One Shot :)

Twenty-five year old Gabriella was a long way from her San Francisco home, walking amidst the hustle and bustle of New York City. She'd come for a fifteen week once in a life time job experience working for the City of New York. She'd graduated from Stanford with a Master's Degree in Social Work. She then got a job working for the City of San Francisco, working on ways to improve the foster care system in the city. After implementing her changes, studying the effects, and succeeding, she got the chance to move to New York for three months to work with the professionals to formulate improvements.

Today was her third day on the job and fourth day in New York City. She liked the city life but she knew that there was crime and poverty just around the corner of the million dollar 500 square foot apartments. Thankfully, she was going to be staying in a hotel for three months. She only had a microwave but she felt safe and that is all that mattered to her.

Her usual morning routine was coffee, a lot of coffee. She'd eat something, usually eggs back home but since she didn't have a stove she settled for whatever they had at the coffee shop on her way to work. Today, she stopped at the bagel shop on the next block over. She loved all the breakfast foods, except bagels. She couldn't pinpoint why exactly she hated them, but she did. Unfortunately, the bagel shop had the best cheap coffee in the three block radius.

It was the beginning of a New Year, January 7th, to be exact. She was lucky that she got to spend the holiday season with her mom before she moved east. It was unfortunate that it was freezing and she only brought one big coat with her. She'd just have to get a new one by the end of the week.

She stepped into the warm bagel shop and breathed in the scent of hot coffee. She stood in line and pulled out her phone. She sent a text to her mother to tell her good morning, even though she was two hours ahead of her mother. She got up to the counter. "Large coffee please." She said with a small smile.

"Brie?"

Gabriella froze in place. There was only one person who ever called her Brie. Her ex- husband, Troy Bolton.

She whipped her head around quickly to see him checking her out behind her. "I thought it was you. I remember that jacket. I bought it for you." Troy Bolton noted, now checking her out blatantly. "Why in the world are you in New York?"

"That'll be three fifty, ma'am." The cashier said.

"Add another large coffee and a plain bagel light cream cheese." Troy said, pulling out his wallet.

Gabriella was speechless. She had no idea what to say. She just kind of stared at Troy as the memories played back in her head in fast forward. "Brie?" Troy waved his hand in front of her face as he paid for their things.

"What are you doing in New York?" Gabriella finally asked.

Troy chuckled, causing her knees to go weak like so many years ago. "I live here."

"I don't." Gabriella said before closing her eyes and shaking her head. "Well, I do, kind of… temporarily."

"I can't believe I ran into in a bagel shop of all places." He said, leading her away from the counter.

"Best coffee in the area." She said shortly.

He watched her for a second before he sighed. "How have you been?"

"I've been good. I've been busy with work, mostly." She said, taking the chance to look him over. "How about you?"

"I'm good. Working, too. I've been living here for three years now." He explained. "What are you doing?"

"I work for the city." She said, reaching over for her coffee. "Improving the foster care system. I did some work in San Francisco. It worked for them. New York called and now I'm here."

Troy grinned. "That's what you've always wanted to do. I'm glad you're doing well."

"Thank you." She said, taking a sip. "What about you? What are you up to?"

"I manage this up and coming company that basically engineers solar energy. Since the company is new and growing, I do a lot of different things." He explained with a nod.

She checked her watch. "Shit, I'm going to be late. You live in the area?" Troy answered with a nod. "Maybe we'll run into each other again. For now, thank you for the coffee Troy. You look good. I'm glad you're doing well."

"Same to you, Brie. I'll see you around." He gave her a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek.

She gave him a small smile and walked out of the bagel place. She warmed her hands with the coffee as she walked a couple more blocks to her new office building. She made it to work just in time. She had a 9 o'clock meeting with her team.

She sipped her coffee while taking notes at her meeting. After an hour, she went back to her desk and sighed. She stared at her coffee and her mind wandered back in time. She was only fourteen when she met Troy back home in Albuquerque. She moved the summer before freshman year. She moved in the house behind his. They were connected by the backyard.

