AN: Once again, my lovely readers, thank you for your feedback on the chapters! I loved all of your comments and they made me smile when I read them! I loved all of your theories about Troy's bad experience in college! My updates should (hopefully) get to be a little bit more regular now, but don't hold it against me if they aren't. And thanks for being patient with me in the past. I'm sure you will be patient with me in the future too. You guys rock! Anyways, here you go, I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations! And I hope no one finds it too disturbing or graphic, I did my best!

Time Machine

Troy was shaking so hard that his teeth were starting to chatter. This wasn't good, he hadn't even started his tale yet. Suddenly he was regretting agreeing to tell Gabriella about the past that he had been trying so hard to forget about. Troy clenched his hands together and focussed on the shiny silver of the handcuffs, keeping his eyes trained on that as he started to slowly and quietly tell her how everything had gotten so twisted and out of control.

_ Flashback _

It was your typical frat party: kegs littered every available space in the house and on the lawn around the back, and a lot of people were completely drunk even though it was only seven in the evening. The night was still young and a handful of people were still sober enough to be dancing to the pulsating music screaming from the speakers in the common room.

Troy entered the house with his dorm friends and thrust his hands into his pockets, a smile lighting up his handsome features. This was going to be a party to remember, there was no doubt about that. The crew of them weaved their way through the crowd of drunk teenagers and couples plastered to each other, searching for the closest source of alcohol. Troy wasn't much of a drinker, but he had to admit, it took the edge off of a rough week.

A half an hour later, Troy was leaning against the wall and doing his best not to laugh at this best friend's attempts at picking up girls. Not only was Chad completely plastered, he was also horrible at flirting with any girl, even the ones that thought he was cute in the first place. Troy watched as the two girls raised their eyebrows and then giggled, walking away even though Chad was still in the middle of explaining just how sexy they both looked.

Chad frowned and stumbled over to Troy, his expression genuinely confused. Troy grinned and clapped his friend on the back, offering him a bottle of water. Chad refused and reached for another beer. Troy shrugged - he'd have one hell of a hangover if he kept this up.

"Hey, Troy, can I talk to you for a minute?"

Troy glanced around at the unfamiliar voice and nodded in agreement to the petite blonde that was beckoning to him. Chad's jaw dropped and Troy realized after a second that it was one of the girls that he had just been trying to pick up. Troy patted his friend on the shoulder and yelled that he'd be right back, following the attractive girl down the hallway without much thought as to just what she had in mind.

No sooner had he followed her into what looked to be a den of sorts, she pulled her t-shirt off over her head and gave him a look that made Troy wish he had stayed with Chad. Immediately he started back toward the door, trying to form an excuse in his head, but the predatory look on her face was making him start to feel nervous and his thoughts were scattered.

"Um…" He got out, eyes darting around the room looking anywhere but at her.

"You know you want this, Troy." She crooned, stepping a few paces closer to him.

Troy scrabbled backwards, his mind telling him that he was being stupid: this was a hot girl that obviously wanted to sleep with him, why was he acting like such a little kid? However, as soon as he thought that, another rational thought countered it. Truth be told, Troy still hadn't 'done the deed' contrary to what a lot of people in his university thought about him. Sure, he had dated countless girls in high school, but had never felt comfortable going that far, and this was certainly not the time, place, or person to change that.

Troy felt behind him for the doorknob, but with a mental curse, he realized that he was too far to the right and needed to move over in order to escape. The girl, whose name he still didn't know, continued to pace closer to him, completely unclothed now. Troy's heart was hammering and for a moment, he considered yelling out for help, but realized that no one would hear him. Even down the hall, the music was still so loud that the floor beneath them pulsed and Troy could barely hear the girl's comments.

"Actually, I'm just going to go." Troy finally got out, turning to find the door. She grabbed him by the back of the shirt, however, and when he turned around to free himself from her surprisingly strong grip, she pressed herself up against him and kissed him fiercely.

Troy was so surprised that he froze for a moment. It was only a split second in which his mind and body disagreed at the contact, but sometimes it only takes a moment. The next thing Troy knew, they were slouched on the couch and she was kissing him over and over again, fumbling with his clothes and seeming to get frustrated by the fact that he wasn't being helpful.

Realizing he was losing control of himself, Troy broke the kiss and grabbed her arms, trying to free himself, but she was crouched over him and her weight, although tiny, was enough to keep him from squirming away.

"Hey! Quit struggling, jock!" She hissed, kissing him again. "You are going to do this!"

Again, Troy lost a moment, as his body yelled at him to stop fighting and go with her, but this time, he came to before much time had passed. They were half lying down on the couch and she had succeeded in taking off his clothes and was now kissing him again and again, trying her best to seduce him. His mind might not want this, but his body sure did, and it was beginning to work. Troy felt sick.

"No! Stop it." He yelled fighting against her. She just laughed at him.

"Relax and enjoy." She crooned in his ear, wrapping her arms around him and making it impossible for him to go anywhere.

"This isn't consensual." He replied angrily with only the slightest tremor of fear in his voice. "Get off of me!"

"Oh please, Troy, like anyone will believe that." She replied.

