DISCLAIMER: I do not own High School Musical or any related characters.

A/N: Second last chapter, or last depending upon how I feel about it. I think there's going to be another, shorter, chapter coming up after this. Anyway, I'll finish this off and then hopefully finish of Memories and then I'll only have Still Frame to worry about. Which is good for me because at the rate my school works been going, worrying about one story sounds heavenly right now.

Anyway, enjoy the second last chapter of DF!

Dangerous Fascination

CHAPTER 24

FUTURE

He felt overprotective, worried and restless. Three emotions she had managed to evoke in him because she'd been silent in the car ride back to his place and had barely said a word when he'd settled her in his bed so she could get some rest.

He wasn't sure if he was pissed off because she had caused those emotions in him or that, for the first time ever, he felt like a worried boyfriend or there was still that leaden feeling in his gut caused by seeing Smith near her. Troy settled for Smith because he knew that feeling like an overprotective boyfriend and blaming her for his feelings was not a fair thing to do. Unless he was very much mistaken, Gabriella hadn't chosen to cause any of those feelings in him; it was his own fault he'd gotten caught in the trap he'd woven.

Though he was going to feel uncomfortable about it for a long time yet, Troy knew that he was grateful for letting himself get caught in his own trap.

Falling for Gabriella hadn't been something he'd ever considered would happen. Not even when he'd kissed that first time in the park, not when he'd realized she was innocent and especially not when she'd let him hold her for the first time. She'd been a…fascinating distraction at the beginning. Someone who was easy to pull whichever way he chose and easy enough to discard when he tired of her, especially, he mused, after he'd categorized her. He wasn't sure when it had changed, when he'd decided to discard her would be too hard. Maybe it had been when she'd displayed more resilience than he'd thought or maybe it really was when she hadn't been afraid of him.

But when he'd realized that she mattered, well, that was an altogether different matter. Now, he supposed, it wasn't about the fact that she mattered or that he had fallen for her in a way he'd never thought would happen, it was about the fact that she was settled firmly between Chad and his father in the people who cared he cared about. So firmly, she had him feeling like an overprotective boyfriend while she slept in his room, unaware that he was sitting in the living room staring at the ceiling and contemplating how she had settled herself so completely in his life.

He should have seen it coming, Troy thought closing his eyes, when he'd found himself liking hr far too much for his own good. The problem was, Troy doubted he could have seen it coming and if he had, well, he wasn't sure he would have stopped it. Especially if they had ended up exactly where they were.

In the middle of something they couldn't figure out, with feelings that they wouldn't voice and a strange contentedness that settled with him sitting on his couch, worrying like an overprotective boyfriend while she slept in his bed as his hurt girlfriend.

How in the world had he gotten himself in this position?

Troy opened his eyes slightly and knew that it was going to take a while for him to call Gabriella his girlfriend and he knew he was going to do it when she was least expecting it. Which, Troy mused, would be a fascinating reaction to watch, especially if he did say it while they were in the middle of a fight.

Troy heard the front door open and he lazily turned his head to see his dad walk into the living room, swinging his keys on his finger.

"Should I be worried that you are, once again, skipping school?" Jack Bolton's tone was cool and Troy knew he had to think of a reasonable explanation because, if his fathers tone was anything to go by, Jack was not happy.

"No. Should you be worried about it?" The knee-jerk reaction to evade his father's question had Troy forcing himself not to wince.

"Troy, you have to stop skipping school. I can't keep coming up with excuses to keep you out of getting in trouble." Jack snapped and Troy sighed, running a hand through his hair and shaking his head slightly.

"I know Dad. Okay? I know. It's just that some shit went down at school and it messed up Gabriella some." Troy didn't bother to point out to himself that he was telling the truth and that it was probably not an excuse that Jack wanted to hear.

"Gabriella?" For a moment, Troy thought he'd shocked his father, and then Jack shook his head. "Troy, I want to be furious with you." Jack sighed and Troy, who had closed his eyes briefly, opened them as his father sat down next to him.

"And?" Troy prompted as Jack leaned his head back and stared up at the ceiling the way Troy had been staring earlier.

"I guess I should be mad at the girl. She's got you skipping more school in two weeks than you have since your mother." Jack's words weren't bitter, instead they were matter-of-fact and Troy gave no reaction to the mention of his mother. "But I can't be. She's good for you." Troy jerked slightly at Jack's word and his head snapped around to look at his father.

