Somebody

Author's Note: Hey all! So this is just something I needed to write after hearing the song "Somebody" by Reba McEntire for the first time in a very long time! I just thought it would make the cutest Troy/Gabriella fanfic. :D The lyrics aren't included, but the idea of the story is based off the music video for the song (and the lyrics that match, of course). I hope you like it! And don't worry, I'll update Love Remembers as soon as I can! I'm kind of stuck for the next vignette, but I have the idea and just need to word everything right.

Disclaimer: High School Musical and characters are not mine to own. Unfortunately. CAN'T I AT LEAST HAVE TROY? ;(

-

"The usual, Mr. Bolton?"

The familiar waitress smiled sweetly down at the very handsome man who sat in one of the coffee shop's booths. He glanced back up at her after hearing her beside him, his piercing blue eyes ripping right through her own mocha-colored ones to her soul. He returned the smile genuinely, folding the newspaper he had been reading before she walked up to take his order and placed it on the table. The waitress brushed a strand of her long russet locks behind her ear absentmindedly as she awaited his answer, her pen and order pad in hand.

"Hey now Miss Montez," he replied, smirking, "I think we've known each other long enough now to not be on a last name basis. I call you Gabriella, you call me Troy." Troy crossed his arms over his chest as a mirroring grin played with the corners of his mouth.

Gabriella chuckled, half blushing while cocking her hip to the side. "Fine then, you win. I'm just still getting used to the fact that a rising star comes into this little diner for breakfast and I just never know whether to approach you professionally or casually, especially when the paps won't stop following you around. So, the usual, Troy?" she replied, emphasizing his name with a grin.

"Sounds great," he said, nodding with a chuckle. She jotted down his order; the same breakfast he'd requested every morning since she began working there. "So, how did your blind date go that you were so nervous about yesterday morning?" Troy added as he watched her slip the paper through the order window, making small talk as they usually did each morning before he left for basketball practice after his morning meal at the diner.

Gabriella scoffed and rolled her brown eyes at the thought as she strolled back toward him with a coffee pot. She tilted the pot carefully as she poured him a generous cup full, trying not to spill. "Ugh, you don't even want to know. I've never seen someone that was so self-centered before in my life. By the time he actually asked me what I liked and was interested in, we'd already finished dessert and I was outside waiting for a cab to take me home. He was so egotistical that I wanted to gag."

"Aw, I'm sorry. I guess you never really know what you're going to expect with blind dates." He took a sip of his coffee and shot Gabriella a thumbs up at the flavor, and she giggled in return at his silent appraisal. "Just be glad you actually went out," he added as an afterthought. "It's been so long since I've actually found someone worth dating. I've been so caught up with practices and games lately that I really haven't had time to go out with anyone. Most of the girls I meet just want to know me because I'm on TV, anyway. I'm about ready to give up, maybe stay a bachelor." He noticed a few cameras begin to flash outside of the window, but he ignored the ever-present paparazzi as usual.

"Don't give up, Troy. Just because you haven't found her yet, doesn't mean she isn't out there. My mom always told me when I was younger that somewhere out there is somebody for each and every one of us. You just have to open your eyes sometimes. She could be somebody you just pass on the street, or somebody you see every day, but never really see them."

Silence fell between them as Troy pondered her intuitive words. He had to admit, she had a point. Wasn't that how love worked, anyway?

A bell dinged behind Gabriella, and she turned to the sound of the cook's voice through the order window. "Order up!" She sauntered quickly behind the counter, grabbing Troy's plate of eggs and bacon and delivered it to his table quickly.

"Here you go; The Usual. Enjoy your breakfast, superstar."

The scent of his breakfast wafted up to his nose, and he licked his lips idly. "Smells delicious! Thank you, Gabi," he replied with a dazzling pearly-white smile, causing the brunette's heart to suddenly flutter.

"You're welcome. And hey, you never know… you just might meet her today. Life's full of surprises." Gabriella excused herself from his table with a smile to take an order from an elderly couple a few booths away.

-

Troy Bolton couldn't help but mull over the words the friendly waitress he'd gotten to know over the past month had stated that morning as he strolled to the elevator in his condominium complex after a long workout with the basketball team. Was there really somebody out there made just for him? If there was, he had no idea where to look. Maybe she was right about it being someone he saw every day. He'd just have to open his eyes a little more.

After stepping in the elevator, he pressed the button numbered twelve and watched as the elevator doors closed in front of him. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a swish of long blonde hair as the woman next to him dug through the bottom of her purse for her keys. Troy turned his head in her direction, taking in the sight of the pretty blonde who was now watching the floors tick by above the elevator doors, her stiletto-clad feet tapping away impatiently.

He'd seen her in the building before, and knew she lived two floors above him; he'd been on the elevator with her a few times previous to this, but it was usually crowded with other residents of the condo complex. Most of the people who lived in the complex knew he was famous, but they treated him as a normal person who lived in a condo like the rest of them. (They'd already asked for his autograph, anyway.) But this time, it was only Troy and the pretty woman. The words of Gabriella flipped through his mind as he worked up the courage to talk to her. Maybe this was the girl he was looking for. He'd never know until he tried, right?

Wrong.

Just as Troy was about to speak, the blonde pulled her cell phone from her purse and quickly dialed a number with her manicured fingers. Her stiletto continuously tapped on the floor, this time at a much quicker pace. An irritated expression now dominated her features as soon as Troy heard a male voice come through the speaker of her phone.

