A/N High School Musical Settings and Characters all belong to Kenny Ortega and Disney. Any original characters and this story are copyright © 2011-2018 to Hopelessromanticgurl, all rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

A/N Camp Rock Settings and Characters all belong to Matthew Diamond and the Disney. Any original characters and this story are copyright © 2011-2018 to Hopelessromanticgurl, all rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.


That's how it stayed for the next few days. Gabriella clung to Troy and Steve like lifelines.

From the second she woke up in the morning until the time she went to sleep at night she stayed close to both Troy and Steve and got very upset whenever one of them had to leave her for a long period of time.

Troy had thought Gabriella would be upset but staying at home all the time and not leaving the house, but he was quite surprised when he realized she seemed to like it.


One evening Troy left the bathroom after getting changed into sweats and a t-shirt and brushing his teeth. Gabriella was on her bed cuddled into Steve's side.

Troy walked over to the bed and got in pulling Gabriella into his side.

"I'll let you two get some sleep," Steve said.

Suddenly Gabriella grabbed his arm to stop him.

"Threatened me."

Both Steve and Troy were shocked by the whispered voice. It was so soft they weren't even sure she had spoken.

"Did you hear that?" Steve asked.

Troy nodded and looked to Gabriella. "What did you say, Baby girl?"

"Threatened me," Gabriella spoke in the same soft voice.

Troy moved his face a little closer to her's so he could hear her. "One more time, Baby."

Gabriella repeated it once more.

"Axel and Maria?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded.

"They threatened you?" Troy confirmed. "Is that why you won't talk to Ashley and Jade because Axel and Maria threatened you?"

Gabriella nodded. "Kill me."

"They are not going to kill you. Steve and I would never let that happen." Troy said. "I promise you, I will never let anyone hurt you."

Gabriella just sighed. She didn't speak again.

Troy and Steve both sighed too.

"Baby, it's important for you to talk to Ashley and Jade so we can get you justice. If you want Maria and Axel to pay for what they've done to you, you need to speak up and tell Ashley and Jade what happen." Steve told her.

"Not nice," Gabriella said looking to her lap. "Jade, not nice."

"She was a bit pushy, but she only wants to help you."

Gabriella shook her head.

"Would you feel better just talking to Ashley?" Troy asked.

Gabriella nodded. "Nice."

"Ashley was very nice." Troy nodded.

"She is your lawyer. You don't have to speak to any cops without a lawyer present. So if you'd rather just speak and meet with Ashley, we can do that." Steve said.

"No home," Gabriella said.

"What does that mean?" Steve asked.

"I think she's confirming what Connie had said the other day. This home is Gabriella's safe place. She needs to feel safe here. If we bring Ashley and Jade back into her safe place, it will no longer feel safe to her. She doesn't want Ashley or Jade back in her home." Troy said.

Gabriella nodded. "No Home."

"Ok. That's what we will do. Connie and I will make some calls and see about meeting her somewhere else. Anything else?" Steve asked. "I want you to feel as safe and comfortable as possible."

Gabriella tightened her grip on his hand. "Stay."

Steve smiled and knelt down by her side. "I'm not going anywhere." He kissed her forehead. "Sleep well Baby girl."

Gabriella looked to Troy. "Stay T."

"Always." Troy kissed her head and helped her lay on her back with one arm wrapped around her back holding her close.

Gabriella closed her eyes feeling safe and content with both her father and Troy there.


After that Gabriella started to speak again little by little. It was never loudly and always just barely above a whisper, but Troy was always able to hear and understand her even when Connie, Steve, and Mitchie couldn't.


One morning it was time for their meeting with Ashley. Gabriella clung to Steve and Troy the entire way to her office. She refused to let them go.

They arrived right on time. Ashley opened the door and smiled. "Thanks for coming."

"It was Gabriella's idea," Steve said. "She said she was ready."

"That's who I am thanking. I know it's not easy to talk about what you went through. She is taking a huge leap and trusting me, so I am thanking her for it." Ashley said. "Now, I don't know about you, but I'm pretty hungry. I haven't had lunch yet. Did you all eat?"

"No," Troy answered. "We didn't have time to stop."

"Well then let's go eat," Ashley said. She moved from her office and started to walk out of the building.

"What?" Connie asked. "I thought we were going to…"

"Don't we have to have our meeting?" Steve asked.

"We will. But I'm really hungry. I work best after I have some food in my belly." Ashley said with a smile. "Come on." Ashley continued to walk not bothering to explain.

