"So what'd you think?" Gabriella asked Taylor conversationally as the plopped down on Gabi's living room couch.

"About the party?" Taylor mused. "To be honest, I never really… Well, I don't know about you, but I've never been to a party like that before… Lame, I know, but what constituted as a party for me was like a freshman birthday party where we went to the Cheesecake Factory or something."

"That's not lame," Gabriella said. "Better than what I had, I didn't really get invited to anything like that either. But, my question was really, what'd you think about Chad?"

"About Chad?" Taylor scoffed. "After he all but tackled me onto the ground… I mean, that was my first impression. Quite unceremonious."

"I mean, he took you to get a drink…" Gabriella pressed.

"He's a nice guy," Taylor said. "If you get him alone, he's not as much of a… airhead? Airhead. When you have an actual conversation with him."

"Well that's nice," Gabriella said. "Do you… Oh my God, this sounds so middle school but I've never really said it before, do you like him?"

"Look at us, giggling like a bunch of little girls," Taylor playfully scolded them. "Well, I don't know, I don't really know him."

"Okay," Gabriella stopped pressing her friend.

"Hi girls," Teresa Montez stuck her head into the room. "Do you guys need anything to eat?"

"Oh no thanks, Mom," Gabriella said. "Mom, this is Taylor McKessie. She's the captain of the decathlon team and she's in my AP Chemistry class."

"Taylor!" Teresa opened the door wider and strolled into the room, extending her arm. "I've heard so much about you. Thank you for being so welcoming to Gabriella," she said warmly.

"Hi Ms. Montez," Taylor got up and shook her hand. "It's been a pleasure getting to know Gabriella. She's amazing! I can't wait to have her on the team," she gushed.

"Well, let me know if you girls need anything," Teresa said. "I'll be in my office for a little bit, but then I have to go pick Jonah up from his friend's house."

"Okay, mom. Taylor, you want to come upstairs to my room?"

"Sure." Gabriella led the way upstairs, and Taylor commented, "Your mom seems nice."

"Truthfully?" Gabriella said, opening her bedroom door and leading Taylor to her couch. "My mom is… the best."

"Gabriella, is it okay if I be nosy?" Taylor asked, feeling uncomfortable for the first time since she had met Gabriella.

"Sure," Gabriella said easily. "Hey, I've never had anyone ask me that before…"

"What about your dad?" Taylor asked, and Gabriella froze. "I haven't heard you mention him…"

"My dad died." Gabriella said softly.

"Oh… I'm so sorry, Gabi," Taylor said, hugging her friend.

"It's okay… Well, no, it's not okay. I'm glad you asked so I could tell you?" Gabriella replied. "I was nine. My dad, he was driving home after a late shift at the hospital… He had stayed late to take care of a baby… He was a doctor in the neonatal intensive care unit," Gabriella explained quietly. "Since it was so late… he was driving home… He was hit by a car, a drunk driver." Gabi looked away from Taylor, for she still had a hard time telling this story.

"Gabriella…" Taylor said, wanting to cry herself.

"That's why we've moved so much," Gabriella said. "My mom… it was hard for all of us, but I think my mom took it the hardest, and she doesn't feel… settled, I guess. Now that he's gone. So we move around a lot, since she took a job that will move her around frequently."

"That must've been so hard…" Taylor said empathetically.

"It was," Gabriella agreed.

"So what does your mom do?" Taylor said, diverting the subject. "And, as cliché as this sounds, what do you want to be when you grow up?"

"My mom is a lawyer," Gabriella said. "Well, she's a jury consultant. She has a law degree from Harvard. Her parents really wanted her to be a doctor, so she went to Harvard for pre-med, and that's where she met my dad. Then she realized that she couldn't handle… the emotional part of being a doctor, so she decided to apply to Harvard Law. And now here we are!" Gabriella finished.

"And what about you? What do you want to be… where do you want to go?" Taylor inquired. "I'm sure a lot of people have been asking you this…"

"Not really, actually," Gabriella said, shaking her head. "My future is always assumed… since I've done so well in school," Gabriella admitted sheepishly, blushing. "You know, Harvard, doctor or lawyer. And… Ever since my dad died, and I guess before then, I've wanted to be a doctor. Being able to help people, on that level… it's what I've always dreamed about. And I want to go to Stanford! That's my dream."

"That's amazing…" Taylor said. "I'm sure you can do whatever you want to. You're really an amazing person."

"Thanks, Taylor. What about you? Where do you want to go, what do you want to become?"

"Yale. Harvard law," Taylor said enthusiastically. "Stanford would be nice, too! But I want to be president of the United States."

"Wow!" Gabriella said, giggling at her ambition. "That's so cool!"

"Yeah. Unrealistic, I know. So I guess I could settle for practicing law. That's fascinating, too. But politics… I think that some real change needs to take place."

"Well, good for you!" Gabriella said sincerely. "Let's talk in 10 years, and see what happens to us."

"Ten years, and every year in between," Taylor agreed.

Gabriella laughed, and sighed. Her first true friend.

*/*/*/*/*

"So how's it going with you and Gabriella?" Chad panted, stealing the basketball from Troy and dribbling it down the court. Jason, Chad, Zeke and Troy were all sweating, playing ball in the dim light of the Boltons' outdoor lights.

"Great," Troy said.

"Kinda fast, don't you think?" Chad tossed the ball to Zeke.

"What? For a relationship?" Troy asked, stealing the ball from Zeke and shooting. "Eh, I mean, Gabi is… Gabi is a great girl. I really like her, and I figure, why wait, you know?"

"Look at you pussys," Zeke said. "Gossiping like a bunch of girls."

"Shut the fuck up," Chad said, scoring.

"Boys!" Lucille called. "You want dinner? Pizza's here!"

"Thanks Mrs. B!" Chad called. "You guys in?"

"Definitely," Jason said, making one last shot.

*/*/*/*/*

"So, son, I heard you're in the musical," Jack said, grabbing a slice of pizza from the box the boys were surrounding. "You want to trade your basketball shoes for ballet? I don't know if U of A has a spot for that," Jack teased.

"Jack!" Lucille scolded as Troy's friends began taunting Troy. "I think it's wonderful that Troy is expanding his repertoire."

"Just like you did, expanding your 'repertoire' to me? Dating a basketball coach instead of another doctor?" Jack said cheekily.

"Jack, you're such a child," Lucille rolled her eyes.

"Son, just make sure that this doesn't interfere with your basketball. You need to focus," Jack said sternly, turning back to the boys. "Boys, see to it that your captain is not distracted this next few weeks. We want to whoop those West High Knights."

"Yes sir!" The boys said, then they went back to scarfing down their pizza.

A/N

So what do you guys think? Character development, plot development, etc. Let me know! Thanks so much for reading, and I'll try to update soon!

~Jackie 3