Hey everyone! Sorry about the wait... I was going to see if I could get thirty reviews for the second chapter like I did for the first, but after a while I didn't and I didn't want to make you wait any longer! This chapter is MUCH longer and the following chapters are longer too. Enjoy!
Loving Love
Chapter three
Busy
Gabriella called out about three orders in a row as she leaned towards the kitchen window, taping the paper with the orders on the edge of the counter so that Samantha could see it as she moved around the tiny room, collecting different ingredients. It was Friday night and there was a large group of girls between the ages of ten and eleven who were having some sort of birthday party. Around the restaurant sat random customers who were waiting for their food to be served to them while they tried not to be annoyed by the rambunctious group of girls.
Gabriella jogged gracefully over to the pop machine, pulling out a few cups to start filling up with the array of various pop choices the girls wanted. Putting them on a tray, she carefully carried what felt like one hundred pounds over to the girls and put on a smile as she dealt out the many icy drinks.
"Ready to order?" She asked them once she was done giving them their drinks, pulling out her notepad from her apron.
She glanced at the woman at the end of the table who had an annoyed look on her face, begging whoever it was on the other line to "just bring the presents over already!" and then went back to writing the trillions of orders quickly as the girls speed through what they wanted.
"Orders up!" She heard as she took the short blonde girls order that sat next to the woman on the phone, smiling as she left the table.
"Where is Stephanie?" She hissed in a whisper as she grabbed the plates from Samantha in the kitchen, glancing out into the restaurant from the window.
"She took a personal day." Samantha explained as she tossed on some frozen beef patties onto the grill.
"A personal day!" Gabriella exclaimed in an angry whisper. "I'm going to kill her." She said before she pushed open the door, walking towards the table that the old man from the week before, George was his name, sat.
"Here you go, George. Nice to see you again." Gabriella smiled, remembering that Karen had served him that morning.
"Got your hands full?" He asked with a laugh, seeing her distracted smile as she set his food in front of him.
"All the waitresses are mysteriously missing." Gabriella replied with a laugh, walking away after refilling his coffee.
"Hi, I'm Gabriella; can I take your order?" She asked a new couple who had just sat down; trying not to rush them since they didn't even have their coats off yet.
"We'll have waters for now, but we need a few more minutes to figure out what we want." The man in his early thirties said with a smile, grabbing a menu.
"Okay." Gabriella sighed, turning around to get their waters and grab the food that was now ready as Samantha called her name.
Sweat was slowly appearing on her forehead as Gabriella rushed around the restaurant, trying not to forget any customers while she tried to keep the birthday party under control and quiet. The bell that hung from the front door rang and Gabriella was just taking the plates from the old man's table when she had time to see who had come. There were two guys standing at the door, holding piles of birthday gifts that covered their faces and they were trying not to drop them as the group of girls cheered. Gabriella rolled her eyes at the noise and went into the kitchen, throwing the dishes into the sink, quickly and thoroughly washing them in the soapy water.
"Why are we the only ones ever here?" Gabriella asked Samantha as she dried off the dishes, turning to see Samantha arranging cheeseburgers carefully.
"I don't know, honey, but we need to start going faster if we want to survive this night!" She said as she handed Gabriella plates of food and a plate with pie on it for George.
"This would be easy if I was athletic." She said, making Samantha laugh as she pushed open the door, stopping in her tracks when she saw the two guys at the birthday party table.
Troy Bolton and Zeke Baylor were setting the gifts on the tables and they didn't seem to notice her as she walked quickly past them, trying her best not to drop the plates in her hands.
"Do you want anything else?" She asked the family sitting at the booth by the bathrooms, setting their food out in front of them.
"I think we're set." The mom of the group said with a smile.
"Are you sure?" Gabriella asked slowly, not wanting to turn around because Zeke and Troy would see her the second time passing the table.
"Yeah…" The woman said with a small laugh, wondering why her waitress looked nervous.
"Okay." Gabriella squeaked, turning with a deep breath, sighing when she saw the backs of her classmates to her, tiptoeing behind them so she wouldn't go noticed by them.
"Can we have some more napkins?!" One of the girls asked loudly, looking in Gabriella's direction, which caused Troy and Zeke to turn to see who the girl was talking to.
