Disclaimer: I don't own HSM or any HSM characters.
A/N: I'm SO sorry for the incredibly late update. I FINALLY found the time to finish my first story :) Thanks to all the readers, reviewers, everyone who put my story on alert or favourites and those who put me on their favourite list and author alert list. Thank you, it meant a lot to know that people didn't think my story sucked, lol.
The title of the story is from a song but this story is not based on it. The song is "Call Him Mine" by Tata Young. Oh, I don't own this song either.
Anyways, here's the last chapter. I made it long. Thanks for reading and enjoy :)
Chapter 10
Failure.
His plan- more like the many failed attempts- to get Gabriella and Troy together weren't working. He was all but ready to give up and Kristen was getting frustrated. She made it very clear she wanted to give up as well when she told Ryan to meet up with her after school in the gym and yelled at him, venting her frustration at the situation.
"What happened to your great plan?!" she yelled, her voice echoing in the huge gym. She didn't even wait for Ryan to reply.
"Oh wait- there wasn't just one freaking plan but at least a million others. Seriously, this is getting ridiculous. We don't have much time you know. Prom is two weeks away and soon it will be graduation and if Gabriella and Troy don't resolve things it's going to be your entire fault! You and your stupid failed plans. I mean, come on, how the hell did you plan to get the two together by making them do the school musical? Ridiculous I tell you, ridiculous!" she yelled dramatically, she couldn't help it.
Ryan just stood there listening to her rant.
'How is everything my fault? What the hell is her problem? Does she expect me to take the blame?' he thought, annoyed.
"Well do you have a better plan?! I don't need you yelling at me and acting like such a brat. Do you think this its easy for me to make up these plans? You don't even appreciate the trouble I went to creating those plans. And you know what?! You shouldn't even be talking, you haven't given any suggestions! I took the responsibility, you didn't." he said bitterly.
Kristen stared at Ryan, stunned by his reaction. She never expected Ryan to sound so cold; in fact no one at school would ever talk to her like that. Silence took over as the two blonds glared at each other slightly before Kristen caved.
"You-you're right… I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell at you." she said shamefully, as she made her way to the bleachers and sat down.
"It's just that I really want the two of them to get together and its frustrating knowing they might not because of us." she added, looking over to Ryan.
"I know." he replied.
"If only Gabriella wasn't so damn stubborn we wouldn't even be in this mess."
They thought it would be easy getting Gabriella and Troy together but it was actually… really hard. Luck wasn't on their side.
"Anyways, prom is coming up and…" he started
"Yeah?"
"Well… Gabriella asked me to go with her."
"What?!"
"Just as friends. It's not a big deal."
"But it is a big deal. If Troy found out… he'll be so jealous." she said. Ryan thought she was joking. Ryan didn't even reply to her comment, he was laughing so hard his eyes were watering up.
"Troy… jealous? Of me? Yeah right." he replied. The thought of Troy Bolton actually being jealous of him, Ryan Evans was hard to believe.
"Well, you got the girl. He didn't."
"Yeah but he had her from the start, I was just in the way." he said.
"No, you were never in the way. You were there for her when she needed a friend, a shoulder to lean on. You didn't mess things up; you helped her through it."
"Yeah, I guess so."
Ryan groaned, remembering their problem.
"Why oh why did your best friend have to mess everything up by opening his big mouth?" he complained.
Kristen chuckled lightly. "You know Troy didn't mean those words. It was just all a misunderstanding. I told you this already… Gabriella didn't hear the whole conversation between Chad and Troy."
"I know… I feel so helpless though. Couldn't we just tell her the truth?" he asked.
"No, because I think it's better if Troy told her. We weren't there, so we don't know what really happened. To fully convince her, someone who was actually there during the conversation should tell her." she replied.
"Okay, let's hope your right." he said, sighing. Taking a seat beside her, both their shoulders touching slightly.
There was silence again both lost in their own thoughts until Kristen shrieked in his ear.
"What the hell woman?! Are you trying to make me deaf?" he yelled.
"Oops, sorry." she said. "But oh my god! I have the perfect plan." she added, smiling mischievously.
2 weeks later.
This was it. Tonight was Prom Night! It was a night to make new memories and relive old ones and everyone was excited. Gabriella and her friends were no exception, she had found the perfect dress and couldn't wait.
