AN: Thank you to everyone who is reading this and also thanks to those who reviewed last chapter. Sorry I haven't responded, I will soon. And sorry for the delay in this chapter. I'm trying to keep one chapter ahead and I hope the next one comes even sooner. With school just around the corner, I'd like to get this story almost done before I start. Also, thanks to everyone who encouraged me to keep going with this story and get this chapter up. Your encouragement is much appreciated. :)
Chapter 7
To any college student, Christmas break was a welcome relief. And the thousands of students at the University of Albuquerque were no different than any other college students. Christmas break meant that the first semester was finally over, that many students for the first time in months could go back home, and for the members of the women's and men's basketball teams, it meant that the annual holiday tournament in Phoenix had arrived. The holiday tournament in Phoenix was one of the highlights of the year for each member of the team, and as freshmen, Troy and Chad had been looking forward to it since they had gotten their letters of acceptance the year before.
"Dude, how many clothes are you packing?"
"Enough for a five day tournament," Troy answered, walking over to his closet and pulling out a light blue long-sleeved collared shirt. The two were doing last minute packing for the tournament that they would be leaving for early the next morning."Unlike some people I like to keep from smelling like I've been wearing the same shirt for three days straight."
"I don't smell like I've been wearing the same shirt for three days!" Chad protested.
Troy raised his eyebrows, unconvinced. "Keep telling yourself that man."
"And why are you taking a nice shirt?"
"No reason," Troy mumbled, nervously rubbing the back of his neck, an act that didn't go unnoticed by Chad.
"Ohhh," a grin formed on Chad's face, picking up on what was going on. "You want to look good for Gabriella! You finally gonna man up and ask her out?"
"Yeah," Troy admitted, with a hint of coyness.
"Really!"
"Yes Chad."
"Freaking finally!" Chad walked over to clap his friend on the back before returning to his bed to pack his bag. "So where are you going to take her?"
Troy shrugged, folding up his collared shirt and placing it with the other clothes in his bag. "I'm not sure yet. I'll find some nice restaurant to take her to once we get there."
"Wow you've really thought this through," Chad teased sarcastically, laughing when Troy glared at him. "Seriously though, Gabriella doesn't seem like the type who's going to pack a dress or anything to go to the tourney in Phoenix. You know how these tournaments go. Most of us just pack sweats, our uniforms, and a swimsuit. She won't pack anything other than that and maybe some jeans."
Troy stopped packing, looking over at Chad as the realization dawned on his face.
"Dang, you really haven't thought this through man," Chad laughed, shaking his head as he continued packing.
"I know! I thought this would be a great idea because we'll be far away from this area and less likely to be seen by our families or someone who knows us. I planned to wait to ask her out until we get there so I can find a place to take her, but what if she doesn't bring something nice to wear? She might not want to go out then."
"Well can't you take her somewhere casual?"
"Yeah, I just wanted some options I guess. And I don't want her to feel under-dressed. Maybe I should just call her and tell her to bring something nice to wear."
"Cause that won't give it away," Chad muttered sarcastically.
"I don't know what else to do though!" Troy exclaimed, feeling a lot more stress in addition to the pressure he was already feeling about asking Gabriella out on their first date.
"It's alright, calm down buddy. The Chadster always has a plan."
"The Chadster?" Troy repeated with his eyebrows raised, unable to keep his laughter from escaping.
"You want my help or not, man?"
"Alright, alright, what's your plan?"
"That's what I thought," Chad said with a smug grin. "Okay, so you have her room phone number right? Who am I kidding, of course you have her room number!" Chad teased, not even giving Troy a chance to answer his question.
"Yeah, I have it in my phone."
"Of course you do. Speed dial yeah?" Chad joked again, loving the opportunities he was getting to tease his friend. "So, you're going to head over to their room, make sure Sharpay is there, and then you text me while distracting Gabriella. I'll call and I'll take care of making sure Gabriella has a dress packed."
"You're gonna call Sharpay?" Chad nodded. "And actually get along?"
"You want my help or not?"
"Okay, okay," Troy laughed, holding his hands up in surrender before grabbing his keys and heading towards the door. "I'll text you when I get Gabi out of the room. Please don't get into a fight with Sharpay."
"Whatever, how are you going to distract her?"
"I was going to head over to the Plaza and get some snacks and drinks for the trip tomorrow."
Chad's eyes lit up at the mention of food. "Sweet! Can you pick me up some stuff?" Troy nodded. "Oh, and can you get me a spicy chicken sandwich and a smoothie?"
"We just ate an hour ago," Troy informed him to no avail as Chad just waved him off and continued as if he said nothing.
"Oh, and a piece of pizza if it looks good."
"Anything else? I only have two hands you know."
"Four hands…you have Gabriella."
"Right, I'm sure she's going to love having to carry half of the café back to you."
