If there was one thing Troy hated more then anything else… it was mornings.

BEEP… BEEP…. BEEP…

Troy groans and turns over to put his head under his pillow. His head was suddenly spinning. Why the hell did people even make mornings? They were useless, really. No one liked them. He sighs as the alarm keeps beeping and then suddenly stops with a thud. Troy peaks his head from under the white pillow to see Chad's hand drop from the night stand in the center of the two beds. "We gotta get up." His muffled voice echoes in Troy's ears as Troy quickly glances at the clock to see it was 5:15 AM. For someone who loved basketball more then anything else, he suddenly hated it.

"Don't make me." Troy groans and then looks over to see that Chad was standing up in just a pair or basketball shorts stretching. He closes his eyes again, trying to pretend this was just a dream and he'd be back to sleep in no time.

"Too late Captain." He says and Troy suddenly feels a pillow hit his back. He turns his body over so he was staring up at Chad's figure, whose afro was sticking up in all places. "What the hell are we doing for breakfast?"

Troy groans again and sits up, letting the white sheets fall down and revealing his bare chest. "How the fuck am I supposed to know?"

Chad rolls his eyes. "Um… you're the fucking captain."

Troy rubs his eyes tiredly and shrugs. Yesterday the team had gone for breakfast at one of the three restaurants that were in the hotel. "Um… just grab something on the way to the gym."

Chad nods as he walks into the bathroom and Troy could suddenly feel the memories of last night flood back into him. The four beers he had, which was light compared with what some of the other guys drank. The incredible taco he had. The gorgeous brown-eyed girl…

Troy's body freezes. The girl. That incredible girl. She had been on his mind all night last night, even after she left in that cab. She was gorgeous, had to be the hottest girl Troy had ever seen in his life, even though they only looked at each other for about twenty seconds. Yea, Troy had seen hot girls before, but God! There was something about the way her long hair almost black hair curled slightly, the way her face was smooth as silk, or the way he couldn't get those dark chocolate brown eyes out of his mind.

Troy finally feels the muscles in his body move and function again as he finally gets out of bed and stretches. She had to be a local. Her skin was the perfect color and her hair was dark. She had to live around here somewhere… but where? Troy was pretty certain that "hot girl" wouldn't be in the phonebook anywhere. His legs carry him over to his dresser again as he pulls out a pair of black basketball shorts and a red "Wildcats Basketball" t-shirt.

It was weird. Troy had never been that entranced on just seeing someone after twenty seconds. But this girl. Wow. There was something about the way she stared back at him that made him want to meet her again. But that would probably never happen, since he had no idea where she even lived!

"Dude… your turn." Chad says while walking out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist and his hair was starting to form the familiar afro on his head. Troy sighs and walks in the shower, stripping off his clothes in the process.

After finishing up his shower and grabbing all of his stuff, Troy walks with Chad down to the first story to see that the rest of the team was sitting in the lobby waiting for them. All of them looked just like Troy, like they were going to kill someone for making them wake up this morning. They head out of the hotel in silence and Troy looks up at the sky. The sun had just come up and it was already starting to make Troy hotter then hell. They all catch a cab and make their way to the familiar gym that was about two miles away.

Gabriella was in heaven.

She could feel the hardwood floor beneath her as she looks a couple steps forward. There were mirrors lined up everywhere, showing her a reflection of herself walking forward in her black sports bra with a light blue tank top over it. She was wearing black ballet shoes with high black dance socks also and her hair was pulled up into a high pony tail. She could almost feel the energy coursing through her veins, just standing in this studio, especially after that hour long opening orientation that they had to go through to try and fire all of them up for this camp. Now, they and other team who had extremely heavy southern accents were in one of the eight dance studios that were in the building.

The studio was connected to a gym, where she had seen a bunch of the basketball guys around earlier for their own camp. She saw no one from East High though, unfortunately; since they had started their camp a half hour after the guys started theirs. Gabriella was used to getting up early though, and didn't really mind it much. Mornings were the most peaceful to her, although Taylor had complained the whole way. It probably didn't help that Taylor had decided to stay up later then Gabriella did, who had decided to go to bed at ten last night.

A small smile curls onto her lips as the thoughts about the gorgeous blue-eyed boy enter her brain. She knew he had to belong to the East High basketball team, since he had come out of the same cab that Chad, Zeke, and Jason had come from. But would she ever see him again?

"Brie… come on!" A voice suddenly fills her ears and she turns her head around to see that Taylor was beckoning her over to where a lot of the girls were sitting down. She could see Amber, standing with her hip popped out and a hand on her hip as she was looking at the mirror intently in her what looked like expensive black dance skirt and black long sports bra with black ballet shoes on and her hair was pulled up to the top of her head.

