Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Three weeks later…

Troy and Gabriella had not spoken to each other since Troy had dropped her off at Taylor's house. Gabriella missed him a lot and she was not feeling well either. She had thrown up everyday the past two weeks and she had no idea why. The day she had to leave had also changed. Instead of staying at Albuquerque, Gabriella had to leave the next day.

Troy had thought about everything that had happened between him and Gabriella and had decided that she was the one he wanted to spend his life with. He wanted to be able to hold her, hug her and kiss her whenever he wanted. He wanted to tell her that he loved her.

Taylor and Chad were going to visit Gabriella. They decided to drag Troy along with them. Taylor knocked on Gabriella's door, but, there was no answer.

"Gabs?" she called.

Troy got worried. "Get out of the way," he muttered pulling Taylor away from the door.

Then he took a few steps back, and body slammed the door. The door flew open and the three saw a horrifying sight.

Gabriella had collapsed into the middle of the room.

"Gabriella!" the three yelled in unison.

Troy rushed into the room and knelt down beside Gabriella. "Call an ambulance," he ordered Taylor.

Then, he picked up Gabriella and laid her on the bed.

"Come on, Gabs," he whispered, kissing her hand. "Wake up."

The ambulance arrived within a few minutes. The three went to the hospital with Gabriella. Troy called Adrianna and Nick, while Taylor called the rest of the gang. After about an hour – which Troy had thought was the longest hour in his life – the doctor walked over to them.

"Gabriella Montez?" the doctor asked.

"Here!" Troy said standing up and walking over to the doctor.

"It seems like Miss Montez was dehydrated," the doctor told Troy. "But, she and the baby are fine."

"Baby?" Troy asked unsurely.

"It seems like Miss Montez is about three weeks along, now," the doctor explained.

"Um…thank you," Troy said. "And, can you not tell anyone about this. I mean, I don't think Gabriella would want the whole world knowing that she was pregnant."

"Of course, Mr. Bolton," the doctor smiled.

"Thank you," Troy nodded and the doctor left telling him which room Gabriella was in.

"What happened to her?" Nick asked as soon as Troy returned to the others.

"She…" Troy's voice trailed off.

"Troy?" Adrianna asked. "Is everything okay?"

"Gabriella is fine," Troy said. "I…uh…I need to talk to her alone for a minute, if that is okay with you guys."

"Okay," Nick said.

Troy hurried to Gabriella's room.

"What are you doing here, Troy?" Gabriella asked as soon as he shut the door.

"Gabi, I'm really glad you're okay," Troy said. "But, answer this honestly, okay?"

"What is it, Troy?" Gabriella asked, worriedly.

"Did you ever sleep with anyone like three weeks before?" Troy asked. "Other than me, I mean."

"No, you're the first one I've slept with since we broke up," Gabriella said. "What happened, Troy? Is something wrong?"

"You decide whether something is wrong or not," Troy said as he flopped down on the chair next to Gabriella's bed. "You're pregnant and obviously, I'm the father."

"You've got to be kidding me," Gabriella said, as she lay back on the pillows.

"I'm not," Troy said.

"Do the others know?" Gabriella asked.

"No," Troy replied.

"Troy, what are we going to do?" Gabriella asked, just as they heard a knock on the door. The gang walked in.

"We'll talk later," Troy whispered to Gabriella.

"What happened?" Adrianna asked.

"She was just dehydrated," Troy answered.

"Oh, are you okay, Gabi?" Adrianna asked hugging her.

"I'm okay, Addie. Honest," Gabriella smiled.

A few hours later, Gabriella was released from the hospital. She went back to the hotel with Troy, while the others went back to their houses. The girls and Adrianna wanted to go with Gabriella, but, she insisted that she was fine.

"You're going to be okay, right?" Troy asked as they stopped in front of Gabriella's room.

"Yeah, I think so," Gabriella replied. "Why don't you come in, Troy? We need to talk about this."

"Yeah," Troy said and he followed Gabriella into her room.

