A/N: Thanks for the response everyone! I'm glad you all are interested and with me on this. Thanks so much for your reviews, they are amazing! And because you guys are so great, I decided to post tonight instead of tomorrow. But please don't count on posts every day, think more every other day. But since you guys were amazing, I'll put this out now. Thanks so much! You reading this and giving this a chance means so much! I'm sorry if I confused you last chapter, hopefully this chapter will be easier. Thanks!

Troy Alexander Bolton.

He was so complex that no one truly understood him. No one. On the outside, he was gorgeous. The dark amber hair that flipped out a little above his ears, the muscles that would make someone have a stroke if they just looked at them. The way his sparkling snow teeth shined in the light when he opened his mouth. But his eyes. The eyes that seemed so much older then what he really was. The eyes that made girl faint after they saw a flash of them. One look in those cerulean eyes and they would be on the floor. He was gorgeous, no doubt the hottest guy at East High. Being basketball captain/God helped shoot his popularity through the roof. He should have had it all, most people would suspect that he was the happiest guy ever. Most people thought that he had everything anyone could ever want.

But inside, Troy Bolton was a wreck.

He almost had a storm brewing inside his chest all the time. His heart, the heart that should have beat to a perfect time, was midnight with pain. He had been to hell and back more times then anyone should have in almost eighteen years of living. It was nauseating sometimes, just to be Troy Bolton. The pressure to be some sort of basketball God never helped with his issues. That was a good word for Troy. Issues. Issues that he had absolutely no control over. Issues that tore him up inside everyday.

But he could keep it a secret.

"It's too tight!" The boy exclaimed as Troy was still wearing his red shirt to reveal the bronze skin underneath. He was bending down while an eight-year old boy was sitting upon an oak chair in front of him. The deep evergreen color of the green floors matched with the dark oak walls. There was a head of a moose behind the cash register, along with pictures of different types of winter animals. Along the walls were ski boots, skis and snowboards.

"Could you get my son a bigger size? Thanks." A tall woman asked almost rudely as she wrapped her body with the fur coat that was around her thin, lanky body. Troy narrowed his eyes a little while tried to force a smile through his bright white teeth so he didn't get fired.

Troy's head turned to the side as he looked to the guy behind the register. "Al, could you get a size up?" He asked in his smooth voice as the guy behind the register looked up from the snowboarding magazine he was looking at and flips his blonde highlighted hair out of his light green eyes.

"Dude, I'm busy!" He joked in a deep voice but the woman sent him daggers. "I mean, yeah sure." Troy tried not to laugh as he watched his muscular arms pulled out a black shoebox. The guy handed it to Troy, letting the blue ring on his hand sparkle in the dim lighting. He took it and opened it to reveal a white pair of ski boots.

"Thanks man. Try this." Troy offered, trying to be as nice as humanly possible without throwing up all over the woman's fur coat. The kid slipped it on his tiny foot and stood up, Troy still bended down so he felt the blood stop in his knees at the awkward position.

"Is that good?" The mother asked in a bored tone as Troy couldn't help but narrow his eyes. "Let's just pay for it and get out of…this place." She complained like the store was beneath her as Troy finally stood up, feeling pins shoot into the sides of his muscular legs. He walked over to where the blonde was standing and let the mother pay for the ski boot, then walked out without a thank you.

"Why the fuck do I put up with that shit?" Troy asked as he adjusted his name tag on his red shirt that he wore to school that day that read "Troy".

"Because I won't let you leave. And if you do I'll come over to East High and beat your ass." He threatened while flipping the magazine again. Troy looked to see his black name tag shined in the light. "Alex" It read, and Troy smirked at his friend.

Alex Gregory was the Troy Bolton of West High, a high school that was about twenty minutes in the opposite direction. They were practically the same people. Both were basketball captains who could probably get drafted in the NBA that day. They also could tear it up on the slopes, though most people didn't think of Troy as an incredible snowboarder, even though he was one of the best. Both were cocky, though Troy was cocky for different reasons. His was more of a cover-up to keep his pained heart a secret. They were extremely close though, since both played on the same basketball team when they were in middle school. Besides the dark best friend since preschool, Alex was like Troy's best friend.

