AN: This chapter is a little bit "better" than the the last as far as the doom and gloom is concerned. I kinda sorta left something out in the last chapter, that being that the real fighting is over between Troy and Gabriella. There's still going to be plenty of angst, especially in this chapter, so be prepared. Anyway, thanks for reviewing!

Disclaimer: Of course HSM is mine! Ok....not really....but, a girl can dream, right?

As fast as his wheels could take him, Troy was away from West High. He had no intentions of stopping, nor did he have any idea where he was headed. All he knew was that he had to get away.

Within half an hour, he turned down several streets of Albuquerque until he reached the East side. He was just driving with no guide as to where he was going. He would've driven until he ran out of gas, had it not been for his truck breaking down miraculously in front of a familiar house.

Alone. That word never scared him, until now. He was not only alone physically, but he'd never felt emotionally alone. Before, he knew people were always behind him. He almost always made the right decisions, and the ones he didn't were only minor errors. Because of this, he had friends who stuck with him no matter what, and he had parents that supported him. Now, however, he felt there was no one left. After all the crap he'd put them through, he knew his friends were on the verge of ditching them if they hadn't already, especially after tonight. After harming the girl whom his mother considered a daughter, he knew his mother was highly disappointed in him even though she didn't show it. His father was probably equally disappointed for the mere fact that he physically and emotionally abused a girl in the first place. And, most importantly, the sole person who kept his heart beating hated him with a passion.

Championship or not, it was the worst night in his entire life.

Carelessly, Troy evacuated the truck and kicked it, muttering a few profanities under his breath. He had a cell phone, and so he could call his father to get him. Although, he would rather walk home, or just find a place outside to stay for the night. That didn't seem like such a bad idea, he thought.

For a moment, Troy scanned the neighborhood. He wasn't sure as to how he got there, or why he was there of all places. It looked very familiar, as though he'd gone there a lot in the past. As his eyes landed on the house before him, it dawned on him.

This house was formerly inhabited by Maria and Gabriella Montez.

Why had his truck magically broken down here? Regardless, he felt a strange, invisible force pushing him forward. Gabriella no longer lived there, and so why was he still as drawn to the place as he was a year ago?

His feet carried him involuntarily towards the door, as though he were being swept out to sea. It wasn't until he caught himself fumbling for his keys that he realized he was at the door.

What was he thinking? He couldn't go in there! Even though the tape had been removed after he found Gabriella, the house was still technically a crime scene. However, the main crime scene was now in Utah....

Without giving it much thought, Troy, using the key he got from Gabriella's purse after she was kidnapped, unlocked the door and stepped inside.

As soon as he entered, emotions and memories overwhelmed him to the point he could barely move; he could barely breathe. Looking to the center, he remembered how significant that couch was to his life. On that couch, he had received his very first kiss. She made the first move to kiss him, before they were even together. When she did, she knew her true feelings for him and didn't care how he felt about her. That was something he didn't think he was brave enough to ever do. He didn't kiss her until he was positive of how she felt. It was just one of many indications that she loved him. Well, used to love him.

A small tear trickled down his cheek. He had no right to ever accuse her of using him. At least at the time, she loved him just as much as he loved her, if not more somehow. If the roles were reversed, he doubted he could've put up with her cold personality nearly as long as she did his. Then again, why else did he still love her immensely after she claimed to hate him? Why else had he been unable to get her off his mind for over a year? Easy: it was true love.

Once he was finally able to get his feet to work, he walked upstairs. He shuddered, for this was exactly where Lance had taken Gabriella from. Troy's body began to shake as the flashback started.

"I hate you! Get out of my life!" Troy heard Gabriella yell from her room.

"I wouldn't talk like that if I were you," Lance warned. "You're coming with me!"

He yanked Gabriella out of the room. However, just as he stepped out, he found himself sprawled out on the floor.

"Gabi, run!" Troy yelled, holding Lance firmly on the ground. Being the stronger of the two, Lance got his arm free and quickly whirled out his gun as she started downstairs. Before Troy could get it, he shot in her direction. Although it didn't hit her, Gabriella froze in place.

"Neither of you move a muscle or she goes!" Lance threatened, pointing the gun straight at Gabriella's chest.

Gabriella stood fearfully, not even breathing for several seconds. Troy froze as well. He wouldn't let Lance kill her. He promised her that no one would hurt her again, and that promise he intended to keep. If she went, he would die alongside her.

"Now get the hell off me!" he barked at Troy who was in a stunned state, lost in thought.

Scrambling to his feet, Troy watched as he, too, stood, but in the second he let his guard down, Troy got in front of Gabriella. Grasping her shoulders, he yelled, "Run!"