Still shocked and confused Connie, Steve, and Mitchie followed Ashley out of the building. Troy knew what she was doing, and he was very grateful.

They stopped right outside the building. "Gabriella, what's your favorite food?" Ashley asked.

Gabriella, still feeling scared, hid her face and whimpered softly.

"Gabriella likes Pizza, Margarita Pizza to be exact," Troy answered.

"Ok…hmmm…." Ashley looked around. "There is a pizza place not too far from here. Why don't you guys follow me."

"Ok. If you really want to eat right now, then I guess we can get some food first." Connie said.

"We will get our car and meet you in front of the building and go from there," Steve said.

"Perfect," Ashley said.

Troy knew they were both still confused. Troy smiled and mouth a "thank you" to Ashley.

Ashley just smiled and nodded softly.


It didn't take them long to get to where they were going. They went inside, were seated, and gave their orders.

Gabriella sat in the middle of Troy and Steve and refused to give Ashley any eye contact.

"How has Gabriella been since our last meeting?" Ashley asked.

"As good as can be I suppose," Connie said.

"She's talking again," Mitchie said happily. "It's soft and it's only a few words, but she's speaking to us again."

Gabriella smiled softly at the excitement in Mitchie's voice. It made her feel better knowing how happy it made Mitchie to hear her voice. Axel and Maria wouldn't agree.

"That's great! Has she gone back into her protective shell at all?"

"A few times. Troy has always been able to get her out of it, though." Steve said.

"Good. That's very good. She's making progress already. It's very small, but it's progress none the less. The fact that she is here right now is progress on its own."

"But she's not talking anymore, and she's practically avoiding you." Connie sighed.

"I'm not worried." Ashley smiled. "When Gabriella is really ready she'll give me her full attention."

"I don't know," Connie said.

"That's ok. Because I do." Ashley said. "I need for you guys to trust me. I know what I'm doing seems a little…unorthodox but I promise I have my reasons for doing what I am doing."

"If we trust her, Gabriella will trust her." Troy said. "It's how I got her to trust the other Wildcats. Gabriella saw how much I trusted them and how nice they were and Gabriella was able to trust them too."

Connie, Steve, and Mitchie didn't say anything after that. So far they were having a hard time trusting Ashley.


As their pizza came, everyone started to eat. Gabriella picked at her food. She would pick little mouse size pieces of the cheese and eat it.

"Has there been any news on Axel and Maria?" Connie asked.

Gabriella flinched and instantly her tiny appetite was gone. "T, full," Gabriella whispered so softly almost nobody heard her.

Troy smiled gently and rubbed her back. "It's ok. We can take it home, and you can eat it when you're hungry again, ok?"

She nodded.

"No. We are still searching for them." Ashley said. "But I don't want you to worry. What Jade said isn't true. If we need to, we can put guards on Gabriella, to protect her. No matter how long it takes Maria and Axel will never get their hands on Gabriella ever again."

Connie just sighed.

"Thank you for the offer, but we don't need guards," Troy said. "To be honest, I think they would scare Gabriella more than help her."

"I agree. But just know it is an option."

They all finished eating, and Ashley paid the check.

"It's a beautiful day, what do you say we go for a walk around the park or just go sit outside at the park and enjoy it." Ashley offered.

"Shouldn't we get back to your office and start this meeting?" Steve said.

"We will get to that. What do you say, Gabriella, would you like to go to the park?" Ashley asked.

Gabriella nodded staying tucked into Troy's side.

"Let's go. You guys can follow me in your car again if you'd like." With that, Ashley headed to her car.

"What is she up to?" Steve asked.

"I have no idea. But she better not be charging us by the hour. We can't afford that." Connie said with a sigh.

"Shouldn't this be about what Gabriella likes to do, not what she feels like doing at the moment?" Mitchie asked.

"You would think so." Connie nodded.

"Just trust her," Troy said. "She knows what's she's doing."

They all headed to the car and followed Ashley to the park.


They got to the park and Ashley led them over to a picnic table, and everyone sat down.

"I love when the weather is nice like this. I don't often get to go outside and enjoy it. But this is just beautiful. Clear blue skies, not a rainy cloud in sight. It's not too hot or too cold." Ashley said.

"Are we really going to just sit here and talk about the weather?" Connie asked.

"What else would you like to talk about?" Ashley asked.

"How about my daughter? The whole reason we are here!" Connie snapped.

