Love Song Requiem

by: LunarEclipse360

Disclaimer:...nothing

A/N: anyone else noticed I keep updating this along side Beautiful Disaster? Don't ask why cause I don't know the answer to that one.

Chapter 10

Troy found himself lying on the grass of the Danforth's backyard, staring at the sky the next day. Chad walked out of the house and sat down beside his best friend, handing him a beer. Troy took the bottle out of his hand and sat up.

"You know, moping like this will get you nowhere," Chad commented and Troy glared at him. "I'm just saying. Gabriella isn't gonna forgive you anytime soon, so why go through all the trouble of trying?"

"Because I want her to. I want it to be like it used to be."

"Troy, it's never gonna be like it used to be. She's engaged to be married. There's no way you're gonna get back what you gave up."

"Thank you, Chad, for reminding me of my stupidity," he said sarcastically.

"I'm sorry, but it's true. You're acting like she's just gonna come back to you. You hurt her pretty badly. Worse than anything you've ever done in the past."

"I know, but..."

"No buts, Troy. Face it, you're gonna have to get used to the fact that she belongs to someone else."

"Then what am I supposed to do? I don't want her to be mad at me anymore."

"Truthfully, I don't know, but I suggest you think of something quick. Who knows how long she's gonna be here." Troy nodded and took a sip of his beer. Laughter reached their ears and they turned around, watching as Taylor and Gabriella walked out of the house. "Ooo. I smell food." Chad jumped up and ran over to the girls with Troy following slowly behind. "Hey, Tay," Chad said, kissing his wife on the cheek. "You know I love you right?"

"Do you love me or my cooking?"

"You, of course." Taylor gave him a skeptical look before turning her eyes to Troy.

"Why did he really come over here?"

"The food," Troy answered and Chad glared at him.

"Oh, thanks a lot, best friend," Chad said sarcastically and Troy smiled.

"You're welcome." Troy's eyes wandered over to the silent brunette sitting down on the lawn chair. She could feel his eyes on her, but she refused to look up. "Dude, you wanna play one-on-one?" he asked Chad and his best friend nodded.

"Sure. Let's go. Just don't come crying to me when I beat you."

"Please. You haven't been able to beat me since junior high."

"Wanna bet?"

"Sure. Fifty bucks says I beat you."

"Deal." The two shook hands and headed to the basketball court in the middle of the yard. Taylor shook her head and sat down beside Gabriella.

"Those two..." She looked over at Gabriella, who had her eyes intently on Troy. "You know," Taylor started and Gabriella quickly turned her attention away from the guys. "Even after all the stupid shit he did, he's changed."

"Maybe he has, maybe he hasn't." Gabriella turned her eyes back on the two playing basketball. "Either way, I can't forgive him."

"You can. You just don't want to." Gabriella sighed and looked at her hands. "I know that I've always been against him ever since high school, but I've noticed that you seem...happier when he was around you."

"Tay, you know I can't do anything. I'm getting married to the man I love."

"I know, but I'm not saying anything like getting back together; I'm talking about maybe becoming friends with him."

"No. No way."

"Come on, Gabriella. You could call it his first step into getting you to trust him again."

"I'm not doing it, Tay. I won't."

"Fine. Keep him out of your life. All you're doing is killing something that made your life better." Gabriella didn't want to think about what Taylor said, but she couldn't help but do just that.

"What do you think they're talking about?" Chad asked as they stopped to take a break.

"Girl stuff probably." Chad nodded and passed Troy the ball. "So have any bright ideas popped into your mind?"

"Well, one."

"And that would be...?"

"Get her to be friends with you."

"There's no way she would want to be friends with me."

"Yeah, but it's a shot. You never know unless you try."

"I guess you're right."

"Damn right, I'm right." Troy rolled his eyes and went to make a shot.

"Let's just get back to the game."

Gabriella didn't realize how into the game she was until her phone rang. She reached for it in her pocket and pulled it out.

"Hello?"

"Hey. Are you gonna be home anytime soon?"

"I wasn't planning on coming home right away, but if you need me there, I'll come."

"Okay. Good cause I need the car. I have to go to the post office in town and mail something."

"Oh. Okay, then I'll be home in a few." She ended the call and turned to Taylor. "I gotta go. I'll see you later." Taylor nodded and Gabriella made her way to her car.

She arrived home minutes later, finding Daniel waiting outside for her. She hopped out the car and he hopped in. She watched him drive down the driveway and disappear around the street before going inside.

"Mom!" she called.

"In the kitchen." She walked into the kitchen and saw her mother cooking.

"Hey. Need any help?"

"Yeah. You can do the potatoes." Gabriella picked up one of the four bags of potatoes and gave her mother a confused look.

"How many people are you cooking for? Five?" she asked with a laugh.

"Six, actually."

"I was kidding, mom."

"I wasn't"

"Mama say what?"

"I asked the Bolton's over, including Troy."

"What? Mom, do you not realize that I cannot be in the same room with Troy for a few minutes? What makes you think I can be in the same room for an hour or so?"

"Gabriella, please, just try being civil with him."

"Why should I?"

"Because you're still stuck on the past. Let's try and move on. His parents are very good friends of mine and if I want to invite them over then I can."

"I have no problem with them, it's just him."

"Please, just get along with him for one night. That's all I ask of you."