"Oh, if the pizza's not good, then a chicken Caesar salad will be okay."
"A salad? You mean I'm getting you something healthy to eat?"
"Are you implying I don't eat healthy?" Chad asked, pretending to be offended by the comment.
"Let's see, a spicy chicken sandwich, a smoothie, and a slice of pizza…all one hour after you ate three tacos and two enchiladas along with a basket of chips for dinner. Nah man, you're one of the healthiest eaters I know."
"Why thank you Troy," Chad grinned, laughing as Troy just shook his head in disbelief. "Alright hurry up and get out of here so I can make this phone call, and more importantly so I can get my food. Don't take too long with Gabriella now."
"Bye Chad," Troy said, ignoring Chad's teasing tone and not even looking back at his friend who was winking at him.
No doubt his palms were sweating when Troy stopped outside of Gabriella's dorm room, trying to rid himself of his nerves before he knocked on her door. This had to be one of his dumbest ideas yet. Leaving something like this to Chad seemed completely idiotic and he still had no idea why he agreed. Well, that was a lie. He did know that part of him agreed just for the sole reason that he'd be able to spend even a few minutes with Gabriella. But really, aside from that, what was he thinking? Agreeing to let Chad call Sharpay and get her to put the right clothes into Gabriella's suitcase somehow seemed more and more ridiculous the longer he thought about it. But at this point, his only other choice was to come right out and ask Gabriella out, and that was something he wasn't prepared to do yet.
So with another sigh and a brush of his hands on his shirt, Troy knocked on the door, praying that Chad wouldn't screw this up for him. The door swung open to reveal the person Troy wasn't looking for. Instead of the brunette that had been on his mind, in front of him stood a smirking Sharpay, who looked all too excited to see him there.
"Well hello Troooy," she drug his name out in a teasing tone, leaning her head back to Gabriella's side of the room. "What brings you here?" She smiled at him, pausing for just a brief moment before continuing. "Oh who am I kidding? Do I really need to ask why you're here?"
"Uh, hi Sharpay," Troy knew his cheeks were flushing in embarrassment, and he couldn't resist the urge to bring his hand up to rub the back of his neck. "Is Gabi here?"
"Gabi!" Sharpay sung out, turning back into the room without another word to Troy, "your guy is here."
"Sharpay!" Troy couldn't stifle his chuckle when he heard Gabriella scold her roommate in a loud whisper.
A few seconds later, Gabriella's reddened face came out from behind the closet wall, her embarrassment of her roommate evident. "Hi Troy," Gabriella greeted, turning back to send a glare of warning to Sharpay.
"Hi Gabi," Troy replied, his nerves calming a bit when he sensed that she was just as nervous as he was.
"What's up?"
"I was wondering if you wanted to go with me to the Plaza to get some snacks and drinks for the trip tomorrow?"
"Sure, I was just finishing up packing, but that sounds great," Gabriella told him with a smile before turning back to her roommate who was smirking at them still.
"Have fun you two," Sharpay said with a wink and a small wave, laughing as both Gabriella's and Troy's faces flushed.
Gabriella placed a hand on Troy's shoulder, gently pushing him out of the room, trying to ignore her best friend.
"Sorry about that," Gabriella's small voice muttered. "She can be a little…,"
"Crazy?" Troy jumped in.
Gabriella laughed following him out the door of the dorm building into the cool air outside, "Yeah, crazy is a good word to describe her."
The two fell into stride together while walking along the faintly lit sidewalk towards the Plaza Café, their arms brushing every so often, but neither of them moving further apart. "So are you excited for the tournament tomorrow?"
"Yeah! I haven't been to Phoenix in awhile, and I've always loved these long tournaments since high school," Gabriella answered, excitement lighting up her face.
"Same here, these are what can really help gel your team. And I've been looking forward to this specific tournament since they started recruiting me last year," Troy replied, equally ecstatic. "So why is Sharpay still here? I'd thought she'd be at home for break the second she got done with classes…most people are."
"She didn't want to leave me here by myself over the weekend, so she decided to stay. Plus, it's kind of nice to just relax here at school and not have anything to do, you know?"
"Yeah, I know. Chad and I have been taking advantage of the free time by playing lots of video games."
"Chad and you?"
Troy smirked out of the corner of his mouth while he picked up on her teasing tone. "Okay, mainly Chad. And while I'm being honest, we both know that's his normal routine anyways. I don't even know how he passes all of his classes between video games and basketball."
"One of life's mysteries," Gabriella joked, walking through the door to the café as Troy held it open for her.
Gabriella walked back into her dorm room, grinning from ear to ear and not even noticing Sharpay who was staring at her.
"Have fun?"