"She's good for you." Jack repeated and then stood up. "Right, I'm going back to school and I'm going to be home late. I'll write up excuses for you two. But it's the last time, Troy, am I clear?" Jack warned as he stood up and Troy nodded slightly, not bothering to give any indication that he cared about what his father was saying but knowing he was going to have to wait a while before he decided to take another day off.

Troy didn't say anything as Jack headed out of the living room, stopping only to give him one warning look over his shoulder before Troy closed his eyes and waited for the sound of the front door closing before he chose to move.

Getting up, not particularly wanting to continue to sit in the lounge room if he was going to think about his feelings for Gabriella, Troy wandered into the kitchen deciding that if he wasn't going to sit in the living room, he may as well have something more substantial than the coffee he'd downed this morning.

He wandered over to the fridge and opened it, staring at its contents, Troy wondered aimlessly when Gabriella was going to emerge from his room. She'd been asleep when he'd checked on her a little while ago and Troy had had a feeling then that she'd only been pretending. He'd contemplated crawling into bed beside her and going to sleep with his arm around her but had changed his mind at the last minute. He'd rather not be in bed with her when she'd recovered from the shock of what Taylor had done.

It seemed smarter to be out of a bed when Gabriella woke up. Not because something would happen but because Troy didn't want something to happen because Gabriella was feeling vulnerable. Instead, he wanted her to blow off the steam outside of bed because if they were in a relationship, didn't it make more sense for him to try and listen to her when she ranted? He had a feeling that listening to her rant while they were in bed wouldn't actually allow her to relieve any of her frustrations.

Reaching inside the fridge, Troy grabbed the carton of eggs and some bacon. Turning he placed the food on the bench before he caught sight of a flash of movement in the doorway.

"You're awake." He didn't bother to turn to face Gabriella, instead he opened a cupboard and leaned down to pluck out a bowl. Straightening, he placed it on the counter and stopped as Gabriella hesitantly walked over to him.

Turning to face her, Troy had to hold back a groan at her appearance. She'd changed out of her school clothes into a pair of his boxers and a button up shirt she'd found in the back of his closet. Though he knew she hadn't slept, her appearance was disheveled and her eyes were dark and lazy. She was gorgeous and desirable and Troy found himself torn between the wishing he had crawled into bed beside her and being thankful that he hadn't.

"Why are you making breakfast?" She looked like she wanted to reach out and slide into his arms but, as she stepped over to him, she kept a distance. Troy shrugged, folding his arms and leaning against the bench.

"Because I woke up late this morning and only had a cup of coffee because I wanted to pick you up." Troy replied and Gabriella looked up at him, her hands fiddling with the hem of his shirt.

"Well, you didn't have to pick me up if you missed breakfast." She replied quietly and Troy forced himself to not worry about the fact that she was speaking so quietly. Instead, he forced himself to fight the urge to tangle his hand in her hair.

"I told you I would." He pointed out. Gabriella nodded slowly, her eyes dropping from his face to her hands. "Do you want some food too?" He asked.

"Sure." Gabriella nodded, just as quietly as she had answered him before. Forcing back a sigh, Troy reached out and grasped her wrist, tugging her over to him, Troy slid an arm around her waist and pulled her close. Though she looked surprised for a moment, Gabriella slid into his arms and settled against him.

"Okay, are you going to talk about it or am I seriously going to make you a breakfast you're going to pick at?" Troy murmured into her hair and Gabriella shook her head slightly. "Brie, you've just spent an hour thinking about it. You have to say something." Gabriella's arms tightened around him at his words.

"Why'd she do it?" Gabriella murmured against his chest, her voice was still quiet and Troy knew that she was ready to listen to him now.

"Because you didn't fall into any of her plans for you." He replied. "She wanted you to help her win the Scholastic Decathlon, be her best friend and go out with Howard." Troy pressed a kiss to her hair, ignoring the fact that it was a gesture very unlike him and felt her sigh.

"And what? Being involved with you was what set her off?" Troy nearly sighed in relief when he heard some bitterness creep into her voice.

Troy smirked into her hair. "Pretty much. She doesn't like me. Never has. Probably never will. She was probably set off by the fact that you made it very clear that you're not going to give up on me." Troy didn't add that he was grateful for the fact that she had chosen to not give up on him.

"Why would I give up on you?" Gabriella asked. "You eventually told me what was going on. Eventually." Gabriella said and Troy didn't bother to not groan at her words.

"I have to ask this, because I sense that you're probably going to bring it up in the future," Troy didn't bother to hide amusement in his tone nor did he notice the way Gabriella pulled away from him slightly so she could see his face. "Are you going to hold the fact that you had to scream at me for me to tell you…everything?" Troy asked teasingly, trying not to notice that she was staring at him in shock.