Growing up, it was just Gabriella and her mother. Her dad died when she was three. She doesn't remember much of him, but her mom always told her stories. Her mom got relocated a couple times landing her in Albuquerque and that is where she's been living for the past twelve years.

Gabriella and her mom were close up until she got married at eighteen the week after graduation. Troy asked on her eighteenth birthday. Her mom was as supportive as she could be. After they got married, her mom gave her a large chunk of her trust fund to rent a small apartment in between both schools. Troy's parents, on the other hand, were very supportive. They loved Gabriella and believed in the love they shared. They were completely devastated when Troy and Gabriella mutually decided to end their marriage.

Her heart always ached when she thought back to Troy and Albuquerque and what should have been. She still thought about her ex husband quite often. Most people never got close enough to know about Troy, she did have a tendency to keep everyone around her at a distance. She didn't want to feel like an obligation to anyone, like she felt the last couple of months before they separated. She had gotten so close to Troy so quickly and breaking up with him broke both of them into pieces, but it was the right thing to do at the time.

Gabriella snapped back into the real world when a single tear dropped onto her hand. She wiped her face quickly and sat up straight. She got straight to work and didn't get up until it was time to go home.

Her stomach grumbled as she walked back to the hotel she was living in. She worked through lunch and didn't eat breakfast. She stepped into the first pizza place she saw. She ordered a small pizza for herself. She took the box when it was ready and headed for the door. She stepped into the brisk winter and walked as quickly as she could towards the hotel.

She collided with a body, dropping her warm pizza into the snow and falling on her ass. "This can't be happening to me." She closed her eyes for a brief moment.

"Are you okay?" A familiar voice asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." The man that knocked her over said, brushing off his shoulder.

"Not you, ass clown." Troy stood over Gabriella. "Brie? Are you okay?"

"I'm wonderful." She murmured sarcastically. Troy helped her up with an extended hand. Troy helped her dust the ice off of her. She groaned when she saw her pizza half in the box and half in the snow.

"Do you still want it?" Troy asked, picking up the pizza and putting it back in its box.

"No! That's disgusting! Do you know how many people probably peed in that snow?" She asked with a shiver. "I'm starving."

Troy nodded. "That's why you're grouchy. Come on, let's get some food."

"I really wanted that pizza!" She said crossing her arms.

"We'll get some food. I'll get you way better pizza than that place, trust me." He looked her.

She looked at him skeptically. "Why?"

"You're hungry, I'm hungry. We can catch up. I miss you." He said simply.

She gave him a small smile. "I miss you too." She sighed. "Okay, lead the way."

"First." He pulled the beanie out of his pocket and put it on her head. "There you go." He extended his arm. She wrapped her arm around his, sticking her hand back into her warm pocket.

"When did you move out here?" She asked as they got to walking.

"Three years ago, I had my internship out here. My boss loved me so much that he gave me a job for his start-up company." Troy explained. "I wish it was somewhere on the West Coast."

"I'm sure there are beaches around here." She said, looking around at the little shops on the street she never noticed before. "Have you been?"

"Once. It smelled weird."

Gabriella laughed. "You and your sensitive nostrils."

"It's a blessing and a curse." Troy said with a laugh. "How long have you been in New York?"

"Four days." She said with a shrug. "It's a big adjustment."

"It is. I think you'll like it. You always wanted to move to San Francisco. This is like the same except more taxi cabs and large buildings."

"I did, move to San Francisco." She said with a small smile. "The rent is more expensive and the apartment is smaller but I love it. I love the neighborhood."

"How do you like it here so far?"

"Right now, running into you is the best thing that's happened to me here. Then again, it's only been four days, so…" She trailed off with a laugh. "I never imagined you in a city like this. You always said you wanted to move into the country."

"I still do. One day I will get tired of the city life and pack it up and move somewhere where I know my neighbors and I can leave my doors unlocked."

"Wishful thinking, Bolton. They have home evasion in the country."

Troy shrugged. "Yeah, but there you have all your neighbors that own firearms looking out for you." Gabriella shook her head to herself. "What?"

"Nothing, Troy." She said quietly.

"How's your mom?" He asked, looking over at her.

