When Gabriella came back to Albuquerque, she did not expect to be returning feeling the way she does right now.

She expected to just be here for a week, bask in the nostalgia, and then move on with her life. It wouldn't be like last time, when her heart constricted at the very thought of leaving and the implications it would have for her future.

And it's not as if these feelings are here now. She is not heartbroken, she's not hurt, she's not conflicted. But there is something that's the same as it was all those years ago.

She's really going to miss Troy Bolton.

They've managed to make the most of the last couple of days that Gabriella has been in town. It's not as if they have been attached to the hip or as if they have spent every waking moment together, but they have very much enjoyed the moments they did have and, they have vowed to stay in touch this time. This time, they're going to make this work, whatever this means.

Of course, what's going on between them at this point is nothing more than a tentative rekindling of a friendship, even despite the physical attraction and the moments they shared, and that's good. That's enough. That's something she can handle.

She can be his friend. She wants to be his friend. She isn't going to make the same mistake twice and lose him again.

Because he makes her happy.

Her mother has definitely remarked that there has been more life in her eyes and a spring in her step ever since she and Troy reunited and decided to start over. Taylor has noticed it too, although she has been on the more wary side.

After all, Taylor was right when she told Gabriella there would be other guys. Of course, those other guys haven't turned out to be particularly great, but the point that there was a whole world outside of Troy Bolton still stands. Of course, Taylor has seen how completely broken Gabriella was after the break up, so all in all, Gabriella is not surprised to see her caution.

At least Troy is a distraction from the more recent break up. Henry has barely crossed her mind these last couple of days and it feels great to be moving on, to feel like herself again.

Yes, her trip to Albuquerque has definitely done her good, she thinks with a deep, contented sigh as she sits in the lounge at the airport, waiting for her flight to board.

She tells herself that it's not just because of Troy, though. As big as his impact on this week has been, there's more to be celebrated. Seeing her mother, seeing her old friends, being back in the place where she first found a home. It's the combination of all of those things that makes her feel refreshed.

It's really not just Troy. And her heart really doesn't skip a beat when she hears a ding from her phone and sees her screen light up with a text from him.

Have a safe trip, Brie.

Brie. That nickname hasn't been used in a while. Troy has been the only person ever to call her that. It should feel weird, to have him throw it out so casually after all those years, but it actually just makes her feel warm on the inside.

She types in a quick thank you and adds a face throwing a kiss emoji, but she hesitates before sending it. Would that emoji be too straightforward or would it just be considered friendly?

God, she's like a teenager, overanalysing her texts to a boy. Wasn't overanalysing her fatal flaw? Doesn't that tendency of hers always ruin things?

Pursing her lips, she quickly sends the text, and then puts her phone away, not to return to it until she lands in California.

When she arrives, there's a kiss emoji waiting for her from him, accompanied by a heart.

It's like Troy has never left her life. His texts and calls have become a regular occurrence in Gabriella's daily routine and within a few weeks, she can't imagine not talking to him every day.

She hears all about Chad's shenanigans and all about what the students of East High are up to, and in return, she keeps him up to date about her own experiences at work. Whenever she's feeling down, Troy always seems to know how to cheer her up, with a pep talk over the phone, or a picture of Lola.

However, she doesn't even realize how intertwined their lives have become until she receives a rather surprising text from him one evening when she has just got off work.

Your mom told me to say hi.

Since when is Troy Bolton in contact with her mom?

Without second thought, she FaceTimes him, and she is immediately met with a cheeky grin as he appears on the screen.

"What are you doing with my mom?" she asks, not unkindly, as she quirks her eyebrow at him.

He just chuckles, his eyes twinkling with mischief. "The garage door wasn't working and my dad was going to fix it, but he had another appointment, so he asked me to do it."

"My mom's hero in shining armour," she comments, smiling as Troy blushes a little. "Did she feed you brownies?"

"Of course! I'm pretty sure my compliments on her brownies are the main reason why she likes me."

Gabriella bites her lip to keep her grin from growing at the thought of Maria baking brownies for Troy. It's really just like old times.

"I'm pretty sure that's not the only reason she likes you," she offers, deciding not to tell him that she knows the real reason why her mother likes him so much, and Troy raises an eyebrow in amusement.

"Oh yes, she also likes me because I still do chores for her, even though her daughter and I had a bad break up ten years ago," he quips, all mirth completely vanishing from his face the second the words leave his mouth.

