I know this story has been on hiatus for quite some time, but I hope you guys like the new chapter if there are any readers still out there. Let me know by leaving reviews.
"Daddy!" he heard Jackson running towards him…but not only was Jackson running towards him screaming his name, but another little person was heading in his direction screaming the same thing, he heard someone gasp loudly, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from the little boy. "Daddy…daddy…you here" he heard the little boy say. He looked down at his face and studied it a little better and knew instantly that the little tike belonged to Taylor, it was unmistakable, but so were his eyes…he was staring at his own eyes! He looked over at Jackson who was squeezing his left leg and looking up at him, in his adorable way…than he looked over to the unknown kid, who was looking at him the exact same way, "Daddy, daddy…you came…you came!" squealed Tristan in delight.
He looked up towards Taylor and Gabriella confused, he noticed that Taylor had stood up and was breathing extremely hard as tears were streaming down her face, "Tay" he questioned looking between the little boy and her, "What's going on here?" said Troy.
"Oh my gosh…I can't believe this! I can not believe this. Zeke…how could you!" she screamed. She didn't even give him a chance to respond before running to her room and slamming the door.
The door slamming made everyone in the living room jump. Tristan broke down immediately because he was scared. Troy instantly went into dad mode and picked the young toddler up off the ground and held him close to his chest and tried to soothe the young boy. He looked at Zeke with the "What heck is going on" face. Zeke just hunched his shoulders and replied "He's your kid Troy, he's always been yours".
Troy looked towards Gabriella for confirmation, and she shook her head slightly in response.
"She will explain everything in due time Troy. It feels like it's complicated but it's really not, all you need to know is that Tristan is yours" said Gabriella quietly. "His name is Tristan" said Troy quietly not really asking but just stating.
"Daddy" said Jackson innocently bringing Troy out of his private thoughts. He looked down at Jackson and assured him that everything would be alright even though he didn't quite feel that way himself.
Tristan was almost screaming because he was so upset, so Troy scooted over to the couch as Jackson was holding on to his pants. Troy scooped Jackson up once he sat down and adjusted both of his sons so now he was holding them both against his chest and he sighed heavily as he fought back tears that were threatening to come out of his eyes. "How could I be so stupid?" he thought to himself. "How could I not know anything about him?" Gabriella walked over and sat next to Troy as she began rubbing her own son's back because he was starting to get a little upset himself.
Tristan wasn't quite screaming anymore but he was still visibly upset, "He never has seen Taylor like that" said Zeke quietly to no one in particular. Zeke's mind was racing a thousand miles a minute. How was he going to fix this mess? Maybe he should have stayed out of it and let it be like Taylor asked him. "It's too late now, I just have to face the music and we all have to fix this mess" he thought to himself.
Tristan had calmed down considerably the more Troy comforted him and the more Tristan calmed down the more Taylor could be heard in her room crying.
Sharpay stood off to the side as she watched Gabriella and Troy interact with the two boys, it seemed so natural for the both of them and she couldn't help but to feel jealous, "Zeke" she said quietly, "could you show me where I will be staying, I think it's best if we leave them alone".
"Sure" replied Zeke quietly as he went to pick up her luggage and walked towards his room with Sharpay close behind. The closer he walked to his bedroom door the more he could hear Taylor and how much pain she was obviously in. Although he knew that this was for the benefit of everyone involved, his heart panged a little every time he heard her wail slightly. He opened his door and allowed Sharpay to walk in first before he walked in behind her and closed the door. He placed her luggage by his dresser and sat on the bed. Sharpay walked up to Zeke and began to give him a massage, "You know all this was for the best Zeke. Troy needed to know and it had to happen sooner or later".
"Yeah well knowing that doesn't ease my guilt…at all" he said standing up forcing Sharpay to stop her massage. "I have to go and talk to Taylor".
"What?" said Sharpay incredulously. "I'm almost certain she doesn't want to see you".