Gabriella was snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of Sharpay's voice, and a slight blush tinted her cheeks at being caught in her daydream. Troy had just left moments before, but she could still almost feel his lips on her cheek. Even spending just ten minutes with him, completely brightened her day, and all she could think about were the many opportunities to be together that awaited them for the next five days.
"Sorry what?"
"I asked if you had fun," Sharpay repeated, "but from the look on your face, I know the answer to that. Did he kiss you?"
"What?" Gabriella asked, still in a daze.
"Did he kiss you?"
"Just on the cheek."
"Just on the cheek," Sharpay scoffed, amused at the situation. "If you have that type of reaction from him just kissing you on the cheek, I can't imagine how you're going to act when he finally kisses you."
Ignoring her best friend's teasing, Gabriella tossed her bag of snacks and drinks onto her bed beside her suitcase, before piling some of her clothes in. Suddenly, her eyes came across an unfamiliar outfit. Picking it up, she turned around to face Sharpay. "How did this get in my bag?"
"How did what get in your bag?" Sharpay pretended to act dumb, not even looking at the article of clothing and opting instead to busy herself with her own packing.
"Sharpay!"
"What?" Sharpay asked innocently, finally looking up at Gabriella.
"Why is there a dress in my suitcase for the basketball tournament?"
"What makes you think I had something to do with it?" She questioned, failing miserably at her attempts to put up an innocent front. Gabriella just raised her eyebrows, waiting for a confession. "Okay, fine. I put the dress in there in case you needed it."
"What would I need a dress for?"
"In case Troy asks to take you out," Sharpay said in an obvious tone.
"In case Troy asks me out," Gabriella muttered sarcastically under her breath, tossing the dress aside on her bed.
"Oh pleeeeeeeeease," Sharpay responded walking over and placing the dress back in the bag. "That boy is completely smitten with you and I'd bet every single one of my Christmas presents that he'll be asking you out this week."
Gabriella blushed even more at Sharpay's words. Would he really ask her out that week? The thought alone made butterflies erupt in her stomach. But there was no way. They'd all be too busy with basketball that week, and he'd be too busy hanging out with the guys on his team for the two of them to spend much time together.
"Troy will be too busy with other things to ask me out. Besides who takes a dress to a basketball tournament?" Gabriella shook her head, picking up the dress and tossing it back onto her bed before zipping up her packed suitcase. "I'm going to go brush my teeth and change for bed."
Sharpay waited until Gabriella had left the room before she took out all the clothes on the top of Gabriella's suitcase and placed the dress in the bottom. Chad had told her of Troy's plans, and she wasn't about to let her best friend go on a date in jeans and a t-shirt.
"It is way too early," Chad grumbled, rubbing his eyes while he walked towards the bus.
"Dude, it's eight in the morning."
"That's early!" Chad persisted, yawning once more while readjusting the shoulder strap on his bag, the heavy weight of his bag causing him to bump into Troy yet again.
Troy just shook his head in amusement at his best friend, stopping in front of the bus and tossing his own bag in before grabbing Chad's and throwing it in the compartment under the bus as well. Turning back around, Troy felt a huge smile tug at his lips when his eyes fell on Gabriella who was walking towards the bus, dressed in a pair of baggy warm up pants and a hoodie, with her luggage in hand.
Without even a word to Chad, Troy took off running, smiling more when she smiled up at him. "Morning!"
"Morning," Gabriella replied, readjusting her bag on her shoulder. "Chad looks wide awake," Gabriella said sarcastically, nodding towards Chad, who was leaning up against the bus with his eyes closed and mouth halfway open.
"Yeah, he'll probably sleep most of the way there. My advice is to sit far away from him if you don't want to be bothered by snoring."
"That bad huh?"
"Some nights I wear earplugs," Troy teased, earning some laughter from Gabriella which caused him to smile. "Can I take your bag?"
"You don't have to."
"It's no problem," Troy told her, holding out his hand, happy when she placed the bag into his hand.
"Thank you," Gabriella smiled, following Troy over towards the bus.
Troy tossed her bag into the compartment beside where Chad was leaning, fast asleep, the noise startling him from his dreams. "Dude, you have a little bit of drool…," Troy informed him, motioning on his own face to the corner of his mouth.
Blinking his eyes a few times, Chad finally brushed the drool off his face, smiling sheepishly at Gabriella and Troy who were standing in front of him, holding back their laughter.
"Come on man, the bus is loading," Troy said, pushing Chad's shoulder causing him to stumble forward while Gabriella and Troy followed behind.
The two guys let Gabriella and a few other girls board the bus first before following behind. Troy's eyes hadn't left Gabriella, and he watched as she took a seat towards the back by herself. Knowing he'd get teased by Chad, but not caring one bit, Troy walked towards her, stopping beside the row of seats.
"Mind if I sit here?"
Gabriella smiled up at Troy, shaking her head and shifting a bit before gesturing for him to sit down.
