Moonlight

"So, what you're telling me is that the infamous bachelor of Collegiate wants to finally bag a girl?" Chad whistled. "The day has finally come! The Apocalypse is here!"

His joke referred to playful banter back in the winter where the guys inquired as to why Troy remained single for the majority of his high school years despite the numerous amounts of girls throwing themselves at him and occasionally hooking up with a select few. Rumors had circulated all over Collegiate as well as a few of the all girls schools like Chapin and Brearley that he was gay, but truthfully, Troy never found any girl worth his attention especially during Basketball season. One of the guys from the team jokingly stated that if Troy ever did end up with a girlfriend, it would be the Apocalypse.

"Dude, chill out with the ghetto talk. I'm not gonna bag anyone."

"Having second thoughts?" Chad guessed. "I would too if I was in your position. Hooking up with a girl on vacation is one thing but when you know she lives in the same city as you? Shit gets complicated. Think of how awkward it would be when you're home and you two grow apart."

Troy sighed heavily as he walked through the front door, flopping down onto the leather couch. He rubbed his temple, wincing as he felt a sharp piercing pain run through the delicate skin on his forehead. There was only one explanation - he was sunburned.

"I'm not worried about that. I'm worried more about what Sharpay would do to me if she found out that I even remotely like her best friend."

The content look on Chad's famous transformed into a scowl at the mention of the psychopath who in fact did attempt to get him off her Vespa, claiming his afro curls blowing in the wind were tickling her neck and distracting her from driving.

"Speaking of that bitch, I hope you're happy," Chad brown eyes glared at Troy, pointing to his sprained ankle that was now wrapped up. "I died a little inside during that rough ride while you were too busy wooing Gabriella."

Troy snorted at Chad's word choice, chuckling slightly. "Wooing? Really, Chad? We're not in the sixteenth century."

"Hey," Chad objected in his own defense as he sat down on the couch next to Troy, "You're the one who doesn't want me to use the term 'bag'."

At that moment, Loretta entered the room, carrying a bowl of assorted fruits. She smiled at her grandson and his best friend, offering them some grapes and cherries.

"Perché stai seduto sul divano (Why are you sitting on the couch)?" Loretta complained, setting her hands on her hips while frowning. "Si dovrebbe essere al di fuori, come altri adolescenti (You should be outside like other teenagers)."

Chad shrugged, not understanding Italian. He threw a grape into his mouth lazily.

Troy moaned, rubbing his aching forehead. "Sono stanco, nonna (I'm tired grandma)."

"Smettere di essere pigro (Stop being lazy)," Loretta scolded him with her wagging finger, "Dove sono Sharpay e Gabriella (Where are Sharpay and Gabriella)?"

Troy shrugged in response, truthfully not knowing what the two were up to since their return home. The two didn't mention any of their plans earlier in the afternoon.

Loretta seemed unimpressed with the gesture, her eyebrows lining into a frown.

"Portarle fuori a cena, Troy (Take them out for dinner)!" Loretta demanded, pointing her index finger at him. The look on her face silently warned him of the dangers of disobeying her will, and he knew that he would have to comply no matter what.

With a helpless sigh, Troy nodded at her and replied, "Sì, nonna."

When she heard the confirmation, the stern look on her face eased and a smile took its place until she noticed Chad spitting out the seeds from the cherries onto the carpet.

"E dite al vostro amico che è disgustoso (And tell your friend that is disgusting)!" Loretta spit, glaring at oblivious Chad. With that said, she swerved around in her tracks and stomped back into the kitchen to make her husband a sandwich.

Troy groaned once Loretta left, "Dude, stop doing that. It's disgusting."

"Whaaaa?" Chad asked in confusion while chewing a grape in his mouth and swallowing. "I can't get the seeds into the bowl. I was just practicing my bball skills with my mouth."

"Yeah, well your ticking off my grandma, so I suggest you stop."

"Your grandma can be annoying..."

"Italian grandmas are the worst. They have an opinion on everything and constantly try to meddle in their grandsons' lives," Troy murmured. "For the past few years, she hasn't stopped encouraging me to go out with Sharpay."

Chad cocked an eyebrow curiously. "Even when she broke your leg?"