Speaking of his other best friend, a ringing suddenly entered the door of the "Mountainside Ski Shop" and Troy looked up to see the dark chocolate ringlet head walk towards him. "Hey man!" Chad greeted while holding out his hand. Troy immediately smirked as he grabbed it and they did their guy handshake.

Chad Danforth and Troy Bolton had been inseparable since the day they met. They bonded through basketball, when Troy took him out on the slopes, and just about everything in between. Chad was the only one who truly knew all of Troy's dark past. And Troy thanked God that he had him, otherwise he was pretty sure he wouldn't have survived. "What's up Danforth?" Alex asked after Troy and Chad let go of their man-hug as Chad does the same thing to Alex over the black countertop.

"So… this place is a dud…" Chad stated while looking around at all the multicolored skis and snowboards. They were the only three in the entire store.

"You just missed the bitch of the century." Troy informed while his brown head turned around to see a black shine in the light.

There it was. His baby. One of the things that kept him going in life. Sitting against the wall was a black fiberglass beauty. Down the front of it were white and red fire bolts that crisscrossed on it. He gingerly picked it up, letting the scarlet red class ring on his right hand glint in the light, just like Alex's blue did a moment ago. He then placed it on the top of the counter and reached down to pull out a white cloth.

"So… Evans is having us over after you're done with this." Chad let him know while motioning his hand to Troy's work. A smirk played on Troy's lips as he shook his head slightly but didn't look up at him.

"Can't. I promised Sadie I'd hang with her for awhile tonight." He stated with a small smile playing on his lips.

He could almost hear Chad's eyes roll when he said that. "Sadie? Dude, come on seriously! She can wait one night!"

Troy shook his head; Chad knew exactly how important Sadie was to him. "No, I promised her last night and… it didn't work out." He muttered while glancing sideways to see that Alex was laughing a little. "Shut the fuck up man!"

"Dude, you and your bitch." Alex teased as Troy narrowed his eyes a little.

"Don't call her that!" He snapped as Alex rolled his eyes. "And you need to work on landing girls, cuz the last chick who came in, man I could pick better with my eyes closed." He flaunted cockily and Alex rolled his eyes again.

"Whatever, get to her cuz you're free." Alex releaced him as he threw another white towel at Troy. The piercing blue eyes immediately looked up to the clock to see that his shift was up. "I don't' want to see your ugly face anymore."

"And it's the ugly face that you'd kill to have." Troy stated proudly while grabbing his board from the table and leaned it up against the wall once again.

He grabbed his white and red Wildcats letterman's jacket from a chair it was sitting on and threw it on. He then lead Chad towards the door, gave Alex a final wave before walking out into the bright light that reflected off the little snow that was on the mountains. "Dude, seriously, are you really gonna ditch hanging out with the boys for Sadie?"

Troy let out a small sigh as he pulled his keys from the pocket of his jeans. Smoke was coming from their mouths since it was so cold, but Troy tried not to let it bother him. "You know how much she means to me dude." He sighed with passion that he only used when he was talking about Sadie, his past, snowboarding or basketball. "She's all I got. Besides, she's better looking than you anyway."

"Maybe if you weren't so obsessed with her, Gabs would actually take notice." Troy's stomach dropped as Chad said it. His eyes grew wide at the sound of the name. The perfect name that he thought was music to his ears since freshman year. A smirk was stretched across Chad's face as Troy stared at him.

He couldn't get enough of her. The long, luscious black hair that curled perfectly on her body. The way her body was curvy, yet she was one of the thinnest girls in the school since Cross Country and Track did that to her. The way her eyes seemed to sparkle when they looked at you deeply. Her laugh, the laugh that sounded like angels in his ears. The only problem was the fact that she was the only girl at East High who didn't seem to be interested in Troy. How ironic was that? "Shut the fuck up. I could lay a girl faster than you could look at one." He responded defensively.

