ELEVEN – Losing The Plot

It was only eleven o'clock on that next Monday morning, and Troy was already losing the will to live. Chad's party on the previous Friday night had been a blast – save for the brief jealousy-filled moment – and waking up the next morning with Gabriella fast asleep in his arms was amazing. He had managed to avoid the pink jellies, therefore saving himself another embarrassment episode that his friends would have surely talked about for the next hundred years. And even though his back ached like mad due to the fact that he and Gabriella had slept on the wooden floor of Chad's Treehouse, everything had felt perfect on that Saturday morning. That is, until he had heard Chad creeping up the ladder and then saw his bushy head peep through the small doorway. Gabriella had then woken up and Chad had talked over and over again about how it felt to finally be a 'man'.

Troy was happy for his friend – it was about time Chad Danforth settled with a girl that he was truly serious about. It may not have been obvious to the world, but Troy, for one, knew the extent of Chad's feelings towards Taylor – and now, after taking the final step in their relationship, they looked happier than ever. The downside was that Troy now felt the added pressure to take that step with Gabriella; and it didn't help that Chad and the rest of the Wildcats constantly asked him about it.

After they had cleaned the Danforth household from top to bottom – so the Danforth's would not even get an inkling of the previous goings-on – Troy had walked Gabriella home and after a long kiss on her front porch, he had left her to go home and shower. And that morning in homeroom was the first time Troy had seen her since walking her home on the Saturday morning. His weekend had been occupied by his Dad and coach working with him on his skills so he would be ready for the game while Gabriella had spent the Saturday evening at Taylor's to discuss her first time with Chad and the Sunday she had spent quality time with her Mom. It had been the longest they hadn't seen each other and the late night phone calls didn't compensate for it either.

After homeroom that morning, Troy had given his girlfriend a lengthy kiss before the free period practise started; emitting mocking groans from their friends. As he and his basketball buddies turned to walk in the direction of the gym, Troy had looked back to find Ryan Evans sprinting over to Gabriella before laughing with her and linking her arm with his. And he couldn't shake off that feeling that was unfortunately getting too familiar.

Now, standing stationary in the middle of the gym, absentmindedly dribbling a basketball; Troy could hear his Dad shouting orders to a few of his team mates who just weren't making the right moves. Beside him, Chad was giving his 'manly' speech about how fantastic life was; though Troy really wasn't listening. At the other end of the court, he heard Jess McLean and her cheerleader posse practising their cheers for the up-coming game; their spirit chants deliberately echoing around the gymnasium in order to get his attention.

"Wildcats sing along! Yeah, we got a good thing going on! Wildcats, in the house; everybody scream and shout! Wildcats, everywhere! Wave your hands up in the air! That's the way we do it, let's get to it; time to show the world!"

If he heard that chant one more time, he really felt that he would be able to cause a lot of bodily harm with his basketball. The cheerleaders always had practised their cheers in the courtyards outside, just so students who were innocently walking by would be able to hear them and think, 'Oh, I wish I was a cheerleader!' Well, that's how Jess liked to think, anyway. No-one had the heart to tell her what they were really thinking.

"One more time, girls! From the top!" Troy squinted his eyes shut as Jess's booming voice reached his ears. He continued to dribble the ball before Chad effortlessly tackled it away from him; bringing him back to reality.

"Bolton, dude; what's with you today? Are you still asleep?" Chad asked, puzzled.

"I'm losing the plot." Troy sighed and wiped his sweaty forehead with the back of his hand. "Those cheerleaders are driving me mad."

"You and me both." Chad nodded over in their direction. As Troy followed his gaze, Jess blew him a kiss before showing him some fantastic back flip. "Hey." Chad lightly slapped Troy's shoulder and passed the ball back to him. "Ignore them. Get your head back in the game, Dude; your Dad is proper stressing over this!"

