DISCLAIMER: I OWN ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! ESPECIALLY HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL

A/N: oksorry i havent updated in a while. hey, it's summer vacation, i've been out and about, buti finally found the time to keep writing. so hope you like it . oh and...ok, well I haven't actually been to Crustaceans before, so I'm going to make up the whole setting of it.


"Oh! My! God! Troy!" I exclaimed as we got out of the car for valet. We were walking towards the entrance of Crustaceans when the sun was descending on the horizon. As they entered the foyer, the sunset illuminated the all glass aquarium. We walked a little farther and as the sun inched down, the last of its rays created a magnificent rainbow against the waterfall beside the beach. The rainbow disintegrated as the sky darkened. We stood there, smiling and looking at the waterfall just as the light in the water lit up. It was breath-taking. So this must be what Kelsi was talking about. I felt Troy walk away as he headed toward the receptionist's corner. I followed.

"Welcome to Crustaceans," said the receptionists in a gleeful voice. She had a pen and a clipboard in her hands. Her earpiece attached to a walkie talkie blinked a bright green.

"Reservations for Bolton," said Troy and turned to smile at me.

The receptionist fumbled through some papers and finally came upon Troy's name. "Ah! Right this way." She led us through another aquarium and onto the roof deck. We followed her to a table right in the middle of the deck. We had a perfect view of the shore and the waterfall near the entrance. Troy pulled my seat out for me and scooted me in. He then retreated to his own seat.

"Would you like me to turn on your heat lantern?" She pointed to the heat lantern not too far from our table. It was still pretty warm, so why did she bother asking?

"Maybe later," said Troy.

"Ok. A waiter will be with you in just a moment," the receptionist said as she handed us two menus. She smiled then left, leaving Troy and I to ourselves.

"This is such an amazing restaurant," I said in awe. "It's great how you got us a table. It's so full, even on the roof."

"Oh, did you not want to sit on the roof?" He began to get up from his seat. I quickly put my hand up.

"No, no. It's great out here." He nodded and sat back down again. I sat there looking at him, reminded of the times we used to do this.

"You know, Gabi. I never said how great you look tonight." I smiled and blushed.

"You look pretty good yourself," I said. This time he blushed but quickly turned his head so that he could cover it up. I laughed to myself. I don't really care what you're wearing. I'm just glad that I'm here with you again.

"What?" he asked as I kept giggling to myself.

I shook my head. "Nothing." I shortly ended my giggle. We opened up our menus and looked it over.

Soon a man in a white apron came up to our table. "Good evening. I'm Chuck, your waiter for this evening. Can I get you anything to drink?"

I flipped to the back of the menu and took a once over the beverages.

"I'll have a Gentle Sea Breeze," said Troy.

"I'll have Coco Colada," I said.

"All right then. Do you need a couple more minutes to order? Or…" said Chuck as he scribbled down our drink orders.

I looked over at Troy.

"Oh, don't worry, Gabi. I've got it covered tonight." In that case, if he's paying, might as well take advantage of this. I'll look over the lobster section. Hee heee.

"Oh, then I'll take this opportunity to tell you both that tonight our shrimp buffet will be closed due to something called a shrimp recall," explained Chuck. Troy and I looked at him with confused looks. Chuck shrugged. "Hey, I have no idea what that means, but our oyster bar is still open. Just order through me, and I'll get ya what ya need."

I shrugged and returned to the menu.

"Chuck. Tell Danny 897 from Troy. He'll understand what I'm talking about."

"No problem," responded Chuck. He took our menus away from us and walked away. I had a befuddled look on my face.

"Oh, don't worry. I have a surprise for you. Unless there's something on the menu that you really wanted," Troy quickly added. I shook my head. That is sooo sweet. Shortly, Chuck came back with our drinks then left again. I sipped mine and looked over at Troy. He took a big gulp from his.

"Gentle sea breeze? That's a clean drink. Troy Bolton doesn't drink alcohol?" I teased.

"Not when I want to be embarrassed in front of complete strangers. There is one thing that I do when I am drunk," he scratched his neck and cleared his throat.

"Oh really, what's that?"

"I'd…sing." He turned bright red. My jaw dropped, but I quickly let out a small giggle. I need to remember that.

