A/N: Hello, Loyal Readers!! I know that it's been forever and I'm so sorry! I kind of had writer's block for the last eight months for my other story which has been my first priority. I have changed the direction of this story quite a bit. I wasn't sure where I wanted it to go, but I have finally decided. I will say that the end (and middle) is very different from what I had originally planned. I really hope you all like it!
Disclaimer: I, unfortunately, do not own High School Musical.
Air refused to return to my lungs. It was as if someone was holding their hand over my mouth and nose. My heart began to beat faster, but I doubt that it had anything to with lack of oxygen. My eyes were still connected to his.
It wasn't just his cobalt blue eyes. His face was flawless; perfect. His nose was straight and his chin definite. His hair was a light brown that looked as if he spent a lot of time in the sun. It was longer than most guys', but it looked great on him. He was tall too; much taller than me which I had always found attractive.
I guess it would be easy to say that I found this Troy Bolton attractive, but there was something else…something I could not explain or even understand myself. It was as if something inside of me was waiting to be set free; to be with him. It was soul deep. You're crazy, I told myself. I had just seen the guy and already I was falling. Hard.
A small smile appeared on his face after a moment. Actually it wasn't a smile because he only slightly hitched up the corners of his mouth, but it was there.
"All right, Mr. Bolton," I snapped my head back to Ms. Darbus as she spoke. "Why don't you take the open seat behind Miss Montez?" She pointed at me. His eyes never left mine, but he knew exactly where she had pointed to because he moved right to the seat behind me and sat down.
All through homeroom I could not concentrate. I was so aware of the gorgeous boy behind me; I even thought I could feel his eyes on me, like he was watching every move I made. I continued to shift in my seat for the whole thirty minutes. One time I looked to my left and caught Taylor's eyes. She frowned and mouthed, "What's up?"
I shook my head and mouthed back, "Tell you later." She nodded and we both looked back up at Ms. Darbus.
Finally, after what seemed like eternity, the bell rang. I shot out of my seat and made it out the door before anyone else. I felt like I could actually breathe again, for that I was thankful. I was half way to my locker when I heard, "Gabi, wait up!"
I turned slightly and saw Sharpay and Taylor running to catch up to me. I scanned the crowd behind them to make sure he wasn't there, and then I slowed down and waited for them.
Sharpay reached me first which surprised me (she was wearing four in stilettos). She grabbed my arm and pulled me into the girl's bathroom across the hall. Taylor followed right behind me. Sharpay stopped and put her hand on her hip when she noticed other girls in the bathroom. "Everybody OUT!" she yelled.
Girls scattered in every direction to be out of view of the Ice Queen and soon only the three of us were left. Sharpay walked over to the door and locked it. She spun around and faced me, crossing her arms. "Ok, spill it."
"I can't explain it," I blurted. "When I saw him I couldn't breathe. And when I was sitting in front of him I felt like he never took his eyes off of me. I swear I could practically feel him watching me."
"The new guy?" Taylor asked frowning.
"Yeah," I said letting out a long breath.
"Well, you're right," Sharpay stated simply.
"What?" I asked confused.
"He never took his eyes off of you," She said jumping up and sitting on the counter. She then proceeded to take out a nail file and begin her normal routine of trying to get every nail exactly the same shape. "At first I thought you had something in your hair, but I couldn't see anything so I came to the conclusion that he was actually looking at you." She paused for a second then said, "He totally thinks you're hot."
"Sharpay!" I exclaimed. My cheeks turned red at her comment.
"What? It's true," She said pausing her filing. Then she looked straight at me with a teasing glint in her eyes. "I could always go ask him if I'm right."
"No!" I literally yelled.
Taylor giggled, "Sharpay, stop teasing Gabi." She turned to me. "Why are you so nervous, Gabi? You're never like this when it comes to boys."
She was right. Guys had never been a problem for me. Some girls say that they can't even speak correctly when guys are near, especially the cute ones, but I was never like that. I could go up to just about any guy and talk to them without faltering. But this…Troy was different. Even thinking about talking to him made my heart beat faster. And I hadn't even spoken to him yet!
Suddenly the one minute bell rang which, I realized, I was happy for. So I said, "I'll talk to you guys later ok?"
They both nodded, but looked skeptical. I went to the door, unlocked it, and headed for my locker. I quickly did the combination and grabbed my books. I made it to Government with less than ten seconds to spare.
The rest of the morning passed quickly. I had already a full night's worth of homework, but I was ready for that. I did have problems concentrating in Calculus. He was on my mind again. Right before class I had seen him leaning on the lockers across the hall from mine, watching me. Again. It didn't help that Mr. Kalm lectured all period. My eyes continued to drift to the windows thinking about that handsome, blue eyed boy.
Finally, the bell rang and it was time for lunch. As I was putting my things in my locker I thought about Taylor and Sharpay. They would, no doubt, want more information from me about Troy and after everything that had happened not only with Troy, but also with my mom I just didn't feel like talking to them. So instead of going to the cafeteria for lunch I made my way to a stair case that everyone seemed to pass without noticing.
What everyone didn't know was that up those stairs was an amazing garden; full of beautiful and exotic flowers. I spent a lot of time up there when I needed to be alone. None of my friends knew about it; actually no one in the entire school, save the science club, knew about it. It was like my sanctuary, secluded and away from everything and everyone.
When I reached the top of the stairs I noticed someone sitting in the middle of the roof with their hood up. Their back was to me, but I could tell it was a male. As I walked closer I realized that I had seen that hoodie before. I stopped about five feet behind him when he spoke.
"I wondered when you would show up."