"Nonna just thinks she was playing hard to get," Troy rolled his eyes. Sharpay was way too forward - there was no way she could ever bring herself to play that game. "My grandma sees a lot of herself in her youth in Sharpay and simply adores her."

"Ew," Chad grimaced, remarking, "Your poor nonno (grandpa)."

"I think Bolton's finally realized that he's into me."

Gabriella's felt herself choke on her gum, her right hand instinctively reaching out to touch her neck. She blinked for a few moments, stunned at how Sharpay could possibly have come to that assumption.

"Wh-what?" Gabriella managed to voice weakly. "Why do you think that?"

Sharpay tilted her head, frowning her brows as if she was in deep thought, pondering over the circumstances and its underline meaning. Her bright red fingernail wrested against her sharp chin as her brown eyes scanned around the scene in front of the restaurant they just dined at. The boys were inside, claiming they needed to use the restroom when the four all knew that it was for other reasons.

"Think about it. Out of the blue, he calls me and invites us out to dinner..." Sharpay declared, a confident smirk gracing her features. "It's so obvious that he's finally realized how much hotter I've gotten this summer, and now he wants me. The evidence is all there."

An uneasy feeling settled in Gabriella's stomach as she merely shrugged. "Don't you think that's a precarious assumption?"

Sharpay looked at her in confusion. "What?"

Gabriella rolled her eyes at Sharpay's limited vocabulary. "Never mind..."

"Whatever. All I know is that if he wants to hook up this summer, I'm not gonna stop him," Sharpay stated cockily, reaching into her Fendi clutch to pull out her lip gloss. After applying the strawberry lipgloss and rubbing her two lips together, she turned to Gabriella and asked, "Did my lip gloss smear?"

"No," Gabriella lied.

Sharpay grinned widely, satisfied. "Perfect!"

At that moment, the doors swung open and Troy and Chad emerged from the restaurant. Chad maneuvered around with the help of his crutches, his knee bent so that his sprained ankle did not touch the ground. Sharpay smiled flirtatiously, batting her eyelashes in hopes of catching Troy's attention. Troy, however, had his eyes glued to the vibrant screen of his cell phone.

On the other hand, Chad noticed the look Sharpay cast at Troy. Quirking an eyebrow, he curiously asked Sharpay, "Do you have something in your eye, Evans?"

Sharpay finally gave up, crossing her arms across her chest. "No, I don't, Danforth."

Troy finally looked up from his phone, his blue eyes catching the gaze of Gabriella's eyes. His hand rubbed the back of his neck nervously, silently wondering if they would ever be able to get over the awkwardness of the interruption. As they exchange intense stares at each other, Troy finally formed his lips into a friendly smile, which she responded to with a weak smile shot toward his direction.

"I wanna get wasted tonight," Sharpay's high pitched voice once again cut through the tension, causing both parties to look away and focus their attention toward her instead.

"I never thought I'd agree with you, Evans, but I do too," Chad mumbled, staring down at his hurt ankle. "I just want to drink the night away and forget about what a shitty day today has been."

Sharpay raised an eyebrow, her mouth hanging open slightly. "Wow, you took the words right outta my mouth."

Chad elbowed Troy, "What about you, Hoops? You in?"

"Uh," Troy hesitated to answer, contemplating different excuses he can feed Chad until he found a reasonable one. "I'm not really in the mood for another hangover tomorrow morning, just sayin'."

"Ah, fuck that," Sharpay waved the thought away as her brown eyes ogled Troy. "Troy, you know my nonna has a kickass herbal remedy. Works better than the wheatgrass shot at Jamba Juice!" Sharpay stepped forward in her three-inch heels, the added height enabling her face reach higher and stare at Troy face-to-face. She smiled coyly, adding a wink in there directed at Troy.

"I'd really appreciate it if you came with me, Troy," purred Sharpay, her manicured hand reaching out to cup his jaw while her other hand caressed his right cheek. Her long fingernail dug into the flesh of his skin as she licked her lips seductively, her eyes studying a change in his expression, searching for a glint of mischievousness in his cobalt eyes.

In response to her touch, Troy flinched as memories from two summers ago and the menacing look in those eyes flooded back into his mind. He turned his cheek away until her sweaty palm slid down his face and fell to her side. The sound of his name on her tongue sickened Troy, who used his hand to push her body away as gently as possible.