She was finally graduating and going to prom, something she thought would be impossible. Gabriella assumed that when the time came she wouldn't be able to attend her senior prom because of her mom's company. Now those were far away thoughts as she got ready. Slipping on her dress and putting her curly hair up in sexy messy up-do, she felt nothing could ruin her night. Next she put on her make-up, basic eyeliner and mascara on her long, thick eyelashes making them standout even more.
Ryan was picking her up in just a few minutes, along with Sharpay, Taylor and Kelsi. Ryan and Sharpay suggested that they should use their limo. Taylor, Kelsi and Gabriella protested that it really wasn't necessary but the twins ignored them- convincing them it was okay. Besides they couldn't say no to Sharpay.
Gabriella looked at the clock in her bedroom.
'They should be here any minute now.'
A second later she heard the limo honk.
"Gabriella the limo's here!" Her mom called.
'Right on time.'
She slipped on her gold heels and grabbed her small gold clutch.
"I'll be there in a second!"
Taking one more glance in the mirror, she couldn't help but beam. She had to admit she looked pretty good.
She quickly applied some lip gloss and then made her way downstairs. 'This is it. Prom here I come.'
After taking a million pictures- her mother insisted- they finally reached the hotel where prom was being held.
Arriving in style, the five friends linked arms and made their way into the ball room, they were in awe at how beautiful everything looked. They, of course, all looked fabulous.
Sharpay was wearing a silver halter-top dress with a plunging v-neck. The halter top part was covered in some type of stones or beads which stopped right under the bust and fitted her nicely. From under the bust down the rest of the dress flowed down to touch the floor. Her hair was in her trade-mark blonde locks, curly and styled to perfection.
Kelsi decided to wear a spaghetti strap (about two fingers in width) dark blue dress that ended above her knees. The dark blue contrasted nicely with her light skin nicely. The dress was tight showing off her curves. Her hair was in a sleek pony-tail, the ends slightly curled. Taylor was wearing a strapless gold dress that hugged her bust and showed off her body and flowed down, stopping under her knees. Her hair was done up in pretty curls.
The girls were so in awe, they didn't notice Kristen secretly wink at Ryan. It was code for everything was ready and set up. Now all they had to do was wait for the moment to come and it was driving Ryan crazy.
'Please god, let this work. I'm begging you here. If this doesn't work…' Ryan thought.
Meanwhile, Kristen was also nervous but trying to keep a calm face.
'If this doesn't work… I would be preventing Gabriella from having true happiness and then she'll be one of those angry bitter women who hate love and resent all that mushy stuff. If this doesn't work I would ruin her love life and her future relationships, marriages and children…' Kristen's face paled at the thought. 'Crap. Crap, crap, crap, crap. CRAP. Not good. NOT. GOOD. Great, now I'm hyperventilating. Okay… breathe Kristen. In. Out.'
At the same time Ryan was trying to get rid of his nerves, he tried not to anticipate the worst.
'I'm over reacting. I just need to calm down. Yeah… that's it just… calm down. Nothing to worry about. No pressure.'
"Ryan? Ryan! Helloooo? Anyone there? RYAN!" called a voice.
"What, huh? What?"
"Are you okay?" she asked
"Yeah, sorry Gaby I just… spaced out."
"You're always spacing out. Anyways, let's go find our table!" she said, motioning to one of the tables.
"Yeah, let's go." he replied, trying to make sure his voice sounded calm.
Before they could go in, she pulled him aside.
"Wait, first… do I look okay?" she asked shyly. She asked Ryan because she knew he would tell her the truth.
Taking a second to check, he approved. Pushing a piece of hair that was in her face, he gave her a smile.
She really did look beautiful. If she had that kind of effect on him- someone who no longer didn't have any romantic feelings for her. Then Troy's was going to go crazy.
"Now your ready."
His eyes just about popped out of his eye sockets the minute he saw her. To him she looked that good. The way he looked at her was like a boy who was whipped. He had it bad for her. He just wished she felt the same way. Little did he know, she did.
She was wearing a red dress that went all the way down to the floor and hugged her body. (A/N: Ironic really, since Gabriella in my story dislikes East High colours.) It fit her perfectly; no one else could have pulled it off as well as her. (A/N: Picture that dress Vanessa Hudgens wore to the High School Musical 2 LA Premiere and where Zac Efron was wearing that really light pale blue shirt and grey pants.)