"I'm not leaving you!" she replied stubbornly.

Troy's eyes clouded with tears. "Baby, I love you. Please, just save yourself."

"I-I can't do this!" she cried, tears streaming down both of their faces.

"Neither of you are going anywhere!" Lance yelled, using the gun to knock Troy out cold.

Troy's mind went blank after that. It was the last thing he was able to recall. All he knew was that, when he woke up, she was gone.

Shaking the memory away, he opened the door to Gabriella's former bedroom, the white door creaking from lack of use. It felt like a haunted house only without the creepy decorations. More like a house of dread, he silently corrected himself.

Making his way to the bed in the center of the room, he sat down on the edge, allowing memories to fill his mind once more.

On this bed was where they took a small step forward in their relationship. She had trusted him enough to allow a slightly-heated make-out session to occur here. He chuckled, remembering the blush on her face after he'd removed her sweater that left her in a partially-revealing tank-top.

Troy smiled sadly. She was naturally timid and shy when it came to intimacy. Every time he so much as kissed her, she would blush. She didn't wear revealing outfits, even when it was just them. He could always feel her nervousness and hesitancy every time they touched.

Troy slapped his forehead. He had been so foolish to have accused of wanting to sleep with Lance! He wanted to die now for so much as thinking it. Of course she was raped, there was no doubt about that. He should've been on the hunt for Lance instead of thinking up ways to hurt her.

Allowing his mind to drift to another topic, he remembered another significance of this bed. It was where she gave him his dreaded nickname, teddy bear.

Troy looked smug as he thought about the irony of it all. She called him her teddy bear because he had a soft spot for her. He used to hate it when she called him that, but, now, he yearned to be considered her teddy bear again. He wanted to have a soft spot in his heart for her to fall. All she saw, though, was a monster. A monster that hurt and broke her beyond repair. The same monster that angered his friends and caused disappointment from his parents. The same monster that he couldn't completely suppress, as he learned an hour ago.

Gingerly, Troy staggered to the door and walked back downstairs to the living room. The house, other than what he had taken from it for her, remained mostly the same as he remembered it. With Gabriella missing, police and investigators hadn't done too much altering. And, no one was interested in buying it, knowing someone had been abducted from there by a psychotic teenager. Irrationally, every woman thought they would be next.

This fear people held had once given Troy hope. After college, provided he was still with Gabriella, he had been hoping to marry her and maybe they would move in there. The house held so many memories, and he couldn't think of a better place to raise a family then in the beloved home. However, they were no longer together, meaning his chances of buying it someday were history.

"I'm so sorry, Ella!" he cried, tears suddenly cascading down his face. He ruined his entire life, he thought sullenly. He had a bright future in basketball, but he knew he even ruined that. He had an even brighter future with Gabriella, but he killed that future to the point of no return. He knew he never deserved her from the start. In fact, he wished that he never met her. No, correction. He wished that she never met him.

If his destiny was to love her and then break her, he was doing an excellent job. If that was his purpose in life, he wanted it to stop. There had to be a back door....

There was only one option.

Death.

The word hit Troy like a bullet to his heart. In his dying, Gabriella nor anyone else would have to suffer from his mistakes. She wouldn't hurt because of him anymore. She could forget him, and it would be like he never existed. She would be free while he suffered an eternity in the depths of Hell.

It was exactly what he deserved, he thought. And, that way, he would never be able to hurt her again. He would be the only one that would suffer, which was how it should be.

He knew what he had to do.

Hesitantly, Gabriella strolled up the Boltons' driveway and sidewalk/ She looked like a mess; her hair was flying this way and that in the cool night breeze, her make-up was gone, her eyes were blood-shot, and there were tear stains on both of her cheeks.

After leaving the game, she had broken down in sobs in Taylor's car. She couldn't believe what she had told Troy. It killed her inside to know that she'd hurt him so badly. There was no way she would make it through the night without apologizing to him.

Glancing at the driveway, she noticed the garage door was up, revealing Jack's black truck and Cindy's small, blue car. There was no sign of Troy's old truck. It was an eiry feeling to not see it, but she ignored it, praying he was there.

Knocking lightly, she heard feet scuttling across the floor before the door opened.

"Gabriella?" Cindy greeted, surprised to see her there.

"Hi, Cindy. I-is Troy here?" she asked, her eyes swimming in tears.

"No, dear, he said he was going somewhere after the game. Would you like to stay until he gets here?" Cindy offered.

"I-I don't want to keep Taylor waiting," Gabriella stammered.

"If you want, Troy or myself can take you there, and you know you're more than welcome to stay here," she offered.