Gabriella walks over and sits down next to Taylor in a chair that was lined up with the others as a door suddenly opens and in walks in a girl who looked to be less seven years older than Gabriella. Her black hair was pulled back into a tight bun and she was wearing tight dance clothes. Her face was slightly hard with beady black eyes with the skin a little darker then Gabriella's, but she could tell she was Hispanic. She had bright red lipstick on that could light up the room. The room suddenly goes silent as she looks from face to face and kinks her eyebrows. Gabriella could almost feel chills run down her back as her eyes land on her deep brown ones. Who the hell was this girl?

"My name is Camilla Gestona. I'm your councilor." As her voice came out, it came with a hard Spanish accent. Taylor turns her head to the side with her eyes wide, as if saying 'You've got to be kidding me'. But Gabriella just turns her head back to Camilla and tries to pay attention, forcing herself to shove the bright blue eyes that she couldn't stop thinking about out of her head. "You must be Albuquerque East High School and Central Augusta High School." Gabriella turns to the girls on the other half of the room, assuming they were from Augusta, Georgia. "Welcome to this camp. Why doesn't everyone introduce themselves to everyone else?" She says while glancing at a clipboard in her hand and rolling her eyes. Gabriella figures she wasn't the one who wanted to do introductions. "Start with you." She points to a person from the other school.

The redhead timidly stands up and looks around. This was ridiculous. Gabriella wanted to dance! Not have stupid introductions. She would find out the other girls names later. Right now, she was having a dance craving that didn't seem to be leaving anytime soon. "My name is Suzy and I've been dancing since I was seven." She says in a heavy southern accent, and then sits down.

They go around the room stating names and how long they've been dancing for while Camilla had a bored look on her face. Gabriella could feel her legs shaking as her dancing withdrawal was starting to kick in. She had to get moving otherwise she was sure she was going to explode. Her mind starts to think of different things, such as the gorgeous guy. What was his name anyways? She wished he would have come out earlier or something. But suddenly, a familiar brunette stands up and gives off her smirk that could be seen through a crowded room. "I'm Amber Whitman." She exclaims innocently. "And I've been dancing since I was five."

With that, she sits down with just air and grace as one leg of hers crosses the other. Gabriella sighs and looks straight ahead again, wishing desperately they could just start dancing already. But then she suddenly feels a nudge of her elbow and she looks to the side to see that Taylor had just gotten her attention because Camilla was staring down at her. She stands up awkwardly, wanting to be anywhere but there at that moment. "I'm Gabriella Montez."

She stops. There was nothing else she wanted to say. Camilla raises her high, overly plucked eyebrows. She tilts her head to the side, as if examining her since she was the first one who didn't look happy to be there. Instead she must have looked bored, since that's how she felt. She just wanted to dance damn it! "So…" Camilla starts in a hard voice. "How long have you been dancing for?" The councilor asks and everyone's eyes look up at her. Gabriella looks around and shrugs.

"Since I could walk." She says honestly and with more attitude then intended and sits back down in the chair trying to make herself unnoticed. She feels her eyes glance over to see that Amber was looking at her strangely, probably surprised that she gave off attitude so early on.

But Camilla was looking at her in a different way. Gabriella wasn't sure if it was good or bad yet. But the councilor takes her eyes off her and looks at the entire group again. "Ok then, everyone get up and push the chairs to the side. Let's see what you got."

As told, Gabriella immediately jumps up and folds the chair up to put it against the wall. The other girls follow in her lead as they crowd around the short intimidating Hispanic woman. "Finally." Gabriella mumbles as Taylor laughs a little.

"I am not going to be your friend." Camilla says in a hard voice. "Most of you are probably going to hate me within the first two days. But others of you…" Her eyes lock on Gabriella's for a moment, giving her the creeps. "Who seem to have… a gift, and understand what it takes to be the best, won't feel the same." She says and walks out more towards the middle of the studio. "The most important thing you need to learn, is dancing is more then just an art. It's soul. It's heart. It takes more then talent to be the best." She explains and Gabriella feels her heart lift a little. "I want to see what shit you can give me." She says plainly and then turns to the mirror. "Form into four lines and copy this."

Gabriella watches as the woman suddenly moves her body with grace. She was recording in her head what Camilla was doing with her body. The bends, the shapes, and the grace she was using. It was incredible to Gabriella. She had never seen anyone move that way, not even her old dance coach. The passion she was exerting with every fold, every leap. Finally, Camilla ends up on the other side of the studio and turns back to them. "Holy shit." Taylor mumbles beside her and Gabriella's mouth was almost dropped open as well.

