Finally, Betty, Gabriella, and Troy were on the final leg of their journey home. Gabriella and Troy sat in one row while Betty was in the row across from them. Gabriella knew she was going to have to tell Troy about Stuart as they were going to be home within an hour. Troy suddenly perked up when he smelled a familiar scent. Gabriella noticed the change in his posture.
"We're almost there." Troy announced. "I can smell the sea and the bakery at the train station. There is no other smell like it."
"Excuse me, Troy." Gabriella said quietly as she walked over to sit next to her aunt. "Aunt Betty, I think waiting this long to tell Troy about Stuart was a big mistake."
"Honesty is the best policy." Betty stated. "You should go and tell him now, get it over with."
"Ok." Gabriella agreed as she went back to her seat. "Troy?"
"Yes?" Troy asked facing her when she asked him.
"I have to tell you something."
"Yes?"
"I just wanted to…to…"
"Avonlea Times, Charlestown Chronicle!" the conductor called the names of the different newspapers.
"The Chronicle!" Gabriella called grateful for yet another happy interruption.
"Thank you." Betty said as he handed her the paper and began to look at the headlines, one headline catching her attention right away.
"Aunt Betty, what is it?" Gabriella asked seeing her shocked expression.
"King Cannery destroyed by fire." Betty read.
"What?" Gabriella and Troy asked in shock.
"The factory and the workers' dorm completely burned down." Betty continued.
At the train station, when the train arrived, Alex and Carmen were waiting anxiously for Gabriella and Betty to get off. This was the longest they had ever been away from Charlestown. Both were happy that she was now home and Carmen hoped that with her home the wedding would go on now as planned.
"There she is." Alex stated as he saw Gabriella get off the plane.
"Mother, Father." Gabriella said happy as she hugged them tightly.
"I'm so happy that you're home." Carmen said.
"It is good to be home." Gabriella agreed.
"Where's Betty?"
"Yeah, where is the old bird anyways?" Alex asked of his sister as Gabriella turned around to look behind her.
"I don't know, she was right behind me."
Just then Betty appeared with Troy on her arm. Both she and Gabriella helped Troy step off the train. Alex and Carmen stood there in shock at the sight of Troy Bolton. Troy Bolton was indeed alive and he was back home in Charlestown.
"Troy." Alex said surprised. "Troy Bolton."
"Troy?" Carmen asked in shock at the sight of him.
"Mr. and Mrs. Montez, it is you isn't?" Troy asked with a bright smile on his face.
"Of course it's us." Carmen said. "Who else would it be?"
"Troy has lost his eye sight, Carmen." Betty stated.
"Good lord, sorry nobody told us." Carmen replied shocked.
"It's alright, who else is here?" Troy asked. "David?"
"No it's just us." Alex said his voice quivering with emotion. "It's good to have you home, Son." he said as he grabbed the younger man and hugged him tightly, tears in her eyes.
"Why are we standing here like a bunch of ninnies?" Betty asked. "Where did you park the carriage, Alex?"
"It's just over here." Alex said still slightly caught up in the moment of Troy being alive and started to lead the group to it.
"Tell me, are Margaret and Jasper alright?" Betty asked not noticing that Carmen had held Gabriella back while she and Alex led Troy to the carriage.
"Gabriella, you have got to tell Stuart McGrady." Carmen instructed firmly.
"I will, soon." Gabriella replied as she started to follow the others but her mother held her back, not finished yet.
"Not soon." Carmen stated. "Today. Now. He has no idea that you found Troy and brought him back here."
"That is only half of my problem. Troy knows absolutely nothing about Stuart." Gabriella said as she walked off.
Minutes later, the family was back in their homes. Troy had gone with Gabriella and her parents to the farm while Betty went back to her house. Gabriella led Troy to the study and he sat down at the desk. Gabriella stood next to him and perched herself on the edge of the desk.
"There's been something that I have been trying to tell you and I keep losing my courage." Gabriella stated. "When I got the word that you had died, my heart broke into a thousand pieces. I walked in a daze. I spoke only when I was spoken to. All I wanted was to disappear with the thought of never seeing you again. And then God took pity on me, he sent me a friend."
"Who was the friend?" Troy asked.
"Stuart McGrady. He showed me that it was ok to live when all I wanted to do was shrivel up and die."
"Did you love him?"
"We became engaged, Troy." Gabriella admitted.
"You should have told me you were engaged." Troy said.
"If I did, would you have come back?"
"No."
"That's why I didn't."
Stuart was in the glen working on the home he was building for him and Gabriella. Gabriella had gone to meet him to tell him that she had found Troy. She found him with his back to her as he sawed a piece of lumber for the frame of the house that had been built in the time she had been gone.
"Stuart?" she called making him drop the saw and turn around and smiled at his fiancé.
"Gabriella! Why didn't you tell me you were arriving today?" he asked as ran to her quickly. "Let me look at you, my beautiful girl." he continued as he lifted her up in his arms.
"Please, put me down." Gabriella demanded.
"What is it? What's the matter?"
"I found Troy." Gabriella replied. "I brought him home."
