Troy woke up the next morning in his own room, only able to remember entering the hospital room and nothing else. He sat up and instantly felt a surge of pain rush to his head. He'd only ever drank alcohol to an excessive point once but stopped because his head couldn't handle the hangover. Now he only sneaks one beer every now and then.
Not thinking, he tried to stand up looking to his hands for support. He groaned as he remembered the purpose of the white tape around his hand. Shifting his weight he managed to get to the edge of the bed and stand.
Gabriella was already making lunch for Ben and Lizzie when she heard Troy's bedroom door open upstairs. She dusted off her hands, allowing the crumbs to fall into a sloppy pile on the counter in front of her and made her way to the kitchen door.
"Good Morning sleepy head." She giggled as she approached the disheveled boy in front of her. He yawned and ran his good hand through his hair. This is the first time since Steve drove away that she saw Troy. After Lauren came home, Gabriella decided to leave the kids with her and head home.
"Yeah, well..." Troy tried to finish his sentence but gave into a yawn that was pending in his throat. "That's why I don't use the oven."
Gabriella not knowing what else to say walked back towards the kitchen door that was still slightly swinging back and forth from Gabriella's exit moments before. Troy took this as a moment to follow her into the kitchen and get something for his stomach to digest.
"So, You want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?" Gabriella asked as he sat down in the bar stool across from where she was preparing the kids' lunch. Watching as he nodded his head, she took out two more fresh slices of bread and began spreading the appropriate amounts of the substances onto them.
Two hours later found Troy and Gabriella on the couch watching another Disney movie with Lizzie and Ben sitting on the floor. Gabriella was sitting up and Troy had his head on her thighs.
"How's your hand feeling?" Gabriella whispered to Troy who looked up at her from his resting spot.
"It Still hurts... but I think I'll survive." Troy whispered back.
"Are you sure?" Gabriella asked skeptically.
"Well, you know the doctors think I'm going to die in 2 weeks from my undeniable good looks, so they're not really interested in my hand." He joked.
"Oh You poor thing."
"Well, I feel more bad for you considering it's highly contagious."
"Oh... So I'll become unbearably attractive too?"
"No. You'll just give in to my handsome charm. You don't have to worry about that though. I understand." He said nodding and smiling up at Gabriella.
"I don't think we'll have to worry about that too much." She said as she watched him pout and contemplate what to say next.
"Why not?"
"Because, I think you're losing your attractiveness." She said as she shrugged. she laughed as he sighed dramatically.
"It's worse than I thought. You're in the denial phases of my terminal illness."
"I don't think I am." She joked and placed her hand on his head.
"No, No. I'm pretty sure you are."
"Would You two just shut up!" Ben screamed from his place on the floor. "We're trying to watch a movie!"
"Sorry." They both said at the exact same time. Troy looked up and nodded his head, while she shook hers back.
The door opened revealing Steven and Lauren, both completely drenched.
"It's raining?" Gabriella thought out loud causing Lauren and Steve to look at her.
"Yes. It's coming down like cats and dogs out there!" Lauren replied as she took off her coat to put onto the coat rack by the door.
"See? I never understood that saying. Why can't it be raining antelopes and Billy goats?" Troy spoke to himself but loud enough that everyone could hear.
"That's because you, my friend, are a dork." Gabriella replied to his rhetorical question.
Steven and Lauren took that as a moment to leave the room to allow the kids to discuss the meanings of different sayings.
"Could you have come in any louder last night?" Lauren asked as they neared the kitchen door.
"It's hard to direct a 17 year old whose high off of anesthesia to his bed room." Steven replied with a chuckle remembering all of the crazy things Troy had admitted the night before.
"I guess you're right." Lauren replied and she was right to assume that the task was hard. Troy had continually yelled random words at the top of his lungs throughout the car ride. He constantly reminded Steve that he had to 'tinkle' and that he understood why people liked the color purple. Much To Steve's dismay, Troy had even managed to admit that he was glad that he had stayed rather than return home. Steven wasn't sure if it was just Troy's state of mind at the time, but nonetheless it gave Steve hope that he could fix his relationship with his first son, and hope was all he needed.