Troy glanced at Gabriella from across the cafeteria table. Usually he sat next to her and Taylor sat next to Chad, but due to a terrible conflict between Taylor and Chad, Troy and Gabriella needed to sit apart for that one day.
"Chad, you can be so annoying at times," Taylor commented to her boyfriend.
"Oh, yeah? Well at least I'm not half as annoying as you," Chad defended himself.
"Please stop this," Troy said. "Or else Gabriella and I are moving to a different table. We want to have a relaxing lunch, and here you are-Chad-ruining it. Like you ruin everything else."
"Troy, why are you acting like this? Taylor's part of the fight for one, and for two, I don't want everyone going crazy on me, especially right before graduation," Chad responded.
"Because, I'm already very upset about the fact that you never let Gabriella and I have any moments together. Now you won't let us have a peaceful lunch, either? I don't know what your problem is. Just because you don't have a close bond with your girlfriend doesn't mean I don't have one with mine."
"Dude, we've been like brothers up until this point. Don't tell me you're going off into a whole different direction! First you say you're not going to U of A, and then you act like you're forty rather than eighteen-"
"I am not acting like I'm forty!"
"Are so! Old men are the ones who talk like love is the greatest thing ever. You're barely old enough to get married! Have some fun with your life!"
"My dad's forty-five, and he doesn't talk like that!" Troy protested.
"Your dad's awesome."
"Troy, can we see about that other table now?" Gabriella requested sweetly.
"We most certainly can," Troy answered, getting up from his seat.
"I cannot believe Chad's behavior!" Troy exclaimed in anger later that day, when he was sitting on his bed with Gabriella. "Well, actually I can, but he's so annoying! I can't even stand him anymore!"
"He just needs to learn to appreciate love," Gabriella told her boyfriend.
"But it seems like it's taking forever!"
"Trust me-I'm not too thrilled with Chad's behavior, either."
"The way he's going, he's gonna have no friends and no girlfriend for a very long time."
"I know."
Troy suddenly grabbed Gabriella and pulled her protectively close to him. "And it especially makes me mad when he tries to tear me away from you. Nothing can make me move away from you!"
"I think you already proved that."
That evening after dinner, Gabriella walked at Troy's side as he went up to Jack to talk to him about not going to U of A. "Dad," he began.
"Yeah, Troy?" Jack spoke.
"I need to talk to you. I'm not going to U of A."
"What?" Jack looked at his son intently, his mouth half open in shock. "What?" he repeated.
"I'm going to Berkeley."
"Berkeley University? Troy, you've dreamed of U of A ever since you were a little boy! I don't know what got into you. Chad will be so disappointed that his best friend isn't joining him at college."
"Chad will be able to handle it fine. It's Gabriella I'm worried about. I need to be close to her, Dad. After we graduate, our relationship is going to change. Most high school kids' do. And most end in a break-up. But I don't want ours to be like that."
"You'll be disappointing everyone, though-me, your grandfather, your uncle, Chad, Zeke, Jason...."
"Just because there's a Bolton history at U of A doesn't mean I need to keep the tradition. I care about something more than basketball. And my friends-they'll be able to live without me."
"But basketball's been your life since you were six."
"I changed. I like other things; like theater. At Berkeley, I can take both basketball and theater, and still be close to Gabriella," Troy said.
"When you got detention on Gabriella's first day at East High, I knew something was up. And I didn't like her at first. But then I got used to the idea of you two dating, and found that she was a good influence on you. But now-independently choosing her over your lifelong friends?"
"Gabriella, you might want to go," Troy suggested.
Gabriella took her boyfriend's advice and exited the room.
"What are you thinking, Troy?" Jack demanded.
"I'm thinking that I'll be happier going to Berkeley, where I can learn more than basketball and be close to Gabriella. She might not be my lifelong friend, but she's my girlfriend, and I feel closest to her than to anyone else I know."
"Even Chad? You two are like brothers!"
"Not anymore. Chad's being a pain in the butt right now."
"Why? What'd he do to you?"
"I want to tell Gabriella how I feel about her, but I never can because he always is right there to butt in and ruin the moment. I finally told him off yesterday, and now I'm in a fight with him."
"You can't do stuff like this!"
"I can. Maybe Chad just isn't a good friend anymore."
"What? Maybe Chad isn't a good friend anymore? What do you mean?"
"I mean, Gabriella's a better friend than Chad."
"What does she understand about basketball? You can't talk with her about jump shots, or defense, or the size of the lockers in the Wildcats' locker room."
"Maybe not, but I can talk to her about how I feel about going off to college, how I feel about my entire future. How I want to do things I'm scared you and all of my friends won't approve of."
"Keep your head in the game! You can be a professional basketball player more easily than you think. Don't quit trying now."
"You think my life's just a game, then?"
"Don't you think that?"
"Why do I feel like I'm talking to Chad? You're saying things that sound exactly like what he would say!"
"Maybe because you're going crazy for some girl you think you have a future with. What happens when she dumps you for some Stanford guy?"
"She won't dump me. I trust that she won't. She's not that kind of girl."
"I just can't bring myself to believe you're making the right choice here."
"I know what I need. And what I need is to be with Gabriella. If we're together, everything will be fine; we can make it through anything. But if we're not, who knows what would happen?"
"Alright. I guess it is your choice. If you really think Gabriella is the one for you, then go to Berkeley. Just don't blame me if something goes wrong."
"So you're okay with it now? Good."
"Yes, I guess I'll have to. I mean, it's your decision."
"So, how'd things go with telling your mom about Berkeley?" Gabriella wondered that night as she got into bed next to Troy. About an hour after talking to his dad about his college decision, he had talked to his mother about it.
"It went better than how it went with my dad," Troy answered. "My mom knows better about how I feel about being close to you than my dad does. In some ways, my dad and Chad are alike."
Gabriella giggled. "I didn't know I was staying in a house with a second Chad."
"I guess I should've warned you before you came."
"No; it's alright."
Troy smiled. "Well, anyway, we'd better get to sleep." He leaned over and placed a kiss onto Gabriella's lips. "Good night, sweetheart. Sweet dreams."
"Good night, Wildcat," Gabriella returned as she kissed Troy back.
Hey, I have a new story, Whatever it Takes! Please check it out!