Gabriella glanced at each of them, trying not to look like she knew them at all and nodded as she went behind the counter, grabbing a chunk of napkins before walking back to the table. She set them in the middle of the table, seeing that both Troy and Zeke were watching her from the other side of the table.
"Troy, Zeke, sit down!" The woman who had been on the phone earlier said with a smile. "I'm sure the girls would love for you to stay."
"Yeah, bro, at least look like you love me." A brunette girl with a feathery crown placed on her head said with a smile.
"There aren't any chairs and plus, Zeke and I were…" Troy started, not wanting to stay for his sister's birthday party.
"I can get you some chairs." Gabriella said with an eyebrow raise, seeing Troy's annoyed glare that was directed her way. Zeke stood with his hands in his pockets, observing the group of girls.
"Thank you." The brunette girls said with a smile, looking over at Gabriella happily.
Troy watched as Gabriella disappeared through the kitchen, rolling his eyes as his sister's friends made room for the both of them. There were a lot more people at the diner compared to when he came last. Not only were there a lot of people, but Gabriella looked like she was the only one working. When she came back, she basically shoved the chairs at Troy and walked away without as much as a glance before going back to the kitchen.
"Table nine wants another order of onion rings." Gabriella told Samantha as she took two plates from her.
"Kill me!" Samantha exclaimed as she went over to the fryer.
Gabriella laughed for the first time that evening and got all of the food out to the different customers around the room. Each time she went to go to the left side of the diner she had to ask Troy to move his chair because it was blocking her path and each time she got a dirty glare from him.
"Do you girls want refills?" She asked the birthday party table, smiling softly when the girls nodded enthusiastically.
She came back with a pitcher of Sprite and started to refill the girls' drinks. As she was almost done, Coach Bolton walked into the diner, smiling as he saw his family and his daughter's friends all sitting around the table. He was in a Police uniform, which surprised Gabriella since whenever he saw him he was in Wildcat sweatpants and t-shirts. She assumed the coaching job was his permanent job. He hugged the brunette girl and gave the woman at the end of the table a kiss before sitting down next to her. He smiled at Gabriella as she tried not to stare at him.
"Well, hello, Miss Montez, I didn't know you worked here." He said in surprise, just now noticing her. Big surprise. The woman next to him, who Gabriella now assumed was Mrs. Bolton, gave Troy a wondering look.
"Hi, Coach Bolton." She said awkwardly as she nodded, filling the last of the girl's drinks. "Do you want anything?"
"You know, I think I'm up for a cheeseburger." He said confidently, putting his arm over the back of Mrs. Bolton's chair.
"Do you guys want anything?" She asked Zeke and Troy in a monotone, keeping her eyes on her notepad.
"Cheeseburgers." They said at the same time, laughing slightly after.
"Coming right up." Gabriella said, turning to see Samantha coming out of the kitchen, her face pale.
"Gabi, we have a problem." She said in a whisper.
"What's wrong?" Gabriella asked, noticing the girls at the table in the middle of the diner looking at her.
"I cut my finger. I need to go to the emergency room." She said in a whisper.
"It can't be that bad, can it?!" Gabriella asked, trying not to gag as Samantha held up her finger that was basically being held together by the towel around it. The girls watching at the table gasped loudly at the sight.
"Okay, just go!" Gabriella said quickly.
"What about you?" Samantha asked as she walked towards the door of the diner. "You can't cook and be the only waitress!"
"I'm sure it won't be too bad!" Gabriella called after her as she left without waiting to hear Gabriella's reply.
"So about those cheeseburgers…" Gabriella said awkwardly to the birthday party table, trying not to look as if she was about to panic, but truthfully she really was about to.
"What's up?" Mr. Bolton asked her as she stood with her hands on her hips, looking extremely embarrassed.
"I'm the only waitress here and the cook is now going to the emergency room so…" Gabriella tried to explain, sighing stressfully.
"Baylor, Bolton help her out!" He ordered, causing Zeke to stand up immediately and Troy to look at him in shock.
"What?!" Troy asked in surprise, glancing at Gabriella quickly.
"If a fellow Wildcat needs help, help them out." He said seriously, giving Troy an angry look when he didn't stand up after hearing his statement.
"Apparently that doesn't apply to me." Gabriella mumbled under her breath, seeing Zeke snicker softly, being the only one who heard her.
