Exotic Love

Disclaimer: Everything I write is highly fictional and I do not own High School Musical. I only own the plot and other additional characters.

A/N – Well, only one got who died correct. So go ahead and read on to find out. I'll give you a hint. I got the idea listening to Carrie Underwood's Just A Dream. Hint, hint. Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge. Yeah…

Now onto the chapter!

Chapter Twenty One

Deceased Love

There are good people and there are bad. In action flicks, almost all the time good people win against the bad. But actions flicks aren't real life, and sometimes bad conquers good. Sometimes bad kills good. Like how bad killed Nick Montez.

He was a solider, a brave one, and didn't deserve to die. When he had left, he had said, 'I'll see you in a few months'. He never came and that was because he had died. Maria was just about to leave her house to get to the hospital, but was stopped by two men dressed neatly in uniform. They handed over a letter, one which she read once, and then twice.

It was two in the morning. Troy was in Gabriella's room, looking at a ultra-sound picture. It was their first ultra-sound, only two months ago. Maria was sat on the bed, gripping her daughters hand as they cried. Rose was standing, leaning against the wall, tears in her eyes. LeAnne and Drake were locked tightly in a hug, her head resting on his chest and his shin resting against the top of her head. Greg sat on the other side of Gabriella, rubbing her arm. Vasilisa looked solemn, reading over the letter again and again. The room was completely quiet.

"When's his funeral?" Rose said finally, breaking the silence.

"Who's?" Drake asked. Along with Nick's passing, the Montez family was depressed over the news of Logan's death as well. Rose shrugged and frowned. "Both, I guess?"

"I'm not burying my baby," Gabriella said. Everyone turned to look at her. It was the first she had spoken since the news. Troy stood, making his way over to her. Maria moved to the end of the bed, watching as Troy got to his knees and grabbed her hands. "Gabriella―"

"No, Troy, I won't just stand back and watch them bury Logan," Gabriella whispered, her voice wavering as tears poured down her cheeks. Troy blinked, refusing to cry again. "Gabriella, he's gone. You have to face reality."

"He's…not gone," Gabriella said. She closed her eyes and let her head fall back against the pillows as a sob escaped her mouth. "This is all just a horrible dream."

"Who was the one who hit your car, anyway?" Vasilisa asked. Gabriella shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't ask."

"Sally did," Troy said. "His name was Damian Brown. He just had a minor concussion."

"Lucky bastard," Gabriella spat out, hatred filling her voice. It was all his fault anyways.

The door then opened. All heads turned as a nurse came in, carrying a clipboard. She smiled softly at the bunch. "I'm sorry, guys. Visiting hours are over."

Maria leaned down to press a kiss to Gabriella's forehead. "I'll see you tomorrow, sweetheart. Just stay strong, okay? Everything will be alright."

"That won't be the case this time, mom," Gabriella whispered. She hugged her mom, and then her dad, whispering 'I love you'. Drake, Rose, LeAnne, and Vasilisa and bent to give her a hug as well, and then they all left. Troy lay down next to Gabriella, pulling her close and kissing her gently on the mouth. "She's right."

"Our baby just died, Troy," Gabriella said, sniffing. "My brother just died. All in the same day, Troy. You tell me, how the hell is everything going to be alright?"

Troy was quiet. Gabriella blinked when she felt something wet against her cheek and sat up some to look at Troy. Silently, he was crying. Gabriella reached forward, wiping away the tears with the pad of her thumb. She swallowed tightly. She didn't like seeing him cry. She really didn't. "Maybe not now, but I guess this'll be fine soon. We'll get through it together."

Troy smiled softly. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

"Gabs," Katie whispered, looking at her friend. It was five weeks after everything. Gabriella was able to get out now, although Sally had left four weeks before. The funeral would be tomorrow, now that Gabriella was out.

"I'm fine," Gabriella said and Katie sighed. "Kate, you act like I'll drive a knife through my stomach. Really, I'm fine. I'm coping really well."

"What about your relationship with Troy?" she asked. "How is it going?"

Gabriella sighed and shook her head. "Not too good, I guess. It's like he's suffering more than me. He's pushing me away, Kate. I know he's sad over Logan dying, but he's the one who told me everything will be okay. How can it when he hardly talks to me?"

"See counseling," she suggested. "Don't let it get worse."

"We don't need counseling," Gabriella said. "We just…need to get away. Go on a vacation for a few days or so."

Katie nodded. "Alright. That's good."