"I know she doesn't but I have to try anyway" he responded.
"Unbelievable…freakin unbelievable" said Sharpay clearly upset as she got up and pulled her luggage over to the bed.
"What is it Sharpay? I'm doing what I think is right okay" said Zeke a little irritated.
Sharpay shook her head in disbelief, "You know I was looking forward to this day, but it just dawned on me that I should have just stayed home in let this circus show happen without me". "I have no business being here, and it's obvious where you loyalties are…just go talk to Taylor, Zeke" she said exasperated.
"My loyalties…Sharpay what the hell are you going on about?" asked Zeke.
"It should be obvious to you Zeke" she said quietly, "I want you to stay here with me tonight" she said turning to face him as she fought of tears. "I want you to pick me first…over Taylor. She's a big girl, she will figure this out, but it doesn't have to involve you Zeke, not tonight. Please?" she asked pleadingly.
Zeke sighed heavily before he responded, "That's completely unfair of you to ask, not to mention incredibly selfish. It's because of me that all of this is going down".
"No it's not!" she shouted at him. Sharpay never raised her voice except for one time when they had arguments. He knew instantly that she was pissed. "They are the ones that choose this, not you! You don't owe her anything, you have been more than a good friend…just please stay with me" she said quieter as she walked over to Zeke and looked him in the eyes intensely.
Zeke looked into those big brown eyes and remembered why he loved this petite girl in front of him so much, but he also had a deep moral code that was engrained in him from the time he was a little person, "Sharpay, you know I love you" he started.
"Love is an action word Zeke…you show it to people. For once show it to me" she said quietly.
Zeke looked at her as if he didn't recognize the person in front of him, "Sharpay if I didn't love you, you think I would be able to be here right now, to be in the same place as you? Especially after everything we've been through…if that's not love, than I don't know what is" he said angrily.
Sharpay held her head down as tears started to crowd around the corner of her eyes, "Well I see I got my answer" she said as she turned and walked away back to her luggage. "Go follow your moral code" she said acidly.
Zeke felt guilt for always throwing the abortion in her face but it still was a sore spot for him, and he felt like she had no right to judge him. "Whatever" was his only reply as he walked out of the bedroom and closed the door harshly behind him. He heard Tristan start to whine again but Troy was right there letting his first born know that everything would be alright. He looked over at Taylor's door and he still recognized some weak crying on the other side of the door. He mustered up enough courage to walk over to the door and just walked in. He saw Taylor sitting on the side of the bed, leaned over with her face in her hands as her legs shook furiously. He closed the door behind him causing Taylor to look up. Her eyes were completely red as her face was stained with tears and fresh ones were falling down.
"Get out" was her only response, and Zeke was surprised but also fearful of how low her tone was. "Tay, I just came to explain and to apologize" started Zeke.
"I don't care! Get…out!" she said while her voice rose up a bit. She looked very un-Taylor like at that moment. Her hair was slightly disheveled and her face was swollen from all the crying she was doing.
"Okay I'm leaving Tay, I just wanted to say I'm sorry…I truly am sorry" said Zeke getting a little emotional himself. He realized how much he ended up hurting his best friend. "I should have listened to you when you said you weren't ready for this…I know now I was completely wrong for forcing this upon you. I hope one of these days you'll forgive me" said Zeke desperately, "but it had to be done".
"Whatever Zeke, just please go" cried out Taylor as she placed her face back into her hands.
Zeke stood rooted to the spot, purposely not moving until he could get Tay to do more than just cry. "C'mon Taylor, you have to say something to me other than get out" said Zeke finally. He realized that they were getting nowhere; she was just crying loudly to herself…tears coming down in a steady stream with no signs of letting up. Zeke knew that she was more hurt than upset and he knew he'd better try graveling some more in order to get back in her good graces.
