Beside You
by: LunarEclipse360
A/N: I want to apologize to everyone who has been waiting for me to finally put this out. Believe me, I didn't want you to wait this long, but it was unavoidable. I couldn't seem to get this chapter where I wanted it to be and I finally realized why. The abortion problem. I realized that it was unnecessary, so I removed it. I changed chapter 2 last night (though just certain parts, most of it is still the same). If you guys want to go back and reread chapter 2 to see how I've reconfigured the story, you can, but I don't think you have to. Hopefully, with this roadblock out of the way, I'll actually be able to finish this story faster; which, by the way, won't be much longer. I plan to have this story finished by chapter 6 or 7 (I never wanted it to be long). I also want to thank my beta Luc for not abandoning me despite me abandoning my stories for months at a time.
Chapter 3
Sharpay sat on the heated sand, staring at the horizon. Just an hour before, Gabriella had called and the two had indulged in a conversation that set the blonde on edge. Gabriella had told her about the nightmares that had plagued her sleep and daydreams about the day she miscarried. Sharpay knew that her best friend was at her wits end. It wouldn't be long before she broke. The blonde tried to convince Gabriella to open up to Troy; to tell him what was going on, but she refused. For so long the Latina had been left to fend for herself and she was used to dealing with things on her own, but this wasn't one of those things that she should have to deal with by herself. Sharpay tried to get her to see reason, but Gabriella would have none of it. Before she could get out another word on the matter, the brunette had ended the phone call; leaving the blonde to wonder how much longer before the stress of it all came crashing down around her. It had been a month since Gabriella told her about the unexpected pregnancy; a month of keeping the secret. She didn't know how much longer she could go like this. Chad knew something was up and tried on many occasions to get her to speak, but she wouldn't. She wouldn't betray her friend like that. Sighing, she sunk her head further into her knees and tried to block out the voice that told her that she needed to say something.
"Shar?"
Startled, she looked up and found her brother standing over her. "Hey, Ry," she said, smiling slightly.
The blonde-haired male looked at his sister with concern before taking a seat beside her. His light eyes studied her; trying to figure out what was troubling his big sister so much that she had become so quiet. It wasn't normal for Sharpay Evans to be so…still. "You alright?" he asked.
She nodded. "I'm fine, just…thinking."
"Come on, Shar; you know you can't lie to me. I'm your twin, remember? I can sense that there's something wrong with you."
Biting her lip, she turned her gaze back to the ocean. She felt Ryan's hand rest on her shoulder and relished in the comfort of his touch. Since they were younger, she could always count on her baby brother to make her feel better. Pushing her breath through her teeth, she turned her caramel eyes to him. "You have to promise me something first."
"Anything."
"Promise me that, no matter what, you won't tell a soul what I'm about to reveal to you. Not Mom, not Dad; no one."
"Promise."
She looked into her brother's eyes and saw the truth in his words. Nodding, she leant her head against his shoulder and took a deep breath. "Gabriella's pregnant."
Ryan looked at the top of his sister's head; knowing that she was worried over Gabriella's mental health. He was there when the brunette told his sister the horrific events of her seventeenth birthday. If it was true and Gabriella was indeed pregnant, then…
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. She told me so."
He sighed; now understanding why his sister was so reserved. "How is she?"
"Not good," she answered, gaze still on the horizon. "She told me that she's been having nightmares; terrifying ones that wake her out of her sleep. I keep trying to get her to open up to Troy, but she refuses to."
"Wait. So you're saying that Troy doesn't even know?"
She shook her head. "No. She wants to make sure that she'll be able to make it past twenty weeks before telling him."
"Why twenty weeks?"
"That's when she's out of the danger zone."
"And how far is she now?"
"Nine weeks."
He swore silently. "What will she do if she does miscarry? Will she still tell him?"
"No. She won't tell him and he'll never know that he could have been a father."
"Shar, you have to tell Troy."
"No!" She stood and turned to her brother; looking down at him. "I can't tell him. If I tell him, then I'll be betraying my best friend."
"Well, at least tell Chad."