Troy sat on the bed and he watched Gabriella go to the balcony and open it. She stepped outside and noticed that the sun was about to set. She gestured Troy to come over to the balcony and Troy walked out. They watched the sunset for a few minutes, before Gabriella rested her hands on her flat stomach.

"I can't believe I'm pregnant," she whispered.

"I can," Troy smiled and Gabriella looked at him. "I've always known that you'd make an excellent mommy. But, I was never sure about myself. I kept wondering whether I would be like my own dad who always wanted me to do nothing but play basketball. I'm still not sure, either."

"You knew that I was going to be a good mother?" Gabriella asked and Troy nodded. "I always wondered whether I would end up like my mom and abuse my kids. Will I turn out to be like that, Troy? I don't want to be like that. Don't let me be like that."

"Gabi, slow down," Troy said and held out his arms. "Come here."

Gabriella slid into his arms and let him hug her. "I won't be like her, right?" she asked.

"You won't be like her, Gabi," Troy assured her. "But, I need to know this, Gabs. Do you want to have this baby?"

"Yes," Gabriella whispered. "I'm sorry, Troy."

"For what?" Troy asked. "For making me the happiest man on earth?"

"You're okay with this?" Gabriella asked.

"Of course, I'm okay with this," Troy exclaimed. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You know this is going to affect your whole career?" Gabriella told him.

"I know," Troy shrugged. "And, I don't care. I'm going to be a father. And, besides, this is going to affect your career as well."

"I don't care, either," Gabriella smiled. "But, are we…what are we, Troy?"

"I don't know, Gabi," Troy said. "What do you want us to be?"

"I don't know, either," Gabriella said, softly. "But, I do know that I still love you, Troy."

"Damn!" Troy exclaimed.

"I'm sorry," Gabriella said, hurt, thinking that Troy had said that because of what she said.

"For what?" Troy asked as he hurriedly pulled her into the room and drew the curtains.

"For saying that I love you," Gabriella said.

Troy laughed. "I didn't say 'damn' because of that, Gabs," he chuckled. "I said it because there were reporters out there."

"Oh," Gabriella said, feeling extremely stupid. "Do you love me, Troy?"

"Gabs, come here," Troy said as he held out his arms again.

He put an arm around her and took her to the bed. Then, he lay down and pulled Gabriella down, too. He put his arm around her once more as she rested her head on his chest. His hand slid down to her stomach. Gabriella smiled and she rested her hand on top of Troy's.

"Remember the day that I said I loved you for the first time and gave you my class ring?" Troy asked.

Gabriella smiled as the memory came to her.

FLASHBACK

Troy drove to the beach. They stopped on the way to buy some food for their picnic. After that, they headed to the beach. Gabriella and Troy both kicked off their shoes and chased each other around the beach. Gabriella ran towards the swings and Troy followed. He caught her around the waist and spun around with her in his arms. Gabriella squealed as she clutched his shoulders afraid of falling.

They just goofed around on the beach until the sunset and then, they had a romantic picnic together.

"It's beautiful," Gabriella said, looking at the sunset.


"Just like you," Troy smiled and Gabriella blushed.

"Thanks," Gabriella said softly.

"Gabi," Troy said suddenly. "You know the guys have given their class rings to the girls, right? But, I haven't. That's because it's a tradition in the Bolton family to wait until they have found the right girl, who they could love forever, before giving her your class ring."

Gabriella gasped as Troy pulled off the class ring from his finger and slipped it onto Gabriella's.

"Thank you," Gabriella whispered, happily.

"I…uh…I love you, Gabriella," Troy smiled.

"I love you, too, Troy," Gabriella smiled.

The couple shared a romantic kiss before they watched the sunset together.

END FLASHBACK

"Yeah, I remember," Gabriella replied.

"I'll tell you something," Troy said. "It's something I couldn't get myself to tell you that day, but, now I've got to tell you this, because I hurt you really bad and I want to make it up to you. And, you are doubting the fact that I love you or not."

