Troy sat down in his regular seat across the table from Tyler. Chad was seated next to Troy while Gabriella had claimed the seat beside Tyler. Lucille walked over to the quiet table and placed a bowl of mashed potatoes in the middle next to the chicken.
"Thank you Mrs. Bolton." Gabriella smiled up at her boyfriend's mother. She looked at Troy from the corner of her eye and watched as he silently put some broccoli on his plate. She followed his actions with the mashed potatoes.
"How many times do I have to tell you to call me Lucille?" Lucille chuckled and took the seat at the end of the table. Gabriella smiled again and nodded even though she knew that the next time she addressed Mrs. Bolton she wasn't going to say her actual name. Her parents always told her it was rude and she wasn't about to change her habits now.
"Can you pass me the turkey please?" Tyler asked from across the table. Troy looked up and then back down. Chad looked over at Troy then sighed and reached for the turkey to pass it to Tyler.
"Thanks." Tyler said feigning happiness then he turned to Troy to emphasize the word "Chad."
"Give it a rest." Troy mumbled and took another bit of the food he had in front of him. Gabriella smiled awkwardly at Mrs. Bolton who was shaking her head out of irritation.
"So, How was school?" Mrs. Bolton asked suddenly causing all four teenager's attention to be temporarily diverted. Troy rolled his eyes and continued chewing the food in his mouth.
"It's Saturday." Tyler reminded her and then followed in Troy's footsteps. Chad looked at Gabriella as if to say 'at least you don't have to go through this every other night.' Gabriella smiled and looked around the table awkwardly.
"Well, yesterday was good." Gabriella offered helpfully which earned her a thankful look from Lucille.
"Oh yeah? How is that chemistry project going that you and Troy were working on?" Troy coughed awkwardly but kept his attention on the food in front of him.
"Oh, well we switched partners." Gabriella explained sadly and Lucille's face fell.
"That's a shame. You two were having so much fun together." Lucille started separating the food on her plate. "Maybe you could talk to the teacher and ask to switch back." Lucille offered trying to be helpful but over all bringing down the mood of the room.
Tyler looked over at his girlfriend and felt guilt rush through his veins. He hadn't meant for her to think that she couldn't have friends that were guys other than him. He just hated the face that she seemed to be having more fun with Troy, his brother, than she did with him. Looking over at Troy he realized that she wasn't the only upset one. Although it was selfish, Tyler realized while looking at Troy that he had been right to overreact. At least he thought he was right.
"Maybe." Gabriella said while playing with the food on her plate. Suddenly she wasn't so hungry anymore. She looked up at Troy who was currently looking at her. He offered a slight smile which disappeared when Tyler started looking at the two.
"How's the decathlon team coming?" Lucille focused her efforts of conversation towards Gabriella who seemed to be the only one willing to respond.
"Oh, it's great. We have a meet on Friday actually." Troy looked up surprised by the excitement of her voice. It was a five year old talking about her upcoming birthday. He couldn't help but smile at the brightness of her eyes. Chad elbowed him, bringing him back to reality and he looked once again back at his food.
"Tyler, you should go. You don't have football this week." Lucille added happily. She thought it was the best idea. It would give her the chance to clean up the house while Troy was at his basketball game.
"Uh... Well We'll see." Tyler replied unenthusiastically. He hated the decathlon meets. They were always so boring. Sure, he loved being there for Gabriella, but the thought of sitting in the same seat for two hours watching genius's solve math problems was unbearable. He looked at Gabriella and offered a smile that wasn't returned.
"Oh no. I don't expect Tyler to go. After all, he's pretty busy." Gabriella said with venom on her lips. Troy looked up once again and smirked, knowing that a fight was to ensue.
"It's not that I'm too busy, it's that it's-" Tyler stopped himself from going any further so as not to upset his girlfriend.
"It's what?" Gabriella asked angrily. Tyler shook his head signaling that he wasn't going to answer anytime soon. "Go ahead Tyler. Finish your sentence."
"Boring! It's boring!" Gabriella stood up from her seat and looked apologetically at Mrs. Bolton.
"Thank you so much for the food Mrs. Bolton. It was delicious. Tyler, Don't bother picking me up tomorrow morning. I'll get a ride from Taylor." She walked towards the door with everyone except Tyler staring after her surprised.
"Troy. Drive her home." Troy stood up and got the keys from the counter.
"But mom.." Tyler pleaded while also standing up.
"No buts from you. I don't want to hear another word from you for the rest of the night. She was our guest and your girlfriend. You never treat a girl like that." Tyler groaned and stormed up to his room. Chad sat there awkwardly not knowing where he was supposed to go. "Chad, can you pass the salt?"
Troy walked outside and got into the car quickly. He found Gabriella about two houses away and pulled over next to her. She didn't look at him but she sped up. He put down his window.
"Gabriella! Get in." Gabriella looked over surprised then back at the sidewalk in front of her. She debated the options and decided that sitting in a car awkwardly would beat getting raped by some random guy.
"Thanks." She said as she climbed in and fastened her seatbelt.
"So, why exactly do you go to the football games if he doesn't go to what is important to you?" Troy asked after 2 minutes of silence. She looked at him, surprised that he said something, then back at the road in front of them.
"I'm a cheerleader. It's Mandatory."
"What if you weren't a cheerleader?"
"Why do you care?"
"Why wouldn't I? I'm your friend, aren't I?" Troy asked and looked over at the brunette sitting next to him.
"Actually, you made it perfectly clear that we weren't friends." Troy sighed and looked forward again. He saw that coming but didn't want to avoid it.
"Look, I wasn't saying we weren't friends... I was just-"
"Saying that we weren't friends. Yeah, I get it. What I did wasn't fair but if it makes you feel any better, I wish I hadn't."
"And why is that?"
Gabriella looked at Troy again and took in his appearance. He was wearing jeans with an East High shirt. His hair was messy but it looked perfect anyway. She smiled at him and proceeded to answer the question. "Bobby, my new partner smells like fish." She explained truthfully which made Troy laugh.
"So the only reason you miss me is because I don't smell like fish?"
"Well, yeah. What else would I miss?" She teased and he put his free hand to his chest feigning hurt.
"Ouch Montez." Troy smiled when he heard her giggle. "Well, for starters, you miss my absolutely indescribable sense of style. But you also miss my genius-like mind and my hot appearance. Am I right?"
"Well, I wouldn't go as far as calling you hot..." She said giggling. He chuckled in return and pulled up alongside her driveway.
"Liar." He teased and she just shook her head and opened the door.
"Thanks for the ride." And with that Troy watched Gabriella run up the pathway to her house. Once she opened the door, she turned around and waved goodbye with a smile then turned back towards her house and shut the door behind her. Troy looked at the clock. Five minutes since he left. He only had Gabriella to himself for five minutes. He sighed realizing that he craved for more time with her.
