Disclaimer: It's probably obvious, but I don't own any of the HSM characters or their related elements.

Author's Note: So, these are unrelated oneshots unless otherwise noted. This one is probably around the period that Something More was set in: probably after their first kiss, but before they're fully comfortable with each other.

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HSM Romance Challenge

Theme: Shy

As Gabriella returned from the kitchen with her glass of water, Troy looked up slightly from the desk in his room. He was busy working on his section of their ecology project, but as she sat down beside him, he could tell something was up.

He stopped writing and looked at her sideways. "Hey," he said. "Everything OK?"

He touched her shoulder lightly, but she flinched away. "I'm fine," she said, a little too quickly.

"Seriously?" he said. She nodded, not looking at him, focused only on her notes.

He felt skeptical, but didn't push it. Instead, he turned back to his papers, examining the diagram he had just drawn. Realizing it was slightly skewed, he sighed and reached for his eraser. But his hand suddenly brushed hers, reaching for the same thing. And she flinched again as if horrified, dropping her hand quickly back into her lap.

He put his pencil down. "OK," he said. "I don't know what it is, but there's definitely something up." He looked at her. "Ever since you got that glass of water, you seem kind of… shy."

There was a silence, and then he heard her let out a breath. "Well... yeah." She paused, then looked up at him tentatively. "I kind of… ran into your mom down there."

Suddenly he felt tense. "What happened?"

She turned red and looked away again. "Well, this is going to sound dumb," she said. "But she asked what we were working on. And I said homework in your room, because we needed the computer… but even as I said it, I just turned bright red. Kind of like I am now."

She looked at him and laughed at herself, putting an elbow on the desk and her head in her hand. "I mean, it was the truth! And she was so nice, but I still felt like she thought I was lying or something. Like we were up here just … up to no good or something." She dropped her voice at the words no good, then laughed again. "I grinned really stupidly then just made a break for it. Like I didn't feel guilty enough already."

He could tell she was feeling better after saying it. She threw her hands up in the air blithely, and he grinned back, laughing with her. "Well… you shouldn't feel too guilty," he said. "We are really just working on homework. And here's something to take your mind off it." He rubbed his page with the eraser, then handed it to her, smiling. "This is all yours."

But his hand brushed hers again as he gave the eraser to her. And this time, he felt himself flinch back, suddenly awkward at what his mother thought they were up to… and the softness of Gabriella's skin.

"So now who's shy?" Gabriella asked, raising her eyebrows.

He laughed, feeling embarrassed. "Well… now you've got me thinking how we might be up to no good."

She looked at him. "But we aren't."

He gave her a sly look. "But… we could be."

"But your mom…"

"She'll have to wait her turn," he said, grinning. "I saw you first."

And turning in his chair, he leaned close and kissed her, his hands moving to curve lightly around the sides of her waist. Her lips met his eagerly, and he was surprised to find her body leaning into his as the kiss deepened.

And as they broke apart, Gabriella almost fell off her chair, leaning so far toward Troy. He caught her and she laughed, moving her chair closer to his and sitting down.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

"I'll tell you what's funny." She kissed him quickly and grinned. "Now that we are up to no good… I don't feel guilty at all."

He laughed. "Not even about the ecology project you're abandoning?"

She kissed him again, soft and slow, then laughed. "Sorry, Bolton. Not at all."