"First group, ready, go!" The woman explains as four girls, two including Angie and Melissa, leap out onto the stage and attempt to perform what Camilla just did. They weren't bad, they weren't bad at all, but Gabriella could point out mistakes without even trying. "Go!" She yells again as another line dances out.

"She's like a fucking army sergeant." Sharpay exclaims as another group goes out. Gabriella finally notices she's at the back of the line, and would be going with Katie, Erica, and one of the girls from Georgia. She watches as the lines start to come closer to hers, and finally Taylor's goes, including Taylor, Sharpay, and Amber.

Gabriella takes the image in. It was obvious Taylor was the weakest one, messing up on a Pas de bourrée and a leap. Then there was Sharpay, who was strong on her turns and spins, but lacked on the footwork. But then Gabriella's eyes travel to Amber, who had a threatening amount of grace. It wasn't perfect, and it was stiff, but that didn't matter. Gabriella immediately knew she was already the best on the team. What she didn't know though, was that in three seconds, the best would suddenly be replaced. She suddenly closes her eyes, just in time to see those mysterious blue eyes again before her thoughts were interrupted. "Go!"

Gabriella suddenly could feel her legs move without her telling them to. It was like her own music was playing inside her head as her feet floated across the hardwood. "Leap, ball change, Pas de bourrée, step, leap." Her mind was replaying as her feet obeyed, almost perfectly copying what Camilla had just shown. She does another spin, throwing her arms back and leaning up with emotion as she finishes and turns to the group, who all had their eyes wide staring at her with envy.

"Oh my God." Sharpay finally says as Gabriella makes her way to the back. "Why the fuck didn't you tell us?"

Gabriella's eyebrows rise. "Um… didn't tell you what?"

Sharpay shakes her head while Taylor was staring at her like she had just seen a ghost. "That you're the best fucking dancer I've ever seen in my life."

Gabriella feels a blush erupt on her face as her head turns slightly, meeting a pair of piercing green eyes that seemed to cut through her body. She turns away from Amber's stare but then looks back to see that she had her famous smirk on her face. The captain walks over to where the three girls were standing and looks Gabriella up and down for a moment. "Nice dancing. I guess the papers didn't lie." She says in her smooth voice and then turns to walk away.

"GO!"

Troy could feel sweat dripping down his face as his red and white shoes squeaked on the court as he sprinted towards the ball. His hands grab the sphere and he suddenly pushes it down with one hand, letting it connect with the ground. He dribbles across the court and chest passes it to Jason, who was waiting on the other end and then runs to the back of the line.

His piercing blue eyes glance at the clock as his legs start to shake. 4:33 PM. The camp should have ended three minutes ago. His legs felt like rubber and his body was shaking from the work that was put onto it. They had just had one of the most intense workouts Troy had ever had in his life, and it was only the first day of this camp. He stands up fully and places his hands behind his head, desperately trying to fill his lungs with the air that was lacking. His eyes scan over to see the mixed group that was there. This place had about three different basketball courts, four weight rooms, an outside track, three outside soccer fields, a lap pool, and eight dance studios that he knew the girls were in. Needless to say, there were multiple levels to this place.

The camp had split them up into eight different teams. They were completely mixed up, so he was with Jason and two other juniors from his team. The other sixteen guys were from completely different schools and states. Chad was with Zeke, and each of the teams had one coach. They would rotate between each station each day. One day you'd be in the gym, then another gym, then a weight room, then the track, then the pool, and so on. The only things they didn't use were the dance studios, since they could run on the soccer fields and swim in the pool.

"Come on, pick up the pace!" Screams a twenty-five year old guy with spiky black hair and black eyes to match it. His features were hard, with a mouth that always seemed to be in a scowl. His skin was tan, proving he was a local and he had an extremely heavy Spanish accent. He was known as Perez, since that was his last name. He was a new coach at this camp, but Troy could tell he wasn't messing around. He was supposed to be the hardest one there, but Troy also knew he was the best. The only problem? He seemed to hate Troy... which was extremely uncommon. Every basketball coach loved Troy. But this guy? Not so much.

"Are you fucking serious?" A guy asks in front of Troy who just looks up at the clock again.

Troy then walks up to the baseline again and watches as one of the guys passes the ball. It connects with Troy's fingertips and he starts to dribble, but suddenly a piercing shill enters his ears.

"Alright… that's enough." Perez says harshly and Troy looks around to see other guys from the camp were starting to fill back into this gym to grab their stuff that was in the locker room connected. His eyes seem to glare at Troy for a moment, before turning to the rest of them. "Get rest, we're on the track tomorrow."

