A/N: Thanks for all the marvelous reviews! And a special thanks to runninequalslife and pandora147 for checking parts over for me! :D
Gabriella felt two brawny arms swathe around her and cradle her so gingerly against his chest, picking her off of the floor and then resting her on her unmade bed. She distantly felt Troy unravel the tousled covers and layer them gently on top of her slumbering figure, stroking her serene face with the backs of his fingers for just a moment.
Gabriella awoke smoothly, very slowly easing to a conscious state. She could feel Troy's transfixed eyes embedded on her, and she gradually became aware that she probably needed to be awake.
"Hey," Gabriella murmured groggily, her eyes still closed. She wanted to open them, but her body wouldn't allow her too.
"Hey," came Troy's voice, so endearingly soft. "Are you okay? Are you not feeling well?" He pressed his large hand to her forehead, biting his lip as he found it just slightly steamed.
"I'm fine," Gabriella mumbled nonchalantly, distractedly laying her hand on his outstretched arm. Troy felt his heart flutter at the simple action. It was pathetic how he missed her after a mere day.
"Why weren't you in class?" Troy muttered tenderly to her, sweeping strands of dark hair that had adhered to her face. Troy absentmindedly caressed her ear with his fingers, smiling at her as Gabriella finally opened her weary eyes. "I thought maybe you weren't feeling well. But I told myself that if I didn't see you second period, I would go find you afterwards…."
"Second period?" Gabriella groaned in complaint, digging her head into the pillow, her hair falling like a curtain over her beautiful face. "I've missed that much?" She would have to make up a lot of work, even for two periods.
"Hmm," Troy murmured frankly, pressing his face into her hot neck. He closed his eyes blissfully and breathed her in, her unique aroma filling his body and making his blood rush faster through his veins.
Gabriella closed her eyes for another moment too, wrapping her slender arm around Troy's neck, tugging him closer, and combing her fingers lazily through his hair. Troy scooted himself closer, finally lying on the bed next to her and resting his heavy head on her flat stomach. Troy curled his arms around her legs, kissing her knee lovingly.
"What's with Gretchen?" Troy asked after some time of basking in each other's presence.
"Oh," Gabriella sighed. "She was desperate and slept with Carter last night."
Troy chuckled.
"Hey," Gabriella reprimanded him lightly. "Stop it. I mean, I know she can be a little annoying sometimes, but c'mon…anyone who sleeps with Carter deserves pity."
"You deserved pity?" Troy grumbled from her stomach. Even though that had happened the previous year, Troy still felt envy blast through his body. He would never forget some things, or fully forgive others, for that matter. Gabriella tangled her nimble fingers in Troy's hair again, her other fingers tenderly stroking his warm cheek.
"Troy, that was different," Gabriella struggled, trying to prove her point. "Gretchen's different. She's…naïve, and…helpless…new to this," Gabriella explained in a strained voice. "God, I just can't help but feel so sorry for her…."
"Well, that's understandable," Troy nodded against her stomach. He squeezed her thigh, trailing his fingers up and down her leg. "You've been through the same thing."
"Troy, last year was so different than this year," Gabriella whispered as she recalled. "It was darker…more vicious…more dizzying. I was new to everything, yeah…but I had you. You helped. But just with drugs and sex and everything…God, I don't know. My life was just one big tornado, and everything around me just kept spinning madly around, and I could never think straight because of that."
"And now it's not?" Troy replied in an undertone, his voice careful.
There was a silence.
Troy traced circles around Gabriella's knees, dragging his fingers up and down the insides of her legs repeatedly. Gabriella glared up perplexedly at the ceiling, searching it with her blank eyes as if it held an answer. Troy unleashed a sigh that broke the silence; lifting up Gabriella's tight-fitting tank top and shimmying it up to her neck, letting all the material sit there. Troy lay his head on her again, his chin at her navel, and his lips kissing the underside of her breast. Tingles sparked where his lips touched her, and Gabriella couldn't breathe suddenly. She wrapped one toned leg around Troy's waist, sighing hot air into his ear.
"It's better," Gabriella finally said.
