Looking Back to Move Forward
SUMMARY: Troy and Gabriella have been friends for 11 years, best friends. They've even been more, but circumstances years ago led them to end their romance and revert back to just being friends. But will one special weekend of reminiscing about their lives and the memories they've shared remind them of the one thing that they're both missing? M for adult situations/subject matter and sexual references/depictions.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own these wonderful characters (or any part of the HSM franchise)...I just love them like the rest of you. :-)
AUTHOR'S NOTE: First, thank you, thank you, thank you for all the sweet reviews! I am so glad that this little idea and writing experiment has been enjoyable to more than just me. As I indicated last time, things have been busy...in great ways...great HSM-filled ways...great "I've been in the same room as Efron/Hudgens/Tisdale/Bleu" ways...and I don't mean just the local movie theater. Hee! Though I haven't been as close as some lucky bums I know...who really should have fabulous FF inspiration now. ;-)
Speaking of the theater though, if you haven't yet seen the third movie (by choice, that is...don't smack me if it's not open in your area yet...I'm sorry...but it'll be worth the wait...grin), stop reading this now and go see it. LOL! Okay, maybe read this and then go see it. Anyway, I am not about to spoil anything for anyone, but I just want to say that I am rather in love with HSM 3...is it possible to be in love with a movie? Well, I do just love it so very much. It is my fave of the three, though I'm always going to love each for different reasons. And I'm sure I could sing the soundtrack in my sleep. Hopefully, I don't...hmmm... ;-) So, yeah...shouldn't have gotten started with the gushing there...anyhoo, here is part one of the Epilogue. I hope you enjoy it and it brings you some smiles and warm fuzzy feelings. :-)
Epilogue Part I – Happier
Gabriella placed the final photo down onto the layout she'd just finished in the scrapbook album. She smiled as she heard Troy walk up behind her and place his hands on her shoulders before leaning down to give her a kiss. She turned her head so that her lips could meet up with his for a few brief moments. As their lips parted, both of their eyes turned back to the pages in front of them.
"I think it's good we'll be starting a new scrapbook soon. This one will be busting at the seams if we keep adding to it," Troy remarked.
Gabriella grinned sheepishly. "Well, I confess I haven't been as selective as you were when you started it."
"Well, that's because you're 100 times better at it than I am and infinitely more patient with those annoying little sticky squares." Troy nearly growled the last part of his statement, remembering the headache of finding those things stuck to his fingers, clothing, table, and floor long after he'd finished his work on the book.
Gabriella laughed, thinking of how she'd witnessed Troy's attempt to help her on some of the first few layouts they'd added since that memorable birthday weekend, until she had just taken over the updating on her own. "So, Mr. Flattery, take a look and tell me what you think. I've finally gotten caught up. I know I let a lot of the photos sit for a long time but, well, life's been busy," she said with a smirk, adding teasingly "I blame you."
Troy chuckled, pulling out the chair next to her at the kitchen table and sitting down to start turning through the scrapbook layouts she'd completed. He flipped back several pages. "Hey, you did a good job with being selective here."
"Well, we do have the professional album so I just wanted to show some of my favorites in here. I couldn't very well not include a layout of this time in our history, now could I?"
"I'd hope not. I found the day kind of memorable," he teased.
"It was, Troy. It was perfect."
"You were perfect," he said quietly, watching her face as she beamed back at him, every bit as radiant as on that day.
"I'll never forget the look on your face as I walked down that aisle toward you."
"I'll never forget that moment either, how beautiful you looked, how awed I felt that you agreed to be mine, and how I basically didn't breathe until you were standing next to me."
Gabriella giggled. "My blue-faced groom. Now that would have been a sight."
Troy grinned, his eyes moving over the pictures she'd chosen. They landed on the group picture toward the center. "Chad's hangover shows," Gabriella remarked with amusement.
"Hey! What can I say? He told me he was going to drink enough for both of us since I had to be of sound mind and body for my wedding day or you'd kill him."
Gabriella laughed. "He had a point!"
Troy's eyes shifted to the other women in the picture. "And, Sharpay," he groaned. "I still can't believe you let her change her bridesmaid dress."
"Hey, Troy! At least all she did was add a pink sash and some sparkles to it. She kept the main lavender base."
"I guess it could've been worse," Troy admitted. His gaze next fell upon a picture of them doing their first dance as husband and wife. "I meant it, what I said that night when we danced," he said, his voice taking on a sincere tone.
"You remember that?"
"Of course, Ella."
Gabriella smiled, remembering what he did say that day…
"So, Mrs. Bolton, lovely wife of mine, no regrets, right?"
"Only that I have not yet ditched these shoes," Gabriella joked, wincing slightly, but smiling at her new title.