Troy could hear groans erupt from some people, but not him. He was a track runner himself in the spring, so he knew it wouldn't be as tough for him. He continues to look down at the ball in his hands, suddenly realizing he didn't want to go back to the hotel. All day he had been thinking about that girl, and he just wanted some time to himself. Without the other guys, including Chad. "Dude, you ready?"

Troy turns around to see that Jason was looking at him. The crowd was filling in more as he suddenly spots the familiar black afro walking in. "Nah… I'm gonna stay and shoot for awhile. I'll catch a cab." He says as he watches Zeke and Chad approach them.

"That was the hardest fucking workout I've ever had in my life!" Chad exclaims as he wipes the sweat off his forehead. "Who know you could get so fucking tired on a soccer field, and you're not even playing!" Troy rolls his eyes and plays with the ball in his hands. "Let's bounce."

"I'll see ya back at the hotel. I'm gonna stay and shoot." Troy says and Chad and Zeke's eyebrows raise and their jaws drop.

"Are you fucking kidding me? Didn't you get enough of this sport today?" Chad asks and Troy shakes his head.

"You gotta practice if you wanna be the best." He says with a cocky smirk with makes the guys roll their eyes.

"Whatever. We'll see ya at the hotel man." Zeke says while they do their guy handshake and then turn around to walk away. Troy sighs and looks around to see that the coaches had gone to a different part of the sport's complex and the guys had all filed into the locker room. He was now alone, for the first time since they had gotten to Mexico. He takes a shot, watching as it sinks in, smirking while thinking about those drowning deep brown eyes.

"You can't stay here by yourself!" Taylor exclaims and throws her arms up in the air while Gabriella continues to stretch on the hardwood floor and stare at herself in the mirror.

"Yes I can." She responds while standing up and sinking down into a splits. She glances up at the clock to see that it was 5:10 PM. The other girls were filing out as the camp ended at 5. She sees the tall blonde walking towards her in the mirror and turns to look at her.

"What's going on?" Sharpay asks as Taylor looks down at Gabriella.

"Brie wants to stay…" Taylor says and Sharpay rolls her eyes.

"You just spent like…ten hours dancing. You wanna keep going?" She asks as Gabriella stands up and shrugs.

"It's what I do." She says.

"Obsessed much?" Sharpay asks and Gabriella shrugs. "Well, whatever. We're heading back and we'll meet you there. Come on Tay." She says and grabs Taylor's arm, dragging her out of the room. Gabriella rolls her eyes as the two leave the room and it was suddenly silent. She was finally alone.

She takes a deep breath and sighs. It wasn't that she didn't like the girls, because she really did, but as for right now, she just wanted to dance like no one was watching, probably because no one WAS watching. They had danced for most of the morning, then were given an hour break for lunch, and then ran three miles right after, which probably wasn't a smart idea, since they had just eaten but then they danced again. It was hectic, but nothing that Gabriella couldn't handle.

Her legs carry her over to where her bag was. She digs around in her bag and finally finds the CD she was looking for. But as she pulls out the CD, she also pulls out a picture that was jammed in there as well. It lifts up and floats down onto the hardwood. Gabriella bends down and picks it up, feeling a hit of pain as she looks down at her own reflection with another guy her age with blonde, shaggy hair and gray eyes. He had his arm wrapped around her and both of them were smiling brightly at the camera. Gabriella sighs as she puts the picture back into her gym bag, desperately trying to hide it so she didn't have to think about it.

She walks over to the CD player and puts the CD inside. She then goes out to the middle of the studio and suddenly hears blasting music that echoes throughout the studio and she was pretty sure you could hear it through the hallway as well. It didn't matter to her, the councilors weren't there anyways. She was pretty sure she was alone in the building.

Her legs start moving to the beat. Step, knee, step, fan… Her body moves to the calls that her brain was shouting out. But she was doing it with so much more passion then before. One song, two, three… songs go by and she doesn't even notice it was already rounding on 5:45 PM. The only thing that was running through her head was past routines, moves that she could do in this time.

What she also didn't notice was that a seventeen year old boy was walking down the hallway when he suddenly heard the echo of music playing. What? That couldn't be right, the dance camp ended a little less then an hour ago. Why was there someone still here? His bright piercing blue eyes look from right to left in the off white hallway before walking towards where his ears were leading him. He stops in the doorway and suddenly feels his jaw drop.

