling too good that morning and I don't know, I was kind of out of it. Look, I already went through this with my mother okay! Give me break. It was stupid. It doesn't really matter anymore, whatever."
"Sorry. Wonder why he stopped for you, or even offered a ride, though. I mean, it doesn't seem like him. I can't believe he noticed you. No offense, but it doesn't make sense." Taylor remarked in her blunt manner that I liked.
"I know, welcome to my new life. Just because I don't get it, doesn't mean I shouldn't appreciate, though." I said falling back onto my bed.
"I guess. It's just so unlike him. He doesn't usually go for girls like you...or me...or anyone but the Sharpay-ish girls. Or, actually, he's never gone for any girl. He is single, agonizingly single. Trust me, I should know, considering I've been in the same school with him for quite some time. Why you? He's never been interested in any other girl, why start with you? No offense."
"What? Are you jealous." I teased, she pouted and I continued, "You know I'm just kidding. I've wondered the same things. Why me? Why is he being so nice to me?."
"It just doesn't make any logical sense. He is so popular and you're so, well, not. What made him notice you/"
I shrugged, still occupied by my mom and that man, "I don't know. It doesn't really matter, and it's not a huge deal anyways. It's just a ride to school. Nothing more. It really isn't that big of a deal."
Taylor was about to reply, but I suddenly jumped up. Everything occupying my mind earlier vanished and I pushed all other thoughts aside. The car was back, and I was racing down the stairs when a sight confirmed the doubts I had about my mom's feelings toward that man.
Thanks for the reviews! Suggestions are always welcomed! I probably should know where I am going with this, but I'm not quite sure. When I started writing this, I had a clear plan, but I guess I got sidetracked a little bit. With me, it's like when the conversation gets going it chooses its own subject, like real conversations. I hope it turns out for the better!
please, please, please review...I need your moral support! Or not so moral support...just review, okay!
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