Troy had forgotten the question for a split second, but then remembering, he nodded and pecked more kisses to her skin. It had clammed up; cuddled into a tight ball under the blanket on the floor, Gabriella had been freezing out of her mind. The night had been icy, and she had been shivering for most of it. But the morning had warmed, and she had remained in her ball, her skin perspiring as a result. That had been why her forehead had seemed warm.
Gabriella absentmindedly cupped Troy's chin from above, her fingers dragging.
"What?" Troy whispered to her.
"I'm just thinking about that time with Carter," Gabriella murmured faintly. Troy's gripped tightened around her legs, and his lips smushed against her skin again. "God, Gretch was such a mess. That poor thing. She was just feeling so down, and you know how Carter is…he'll fake it and—shit, it's my fault. I didn't warn her…."
"It's okay, babe," Troy reassured her soothingly. "She'll learn. She'll learn from that experience and she'll be fine."
"No, Troy. She's so sensitive. She's going to be a wreck if we don't take care of her."
"Ugh, don't. Don't 'adopt' her."
"I won't! I just want to make sure she's okay."
Troy sighed against her flesh, his mouth closing over it lightly for a moment.
They were both silent. Gabriella was thinking about how Carter had forced her, how miserable that night had been….
Gabriella wasn't drunk, but she felt like she was. Or maybe she was smashed after all. She'd had her share of alcohol.
The party virtually the whole school had attended had been loaded with alcohol; supplied with so much of it, she didn't even know if their student body could consume that much. Everyone was too intoxicated to think straight, others vomiting or passing out completely. Gabriella couldn't remember a bigger party at Bentley; but, she hadn't been there too long just yet.
The Latino beauty giggled as she shoved the basketball star back onto the two-person sofa in Troy's dorm, straddling his waist boldly. Her bare ankles locked behind her, Troy's mouth watering as he saw the black heels that were strapped to her tiny feet. Gabriella pinched the cigarette that was clasped loosely in between Troy's teeth, and she slipped the end into her own mouth, inhaling deeply and exhaling with a pleasurable sigh.
Troy's hand came around to her waist, sliding down and cupping her ass. Gabriella smirked furtively and took another deep breath from the cigarette, puffing out a cloud of gray smoke.
"Fuck…" Troy husked with dark, outlined eyes. "That's sexy."
Gabriella smirked amusedly again, the corners of her painted lips curving upwards tantalizingly.
"Thank God I'm not so…so…wasted," Troy stammered, his index finger lazing around Gabriella's uncovered shoulder. "I want to remember this in the morning…." He never had this kind of time with his Gabriella. Not since school had started.
"I think it is morning," Gabriella whispered sultrily against his neck, pecking a kiss to his skin.
She and Troy had been dating since the summer, but not much had happened since then. Something about their formerly intimate relationship had broken once school had started, but Gabriella understood through the tacit rules why. Intimacy and the sharing of true feelings were unknown at Bentley…nonexistent. All of a sudden, their time together was spent emptily, and the part of Gabriella's heart that Troy had taken for his own felt…lost. Completely. Gradually, their relationship had led more and more to sex. They'd only done it twice before, both of them intimidated by the personal act both times, shying away from it since then. Troy had never felt the way he had been feeling when he had had sex with Gabriella those two times. He wanted everything to be perfect, and he'd never been so meticulous or careful about anything in his life. Gabriella had never had sex before him; the way the tears burned her eyes the first time scared Troy, and they'd hesitated having sex a second time. Even the second time was uncomfortable for Gabriella, and Troy didn't want to rush it. No matter how hard he tried to keep their relationship empty, it only solidified and deepened with every ounce of effort towards the opposite. Where was this going?
"Shit, are you okay?" Gabriella asked after analyzing his twisted expression, her mouth frowning in worry. She stuck the cigarette in between Troy's lips again, as if telling him to use it to relax. "You feel tense." Her small hands settled on his broad shoulders, her fingernails gently raking back and forth on his flesh.
"Uh," Troy grunted simply, placing his hands on her underside and jerking her closer. "I don't know."
Gabriella's eyes twitched out of exhaustion, and she crumpled limply, her petite body thrown across Troy's. He gathered her in his arms as best as he could, supporting her heavy head against his upper arm.
"Tired?" Troy whispered to her, not noticing how tender his voice sounded. His fascinated eyes lingered on her stunning face, outlining the contours with them silently.