"I can't do that either. Telling Chad means that it will, most likely, get back to Troy and I'll still be betraying Gabriella."
Sighing, Ryan stood and grabbed his sister's hand. "Look, I can't convince you to do anything you don't want to do, I never could, but I hope that you'll take this advice from me: Do what you think is right, despite the consequences."
Looking into his eyes, she nodded and smiled softly; squeezing his hand. "Thanks, Ry."
::
As she stepped through the iron gates, a bouquet of white lilies held within her grip, Gabriella's feet led the way while a war waged in her head. She knew she needed to tell Troy about all of this, but she couldn't. It weighed heavily on her heart to keep such a big secret, as the one that grew within her body each day, from him, but she knew that if she told him, his first response would be to keep it. And she knew that. But, she needed to want to keep the baby for herself than to want to keep it to satisfy someone else. She needed to feel confident that she could go through the three trimesters of this pregnancy without feeling like something bad was going to happen. As she stopped in front of the nameless tombstone of her mother, she dropped to her knees and placed the lilies at the base of it. She lifted her fingers to the only sentence etched into the stone and traced each letter. When she was done, she brought her arm back to her lap and played with her wedding ring.
"Hi, Mama," she whispered softly. "Sorry I haven't been around to visit you lately, there's just…been a lot going on. I got married," she said, lifting her hand briefly. "He's a great guy; I think you would have liked him. He's the one I brought here a while ago. I don't know if you remember," She bit her lip as her sentenced trailed off. "There's something else you should know about, Mom; I'm…I'm pregnant," she choked out, fighting to hold back her tears, "and I wish you were here to help me. I'm so scared, Mommy. I'm afraid that I'll miscarry again and…I don't want that to happen," She laid a hand on her stomach, "not to this one. I just," Tears fell from her eyes and onto the soil beneath her, "I don't know what to do, Mama; I'm so lost."
"What are you doing here?"
Gabriella's head shot up and she turned around; surprised to see her father standing there. "Daddy." It had been nearly two years since she last saw her father and he hadn't appeared to have changed at all. He still stood tall; dressed in a grey suit with a blue tie. His hair was perfectly jelled back; his face as smooth as a baby's bottom. His dark eyes held the same contempt that they held that day when he told her she was no longer apart of his family. Standing, she brushed the dirt off of her jeans and looked away from him. For some reason, she couldn't look at him. "She was my mother," she answered; looking up at him through half-lidded lashes. "Just because you disowned me doesn't mean I should stop visiting her."
He said nothing; instead just stared at her for a moment before walking towards his wife's headstone. He sighed as he knelt into the lush green grass and placed a hand on the cool marble. The silence was heavy and uncomfortable; unsettling her, immensely. "Does he know?"
Startled, she hesitated; going over the question in her head before answering. "Does who know?"
"That boy you chose to spend the rest of your life with; does he know that you're pregnant?"
"How did you…?"
"I overheard your one-sided conversation. Now answer the question, Gabriella."
Casting her eyes to the ground beneath her feet, Gabriella fiddled with her wedding band. "No, he…he doesn't know."
"Why?"
"What does it matter to you? You disowned me; remember?"
Sighing, he refused to lose his temper. "Still the same selfish brat," he said as he stood.
"What do you know? You have no idea what I've been through!"
His nose flared as his head snapped to her. "I know a lot about what you've been through, Gabriella. I know about the months after your mother's death and how you basically drank yourself to death. I'm surprised your liver is still intact. I know about the constant partying. I also know about the miscarriage."
She froze. "How…How did you know that?"
"I have eyes and ears everywhere. Not to mention, I had to make sure my sixteen year old daughter was staying out of trouble for the sake of my reputation." He took a deep breath; calming himself. "I don't care very much for the breed of boy you've picked for yourself, but I actually feel sorry for him for choosing such a selfish bitch like you."
"I'm not…" She stopped herself. She didn't want to acknowledge his biting words; didn't want him to know how much they affected her. Wrapping her arms around herself, she breathed in deeply and tried to prevent herself from crying. "It's better this way. What good would it be if I told him and then I ended up miscarrying again? I don't want to get his hopes up; only to have them crushed."