Gabriella's joy vanishes, too. The subject of their break up is still a sore one, so whenever it gets brought up, even as a joke, there's still this tension between them, this unspoken rift that they are still trying to heal.

"Maria really misses you, though," Troy quickly changes the subject and Gabriella feels guilt settle in her stomach as she suddenly realizes how long it's been since she's really spoken to her mother.

Of course, Gabriella and her mum text too – although not as often as she texts Troy –, but it's not the same as a good old mother-daughter heart-to-heart. And they haven't had one of those in a while.

"I feel bad," she says, frowning. "I miss her too, but work has been so hectic lately. I hate it. It's not like me to neglect people in favour of work."

"I know, you were pissed at me when I did that," Troy laughs and Gabriella has the decency to flush bright red at the reminder of their first break-up, which might not have been as permanent, but still felt just as horrible. "You have a very hectic job, though, so I'm sure she understands."

Then, a quirk of a teasing eyebrow. "I feel honoured that you make time to talk to me, though."

Gabriella rolls her eyes, but she feels her face flush nonetheless. "Don't flatter yourself."

His hand flies up to his neck as his teasing grin grows into something fond, his eyes sparkling. Quietly, he tells her, "No, I mean it, I'm glad you do. Talking to you always makes my day a little better."

Gabriella's face grows hotter and she bites her lip. "Likewise."

They stare at each other through the camera for a moment, just letting the words sit between them, before exhaustion suddenly overcomes her and she breaks the moment by yawning loudly.

Troy laughs in response. "Tired?"

"It's been a long day," Gabriella says while stretching herself and yawning again, blinking with sleepiness.

Troy offers her a smile of pity. "I'll let you go. You need your beauty rest."

"Not as much as you need it," she retorts, grinning as she hears Troy's hearty laugh and sees him throw his head back in mirth. She loves hearing his laugh. It's like music to her ears.

He sticks out his tongue out at her and she giggles. Then, he turns serious again, a small smile on his face as he softly says, "Good night, Brie."

"Good night, Wildcat."

When they hang up, she sighs in contentment. She's still exhausted, but it's really true – talking to him makes her day much better.

"Are you seeing someone?"

Gabriella blinks and looks up from her phone, quirking an eyebrow at her PhD supervisor Carol, who is sitting at her desk at the other side of the room.

"I'm not. Why?"

Carol raises her eyebrow as well, before motioning to Gabriella's phone. With a teasing twinkle in her eye, she says, "You've been smiling an awful lot at that phone lately."

Gabriella laughs awkwardly. She respects Carol a lot, and at this point, she would even consider the older woman a friend rather than just her supervisor, but she doesn't know how comfortable she feels with Carol prying in her love life.

"My friend just likes sending me pictures of his dog, that's all," she retorts, holding up her phone to show the picture that Troy just sent her of him holding Lola.

Carol leaves her desk and walks over to Gabriella to look at the picture up close. She narrows her eyes for a moment, before smirking. "Cute."

Gabriella feels herself a flush a little, aware that Carol is referring to Troy and not to Lola, before shaking her head and smiling, rolling her eyes good-heartedly. "And still just a friend."

Carol crosses her arms over her chest. "If a man who looks like that was constantly texting me pictures of his dog, I'd be all over that."

"You're in your fifties!" Gabriella exclaims with a laugh.

"Details," Carol says with a roll of her eyes and a wave of her hand, before getting serious, her mouth in a comforting grin that reminds Gabriella of her own mother's smile, as she sits down next to her. "But I'm serious. You've been looking so happy lately, happier than you ever looked with Henry, and I think it's because of him."

"My happiness does not need to depend on a man," Gabriella reminds her, and Carol just sighs and offers her a small smile as she squeezes her shoulder.

"Of course it doesn't," she says softly. "But you can't deny that there's something there. And that's a good thing. You deserve to be happy."

And with those final words, Carol stands up. "Do you want some coffee?"

Gabriella shakes her head and Carol nods with another gentle smile, before leaving Gabriella alone with her thoughts.

It's no news to her that Troy makes her happy. Gabriella's mother has been commenting on it since he re-entered her life. She even admitted it to him that hearing from him makes her day. But if even her supervisor can see it, that means she's in deep.

Is she in too deep? Is this going too fast? Should she put an end to this before she ends up falling back in love with him?