"Baby, why didn't you call me last night? I waited for you for hours, and you had me really worried," the blonde whined like an elementary school kid who didn't get their way. Troy raised an eyebrow at her tone with the man and pretended not to eavesdrop as he stared at the metal walls encasing the elevator. The person on the other line muffled a sentence he couldn't quite make out, and the blonde threw a fit.

"Well, fine! Go play more poker with your friends and spend your money, I don't give a flying fuck what you do. Asshole!"

Troy almost chuckled when she pressed the button to end the call. God, he would have never pictured this woman to act like this. He hadn't even noticed she'd dialed another number as quickly as she ended the last one, as he tried concentrating on the digital numbers that ticked away much too slowly. Only one more floor, and he could get off this hell of an elevator. And to think, he almost pictured himself with this woman. First off, she was taken, and second, she just radiated with bitchiness.

"Hey hot stuff, I had a great time with you last night." She twirled a blonde hair around her finger as she averted her eyes to the ceiling of the elevator, taking in the words of the person on the other end of the call. Troy rolled his eyes at the woman's antics; he would never understand the inner machinations of a woman's mind. Especially one that was a cheater, like she apparently was.

Finally, the doors opened for his floor, and he rushed out of the elevator quickly, pushing the thought of actually wanting to meet the crazy woman inside.

-

Troy's stomach grumbled loudly as he made the walk down the street to his favorite diner for supper. The usual camera flashed as he walked, but he hardly noticed it anymore it had become so common. Sure, he'd only eaten there that morning, but he wasn't in the mood to eat leftover pizza or make Spaghettio's in the microwave for the third time that week. He needed to eat better if he wanted to bulk up—in a healthy way—for basketball, and eating canned food wasn't going to do that for him. Although, he had been invited by his teammate and best friend Chad Danforth to meet up with some members of the basketball team at a sports bar for dinner and some beers, but he just wasn't in the mood for drinking and the loud scene tonight.

Maybe Gabriella was working tonight. She was such a sweet, friendly, beautiful young woman and he always enjoyed her company while he ate. She was always so intuitive about everything; perhaps that's why he always ended up seated at the same booth that he knew she was assigned to serve. He'd have to tell her about his encounter with the woman in the elevator. She would probably giggle and her chocolate eyes would sparkle and tell him not to give up, and that she's just one girl out of the millions in this city, or in this country that he could end up with. Her eyes always sparkled when she giggled or laughed or smiled.

It was just one of the little things he noticed about Gabriella.

He finally reached the door to the diner after a few moments, and through the glass he could see her behind the counter adding up the total for a bill. Troy smiled, happy that Gabriella was working a shift tonight. She seemed a bit flustered as she ran her fingers through her curly russet locks, and the restaurant was buzzing with hungry customers and not enough waiters and waitresses. Troy watched as she shoved the bill into the front pocket of her waist apron and rushed over to the order window where two plates were waiting for her to pick them up. He noticed the booth he usually occupied was still vacant, so he opened the door, and the bell above his head jingled as he meandered toward the table.

Before he knew what was happening, a flash of brown hair clouded his vision, the feel of a body collided with his and hot food radiated through the fabric of his shirt, and the sound of dishes clattered against the tiled floor. He blinked his eyes slowly after realizing he'd fallen backwards onto the floor, and an embarrassed Gabriella in front of him in the same position covered her mouth with her hand. A few of the customers and a few waitresses turned their heads to the sound of the commotion, but Troy didn't notice.

All he saw at that moment was the image of a mortified, food-stained and beautiful, beautiful woman directly in his vision as time passed slowly around them.

How could he have not seen it before?

It was her; it was Gabriella all along.

"Oh m-my God, Troy! I am s-so, so sorry! God I am such a klutz!" The brunette was on the verge of tears as she frantically reached for a dish towel that hung from the pocket of her apron. Her hands anxiously wiped at the potatoes and gravy that had ended up on his shirt and on her uniform, and a bit that splattered onto her horrified face. Troy began to laugh as he watched Gabriella try to clean off his shirt. She looked up into his cobalt eyes after stopping her useless cleaning efforts, noticing the brightness that now danced in his pupils. The brunette found herself beginning to giggle as she wiped a bit of mashed potatoes from his chin, the tears that were previously pricking at her eyes rolling down her cheeks aimlessly.

"It's okay Gabi, it happens," he whispered with a soft smile as his thumb reached up to wipe away a tear and a bit of gravy from her cheekbone. Gabriella's face pinked at his touch. "And you know, you were right about a lot of things this morning."

Her brown eyes studied his food-splattered chiseled face. "What's that?" she whispered back.

"That I just had to open my eyes and see what was right in front of me the whole time. Life really is full of surprises." And with that, he leaned forward on his knees and pressed his lips to hers. Gabriella was startled for a half second, but her eyelids fluttered closed as she returned the kiss. Troy's hands entangled in her curly brown tresses as he pulled away, searching her face for a reaction. He found her staring back with a blissful smile toying with her just-kissed lips. The customers around them cheered, and Troy and Gabriella blushed as they finally noticed their crowd.

He stood up and reached for her hand to pull her up off the floor. One of the bus boys was headed their way with a bucket and a mop to clean up the mess they'd accidentally made. Troy squeezed her hand as they walked over to the booth he was trying to occupy earlier and leaned into her ear.

"I did meet my somebody today, Gabriella. And she's you."

What did you guys think? It's probably one of my favorites I've written, but I want to know what you all think! Please review!