"She's okay. I saw her recently... We don't see each other much. We talk sometimes, though." Gabriella said, looking up at him.

"When I go home for the holidays, my mom makes me bring something to your mom. She misses you, Brie." Troy informed.

"I know, I saw her for New Years. I've been really busy with work. I barely get a day off here and there. I think I had three months of vacation time saved up from the past couple of years. Now I have none, because I just started this new job." She explained. "She's never came out to see me either."

Troy laughed shortly. "Oh, Brie. You haven't changed a bit."

She stopped looking up at him. "You don't know that. We haven't spoken in five years."

"I know that. I still remember when you moved to Albuquerque, you were kind of like this."

"Like what?" She said, turning to face him.

"Mean." He joked. She didn't laugh. "You were so serious, so focused. I had to beg you to go on a date with me because you were doing extra work you found online."

Gabriella rolled her eyes. "We all know that I'm not fun and I'm a big bore. I'm too uptight and that's why we got divorced. Sometimes, I think my life over in my head and I wonder how you even married me at eighteen. We're too different."

Troy sighed. "Oh, stop. You're not boring and uptight and that is not the reason we got divorced. I married you because you made me happy, you made me laugh, and I loved you more than I loved anything in the world. I loved the fact that you were mature enough to think about your future. You were so organized and efficient. I wanted to be just like that but I turned out to be a big goofball that made too many stupid jokes and didn't take life seriously enough to see everything that I had."

"We're different."

"We are. We always will be. We constantly change but when it all comes down to it you will always be Gabriella. I will always be Troy. We got married at eighteen and it didn't work out then. You're not the same person you were when we were married and I, sure as hell, am not the same person."

"I'm hungry." She said, changing the subject.

"Come on, Brie. We're being sentimental here." Troy said with a smile.

"We can do that later." She tugged on his arm. "Let's go, or I'm going back to the hotel I'm staying in and ordering room service."

Troy raised his eyebrows. "You're staying at a hotel."

"Yes." She said. "We passed it two blocks ago. I'm not paying for it." She clarified. "My work is."

"You can stay at my place." Troy said with a shrug.

"Yeah, right, Bolton. I lived with you for three years. You're too messy."

"It's an organized mess though." He said with a grin.

She shook her head. "That's not the only reason."

"What is the other reason?" Troy asked.

Gabriella shook her head. "I'm starving!"

Troy laughed. "Okay, okay. Come on, were just around the corner. What is the other real reason?" He asked, leading her again.

"That was it." She said, hooking her arm back around him.

"No." He denied, looking over at her. "Tell me the truth."

"That was it."

"Okay, sure." Troy said sarcastically. "We would have great sex."

Gabriella scoffed. "I'm not having sex with you Bolton."

"Why not?" He asked with a teasing grin.

"Because… you probably have a girlfriend."

"If I had a girlfriend, would I be taking you out on a date?"

Gabriella stopped. "This is not a date. You're my ex-husband."

"God, it still feels like you're ripping my heart out every time you say that." Troy said, pulling her along. "Why can't it be a date? All history aside, we are two single people, in the city, getting something to eat then casually going back to my apartment afterwards."

"We are not going back to your apartment!" She said firmly.

"We can go to your room, I'm not picky."

"Troy, this was charming when we were fourteen, but we're not anymore, so stop it."

"I will, for now." He said, leading her into a pizza place.

"Smells like heaven." She murmured, taking a big whiff.

"Go sit down, I'll order." Troy ordered.

"Get me a soda." She grinned, walking away.

She took a seat at a nearby booth. She watched Troy order the pizza and pay. Troy was the one that hadn't changed much. He did seem more mature, but he did have that Troy charm that made her rethink every decision she's ever made in life. He had a way of taking her out of her comfort zone and holding her hand all the way through the discomfort. She would say he was the only real best friend she ever had. Even though they hadn't spoken in years, she felt the same today.

Troy Bolton was a lot of things. He was smart. He was funny. He was charismatic. He could talk to somebody for two minutes and instantly become their best friend. He was selfless. He always put others before himself. He loved his parents and went home each holiday. Her mom even loved him, not that she'd admit or support their decision to get married. Troy Bolton was the best thing that ever happened to Gabriella and she let him slip through her fingers.