"Taylor" began Zeke, "I know I should have told you about Troy coming, but Sharpay practically begged me not to. They knew if you found out about his arrival you would just leave and Troy didn't want that….he loves you Tay" said Zeke, "That's why he's here; he wanted to get back with you".
Taylor looked up at Zeke with her tear stained face in disbelief. She couldn't even find the words to even get half of what she felt and thinking out of her system.
"I know you don't believe me but it's the truth. Troy has changed and for the better, partly because of Jackson and partly because of you. He wanted to prove that he was a better man than the one he acted like when we were in high school" said Zeke quickly. She still didn't respond so he continued, "Look I know I suck for not telling you and you can stay angry at me as long as you want for it, but if Troy really was mad about not knowing about Tristan, he would have been in here screaming at the top of his lungs instead he's out there getting to know his son, with no complaints and you saw Tristan's reaction, he's just happy his daddy is here" said Zeke exasperated.
"That's just it" stuttered out Taylor finally, "you didn't give me the choice. You just decided what was best for Tristan without even consulting me" she said still crying but surprisingly quiet this time.
"I been told you how I felt about Tristan not knowing about Troy" said Zeke, "I'm not Tristan's father".
"And I told you I didn't want Tristan to know…I wasn't ready yet, but you forced it upon me…not only with Troy but Gabriella too" said Taylor. "Your intentions might have been honest and true but your execution sucks" said Taylor, "you didn't give me a chance to prepare myself" she said angrily but her voice didn't rise one bit. She was looking at Zeke with such intensity that it actually scared him a little; it was in that second that he realized their friendship would never be the same.
"You're constantly preaching to me about secrets and lies but you've kept so many from I don't even know if I can trust you anymore" she said.
Zeke looked at her incredulously, "You can't trust me!"
"That's how I feel Zeke. Tell me you didn't know about Gabriella's son…c'mon Zeke tell me". He turned away from her and glanced at her desk, "Yeah I thought so" she said, "You knew all along that Gabriella had a baby by Troy…that Tristan has a brother" she said standing up and throwing her hands in the air, "and you expect for me to trust you…I thought you were my friend".
"I am your friend Taylor; I've sacrificed a lot for you, practically my whole life. How dare you say something so cruel?" said Zeke angrily obviously hurt.
"But you kept something this big from me! How do you expect me to feel…what else do you want me to say?" she said as the tears continued to flow.
"Thank you…I want you to say thank you! You use to do that but I'm lucky if it even passes through your lips these days!" said Zeke. "I've given up a lot for you Taylor, my relationship with Sharpay and my parents…I've moved to another state! I have helped you raise your son…a little appreciation would be great sometime instead of this selfish 'woe is me' attitude you have developed as of late. Get a grip Taylor, get a grip and deal!" yelled Zeke as he abruptly turned and walked out her bedroom slamming the door in the process.
Zeke stomped into the living room where he noticed Troy was holding both toddlers who were fast asleep in his arms now as Gabriella sat next to him silently. Troy was rubbing their backs soothingly and rocking them back and forth as he started to sing the lullaby he remembered his mother singing to him when he was a youngster, seeing as though the noise was causing them to stir… "I'm sorry" said Zeke obviously still angry.
Zeke stood in place as he massaged his own temples, he decided it was best to give Sharpay sometime to get herself together so he walked over to the other couch and sat down. Troy and Gabriella gave him a sympathetic look as Zeke shook his head, "I feel a headache coming on".
"I would have one too, dealing with Sharpay and Taylor isn't easy" said Gabriella knowingly.
"So you heard huh?" asked Zeke.
"Walls are kinda thin dude" said Troy quietly. "Yeah they are" agreed Zeke.
"How about I show you guys where to put down the boys and get settled for the night?" asked Zeke trying to get his mind off of things. He managed to get into two arguments in a short amount of time.