"Fine; go ahead. Keep this from him. But remember, Gabriella, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. He's going to find out one way or another and he's not going to be pleased. You were selfish when you kept Alejandro's secret for him and you're being selfish now as you're keeping this secret from that boy you claim to love." She remained quiet. "Honestly, Gabriella, do whatever the hell you want. I don't care. You stopped being my problem the second I disowned you. Take my advice, don't take my advice. You just better hope that that boy loves you as much as you think he does." Without another word, he turned on his heel and headed towards the exit.
::
"I'm home!" He yells as the door slams behind him. "Babe?" The apartment was silent; like it had been a month ago when he had found her asleep in their bed. But, this time, when he went to look for her, she was nowhere to be found. He didn't understand how that could be possible when her car was parked out front. Crossing over to the window that overlooked the beach on the opposite side of the street, his eyes caught sight of her. Her short dark tresses blowing in the wind as she sat staring at the horizon. Sighing, he left the apartment and ventured over to the shore to join her. He didn't think that she heard his approach or even knew he was there by the way she sat unmoving, but when she acknowledged his presence, he knew he had been wrong.
"I saw my father today," she said, her eyes still focused on the horizon.
"Did he say anything to you?" She nodded, but didn't elaborate. He wondered why since she had always told him what her father had said; even before they got together. Although he wanted to know, he didn't push it. He didn't want to make her even more upset than she already was. "Don't let it get to you, Gabriella. You know just as well as I do that he only says what he does to get under your skin; to make you feel bad about yourself. I honestly doubt that he ever had a heart."
"I know, but…" She sighed, "what if he's right? What if every name he's ever called me was…is a perfect description of who I am?"
"But they're not," he said, grabbing her chin and turning her head so that he could look into her eyes. "I promise you that they're not."
"Troy," she breathed before wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her head into his shoulder. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
"For what?" he asked as confusion ran through his veins. She just shook her head, however, and remained silent. Knowing he wouldn't get an answer out of her, he just wrapped his arms around her and held her as close as their positions would allow. He hated being so clueless in all of this, but there was nothing he could do. Gabriella refused to tell him, Sharpay remained tight-lipped about it and Chad, although he said he knew nothing, wasn't talking.
::
Silence filled the car as Troy drove towards their destination; neither pleasant nor awkward, it was just there. From the corner of his eye, Troy glanced at his wife as she stared out the window. He wished that she would say what was on her mind and clue him in to what was distressing her. He hoped, though, that where he was taking her would cheer her up. Ever since finding her on the beach, all he had wanted to do was make her forget about everything. He wanted to see her smile again, even if it was only for a little while. Troy turned his attention back to the road and continued to drive through the winding roads of the Hollywood Hills. Finally, he rounded one more bend and a soft gasp escaped Gabriella's lips. There, in front of them, was the Los Angeles skyline lit up in all its glory. When he stopped the car, she climbed out and walked to the fence that prevented visitors from falling down the steep hillside. Turning off the car, Troy got out and joined her at the fence.
"It's beautiful," she whispered.
He glanced at her before looking at the cityscape. "I thought you'd like it."
She smiled softly and answered, "I love it."
His eyes flickered in her direction once more; this time remaining on her face to take in the sight of the smile that had shown itself only a few, rare times in the past month. Reaching between them, his hand found hers and grasped it. Her gaze was averted to their conjoined hands and her soft smile widened a little bit. She looked up into his eyes and intertwined their fingers.
"Thank you," she said; sincerity in her voice.
"For what?"
"For this," she answered, looking to the city lights for a moment before turning back to him. "For putting up with me for the past month."
He lifted their joined hands and kissed her knuckles. "I would do anything for you; you know that right?"
She nodded. "I do."
Blue stared into brown; both pair of eyes shining in the light from the city below. He was expecting her to tell him everything, but she stayed silent. He should have known that it wasn't going to be that easy. Sighing, he pulled her close to him and kissed her forehead. She wrapped her arms around his mid-section and buried her face into his shirt. His arms returned the embrace and he sighed once more. "I just wish you would talk to me," he whispered. The smile that had been on her face slipped off and her conversation with her father crept back in her mind; his words haunting her.
