Title: Living the Dream
Summary: Is it possible to have it all or does something get lost along the way? Can Troy live his dream and still keep his girl?
Disclaimer: High School Musical and all of its characters belong to Disney. I just have them on secondment.
A/N: Thanks for all the amazing reviews that you guys have given me, especially over the last two chapters. You're all awesome and it's such a pleasure to read your comments. I hope you enjoy this one as much. This one is for Jess (zacharyteflonforpresident), hopefully it will make up for your computer dying.
"Yes I do," reiterated Taylor firmly, "see you soon." Taylor hung up, her mind working overtime. "What the fuck was that dumbass playing at? Why would he do that with only a week left to go? What a shit!"
Shattered Dreams
It didn't take Taylor long to wolf down her dinner because she was knocking on Gabriella's front door within the hour. Mrs Montez answered the door, smiling at the dark-skinned girl on the threshold.
"Hi Taylor, it's good to see you," greeted Anna Montez and Taylor could hear the relief in her tone.
"Hi Mrs Montez, is Gabriella in?" Taylor asked unnecessarily, knowing Gabriella would be no where else.
"Come on in, she's up in her room," explained her mom opening the door wide to allow Taylor to walk in. "Come through to the kitchen, we've been baking today and I have a plate of chocolate chip cookies for you to take upstairs with you and glasses of milk."
"Hmm, it sounds lovely," replied Taylor with a longing look on her face as she followed her into the kitchen that still held the heavenly smell of baking.
"Comfort food, my mother used to call it," added Mrs Montez giving Taylor a meaningful glance as she reached into the fridge for the milk.
"How is she?" asked Taylor with a concerned look on her face.
"Better than she was but she's still not my Gabriella. She's lost the spark that always shone in her eyes," replied her mom sadly, her words also warning Taylor that Gabriella wasn't her normal self.
"Don't worry, Mrs Montez, I'll talk to her. I just can't believe Troy would do something like this, it doesn't sound like him at all," said Taylor with a frown.
"I thought that too but Gabriella is adamant about it," agreed her mom. Taylor took the proffered tray laden with two glasses of milk and a plate of delicious looking cookies and carried them up the stairs. Balancing them on one hand, she opened the door to Gabriella's bedroom to see her friend's back curled up into a ball on the bed. Closing the door with her hip, she walked over and placed them on the table beside the bed before sitting down on the mattress causing it to dip. Gabriella twisted round, expecting it to be her mom only to find Taylor there with a concerned look in her eyes.
Taking one look at the deep purple smudges under her best friend's eyes and the dullness of her chocolate orbs, Taylor swiftly pulled her into her arms to give her a bear hug. Gabriella tried to fight the tears but failed miserably in the comforting circle of Taylor's arms, hot scalding ducts slid down her cheeks, wetting the shoulder of Taylor's t-shirt.
"Hey, come on, Gabs, you're going to make yourself ill again," admonished Taylor in a gently tone.
"I can't help it," hiccuped Gabriella helplessly. Taylor rubbed her back and waited for the storm to ease before putting her friend from her.
"Come on, Gabs. No boy is worth this much heartache," said Taylor soothingly.
"Don't tell me that is another of your sister's dictum's," muttered Gabriella scowling at her friend.
"Well...yeah," confirmed Taylor with grin that died as soon as it came when Gabriella didn't return it. She had hoped the standing joke between them would bring out a smile but it failed miserably. "So what did the email say?" she asked softly. Gabriella stared at her friend through sad doe eyes framed by lashes spiky through the tears shed, for a long moment as if she was trying to weigh up what to say then sighed resignedly.
"He...it just said he didn't want to be with me anymore and that he was sorry," mumbled Gabriella.
"So he should be," muttered Taylor through gritted teeth. She could feel the anger bubble inside her and had to fight to stop herself from swearing aloud at his arrogance. After all they'd meant to each other, after all the tender moments they'd shared, after all the pitfalls and obstacles they had overcome, he'd finished it in such a callous, impersonal way that beggared belief. "Didn't you question it?" asked Taylor with a frown.
"Yeah, I did. He'd sent one saying it's over and I questioned it cos I thought he'd been injured and couldn't play any more and that's when he sent the one back saying he was sorry but he didn't want to be with me anymore," explained Gabriella. Taylor tried to process it in her brain but it still had a false ring to it. From what she knew of Troy and especially Troy around Gabriella he would want to let her down as gently as possible if he was going to end it at all, which to her mind seemed highly unlikely, and this was just too stark, too clinical, too blunt.
