September-

Troy didn't know why he agreed to go out to see Twisted Eagle with Tessa at a campus sponsored event. She paid for the ticket and was going to give him twenty bucks for beer. She must have been desperate for a ride.

He honked outside of her dorm and waited for her. Tessa and two other girls came out of the building dressed like college girls. He sighed and decided to shut up. She was an adult; she could dress how she liked.

"Troy! This is Kayla and Lacey."

"Hi!" He said with a small smile. "Kayla came to my birthday party and Lacey was the good friend that didn't try to grab my dick in the pool at our Fourth of July party."

"Don't mind Britney, she has unresolved childhood trauma that made her hypersexual." Lacey said climbing in the back. "I'm a psych major."

"Cool." He said with a nod. "Where is this show at?"

"Gib Center." Tessa said, buckling her seatbelt.

"You got my beer money?"

"Yes." Tessa said reaching back. Kayla pulled a twenty out of her bra and handed it to Tessa who handed it to him. "Here you go."

"Thanks." He touched the bill with just his fingertips before shoving it in his pocket. "Why do you guys want to see this band anyway?"

"Because Alex, Joey, Benji, and Liam are so fucking cute."

"Troy knows Benji and his girlfriend. His girlfriend was actually at Fourth of July… the pretty one with the daughter."

"I didn't know he had a kid."

"It's not his kid." Tessa explained. "Troy, drive."

Troy rolled his eyes and started driving. He regretted coming out and having to listen to them talk about how hot Benji was. Ugh. Benji. That's a fucking dog name. Pretty suitable for cheater Ben. He needed a beer and hoped Gabriella was there so he could talk to someone with an actual brain.

He supposed that was the only reason he actually wanted to go was in hopes to see her. They talked pretty regularly but he hadn't seen her since his birthday. That was a good thing because he was sure he would have said or done something more stupid if he saw her face to face.

He pulled into the lot across from the Gib Center. He parked his truck and looked at the two underage girls drinking mini bottles of vodka. "If I get arrested then you are telling dad that it's your fault."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." She pulled a mini bottle out of her shirt and opened it. "Want some?"

"No." He said disgusted. "I don't want your boob sweat covered bottle of cheap vodka."

Tessa and her friends laughed at him. He rolled his eyes and climbed out. He waited for them and they walked across the street to the entrance of the venue. Tessa had their tickets scanned and they got stamped in. He stepped away from them to get a 21 plus wristband so he could buy beer.

They were just on time with the first band going on. The girls rushed in the crowd and he stood to the back. He wasn't a fan of the music so we walked over to the bar and grabbed a beer. He sipped his cold beer and wondered how the bad music could make the beer taste bad.

He leaned against the wall and people watched. That was more entertaining than watching the shitty band. His eyes found his sister. She was dancing with her friends so she was good. He couldn't help but look for Gabriella. She had to be here somewhere. He couldn't find her in the small crowd of people.

After twenty excruciating minutes, the set was over and his beer was finally gone. He walked towards the back to throw away the bottle. The bands were switching gear on stage. His jaw clenched when he saw Ben.

He heard a familiar laugh and his stomach tightened. His eyes found her walking in the archway from the lobby. She was with another girl. They stopped and chatted for a second before they went their separate ways. He glanced over at Ben on the stage and he was talking to some of the girls in the audience. His eyes flicked back to Gabriella who was digging in her purse.

The music was low overhead but he made out the newest Avicii song. He sang quietly along with the song moving back to his original spot against the wall. He watched as she pulled out a hair tie and tied her hair up.

She headed towards the bar nearest him and his eyes fell to her ass. She looked incredible in everything she owned. The jeans were great but he loved when she wore dresses that showed off her legs and her curves. She laughed again and he wished his stomach would settle.

He watched as she turned around, taking a drink of her beer. She looked around the room and did a double take when she saw him. She moved the beer from her lips and a smile formed on her face. He was suddenly thirsty again.

He pushed himself off the wall and walked over to her and the bar. He tried to hide his smile as he stood next to her. "Beer, please." He handed over another five dollar bill and the bartender slid over the beer. "Thank you."

"Fancy seeing you here." She said with a smile.

"Oh my god, Gabi? I didn't even see you. What are you doing here?!" He asked, feigning surprise.

She narrowed her eyes at him and laughed. "Shut up."

"Are you here to see the show? The first band kind of sucked."

"Be nice!" She said laughing.

