May 29th, 2008: 10:38 AM

Gabriella entered her house. She was greeted by Colt, Henry, and Leaf, but didn't bother to say hello to them. She seemed saddened.

"GABRIELLA ANNE MONTEZ!" She heard her dad yell. She sighed in agony and walked into the kitchen.

"Where the hell were you all last night?" Vincente` stood up from the table and threw his newspaper down.

"I was at the stadium." She said grogily.

"Doing what?"

Gabriella plunked down on a stool. "Just being there, doing absolutely nothing."

Maria came downstairs. "She is finally home?"

"You're in some huge trouble, little girl!"

"Just kill me and get it over with." Gabriella groaned sadly.

"I want you back at this house every night at 8:00, got it?" Vincente` growled.

"Sure thing." Gabriella sighed.

"You better engrave that in your head, or I'll engrave you in the ground, Gabriella, you hear? I'll put you in your grave, dead or alive!"

"Fine dad! Just leave me alone!" She tipped the stool over and went to her room, slamming the door behind her.

Vincente` sighed and picked up the stool. "Maria, she needs to grow up before her baby comes. Gabriella needs to learn responsibility and time management, obviously. She can't take care of her baby unless she comes home to do it!"

"I can not do a thing about it, Vin! She will not listen to me!" She placed a box of cereal on the counter. "Her and I do not see eye to eye all the time. You are the only one who can straighten that girl out, other than Troy."

"I don't wanna hear about that lazy kid."

"He is still the father of your grandchild, Vincente`. He is family."

"Family or not, he's still a lazy jackass."

"He pays child support. He has a job so that he can provide for Gabriella and his child. That is not lazy, in my culture. Laziness in my culture is where you do not give a damn about your own child, not to mention any names, Vincente`."

"I came back for you and Gabriella!" He sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Let's just not get into this, okay? I love you and Gabriella, and that's all that matters."

And suddenly, the doorbell rang.

Vincente` walked over to the door, opening it. He stepped aside.

"Hello Troy, Jack, Kay, come in." He looked worridly at Maria.

Maria smiled a little. "I suppose you are here to see Gabriella?"

Troy nodded, looking at the floor.

Maria ran to the basement door, opened it, and yelled down the stairs for Gabriella.

As Gabriella made her way up the stairs, she complained the entire way. "I know mom, 8:00 every night, blah blah blah- " She shut the door behind her and became a little confused. "Mr. and Mrs. Bolton? Troy? What are you guys doing here?"

Jack nudged Troy.

Troy sighed and looked up at her.

"I need to tell you something."

Gabriella walked towards him a little.

"You hurt me very badly, Gabriella... It hurt me so much to know that our relationship was there because you wanted to get pregnant- "

"I told you, that's not what our relationship was based on! I loved you so much Troy, and I didn't use your love! I loved you too! I only... " She sighed. "I only wanted to have a baby. That's all. I didn't 'use' you." Gabriella's eyes watered.

"I don't care anymore, Gabriella. I just need to get something off of my back."

Gabriella felt her baby kicking her, and kicking her hard. She winced a little and wrapped both arms around her stomach. It stopped immediatly. "What do you want to get off of your back?"

Troy looked sort of anxious.

"The day you told me that you were pregnant... I cheated on you with another girl."

Gabriella almost had a heart attack.

"You... You cheated on... me?"

He nodded sadly.

"I... I thought you loved me... " Tears fell from her eyes to the floor.

"And I thought you loved me too." Troy's eyes were red.

"I DID! HOW DO I FIT THAT IN YOUR MIND? I LOVED YOU SO GOD DAMN MUCH IT HURTS TROY! IT FUCKING HURTS!" She tried to calm down a little. She took a deep breath, and then began to speak again. "I agreed to get pregnant because I loved you. I loved you, Troy Bolton. I thought you loved me too, and it wouldn't be a problem because I thought you would love this baby too, and we would be happy together... But obviously, you didn't love me, and I made a fool out of myself that day when you got hurt on the field, and the day that I told you I was pregnant... You convinced me that you loved me... That's betrayal, Troy. That's fucking wrong... "

Maria approached Gabriella and began to reassure her. "Sweetheart, please calm down... It is not good for your baby... "

Gabriella sobbed and shook her head. "This isn't funny business, mom. This isn't like when dad left you and I... This is total betrayal... " She turned to Troy. "What did you do? Did you kiss her? Did you tell her you loved her?"

