The time had passed and it was officially game day for the Wildcats championship. They had been training hard and everything they had been working on had led up to this day. Gabriella had watched Jack with Troy and the team in their preparation and she could easily see that Troy felt pressured to win even if no one explicitly stated the goal. She knew that most of his pressure was applied by himself and it saddened her to see him in that state. She thought back to a few days earlier when she'd finally caught Troy to talk about his situation.
(Flashback)
She knew that he had a break for the period, knowing that this was the only one he'd get off for the remainder of the week. As soon as they walked out of class, she grabbed his wrist and dragged him up to the rooftop. She noticed his confusion as they sat down on the bench so she answered, "we need to talk."
Troy paled. "You're not breaking up with me, are you?"
Gabriella laughed. "No of course not." Seeing that he didn't find the situation amusing, she placed her hand on his knee. "I wouldn't do that to you, especially not this close to the championship, I know how much it means to you. We're not breaking up." She saw his nerves settle so she continued. "But speaking of the championships, that's what I want to talk to you about."
"Sure, what's up?"
The girl began, carefully thinking about her words as she said them. "I know I haven't been here long and I know I've never seen you in game mode in preparation for these championships. And I also know how much the Wildcats – especially in basketball – mean to the school. I know your dad and you guys are trying to be as prepared as you can be for it and I know you're all pushing yourselves. It's just - from an outside perspective, I'm just wondering if you're pushing yourself too much."
"I'm fine, we can't win if we're not pushing ourselves."
"That's not what I mean Troy." She sighed, knowing that his stress wasn't allowing him to have a clear head to comprehend her words the way he normally would. "I know you have to train and push yourselves and I understand that but I think that you're putting more pressure on yourself than you need to." Before he could interrupt, she asked him. "Do you feel like you have to win that game on Saturday?"
"It's what we've spent the entire year training for so yeah obviously."
"And you feel like it's your responsibility to make sure that your team wins?"
"It is my responsibility, that's the entire reason for my position on the team. If we lost, I'd be letting everyone down, my dad, my team, the school." His voice softened as he spoke until the sadness was clear as day. "Everyone always says that I'm the captain, I'm the playmaker. It's my job to make sure that we win, we have to win Brie."
Glad that he finally let his true emotion out, she pulled him to lay against her chest and ran her fingers through his hair. "I know it feels that way Wildcat but that's not true. You may be the captain or the playmaker but your team's performance in that game is not just your responsibility. There are 12 people on your team Troy, it's not just you. The responsibility of the championship game is on your whole team, not just you."
"But it feels like it's my responsibility to make sure we win."
"I know it does, but your performance is the only thing that reflects on you. As long as you try your best in that game, then you have done everything you can to win. You can't control how your teammates perform, that's on them."
"Yeah I guess so." He sighed before looking up at her and placing a kiss on her cheek. "Thanks Baby, I really needed to hear that."
She smiled softly. "I know you did."
(end flashback)
Sitting in the grandstands for the game, the girls watched as the Wildcats walked onto the court. After their huddle, Troy looked around for Gabriella. When their eyes locked, she blew him a kiss, mouthing 'good luck, I love you' and he responded with the latter sentiment. The game was tough, both teams were on their A-game and it was neck and neck the entire time. She could see that Troy was feeling the pressure and he'd look up at Gabriella for reassurance when he got a break in between. When the buzzer finally sounded, the Wildcats were three points ahead of the Knights and half the team – including Troy – fell to their knees in relief. The East High half of the grandstand cheered elatedly as the Wildcats celebrated while the Knights and their supporters felt the disappointment. As soon as the trophy was presented and the crowd was clear to go onto the court, the girls ran down to their boyfriends and friends.
As soon as Troy saw Gabriella, the girl ran to him and he lifted her into his arms, spinning her around as she gripped his neck tightly. When she was placed on her feet, she smiled brightly up at him. "I'm so proud of you Wildcat, I knew you could do it!"
He smiled just as brightly in response, over the moon at his victory. "Thanks Brie, for everything. I can't believe we won!"
All the team came over with their friends and the group formed a huddle. Troy looked at Chad and the boy knew exactly what to do. "WHAT TEAM?"
"WILDCATS!"
"WHAT TEAM?"
"WILDCATS!"
"WILDCATS!"
"Get'cha head in the game."