He chuckled and leaned in to tell her quietly. "They sucked so much it made my beer taste bad." He took a swig. "It tastes good now… Avicii's on."

She smiled. "You know Avicii? This is my favorite song. Ben hates it."

"Of course cheater Ben hates it." Troy shook his head to myself. "I would say he doesn't have any taste but you're proof that that's wrong."

"You never told me why you're here."

"Tessa had an extra ticket, needed a ride, and bribed me with 20 bucks for beer."

"Ah, I see."

"You look beautiful."

She smiled, taking a sip of her beer. "Thank you."

"Do you need to go backstage and fight off all the groupies?"

Gabi laughed out loud. "Yeah right. Band only. I had to buy this stupid ticket and he will not even acknowledge my existence until his set is over."

"What a douche bag."

"Troy."

"You don't want to be front row with half of your ass out in a tube top like all these freshmen?"

"Absolutely not. I had a baby. I would look terrible in a tube top."

He grinned. "I'm pretty sure you wouldn't."

"For Willow being a preemie she gave me an awful lot of stretch marks."

"Hey, your body carried another human for half a year. That's pretty bad ass, tiger stripes and all." She sighed softly, sipping her beer. "Well I'll let you get to band girlfriend duties; I should get back to holding up the wall."

Troy walked back to his spot and leaned against the wall, sipping his beer. He tried not to look at her as she was walking over to him. "You don't want to hang out with me, or what?" She asked, leaning against the wall next to him.

"I never said that."

"I don't have any girlfriend duties and I don't know anybody here except you. Do you mind if I watch the show with you?"

"Sure."

He watched her drink her beer and look around. "Why are you staring at me?"

"I like looking at you. You're beautiful. I'm committing your face to memory because…" He stopped himself, trailing off. He looked at the stage and they were about to start.

"Because why?"

The drummer slammed on the drums when he was about to talk. "Are you guys ready to rock with us tonight?" The lead singer asked as the girls started screaming.

She put her hand on his arm to get his attention. "Because why?"

"They're starting." He pointed out.

"Troy."

"You know why and making me rehash my unreciprocated feelings isn't fair." He said bitterly. He took a drink.

"You're right. I'm sorry." Gabi said, glancing up at him. "I'm glad I ran into you… I missed you."

"I missed you too. How's school going?"

"Really good, actually. Willow starts school on Monday."

"No way… is she excited for kindergarten?"

"The most excited kid to go to school." Gabriella said with a laugh. "She wanted me to ask you if you could come to her first day of school. It'll be early… school starts at 8:05 but I want to walk her to her class and take a picture with her teacher. She asked if you could come."

"I'll be there." He grinned. "Willow really wants me there?"

"Yes, she insists. She was going to call you this weekend to ask you."

"I love that she thought of me. She's amazing."

"Yeah, she is." She said quietly. "She'll be really excited if you could come."

"Make sure to call me this weekend and I'll tell her myself."

"Deal." She grinned, sipping her beer.

They listened to Twisted Eagle and the beer didn't make it sound any better than the first band. Troy made a face when he realized he was out of beer again.

"People really listen to this?" He asked out loud.

She giggled. "Apparently."

"This band is terrible too or the sound system sucks." He ran his fingers through his hair. "How many bands are supposed to be playing tonight?"

"I think there is one more after them."

"You done?" He asked, reaching over for her bottle.

"Yeah, thanks." She said quietly when he grabbed it. He went to the recycling and tossed them in. He went back to his spot.

He watched them transition to the next song. Ben hadn't even looked her way once. His focus was on the girls in the front row. He looked back to Gabriella who pulled out a book and started reading it. He smiled to himself as he watched her read.

He loved that she could read in the middle of a concert. He loved that she wanted to stand next to him. He wanted to hold her hand and kiss her lips again. He wanted to pin her against the wall like he did in the bathroom on his birthday. He wondered if he should bring it up.

Would it be useful to reiterate that he loved her? That he wanted her to break up with cheater Ben and be with him. She closed her book as the song faded into the next.

"I could feel you staring at me."

"I'm not sorry. I can't even and I don't want to take my eyes off you."

Her eyes flicked up to him. "If you tell me I'm beautiful one more time."

He was pretty sure she was joking. He couldn't help but smile and want to challenge her. "You'll do what? Kiss me?" She rolled her eyes. "Even better, break up with your boyfriend."