Chad held up his dark hands in defense and shook his head. "Sorry." He murmured while Troy approached a small black car and unlocked it before opened it. "Call me later alright?"

"I'm heading over to the gym after I'm done with her." He explained while nodding. "But yeah… if I get bored." He added and climbed into his car.

"Hang in there man." Chad waved while Troy shut the door and immediately turned on the car, blasting the heat as he watched his best friend walk towards his own red car.

Troy pulled out from the ski shop that was mixed into a small strip mall and then drove on the small narrow road that winded at the bottom of the mountain. This is what Troy loved about Colorado. It was beautiful, mysterious, and had a dangerous side to it. His eyes looked to the sky line to see that the sun was setting quickly, even though it wasn't that late. So he continued to drive towards the familiar mountain he wanted.

After about ten minutes, Troy arrived at a part that was hidden by a wooded area. He turned on his headlights, for it made the road dark and narrow. It winded for awhile until he came to a small opening. It was a light wood cabin. Not huge, but not small either. The front came into triangles as the roof was black. There was a big window that over looked the road. He turned into the medium sized driveway, past the basketball hoop that was situated, and pulled into the two car garage, parking in the middle since he knew his black car would be the only one parked there.

He shut the garage door and felt blackness surround him. Slowly, he got out of the black civic and slammed the door shut, then proceeded to walk towards the door. He opened it and was suddenly hit with a burst of heat, also revealing the interior of the house.

Wood was everywhere. Light wood, the cabinets painted with it. The first room Troy walked into was the kitchen, where a small island lay in the middle and he threw his keys on it. Black appliances popped out of the walls as he looked towards the kitchen table which the wood matched the walls. If he had sat down at it, he would be in front of a small fence that separated the kitchen from the family room, where there was a medium sized TV in the corner with a black leather couch facing the fireplace.

Troy let out a sigh as he ran a hand through his dark amber brown hair. Now he was going to get the wrath from the girl for not being with her last night. "Sadie! Sade I'm home!"

A smile immediately erupted on his face as he heard the "click" of something on the wooden floors. The genuine smile that Troy Bolton didn't show that often beamed onto his face as the noise grew louder. Suddenly, turning the corner was Troy's girl. The female looked up at him with her piercing, drowning blue eyes that matched his own. "Come here girl…" He coaxed while he bent down to her level and suddenly heard the quick click of her toenails as she sprinted all four legs toward him.

He felt the Siberian husky body jump on him as he leaned backward and rubbed her black and white coat. He chuckled as her thin body moved up on his and began to lick his face, then barked a little with happiness. Troy's calloused hands ran through her fur as she licked his face again. "I missed you too Sade." He sighed while looked closer at her piercing blue eyes, the left one clouded a little but it didn't seem to matter. The dog barked happily again as her tail wagged as though she hadn't seen Troy in years.

At school, Troy Bolton was Mr. Popular. He was smothered with other people's attention, and loved every minute of it. Why? Because at home he only lived with his dog, Sadie. Most people would have loved the fact that they didn't have parents to live with. To tell them what to do. To make them follow rules. No one to ground him. Complete freedom. But Troy Bolton?

He hated living alone.

She felt the lactic acid begin to ooze through her legs. But that never stopped her from anything.

Sweat dripped down the back of her neck but was collected in the peach colored sport's bra that rested on her olive skin. Her breath was hitched as she desperately tried to grasp the thin air. Her short, black shorts were riding up slowly on her legs so they started to look more like a pair of underwear than shorts. Her long, black curly hair was pulled up high on her head as she pounded her feet against the red track evenly. The beat she created with her body also fell to the match that the other pair of feet created.

"Just a minute left." Gabriella panted as she glanced up at the clock on the wall. Her bare stomach, which had three bright white scars going across it, heaved up and down as her stride lengthened. Her body was starting to rebel against her, but it was a normal feeling that she got used to in the years that she ran. Her body pulled away from the one on her tail as she glanced up at the clock again. Five, four, three, two… one.