"As fuck," Gabriella mumbled sluggishly, groggily rubbing her eyes. "God, I think there are people lining the hallways. On the floor."
"Probably," Troy muttered against her shoulder. Gabriella flinched at his warm nose touching her skin, but then she calmed. She loved feeling his skin against hers.
Gabriella mutely pressed her fingers to the side of Troy's neck just under his jaw, holding them there as still as stone and waiting. Troy did the same thing, Gabriella involuntarily shivering at the way he was touching her. They were both quiet for a moment, enjoying the feel of each other's steady pulses against their fingertips.
"Do you want to sleep here tonight?" Troy murmured softly, his eyes boring hard into hers. "Carter's probably lying around somewhere. He won't come in 'til tomorrow morning. I'll lock the door, if that makes a difference."
Gabriella nodded noiselessly, leaning in to kiss him chastely before pulling away. Troy stood up and gingerly removed Gabriella from his lap at the same time, leaving Gabriella's tiny form strewn against the couch. God, she looked so tired, but so, so beautiful.
"Okay. I'll go get you some clothes."
"That's okay, Troy. I can wear something of yours…."
"What about for tomorrow morning?"
Gabriella caved. "Fine."
She couldn't resist kissing him one more time before he left.
Gabriella lay across the small sofa, trying not to fall asleep. She had to fight to keep her eyes from drooping shut, forcing herself to look up at the dour ceiling.
She heard a door creak open and then slam again. She heard the click of a lock distantly.
"Troy?" she called up drowsily from the couch. "That was fast…."
"Hey, B-Brie," came Carter's sluggish, gruff voice.
Gabriella managed to sit up, but her head fell lifelessly against the side of the couch. "Carter."
Gabriella didn't need to look up to know that he was inebriated; maybe not as bad as others, but he still was. She curled up to herself as Carter plopped next to her on the couch, looking very dizzy. He was sitting far too close to her. All at once, his enormous arms draped around her, and then he threw his whole body on top of her. Gabriella struggled against him with all the bits of strength she had left in her, which was not much. She was being dragged by sleep, and although Carter was drunk, he seemed more on course than she was.
"Carter!" Gabriella grunted against his weight. Her nose involuntarily wrinkled at the stench of his breath. Gabriella's fists pounded against his massive chest, which seemed to be double the size of Troy's. Sometimes she forgot how colossal Carter really was, all the more frightened as her eyes glanced over at the intimidating muscles bulging through his shirt.
"C'mon…Br-rie…" Carter drawled, sloppily kissing her cheek while he had been aiming for her mouth. Gabriella shoved his stalwart shoulders with all her might, but they hardly budged, and she collapsed back against the couch in Carter's cage. He had surrounded her fully now. "Don't you…want…want me too?"
Where the fuck was Troy?
Gabriella's mind was reeling at a rate that nauseated her. Too fast, too fast…everything was happening far too quickly….
"Get the fuck off of me, Carter!" Gabriella managed to force a complete sentence out of her mouth. She punched his stone chest again, only bruising her knuckles. She was getting nowhere.
"J-Just…cooperate," Carter stuttered blindly against her paling cheek, breathing hard and hot and heavy onto her. Gabriella groaned in disgust as his nose brushed hers in what was supposed to be a tender way, tears filling her eyes in fright. Why was this happening to her? "Let me…then you can—go…."
Gabriella sank further below him on the couch, attempting to slip through the triangle of his legs. No such luck. Carter's gargantuan fingers clenched tightly around her upper arm, squeezing so hard that Gabriella impulsively gasped aloud and then moaned in pain. She shriveled up beneath him, weak in his prison.
Carter began to kiss her greedily, and Gabriella refused to kiss back. Carter slapped her jaw and commanded her to return his kisses, but tears of grief only flowed down her beautiful face and leaked into Carter's gnawing mouth. Carter roughly framed her tiny face with his enormous hands, holding her steadily in one place and slamming his lips down on hers. He snaked his hands up her shirt, searching her body hungrily with his big hands. He could cover so much of her body with just one of his huge hands. He roughly ripped off her top, tearing the material intentionally and throwing it beside him. Her bra was soon discarded, as were her pants and thong. Gabriella couldn't help but cower, her dignity having been stolen away from her. What else did she have going for her? She was praying silently, praying that Troy would suddenly barge through that door and save her like the hero she knew he was. The hero she knew was burrowed inside of him, waiting to pounce and attack on a moment that called.