"Troy," Gabriella began.

"No, Gabi, listen to me," Troy cut her off. "I had a heart condition."

"What?" Gabriella gasped. "Are you okay? How much time do you have?"

"No, no, Gabs," Troy said, smiling slightly. "I had a heart condition. I'm okay now. I got a transplant and everything, so, I'm okay now. Don't worry. Hakuna Matata!"

"Okay," Gabriella said, sighing in relief.

"Anyway, the day I said that I loved you, I had a lot going through my mind, because of my heart condition," Troy explained. "I was wondering, how do I tell you that for the first time, my heart was beating for someone else, and that it was breathing someone else's name? For the first time, my heart had loved someone. I was wondering how I would tell you that the love from my heart was very strong, but, the heart itself was very weak. I was wondering how I can give you my weak heart. And, then later on, I realized that I didn't have to give it. You had stolen it from me. And, I knew that if I kept on dating you, I would fall deeper in love with you and you would be the same with me. I couldn't let that happen. I couldn't tell you that I had a heart condition and that I was about to die. That's why I broke up with you instead – because I didn't want to hurt you by saying that I was dying. But, I still hurt you when I broke up with you. And, I'm really sorry for that, Gabi. Honestly, I am. And, I love you. I never stopped loving you."

"I love you, too," Gabriella whispered.

"Before I went into surgery, the doctor said that I might not make it," Troy told her. "And, I took the shot, knowing that if I did make it, I would have a chance with you again. You were the only one on my mind before I went into surgery. Not my mom or my dad. It was just you."

Gabriella looked up at him, her eyes watery. "I love you so much, Troy," she whispered, before kissing him passionately.

Troy kissed back. He had missed the feeling so much. The feeling of having her lips against his. He pulled back and looked at her lovingly.

"I love you more," he whispered.

"You have no idea how much I missed hearing you say that," Gabriella smiled.

"I missed saying that, too," Troy smiled back. "I really love you, Gabs. Believe me when I say that."

"I believe you, Troy," Gabriella smiled.

"Good," he said and traced circles over Gabriella's flat stomach. "And, I love the little one there, too."

"I'm sure the baby loves you, too," she smiled. "Do you want a boy or a girl?"

"It doesn't matter," Troy answered. "I'd love it the same, but, if I do get to chose, I guess it would be a girl."

"You just want a girl so that you can call her your princess," Gabriella said, rolling her eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me," Troy said, pretending to be hurt. "It's every guys' dream."

Gabriella was about to answer when her cell phone rang. "Hello?" she said. "Oh…when is it? Alright, I'll be there at seven then…thank you…bye."

"Who was it?" Troy asked.

"It was my manager – Jessica Bell," Gabriella said. "She was just telling me the time my flight is. I'll have to be at the airport at seven."

"Gabs, I'll go with you," Troy said immediately.

"Troy, I'll be fine," Gabriella argued.

"No, Gabs," Troy said. "I'm going with you and that's final. And, we'll have to tell Jessica about the baby, so, that she can reduce the work."

"Troy, I don't want to stop working," Gabriella protested.

"But, you have to," Troy argued. "You're having a baby, Gabs. And, stress is not good for the baby."

"Alright, alright," Gabriella said as she got up. "I'll stop work as soon as my next album is released, okay?"

"Okay," Troy said as he got up, too. "Where are you going?"

"Let's go to Taylor's house," Gabriella said. "Everyone's going to be there. And, we can call your parents and Adrianna and Nick to tell everyone that I'm pregnant."

"Alright," Troy said.

Troy called his parents, while Gabriella called Adrianna and Nick. Then, the two headed to Taylor's house. Like predicted, the paparazzi was there, and they had already started spreading rumors that Troy and Gabriella were dating.

When the two arrived at Taylor's house, Nick, Adrianna, Jack and Julie Bolton were already there. So was the entire gang.

"Hey, guys," Gabriella smiled as she walked into the living room where everyone was waiting.

"We have something to tell you," Troy grinned.