Gabriella closed her mouth slowly. "There's a – a future?" She asked slowly, as if unsure she'd heard him right and Troy furrowed his brow.

"Obviously. You can't call what's going to happen the past because that's called history." Troy smirked, deliberately avoiding what she was asking and knowing that she was going ask again.

"That's not what I meant and you know it." Gabriella tapped his chest with her fist. "You see us having a future?" Troy chose to ignore the fact that her words were a little stronger and a little more concise.

"Well," Troy diverted his gaze. "Obviously. I mean, you are in my life now and I doubt that you're going to go anywhere. So I guess you could call what's coming a…future." Though he was reluctant to call it that because Troy knew that nothing was permanent, the way Gabriella was looking at him now, as if she had just said everything she wanted to hear and more made him tilt her face upwards and press a kiss to her lips.

"Have I told you that you remind me of Allie when you look at me like that?" He murmured it gently, as if he were telling a well kept secret and, Troy thought suddenly, he was. Only Chad knew that the look was one of the reasons Gabriella had settled so completely under his skin.

Gabriella's lips curved slightly. "I saw a picture of her in your room. She's beautiful." She kissed him again and Troy slid the hand on her chin into her hair and held her there as he thought about Allie's curling blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes and cheeky grin. The photo on his nightstand, with Allie grinning into the camera as she held out her new teddy bear, was one of the only things he had left of his sister.

He pulled away, resting his forehead on Gabriella in an intimate gesture he was unaware had her heart bumping. "Do you want to see another picture of her?" He asked quietly, wanting desperately to pull away as he realized that, perhaps for the first time, he was placing himself in a vulnerable position.

Her eyes sparkled slightly as he felt her hand creep up his back. "I'd love to." Her reply was gentle, as if she understood something he didn't and Troy, not wanting to dwell on it, let go of her waist to delve into his pocket.

Pulling out his wallet, Troy opened it. Gabriella turned her head, her forehead never leaving his as she gazed down at the picture of a younger Troy, his hair a little too long, holding his smiling sister, neither were looking at the camera. Allie was reaching up to tug at her brother's hair and Troy was laughing as he dodged the hand.

"She was two." He murmured without thinking. Gabriella's eyes flicked away from the picture. "We were at the Danforth's place when Harriet whipped out the camera and started taking photo after photo of us." Gabriella's hand had started trailing up and down his back gently, as if trying to comfort.

"You look happy." She murmured and Troy flipped his wallet close.

"We were. It's my favorite photo of her. Out of all the ones that Harriet took, I wanted that one." Troy suddenly felt more than vulnerable as how much he missed his sister crashed down upon him.

Gabriella was watching him carefully as he shut his eyes, her hand carefully beginning to knead at the place between his shoulder as he fought to push away how much he wanted his sister to come back to life. How much he wanted to simply hear her laugh again or feel her pull at his pants because she wanted him to pay attention to her or feel the weight of her sleepy body in his arms, her steady breath against his neck.

He felt Gabriella's arm lift to encircle his neck and the hand that had clenched into a fist tightened as he felt her lips on his. She pulled away before he felt her lips up against his again, softly pressing and coaxing.

He responded to her kiss because he needed a distraction. He needed to feel something other than an overwhelming longing to hear his sister. He fell into the kiss because Gabriella meant something more than forgetting his longing for his sister.

His fist gradually relaxed as she pulled away for a breath and then kissed him again. As it relaxed he felt a need to feel more than her kiss begin to consume him. It was so easy to bend, to gather her up in his arms and feel her easy acceptance of what he wanted.

Her mouth became persuasive as he stepped through his doorway and pushed the door shut behind him. He let her slide down his body, felt the curves of her body and felt heat slice through him as his fingers moved to the buttons of his shirt and he began to flick them open.

The need was different this time, Gabriella thought hazily, her mouth moving under his as he slowly ran a hand up her stomach. It was slower, gentler, lovelier.

It was different, Troy thought as he slid the shirt from her shoulders. There was no inevitability to it, no need to prove a furious point. Instead, he thought as he felt her hands tug at his shirt, there was something deeper. Something that came not from his need to forget his sister's laugh but from what felt and how she understood it.

Her hands ghosted over him even as he released the clasp of her bra. Fluidly, her mouth rose to his as his lowered to hers and for the first time, they met halfway. Together, they lowered themselves to the rumpled bed.