Looking at the photo of Troy and Lola one more time, she smiles.

Perhaps she is in too deep, perhaps this is going too fast. But one look at his face is enough for her to know that putting an end to it is not an option.

He's too important for her to let her fear get the best of her again.

She starts dreaming about him. Sometimes, he shows up in her dreams as a side character or she dreams about being on the phone with him. She chalks it up to talking to him often, to him being a large presence in her life.

Other dreams are less easy to explain. There are the dreams where she's back on the rooftop and he woos her with whimsical and romantic words, and there are the dreams where she's at Stanford and he turns up in his old, rusty truck to confess his undying love to her. She always wakes up from those dreams before they kiss and she always feels flummoxed afterwards.

Then there are the dreams from which she wakes up in a sweat, feeling hot and bothered. There are the dreams where she feels his lips on her heated skin, his fingers caressing her softly, his breath hissing in her ear as she moans his name. She always wakes with a gasp and she never seems to be able to go back to sleep afterwards, too shaken by how realistic the dreams seem and how much she craves for them to be reality.

Despite the shock that her romantic and sexual dreams about him bring about, she never dwells too much on what they mean, though. She knows that these are not dreams that one has about a person who is just their friend. She knows that her subconscious is trying to tell her something.

She just doesn't know how willing she is to listen.

If there's something Gabriella has always loved, it's the stars. When she was younger, she thought she could reach up and rearrange them, and when she got older, she thought of them as a constant in her life. No matter what has come on her path, the stars have always been there for her to wish upon. That thought has always calmed her down.

So looking up at the stars at 2 am is not the worst way to spend the night if she can't get any sleep. Fortunately, she's not the only one who is sleepless. The presence of his voice in her ear should make her more alert, more wide awake, but instead, it's calming her down, just like the gorgeous night sky, and she feels like sleep is about to overcome her as he recounts the story of how his truck almost broke down while on a road trip. She's not falling asleep because he's boring – not at all –, but because he soothes her.

"I can't believe that rusty old thing still hasn't died," she says sleepily and she hears a chuckle on the other side of the line that makes her heart jump every time she hears it.

"She's resilient," he simply replies, before noting, "You sound sleepy. Maybe I should let you go."

"No, please keep talking. Hearing your voice is helping," she says with a yawn and she can practically hear the quirk in his eyebrows.

"Are you telling me I'm boring?"

"Oh god, no," Gabriella says with a small nervous laugh. "You just have a nice voice."

It's quiet on the other end of the line for a moment, before he softly says, "Isn't it weird that we're a thousand miles apart and we're still looking at the same stars?"

Suddenly, she's back in his treehouse, that night after the Wildcats won the championship, looking up at the stars together and wondering and fearing what the future would bring. It's strange, but when she thinks back to that moment now, she doesn't feel the anxiety flare up again. Instead, she feels a sense of serenity wash over her.

They might be far apart, but he's still there, looking up at the same stars, and his voice is still in her ears, his presence felt in every part of her life.

All of a sudden, she wonders if they could have made it work after all, if she hadn't made the wrong decision by giving up on them once she moved away.

It's a thought that makes her heart fill with guilt and pain, so she quickly changes the subject. "Do you still have Robo Rob?"

There's a sound of surprise on the other end of the line. "Why do you ask?"

Gabriella shrugs. "I don't know, I was thinking about your treehouse when you mentioned the stars."

His voice is warm and filled with kindness as he says, "I was too. And yes, he's fine for as far as I know. Unless my mom has thrown him away in the time I've moved out."

Gabriella gasps and puts her hand over her heart in indignation. "The horror! I'm sure she would never."

"She'd better not," Troy chuckles, before pausing. "Hey, should we go to bed? It's late."

"The responsible part of me knows we should," Gabriella sighs as she keeps her eyes trained on the night sky, her body filling with warmth at the gorgeous sight. "But I can't stop staring at the stars. They're so pretty."

"They'll be there tomorrow," Troy assures her, "And so will I."

Gabriella grins as she tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear bashfully. Yes, he will be. And every day after that.

That thought brings a smile to her face and a flutter to her heart.

"I know," she says, before sighing again. "Fine. I'll go to bed."

"Good girl," Troy says softly and she can hear the smile in his voice. "Good night, Gabriella."