Gabriella flinched and whimpered. She turned and hid her face in Troy's shoulder. "T, help."

"Shhh." Troy soothed. He rubbed her back and kissed her head. "I'm right here. You're safe."

"Connie, screaming isn't going to help anyone," Steve said.

"Well, apparently this woman isn't going to help Gabriella either. So we're wasting time and Gabriella is only getting more and more upset."

"The only one upsetting Gabriella right now is you," Troy said.

"You really don't think I've helped Gabriella at all since we first got here?" Ashley asked. "Can you really not see it?"

"I don't understand," Connie said. "See what?"

"If you would calm down and look at your daughter then you'll see what I'm talking about."

Connie inhaled and exhaled a deep breath. "I'm sorry." She looked over to Gabriella.

Gabriella was sitting in the middle of Steve and Troy with her hands placed nicely in her lap. She was looking at Ashley and Connie when they would speak.

"Think about what Gabriella was like when you first came up to my office," Ashley said. "Compared to how she is now…can you see a difference now?"

"A little, but…"

"No. There are no buts. Can you see the difference?"

"Yes."

"Good. Then please stop telling me how to do my job. I promise you'll see why I'm doing this soon. At the same time, you are right. We should start talking a little bit about why we are here."

Gabriella shook her head.

"It's ok. For right now I just have a question to ask you. You can just nod or shake your head. You don't need to speak." Ashley said.

Gabriella nodded.

"There is a new type of service dog available for victims of abuse. They allow the dog to sit with the victim while in the courtroom to make facing their abuser a little easier for them. It would be free or charge if you're interested."

"No, thank you," Troy said.

"Troy, we should let Gabriella answer that," Connie said.

"She doesn't need a guard dog. I'll bite anyone who comes near her." Troy suddenly got down on his hands and knees and started to bark and run around in a circle.

Gabriella instantly burst into giggles.

"Troy!" Connie gasped. "What are you doing?"

Troy didn't answer he carefully sat up putting his hands on Gabriella's knees and playfully sniffing her.

Gabriella giggled harder. "Troy, that tickles!"

"Troy Bolton, stop it this instant," Connie ordered. She looked to Ashley. "I'm so sorry. I don't know what's gotten into him."

"Don't be sorry."

"But he's…"

"What did I say about the buts? No more of them." Ashley said. "Look at your daughter right now. This is what I've been trying to get you guys to see from the beginning."

Connie looked to Gabriella. Gabriella was laughing and squirming in her seat as Troy continued to act like a dog and "attack" her. She continued to speak to tell Troy his actions were tickling her. She was relaxed and at ease.

"Now do you see it?" Ashley asked.

Connie nodded.

"When Gabriella first walked into my office she was hiding in both Steve and Troy's side. She didn't make eye contact with anyone, and she refused to speak a word. I knew getting her out of the office would help a little. She started to relax after we ate and just stayed close to Troy. Now she is laughing, speaking, and feeling 100% relaxed and comfortable. Was it unprofessional of me to talk about how hungry I was and how I hadn't had anything to eat and then drag you all along with me as I ate my lunch? Yeah, I'm sure it was. Is it unprofessional of Troy to be crawling around on the floor and acting like a dog at an important meeting like this? Yeah, it is. But let me ask you one more question. Is it unprofessional of me to do everything in my power to make sure my client feels 100% comfortable and safe and relaxed before we force her to talk about an upsetting, terrifying, moment in her life?"

Nobody spoke.

"That's what I thought. I've had this all planned out since before you arrived this morning." Ashley said. "I didn't plan on Troy acting like a dog, but it worked to my advantage."

Troy stood up and dusted the dirt from his pants. His mother was going to kill him for getting his nice dress clothes dirty, but he didn't care. He took his seat back next to Gabriella.

"You're not a dog," Gabriella said. "You're a Wildcat. A Wildcat is a lot more protective of their family than a dog."

Troy just smirked.

"Before you even think about crawling around now and acting like a cat we really do need to get started," Ashley said with a chuckle. "So, Gabriella do you want a service dog?"

"No. I just want Daddy and Troy." Gabriella said.

"Ok. Now, why don't you tell me what happen?"

Gabriella inhaled and exhaled a deep breath. Then she didn't speak.

"Please, If I'm going to help you I need to know as much information as I can."

Gabriella didn't speak.

"Why don't you start with what happen after you lost contact with Troy? I can get the rest of the information from your family."

Gabriella didn't say a word.

Ashley sighed softly.


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