Watching Ryan tuck a curl behind her ear and watching Gabriella link arms with him to walk to their assigned table made Troy a little jealous. 'I'm suppose to be that guy with her. I thought they broke up?'
His thoughts were pushed aside as Troy heard his name being called.
"Troy! Dude, you're always spacing out nowadays. Come on, we're gonna find our table." said Chad.
"Huh? Yeah, yeah- Let's go." He said, following the group.
He met up with his date. Kristen. Just like Ryan and Gabriella, the two were going together as friends.
"Well, well, well don't you look nice for once." said Kristen, jokingly.
"Ha. I can say the same for you." he replied.
"Hmmm, trying to impress someone I see." said Kristen, ignoring his remark.
"Nahhh."
"Riiiight. Okay, there buddy." she replied, raising one eyebrow. She could tell he was lying from the light blush on his cheeks.
"Come on, everyone's waiting." he said clearing his throat, ignoring Kristen's comment and followed the group. Leaving Kristen to catch up with an amused look on her face.
'He has it bad.'
The music was blasting and laughter was in the air. The graduating class of East High was enjoying their time, dancing the night away. Now came the time to announce Prom King and Queen…
Many students already knew who was going to win but were none the less excited.
"East High's 2008 Prom King is… none other than Troy Bolton!" announced Mr Matsui.
Cheers erupted loudly from the room. No surprise there. Of course Troy Bolton would be prom king, it was only fitting.
'Crap.' he thought, he knew he would win. He just hated the part where he had to walk up to the stage and stand there in front of his classmates. It was flattering but it was something he wasn't really comfortable with.
As he stood on the stage, his eyes scanned through the crowd. Looking for that one person he really wanted to impress.
'She has to notice me now…'
He continued to look desperately but he still couldn't find her anywhere in the room.
'Where is she?'
Gabriella sighed.
This was supposed to be a fun night. And she was having a really good time at first but then… but then she HAD to notice him looking cuter than ever. She HAD to notice him having fun with his friends. She HAD to notice the glances he would give her and let it get to her.
When she saw him, all these thoughts came flooding back. Her hopes of forgiving him and becoming more than friends bothered her. She was sure she had let all those feelings go.
That's why precisely at this moment she was not in the ball room but up on the roof, trying to calm down.
She left the table, making up some excuse about needing to go to the washroom and quickly made her way out of the ball room trying to get out as fast as she could. She decided to explore and just walk around the hotel until she ended up on the roof.
She knew that if she went back, she would have to go through Troy Bolton being announced as Prom King and she didn't know if she could handle it. That's why for the time being she decided to stay up here.
Little did she know as she was calming down, two blondes were freaking out.
"… Gabriella Montez!" Gasps were heard all around. Mostly from the girls.
'Where is she?'
Troy continued to search, almost not realising what was currently happening that was causing commotion in the crowd.
'Wait. WHAT?!'
"Congratulations to the both of you!" said Mr. Matsui into the microphone but noticed that Gabriella wasn't walking to the stage.
"Uhmmm. East High's 2008 Prom Queen… Gabriella Montez!" Mr Matsui said, announcing it to the crowd once more.
Still a petite brunette girl was no where to be seen. Everyone was looking around the room, the chatter in the crowd getting louder.
'No. Way.' He thought but inside he wanted to do a little happy dance. If Gabriella was Prom Queen and he was Prom King then it would give him a chance to talk to her and hopefully explain.
"Okay everyone quiet down. Settle down." Mr. Matsui said, trying to calm down the students- which wasn't working. "Gabriella Montez? Is Ms. Montez here?" The principal called out again, confused this time.
Still no one came to the stage.
'Where is she? What if something happened to her?' At that thought panic set in and he knew he had to find her.
In a second Troy was off the stage, running toward the exit of the ball room. As he made his way through the crowd, he ignored the calls from his friends and classmates.
'I have to find her.'
Meanwhile…
Through the chaos, two blondes managed to find each other.
"That was your plan?! Make her East High's freaking Prom Queen?!" Ryan yelled frantically.
"Well… it WOULD have worked if YOU just kept an eye on GABRIELLA!" Kristen yelled back, as she poked him in the chest every time she emphasized a word.