Truth of the matter was after they got married, they tried to be people they were not. Gabriella tried to be a perfect homemaker when in turn she was an eighteen year old full time student that worked on weekends. Troy had become an ego driven lunkhead basketball star. They expected too much from each other because they thought the other expected more from them. Marriage was a commitment that they mistook the meaning of.

Troy came back with a number on a stick and two cups. "What do you want Brie?"

"You're really asking me that question?" She said with a teasing smile.

"You're right, that is a stupid question. Pepsi it is."

Gabriella made a face. "Gross. Do not get me Pepsi."

"Dr. Pepper, I know." He filled up their drinks then walked back.

"Thank you, Troy." She said as he took a seat across from her.

"It's just pizza." He said, taking a sip of his drink.

Gabriella shook her head. "It's not just the pizza, Troy. It's you. You've always been the one person in my life that can make me feel like everything is alright when it's not. I know we lost touch of each other and became people that we weren't for the last couple months of our marriage, but I missed you so much. I still miss you every day, you were the only real friend I have ever had and I can't thank you enough for giving that to me."

He gave her a soft smile. He took her hand and held it tightly. "All joking aside, Brie, I feel the same. I'd think about you every day, getting the urge to call you and tell you that we made a horrible mistake of breaking up. Can I be honest with you?"

"Of course." She said, squeezing his hand.

"Everywhere I go, I picture you in my head. God knows, I haven't touched another woman in the last five years. I tried so hard to move on, but I just can't. I really hope you don't take this the wrong way, but my heart is still attached to you. I wish so badly that I could have seen you sooner but work is kicking my balls in and sometimes I feel like I don't even eat because I'm so busy. I am so happy that this life brought you to New York and brought you to my favorite bagel place and brought you to me when we were younger."

Gabriella smiled as she listened to him talk. "I know exactly how you feel because I feel the same." She watched him pet her fingers. "I think we should start off as friends, again."

"Friends is good." He agreed with a nod. "But we can still have lots of sex."

"Troy!" She scolded, pulling her hand away. "You should have touched another woman in the years we've been apart."

Troy shook his head with a small smile. "Do you remember when we met?"

"You said I had a stick up my ass and I cried for three days straight." She said matter-of-factly.

"Do you remember what I said after that?"

"You'd pull it out for free if I went on a date with you." She said with a dry laugh.

Troy laughed, shaking his head. "No, after three days of crying, I went to your house and brought you some cookies that my mom made. I said, you are the most beautiful girl I've ever seen in my life." He grinned, kissing her hand. "You are the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."

She smiled, shaking her head. "I didn't believe you then and I don't believe you now."

"You don't have to believe me, I know it for a fact." Troy took a sip of his soda. "You're the only person I have ever been in love with, Brie. I want to make up for all the lost years."

"This is a big city Troy, You know we could never see each other again after today." Gabriella said hesitantly.

"I know that and if you were anything like you were before, you wouldn't want that." Troy reached over for her hand again. "I don't want that. I want to be friends and eat pizza and joke about sex and whatever you want to do."

"Well, let's eat this pizza and see how this goes." Gabriella joked. She knew whole heartedly that after this meal, they'd be inseparable again.

"What's your work schedule like?" Troy asked after the pizza came and they served themselves.

"Monday through Friday." She said, sprinkling red pepper flakes on her pizza. "I'm basically working eight to ten hour days. I'm only here temporarily."

"Sounds tough." Troy murmured, taking a bite.

"The hardest part is being somewhere new." She said with a shrug. "Work is a process… We have to revise my prior work to fit the scope of New York City. The laws are different here, of course, and we have to adjust. I'm basically jumping in first into the laws involving foster care. I actually have a big presentation I'm working on that's due in a week and a half. I have to apply the changes and we have to run some trial work and it's all….."

"Exhausting?" Troy offered with a smile.

"That's one word for it."

"I'm a little nervous because in San Francisco I had months to prepare something like this and now I have weeks." Gabriella leaned down to take a bite of her pizza.

"Well, what do you do to relax?"