"Wait, let's call Iz," Gabriella said. She quickly called her sister and put her on speaker. "Hey, Iz."

"Hey, Gabs," Isabel answered. "What's up?"

"Troy and I have something to tell you and you're on speaker," Gabriella said. "Everyone's here as well. Even Nick and Adrianna."

"Troy?" Isabel asked. "You mean, Troy Bolton?"

"It's me, Isabel," Troy grinned.

"Troy Bolton!" Isabel yelled. "Wait till I get my hands on you! I'm going to strangle you to death. How dare you leave my sister like that? Just because you were going to separate colleges. I hate you, Troy Bolton! You better wish that I never see you, again."

"But, you are going to see me, Iz," Troy smiled. "That is, if you want to see your niece or nephew."

"Gabi's pregnant?" everyone exclaimed.

Everyone except Nick, Adrianna, Julie and Jack congratulated them. They were all thrilled. Isabel was screaming on the phone. When all the excitement died down, the adults gestured Troy and Gabriella to follow them into the kitchen.

"How could you do this, guys?" Nick asked.

"What do you mean?" Gabriella asked, confused.

"You met each other only three weeks ago after four years of not speaking to each other," Julie explained. "And, now you are having a baby."

"You don't really expect everything to work out between the two of you, do you?" Adrianna asked.

"You know what," Troy snapped as he saw Gabriella's eyes fill with tears. "We don't expect that, but, we are going to try and work things out, alright?"

"Get rid of the baby," Julie said, sternly.

Gabriella ran out when she heard this. Troy was staring at his mother with his mouth open in surprise. Jack followed Gabriella out.

"What is wrong with you?" Troy yelled. "We are giving you a grandchild! And, you are telling us to get rid of the baby. There's no way we are doing that. We thought you would be happy when we told you that we were having a baby. Mom, Gabriella always thought of you as her own mother. You two, Adrianna. And, now, you've hurt her a lot. She doesn't need that. Not after what her own mother did to her. She's already thinking that she might turn out like her own mother did. And, I guess what you are saying, confirms her doubts for her, even thought they are not true."

"Troy –" Julie began.

"No, mom, I don't want to listen to you," Troy exclaimed. "I thought you'd be happy. And, if you aren't happy about all this like we are, we don't want you in our baby's life."

With that Troy stormed out of the room.

With Jack and Gabriella

"Gabi, I'm sure they didn't mean what they said," Jack told Gabriella as she cried into his shirt.

"You're okay with this?" she asked.

"You two could have been more careful," Jack said. "But, I've wanted a grandchild and I'm okay with this. Troy loves you and you love him. In my opinion, that's all you need to make a relationship work. That and trust!"

"I trust Troy," Gabriella said as she wiped away her tears.

"And, he trusts you, too," Jack said as Troy walked out to the backyard towards them.

"I just wish the others would be happy for us," she said as Troy sat down next to her on the garden bench.

"Me, too," he said as he put his arm around her.

"And, we are happy for you," a voice said and the three saw Nick, Adrianna and Julie walking towards them.

"Then, why'd you say all those things?" Gabriella asked leaning against Troy.

"We just overreacted," Adrianna said.

"And, we would like to be in our grandchild's life," Julie said.

"It's not really our grandchild," Adrianna said. "But, we'd like to be in the baby's life, too."

"Thank you," Gabriella smiled.

She got up and gave the three of them a hug.

"And, I'm leaving tomorrow," she said. "I did tell you guys that."

"I'm going with her," Troy told them. "I don't want anything to happen to Gabi or the baby."

"Gabi, you shouldn't be working," Jack said. "Haven't you told her that, Troy?"

"I did!" Troy exclaimed.

"I know that I shouldn't be working," Gabriella smiled. "But, I won't stress myself out. And, after my next album comes out, I'm going to stop work until the baby comes."

"Good," Nick smiled as Troy kissed her softly on her head.

A/N You guys probably hate me for getting her pregnant, right? But, on the other hand, Troy and Gabi are back together )