"I don't want to impose, either," she argued.

"Of course you wouldn't be." Abruptly, she pulled her into a warm, motherly embrace. "You're like the daughter I've never had. You still are."

Guilt emitted from her heart like water from a spout. If Cindy knew what she had done, she would hate her. She hurt her son in one of the worst ways she could. She should be banned from their property.

When Cindy released her, Gabriella took a small step back. "I'm going to tell her that I'll come home in a bit."

Cindy nodded as Gabriella suddenly broke into a sprint towards Taylor's silver mustang. What had made her so upset? She didn't understand. If Troy did something, she doubted Gabriella would be there.

Then, she remembered.

After the game, she talked to him in the parking lot. He appeared to be distant and distraught, as though someone had just died but he had yet to experience the full relization. What would've made him so upset?

When Gabriella returned and after Taylor pulled away, Cindy motioned for her to come inside. Taking a seat on the couch, Gabriella noticed that Jack was also nowhere to be found.

"Where is Jack?" she asked timidly.

"Asleep. He was exhausted from tonight's stress," Cindy explained. "I'm primarily up to wait on Troy."

Gabriella nodded, swallowing the large, uncomfortable lump in her throat. "I'm sorry! It's my fault he's gone!" Gently, Cindy started rubbing her back in a circular motion in an attempt to comfort her as she started crying.

"Gabi, I'm sure it wasn't that bad," Cindy assured her.

"I-I told him that I hate him, and that I hated everything about him!" she cried. "I even told him that I hate who he was! The only reason I hate him is for making me love him! No matter what he does to me, Cindy, I will always love him! I can't stop myself!"

Cindy sighed. "We all say things we don't really mean from time to time. It's what makes us humans. Maybe if you tell him what you just told me, he'll believe you." Cindy paused before continuing, "I know my son will never be happy again until you talk to him about this. He is completely in love with you, and that's a fact. You were all he ever talked about before and after you were abducted. You're still all he ever thinks about. In fact, go to his room, you'll see."

Gingerly, Gabriella walked down the familiar hallway leading to Troy's room. Once she was there, the essence of Troy lingered around her emitting a comforting feeling around her.

On his bed lied a guitar. Gabriella was astonished, for he had never told her that he could play it.

"Ever since you were kidnapped until now he's been playing the same song," Cindy explained from the doorway.

Picking up the music sheets, she gasped. The title was "Broken". Was he that depressed without her? Just how deep had he gone under?

"I'll leave you alone until he gets here, all right?" Cindy told her, leaving the room.

Once she was gone, Gabriella sat down on the bed, feeling slightly comfortable in feeling his presence surrounding her. He would be fine, she assured herself.

There was something else that she hadn't noticed previously. On his pillow lie their picture. He destroyed the frame, she recalled. However, he apparently kept the photo. She smiled, thankful that there was still some good in him. Of course, she knew this with or without the picture.

For several minutes she sat there, alone, in his room. With each passing moment she felt more and more anxious. From the window, she sensed that she was being watched. The thought unnerved her and freaked her out worse than ever, especially because she sensed they were his eyes.

In all of her Troy problems, she hadn't really given much thought to Lance Matthews as of late. He certainly remained a threat to her safety, but no one had seen hide nor heir of him since the last time she was raped little over a month ago. Was he still around here, spying on her? Did he know about what was happening between she and Troy? Did he know that they'd broken up?

Now was his opportunity, she thought. If he wanted her badly enough, there she was. She wanted him to kill her once and for all.

Suddenly, the front door opened. Gabriella jumped in surprise, although she figured it was only Troy. Her heart did a somersault, knowing she would finally get to see him. Her anxiety evaporated immediately.

Gabriella listened as Cindy scurried towards her son and began talking to him, although she couldn't make out what she was saying until the end.

"You have a visitor," Cindy said.

"Who?" Troy asked, although there was a slight difference to his tone. She noted that he seemed detached.

"Gabriella," she answered. "She seems pretty upset, not with you, with herself. She told me what happened, and now she's here to make amends."

"Where is she?" he questioned. Gabriella noticed his voice came out stunned, though not in a good way. It was like she could sense his every emotion whether he was in the room with her or not.

"Your room." Suddenly, the door opened. Gabriella shivered as she looked at Troy's masked expression.

"Tr-Troy!" she cried, rushing towards him nonetheless, wrapping her arms tightly around him. "I'm so so sorry! I can't even begin to tell you just how much I hate myself right now for what I did to you!"

"Don't hate yourself," he murmured, shocking her by returning the embrace. "Never hate yourself over anything stupid that I do."