"I l–," Gabriella starts to say, but she quickly cuts herself off. She bites her lip, her heart racing as she realizes what words she almost just let slip from her lips. "I mean, good night."

And with that, they both hang up simultaneously, Gabriella's heart in her throat as she puts a hand to her chest and tries to catch her breath, the words that she wanted to say echoing in her mind.

I love you.

Suddenly, she can't deny the truth anymore. She can see it all so clearly, how stupid she has been. Of course her feelings for Troy have never fully gone away, but by letting him back into her life, she has given him her heart again.

Hell, she's practically been dating him. She's talked to him more than she's talked to her own mother, her co-workers are constantly teasing her about the new man in her life, she stays up until late at night just to hear his voice, she has intimate dreams about him.

She has fallen back in love with him, and she sees no way out.

This is bad. They've hurt each other so much in the past, so who is to say that it will work this time around? Who is to say that he'll even want her back after what happened? Who is to say that her heart won't be smashed into pieces yet again?

Who is to say he'll be her happy ending?

"We need to talk."

Oh, those dreaded words. They never mean anything good, and oh, how she wishes she didn't have to utter them, but there's no choice. As much as she wants to, she can't disappear into the night, never to be heard from again.

She's not the only one who knows what those words mean, for she can see Troy perk up and his eyes turn dark and anxious from across the room. Fiddling with her hands in her lap, she bites her lip as Troy's eyes tell her to go on.

"I'm going to Stanford earlier than planned," she says, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. "I'm leaving just before Christmas."

She knows Troy isn't the kind to get angry – even during that summer that went so horribly wrong, she's never seen him angry with Sharpay or with her; he was just sad. She also knows that Troy isn't the kind of person to let her go that easily, even if he'd been pushing her to go Stanford in the first place. He also isn't the kind of person who deals with loss easily. Therefore, she expects questions, she expects tears, she expects emotions.

She gets nothing of the sort.

"Oh."

That's all.

She can still the anxiety in his eyes, but nothing in his demeanour has changed otherwise. He's frozen in his position, just staring at her blankly.

Part of her wants to get angry, wants to yell at him for reacting so poorly, but she's mostly worried. This is not the Troy she knows.

Maybe he'll make it easier for her, though. They're not right for each other anymore, so maybe it's a good thing that she's letting him go. Maybe it won't hurt as much as she feared it would.

"You're not upset?" she asks tentatively, trying to gauge his reaction, a pang in her heart as she realizes she can't read him anymore like she used to.

Troy looks surprised. "Why would I be? I've been pushing you to go Stanford ever since you got accepted. This is a good thing."

Gabriella gulps, before averting her gaze and looking down at her lap. "It is."

As she keeps staring at her hands, not really knowing how to continue this conversation, she hears him move across the room. Suddenly, two warm, calloused hands grab hers and she looks up to find him smiling at her fondly.

"If you're worried about what will happen to us, we'll make it through. We always have," he says softly, and Gabriella feels her stomach drop at the sudden confidence in his voice, and the realization that he doesn't understand where this conversation is going.

As she looks into his kind eyes, she knows that the Troy she fell in love with is still inside there. All her hope that he'll make it easy for her vanishes immediately.

This is going to be one of the hardest thing she's ever done.

Blinking to stop the tears that are burning behind her eyes, she whispers, "We won't."

Troy frowns in concern and squeezes her hands. "Brie–"

"We need to break up."

She wishes she could erase the look on his face from her mind, but she knows that his horror and agony are going to be etched into her memory for a long time. His eyes are wide, his mouth agape, and she can hear his breath becoming erratic.

"Brie," he says again, his voice small and broken, and she squeezes her eyes shut. "We don't have to do this. We can make it work. We've done so before. We can do it again. We'll talk on the phone, we'll see each other during the holidays. It'll be fine."

She shakes her head firmly. "How? We barely speak as it is. When I just told you that I'm leaving, all you could say is 'oh.'"

Her voice is harsher than she intended, and she can barely contain the tears anymore as Troy's facial expressions turn from agony to guilt.

He opens his mouth to say something, but it appears as if he knows his attempts to reason with her will be futile. He appears to know that she's right.

She offers him a small smile as she squeezes. "I love you, Wildcat. So much. But you can't deny that we're both miserable."

Tears start to stream down both faces and Troy sighs through a sob as he runs a head through his head. His voice still small and quiet, he says, "I can't lose you."