"Thanks," Troy smiled back at her as he sat down, their gazes locked, both oblivious to everything else and unaware they were staring. They were brought out of their stares though when Chad flopped down in the seat in front of them, turning around and hopping up on his knees to get their attention.
"Hey man, I see how it is," Chad said, trying to slyly wink but failing miserably. "Gabriella," Chad greeted the blushing brunette with a smile, while Troy rolled his eyes, embarrassed by his friend.
"Hi Chad," Gabriella giggled. "Troy, you can sit with Chad if you want. Don't feel like you have to sit here."
Troy started to respond but he was quickly interrupted by his ever-annoying roommate. "Oh, trust me, he doesn't feel like he has to. He's right where he wants to be, right Troy?" Chad teased, punching Troy playfully.
Rubbing his shoulder after Chad had punched him, Troy gritted his teeth and glared at his friend, attempting to cover up his look with a smile. His glare prompted a cowering Chad to lean back in his seat. "Shut up Chad."
"Love you too buddy," Chad grinned cheekily before sitting back down and starting a conversation with one of his teammates.
Troy brought his hand up to rub his forehead, wincing under his breath before turning back to face Gabriella. "Sorry about that. I guess I should have brought some duct tape."
Gabriella's giggles brought Troy out of his embarrassed daze, and he soon found himself giving into his nervous chuckle, while his eyes lit up as he watched her. He was definitely looking forward to not only the week ahead, but also spending the next seven hour drive to Phoenix with her by his side.
"So are you ready to get away for a week?" Troy asked a few minutes later when the bus pulled away from the curb.
"Definitely," Gabriella admitted with a sigh of relief.
"Going to miss your family?" Troy asked, picking up that something more was on her mind.
"A little bit. I will miss Ethan for sure, but actually I'm looking forward to not being around most of my family for the next few days."
"How come?"
"Honestly?" Troy nodded, encouraging her to continue. "My family, especially my dad, has been a bit pushy lately…basically trying to dictate my life a little too much."
"How so?"
Gabriella couldn't help but feel flattered at Troy showing so much interest. Every time they spent time together she found herself regretting the fact that they'd spent so much time being indifferent to one another growing up, all because of a stupid family quarrel. It was obvious to her that Troy was a genuinely sweet guy, and she realized that the more he showed interest in her, the harder she was falling for him. A few weeks ago, she would have never opened up to him the way she was about to, but she knew she could now.
"You know Michael?"
Troy forced a nod, feeling his anger boil inside as his demeanor changed a bit.
"Well, my dad has been pushing me a lot lately to go out with him. They even invited him and his family over for dinner this week, but I told them I wouldn't be back the night they were planning it. I've told my dad so many times that I don't like Michael and that he's a jerk, but my dad just doesn't see it. Apparently it doesn't matter to him what I want in life," Gabriella finished, her own anger rising as her grip on the seat tightened.
A few seconds later though, Gabriella felt her anger dissipate while a sense of calmness took over her. She glanced down at her hand, smiling at the reason for that calmness. Troy had boldly placed a warm, comforting hand over hers, and he hadn't removed it yet, but instead squeezed her hand gently in his. "I'm sorry your dad is putting you through this. Michael is a jerk and you definitely deserve way better than him."
Gabriella grinned at Troy's sincerity, her lips tugging upwards into a wider smile when Troy's eyes connected with hers.
"Aww Troy, that was so touching. Do share who in fact she deserves to be with," Chad teased, interrupting their moment which only lasted for a few seconds as Troy suddenly found himself wishing they would have sat as far away from Chad as possible.
Glaring at Chad, Troy paused for a moment, forcing a smile on his face while looking at Gabriella. "Just one second."
Unwillingly releasing his grip on her hand, Troy stood up and grabbed Chad's pillow that was next to him before proceeding to whack Chad over the head with it twice before sitting back down with a small grin, pretending as if nothing happened. "Sorry about that again. I promise to invest in some duct tape before our trip back home."
"It's okay," Gabriella laughed, finding the whole situation so funny that she was nearly unaffected by Chad's embarrassing comments.
The two didn't say anything for a few moments as Troy was still far too embarrassed by his roommate. However, Gabriella broke the silence finally, bringing her hand over to grip his this time. "Thank you Troy."
Nothing more was said. Instead Troy just flashed her a smile and flipped his hand over, entwining his fingers through hers causing butterflies to spread through both of their bodies. As the drive went on, their hands never separated, but stayed intertwined between them as neither wanted to let go. An hour into the trip, Gabriella had fallen asleep, her hand still clasped with his, while her head drifted to fall on his shoulder. Unable to resist, Troy let his own head rest on hers before his eyes slowly shut. The two were completely in their own world, oblivious to everyone around them, and not even aware of Chad anymore as he turned around and took a few pictures of them, confident that they'd thank him later.