"Well, ditch them my love…I'll just…carry you."
Gabriella giggled. "Oh, really? And will you carry me anytime in our lives I need you to?"
"Yes, even if you grow as round as your great aunt Rita," Troy remarked, his eyes darting toward the woman in question and back at his wife.
"Hmmmph! Maybe I'll just have several pieces of cake tonight then," she teased.
"Whatever makes you happy."
"Whatever, huh? Be careful, Bolton. That could be a whole lot of things."
"That's okay," he said softly, "if you're happy, then so am I."
"I am happy," she said sincerely, gazing into his eyes. "This is the happiest day of my life."
Troy smiled widely. "Well, I'll have to work on that."
"What?" Gabriella asked, confusion written on her face.
"Well, it can't very well be all downhill from here, now can it? I want to make every day happier than the one before for you. It'll be my lifelong mission."
"Even if that means I grow as round as Aunt Rita or decide Sharpay's onto something and choose to only wear pink from now on?" Gabriella said with a mischievous smirk.
"You'll always be the most beautiful woman in the room to me no matter what," Troy assured, a loving smile on his face.
Gabriella felt like her face must be glowing with her love for this sweet man. "I do believe I made the right choice in marrying you, Mr. Bolton," she said happily, fingering the hairs at the nape of his neck lovingly.
"Glad to hear it, Mrs. Bolton," he returned, pulling her even closer to him and leaning in to brush his lips against hers.
"Tease," she said with a smile as he pulled back seconds later.
"Later, Ella," he promised, voice husky and an undeniable twinkle in his deep blue eyes.
Gabriella was glad he was holding onto her firmly, as he still had the ability to make her weak in the knees.
"It's a good thing you meant it," Gabriella said, pointedly looking down as Troy turned through the next few scrapbook layouts, passing by their honeymoon layout (a lovely Hawaiian getaway), the layout of them at Kelsi and Jason's wedding, and the layout from Sharpay's pink-infused baby shower.
"I don't mind the pink," Troy remarked with a smirk, continuing to flip through the scrapbook pages.
"Smart man," Gabriella returned, amused. She looked down to see the layout Troy was currently smiling at…
"How long has it been?"
"Only a minute, babe."
"Will it ding when it's done?"
Gabriella glanced over at Troy with amusement on her face. "It's not a kitchen timer, Troy. It's pee on a stick. I don't think it has any chiming effects."
Troy grinned sheepishly at her. "Oh. Sorry. Just impatient."
"I know," she said softly. "Me too."
They sat in silence another ten seconds or so until Gabriella spoke again.
"Kiss me."
The corners of Troy's lips twitched and he quirked an amused eyebrow at her.
"Really, Troy. It'll help the time pass and distract us somewhat."
"Oh…well…good to know our kisses serve such a useful purpose," he replied wryly before smiling briefly and then leaning in to connect his lips with his wife's. Gabriella had a point. He was always able to lose himself in her kiss, to be taken to some calming, wonderful place by it.
As Troy's mouth moved lovingly over his wife's and hers did likewise, one of his arms snaked its way around her back as the other moved his hand so that he could push her hair behind her ear and gently rest his hand on her neck, his thumb periodically caressing her jaw as they continued their kiss.
As they pulled back slowly, Gabriella looked over to see the clock showed that a couple more minutes had passed.
"Ding," she said softly, her gaze meeting Troy's once more as they exchanged nervous smiles.
Troy slowly released her and Gabriella stood up and turned to walk toward the door. Troy stood up too and gently grabbed her hand, smiling down at her reassuringly as he did so. Gabriella smiled back at him lovingly and squeezed his hand.
"It'll be fine either way, babe," Troy said confidently. "If it's meant to be this time, it will be."
"I know, Troy," Gabriella returned gratefully, smiling up at him one more time before turning into the bathroom. Taking a breath, Troy followed her.
He watched her eyes widen as she looked down at the test stick she had left sitting on the sink counter and then he watched her hand instinctively fly to her mouth as she let out a small gasp. Then, he watched her gingerly reach for the stick and pick it up, her eyes never leaving it. He saw the huge smile slowly start to form on her face and felt his heartbeat grow louder in his ears.
"Troy," she said softly, turning to him and holding the small, white plastic stick up in front of him. "You're gonna be a dad."
Troy looked at the word staring at him from the piece of plastic. "Pregnant." Then, he processed what his wife had just said to him and a huge smile broke out onto his face. "Oh my gosh! Wow! Ella…wow!" he stammered, the grin never leaving his face, before reaching forward and scooping her up into his arms into an exuberant hug and twirling her around a bit. Gabriella laughed with glee.