"Holy shit Brie!" The figure behind her panted as Gabriella's hands reached up and laced with each other at the back of her head. The white scars seemed to be growing bigger and smaller with each inhale and exhale she took. The deep brown coffee eyes looked to the straight haired blonde who was bending over right now, gasping for breath. Her hair was long, not as long as Gabriella's, but still stretched down her back. She had a small nose with smooth, creamy skin that glowed with sweat. Her eyes were bright blue, almost reminding Gabriella of Troy Bolton's eyes, but his just amplified perfectly with his light chestnut hair. "Now I know why you went to state…"

Gabriella laughed a little after she caught her breath. She hadn't even been running to her full potential since they were only at the gym working out. "Thanks Em." She responded and placed her hands on the railing while her eyes look down to the basketball court that the indoor track surrounded. She hated running inside, especially indoor track. She would have even run outside her in spandex, but the blonde begged her to come with her.

Running was what kept Gabriella sane. After everything she had been through during her life, it was the one thing she could keep stable. It was what she could escape to, ever since she was in eighth grade. When things got bad, which they did a lot, she would go run. It was almost a high for her, a good high that could never be taken away.

Gabriella was captain of the Cross Country and Track team, which almost came hand in hand with being the fastest girl at East High. Though she was extremely close with the other members. It was almost like an order. There were her best friends, Taylor, Chad, Zeke, Ryan and another small girl named Kelsi. She could tell them anything and knew they would be there for her in a second. Then there were her Cross Country girls, who were more like her family then her teammates. And then there were her other friends, since she was extremely well liked at East High and everyone loved her. Well, everyone but maybe Sharpay Evans.

But the closest one on the team was Emily Whiteman. The girl who was standing next to her right now with her breath caught, looking down at the basketball court with her. "So… tell me something Brie…" She says while Gabriella's eyes squint a little. Sweat was dripping down her face as she looked to see a shirtless guy down below. His brown hair was sticking to his head as now the sound of the blood rushing through her ears was gone, she could hear the sound of the basketball pounding against the hardwood floor. There were two other people on the court, but he was alone. Now, with the liquid of sweat running down his bare back, she couldn't help but feel the butterflies soar through her stomach as his muscular arm wipes his brow. "How do you get to be in a class with Troy Bolton? Or sit in front of him for that matter?"

Gabriella watched as Troy's muscular legs pushed off the ground and sunk the ball into the net. It wasn't he first time she had seen him there at the gyms. They were one of the very few times Gabriella had ever seen him alone. Usually, he was surrounded by his basketball boys or a bunch of flirtatious girls. But once in awhile he came to the gym alone. Somehow it made him seen vulnerable to Gabriella. She'd come and run and catch him there, just to watch him for a few minutes, like now. With passion blending in with his sweat along with desire to be the best breathe with the air he breathed. It was almost beautiful to watch such a passion.

"Easy. He's switched into my class. It's not a big deal." Gabriella informed while used the back of her forearm to wipe her own sweat off her face. Again, after the initial look at Troy, her eyes looked back up to Emily to see her bright blue eyes were wide.

"Not a big deal? Gabriella! This is Troy Bolton! Troy Bolton! You are so lucky!" She exclaimed with throwing her arms up in the air. Gabriella's eyes grew two sizes bigger as she looked down to see if Troy heard. He didn't look up at the track.

"He's not a god… and ok, he maybe hot…" Gabriella tried to say reasonably while she looked down again to see Troy make a perfect three point shot, his pecks and arms moving with such grace. "But he's just a guy…"

Emily shook her head while she leaned against the railing. "No… he's a cross between an Abercrombie model and… Brad Pitt."

Gabriella rolled her eyes. "He's a cocky asshole who sleeps with half the school."

It was Emily's turn to roll her eyes. "He does not sleep with half the school and you know it." She defended while Gabriella let out a small sigh. "Besides, tell me one girl who hasn't like Troy Bolton at least once in their life…"

Gabriella opened her mouth to say her own name, but then glanced down to see Troy shake his head, letting sweat fly in different places. She closed her eyes and felt herself slip back to her freshman year of high school and saw that same head, that same face only younger, with those same blue eyes that were so much younger also. So much more innocent. She took herself back to a time where she sat in English and giggled at Troy's witty jokes, smiling at him while she bit her bottom lip.