"No... I... "

Jack pushed Troy forward.

"I had sex with her, okay?"

Gabriella stared directly at him. Her body became extremely tense as her blood began to boil. She felt her baby kicking again.

"But Gabriella, you have to understand... I loved you, and I still do... I never didn't love you, I just needed an outlet- "

"Because I wasn't good enough?"

"No! You were perfect, you were amazing Brie! I was just stressed out!"

Vincente` flashed Troy an angry face. Troy receeded.

"Why were you stressed?"

"Because you had just told me that you were pregnant!"

Gabriella sat in the chair and looked at the floor. Tears dripped off of her face once again. She hid her face with her hands and cried silently to herself. She squeezed her hair.

"It's all my fault... " She shook her head.

Troy's eyes watered. He jerked once as he looked down on the floor, and Kay placed her hand on his back. He removed it quickly and looked back at her. "Don't treat me like a kid anymore. I've gotta grow up, mom. I've gotta grow up and be a man."

He made his way towards Gabriella. Squatting down in front of her, he took both of her hands.

"Don't blame yourself because of what I did. I was irresponsible and I take full blame for it."

Jack, Kay, Vincente`, and Maria were all staring at Troy and Gabriella.

"You never loved me... " Gabriella whined tearily and jerked with tears. "You lied... "

"Baby- "

"Don't call me baby!" Gabriella sobbed.

"I'm sorry." He looked at the floor.

"I loved you, and I agreed to have this baby because I thought you loved me too. I didn't use you or your love... You used me for sex, not because you loved me."

"That's not true... " He looked into her eyes. "I loved you from the start and I still love you now. I love you Gabriella Anne Montez, and I love our little baby too... You don't know how much I love you two... "

Troy snaked his hands around Gabriella, holding the sides of her stomach. He stroked it with his thumb, and Gabriella looked away.

"You liar... "

"I'm not lying... Please Gabriella, please understand... " He begged. He kissed her cheek and moved one of his hands around towards the front of her stomach. His entire hand engulfed her small bump. "Please Gabriella... "

She didn't respond. She continued to look away.

"I love you and our baby... You and this baby are my life... " He kissed the top of her stomach and then tried to kiss her lips. She turned her head even more. But temptation beat her. He continued to try, and finally, he gripped her lips in his, kissing her long and hard, trying to get her to realize...

When they finally pulled away, their foreheads fell together, and their lips were just centimeters away. Gabriella's eyes were closed, but Troy's were open, watching her eyes closely. Everyone stood solidly, waiting for the decision made by Gabriella. Troy's left hand still gripped the side of her stomach, and his right hand surrounded the tip of her stomach.

Gabriella cried a little harder. Troy did also.

She made her decision...

Gabriella pushed him away with her hands and stood up. She cried hard, moving away from him. She stood at the top of the left staircase, still debating on whether or not to go back to him. She turned around, staring at Troy, who was also crying. He stared back at her. But she didn't go back to him.

Without saying anything, Gabriella reached behind her neck and unclasped the necklace. She clasped it back together once it was off and clenched it tightly in her palm. She stared at it.

Everyone stared at it.

With a hard sob, she loosened her fingers, and tipped her hand to the side. The gold chain with the cross fell to the floor. She watched it closely, saying eight last words.

"May the gold light shine down on you."

Gabriella went to her room and slammed the door behind her.

Troy tried to hide his crying, but it was evident. He didn't bother to pick up the necklace. He simply began to walk towards the door.

"Atleast you tried Troy." Jack patted him on the back.

Troy became outraged.

"What the hell do you think trying is? I love her, and she doesn't even think I do! She hates me! I won't ever get to see my child, and you guys just say 'You tried'? This is 2008, and love isn't like it used to be back in the '90s and '80s! This is 2008 love, and people in 2008 don't just give up! I love her, god damn it! I LOVE HER!" He stormed outside and down the street, not bothering to enter his parents' truck.

Kay, Jack, Maria and Vincente` all shook hands and said how sorry they were, and went their separate ways.