"Show me," demanded Taylor looking pointedly from Gabriella to her computer. She was grasping at straws but maybe she could spot something that Gabriella hadn't, maybe Troy's email account had been hacked in some way. Sighing Gabriella pulled her weary body off the bed and padded over to her desk, switching on the PC to power up. A couple of minutes later she logged into her email account only to find a blank screen with a stark message.
Your email account is down for scheduled maintenance
Sorry for the inconvenience
"Damn! I don't believe it," the oath spilled out of Taylor's mouth.
"Sorry, Tay, looks like everything is against me," sighed Gabriella looking forlorn. "I still can't take it in, Tay. What did I do wrong? Was I too clingy? I keep thinking I'll wake up and it will all be a bad dream," sniffed Gabriella as she switched her computer off before returning to sit on her bed.
"Get that out of your head right now, Lady. You did nothing wrong," ordered Taylor glaring at her for even contemplating it. "I know it's cruel but are you sure it wasn't some kind of sick joke?" questioned Taylor. Gabriella shook her head.
"Nooo! Troy wouldn't do something like that," she gasped.
"Why are you defending him?" snapped Taylor glaring at her friend, "Face it, he has done something like that, Gabs. He's took a cowardly way out, ending things with you like that, I mean who the hell does that?"
"I know," whispered Gabriella biting her bottom lip to stop herself from crying again.
"So wake up, Sister," growled Taylor then relented when she saw Gabriella's face. "I'm sorry for snapping at you, Gabs, when what I really want to do is give him a piece of my mind." Gabriella, even in her heartbreak, felt sorry for Troy when he did reappear. Taylor would give him hell for sure and he'd be lucky to get away with his life once Sharpay got her hands on him.
"Come on, forget about him, your mom has sent up some cookies and milk," said Taylor with a smile.
"Sure you want to taste them, Tay, I helped bake them," muttered Gabriella throwing her friend a watery half smile.
"I'll chance it," grinned back Taylor relieved to see even a semblance of a smile on her friend's face. She reached over, picking up the plate and placing it on the bed before taking one.
"Are you coming to school tomorrow?" asked Taylor as she munched happily away.
"I guess, mom won't let me have another day off when I'm not technically sick," sighed Gabriella delicately chewing a mere morsel of cookie.
"Good. You need to get back into the routine, studying will take your mind of him, give you something else to think about," advised Taylor matter of factly, "besides I miss you and who else's brain can I pick? Chad?" Gabriella giggled and Taylor thought it was one of the sweetest sounds she'd ever heard.
"So you came around for selfish reasons," teased Gabriella.
"But of course," admitted Taylor with a grin. Gabriella smiled, she knew Taylor was lying. "Hey, do you want me to let the girls know, I mean before you go in tomorrow, like pave the way so that you don't get bombarded with questions that everyone in the school will hear?" Gabriella thought about Taylor's suggestion then nodded her head.
"Would you mind? Can you let them know about my problem with emails too so that they don't think I'm ignoring them?" asked Gabriella.
"Sure I can," agreed Taylor. "Hey! Did you eat the last cookie?"
Taylor walked home in a thoughtful mood. She was glad to see Gabriella in a happier frame of mind when she left but she knew she was a shell of the girl she used to be and it would be an uphill battle to convince her it wasn't her fault. The light had dimmed but thankfully not full extinguished. She would get through this dark period with the help of her friends. The only worry Taylor had was if she had a relapse when Troy arrived home at the weekend? She wouldn't allow it, she decided, as she entered her home, wished her parents a good night and ran up the stairs, knowing she still had to inform Sharpay, Kelsi and Martha; she was still undecided about telling Chad, he was, after all, Troy's best friend and she knew it would lead to an argument when he tried to defend his friend's actions. Sighing deeply, she switched on her computer and got ready for bed while it was loading up before sitting in front of the bright screen and logging into her email account.
From: taylormaid
To: fabulous101, lyricgirl, hiphopcrazy
Subject: Gabriella
Hey girls,
I've got some bad news. I've been to see Gabriella tonight and she's very upset. It seems Troy dumped her on Friday night by email so I want you to be gentle with her tomorrow when she comes back to school. Don't ask her a lot of questions otherwise she'll burst into tears. At the moment she is just too fragile for 20 questions and for god's sake don't spread it around. You know she'd hate that.
You can't send her an email because her system it isn't working at the moment, so she won't be able to reply.
Taylor x
She read the missive through then pressed send. What more could she say? There was no easy way to wrap it up. She sat there deep in thought – should she or shouldn't she tell Chad. On one hand she didn't want to get into an argument with him but on the other, he'd only find out tomorrow anyway. Knowing him like she did, she had a feeling he'd be annoyed at Troy and sympathetic to Gabriella's plight but there was just that teeny one percent of doubt that had her hesitating. Giving herself time to think she went downstairs to get a drink of OJ before returning to her room still contemplating the options available. By the time she sat back down and refreshed her screen she had three new emails waiting for her and she could hazard a guess who they were from.