That moment did not yet come.
All of sudden, Carter was punishing her against the sofa with such power, thrusting into Gabriella's opening with such terrifying hunger. Gabriella had no power left in her, her eyes closing. She was so tired, so scared. So helpless.
But Gabriella froze, hearing something that Carter hadn't. The lock on the door had jiggled.
BAM!
The door was propelled open by Troy, his warped face crimson with unprecedented rage. Troy rammed himself into Carter's side, taking him by surprise. The basketball captain grasped the other's immense shoulders, and obtaining the strength to do so, he wrenched Carter off of his petrified girlfriend, driving him ruthlessly against the wall and beating him with such harshness and severity that Gabriella couldn't bear to look. Gabriella would never forget the hysterical shouting and hollering from both; the heated screeching that towards the end came only from her valiant rescuer.
"DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE TOUCH HER AGAIN! DO YOU HEAR ME?! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!"
Finally, after what seemed like hours, Carter was gone.
"Troy, I—I tried and I-I…." Gabriella stammered helplessly, tears blurring her vision.
"I know, baby, I know," Troy cooed to her tenderly, at her side in less than a second and letting her liquefy in his arms again. Troy smoothed the sweaty hair away from her face, whispering gently in her ear. "That's never going to happen again. I promise. Over my fucking corpse, I promise you, Carter's never going to touch you again."
But Gabriella only sobbed against his shoulder.
Troy had never seen her cry before, but followed his instincts, holding her and tending to her.
Gabriella had never seen Troy defend her in that way. Maybe that was why she was crying so much.
"Troy…you defended me," Gabriella whimpered after her sobs had subsided.
"Of course I did," Troy murmured lovingly against her curls, rubbing circles on her soft cheek.
"No one has ever defended me," Gabriella sniffled, burying her face in his shirt. Troy rubbed her back vigorously and let his lips fall at her neck.
"Have any two?" Troy joked gently.
Gabriella giggled lightly and then sighed, seeming much heavier in Troy's arms than usual. Troy lifted her gently in his arms, settling both of them on his unmade bed, throwing the navy blue comforter over them. Gabriella nestled into his side comfortably, humming every so softly to herself at the warmth that Troy gave her. Troy wrapped his arms around her naked body, pressing his lips to her forehead.
"Is it going to stop, Troy?" Gabriella sighed after moments of easy silence. "Is this…nightmare carousel ever going to stop spinning?"
"I hope so," Troy inhaled, and then adding as he exhaled, "but it's gotten better with each year I've been here."
If only she knew that her life would just continue to spin faster.
"Hey, how about I meet you in the library fourth period?" Troy offered softly. He absentmindedly toyed with Gabriella's fingers, picking at them. "We can prepare for that write-out Mrs. Mellor's going to give us fifth."
"Sure…wait, that's today?"
"Yeah."
"Shit! I haven't—"
"—Me neither."
"That's why you suggested?"
"Of course not," Troy laughed aloud. "It will never be."
Gabriella blushed, taking a moment to take him in. "I'll meet you there," Gabriella nodded in agreement, sighing contentedly as she placed her lips on Troy's one last time before departing for class.
Allegra didn't ask, brusquely snatching Gabriella's small arm and shoving up the sleeves of her shirt so they bunched up at her elbow.
"Stop it," Gabriella groaned in complaint, lolling her head around her neck for emphasis. "Please, Leggy…."
"—Shut up."
Gabriella restrained herself from rolling her eyes immaturely, sighing tiredly as her dreary eyes focused on the teacher. Madame Blanchard was her French teacher, and she was very serious and strict.
"Gabrielle!" Madame Blanchard snapped brusquely at Gabriella, who immediately straightened in her seat. Allegra instantly dropped Gabriella's arm, and without delay, Gabriella jerked it back to her lap.
"Oui, Madame?" Gabriella answered courteously, challenging Madame Blanchard with her fierce eyes.
Madame Blanchard gave Gabriella a rigid glare. "J'espère que vous prêtez attention. "
"Oui."