Troy cast his eyes over to where Jack Bolton was demonstrating another move to five other team mates. "Yeah. He's really driving me mad, too. It's the first game of the year; it's not that big a deal."

Chad's eyes widened. "I think you'll find, it is! We kicked West High's asses last season, and I'm telling you, my friend; they're cooking up some sweet revenge. We need to be focused on this game so we can kick them when they're down. We can't let them beat us, Troy; so get focused!"

"Chad, I'm focused." Troy stated and threw the ball back over to his best friend. "Everything's just started to get on top of me."

"Why?" Chad started to dribble the ball as Troy let out a prolonged sigh.

"This is the last year of High School; this is it. This is the last year we'll be Wildcats, dude."

Chad dribbled the ball between his legs half a dozen times, then spun the ball on the tip of his index finger; clearly more attentive to his own basketball skills. "Which is why we need to majorly kick ass this year."

"It's not just that though, is it?" Troy snatched the spinning ball and tucked it under his arm. "We've got finals at the end of the year that will essentially kick start us into the future and then Darbus was talking about starting to apply to colleges…"

"Dude." Chad pinched the ball back. "You were actually listening to Darbus?" Troy rolled his eyes. "Look," Chad started to slowly dribble the ball again. "You worry way too much about stuff. You always have. You just need to chill. U of A will accept you on a basketball scholarship alone – you don't need to worry about finals."

"I'm not just a basketball guy, Chad. I want good grades at the end of this year. And, man, I really need to study."

Chad shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "So, you just get Gabriella to share some of that knowledge of hers. As long as you don't get distracted, this is. Just another plus side for us having fantastically intelligent girlfriends."

"Yeah…" Troy drifted off. "Gabriella…"

Chad could see that his friend's mind was elsewhere, and before he could click his fingers in front of his friend's face to bring him back to Planet Earth, Coach Bolton appeared behind his son; his whistle hanging loosely from his mouth.

"Problem, guys?" He asked, keeping the whistle firmly in place. The menacing and competitive look on his face made Chad back off slightly while Troy looked upwards - he was already used to dealing with his father when he was in one of these moods.

"No, Coach." Chad instinctively answered. "Just…talking about the pressures of High School…and… finals… and… college… and…"

"Girls." Jack finished off, looking at his son. "You talk during my practise; you make the time up at the end. We have a game to prepare for and if you guys haven't got your heads in the game-"

"Dad, our heads are in the game." Troy responded sharply, turning slightly to face him. "And I'm not staying behind after school – I've got plans."

Chad backed off again, seeing Jack's face harden as Troy slowly walked to the other end of the court and picked up a spare basketball with which he started to do free throws. "Chad. Go work on your footwork with Zeke and Jason." No more orders were needed as Chad quickly scuttled away to where his other friends were; glad to be at a safe distance away from World War Three.

Troy heard his father slowly approaching him as the ball swished through the net again and bounced back towards him. He didn't bother to turn around as Jack stood next to him with his arms folded. "And what was that about?" he asked in a quiet yet stern tone.

"Nothing."

"Don't tell me its nothing." Jack replied as Troy caught the ball again and aimed at the hoop above him. "Are you going to tell me what's wrong or are you going to continue to snap at me?"

"Dad." Troy sighed as he caught the ball again and tucked it under his arm. "I'm just starting to feel the pressures of being a senior, that's all. Chad and I were talking about what life's going to be like after school, okay?"

Jack rubbed his chin. "Why are you nervous? You'll easily get into the U of A – we've been working on this scholarship deal for weeks now, Troy. You're impressing a lot of people with your skills."

"Yeah, but it all depends on how I play this year."

"You're the Playmaker, son – you keep your head in the game this year and you'll literally fly into U of A. I know you've got to study for finals and I know grades are important but you're already sealing the deal with what you can do on that court."

Troy shook his head, feeling totally misunderstood and frustrated at the world. "Maybe I don't just want to get in based on my basketball."