From: hiphopcrazy
To: taylormaid, lyricgirl, fabulous101
Subject: Re: Gabriella
Please tell me you are joking? Poor Gabi. Why would he do something like that? From what she was saying on Friday in school he was looking forward to coming home.
Don't worry Taylor, you know me, my lips are sealed.
See you all tomorrow,
Martha
From: lyricgirl
To: taylormaid, fabulous101, hiphopcrazy
Subject: Re: Gabriella
Sorry Tay, I'm not buying it. Troy wouldn't do that, would he? It's just doesn't seem like something he would do. He adores Gabriella, everyone within a 100 mile radius can see that.
How is Gabriella? Poor thing, she'll be devastated whether it's true or not.
You can rely on me to keep quiet, Tay. Have the guys been told?
Kelsi xx
From: fabulous101
To: taylormaid, hiphopcrazy, lyricgirl
Subject: NO WAY!!!!
Tell me you are pissing about, Tay? Cos if it's true I'm gonna open a can whoop ass on him then hoist his balls to the school flagpole. Fucking bastard can't mess with one of my friends and get away with it, golden boy or not, I'll crush his nuts with one hand.
He's a lowlife if he's finished with her by email. What a little shithead!
Let me know cos at the moment I am steaming and just itching to give him hell.
What are you trying to say, Tay? I'm no blabbermouth!!!!
Shar
Taylor smiled at the email from Martha. She knew she could rely on her. Kelsi's was what she expected; Kelsi had a great relationship with Troy and out of the three she would be the one to question his actions, to doubt the validity of the news and the way in which it had been done. Her question had Taylor springing into action and firing a reply to all three, telling them that she hadn't said anything to the boys. Did they think she should? Sharpay's was the one that worried her the most. She was the lose cannon out of the bunch and could easily fly off the handle without the slightest provocation. She didn't know what to do, should she reply to Sharpay confirming that it was true. She left it for the moment while she started to compose another email to Chad. She'd made her decision. He had to be in the loop, after all he would be picking Gabriella up in the morning and Taylor didn't want him putting his foot in his mouth and send her running back in the house balling her eyes out. Looking at Gabriella tonight, Taylor could tell she'd cried enough to refill the Hoover Dam.
From: taylormaid
To: basketcase
Subject: Trouble
Hey Chad,
I hope you finished that homework and didn't play basketball instead. You know Chapman will expect it in the morning.
I've been to see Gabriella tonight. What is Troy playing at? Couldn't he wait to come home before breaking up with her? She is devastated and that's why she hasn't been in school. She looks broken and it's all down to your stupid friend.
Will you pick me up as usual in the morning?
Hugs, Tay xxx
She wanted to blast him but it wasn't his fault that he had a dumbass for a best friend. She pressed send then sent a confirmation to her girlfriends.
From: taylormaid
To: fabulous101, lyricgirl, hiphopcrazy
Subject: Re: Re: Gabriella
Unfortunately its true although I'd have been happier if I could have seen the actual email but her account is down for maintenance or something like that. It couldn't happen at a worse time.
Sorry if I offended any of you by saying you'd gossip about it, I know you won't but I just had to get it out there.
I've had to let Chad know because he will be picking Gabriella up in the morning and he's bound to say something insensitive without even realising it. Can one of you let the guys know before Gabriella walks into the school grounds?
I need to get some sleep, it's been pretty traumatic tonight. Sleep well and I'll see you all tomorrow.
Tay
Taylor went to log out when she noticed a reply from Chad, smiling she opened it.
From: basketcase
To: taylormaid
Subject: Re: Trouble
Hey Tay,
WHAT THE HELL! There is no way that Troy has broken up with Gabi, trust me on that. I've had an email from him asking about her because she hasn't been in touch. Would he do that if he had? Something isn't right obviously but I know you won't believe me. Why hasn't Gabs been on her email account? Surely she'd realise it was false because Troy told me he's sent dozens of messages which she hasn't replied to. Please don't let it come between us.
I'll pick you up as usual and hopefully we can sort it out tomorrow.
Love Chad xxx
Troy was miserable. He'd had a disastrous practise, missing every single basket from whichever position he tried from so much so that Coach kept looking at him darkly, annoyance clearly evident when he'd barked out orders to him. Troy knew he wasn't at his best. He'd be the first to admit his head wasn't in the game but a thousand miles away in Albuquerque. He was frustrated both with his inept performance and his exclusion from what ever was happening at home. He felt alone and ineffectual and it was driving him crazy. Chad hadn't replied; he'd checked before going to practise but he guessed he wouldn't see it until he came home from school. The waiting was killing him.