"Sounds good to me, I'm exhausted both physically and mentally" said Gabriella. The other two men in the room grunted in agreement. "Gabriella can you help me set everything up? It looks like Troy has a handle on the boys" said Zeke. "Gaby I figured you could stay in Tristan's room with Jackson, I put a day bed in that's really comfortable for you and the boys can share a bed" said Zeke.
"Sure no problem, I'm not gonna be picky" responded Gabriella while standing up.
"Troy, I thought you wouldn't mind staying out here. The couch turns into a bed, and it's pretty comfortable" said Zeke looking over at Troy. Troy shook his head in agreement as he stood up and laid the sleeping toddlers on the couch to give his arms and legs some rest.
Troy heard Zeke tell Gabriella that they had plenty of pajamas in pull-ups for both boys to share as they walked away.
Troy stretched his body out and proceeded to look around at the family portraits of Zeke, Taylor, and Tristan. He couldn't help but feel slightly jealous that Zeke was there for his son and he wasn't. Grant it he had no clue that Tristan was even his, he always assumed that Zeke was the father of Taylor's baby, that's part of the reason it took so long for him to come and see Taylor. 'I guess Sharpay and Gabriella were trying to tell me, but I definitely wasn't trying to hear them' he thought.
He continued to study the pictures keeping his eyes mostly on Taylor and his son. Tristan was the perfect mixture of him and Taylor; at that moment he walked over to the couch and leaned his head down and kissed both of his prized possessions. All this was so much to take in, Troy sighed and was starting to regret the fact that he even came, but he looked down at Tristan and realized he made the right decision; he was just gonna have to suck it up and deal with whatever, 'It is what it is' he thought to himself.
He continued to look at his two beautiful boys sleeping when he heard a door opening and footsteps walk into the living room. He was so tired he thought it was Taylor and realized that it was Sharpay standing there with her jacket on.
"Everything alright?" asked Troy.
Sharpay sighed, "Yeah…I just need some air. I'm gonna go for a walk". She glanced over at the sleeping boys and felt tears come to her eyes, something that didn't go unnoticed by Troy.
"Sharpay its dark out and we're in an unfamiliar place…I will walk with you if you would like?" asked Troy quietly.
Sharpay shook her head no fiercely, "I wanna be left alone Troy. I'm a big girl…I'll be alright" she said finally tearing her eyes away from Tristan and Jackson.
"But Sharpay" Troy said starting to object but Sharpay put her hand up in the air to immediately silence him and walked away closing the door behind her. She had enough of guys for one evening. What she needed was time alone to think.
Zeke emerged from the bedroom with a questioning look on his face, "Did someone just leave?" he asked. Gabriella appeared right behind him, "Yeah I thought I heard the door close" she said.
"Yeah" sighed Troy, "It was Sharpay…she wanted to go for a walk" he said, "she wanted to be alone and objected to me accompanying her" added Troy once he saw the concerned looks of Gabriella and Zeke.
Zeke looked up to the sky and groaned. "I'm going after her" stated Gabriella as she headed for the door.
"Gaby!" said Zeke louder than he intended almost stirring the toddlers awake, "I'll go…it's me she's upset with" said Zeke as he grabbed his jacket off the coat hanger. He left the apartment saying nothing but with a determined look on his face.
Gabriella walked across the room and scooped up Jackson in her arms causing the little boy to whimper slightly. "Its way pass their bed time, we should get them tucked in" she said quietly as she walked into the bedroom. Troy lifted Tristan up from the couch and held his son slightly away from him as he studied his sleeping face. In that instant he knew he would do whatever was necessary to fix things with Taylor, no more time could be wasted away from his boy. He clutched Tristan to his chest and walked into the bedroom where Gabriella was in the process of changing Jackson's clothes and putting him down.
"I'm assuming his pajamas are in the drawer over there" said Gabriella quietly pointing to the small dresser that was placed inside the closet. Troy laid Tristan on the day bed and went and picked out a set of pajamas for his oldest son. He changed Tristan's diaper for good measure and took extra care in changing his son's clothes so he wouldn't wake him up. When he was finally done he scooped the young child up and headed towards the bed, where Gabriella was just staring at him.
