Hey everyone! Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing! You make me so happy! Well, this chapter is shorter than the past few and it's kind of a filler, but I like it just as much as any other chapter. Enjoy!

Loving Love

Chapter six

Disgrace to the Male Population

East High's cafeteria buzzed with conversation, the bright sun coming in from the large windows by the stairs highlighted the jock table and as Gabriella stood in the lunch line, her lunch already paid for, she watched Troy Bolton interact with his friends.

"… this math problem was insane. I couldn't even figure it out so I asked the teacher about it and apparently the problem in the book was written wrong! I was so surprised!" Taylor's story wasn't being heard by Gabriella as she stood in the slow moving line of students with her arms crossed over her chest, her eyes having the trace of confusion in them.

"Gabs?" Sharpay said somewhat loudly, waving her hand in front of her friend's face. "You okay?"

Gabriella blinked out of her stare and smiled at her two friends, nodding as they looked at her in wonder. The lunch lady smiled at them as they reached the counter and Sharpay started telling the happy woman what she wanted.

As Gabriella was going to grab a deliciously red apple from the basket next to Sharpay, a hand grabbed it before she had a chance to get it and when she turned to see who had so rudely gotten in her way she was face to face with Chad, Zeke, and Troy. Chad bit into the apple, sending a cold splatter of apple juice onto her cheek. She wiped it off quickly, rolling her eyes as she took an orange instead.

"You don't have anything better to do than to steal healthy food from people?" Gabriella asked him, feeling Taylor's elbow collide with her side in a warning manner.

"It gives me great pleasure." Chad told her, cutting in front of Taylor as Gabriella responded.

"I'm sorry that your life is so boring, Danforth." She said with an eye roll, going in front of him swiftly so that she could grab the last chocolate milk that he was about to take.

Chad closed his mouth quickly before he could say a nasty comment to her when he saw Zeke and Sharpay talking to each other with giddy smiles on their faces. Taylor and Gabriella exchanged a look and as Chad went in front of Gabriella again to get a closer look at the two, Gabriella saw Troy behind Taylor, collecting food from the lunch line. He had obviously cut in front of a drooling cheerleader.

"Did Sharpay forget to tell us something?" Gabriella asked Taylor quietly, seeing Troy glance away from the lady at the cash register to look at the whispering girls.

Gabriella looked away from him quickly before being pulled by Taylor towards Sharpay and Zeke. Zeke was leaning up against the cafeteria wall as he talked to Sharpay and as the girls approached them, with Chad and Troy following quickly behind, they heard Sharpay's happy laugh.

"Uh, Shar, what are you doing?" Taylor asked her blonde friend, seeing Zeke's smile falter slightly when he saw Chad's angry expression.

Troy plopped a fry into his mouth from his lunch tray and nodded at a flirting cheerleader as she passed him with a wave. He didn't exactly see the problem with Zeke talking to Sharpay. He had heard countless rants about how his good friend was falling for one of the nerds and he was expecting this, but Chad obviously wasn't.

"Dude, our table is this way." Chad said, pointing behind him as he saw that his friend didn't look like he was in a rush.

Troy glanced over at Chad and then looked back at his tray, not wanting to be pulled into the argument that would most likely take place. Gabriella looked at Taylor, who also looked somewhat upset and she couldn't help but smile at how much she was looking like Chad.

"I know, man, but I'm talking to Sharpay right now." Zeke said with a casual nod, looking over at Sharpay who was now occupied by her hot pink shoes.

Gabriella breathed in slowly, watching Sharpay as she stood vulnerably next to Zeke who didn't look like he was going anywhere anytime soon. It was the first time that Sharpay actually looked like she was sad about the distance between the jock and nerd group and it suddenly had Gabriella's heart sinking into her stomach.

"Dude…"

"Shar…"

"If they want to talk let them. I don't see the big deal." Gabriella said to the group as Taylor and Chad tried to get their designated friend to come back with them.

Sharpay gave Gabriella a thanking smile and Zeke looked over at Troy, causing Gabriella to look at him for the first time since she had joined Sharpay and Zeke at the side of the cafeteria. He was still eating his lunch while standing up, not willing to stand up for Zeke or to defend Chad in any way.

"You can't honestly be interested in this pink Barbie, can you?" Chad asked, not caring about the hurt look that appeared on Sharpay's flawless face.

"So what if I am Chad, I just so happen to remember when you…" Zeke was cut off when Troy threw a fry at him and Chad glared at his friend who was currently crossing over to the dark side.

"I think it would be best if we ended this unwanted gathering." Troy said to the group, looking at Gabriella, and then at Chad who was still looking red with anger.

"Sharpay and I were going to go work on our project for cooking class. I'll see you guys at practice." Zeke said to Troy and Chad, placing his hand on the small of Sharpay's back as they made their way towards the doors of the cafeteria.

"You're a disgrace to the male population!" Chad called after him, glaring equally at Taylor as his friend didn't react and then he grabbed Troy by the arm, leading him back to their table.

"Sharpay likes Zeke?" Taylor asked Gabriella somewhat hurt that she hadn't been told.

"Well, yeah, isn't it obvious?" Gabriella asked gently, not wanting to make Taylor upset.

Taylor shook her head, sliding into the chair next to Gabriella at their lunch table. She was too confused for words as she looked around the crowded cafeteria that was specifically split up into the popular groups and the geek groups. For as long as she could remember her and her friends never wanted anything to do with the jocks and now suddenly Sharpay was in love with one? This just didn't seem right and she didn't like it at all.

"So, Sharpay loves Zeke?" Taylor asked quietly.

"Well… love's a strong word." Gabriella replied with a laugh, shrugging when Taylor looked over at her. "Maybe right now she just loves love."

"But we hate love." Taylor stated, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, but Sharpay never did." Gabriella answered, ripping her cheeseburger in half as Taylor pushed her tray away from her.

"I have to go to the bathroom or something." Taylor said, getting up angrily as she marched across the cafeteria and out into the hallway, leaving Gabriella alone at the large table that was usually taken up by her closest friends.

Gabriella looked around awkwardly, glancing away quickly from the cheerleaders' table when they gave her threatening looks. She sighed, taking a sip of her chocolate milk before taking the opportunity of being alone to look at the jock table. Troy was sitting only with Jason, and Jason was surprisingly occupied by a Biology book, leaving Troy alone with his own thoughts. When Gabriella caught his gaze, she froze slightly when he kept his eyes on her, not seeing the hot preppy girls pass him and he raised the cheeseburger that was in his hand and nodded at her, looking away when she gave him a nice smile, looking down at her own lunch food.

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Much love,

unknownbyhim22