Troy frowned in a puzzled manner. Just this morning she was rude to him, throwing jabs at him and Chad left and right. Now all of the sudden she was throwing herself at him. Beside him, Chad stood on his crutches with a bewildered look on his face, his thoughts matching Troy's.

Women... Troy thought to himself as he exhaled a deep breath.

"Sharpay-"

"Shh," whispered Sharpay, slowly lifting her index finger up to press against his lips.

"I'm just going to head back," Gabriella blurted out suddenly, causing three sets of eyes to stare at her questioningly. She gulped, trying to ignore the dry feeling in her throat and prevent the salty tears from pouring out.

"I'm still feeling a bit jet lagged," lied Gabriella, casting her eyes down to stare at the sidewalk while twirling a strand of her hair nervously.

Sharpay cocked an eyebrow. "What the hell? Are you bailing on me?"

"I'm just going to crash. Have fun, though. I know my way back now," Gabriella pointed in the direction of the Lombardi Estate with a fake smile on her face and a small wave. With that, she swerved around and began speed walking back to the house.

"Bye, bitch!" Sharpay bid her farewell. "I'll probably end up drunk dialing you later!"

"Gabriella!" Troy called out to her, only to see that she sped up her pace. He released a heavy sigh before pulling away from Sharpay's tight grip much to her annoyance before following after her. As he ran down the sidewalks of the crowded dim streets, dodging tourists on every side he felt a sense of déjà vu.

Chad stood there with a baffled expression on his face, shaking his head.

"Fucking whipped," Chad murmured to himself before edging towards the sidewalk on his crutches, waiting for a safe moment to cross the street and avoid being run-over by speeding Vespas.

Sharpay shouted at Troy before he disappeared from her line of sight, "WHEN YOU COME BACK, MAKE SURE TO MEET UP WITH ME AT THE BAR ACROSS THE STREET!"

She received no response. Shrugging, she followed Chad's lead and prepared herself for one hell of a night.

She had no idea where she was going, to be honest. At first, she thought she recognized the quickest route back to the house but now she was almost positive that she had gotten lost. All she saw was a dark and narrow alley ahead. She slowed down, her head turning as her eyes scanned her area, searching for familiar surroundings that would give her a clue about her location.

Turning right on an alleyway, she was pleased to find that from the small narrow path, the beach was visible by the moonlight. Releasing a sigh of relief, she felt her nerves calm down. At least she knew her location now...

Behind her, she heard the echo of footsteps hot on her trail. Gulping, she secretly hoped it was Troy who (last time she looked behind her shoulder and checked) went after her and not some Italian hooligan that Sharpay claimed tended to hang around the desolate alleyways in the middle of the night.

She turned around to face the shadow in the moonlight, breathing a sigh of relief when the silhouette looked familiar.

"Gabriella!" His voice rang out, nearly out of breath as he approached her cautiously. "Wh-Where are you going?"

She bit her lip, taking small steps to minimize the distance between them. "I d-don't know. I... um... got lost..."

"The house is a couple blocks from here in a completely different direction," He breathed out.

She remained silent, at loss for words.

"What happened there?" Troy mustered the courage to ask even though he had a small clue as to what it could have been. "Are you okay?"

She shrugged, not knowing the answer to that herself, "Maybe I just need to take a walk."

He nodded in understanding, falling into step beside her as they walked down the narrow path that led to the beach.

"Wanna tell me what's on your mind now?" His blue eyes pierced through her tan skin, sending shivers down her spine. He mistook this for a sign that she was shivering from the chilly breeze of the night.

"You cold?" He inquired. She shook her head no. "You sure?"

"I'm fine, I promise. And I don't really know what made me bug out. I guess it was just what Sharpay told me earlier."

His eyebrows scrunched up in curiosity. "Which was...?"

Her eyes stared down at her toes from the heels that she wore. Unlike Sharpay, her heels only added about an inch to her height, meaning he still towered over her.

"Just that you invited her to dinner because you were into her and all of that..." She trailed off, putting in her best effort to sound as nonchalant as possible and refrain from using a distasteful tone.

Troy snorted, "She really said that?"