"What?" said Troy slightly confused.
"Just…just don't forget about Jackson, now that you know about your son with Taylor. I mean try not to play favorites Troy…just don't forget him" said Gabriella quietly.
Troy looked aghast, "How…how could you ever think I would do something like that Gabriella?" he asked.
"Look Troy, I know the reason you're here…hell it's practically the same reason I'm here. I know what it's like to love Taylor, to hold her, to kiss her, to have her be yours…and now that know you have a son with the love of your life…I just don't want you to forget about Jackson is all" said Gabriella tearing up slightly.
Troy walked over and placed Tristan in the bed next to his brother. "Gabriella" he sighed, "I could never in a million years do something like that…they both came from me. They're my flesh and blood, I would never hurt Jackson in that way…never" said Troy turning to look at Gabriella. "You believe me don't you?" he asked.
Gabriella took a deep breath and searched Troy's eyes, "yeah…I believe you" she sighed out. "Troy I'm exhausted you mind leaving me alone so I can get changed and go to bed?" she asked quietly.
"Of course not" he said just as softly, while walking over and giving Gabriella a kiss on the forehead. Troy walked out the room and closed the door softly behind him. He looked to his right down the hall and stared at the door belonging to Taylor's bedroom. His mind was racing a mile a minute and his heart was breaking thinking about what she was going through behind those closed doors. He knew she was in a lot of pain…but he had questions and only she held the answers to them.
Troy walked in the living room and pulled out the couch bed. He saw some sheets, pillows, and a comforter on the dining room table and assumed they were his so he could set up the couch bed. He went to the hall bathroom changed clothes quickly and turned out the lights. As hard as he tried, he just couldn't fall asleep. He knew that any minute Zeke and Sharpay would be coming through the door. He tossed and turned until he finally kicked off the comforter and sat on the side of the bed. This had to be settled tonight…whether she was ready or not Troy had to talk to Taylor. Troy stood up and proceeded to walk towards Taylor's room.
Little did Troy know that Gabriella lay in the bed lamenting the loss of her relationship and ultimately her friendship with Taylor. In the back of her mind she knew coming here was a lost cause; she must enjoyed putting herself through miserable circumstances. But she had to see for sure. She definitely needed closure and even though it hurt, it was time for her to move on. She decided it was in everyone's best interest if she just focused on Jackson. The brothers deserved to know one another and become close, and she didn't have to be around Taylor for that; she only needed to be involved with Troy. Although letting Taylor go was going to be difficult, it was the right thing to do, but how do you let go of someone you love so much.
Taylor lay in bed clutching onto her pillow. The tears had finally stopped falling out of her eyes and she had finally calmed herself down. She heard her door open and she immediately sat up expecting Zeke again, but instead stood Troy right in front of her in the flesh. Her eyes widened and her breath became more noticeable. Right in front of her stood the father of her child, the guy she had fallen so hard for that it scared her and instead of dealing with it she choose to run. Now the she had to face the consequences of all her decisions because she felt them literally standing there in front of her face.
Troy closed the door behind him. "Tay" she heard him call out, but she couldn't find her voice to respond. Troy looked at Taylor and she seemed so afraid and broken and completely unsure of what to do so he decided to take the lead and he walked over to her and sat down gingerly on the bed. Taylor moved her body in an instant and clutched her knees against her chest, while placing her arms around them. Even though she was afraid she couldn't take her eyes off Troy. She realized she forgotten how beautiful he was to her and how so much of Troy was in Tristan.
An awkward silence filled the room as the unlikely couple sat trying to figure out what to do or say. As Taylor continued to stare at Troy she couldn't figure out for the life of her why he hadn't zapped out on her yet. The more she thought about it, the guiltier she felt, and the more she realized that Zeke had been right all along…as usual.