He cleared his throat again. "So, thanks for coming with me tonight. I wasn't really sure how you would react when you got the letter. And when you saw me at the game. Frankly, I…I thought you wouldn't want to see me ever again," he said. Silence. I didn't know what to say, so I didn't say anything at all. How am I supposed to respond to something like that? We took occasional sips from our glasses until Chuck came back with our food.

"Holy shit!" I said as Chuck distributed small sized plates and platters of seafood. One plate was crab ravioli with this really good cream sauce. Another plate was calamari picatta. Another platter was filled with lobster tails, lemon wedges, and butter sauce. Another platter was crowded with oysters: baked oysters, grilled oysters, fried oysters, all topped with different delicious sauces. I was completely impressed. "Troy!"

He had a bright smile on his face. "I hope you have an appetite. And I really hope you like seafood." He laughed and handed me a plate. We took helpings of everything. This is going to cost Troy a fortune. Might as well enjoy it before he changes his mind. Hee hee hee.

"Anything for dessert?" Troy asked after we finished off everything. And I mean everything. I was way too full to eat anything else or say anything else for that matter. I gave him a 'are-you-kidding-me' look. He laughed and signaled Chuck for the check. I sat back and tried to look happy. Truth was that I wanted to take a long nap after all that food. Man, I hope he doesn't think that I'm a big fat fattie pig. I feel like one right now. But he did eat more than I did. I let out a defeated sigh and looked over at the waterfall. I was entranced by the sound of the water crashing into the pond. The sound of Troy's voice called me back to reality. He had just paid the bill when I turned back. The plates were being cleared. I didn't have the energy to move. Again, I was so full.

"Beautiful," he said. I blushed.

"Thanks."

"Oh, I meant the waterfall."

I turned bright red. "Oh…right." STUPID!

"Gabriella," he said as he smiled. "Kidding."

I turned a brighter red. "Oh…right," I repeated. Idiot, idiot, idiot. Could I have been more embarrassed? And it's amazing how I managed to say anything. Chuck came back with Troy's credit card.

"You two have a good night," he said with a smile. He nodded at Troy and left. "So, you ready to go?" Troy asked as he began to get out of his seat.

"Uhm, actually. I'll be right back. I've got to stop by the ladies room for a quick sec," I said as I wobbled out of my seat. He sat back down, and I felt him watch me as I left. I headed back toward the lower level and followed the arrows that read "Restrooms". Thankfully, no one was in there, so I had a chance to call Taylor. I pulled out my phone from my bag and started dialing.

"Come on, pick up your phone," I said as I paced up and down the bathroom in front of the mirror.

"Hello?"

"Taylor! Thank God, you picked up!"

"Gabriella, hey! How's it going?"

"It's going pretty ok, I guess. But I feel kind of stupid."

"What? Why?"

"Because I pigged out, and he probably thinks I'm a total fattie. Kelsi was right. This place is amazing, but Troy feed me like a buffet. I totally feasted. I think he thinks that I'm disgusting." I stopped pacing and sat on the couch that was there.

"Gabriella, calm down. If Troy wouldn't have wanted you to eat to your stomach's content, then he wouldn't have ordered that much food. Besides, I don't think he cares what you eat. I think he just wanted your company." I put on a tiny smile. I heard someone say 'Taylor, let's go' in the background.

"Where are you heading to, Tay?"

"All of us are going to that party Jason and Kelsi are going to."

"Oh, well have fun."

"Thanks, you, too. And if you need to talk again, call me. I'll make sure to have my phone on me. But Gabi. Just be yourself. Okay?"

"Thanks, Tay. Bye." And she hung up. I got up and looked at myself in the mirror. "Ok, Gabriella. Just be yourself. Be yourself." I drew in a deep breath and headed back out the door. My heart started racing as I neared our table.

"Hey, are you okay? You were in there quite a while. Got a little worried. I hope the seafood wasn't too much," he said as I sat back down.

"Oh, no. I'm fine." I smiled. Ok, Gabi. Just be yourself.

"All right, well. You ready to go now? I've got some other place I want to take you."

I raised my eyebrows.

"Haha, no. Not the Pearson Apartments."

"Haha. I wasn't even thinking that, but you were. You're a dirty boy, Troy." I laughed and got up. I saw him turn a deep deep deep red as he followed.

"Thanks, guys. Have a good evening," said the receptionists as we went through the door and back through the aquarium and waterfall. We entered the parking lot, and Troy gave the valet drivers his ticket.