"But, I never should've gotten involved! If you caught me with a guy after we'd broken up, you wouldn't do that to me! I guess I just want you--"

"No." Abruptly, Troy pushed her away. "You can't want me! I'm a horrible monster! Wanting me is worse for you than wanting Matthews!"

"No, it isn't!" she sobbed. "You care about me! He doesn't!"

"I'm a danger to everyone around me," he argued. "I need to get away from here! Away from you! I need to do whatever it takes to stop hurting you!"

"No, don't go!" she begged, tears falling freely onto his shirt. "Just stay, please! I need you here! I get so scared when you're not with me!"

"You're forgetting you have friends," he stated. "They can protect you on the long-shot that something should happen."

Gabriella shook her head. "I've never felt as cold and lost as I have since you left me two months ago." Tears fell harder from her eyes as she remembered how cold he had been. "You left me emotionally. I was afraid that you would never come back from that. But, now I can tell you're trying. You just made a mistake tonight, that's all."

"A mistake?" he snapped. "I made out with a whore who probably slept with every guy in the entire school!"

"We both keep making stupid mistakes, but we always end up right back where we started: together," she pointed out. "I'll forgive you for everything. Can you can forgive me?"

Troy groaned, feeling suddenly sick, although he brushed the feeling aside. "I have nothing to forgive you for."

"Are you okay?" she asked, noticing the pained expression on his face.

"Just fine," he lied, shrugging it off. He knew exactly what was happening, but he refused to tell her. She would find out soon enough, after all. "Can I ask for one favor?"

"Anything," she said boldly.

"Can I...kiss you?" he timidly asked. "Just once. I want your lips to be the last one mine ever--"

Gabriella interrupted by instinctively pressing her lips to his. Troy closed his eyes and returned it. This kiss was much different than from all their other kisses. It wasn't sweet and chaste like they used to be, nor was it fake like they seemed to be as of late. This one started as sweet, but then, it became more urgent and desperate. His arms held her tightly to him. He could feel her erratic heartbeat, or was it his own?

Suddenly, he pulled away, gasping for air. Gabriella looked confused, for she felt far from being out of breath.

"Something is wrong," she stated, now holding him to her in case he would fall.

"It's fine, I'm just tired," he assured her. "I almost forgot. I need to give you something."

Reluctantly, Gabriella let go of him and he walked towards his dresser, pulling out a small jewelry box. She gasped automatically, knowing it was a ring box.

"This past summer I got a temporary job, and the first thing I bought was a promise ring for you, which I planned to give you for Christmas provided you were found by then," he explained. "Initially, I had two promises to make, that being the past would never come back to hurt you, and that I would be there no matter what." Gingerly, he removed the silver ring from the box and slid it onto her delicate finger. "Now, my two promises have changed. I promise I won't interfere in your life anymore. Secondly, I promise to love you until I die."

"You don't have to do this," she pleaded. "Stay, please. I'll leave if anyone has to. It's not like a have a permanent home. You do."

Troy shook his head. "I'll be here, but I won't be here. You'll see in time."

"I don't get it!" she sobbed, burying her head in his chest. "We want to be together! Why can't we?"

"What we want doesn't matter," he started. "This is what's best for us both."

As much as she hated to admit, she knew he was probably right. "I'll miss you," she whispered.

Troy patted her back. "You're better off without me."

Suddenly, the door opened and Cindy poked her head inside, smiling in relief to see the two teenagers holding each other. "Sorry to intrude, but, Gabi, have you made up your mind yet?"

Gabriella turned back to Troy. "Can you please take me to Taylor's, Troy?"

"I'm sorry, Ella, but I don't think that's a good idea," he told her. "I just barely got my truck back here."

"You can take my car," Cindy offered.

Troy frantically sought another excuse. "I'm really tired. I'm afraid of falling asleep behind the wheel."

"Do you want to stay here, then, Gabriella?" Cindy suggested.

"I--"

"That's not a good idea, either," Troy quickly interrupted. Gabriella shot him a skeptical look.

Gabriella turned back to Cindy. "I'm sorry. Cindy, can you please take me there?"

"Of course, dear," Cindy replied, giving her son a warning glance. "Just tell me when you're ready."

"I'm almost ready," she replied, turning back to Troy. "Just one thing." Standing on her tiptoes, she gave Troy an innocent peck on the cheek and whispered, "I love you."

"I love you, too," he replied, giving her a quick kiss on the forehead. He watched as she walked away for what he was sure would be the very last time. She didn't hate him, that was good. Still, he was dying. He knew he would be dead by morning. He'd already taken the pills he'd picked up on the way home. It was only a matter of time....