The two continued to glare at each other but then Kristen gave up first and showed the disappointment and frustration they were both feeling as her eyes watered up.
"Its okay, its okay." he said calmly
"No, it's NOT okay Ryan."
"We can still try, it's not over yet. We can still try and find Gabriella and just force her to talk to Troy. It's the only thing we can do. Don't give up just yet." he said, trying to encourage her.
Kristen looked up to his face and stared back, holding his gaze.
"Yeah, okay." she managed to croak out, nodding numbly.
"Okay, let's go."
He grabbed a hold of her hand and led them both out the ball room, ignoring the crowd that formed around them while they were arguing. Ignoring the stares and comments. Ignoring the calls from their friends who were wondering what was going on. They didn't care cause at that moment none of that was important.
Actually, the whole school was also wondering what was happening.
Gabriella Montez a certified nerd, who was once a cheerleader and is now basically a nobody at East High, was Prom Queen? And Troy Bolton, Prom King, the golden boy of East High suddenly leaving the stage? Was that suppose to mean something? And Kristen McCall and Ryan Evans? Kristen and Ryan?! Can you say random?
What the HELL is going on?!
No one knew but Chad was determined to find out.
She didn't know how long she was up here but she didn't care. It was nice up here and didn't notice time flying by.
'I guess I lost track.' she thought, once she realised the time.
Making her way to the door, it suddenly opened revealing the last person she thought would find her.
"Gabriella."
"Chad." Suddenly raising her guard, she didn't trust him. How could she? After hearing that conversation between him and Troy.
'What is he doing up here? Why is he even talking to me?'
"What are you doing here?" she asked suspiciously
"Everyone's looking for you."
"Crap. Sharpay is probably freaking but I just came up here to…" she started to say- momentarily forgetting to act cold. Realising that Chad probably didn't even care, she just shut her mouth.
"Uh… by everyone I don't mean your friends, I mean the school." he said awkwardly, once she stopped.
"What are you talking about? Why would they be looking for me?" she asked, curious and still confused.
"Because you're Prom Queen." he said, letting the words hang in the air.
'WHAT? Yeah, right. Seriously? I mean- No. No-effing-way. This has got to be some mean, twisted joke. I haven't done shit to him and now he thinks he can just-' Gabriella stopped herself before she could lose it.
"Is this some sick joke of yours to embarrass me or something? Cause if it is you can cut the bullshit. I don't believe you." She spat, glaring at him.
"No, its not."
"Ha, and why should I trust you?"
Chad sighed; this was going to be harder than he thought.
"Your right. You have no reason to." he said, solemnly.
There was silence; Gabriella was not expecting that reaction. Was this some sort of an apology? She thought he was going to say more but he didn't.
She had so many questions running through her head; she didn't know where to start.
"Okay. First question. How did you find me?"
"Well, I know about how you and Troy and the… garden on the roof of the school and I just assumed that you-"
"Would be on the roof as well. That's smart, even I wouldn't have thought of that."
Realizing she had just complemented him and he started to smirk, she quickly went to the second question.
"Second. Why are you looking for me? You're the last person I would expect to search for me." Her guard rising again.
"I know-"
"Its not like we're friends or anything." she said bluntly, cutting him off. Gabriella was expecting him to comeback with an insult.
"I guess I deserve that."
"Yes. Yes, you did." she replied, feeling a little grin tug on her lips.
"Okay, you know what there's no point of beating around the bush, so I might as well just do it."
"Do what?"
"Tell you the truth."
And so he proceeded to do so, leaving nothing out.
"Where is she? We've been looking for a while now and well… we haven't found her yet. I mean, this hotel can't be that big." Kristen sighed, she really didn't want to admit this but she had no choice.
"I think we need backup."
"Backup?" asked Ryan.
"Yes, backup."
"And who exactly is backup? If you're suggesting Sharpay, Taylor and Kelsi then I think that would be a mistake cause they don't know what's really happening with Gabriella and Troy."
"I know… but Chad does."
Ryan stared at her in disbelief.
"WHAT?!" he yelled.
"I know, I know, I know. You must be thinking, Chad?! What the fuck does this have to do with him?! But-"
"Damn straight." he interrupted
"But before this plan… I sort of had another one… which included Chad." She proceeded to say.
"So Chad knows everything?"
"Everything."