Gabriella lifted her head off the ground, staring up at Troy. A feeling of hope overwhelmed her. Maybe Sharpay was wrong. Maybe he didn't like her whatosever. Maybe her best friend was delusional. All of those options were plausible.

Gabriella replied with a nod.

"Wow," deadpanned Troy. "Definitely not. I could never handle a girl that high-maintenance anyway. I'll leave that job to Chad or Zeke."

As the two walked at a slow pace, they gradually neared the sea.

"I'll be completely honest with you. My grandma suggested the idea that Chad and I take you two out for dinner... just to be polite."

"Oh," Gabriella nodded in understanding, finding that explanation to make much more sense than anything Sharpay presumed.

"I mean, not that I wouldn't mind hanging with you again," Troy made an effort to correct any misconceptions that she may formulate in her mind. "It's just that neither Chad nor I are a big fan of Sharpay, so we wouldn't willingly take her out to dinner."

She giggled as he grew flustered. "Don't worry, I understand what you mean."

She silently reprimanded herself for letting her emotions get the best of her. She wondered why she didn't just think about the situation rationally instead of crumbling with the unpleasant feeling of jealousy as she watched Sharpay flirt with Troy. Why on earth would he even tolerate her after the stunt she pulled today?

She came to a realization that this sandy-haired boy made her nervous, jittery, and all kinds of happy. His mere presence caused all rational thinking to abandon her as her emotions took over instead. And now with the way his blue eyes peered down at her made her feel as if she was the only girl on the entire planet - the only one who even mattered. The adoring gaze he shot her made her want to melt into a puddle under his touch. Her rational thinking warned her that she was being crazy. After all, she only knew this guy for two days. How could she possibly falling under his spell in such a short amount of time?

These thoughts plagued Gabriella's mind as they two made their way to the sidewalk beside the sand.

"For what it's worth, I'd much rather hang out with you here than drink the night away with Chad and Sharpay," His husky masculine voice breathed into her ear, causing the ends of her delicate mouth to form into a smile.

"Likewise," She answered, her hand brushing against his. She fought the urge to interlace their swinging hands together just to touch him. "I'm not too into the party scene."

"I wish I could say that I'm not," chuckled Troy. "But most of my friends are so I usually find myself at a party on a Friday night."

"I remember I went to a party with Sharpay once sophomore year. It was at somebody's pent house - I didn't even know the person hosting it. She hooked up with three guys one night and contracted Mono."

He laughed mirthfully. "Are you serious?"

She cracked a small smile. "Yeah, then I ended up having to nurse her back to health and that experience just turned me off to parties altogether. I mean, I probably go to one once a month when Shar drags me. Just not every weekend. I'd much rather spend my money on a concert than attend a party of some random kid I don't even know. It's kind of gross when you think about it, hooking up with so many people in one night."

"You have a point there."

"You know Jason Cross right?"

"Yeah, he's on my basketball team."

"Were you at his birthday party?"

Troy paused to think in an attempt to recall whether or not he attended.

"I most likely was. Honestly don't remember anything that happened that night though. But then again," Troy chortled. "It's Jason. No wonder."

"He ended up screwing two girls in his closet that night - separately of course."

Troy frowned. "You were there?"

She nodded in confirmation.

"That is so weird," Troy brushed his hair to the side. "I feel like I would have noticed you if you were there."

"Nah, you wouldn't," Gabriella smiled sadly. "I'm kind of like a wallflower - rarely noticed. Then again, I don't really mind as long as I can curl up on the couch with a good book."

Troy scoffed in disbelief. "Oh come on, Gabriella. Is this what Sharpay brainwashes you into thinking? Trust me, you are so much more than just a wallflower. I mean, look at you," He gestured to her. "You're stunning, you really are. It's hard not to notice someone as beautiful as yourself."

She was shocked at the kind words that came from him but at the same time, felt bubbly and elated from his flattery.

"Thank you," She whispered bashfully, blushing.

Even in the moonlight, Troy could make out the soft tint of her red cheeks. Smiling, his hand reached down to hold hers, squeezing it reassuringly.

"I wanna show you something," He said, his hand strengthening his grip on hers. "It's a sand sculpture museum they have further down the beach."

"Okay," Gabriella found it easy to comply as she felt the butterflies flutter in her stomach every time he spoke or looked at her.

AN: Next chapter will pick up where this left off ;)