"I'm sorry" she whispered out finally breaking the silence.
Troy snapped his head up and finally looked Taylor in the eyes as tears started falling down her face. In that moment he literally felt his heart break as he cautiously lifted his hand and began to wipe the tears off her cheeks. "Oh Taylor…you have nothing to apologize for. This is entirely my fault" he said tenderly as his voice started to break slightly. Taylor closed her eyes at his touch and unknowingly pressed her head against his hand.
"I feel so guilty…everything isn't your entire fault Troy" she said through her tears.
"But I feel like it is" said Troy as his voice finally broke and tears started falling down his face. Taylor opened her eyes and looked into his piercing blue ones; she did what came naturally and began to wipe his tears from his face. As she did so, Troy instinctively placed small kisses on her hand.
Taylor let out a big sigh of relief, "Troy we're a mess" she said taking her hand from his face and wiping the rest of her tears away as Troy did the same.
"I definitely agree with that" he said in response. "Tay, how did we even get here and let things go this far?" he asked turning his body completely around to face her.
"I think it all started with dishonesty about how we truly felt" she said looking at him intently.
"Yeah" replied Troy while sighing.
Another wave of silence washed over them, until a thought hit Taylor, "For the life of me, I don't understand why you're not upset about Tristan?" she said with an eyebrow raised. "I mean I kept him away from you…your own son" said Taylor.
Troy thought for a minute before responded, "I sort of blame myself Taylor with the way I reacted to finding out about you and Gabriella. I was just so angry, and I pushed you away… to Zeke".
"Zeke and I never…" started Taylor.
"Yeah I know that now, but I was so angry back then I couldn't see anything but red. Why aren't you mad about Jackson? From what Gabriella and Sharpay told me, you didn't know anything about him" said Troy.
"Actually I am a little angry about not knowing about him…but not with you, mostly with Zeke" she said quietly. "His name is Jackson?" she asked.
"Yeah" said Troy smiling looking down slightly, his heart would swell every time he thought about Jackson. And now he already started having the same feeling when thinking about Tristan.
"Tristan is beautiful Tay, you and Zeke did a great job with him" Troy said quietly.
"Thanks…Jackson is beautiful also, from what I can remember about him…I kinda high tailed it out of there" said Taylor slightly embarrassed, while hanging her head.
"Yeah you did" said Troy smirking. Troy lifted Taylor's head up forcing her to look him directly in the eyes, "I'm very much still in love with you Taylor. I've changed and I hope one day you can forgive me for all of my foolishness. I want to be here for you and Tristan. I want my job back from Zeke if you allow me to have it" said Troy intensely. "I know we have a lot to talk about, but just allow me hope that this trip wasn't in vain".
Taylor glanced down as she thought about his words and declaration of love, "I love you too Troy. I love you so much it freaked me out and made me run. That love only magnified when I was pregnant with Tristan and that's when I finally realized it was real…my love for you was real" said Taylor quietly.
Lifting Taylor's face, Troy leaned over and placed a tender kiss on Taylor's lips. Taylor grabbed Troy's face and gently pulled him into her so she could deepen the kiss. The two continued their kissing until they had to come up for air.
"Your trip wasn't in vain Troy" said Taylor a little out of breath. Troy breathed a sigh a relief. For the first time in a long time he felt like things were going to work themselves out. Troy and Taylor sat up into the early hours of the morning. Honesty was the key for them to move on and they both laid everything out on the table; how they felt about Gabriella, what prompted the both of them to be dishonest in the first place, and Troy's future with the Washington Wizards.
By the time both of them had gotten everything out, it was almost five in the morning. Taylor found herself wrapped up in Troy's arms with her head lying on her chest. How she stayed without the form and feel of his body, she would never understand. They both feel into a comfortable slumber, knowing that the road ahead would be difficult, but that they could face it together with true honesty and love.