After a few moments, Troy stopped his movements and gently put her down. "Oh, crap! I'm sorry. I shouldn't…spin you guys around."
Gabriella giggled. "Troy, that's silly...we…like it," she said with a grin, testing out the use of "we" and rather liking it too.
"I can't believe seven months have already passed," Troy remarked, looking at the pictures they'd taken that day of the positive pregnancy test and of Gabriella's early, pretty non-existent, belly, followed by the first ultrasound photo.
"I can," Gabriella returned wryly, causing Troy to smile.
"I know, babe. I can't even imagine…but you've handled it all so well."
"I guess you've handled all my craziness pretty well too."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Troy responded, eyes sparkling and lips twitching as he tried to hold back a smirk.
"Oh? So, none of this rings a bell?" Gabriella asked cheekily, flipping through the next few layouts, showcasing the different months of her pregnancy.
Suddenly, Troy burst out laughing. "I can't believe you took pictures of the food."
"Why? It has been memorable."
"For me more than you…" Troy put in, stopping as he felt his wife elbowing him warningly in the ribs.
"Ahem. I realize this. You should be glad I'm showcasing all of your efforts here. I really appreciated your three-hour search for a pork bbq sandwich for me that one night. It meant a lot. It was sweet. So, I took a picture. I wanted to remember that. It was one of the first times you had to deal with my crazy cravings and you reacted perfectly," Gabriella finished with a smile.
"Always glad to be of service," Troy returned, punctuating the statement with a quick peck on his wife's lips before turning back to flip through the remainder of the layouts, the last one being of their baby shower, which had just taken place the previous weekend.
"She's already spoiled, huh?" Gabriella remarked with a smile.
"Nah…just very…pinkified."
"Pinkified?" Gabriella shot back with amusement.
Troy shrugged. "You know of a better term?"
Gabriella laughed. "I guess not. Sounds like the name of some pop album title or something," she mused, earning a grin from her husband.
"So, did you get the changing table put together?" Gabriella asked, remembering what Troy had been working on before he'd come out to join her in the kitchen.
"Yep! It was easier than the crib. Wanna come look?" Troy responded, standing up from the table and holding his hand out to her to help her up.
"Sure!" Gabriella responded, accepting his hand and standing slowly. "And, then we think that daddy should see about feeding us."
"Oh, should he now? And what do my princesses want for dinner?"
"We're thinking that pork bbq sandwich looked pretty good."
"Of course," Troy replied wryly.
Gabriella leaned up to give him a sweet kiss. "We love you…"
Troy leaned in so that his face was just a few inches away from his wife's. "Or do you just love pork?" he whispered playfully, earning him a smack on the arm and a pout from Gabriella, who swiftly turned her back on him.
Troy laughed softly before moving to wrap his arms around her from behind, his hands coming to rest on the large swell of her pregnant belly, the swell that represented his daughter's temporary home, one she'd be leaving soon enough…and Troy couldn't wait. He couldn't wait to really meet her…to hold her in his arms and tell her just how much he loved her and her mommy.
He buried his head in his wife's neck, pressing soft kisses there. "Just kidding, Ella…just kidding," he murmured. Coming around so that he was once again facing her, he saw her lips twitching as she fought the smile that threatened to form. Troy slid his arms around her and pulled her to him as much as possible, resting his forehead against hers, his eyes meeting her own. "I love you both too, with everything I am…and I intend to keep you both as happy as can be," he said softly, seeing the glistening of his wife's eyes at his sincere words.
Gabriella really didn't know how she could be happier, though she suspected her amazing husband could somehow always find a way to make her so. Running her hands up over his shoulders and bringing them to rest around his neck, she urged his head forward just slightly and pressed her lips to his in a lingering kiss, communicating her happiness, contentment, and love to him. And, as was always the case, theirs was a two-way conversation.
Pulling away after several minutes, Troy smiled down at his wife and then slowly eased back and knelt down before her. She had watched him do this quite a few times in the past eight months, but it still warmed her heart to see it. Troy carefully lifted her shirt a bit and placed a soft kiss on her belly. He then placed his ear gently against the smooth skin and made a show of listening to his daughter.
"What's that, sweetheart? You think daddy should treat us all to some thin mint cookie ice cream too? Well, anything for my girls."
Gabriella smiled lovingly down at him, running her fingers through his hair gently. "Come on then, daddy. Let's go look at your handiwork, see about those good eats, and then see if mommy might still have any energy left to thank you for making her so happy," she said with a soft smile.
Troy returned that smile and stood up slowly, taking her hand in his and leading her down the hall toward the nursery, looking forward to the rest of their evening together, to soon introducing his daughter to the nursery they'd created for her, and to seeing the happiness on both of their faces for many years to come.