Troy was so stunned at her comment that he couldn't even think of anything to counter it. It didn't matter anyway, however. She was kissing him again, and had him trapped on the corner of the couch. He had nowhere to run and she knew what she was doing. Troy struggled with her, but it wasn't long before he was literally forced into agreement and tears of hatred and helplessness glittered in his bright eyes as she kept him where she wanted him until there was nothing left for her to take.

Many hours passed before anyone found him. Troy lost all track of time as he lay curled in a ball on the couch, emotions deadened and thoughts at a standstill. Bile gurgled in his stomach, but he didn't have the energy to get it out, and tried to make himself disappear into the fabric.

"Troy! Troy, man, are you alright?"

Troy came to at the sound of Chad's worried voice. His mind wasn't functioning properly but he got out one phrase.

"I didn't want to, I said no."

Chad didn't even bother to ask what he was talking about, just tossed Troy the clothes that were discarded on the floor and told him to get dressed. Then Chad went and stood by the door, his back to Troy.

It took Troy a long time to get ready, but by the time he was, anger was thrumming through his veins making it hard for him to see straight. Troy spilled out the whole story to Chad as they made their way back to the residence, and with every step he took, Troy's anger got higher and higher.

"I'll be there in a second." Troy muttered when they got to the building.

"Troy, man, don't!" Chad yelled, but Troy was already gone, jogging back to the party, his sight tinted red.

She was sprawled on a couch with empty beer bottles surrounding her, and Troy stood in front of her, eyes narrowed.

"Get up." He hissed.

She glanced at him and then broke out into drunken laughter. He grabbed her by the arm and led her out to the deck. She stumbled a few steps away from him, but then tried to grab his arm.

"Hey, sexy." She slurred.

Troy hit her backwards.

"I said NO." He yelled. "You forced me, and we both know that."

She just laughed and winked at him.

"Sure, Troy."

Fury boiled over and he shoved her hard against the front of her shoulders. She stumbled back in shock and Troy watched in horror as she flipped right over the railing of the deck and spiralled to the cement two stories below. She hit was a sickening crunch and Troy's jaw dropped as he realized what had just happened.

Oh shit.

_End of Flashback_

It was completely silent for a long time after Troy had finished talking. He was still staring at his hands but he listened anxiously to Gabriella's breathing, praying that she would believe him. Troy glanced up and watched people walking by, but refused to turn his head in her direction. He was ashamed and regretted telling her the story, realizing how weak it made him look.

"Oh, Troy." She breathed finally.

His eyes darted to her and she was staring at him with heartbroken eyes, her hands clenching the papers filled with her neat writing. He said nothing and dropped his gaze to the soil beneath them, ordering himself not to cry.

"And you're telling the truth?" She asked quietly.

"YES!" He yelled, angrily.

His voice was so sharp that the guard hurried over to them, ignoring Gabriella's shaking of the head.

"Everything okay, miss?" He asked her, his eyes trained on Troy in a cold manor.

"It's fine. We're just talking." She assured him.

The guard left again, but hovered close to them, his eyes never leaving Troy's face for the remainder of the session.

That night, Gabriella walked up her front steps with a heavy heart, her mind still reeling from everything that she had learned. She knew that it would be another sleepless night filled with tossing and turning, but she pushed the thought aside and focussed on getting into her house before she collapsed into tears.

A hand landed on her shoulder as soon as the door closed behind her but Gabriella didn't scream this time. She knew who it was.

"Troy, you need to stop doing this." She said quietly.

"I need to know what you think of me." He whispered, his hands encircling her waist from behind and bringing her up against his front. "You didn't say much after I told you everything."

"I couldn't Troy, it was too dangerous."

"Can you tell me now?" He asked in such a quiet voice and Gabriella spun around, slipped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply.

"I think you are extremely brave for telling me that." She said a few minutes later. "and it doesn't change how I look at you, if that's what you are worried about."

Troy nodded and searched her eyes.

"I can't stay long, I want to get back before anyone realizes I'm gone."

"How do you get out, Troy? Surely someone knows you're gone now…"

Troy just smiled.

"I have my ways."

He kissed her then and she clung to him, trying to forget about everything and just focus on him for the present moment. The kiss ended too soon, however and she sighed, resting her head on his chest.

"I hate that she took that from you." She whispered.

Troy just stroked her back and said nothing. She sniffled a bit and hugged him as tightly as she could, knowing he would be gone within a few minutes. She wanted to live in this moment for as long as she could.

"I'm going to save you, Troy." she said suddenly. "I'm going to do something - anything - to save you from this. It wasn't even your fault."

"Shhh, Gabi." He whispered in her ear. "Just relax for a moment."

She shut her mouth and snuggled closer to him, closing her eyes and listening to his heartbeat. One of her hands snuck up and stroked his cheek, feeing the silent teardrops trickling down into her hair.

She didn't try to stop them because she knew that he wasn't with her at this moment, but reliving that terrible night and trying his best to get over it. All she could do was hold him, let him know that she was there. And hold him, she did.

It was a long time before he stopped crying.

AN: Alright, I'm not going to lie, I teared up a little. What did you all think? Was it different than you thought it was? Let me know! Thanks for reading you guys!