"Holy Shit."
"Yup, but the bastard didn't want to be part of the plan." She muttered.
"Figures." He said but his eyes widened a second later.
"What if he tells people?" He asked.
"Don't worry, I made sure he wouldn't."
"And how did you make him promise not to tell anyone?"
"You don't want to know."
That comment bothered Ryan but he let it slide… for now.
"But were not that desperate, so I don't think we need him."
"Ryan… we are that desperate, okay? So forget about your pride and think about Gabriella." she scoffed.
"Fine. But what makes you think he's willing to help us?" he grumbled.
"You know, a little black mail goes a LONG way. That's how I made him promise not to tell anyone what he knows." she said, an evil smirk on her face.
"And what exactly do you have on him?" he asked, curious to know what dirt she had on the 'lunkhead'.
"Let's just say that Troy isn't the only who has a crush on a certain nerdette."
"Chad likes Gabriella?! WHAT?" he asked shocked.
"No, you silly boy. I'm talking about Taylor."
"Oh."
"Anyways let's go find him."
'Chad likes Taylor? Who knew.' (Yeah, we all saw THAT coming, lol.)
"Gabriella?"
She stared at him in disbelief.
"I-I had no idea." she replied, once she could find her voice.
"Yeah… I know it's a lot to handle but I just want to say I-I'm…err… sorry. Sorry for uhh… everything. Troy has been a mess and distracted ever since you and him… and yeah. I thought you should know what really happened." he said, trying hard to explain himself.
Gabriella swallowed and took a deep breathe before replying to his apology.
"That was probably hard for you to do and I can tell you're sorry so I accept your apology. Just so you know… I don't think it's your fault. You didn't mean for this to happen. It was all just a big misunderstanding." breathing normally once she was finished.
"That's… good to know. Thanks." he said meaning it and grinning slightly.
"Your welcome." she replied, nicely.
They stood together in an awkward silence before Chad broke it.
"So what are you waiting for? Go get him." He said, with an amused grin on his face
Gabriella laughed and gave him a smile. Just as she was about to open the door she turned around.
"How do you know everything?" she asked.
"Kristen." he replied.
"Kristen? How- what?"
"That's not important right now, you can yell at her later for telling me. Just go find him."
"Thanks Chad." she said, genuinely smiling at him.
He simply nodded in return.
Seconds later she was racing down the stairs, hoping to find Troy. She was nervous as hell. She didn't know what she would say or do when she saw him. She was still trying to process what Chad told her.
Troy wasn't using her.
None of the hurtful words she had heard were true. The intent behind his words wasn't what she thought they were. He wasn't trying to hurt her.
He didn't mean them.
He wasn't using her on purpose, he was… defending her.
Troy really did care about her and their friendship.
'It was all a misunderstanding.'
And that was all she needed to convince her to give him another chance, to give them a chance. She wanted him just as much as he wanted her. And now that she knew everything she wanted him to know.
She didn't know where she was in the hotel; she just kept running and running, looking through hallways, and passing-well at least she thought a million halls, desperate to find him.
Turning into one hallway she finally saw him; his back turned, walking slowly at the end of the hall.
Once she saw him she stopped, panting trying to catch her breathe.
What was she suppose to say?
What if she made a fool out of herself? Did he still want her? Would he forgive her?
'….'
'Screw it.'
'It's now or never.' (A/N: And yes I got that from the song. Yeah I know totally cheesy but I couldn't help it. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, you guys should check it out. It's called "Now or Never" from the up coming HM3. There you go Disney, I'm advertising your movie… for free.)
"Troy!" she yelled
He stopped walking and slowly turned around. Trying to figure out if his ears were playing tricks on him.
"Gabriella?" He said, looking at the figure at the other end of the hallway. Realising it was really her; he quickly made his way toward her, walking in long strides.
'What do I say? How do I start?' he thought.
Gabriella didn't wait for him to reach her, she ran to him, forgetting what she was going to say and just went with whatever she was feeling. And at this moment she was feeling a lot of emotions.
She ran to him, suddenly jumping on him, into his arms and putting her legs around his waist, hugging him tight. He stumbled at the impact but he managed to regain his balance and not fall.
"Gabriella? Wha-what-"
"Shhh, I know." she interrupted him.