"I can cook." Zeke said with a soft smile, seeing her somewhat relax.
After thanking him, Gabriella took him into the kitchen and showed him everything he'd need. Zeke seemed to be extremely excited about cooking and she wondered why as she walked out of the kitchen, seeing an angry Troy walking towards her.
"Don't tell me what to do and everything will work out perfectly." Troy said through gritted teeth, sending his family a fake smile.
"Get on an apron, give table three their drinks, and don't tell me what to do." Gabriella smiled innocently. "And I think everything will work out perfectly if you stay out of my way." She said, moving past him as she went to clear the plates off of the two empty tables by the bathrooms.
The girls giggled as Troy came over to them with an apron tied around his waist, taking away their plates as Gabriella gave table three the drinks that Troy didn't give them.
"Move." Gabriella said to Troy as she moved around him with plates of food.
"Die." Troy said under his breath, filling up drinks for his sister's friends.
"You first." Gabriella said as she smiled at a few leaving customers, setting down food for those who still remained.
"Orders up!" Zeke said excitedly.
Troy looked at Zeke through the window in disbelief from his spot behind the counter and shook his head when he only shrugged. Troy took a woman's order who was sitting at the bar and tossed Zeke the order unenthusiastically.
"Why are you so excited?" Troy asked Zeke as he leaned against the counter, watching as Gabriella said goodbye to a few more customers, cleaning the tables by the windows.
"Come on, dude, this is pretty fun! Plus, everyone loves my burgers." Zeke said with a smile, calling for Gabriella as he finished a few more orders.
"I'm not paying you to stand around." Gabriella said as she took the plates from Zeke, glaring at Troy.
"You're not paying me!" Troy said angrily, crossing his arms over his chest as the woman asked for a straw for her water.
Gabriella rolled her eyes as she gave the woman a straw when Troy pretended not to hear her and she thanked Zeke again for cooking the food when she walked away. Zeke glanced over at Troy who watched Gabriella and smiled to himself.
Troy's dad and mom laughed as Gabriella chucked a wet towel at Troy, leaving a dark mark on his navy blue t-shirt and he threw it back at her harshly as he went to tell his sister's friends to stop making so much noise.
"Are you leaving yet?" He asked his family, wanting to go before he seriously injured Gabriella for continuously telling him what to do.
"Are we embarrassing you?" Mrs. Bolton asked with a laugh.
"I want to get out of here." Troy said in annoyance, grabbing the noise maker his sister was using out of her hand in anger.
"No need to be a grouch." His sister pouted.
"Shut up, Bailey." He said to her as he untied his apron and tossed it on the counter. "I'll see you later."
Gabriella glanced out the window as she cleaned off the tables when she saw Troy storming down the sidewalk, walking towards the parking lot next to the diner. She raised her eyebrows, rolling her eyes as she carried the dirty dishes she had collected into the kitchen, putting them into the sink. She was in the middle of washing the dishes when she heard Zeke.
"You know, he's not as bad as he seems."
Gabriella scrunched her eyebrows together in confusion and looked over at Zeke who was wiping off the stove so that it looked clean again.
"Yeah right." She said with a laugh of disbelief. "And what about you?"
"I've been told I'm the nice one out of the bunch." He laughed. "I'm not in to hurting other people."
"So what Sharpay says is true." She laughed.
"Sharpay?" Zeke asked quickly.
Gabriella glanced over at him, seeing the blush on his cheeks as he stood at the stove.
"Yeah, she's in your cooking class. She said you're really nice." She said with a smile, seeing him shift awkwardly in his spot.
"Oh… yeah… well." He shrugged.
Gabriella laughed quietly as she dried the dishes that were piled on the counter and after another half an hour, Zeke left with the birthday party guests and Gabriella was by herself again.
***
Now the diner was only home to George who had come back for his evening coffee. Gabriella sat at the counter, arranging all of the receipts that had accumulated that day in order to calculate how much they had made that day. Samantha called her earlier, telling her that she was okay and Gabriella assured her that everything had gone fine while she was gone. The familiar sound of the bells on the door jingle and Gabriella stood from her seat, turning to see who the customer was. Her relaxed expression changed to a tense frown as she saw Troy Bolton coming in.