The French teacher shot Gabriella one last harsh look before turning back to the SMARTBoard. The moment Madame Blanchard swiveled on her heel, Allegra seized Gabriella's arm again, satisfied when Gabriella didn't wrestle her.
"Shit," Allegra muttered under her breath. "Your arm is still red."
"It's your fault!" Gabriella hissed between her teeth whilst keeping her eyes embedded on the sentences Madame Blanchard was neatly writing on the electronic board. "That was such a stupid idea. We were doing great. We hadn't played it in so long…."
"I thought Gretch the Betch would want to know how to play," Allegra smirked, all the while knowing her act had been devilish indeed. "Maybe relieve a little bit of her tension…."
"Fuck you, Allegra," Gabriella cursed hotly in a hushed voice, glad that they were in the back of the classroom. Gabriella squirmed in her seat while Allegra punctured pink circles on her arm with her pen. "If she gets addicted to that game, it's all your fucking fault."
"Better that than drugs."
"Look who's talking."
Allegra only sniggered, suppressing her laughter as she distractedly doodled on Gabriella's flesh.
"Seriously, Leg. That was so bitchy of you. It took us so long to get out of that bad habit…especially Leigh…and then you go and bring it back in," Gabriella sighed bitterly, the corners of her eyes turning down despondently. She flicked her own pencil before scrawling down some notes that Madame Blanchard had typed up across the smooth screen. Gabriella stopped for a moment, realizing something. "Leg…is there a specific reason why you…suggested that game?" Allegra froze, as if caught red-handed. She crossly pressed the point of her pen harder into Gabriella's elbow, and Gabriella winced slightly. "Tell me."
"There's nothing going wrong. I promise," Allegra added for more emphasis.
Gabriella sighed. "Look…I'd push you to tell me, but I don't really want to know. After what you did to Gretchen…fuck, Leg, you know how wrong that was!" Gabriella fearfully cowered in her seat when she saw Madame Blanchard twist suspiciously at her pose in the front of the room. Gabriella further proved her point in a quieter voice, "What the fuck is wrong with you?"
"Fine, okay?" Allegra admitted defeat, something very rare for her. Allegra's black eyes grew icier and her posture stiffened in her chair. Her feet scuffed against the carpeted floor, her jaw clenching. "Now can you just leave it the fuck alone?" She scoffed and returned to drawing designs on Gabriella's arm. Gabriella didn't bother to look, biting her lip hard in frustration and trying to focus on the assigned work. At times, she would feel the tip of the pen push down hard into her soft skin, and she would flinch or knock Allegra's ankle with hers.
She was relieved when the bell rang, and even more so when Allegra released her arm, jolting up and rushing out of the room in urgency. Gabriella sighed as she gathered her books, smiling delightedly to herself as she remembered her rendezvous with Troy minutes later.
She found Troy in the back of the enormous library, already poring through thick books and making notes in his notebook. It was very cute, Gabriella had to admit. The way his hair fell over his amazing blue eyes, his orbs concentrated as thoughts were processed in his brain. The towering bookcases were like walls, reaching the ceiling, so they were not visible in the back of the silent library.
"Hey," Gabriella whispered softly, creeping up to him and combing her fingers through the soft strands of his hair.
Troy glanced up at her and at once smiled, the infectious beam flooding his whole face and making his eyes crease adorably.
"Hey," Troy repeated quietly, his voice containing so much tenderness.
Gabriella leaned in and pressed her lips to his in a sensual kiss, pleased when Troy lengthened it. Gabriella felt Troy's warm fingers tentatively touch the bottom of her chin, soothingly tapping with the pads of his fingers on her porcelain skin. Troy didn't detach their lips as he swiftly folded Gabriella down onto his lap, finally unlocking their keen lips with another contented smile.
"Have you been researching?" Gabriella interviewed admiringly, relatively impressed at his diligence.
"Yeah," Troy sighed huskily, shakily threading his own fingers through his hair. "I've skimmed through every book I could find on all these writing skills and 'tools' that Mrs. Mellor keeps talking about."
Gabriella glanced around very quickly to make sure there were no prying eyes peeking behind the wooden bookcases, and then snuggled comfortably into Troy's larger form. Troy's hand reflexively came around to rest on her lower back, massaging the general area without thinking.