"I can't believe I'll be saying goodbye to him tomorrow," Gabriella whispered. "All those years we've spent together…" She bowed her head gently and bit her bottom lip. Katie placed a hand on her back and gently started to rub. "It's okay. Come on." She stood and then grabbed Gabriella's hand, pulling her up, also being mindful of her cast. Gabriella wiped away a few tears before wobbling after Katie out of the small hospital room.

Everyone was in the waiting room. When Troy saw Gabriella, he tore off towards her, wrapping her in a hug. "Are you okay? About…?"

"Don't walk on egg shells around me," she said, pushing away. "I'm fine."

After a few tearful hugs, everyone left for home. With Troy and Gabriella, the ride was silent. Gabriella bit her lip, thinking about her comment on how Troy was distant. She turned to look over at him and decided to say something. "Troy?"

He looked over at her. "Hm?"

"You know…we can talk about anything, right?" She placed a hand on his thigh. Before, it would've been almost sexual, but it was a comforting touch. Troy sighed and looked down as he came to a stop at a red light. She could see the distraught look on his face and squeezed his thigh harder, as if motivating him. "Maria told me not to worry about it," he said softly, his voice cracking. "But I can't help but think…"

"Think what?" Gabriella pushed softly.

"Logan wasn't mine," he finally said, looking up. Gabriella tensed, her mind reeling as she thought back to that night. That night with Chris. "I can't help but think about what would happen if Logan was mine and he would've lived. I know I said I was scared, but a part of me was happy, too. A part of me was happy thinking that the baby you were carrying might've been mine, too."

"We can always try again…later," Gabriella offered thinly. Troy looked up at her. He looked ready to say something, but a horn blared, causing them to look up. The light was green. Troy pressed on the gas pedal. "Let's go somewhere," Gabriella said. "Like Hawaii. Or Miami. Or anywhere, I don't care. I just want it to be me and you. I just want us to forget about this for a while. To be happy for even just a day and let all of this go away."

Troy thought about it. "When do you think we should go?"

"Next week. No sooner, no later. Just me and you."

"Okay," Troy agreed. "I'm in."

The last few hours blurred past her. Nick was…blown to pieces, so there was no body to show. But Gabriella was thankful. Her mind would've gone back all the fun times her and Nick had together upon seeing him. Then she would have cried and she had done enough of that. Troy and everyone else had said it was okay for her to cry, but she wanted to stay strong. She wanted to say strong when they talked about Nick and about Logan. Although, she was still thinking about how Logan wasn't Troy's. How he had been a bastard baby, a mistake, a rape baby. In a way, she was glad Logan hadn't made it, as horrible as it sounded. But she would've still had results and she didn't know if she'd love him like she was supposed to. It wouldn't be fair to him, for that and the knowledge that he was born because of a rape. Gabriella cringed as she thought about it.

Troy must've thought it was a sigh of sadness, because he placed a hand on her forearm. She looked up at him and smiled softly, telling him that she was alright. In front of them, Maria nearly choked on her tears as the congregation sung and then handed her a folded up flag. She broke even more, leaning forward, grieving for her son. Greg wrapped a consoling arm around her feeble shoulders and Gabriella turned, burying her face in Troy's chest. She couldn't watch her mother break down anymore. She was so full of confidence, of bravery and it made her heart teeter with pain as she wept.

A cannon fired off and that was the end of it.

Everyone gathered at the Montez household after. Gabriella straightened out her knee-length black dress and walked up to her mother who was sitting outside, holding one of Nick's hats. Gabriella sat down next to her and pulled her legs up, resting her chin on her knees. "Are you okay?" Gabriella asked. Maria sighed. "Ii want to say yes, but I can't. Nick…my baby, I always was against it, you know? I didn't want him to join. I didn't want him to get hurt. But he did, he did and I lost one of my babies."

"He was a good guy," Gabriella said softly.

"He was," Maria agreed. "So, Katie told me about your trip. Where are you and Troy going?"

"Don't know yet. Somewhere warm. Nice. To get away from everything."

"You should go visit Chris first," Maria said. "Just tell him about the baby."

Gabriella chewed her bottom lip. "I'll think about it."

Too short, I know! I'm sorry about the wait, but I got writers block. I don't know, I still love High School Musical, I seriously do, but it's been like four years since everyone was hyped up about it, a year since Vanessa and Zac broke up, I don't know, I'm kind of losing my muse. But don't worry, I will NOT quit. I still love them, I do. Except now I'm not the crazy fan girl I used to be.

Anyway, THERE'S A POLL ON MY PROFILE! I'd like you to vote, but you have to check out my upcoming stories to do so first. Alright, and the next chapter will be Gabriella and Troy visiting Chris in jail and part one of the vacation. Until next time…

Thanks!-Brittany