"Eat… Read… the usual stuff."

Troy chuckled. "Do you still swim?"

"Not really. I didn't live by a pool in San Francisco." Gabriella shrugged. "I didn't bring a suit here and it's maybe thirty degrees outside right now."

"There isn't an indoor pool in the fancy hotel you're staying in?" Troy asked, setting the crust of his slice on his plate.

"I never really asked." Gabriella sighed. "But it's okay. I'm probably too tired or too busy."

"Well, be sure to make time for you too."

She laughed. "I'll try… What about you? What's work like for you?"

"Interesting… stressful… it's like riding a bike." Troy laughed. "You get the hang of it once your mom lets go and then the next thing you know you're upside down in a bush of poison oak."

"That's extremely dramatic." Gabriella laughed along.

"True… but I'm in a made up position, so that's what it kind of feels like without a mentor."

"I'm sure you're doing great."

"I haven't gotten fired yet, so." Troy said optimistically with a shrug.

Gabriella smiled. "I get it. I kind of feel the same way."

She took another bite of her pizza, her hunger and anxiety winding down as they got to chatting. Before she knew it, she glanced down at her watch and sighed. It was already nine o'clock. The last three days she was completely passed out. She hadn't even seen nine o'clock since she moved to New York.

Troy was finishing the last bite of pizza and Gabriella sat there blissfully happy with a full belly. "I probably should get going." She said, lamely, not wanting to even move.

"I can walk you back to the hotel. It's pretty late and dark." He said after swallowing.

"How far away from the hotel do you live?" She asked, curiously, sitting up in her seat.

"Not too far, a couple blocks... Greenwich Village." Troy said with a shrug. He wiped his fingers on the paper napkin in front of him.

"Nice." She said, with a smile. She had no idea where exactly that was.

"My office is on the Upper East Side but I tend to do some traveling into the different parts of the state." Troy murmured.

"You'll have to show me all of these places." Gabriella said, honestly. "Because I have no idea where anything is."

Troy laughed. "I'll give you the grand tour, I promise. But, for now, we should get you home."

One part of her wanted to disagree and to stay with him longer, the other part was extremely exhausted and couldn't wait to get into bed. The third part, pushed back into her brain wanted to kill two birds with one stone and roll around in bed with him. She swallowed to push that thought away.

"Okay." She finally agreed. "Let me go wash my hands."

Troy waited patiently for her to step out of the restroom. She shifted her purse on her coat and walked with him outside. She took a deep breath of the chilly New York air. He was uncharacteristically quiet as they started walking. "So you ever think about us?" He asked quietly.

"All of the time, Troy." She felt a lump start to form in her throat. "I think about how we failed each other. I think about how bad it hurt to sign a piece of paper. I think about how I lost my best friend in the whole world even before the divorce was even finalized."

He sighed in response. "it nearly killed me."

She stopped in her tracks. "It nearly killed me. I've been on autopilot for so long."

Troy reached out his hand. "Come on, Brie. It's freezing." She slipped her cold hand into his. After a couple blocks, her heart felt like it was sinking as they approached the hotel. She lead him inside and up to the elevator. He led her into the elevator and she reached over to press the button for her floor. He pressed a warm, soft kiss to her hand as they stepped out. Memories flooded her mind from when they were together.

She approached the door to her suite. She stopped in front of it and took a breath. He looked at her like he was studying her face. His blue eyes always seemed to see the best of her. She noticed his eyes landed on her lips. She let out the breath she was holding. "Thank you…. For everything… Troy."

"Thank you for letting me feed you." He said with a small smirk as his eyes found hers again. "I really, really hope we run into each other again."

"Me too." She agreed, honestly.

"I hope you have a good night and sweet dreams."

A small smile formed on her lips. "Goodnight." She pulled out her key and opened the door. She slipped inside and closed the door. She leaned her back against the door and sighed. She couldn't believe her day. She couldn't believe she would run into him of all people in the big city of New York. She couldn't believe she had dinner with him and it was not the slightest bit awkward. She couldn't believe she wanted to pull open the door and kiss him senseless. "Fuck."