She let out a breath and opened her book again. He turned on the wall to face her. He put her book mark back in place and closed her book. "Troy."

"I love you."

She swallowed, shaking her head. "Troy… you don't love me."

"I do love you." He stroked her cheek gently. "Just say the word and I will call my sister and her friends an Uber. I will get you out of here. We can go out to eat… anywhere you want. I'll hold your hand and pull out your chair and we can go to my land and look up at the sky again."

"How can you say that?"

"I say it because I feel it. I feel it in every beat of my heart. My heart wants you and it so badly wants you to want me too."

"I'm with Ben."

"I know you are, beautiful. It kills me every day and I am more jealous than you can even imagine. I want you to finally be done with him and come be with me."

"Troy." She shifted her weight.

She was visibly uncomfortable and he felt like a dick. "Oh, god. I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I'm not drunk enough for this. I can't look at your face and make it worse." He was trying not to be a coward and to run away. He couldn't look at her anymore and see how much she didn't want to be with him. He shut his eyes tightly trying to get that image out of his brain. "I have to use the bathroom. Excuse me."

Troy pushed himself off the wall without a second thought. He walked towards the lobby. He went into the restroom and locked himself in a stall. He needed a walk. Maybe they had an outside section he could go to? He took a second to use the restroom and wash his hands.

He came out and found a guard standing by the upstairs of the venue. It was closed off. "Excuse me; do you have a smoking section?"

"Yeah, man, keep going down this hall it's the doors to your right."

"Thank you." He ran his fingers through his hair and walked down the hallway. He opened the doors and stepped outside. It was empty which he was thankful for. He didn't have to force any fake smiles or make small talk.

He held onto the rail looking down the alleyway. It was kind of creepy but he didn't really care. The doors opened a second later. "Troy."

Fuck. He turned around to look at her. "I just need some air… I'm fine."

"Can you come back inside? We don't have to talk."

"I'll be inside in a second." She took a step closer and she had this look on her face that he couldn't figure out but it was making the ache in his heart worse. "Stop looking at me like that." The look was a full 180 to the look she had inside.

Her eyes dropped down to his lips. "I'm sorry."

"Gabriella, Please" He wanted her to stop looking at him like she wanted him, like she wanted to kiss him, and she kept coming closer.

"I can't." She stepped closer and he closed his eyes. He gripped the rail behind him tighter.

"Why not?" He pleaded.

"I don't know." She touched his cheek and he leaned into her touch. He opened his eyes and she was so close to him. He lost all of his self control. He leaned forward to kiss her lips slowly. She pulled away quickly. "Troy I can't."

"I know you can't and I still love you." He took a deep breath. "I'm going to go back inside and I'm going to tell my sister I'm waiting in my truck. You're going to enjoy the rest of the show. We're going to do what we do best and pretend like this didn't happen."

"Fine."

She didn't step back, she just looked at him. If he was going to feel sorry for himself, he had to add guilt to the top of his pile of self-deprecation. He touched her face gently, tucking hair behind her ear. He cupped the back of her neck and pulled her back to him. He kissed her lips gently. He loved the way her lips felt against his. His heart throbbed painfully as she melted into him and his kiss. She was so sweet and addictive. Her tongue started the journey into his mouth. His tongue fought back, tangling around in her mouth. He felt her small hand at the base of his neck, pushing him away. He stared at her for a long minute, licking his bottom lip.

The door opened and a couple guys came out into the smoking section. It was time to go. He pushed himself off the rail moving sharply around her so he didn't knock her over. They walked inside without another word. They stopped when they got to the lobby. "I'll see you on Monday." He said softly. She just nodded.

He made his way into the crowd to find Tessa. Thankfully she'd been in the same spot the whole time. She turned to give him her attention. "I'm going to wait in the car."

"Their set is almost over. We don't want to see the last band. Just give us five minutes okay?"

"Okay." He said, standing there with his arms crossed. His sister and her friends and a bunch of other college girls jumped around him. He got shoved and moved out of the crowd.

The band finished their last song and said their thank you's. The girls walked over to him and he led them back to the truck. He paid for parking and climbed in. The girls talked about how awesome the set was and he wanted to shoot himself.

He dropped them off and made sure they got in their building okay before he drove back to his apartment. He was exhausted; he didn't even have the energy to run up the stairs. Once he got inside, he went straight to bed with every single article of clothing he already had on.

I hope you all have a great week and a good holiday weekend- if you're in the US.

Don't forget to review! :)