A/N: I know it's not that long but it needs to be here. The next chapter will be better, I promise :) Enjoy x

Chapter Eight

Why the fuck did I kiss her?

Well, he knew exactly why he'd kissed her: she talked and she listened and she made him feel. At the lake, he felt hurt and upset and happy and wanted and everything in between. He'd spent the best part of the year pushing everything away and she just made him feel everything, seemingly without doing anything at all.

And, of course, even in that stained bra and old panties, she was by far the sexiest girl at East High. What's more, she knew she was attractive but she didn't flaunt it. Her daily yoga sessions gave her toned legs and a slim waist, her tanned skin shimmered in the afternoon sun, and she hid it all beneath jeans and t shirts.

Troy turned the volume of his iPod up a little bit more, allowing Joplin's The Entertainer to deafen him. It was the first full length piece he ever learned and honestly? He hated it. It was chirpy and cheesy and too repetitive. But it comforted him.

Gabriella was going to hate him. He just knew it.

The ride back to her house had been silent and awkward. Her hands on his stomach, her breath on his neck, her chest pressed against his back. He could barely concentrate on the road. At her house, she promised to meet him for free period the following day and even kissed his cheek. She didn't show signs of hating him but how else would she react?

God, what was she doing to him?

When was the last time he kissed a girl? A few months ago on his date with Amanda Shepherd. She was cute and sweet but he didn't feel anything when he was with her, so there was no second date.

However, Gabriella made him feel everything.

He glanced at the clock on his phone. 2:34AM.

He took off his headphones and headed down to the kitchen. He poured some milk and warmed it in the microwave.

Overhead, the light suddenly burst to life, casting shadows around him. He turned to find his mother standing in the doorway, a robe wrapped around her body. He rolled his eyes and turned back to the microwave as it beeped.

"Troy are you okay?"

He didn't turn to her but nodded.

He heard her step closer and felt her place her hand on his shoulder. "Do you want to talk about anything?"

Yes, I want to talk about the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, I want to talk about who I am without basketball. Hell, I want to talk about Gabriella Montez.

"No," he mumbled, taking his warm milk back to his room.

The following day at school, Troy wanted to scream. For everybody else, it was a normal day; nothing had changed. But for him, everything was different. How could they not see that he had kissed an amazing girl last night?

He braced himself for the onslaught of Gabriella's anger, but nothing happened. She waved to him as she walked into school with Noah, she smiled at him in homeroom, and she even defended him when Mr Miller yelled at him for being late again.

She didn't seem like she would cheat on the Lawbreaker, but she also didn't seem like the type to lead him on. So where did that leave him?

He wondered if she'd told the Lawbreaker yet. Or anybody else for that matter. Probably not.

It was almost free period and Troy was honestly terrified. This would tell him exactly what Gabriella thought of him. She would either say that she'd broken up with the Lawbreaker or that she only saw Troy as a friend. If she showed up at all. And if she didn't go to the rooftop, her absence would speak for itself.

After math, he went to the bathroom on his way to the rooftop, the fear in his stomach almost paralysing him. He was washing his hands when the door opened and Zeke walked in, a bright smile spreading over his face.

"Hey, Troy. How have you been?" he asked quietly.

Troy dried his hands on a bunch of paper towels and shrugged. "I'm okay. I'm fine. Gabriella told me you're with Sharpay now?"

The African-American shuffled his shoes. "Yeah. About four months now."

"So all those cookies actually worked?" Troy exclaimed, unable to hide his shock. Zeke had been in love with Sharpay since freshman year and had baked her 'Sharpay Cookies' everyday in an attempt to woo her.

Zeke laughed and shook his head. "Actually, she told me on our one month anniversary that she hates cookies. She only ate them because she liked me so much."

Troy was happy for Zeke but he was only reminded of how much he missed his friends.

"Listen, we understand why you don't want to hang out with us. But if you ever want to have lunch with us or play some video games, we'd really like that," Zeke said quietly.

"Thanks, but I have to go," he said, suddenly feeling claustrophobic.

Without waiting for a response, he left the bathroom and headed up to the rooftop. He paused at the bottom of the staircase, leaning against the wall. The melodious sounds of Gabriella's violin floated down to him and he was overcome with memories of the previous day. She listened to him like he was the most important person in the world and she was the only person to tell him he was a better person without basketball. And when she kissed him back, he knew everything would be okay. Even if she didn't want to be friends anymore.

Taking a deep breath, he slowly climbed the stairs. When he emerged onto the roof, he was welcomed by the fresh Albuquerque air, the mountains rising up on the horizon, and the view of Gabriella sitting on the bench. In the natural light, he could see some dark red in her raven hair; she must have dyed it last night. Her violin was tucked under her chin and she moved the bow across the strings seemingly on instinct. Her eyes were closed and she looked completely at ease with her instrument.

For a moment, he just watched her play. He didn't want to disturb her and he didn't know what to say.

But eventually, he cleared his throat, breaking her from her peace.

She pulled the bow away and lowered the violin to her lap. "Oh, Troy, thank god you're here. I need your help."

He stayed where he was, still waiting for her to lash out in anger.

Instead, she put her violin back in its case and brought out a notebook. "What scenes were we supposed to read for drama? I forgot to write it down."

That made him step forward and sit next to her. Why wasn't she talking about what happened? Wasn't that what girls wanted? To talk? The last girl he went on a date with deemed him 'emotionally unavailable' because he wouldn't talk about his accident.

Deciding that avoiding the topic was better than Gabriella yelling at him, he said, "Act two, scenes four to seven. But Ms Darbus said there's extra credit if you can compare it to Cat On A Hot Tin Roof."

She nodded, scribbling something in her notebook. "Thank you."

He occupied himself by digging out his composition notebook, intent on working on the audition piece he had mere months to finish. Assuming he would be invited for an audition. He dropped his bag to the floor and reread what he had so far. There were several inches between him and Gabriella and yet he could feel her body heat, hear her breaths. Hell, he could still feel her lips on his own. Overwhelmed by these feelings, he added a few more notes.

Bizarrely, it seemed like the more he felt for Gabriella, the better he could write his music.