"Fine, but don't expect me to acknowledge him."

"That's fine with me. Here," she said handing Gabriella a bowl. "You can put the peeled potatoes in this." Gabriella took the bowl and sat down to begin taking the skin of the potatoes.

With the two women working together, it wasn't long before all the food was ready to be eaten. Daniel had come back an hour after Gabriella started helping her mother and was put to work by his future mother-in-law. She made him tidy up and set the table.

The door rang around six and Gabriella went to answer it. She smiled when she saw Jack and Lucille Bolton on the other side.

"Gabriella!" Lucille squealed before throwing her arms around the twenty five year old. "I can't believe your back."

"Hi, Lucille," she said hugging the woman back.

"Oh, you don't know how much I've missed you."

"I've missed you too." They pulled away and Gabriella caught sight of the man she saw as a second father. "Hi, Jack." He pulled her into his arms and lifted her up slightly.

"Good to see you back home."

"Good to be back home." He set her down just as Daniel walked into the room. "Jack, Lucille, this is Daniel. He's my fiancè."

"It's nice to meet you," Lucille said shaking his hand.

"Same here." Daniel and Jack exchanged a quiet greeting before they were all ushered into the dining room. The doorbell rang and Gabriella's mother went to answer it.

"Hello, Troy," she said with a smile.

"Hi, Theresa," he said before giving her a hug.

"Come on in. You're parents are already here."

"Yeah. I saw their car." He walked in and saw Gabriella sitting beside Daniel and across from his mother. His smile dropped and he walked into the dining room, taking a seat across from her. She looked up and smiled politely at him. He didn't know what was going on, but returned the smile.

"Troy, Gabriella, do you think you two could help me bring the food out?" Carmen asked and they nodded. They got up and followed her into the kitchen. Once she had grabbed something and left, Troy turned to Gabriella.

"So..."

"That smile was nothing more than me trying, and I use that word loosely, to get along with you for the sake of my mother. I still will not forgive you for what you did." She left the kitchen and he sighed.

"I can't take this anymore," he said to himself before walking into the dining room. He put the food on the table and took his place across from her.

Throughout dinner, Troy stayed silent. His eyes would sometimes wander over to Gabriella, but mostly remained on his food. None of the conversations sparked his interest, especially not the ones involving Gabriella's engagement to Daniel.

"I'm just glad Gabriella found someone that makes her happy," Jack said and Gabriella smiled. "It was just a total bust with these two." That statement caught Troy's attention and he looked over at his father before looking at Gabriella, who looked shocked.

"Wait, what?" Daniel said.

"It's nothing," she said and Troy rolled his eyes.

"Stop avoiding it and tell him," Troy said and she glared at him.

"Why don't you stay out of my business."

"It's not just your business if it involves both of us."

"It is just my business since he's my fiancè"

"He may be, but he still deserves to know."

"Okay you two, stop fighting," Theresa said and they stopped, still glaring at one another. "Let's get back to eating."

"I'm not hungry anymore. May I be excused?" Gabriella asked and her mother sighed, but nodded. She got up and went out to the backyard. Troy watched her until she could no longer be seen then turned back to his food.

"Troy, go apologize," his mother said and he looked up at her.

"But..."

"Go," she said sternly and he sighed before getting up. He went out back and saw her sitting on the bench swing. He stuck his hands in his pockets before walking over to her.

"May I sit down?" he asked and she looked up at him.

"Yeah. Go ahead." As soon as he sat down she stood up and began walking back inside.

"Gabriella," he said and got up, grabbing her arm. "Gabriella, can we just talk for two seconds?" She turned around and looked at him. "What do I have to do to get you to at least talk to me again?"

"There's nothing you can do." She pulled her arm from his grip and started to walk away. He ran in front of her, stopping her in her tracks.

"There has to be something." She refused to look at him, so she focused on one of the trees in the distance. "Come on, Ella. You can't be that mad at me that we can't at least form some kind of truce." She looked up at him, her brown eyes glazed over.

"You think that you can just utter my nickname and everything will be alright? Well, it's not, Troy. It's not alright. Even after I met Daniel, I cried myself to sleep every night for six months. Six straight months I couldn't get my mind off of what you had done. How am I supposed to forgive you for that?"

He stayed silent for a few seconds before reaching up to stroke her cheek. "I don't know what to say." She moved away from his hand and glared at him. "I know you're tired of hearing me say that I'm sorry, but it's all I can say. I'm sorry for being such an idiot. I'm sorry for breaking your heart."

She shook her head, looking away from him, and ran a hand through her hair. "You just don't get it. You don't get that what you did was far beyond repair."

He groaned and said angrily, "What do you want from me? I've tried to talk to you, but you don't seem to listen. Do you hate me that much?" She looked up at him, her eyes displaying her emotions. "What did I do, Gabriella? What did I do to make you hate me so much?" he asked, his eyes searching hers for an answer.

"You hurt me," she said softly. "You promised you wouldn't hurt me again."

He froze, knowing what she said was true. Reaching up, subconsciously, he pushed a strand of hair from her face. She closed her eyes, relinquishing all thoughts that told her to move away. "I never meant to."

Opening her eyes, she stared into his and shook her head. "But you did." She pulled away from his touch and ran inside, not stopping until she reached her bedroom.

A/N: I found the ending to be so sad.