"I have a list of words she told us to include," Gabriella suggested helpfully, "if you want to look through it." Gabriella leaned down from Troy's lap into her bag on the carpet, fishing out a ripped-out notebook page with single words imprinted neatly on every other line.
"God, you've saved me," Troy breathed onto her cheek, sweetly murmuring nonsense against her flesh before pecking her lips gently once again in thanks. "What's on your arm?" Troy inquired curiously, taking the slender appendage gingerly and running his fingers carefully over the words.
In flamingo pink ballpoint, Allegra had written: I'm sorry, Brie. I know it was wrong to introduce that, but I was feeling rebellious. I got jealous and mad that Gretch slept with Carter, and that I didn't; even though I know standing up to him was the "right thing" to do. I still love you, and I'm sorry for my behavior. ~Leggy
Gabriella's surprised eyes zeroed in on the painstakingly tidy cursive, scripted on perfectly straight invisible lines on her arm.
"Introduce what?" Troy demanded to know immediately.
Gabriella curved uncomfortably in Troy's lap, sighing as she brushed her lips across his nose fleetingly.
"Gretchen was just so…so distraught about Carter and everything that 'Legra proposed to play Murder," Gabriella said uneasily, biting her lip uncertainly and squirming irritably again in her boyfriend's lap.
Troy's eyes bulged out of his sockets. He remembered how hard it had been for Gabriella to get out that bad habit. "Murder? As in that pain game?"
"Yeah," Gabriella admitted with the corners of her warm eyes turned downwards.
Troy gripped her thigh, squeezing it. "Don't tell me you played," he groaned.
"I did, but just for demonstration," Gabriella insisted in a strained voice, taking Troy's fingers in her colder ones and reassuringly squeezing them.
"I know what can make you feel better," Allegra said at once, feeling daggers stabbing her heart every time she looked at Gretchen's wretched, tearstained face.
"What?" Gretchen sniffled tearfully.
"Murder."
"NO!" Gabriella shouted instantly, taking an affirmative step forward. "Fuck no, Allegra!"
But Allegra's face was like iron. "Here, Leigh and Brie will show you."
Leighland, although she had tried so hard to stop the bad habit of playing the game, seemed eager to play it once again, her eyes lighting up in a way that made Gabriella nauseous. No, no, no! What was happening? What was Allegra doing?
"What's Murder?" Gretchen inquired naively.
"You know the game Mercy? It's kind of like that, but with no rules…and worse," Allegra quipped with her voice far too merry. She sounded…excited.
Gabriella choked, the room spinning wildly around her, but Leighland had already taken her wrists in her hands.
"I'll be nice," Leighland promised faithfully, staring into her eyes fiercely, although her round face was so hard.
In the past, the game had been played to release their anger. It felt good to feel pain, and it felt good to inflict it as well. Gabriella hadn't wanted to cut herself like she knew other girls did; so instead, she had someone else hit her. The damage was usually minor, and if it was heavier, it was also much easier to cover up.
Troy had never approved of the game, but then again, he was a hypocrite in forbidding Gabriella from participating in it. And because it made Gabriella feel so strangely good and alive, she had continued to take part in the torturous game.
The pain was so utterly and frighteningly familiar as Leighland bent her wrists and twisted her arms in every which way; the hurting was hot and intolerable, and it didn't feel good like it used to. This was what they would do when being kind. Usually, they would slap or kick of punch each other or worse. They had been desperate, and would do whatever possible to get the evil, suffocating feelings outside of their agonized bodies. Gabriella had been so tired of suffering, and would do anything to make it stop.
Tears were flowing down Gabriella's face. She finally managed to wrench away her arms, with all the force she had in her puny figure.
"I'm not doing that again," Gabriella vowed firmly, stalking back to the other side of the room. She lay back down on the floor, closing her eyes forcefully and wiping the blistering tears with her trembling fingers.
She knew that Allegra hadn't instituted a bad habit over again to herself in particular, but Gretchen was now exposed to it. Gabriella cringed as she heard Allegra and Leighland "demonstrate"…she knew she had to stop them, but she knew that nothing in the world would get them to stop. Sometimes she had to remind herself that Allegra and Leighland were not fortunate enough to have the reliable support that she had…Troy.