As soon as they arrived back at the hotel, Troy sprinted back upstairs to see if there was any news and breathed a sigh of relief when a little envelope appeared when his stupid laptop finally loaded up. He read the message from Chad then wished he hadn't. Damnit! He should be there taking care of Gabriella not miles away playing basketball. "Poor Darling! I hope she's feeling better now but why hasn't she wrote to me? Is she that ill that she can't?" worried thoughts slipped through Troy's mind as Simon stuck his head around the door and told him to get down to dinner pronto. Troy took one look at the email, sighed and reluctantly closed his laptop down until later.
The meal seemed to last an interminably long time when Troy simply wanted to get back and speak to Chad and he groaned when Coach called a meeting to discuss game plans for tomorrows game. The gods were determined to test his patience. He tried to pay attention, he really did but his thoughts kept drifting off to a pretty bedroom and a sick brunette miles away and it did not go unnoticed by Coach Taylor. Finally, they were dismissed but Coach called Troy back.
"Is there a problem, Bolton?"
"No, Coach, not really," Troy hesitated in assuring him.
"It appears there is, you're not giving a 100 percent."
"I...there's something on my mind but it has nothing to do with the team or the game," said Troy hurriedly. "Just some news from home."
"Hmm, it better be sorted by tomorrow, Troy. I need you to focus on this game. It's the last one and I want to go out in a blaze of glory. Any faltering on your part and you won't play," warned Coach Taylor.
"It won't affect my game. You'll get a hundred and ten percent from me," promised Troy decisively.
"Good, that's all I can ask but you've been warned," he replied, "Now off you go, sort out the problem and don't stay up too late, I need you wide awake tomorrow." Troy nodded, turned and ran for the stairs, taking them two at a time. He burst through the door to find it empty and breathed a sigh of relief. He really didn't want any ribbing from Simon or inane chat either. What he'd really like is to talk to Gabriella or failing that Chad but as that wasn't going to happen, email was the only way. He switched on his laptop, drumming his fingers impatiently on the side, willing it load up quickly, his fingers hitting all the wrong keys in his haste to get to his emails when it finally did bring up his home page, cursing at his ineptitude then breathing a sigh of relief when he saw two emails waiting. He quickly opened the first and felt like he'd been sucker punched in the stomach.
From: fabulous101
To: wildcat14
Subject: Asshole
WHAT A BASTARD! AND A CHICKEN SHIT BASTARD AT THAT. YOU'RE UN-FUCKING-BELIEVABLE, DO YOU KNOW THAT?
"WHAAAAAAAAT?" cried Troy aloud unable to take in what he was seeing. He was totally shocked and flummoxed, his eyes like saucers as he re-read the hateful words, a feeling of dread pitted in his stomach. "What had rattled her cage? Did she blame me for something? But what?" He closed it down hoping that Sharpay had just had a melt down, maybe she'd had a row with Zeke and she'd sent the message to him by mistake, after all there was no name. "Yeah that was it, those two had had another blow up." He opened the next eagerly hoping it was off Gabriella.
From: basketcase
To: wildcat14
Subject: Head up
Dude,
I've just found out and thought I'd give you fair warning about what's wrong with Gabriella although I haven't seen her myself but Gabriella has told Tay that you've broken up with her? I know it's not true but how can she think that? What the hell is going on?
Sorry to give you bad news, Buddy but something sucks big time.
I'll keep you posted
C
Troy stared and stared at the words until they blurred and he realised he was crying. He quickly brushed them away lest one of the guys came in but continued to stare at the incomprehensible words. What? Why? How? Thoughts jumbled together in his mind but at least it explained the email from Sharpay. It had been meant for him. He was devastated. How could Gabriella even think he would do something so crass, so heartless? It also explained why she wasn't writing to him but surely she'd read his emails? A disheartened Troy logged off and lay down on his bed staring up unseeingly at the ceiling, his heart crushed beyond measure. Unwittingly, the image of Cindy flashed in his mind, the sly, knowing smile she gave him and he vaulted into a sitting position as if stung as he replayed another image of leaving her alone in their bedroom. He groaned, cursed and fell back against the pillow. That conniving little bitch must have done it. Damn it to hell! Why did I leave it logged in? That had to be it, there was no other logical explanation. Troy turned on his side and wept, helpless in his loneliness.
His dream had shattered before his eyes and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it, at least not yet.
A/N: The down time for maintenance of email accounts is true. Annoyingly it happened to me only last week and drove me frantic at the time. Grr! I need my update fix like everyone else.