She didn't notice as the blue-eyed boy stops as stares at her perfectly formed body move. She didn't notice as his head clicked while seeing her perfectly tan Hispanic skin and her almost black hair falling out of her high ponytail. She didn't notice as his own piercing blue eyes saw the color of her own deep brown eyes in the mirror as she leapt and his heart flipped. She had no idea that Troy Bolton had just seen the girl who had been on his mind for the past twenty hours dancing and leaping like no one had ever seen before.

Step, knee, step, fan, step, turn, ball change, contract, leap, turn, fan, fall, roll… Her body moves back up, arching her back and rolling her hips when she suddenly hears a faint noise of boards creaking. Her body suddenly stops moving. Someone else was in here. It was probably one of the councilors, coming to kick her out. They had to have been pissed. She never asked if she could stay. Panic mode sets in as she suddenly runs over to where the music was and turns it on pause. "I'm sorry… I know I should be in here but…"

Her body turns around and she stops dead in her tracks. Her eyes grow wide as she sees the figure standing in the corner of the studio. No. There was no fucking way. This had to be a dream. She had to be hallucinating. Standing with his arms crossed was the mysterious chestnut brown hair, piercing blue-eyed boy that she had seen last night. A small smirk forms on his lips as she continues to stare at him like she was seeing a ghost. "Is that how you always greet people?" He asks in a smooth, calm voice that matched his body perfectly. It was like angels were singing as he spoke. She couldn't feel her tongue. Her mouth was as dry as the Sahara desert and she probably looked like an idiot. "Do you speak English?" The guy asks and Gabriella suddenly shakes her head, realizing how stupid she probably looked.

"What are you…" She starts, even though she knew he was on the East High basketball team and was here for the camp. But that was the only thing she knew about him. "Who are…" She starts again but then stops also.

The guy chuckles a little as he walks in. "I'm going to this basketball camp here. I'm from New Mexico, in the States you know? But a better question is… what are you doing here? This is a pretty touristy spot."

Gabriella continues to stare at him like she had never seen a guy before. What was he talking about? She knew this was a touristy spot, which was why she was a tourist. "What?" She asks.

The guy shrugs. "I just didn't think a local would come work out at a gym here."

It suddenly clicked to Gabriella. The guy thought she was a local. She suddenly lets out a nervous laugh, finding it kind of funny he thought they lived on the other side of the border, when in reality; they were going to go to the same high school. "I'm not a local." She says the first sentence since she first saw him. "I'm going to the dance camp here." She says and his mouth forms the shape of an "o".

"Oh, sorry I just though… you know…" He says nervously for a second, but then regains composer. Gabriella couldn't help but notice the air he had around him. There was a certain level of cockiness that was showing through, yet something else as well. "So where you from?"

Gabriella figures it would be sort of stalkerish if she told him she went to his school. So she shrugs and plays dumb. "Just moved to Albuquerque. I'm going to Albuquerque East High School." Gabriella tries not to giggle as the guy's jaw drops about ten feet. He obviously was shocked that she went to the same school that he did.

"No shit." Was the only thing that came out of his mouth. She tries not to let the giggles that were in her throat come out as he continues to stare at her.

"What?" She asks, playing dumb again and he shakes his head and widens his eyes.

"I go there." He says and Gabriella tilts her head to the side.

"Really?" She asks as he suddenly clears his throat and shakes his head again. A cockiness erupts on him again. It must have clicked to him that she was a new student there.

"So… you must be the sick ass dancer that's coming to East High. You're supposed to be the best." He says while eying her up. He walks towards her a little and begins to circle her, as if examining her for faults. It reminded her in a way of what Amber did last night, but in a different atmosphere. Amber seemed to do it in intimidation, and this guy seemed to be more seeing what she was really like.

Gabriella raises her eyebrow. "I wouldn't say that."

The guy smirks. "Everyone's been talking about you." He exclaims. Wait, everyone was talking about her? Since when? And who was everyone? But she tries to not let the confusion take over her face as she looks back at him.

"Yea?" She asks and smiles slightly. "And who are you?" She asks, finally trying to figure out the question that had been on her mind ever since last night.

He laughs cockily. "You don't know who I am?" She shakes her head and he smirks. "Troy… Troy Bolton." He says. "I'm captain of the basketball team, and we're basically the best in the State. So you could say I'm… ." He says cockily, tailing off and Gabriella tries not to roll her eyes. The guy was hot; she had to give him that. But the cockiness? It needed to be toned down, a lot.

Gabriella nods and picks up her bag. "Ok, well the cockiness level is too much for me… I guess I'll see you around Troy." She says and starts walking away. She had to keep him on his feet right?

"Wait! You never told me your name!" Troy calls and Gabriella turns around and smirks back at him. He was standing there, waiting for her to say something. But she just smiles and leaves the room without another word. That was how you maintained control.