"You know? Wha-"
"I know… everything." she said, her eyes shining but then Troy realised that her eyes were watering up.
Without waiting for his reply, she kissed him with everything she had. She kissed him until she couldn't breathe.
Pulling away, she closed her eyes, too scared to look at him. 'Just do it' she thought.
"I'm sorry…" she started off, biting her lip nervously.
After that she couldn't stop the words for spilling out.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry… I didn't know. I should have heard you out instead of acting like a total drama queen. I should have listened to you explain. I'm sorry for acting rash and melodramatic. I'm sorry for being so damn stubborn but it's who I am. I wanted to forget being so selfish and give you another chance but I couldn't. I wouldn't. Because I'm so damn stubborn. And I couldn-"
Troy quickly silenced her with a short kiss, pulling away her eyes were now open and he saw that she really was sorry.
"I know, I know you are."
"I'm sorry." she whispered.
"Its okay baby, I know. I know."
"I don't think we should be watching this." said Ryan turning to his companions at the moment.
"Guys?" he asked again when he got no reply.
"Ryan…" said Kristen
"…Shut-up." finished Chad.
"Fine."
"One question." said Chad.
"Yes, Chad?" replied Kristen.
"How did you make Gabriella Prom Queen? Everyone knew it was going to be you." He asked.
"Yeah, how did you?" added Ryan, he had no idea either.
"Simple. Three blondes."
"Three blondes?" asked Ryan.
"Oh, you mean your bitches." said Chad, smiling that he got it.
Giving Chad an amused smirk, she turned to Ryan to answer.
"You know… what are there names? Tammie? Sam? I dunno, I don't bother. Anyways I told them to rig the votes. You know how desperate they are to get on my good side."
Realizing who she was talking about, he nodded his head.
"I have to admit, that's pretty clever McCall." said Chad.
"I try." She said jokingly.
Currently the three of them were spying on Gabriella and Troy. Chad managed to track down Kristen and Ryan and told them what he did.
Once the two blondes were out of shock the three of them went to go find Gabriella and Troy, only to find them in a heated lip lock. Quickly finding a place to hide, they watched wondering what would happen now.
"I still think we should give them privacy."
"Shut-up." this time both Kristen and Chad at the same time.
Putting his hands up in mock surrender, he gave up bothering to change their minds.
"Fine."
In fact Ryan couldn't help but be a little curious as well. Looking at the couple, he could see they were talking quietly; looking at each other with such intensity it kind of scared him.
It didn't feel right to be spying on them and he wasn't the only who felt that way as well. It felt like they were intruding on something private.
"You know what; I think your right Ryan. Let's leave them alone."
The three teenagers left the couple to give them time together. Ryan walking away in shock. Kristen wasn't the one who agreed with him but Chad.
Graduation Day…
"Hey babe." said a male voice.
"Babe?"
"What you don't like it? Cause if you-" Troy asked, concerned.
"No, I like it. It sounds… nice." she replied, smiling up at him.
Troy smiled in return.
"Just don't call me babe every second, that could get pretty annoying."
"Okay… babe."
She looked at him and saw an amused smirk on his face.
"Okay, now you're just doing that on purpose."
"Babe, I-"
"Troy!" she yelled, trying to scold him but it would take a lot more than that to stop him.
"Yes… babe?" he said, loving the way he had this effect on her.
She glared at him, trying hard to look like she was angry but failed miserably.
"That doesn't really work on me, you know."
"I know." she grumbled. 'Damn.' she thought.
"You look more cute than frightening." he said teasingly.
"I know. The price of looking good, I guess I'll just have to live with it." she sighed.
"Who's the arrogant one, now?" he said, slightly raising an eyebrow.
"I learn from the best." She grinned.
"Why thank you, I'm honoured."
Before Gabriella could come back with a comeback a voice interrupted.
"As much as this playful banter amuses me, we have to get going." said Taylor, with a grin on her face.
Taylor, Sharpay and Kelsi eventually got use to the idea of Gabriella being with Troy and now supported her. Their friends were now okay with the two of them being together. Mind you, in the beginning not everyone was happy with the idea but their friends decided to put their differences aside for the sake of Troy and Gabriella. Their friends supported them and wanted them to be happy.
East High on the other hand, was a different story. Once the school found out, of course gossip ensued and Gabriella found herself in the middle of it once again.