"You were selfish when you kept Alejandro's secret for him and you're being selfish now as you're keeping this secret from that boy you claim to love."
"Troy, can we go home?"
He pulled away slightly. "You okay?"
"Yeah," she answered with a nod, "I'm just tired."
She was lying again, but he let it go. "Alright." Kissing her nose, he took her hand and they walked back to the car together.
::
It had taken Sharpay two days to mull over her brother's words. She needed a second opinion from someone who could see the situation from a different perspective. So, that was why she was currently standing outside of her boyfriend's apartment; waiting for him to answer the door. She knew that she couldn't tell Troy—it was too much of a direct betrayal—so she decided to tell Chad; hoping that maybe he could help. She knew that she could, hopefully, convince Chad to secrecy if he knew how serious this was. Maybe she could even convince him to try and talk some sense into her best friend. Sighing, she knocked once more on Chad's front door and waited. Moments later the door opened, revealing her boyfriend to be dressed in nothing but a pair of sweatpants.
"Hey, Shar."
"Hi." She reached up and kissed him softly. "Can we talk?"
Nodding, he opened the door further. She stepped in and headed immediately for the living room. He followed; curious as to what she had to say that had her so on edge. There was no doubt in his mind that something was wrong with his, usually, bubbly girlfriend. "What's wrong?" he asked as she took a seat on his couch.
Looking up into his brown eyes, she patted the space beside her. "Sit." He obliged and took a seat beside her. "There's…there's something that I need to tell you." She took a breath. "It's about Gabriella."
Curiosity bubbled beneath his skin. This was the information that he had been trying to get from her for a couple of days and now, here she was, ready to give him what he's been asking for. Whatever it was that Gabriella was keeping from Troy, it had to be something serious if it caused Sharpay to go against her loyalty to the brunette. "What is it?"
She ran a hand through her blonde hair; preparing herself to do what must be done. "Gabriella is… Gabriella is… S-She's pregnant."
Confused and shocked, he rubbed his forehead. "What?"
"She's pregnant."
"And that's what she's been keeping from Troy; that she's pregnant? I-I don't… I don't understand. Why would she keep that from him?"
"Because there's more to it than you know." His lifted his brow, waiting for her to answer. "She's been pregnant before and she…miscarried. So now she's afraid that it'll happen again. That's why she won't tell him. She wants to wait until she's certain that she's not going to miscarry again."
"Does he know about what happened?" She nodded and he sighed. "He's going crazy with worry over her. He thinks…he thinks she's dying."
"She might as well be. She's terrified and the nightmares don't help."
"Yeah, he told me about those."
"I don't know what to do anymore." She took a deep breath. "Look, I know that Troy's been asking you to try and get information from me, but please don't tell him what I just told you. It's bad enough that I told you and Ryan, but if Troy were to find out, Gabi would never forgive me."
"Then why did you tell me?"
"I was hoping that you'd talk to her."
"Me? Why me?"
"Because, Chad, you're not as emotionally invested in this as Troy and I are."
"Shar, she's like a sister to me. Of course I'm emotionally invested."
"Please, Chad," she begged. "Please, I need you to do this for me."
Sighing, he relented. "Fine. I'll do it."
"Thank you." She threw her arms around his neck and held him close. "Thank you, so much." He hesitated, but wrapped his arms around her slender body. Gabriella was the closest thing to a sister that Sharpay would get and the blonde loved her dearly. Even though he had started to see the Latina as a little sister, sometimes…sometimes he hated her. He hated her for hurting her best friend in the ways that she had. He wanted to tell her how selfish she was being, and had been in the past. She had a husband and a sister that would do anything for her, but all Gabriella saw was herself. She didn't realize she had a strong support system behind her and that she didn't have to go through this situation on her own. He, honestly, couldn't wait to speak to the brunette. He was going to make sure she knew the pain she was causing both Sharpay and Troy.