The heat simmered as he stroked and she shuddered. Mouths met and clung as Troy felt her complete trust in him turn her boneless. Her gentle gasps for air were the only thing that broke the dense air, as it surrounded them and shut the world out. He stroked, coaxed, felt her respond and watched as she gave herself over to him completely.

She was beautiful in the sunlight, as her skin glowed and a fluid moan broke her gasps as he watched her eyes go opaque. He felt the first gentle shudders, tasted the column of her throat as it arched as her first climax settled over her.

He went willingly when she pulled him back down to her. Helped when her hands fought with the button of his jeans. The heat continued to simmer as he distracted her with his mouth as he found protection. Her hands slid down, trailed over the fine hair under his belly button, wrapped around him as tore open the package and groaned.

"Troy…" the gentle whisper made him watch her as she shifted, straddled him. She clung to his shoulders as he held her neck. Her mouth a hairs breadth from his as she took him into her.

He guided her as her hips began to move. He watched her watch him as the slow pace began to quicken as her movements became fluid, as her mouth moved to his and she kissed him. He watched her, their bodies pressed together, as soft moans began to sound. As a hand slid into his hair and gripped.

He felt the push towards the fall, felt it as her movements quickened and the heat began to boil. His hand held her neck as his other arm banded around her waist, as he felt the push become more insistent and Troy felt the vibrations of her moans against his mouth.

Her forehead pressed harder against his, her mouth opened and her eyes darkened as something deeper than mattering darkened her gaze. He knew, it didn't matter how or why, but he knew what she was going to say and in that moment, Troy knew he felt the same.

"Troy, I –" He felt the push become a tug and cut her off, cut off something neither was ready to say or hear yet.

"Me too, Brie."

Her eyes widened and then she fell. He felt her fall and, holding her close, fell with her.

They must have slept. Though he wasn't sure for how long, Troy felt as if they'd been asleep for hours instead of minutes.

He felt refreshed, relaxed and repaired.

Which was a much better change from feeling overprotective, worried and restless, Troy mused. His hand stroked down Gabriella's back and he smirked when he felt her shiver slightly, her head shifting as she murmured against her shoulder.

Looking down at her, Troy lifted his hand to push at the dark curls that were falling in her face. She looked, he thought, content. Like she was holding everything she wanted and even more. He doubted that she was going to stay that way from long, though. Especially when she awoke and realized what she had been going to tell him.

Though he knew that he was probably going to regret telling her he felt the same in the future, Troy wondered just how much more it would have meant to him if the words 'I love you' had come from her mouth.

It would have meant something, Troy thought stroking her back, but it would have meant very little if he hadn't been able to say it back. He would let her say it to him in the future; when he was sure he could say the words back to her. Troy knew how difficult it was to say the words and not hear them back when you needed them the most. He'd learnt that the hard way and he wasn't going to put Gabriella through the same thing. Not when he felt the same.

He felt her shift, the hand on his chest curling into a fist. "Troy?" Her murmur had him smirking and he stroked his hand back up to her neck.

"That would be me." He confirmed as she tilted her head and her sleepy gaze met his. He felt her fist loosen and her hand spread out on his chest.

Her eyes drifted shut again. "You're warm." Her cheek rubbed his shoulder. "Are we going to have some of that breakfast?" God, she was beautiful, Troy thought absently, not registering her question as he watched her wake up a little more. Sunlight from his window fell onto her face, making her skin glow as she arched into him a little.

"Troy?" She repeated her voice husky and he blinked.

"Hungry, are you?" He smirked and was rewarded with a blush that had him leaning down to press a kiss to her lips. "Me too. Come on." He slowly removed his hand from the back of her neck, sliding his shoulder from beneath her head as she sat up.

Raising himself on his elbows, Troy watched, fascinated as Gabriella leaned down and snagged his boxers off the floor. She pulled them on, before slowly walking over to his shirt and picking it up from where it had dropped to the floor.

She turned back to him as she slowly began to button up the shirt and the smooth expanse of skin he'd been admiring was covered. Gabriella glanced up; pushing away her tumbling curls as she met his eyes and offered him a shy smile.

Even as his lips curved, it settled over Troy that he could do this. He could wake up with Gabriella curled next to him, her breath on his neck every morning in the future. He could watch her come to life as she pulled on his clothes and smiled at him.

He could simply see her in his future.

A/N: In case this chapter isn't up to par, I will point out that I do have some problems with the second last chapter of every story. I'm not sure why, I think its because I already know what's going to happen in the last chapter and the second last chapter just doesn't ever seem to work. Um, I hope it was okay, though, I'm not sure about this chapter. It just seems a little different. Anyway, I hope it was okay and that you all enjoyed it!