Stuart instantly let go of her and pushed away from her. He then rushed off and got onto Blazes. The anger in him clearly visible. Gabriella ran behind him for a few steps as she watched him gallop off in anger.
"We have to talk!" Gabriella called after him.
Meanwhile, back at the farm, Troy was having tea and cake with Gabriella's family. He was listening to them telling about what he had missed while he was gone. Troy was really close to the family since they had helped him out so many times when he was younger. The Montez never judged him when it came to the difference in status between them. To Carmen and Alex he was like another son and to Alicia and David, another brother. A sound suddenly alerted that someone was arriving to the house.
"Someone's here." he announced as everyone looked out the window to see who it was.
"Yes, I'll go take care of that." Alex said as he stood up.
"I'll do that." David offered.
"No, it's alright, stay here." Alex stated as he walked out.
"So, Troy, how did you spend your time in Charleston?" Carmen asked, changing the subject quickly.
"It's him, isn't it?" Troy asked.
"Now, Troy, dear, he only boards his horse here." Carmen stated before Troy grabbed his cane and made his way outside.
Alex met Stuart outside as the younger man got off his horse. The two then headed off towards the barn to get the horse inside. Anyone could see the awkwardness between the two of them not knowing what to say to the other one. Just then a voice called out to the banker.
"A word with you, Stuart McGrady?" Troy called out from the front porch as Stuart looked back to him.
"You go on; I'll take care of him." Alex said as he took the reins.
Stuart nodded and started to walk back to the house. His insides were all jumbled up. The only thing he knew was that he hated Troy with every fiber in his being. He stood in front of Troy and sized him up.
"So this is Troy Bolton." He stated.
"I never would have come back if I knew you were engaged." Troy declared.
"Well now you know and it's none of your business. I built a house for us to live in, something you would never be able to do now for the way you are now." Stuart said. "If you are any kind of gentleman, you'd leave."
Stuart then walked off to go meet Margaret and Jasper about rebuilding the cannery. He hoped his words to Troy would make leave willingly. If not he might have to make Gabriella feel guilty about possibly ending the engagement. He was not willing to let Gabriella go especially to someone he deemed himself better than.
That evening, Gabriella was back in the Foundling Home. The Martin children were happy to have her home. Gabriella had brought each child a box of chocolate for them to have to themselves. They were talking about what they had been up to when Gabriella noticed David leading Troy into the room. Gabriella smiled and turned to the children.
"Children, this is Troy Bolton." She introduced. "Troy this is Belle-Anne, Karen, Joshua and Michael. They were the first of all our orphans."
"Glad to meet you." Troy stated as Gabriella made eye contact with her brother.
"Alright, the first one to bed is a rotten egg." David said to the children as they scrambled off to their rooms.
Gabriella stood up and walked over to Troy. She gently placed her hand on his arm but he quickly moved his arm away from her. Gabriella looked up at him.
"I met him." Troy stated. "He told me he built a house for you with his own two hands, something I could never do for you."
"I don't care about that." Gabriella stated.
"He will be good to you; you don't eyes to see that."
"What are you saying, Troy?"
"I have to what's best for your future, and you won't have a future with me. I'm doing what's best for you. I have to let you go."
The next morning, Troy was sitting at the town's abandon lighthouse. David had come by and was making coffee for the two of them. The two of them sat down in silence just enjoying having their friend back in their lives.
"Gabriella says there is no use hiding out here by the lighthouse." David stated.
"I'm doing what's best; your sister is just too stubborn to understand that." Troy answered.
"Troy, when you were thought to be dead, everyone thought Gabriella was going to follow you soon." David explained. "She refused to eat, locked herself in her room. My mother slept in her room every night to comfort Gabriella when she woke up crying. She mourned you for a whole year Troy. When she agreed to marry Stuart, she did it because she knew he was going to be good to her. But she truly didn't love him, like she was with you."
"Maybe, but I could never give her the future she deserves."
"Gabriella would love you even if you were living on the street. As long as she has you, she will have everything she had ever wanted." David said. "Think about it, could you really live with the thought of the love of your life married to someone else knowing that she is just as in love with you as you are with her?"
That afternoon, Troy and Betty were walking the ruins of what used to be the cannery. Betty was supporting Troy and leading him through the remains. Troy stopped by a column and fingered a charred lantern. Betty looked around with tears forming in her eyes.
"What do you see?" Troy asked her.
"Everything has been destroyed." Betty stated. "There is nothing left at all. But no matter, soon it will be rebuilt and we will have our happy ending once again. We must not give up on hope, never admit defeat."
"Sometime there is no hope in life, Miss Montez." Troy stated sadly. "Sometimes you just have to give up."
"I will not hear you talk like that, Troy Bolton. I taught you better than that. You'll see, out of these ashes, a phoenix will rise stronger and brighter than before." Betty said. "Now, what's this I hear about you giving up on Gabriella?"
"She deserves better than someone like me."
"Nonsense, she didn't travel all the way to South Carolina to find you for you just to give up now. Courage Troy, all you need is courage and you will be like the phoenix here waiting to spread its wings and making the world know who you are."