But this time she didn't care. School was over; she didn't have to see all the people who disapproved of her anymore once she graduated. She decided to put up with the chaos. It helped that Troy and her friends and his friends had her and Troy's back. The petty gossip wasn't a threat to her, in fact she really didn't care about the people talking behind her back and insulting her. She figured that they were just jealous.
The couple, now holding hands, made their way to their group of friends consisting of Ryan, Kristen, Chad, Taylor, Sharpay, Kelsi, Jason and Zeke. They decided to meet at Gabriella's house then drive down to the school together.
They weren't the best of friends… yet. But they didn't hate each other and that was all that mattered at the moment. They were learning to get along and breaking the status quo and that made Troy and Gabriella ecstatic.
They split up in their respective cars, everyone's parents meeting up with the teens later at school. Making their way to Troy's car- they decided to take his instead of Gabriella's-Troy whispered something in her ear.
"I think Chad is going to ask Taylor out."
"Really? Hmmm. Actually, they would look cute together."
Smiling, they two looked over and saw them bickering in front of Chad's car.
"Just like an old married couple." he muttered, just loud enough for Gabriella to hear.
Gabriella chuckled before she leaned in and whispered something in his ear.
"Ryan is finally going to ask Kristen out."
This time the couple looked over to the two blondes who were smiling at each other.
"About time. Jeez. He finally found the guts, huh?"
"Hey! That's my brother from another mother you're talking about." she said playfully, turning to face him.
Troy chuckled at how cute she sounded and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.
"Sorry. I just don't think he has anything to be afraid of Kristen is obviously crazy for him."
"True, I guess your right."
"I am right." he said smirking, leaning against his car.
She rolled her eyes at Troy's playful smirk.
"Of course you are." she said sarcastically
"Of course I am." he replied, blatantly ignoring her sarcasm, knowing that it would bother her.
Gabriella narrowed her eyes.
"Hey, I'm just kidding."
"I know." she said, now the one smirking triumphantly.
He just smiled back, reaching over to her.
"Come here." he said, pulling her into his arms.
Looking back, looking at everything went through she knew it was worth it cause in the end she got what she wanted. What she needed. Yes, she had to go through change, drama, and acceptance but in the end she got him and right now this- he- was what she needed.
After her unstable life of moving and the downhill life she led she never would have imagined that one day she would finally be content.
When life started to look good for her she didn't know what to do at first. So, on impulse she did something different (cheerleading) just to experience something different after the long four years of her having the same routine over and over again.
She experienced the drama of high school, first hand when she would usually just avoid it.
She learned how to let go and how to fight for what she wanted and who she was. She found herself and that was the most important thing.
Having found Troy was a bonus but he affected her life and changed it for the better and for that she was thankful. And now that she had him, she didn't plan on letting go anytime soon.
During her time at East High everything in her life changed, everything she expected, everything she assumed turned out to be the total opposite. Everything she went through made her stronger.
The fact she could call him hers made her heart flutter and the fact that he could do the same made her smile.
"What are you smiling about?" he asked once they were both inside the car.
"Nothing."
"Nothing?" he asked, starting up the engine.
"Nothing." she repeated, smiling at him before leaning over to give him a kiss.
Pulling away, she laughed when he pulled her back for another kiss.
"Were going to be late." She whispered against his lips.
"Don't worry they can't start the ceremony without the Valedictorian."
"Troy… we have plenty of time for that later. I promise."
"No, please…" he pleaded, purposely pouting as she laughed at how silly he looked.
But looking at him pouting was enough for her to comply and he knew it.
Without waiting for her to reply, he pulled her in again kissing her softly, feeling him smirk when she softly sighed into him.
"East High can wait all day." she muttered which caused Troy to chuckle, pulling her even closer until she was in his lap. Causing her to straddle him. Causing him to laugh at her sudden boldness but he certainly didn't mind and continued to kiss her.
He was happy. Gabriella made him happy. She made him feel for her like no other girl had before. She meant that much to him but what made him happier was that she felt the same way.
She didn't know what would happen to them and that thought scared her. She hated not knowing.
'But I know I can call him mine.' She reasoned to herself, smiling as she put her hands through his hair and relaxed into his arms.
She didn't know what the future would hold for them but right now she was okay with having what they had right now.
Right now, she had him and he had her.
THE END