"It doesn't matter." Gabriella whispered softly while her eyes opened up to reveal a small sparkle as she glanced down at him. "He's in Sharpay's eyes. No doubt he'll be screwing her next." She stated while pushing off the railing and attempting to walk towards the black door that led to the stairs. They would have to pass the basketball court to get to the girl's locker room. As they stepped into the stairwell, Gabriella could hear the echo of their shoes against the metal stairs.

"You kidding? You know he can barely stand her." Emily reminded in her slightly high voice as they turn and walk down another flight of stairs. "He hangs out with Chad and them… you should know over everyone."

Gabriella shrugged her shoulders. "Yeah… but we don't talk… I don't know. Never had a need to…"

Emily rolled her eyes again. "Sure Brie. Whatever you say."

Gabriella shot her a look of swords while she opened the door to lead to the first level. Emily laughed a little as the sound of dribbling basketballs filled Gabriella's ears again. Her eyes looked out to the court to see that Troy was dribbling the ball in between his perfectly sculpted legs. "So… do you still need a ride home?" Gabriella asked while trying to keep her eyes away from the perfect body and stare at Emily.

"Yeah… that a problem?" Emily asked while her figure walked next to Gabriella, almost the same size height as her.

Almost relief spread through Gabriella's body. "Nope. Not at all. It keeps me away from home for a little longer." She slipped out with a small tinge of pain laced into her voice.

Emily gave her a sympathetic look as they almost make it to the locker room. "Who is it this week?"

Gabriella's hand reached up and gently bit down on her nails, a habit she only did whens eh had something on her mind. Don't turn towards the court, don't turn towards the court. "Who knows? Who cares?" She stated with bitterness in her voice.

Suddenly, a voice rang out that made Gabriella's heart skip two beats. "Whiteman!" It echoed as Emily's face lit up with joy. She immediately turned around with her blonde hair in the ponytail almost slapping Gabriella in the face.

Gabriella looked to see that Troy was walking towards the edge of the court with his dumb smirk plastered on his face. She looked to see that even though he called Emily's name, his eyes were on Gabriella. Her heart couldn't stop beating quickly, but it was just the effect that Troy Bolton had. Well, that's what she told herself. "Hey Troy!" Emily greeted almost bouncing with happiness while she walked towards him.

His older eyes sparkled in a way that Gabriella couldn't remove hers from. He smirked again while placing his sweaty arm around Emily's thin sweaty body in a half hug while holding the basketball in his hands, Emily obviously not caring that he was drenched in sweat. But Troy's eyes still glanced at Gabriella, making her heart flutter with every look. "So how'd that running thing go?" He asked, Gabriella's irritation grew. That running thing?

"It went great. Except Gabriella can kick my ass." She boasted for her while nodding towards Gabriella, though the brunette could see that she was practically drooling over Troy's flawless shirtless body.

The sapphire eyes locked with Gabriella's coffee brown. He smirked while his eyebrow that matched the color of his hair rose a little. "Yeah? You're that good huh?" Even though she knew he knew the answer to that question.

Gabriella smirked back. "I don't know." She grinned, not able to help the flirtatious tone that was vomiting out of her mouth. "Maybe if you weren't so into yourself, you'd know that." She pointed out, watching Troy smirk even more in a charming way. Even though she had tried to be mean about it, she couldn't help smiling at him like the way she was. "I'll meet you in the locker room alright Em?" She said while she turned around and walked towards the black door.

"See ya in music pro Gabi!" His perfect voice yelled back and Gabriella's eyes grew the size of moons as she opened the black door to the locker room and heard the door shut, silencing the pounding of the basketballs against the hardwood court. But even though her eyes were wide, she couldn't help the stupid smirk that was on her face.

Gabi?