"I don't want to lose you either, but it's for the best," she says, stroking his hand as she smiles at him sadly, hoping that he can see in her eyes how much she truly loves him, how much she's doing it for him just as much as she's doing it for herself.

He just stares at her, his eyes roaming her face as if he wants to commit every inch of it to memory. He has done this several times before, looking at her in awe, as if he can't believe she's real, and every time, it has conjured a swarm of butterflies in her stomach. However, at the moment, all it does is amplify the pain.

After a minute, he reaches up, cups her face and kisses her. She kisses him back, passionately, her hands running through his hair. Part of it is denial from both sides, the wish for things to be different, but it's also defeat, acceptance of the fact that it's over, that this is the last time they'll kiss.

When they pull away, both of them out of breath, she keeps her eyes closed and whimpers in pain as he gently rests his forehead against hers.

He strokes her hair softly, and when she finally musters the courage to open her eyes, he's smiling at her. It's gentle, and soft, and adoration is shining in his dark, agonized eyes.

"I love you, Gabriella," he whispers and she lets out a sob in response as she quickly presses her mouth against his once more.

"I love you too."

They sit there for a while, in each other's arms, foreheads resting against one another, neither of them willing to let go and say their final goodbyes.

But she has to do it eventually. It's the right thing to do.

When she pulls away from their embrace, his arms reach for her, attempting to pull her back in, but she pulls away and shakes her head, wrapping her arms around her own body. She bites her lip as she takes in his face one last time like he did to her, committing his sharp jawline, his freckles, his floppy hair, and his gorgeous eyes to memory.

Tears still streaming down her face, her trembling hands unclasp the T necklace that has been sitting on her chest for the past year and a half. She softly puts it in his hands, ignoring the sharp pain in her chest as she feels the electricity from his touch travel through her arm.

Then, she sighs and stands up, collecting her stuff. The tension in the air is thick as his eyes follow her every move, but neither dare to say anything and Gabriella refuses to look back at him.

When she's in the doorway, she turns back to him to look at him for the last time and offers him a smile. He returns it, weakly but fond as ever, while clutching the necklace in his hand.

"Goodbye, Troy," she whispers.

He nods at her, the smile still on his face. "Goodbye, Gabriella."

And with that, she steps out of his room and shuts the door behind her, leaving him in the past.

After Gabriella's realization of how deep her feelings for Troy have been running, she should have pulled away from him. That's what she usually would do, at least, when she's afraid. But that's not what she has done this time. Instead, she's revelled in his presence in her life, talking to him even more often and growing closer to him than she's ever had before. She doesn't know whether it's personal growth that she has not run away from him or if she's setting herself up for failure, but she has found that she really can't imagine life without him.

So, when the time comes to plan her summer holiday, she has a decision to make. She could go travel, explore new places she's never been to before, enjoy the sun, or she could just stay in California. Or she could go home. She could go see Troy. She wants to see Troy.

Despite her enjoyment of her interactions with him, the thought of how much she actually wants to see him is frightening. Considering how close they've become, she can only hope the feeling is mutual, but what if it's not? What if he just misses their friendship and she's setting herself up for rejection? It's a thought she can't bear. She won't run away from him completely, but maybe the physical distance is a good thing. Maybe it's a good barrier, the last wall to protect her heart.

But then she remembers her mother's words, how her happiness is intertwined with courage, and she wonders what would happen if he did return her feelings. Could they make it work it this time? A part of her thinks the answer to that question might be yes, if the past months of dating without actually dating are any indication.

It's a scary prospect, but it's an opportunity she would welcome with open arms. They've both grown and they're both happy. The distance might not stand in their way anymore.

Thus, she makes a decision. She's going back to Albuquerque for the summer.

However, she also decides not to tell Troy about it. It's because she wants to surprise him, or at least, that's what she tells herself. Or maybe it's because she wants to have an option to chicken out and not confront him and her feelings. She truthfully doesn't know.

She doesn't dwell on it too much, though, because either way, it's a step in the right direction. It's a step towards a new future. It's a step towards a new chance at a happy ending.

She just isn't sure yet what kind of happy ending this is going to be.

A/N: Just me who finds it weird to use modern technology in HSM fic? Yes? Alright then.

Anyway, I hope you liked it! Please leave reviews, the ones I have already received really made me smile and are highly appreciated!