Jack put a nervous smile on his face and crossed his arms over his torso. "What; don't tell me you're going to sign up for that Darbus show like those loon's are." He pointed over his shoulder with his thumb towards the rest of the team who were obediently practising their footwork skills and throws. They always knew that Coach was never too far away…

Troy frowned and looked over to his friends. "What are you talking about?"

"I caught Chad and Zeke signing up on the bulletin boards this morning. Harassed them over it – really gave them hell. I mean, we all know you can sing, son, but I never thought that Chad would…" he drifted off, smiling while shaking his head. "But they're adamant they're doing it – just as long as it doesn't get in the way of their game, I'm fine with it."

Troy lowered his head and put a hand over his eyes, not believing what he was hearing. Chad had said he wouldn't sign up for it… he was adamant that he wasn't going to be a part of it. The good thing about that was to ease some of the pressure away from Troy when everyone else ganged up and called them spoilsports. Had Gabriella signed up? Jack watched his son warily. "Are you thinking of signing up?"

Troy lifted his head and lowered his hand. "Would you be mad if I did?"

"No. No, but…" Jack wavered, his hands going to his hips. "You've just said yourself… you're stressed; everything's getting on top of you. You need to prioritise your life; figure out all the important stuff and put that first."

"And I suppose basketball tops that list…"

"I thought this was important to you, Troy. It's your life."

Troy nodded. "Yes, Dad, it is important and it is my life. But it's not the only thing that is. This competitive streak you've got is on a whole new level and you're pushing. I don't need the extra pressure – I practise, I work hard. I love basketball but if you keep pushing it's going to completely change my view of it. I want to get into U of A on a basketball scholarship but with you straining me constantly its going to make it a lot harder. It's not the only thing in my life that I consider important."

"And Gabriella is?"

"Yes." Troy despised the look on his Dad's face when he answered.

Jack shook his head quickly, placing a hand on his sons shoulder but it was instantly shaken off. "Troy, come on; you know I like Gabriella-"

"No, actually I don't."

Jack ignored the sarcasm that had suddenly erupted from Troy's mouth. "She's a nice girl and your Mom and I can see how happy you guys are."

"Oh, really?" Troy lifted an eyebrow, not liking where this conversation was going.

"Yes, really. But you've been so focused on her over the past few months – it's like you can't do anything without thinking about her first. I suppose these plans you've got for tonight include her."

"So what if they have?" Troy's voice was beginning to rise. "Dad, I've told you before, Gabi is not a problem; and she's not the reason why I'm getting stressed. You're part of the problem and this conversation isn't helping."

Jack threw his arms in the air as he spoke, becoming more and more frustrated with his stubborn son. "But she is, Troy. You're worried about school, you're worried about college. You're worried about finals, and the scholarship… and your game. You're trying to make time for all of these things whilst at the same time; you're putting your girlfriend and your dates first. You had never missed a single practise until you started seeing her. You're putting Gabriella before everything else and if you're not careful, it'll all come crashing down on you. I mean, how do you know what's going to happen in the future? What if you break up? What if you've put everything after her and then you break up and you're left with nothing?"

Troy gritted his teeth. "It's not going to happen."

"Troy, I know you're seventeen…hell, just about eighteen! You're growing up and I know you're not as naïve as you're sounding right now. And I hate patronising you but you're being stubborn. Now, I'm not saying you guys need to break up but I think you should back away from each other for a while and concentrate on your studies and your game. Secure all of that in place and if you both feel the same way afterwards…" Jack drifted off as Troy shook his head in disgust. Troy threw the ball carelessly towards the bleachers and started to make his way towards the exit of the gym. "Troy!" Jack called after his son, prompting the other Wildcats to stop what they were doing and watch the scene. "Troy!" Jack started to jog as Troy banged the door open. "Bolton! Practise is not over!"

No other words were exchanged as Troy slammed the door shut so hard that it sent a chilling echo around the gym.