She opened the door and Troy was still there. He stumbled backwards before he turned around and stood straight. She swallowed thickly, trying to find the right words to say. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling his face down to hers. She pressed her lips against his.

He pulled away and looked at her. "I thought you said-"

"I know what I said." She pulled him in and closed the door behind him. Her lips twitched before pressing against his again. His hands held her waist steady. Her tongue reached out to brush his lips and he groaned in pleasure. His tongue touched hers before tangling together in her mouth. Her fingers slid down his arms and reached for the button of his coat.

He pulled away from her lips, enjoying the way she bit her lip and she unbuttoned her own coat. She took their coats to the closet to hang up. She noticed he hadn't moved since she stepped away. "What are we doing?"

She swallowed. "What do you mean?" She walked slowly back to him. "We're two single people in the city that just ate together and casually went to my hotel room afterwards."

He smirked as she got closer. "I thought that didn't work on you."

She sighed with a small smile. "Well reminiscing is apparently making me delusional and horny so take it or leave it, Bolton. I have to be up at 6am to get ready for work." He stared at her, his eyes flicking down to her lips. "We don't have to." He said nothing, which was very out of character for him. She shifted uncomfortably. "Troy."

"I can't mess this up again, Brie."

"Troy." She said softly. "We don't have to do anything. We can just… sleep."

He looked away. His sudden change of mood, of willingness made her stomach sink. He was probably just being Troy earlier. Cute, flirty… charming. He probably didn't want this, didn't want her. She let out a breath as she stepped away from him. She had to get away from him for just one second to think.

A blinking of the room phone distracted her. She stepped over to it and pressed the blinking button. "You have one new message. Message received at 5:30PM." The machine beeped. "Hi, Mrs. Bolton, This is Taryn at the front desk. I hope you are enjoying your stay with us! We have a package for you down at the front desk. Please give us a call at your earliest convenience and we can send it on up to you. Don't hesitate to reach out if there is anything else we can do to assist you! Have a great rest of your night!"

The machine beeped and she pressed the button to delete. She'd have to call down sometime tomorrow to have them send it up. She ran her hand through her hair, her mom must have sent her a package.

"Bolton?" He said aloud.

"What?" She asked, walking back towards him. He had taken five steps further into the room. He looked shocked. She frowned and wondered why.

"The message said Bolton."

"Yeah, that's my name." She said with a frown. "You were there when we signed the papers to change my name."

He licked his lips. "I figured you would have changed it back. Your mom never wanted you to change it in the first place."

She breathed out. "Well, my mom didn't pay money or spend eight hours in the social security office to try to change it to Bolton." She took another step toward him. "I got used to it. I didn't want to change it back. I built my career as a Bolton. I'm not going to change it."

Troy smiled. He looked at the ground. "There are so many fucking things I love about you. I would marry you over and over again and again even though it turned out like this."

She reached out for his hand. "Do you want to have sex or not?"

He laughed out loud. "Not tonight. I don't have a condom." He stepped closer to her, leaning down to pick her up. "I am going to kiss the ever loving hell out of you and fall asleep with you and wake up extra early to go change at home and then meet you at the bagel place in the morning for coffee."

She laughed as he carried her to her bed. He laid her down and kissed her mouth gently. "You do know there is such thing as birth control. I have an IUD."

He chuckled, moving his lips along her neck. "Stop trying to change my mind. I don't want you to disappear after tonight." Gabriella rolled her eyes, sitting up, pulling off her blouse and pulling off her pants. "God, damn."

She reached over for him, pulling his shirt off his body. He leaned down to kiss her as her hands worked on the button and zipper of his jeans. Troy pulled away to pull off his jeans. She smiled to herself. "I'll change your mind in the morning."

"Fuck, I will love to see you try." He climbed on the bed and kissed her mouth before sliding under the covers.

She threw her leg over his and leaned over to kiss his lips firmly. "Goodnight, Troy."

He grinned, holding her head to kiss her mouth again. His lips moved to her cheek before he wrapped his arms around her and her head settled into his chest. What a day.

A new quick one shot I had sitting around. Let me know what you think!

Don't forget to review! :)