Gabriella was about to do it, about to slash her wrists and end her misery. She couldn't take it anymore. No one had tried to call her, so either no one knew she was gone, or no one cared. She figured that no one really cared. She was just a burden on them all, that's it. Nothing more, nothing less. She had the blade against her skin when she heard a car pull up behind her.
Ignoring it, she continued her task until she heard a familiar voice call out, "Gabi! Wait, please, stop!" So close, God, if only Troy would go away. She didn't deserve him, he was too good for her. Gabriella was about to drag the blade across her flesh when she felt a pair of strong arms around her. "Don't do this Gabi, please don't do this," Troy whispered in her ear as he pried the blade out of her hands. "Please don't." Gabriella realized that he was actually crying. She spun around, threw her arms around his neck, and began to sob.
"Oh, Troy. I'm sorry I left. I'm sorry," she said between sobs. Troy gently stroked her hair. "I'm sorry I ran away. I thought that I was a burden on everyone else."
"A burden? Who told
you that?"
"Ian said that I didn't deserve you, and I
actually believed him." She laughed bitterly. "I can't
believe I believed him now. I'm sorry I put you through so much."
Troy kissed the top of her head.
"You're not a burden Gabriella. I'm just glad you're safe." Troy buried his face in Gabriella's hair. "I love you Gabi, and so does everyone else back home. They're so worried about you."
"I shouldn't have left, I know that, but I was so upset about this whole thing, I couldn't take it anymore. How did you figure out where I was? I thought that you would have thought that I was at Adam's."
"Oh, speaking of
Adam, I was just on the phone with him, and should call him back to
let him know that you're safe. Do you want to go home, or stay the
night?"
"Let's stay the night. It'll give me a chance to
get my thoughts together. Plus, I'm really tired." Gabriella
slipped her hand into Troy's ask they walked to the car.
As soon as Gabriella and Troy got back to the motel, Gabriella laid down on the bed, and fell into a deep sleep. Troy pulled out his cell phone, and began to call everyone to let them know that Gabriella was safe. Taylor, Sharpay, Kelsi, and Mrs. Montez all began to cry when they found out. Mr. Bolton yelled at Troy at first, but then when he found out why he had left, he stopped. Troy called Adam last.
"Hello?" a female voice said when Troy called him.
"Umm, yes, it Adam Pascal there?" Troy asked.
"May I ask whose
calling?"
"This is Troy Bolton, Gabriella Montez's
boyfriend." Troy heard the woman let out a sigh of relief.
"Adam told me that you might have found her. This is his wife Cybelle. Is she alright? Adam said that you started to panic, and hung up the phone on him."
"Oh, sorry. Yes, Gabriella's perfectly fine. We're staying in Santa Fe for the night, and driving home first thing in the morning. She's asleep right now. I don't think she's had a decent night's sleep in a few days now."
"I can imagine. Well, here's Adam right now." Troy heard Cybelle cover the telephone with her hand, and say, "Adam, its Troy. He found Gabi." Adam immediately grabbed the phone out of his wife's hand.
"You found her? That's great! We were all worried about her? So that was her you saw?"
"Yes. We're going to stay the night in this motel, and back home tomorrow. Gabi said that she wanted a chance to get her thoughts together and get some sleep."
"Okay, tell her to call me or text me no matter what time she gets up. I was talking to her Mother, and we have an idea for something that would cheer her up a little, and Rosa talked to your parents, and you can come too."
"Would you mind sharing that little secret with me then? To make sure I'll like it?" Adam chuckled.
"Nice try mister, but I have a feeling that you'll like it, so you won't be finding out until you get home tomorrow."
"Damn. Well, I should go, I'm pretty tired too."
"Okay, remember to have Gabi call me when she gets up. Goodbye Troy."
"Bye Adam." Troy hung up his phone, and plugged it in next to Gabriella's phone to charge. Then, he laid down on the couch, and fell asleep.
Troy was awoken several hours later by someone straddling him. He slowly opened his eyes, and saw Gabriella straddling his chest. She bent down, and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.
"You know you didn't have to sleep on the couch," she told him. Troy brushed some hair out of her eyes, and looked her over. Her face was bruised and cut up, but Gabriella didn't seem to mind. When she got to school, however, that's where the problems might begin.
"I know, but I didn't know how you would feel about sharing the same bed. Plus, I was on the phone for a while after you fell asleep, and didn't want to wake you." The smile quickly disappeared from Gabriella's face.
"So they know that I'm safe? I mean, everyone knows that I'm safe now?" Troy nodded.
"Everyone. Oh, and Adam says to call you. He told me that he and your Mom have some big old surprise for you and me when we get home tomorrow, but he still wants to talk to you." Gabriella looked at the clock on the microwave.
"It's eight o'clock there; I guess it's not too late to call him."
"He said no matter how late it is, so you can't make up any excuses. Go, call him!" Gabriella got up, and picked up her cell phone. She didn't feel like talking to anyone, she so began to text Adam.
Hey. How are
you?
Gabi! Thank God you're alright! Are you safe? Your Mom
told me what happened. I can't believe that creep. Don't worry;
he'll be gone for a long time.
Thanks. I'm a little worried about school. I don't really want to go back, but I know I have to.
Why don't you want
to go back?
people will be staring at me, and I don't like that.
I don't like the fact that people will be talking about me, and
making up outrageous stories about what happened to me, and why I'm
so beat up.
Is it that bad?
I guess so.
Listen to me, Gabi. Don't think about what other people say about you. If you want to be a performer, you have to get used to weird looks while doing roles.
I know, but still. I don't want to go back. I don't want to confront them, and my Mom. I'm afraid we might have to go to court about Ian, and I'm not ready for that. Troy took a seat next to Gabi on the bed, and she rested her head on his shoulder.
Don't worry about it. You have a support team behind you. Sorry Gabi, but I have to go. gotta get the boys ready for bed.
Tell them I said hi. I'm still coming up this summer?
Of course. No go, relax a little. Call me when you get home. Bye sweetie.
Bye.
Gabriella closed her eyes, and Troy wrapped his arms around her. There they sat in silence for several minutes. Troy was the first to speak.
"When do you want to leave tomorrow?" he asked her.
"As late as humanly possible. I don't want to face everyone back home." Troy kissed the top of her head.
"Don't worry about them. Everyone's just happy that you're safe." Gabriella looked a little skeptical. She was so terrified that her Mother would be furious at her for leaving. "Don't worry. Nobody's mad at you. I love you, Gabi." Gabriella snuggled as close as possible to her boyfriend. His strong arms around her were so soothing.
"I love you too, Troy."
A/N: Please check out Off-Camera (you can find the link on my profile). It's a behind-the-scenes on Rent type deal. I told my two friends that I won't post again (there's a major cliffhanger) until I get two reviews that aren't from them, so now they're kinda sorta pissed (can't imagine why though). So, for their dwindling sanity, please check it out! It's not a requirement if you've seen Rent, but it'll help a little more. Lots 'o love!
Tina101