"Sorry, no job applications." She said seriously, walking around the counter so that there was a good distance between them as he rolled his eyes.
"No thank you." He replied rudely, shaking his head. "My sister left her coat here. I was wondering if you found it."
Gabriella raised her eyebrows, wondering why he was willing to come all the way back here just for his sister's coat. She nodded, leaving him without a word to go into the kitchen where she had put the coat that Bailey had left behind.
"Here." She said as she tossed him the coat, seeing him catch it with ease as he sat on a bar stool, waiting.
Gabriella went back into the kitchen so that she didn't have to be around him and tossed a hamburger patty onto the grill so that she could finally have something to eat after her long evening. The heat from the stove warmed her face and she tossed a few left over fries into the basket, walking out of the kitchen after shutting all of the appliances off. She rolled her eyes yet again when she saw that Troy Bolton was still sitting at the counter.
"Why are you still here?" She asked him curtly.
Troy looked up at her after setting the salt shaker he was playing with down.
"Are you kidding? There are fifteen eleven year olds in my living room singing to Hannah Montana." He said almost in horror. "I'd resort to seeing you again than to witnessing that any longer."
"I'm flattered." Gabriella said sarcastically, shoving the basket with her juicy cheeseburger with fries in front of him before grabbing the coffee pot off of the counter.
"What are you doing?" He asked her, looking at the food.
"You've asked for a cheeseburger twice. It's about time you get one." She said with annoyance clear in her voice, leaving to fill George's coffee cup.
When she came back her cheeseburger was untouched by Troy, and she shook her head as she sat in the seat next to him, going back to the receipts that she had abandoned when Troy came in.
She was using a calculator to add up the receipts when the basket was pushed against her arm. She subtly glanced at it, seeing half of the cheeseburger sitting there, obviously ripped in half and she sat up slowly from her bent over position, looking over at Troy who had the other half in his hand.
"What are you doing?" She asked him like he had asked her minutes before.
"I'm watching you eat it so I know it's not poisoned." He said, waiting for her to pick up the food before he ate it.
"You're an idiot." She said as she picked up her half, taking a big bite of it, making sure to open her mouth to show off all of the chewed up food to him before she swallowed it. "There, it's fine."
"How do I know that this half isn't poisoned?" He asked seriously.
"Are you really that paranoid?" She asked him, taking the other half from his hand quickly.
She took a bite of the burger, clicking away at the calculator as she handed it back to Troy, who took it and surprisingly ate it even after her mouth had been on it. She wrote the total of all of the receipts on the last bill and straightened out the stack, taking another bite of the cheeseburger before standing up and putting them into the cash register.
George walked over to Gabriella and handed her a ten dollar bill, telling her to keep the change before he made his way out of the restaurant. Troy watched as Gabriella put the ten dollar bill into the register and closed it without counting out the change that she would have gotten as a tip.
"Aren't you going to keep the change?" Troy asked as he ate a fry.
"No." Gabriella said with a shake of her head, going around the counter so that she could start stacking the chairs on top of the tables.
"You really are a loser, aren't you?" Troy asked as he spun in the bar stool so that he could see her.
"Well, you're not much of a winner, so would that make me your equal?" Gabriella said coldly, lifting the chairs with ease.
"You wish!" Troy said with a laugh, irritating Gabriella once again.
"Nah, I wouldn't want to be anything like you."
"You know that's a lie as much as I do." Troy said with a small smile, continuing to watch Gabriella.
"You don't know me at all." Gabriella said tiredly, hating that Troy thought he knew her and that he was talking to her in the first place.
"And I don't want to know anything about you." He said as he stood, grabbing Bailey's coat that was on the back of his chair. The pinkness of the coat looked out of place against his varsity jacket as he walked towards the door.
"I'll try not to see you around." He said as he opened the door.
"And I'll try not to start the rumor that you spent your Friday night singing Hannah Montana with a bunch of eleven year olds." Gabriella said to him, hearing the door close behind him as her statement came to an end.
Gabriella shoved a chair harshly across the room, taking her anger out on it as she thought about Troy Bolton. She didn't want to see him here again, she didn't care what he thought of her and she definitely didn't see him watching her take her anger out on the stupid chair.
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Much love,
unknownbyhim22