"Where exactly are you taking me?" I asked as we waited for the car to appear.

"You'll see," was his only response. The car pulled up. We got in and drove off. There was an awkward silence as he drove me to this special place, so he turned on the radio. Oh my god, I can't believe this song is playing.

(Radio):

---and now looking in your eyes

I feel in my heart

The start of something

Now who would ever though that---

"Oh my god," I said. "I didn't really know that this song was a real song!"

"Haha, what do you mean?" he said as he turned the volume down a bit.

"Well, I just thought that it was a karaoke song, not like an actual artist sang it or something." We listened. "The duets pretty good." Without knowing it, I started singing along.

"Well, not as good as you," Troy said as he sang along with me. Before we knew it, the song ended, and we were at Kelroy Docks. (A/N: I made up the name). He led me to an area where parties and such could be held. It was empty, however, so he brought me to a little hut with a bench in it. It faced the ocean. We sat down and looked out over the boats though we kept in our own personal spaces. After a while, Troy decided to say something.

"Gabriella," he began, "I'm just going to be really straightforward." His voice was cool and calm, not harsh and pushy like it should have been. "Why did you break up with me?" He looked at me, but I forced myself to concentrate on looking at the boats.

I was silent for a moment and then, "Because I thought that you were going to break up with me." I could feel tears pricking my eyes. I fought hard to keep them from welling.

"What?" he asked. This time I faced him to see he had the most innocent look on his face. Those clear blue eyes made me melt inside.

"Well. Earlier that day, Taylor called to tell me that Chad had dumped her, so that he wouldn't be attached when he went to that sport program in Maui. That was really awful, even for Chad to do. And then, when you told me that you were going to the same sports enrichment thing as Chad, I thought that you were planning on dumping me, too. So I took the chance before you could." I paused to catch my breath. He was speechless. I continued, "And all this time, I thought that if I was wrong about breaking up with you, then you would call me or at least run after me." I let a tear fall. "But…you didn't. I waited all summer for your phone call, and I even waited the first semester of school. After that, I just convinced myself that breaking up was what you had in mind, and that's why you didn't call, and what I did was a good move." That was so hard to do. I let another tear fall. I sat back in my seat and wiped my tears away.

His mouth moved as if to say something, but he didn't, as thought he was trying to find the right words to say. Finally, "Gabriella. Gabi, look at me." I turned my head. It looked like he was about to shed a tear, too. "Gabriella, I didn't have the intention of breaking up with you. When you did, I was completely heartbroken. I didn't call you or come after you because I thought that that was what you wanted. I spent the whole time I was in Maui trying to figure out what I had done wrong and trying to figure out where things went wrong. I couldn't concentrate very well on the court, so they sent me back home. Unlike Chad who flirted with every girl he could back in Hawaii, I tried to stay single incase you decided to call me. I never tried to talk to you until now because I thought that you wouldn't want to hear from me. I couldn't get over you, and I still can't." His eyes were soft and apologetic.

He looked away for a moment then looked back at me and said, "The reason I asked you to meet me that day was to tell you something else, besides Maui." He reached into his front pocket and pulled out a small, velvet jewelry case. He handed it to me. I opened it to find a golden locket necklace with his picture inside. "I wanted you to have this, so that you could keep my heart close to yours while I was away."

"Troy, I'm so sorry." This time I was crying, not tearing, crying. I closed my hand around the locket and started sobbing. He pulled me into a hug, and I cried on his shoulder. When I collected my emotions, I slowly pulled away. He put both hands on my cheeks and wiped away my almost dried tear marks with his thumbs. He smiled, and I showed a small smile. I looked at his smile and then at his eyes and then back to his smile that faded slowly as my face inched closer to his. He moved his hands slowly to the back of my neck, and I we shared a kiss. It lasted for about four seconds until we slowly parted from each other. Then he took the necklace from my hands and held it out.

"Gabriella. Since that day, I haven't been able to open my heart to anyone else. Unless you're already seeing someone…" I shook my head. "Then would you do me the honors of keeping my heart safe?"

My eyes filled up with tears again as I nodded and smiled. He let out a relieved breath and placed the necklace over my head. I looked at it. On the outside it read:

With all my love,

Troy


A/N: soo tell me what you think. this is my LONGEST chapter yet.