Hey! Thank you all for the reviews! I got over fifty and I'm really excited about it! I'm glad that everyone is liking the story! The fluff is beginning between the two now, I hope it didn't happen too fast, but I hope you like it anyways! Enjoy!

Loving Love

Chapter nine

Ticklish Spot

Gabriella was pacing nervously. If she was in a cartoon there would be a deep hole underneath her feet from the constant contact her feet were making with the floor, but she wasn't and this wasn't some kind of make-believe episode. She glanced over at her bed, looking away quickly from her two best friends who were starting to become concerned.

"Okay." Gabriella started with a deep breath. "I've called this emergency meeting because…"

"Gabs, it's just us… this isn't a meeting." Sharpay interrupted her, exchanging a look with Taylor as Gabriella breathed in again, stopping her pacing as she stood in front of them.

"Right." She mumbled. "I've just been practicing what I'd say to you and I guess there's no easy way to say this." She said nervously, feeling her stomach start to churn the lunch she ate earlier around loudly.

"Are you moving?" Taylor asked. "Because if you are, I'm going to have to have a talk with your mom. She promised!"

"No, no! I'm not moving." Gabriella replied, shaking her head while giving them a reassuring smile. "This is much worse." She mumbled to herself.

"What could be worse?" Sharpay asked rhetorically, letting her friend continue on with what she needed to say.

"I've been keeping something from you… but I only did it because I knew how you'd take it." Gabriella explained.

"Alright, spill already. I don't need an introduction to the bad news." Taylor said as she held one of Gabriella's pillows in her lap, watching as she started pacing again.

"Troy Bolton has been coming to the diner a lot lately." Gabriella told them, watching as they barely flinched, only seeing the smallest eyebrow rises from the both of them.

"Elaborate on that for us, would you?" Sharpay asked nicely, knowing she had no right to judge Gabriella, considering she was technically crushing on Zeke Baylor.

"Well, after practice or on the weekend he comes around to get a cheeseburger and he sits at the counter, so I'm obviously in talking range…"

"That doesn't mean you have to talk to him." Taylor said, getting elbowed harshly in the side by Sharpay who wanted Gabriella to continue.

"Ignore her." Sharpay said.

"Well, you know about the hospital visit I made, only I left out the fact that Troy came with me… and if he hadn't have come… I think I would have freaked out." Gabriella explained to them, watching as Sharpay sighed with a small smile.

"Okay, so he's not a bully to you, so what? It'll change." Taylor replied shortly, the anger that she was trying to hide became visible as she shrugged, looking at Gabriella.

"He kissed me." Gabriella said in almost a whisper.

"Huh?" Sharpay and Taylor said at the same time, glancing at each other momentarily.

"When we got back to the diner from the hospital he kissed me… and I kissed him back." She told them, sinking into her desk chair, wondering if telling her friends was a good idea.

"Gabriella!" Taylor said loudly, throwing her hands in the air as she tossed the pillow she was hugging to the side. "What were you thinking? We're talking about Troy Bolton here!"

"I know!" Gabriella exclaimed, shaking her head. "It happened, okay? I can't take it back."

"Just wait until the kids at school find out about this! You'll be pounded into the ground before Bolton has time to protest." Taylor replied.

"No one can find out about this." Gabriella said quietly with sternness in her voice that indicated that she was serious.

"So you're just going to sneak around with him?" Sharpay asked her. "That seems like you're asking for trouble."

"Sometimes you just have to take a risk." Gabriella shrugged, looking over at Taylor who was clearly upset.

"I won't tell anyone." Taylor said as she stood up from the bed, walking towards the door. "But don't expect me to protect you when an angry mob comes after you."

"Tay, where are you going?" Gabriella asked with a sigh as Taylor opened her bedroom door.

"I'm going to go pray for you. You'll need it." She answered, leaving Sharpay and Gabriella alone where they sat in silence for a few minutes, both of them thinking about what to say.

"So, what do you think?" Gabriella asked as she tucked her legs close to her chest, looking over at Sharpay from across the room.

"I know how you feel." She smiled softly. "Everything will work out if it's meant to."

"And if it doesn't?" Gabriella asked her.

"Then your carriage turns back into a pumpkin and you become diner girl again." Sharpay answered, laughing softly as she stood up from the bed, hugging Gabriella as she too stood up from her sitting position.

"Thanks for not freaking out."

"It was my pleasure. It's fun not being the drama queen once in a while." She laughed, giving Gabriella another hug before making her way to the door. "Tell him I said hey."

Gabriella smiled softly, nodding as she said, "I will."

A sigh of relief escaped from Gabriella's mouth as Sharpay disappeared down the hallway, glad that there were no tears or tantrums thrown. Now all she had to do was break it to Troy that their secret was out… and figure out what exactly they were now.

***

Troy jogged around his room, putting the laundry away that his mom had just brought him. His room was oddly clean today since he woke up early and had nothing else to do but to clean his very messy room. He couldn't sleep the night before and as much as he would hate to admit this to anyone, he knew it was because of the kiss he and Gabriella had shared the previous day. His mom passed his room, shaking her head to herself as she heard the humming coming from her son, knowing that she'd have to ask what was wrong with him later- his room was never clean.

"Troy, you need to eat breakfast before you pass out." She called to him as she skipped down the stairs, hearing Troy mumble an "okay" from his room.

Seconds later Troy appeared in the kitchen, still humming as he ruffled his sister's hair as she sat at the kitchen table, eating a bowl of cereal. He glided over to the refrigerator, pulling out the milk jug before pouring it into a bowl of dry cereal.

"What's wrong with you?" Bailey asked from her spot across from Troy, watching as he sat at the kitchen table happily.

"Nothing." Troy said through his full mouth, causing his sister to shake her head in annoyance.

"You were singing a Hannah Montana song in the shower this morning and your room is clean." She pointed out, fishing for a stray piece of cereal.

"I'm just in a good mood, is that really a bad thing?" He asked her.

"It is for you, sweet heart." His mom said with a smile from the kitchen sink. "The only time you're in a good mood is when you're up to something or are lying."

"That's not true." Troy said as he stood up with his empty bowl, getting eyed by his mom for not taking his time eating.

"I know my son." Mrs. Bolton said with a smile. "What are you up to? You're not planning on vandalizing one of the guys' houses again, are you?"

"Come on, Mom, stop worrying and besides… that was once." Troy said as he loading his dish in the dishwasher.

"You're lying." Mrs. Bolton said in a sing-song voice.

"Okay, okay! It was twice, I'm sorry!"

"Troy Bolton! I wasn't talking about that, but you're so grounded now." Mrs. Bolton said in shock, swatting her son with a dish towel.

Troy laughed softly, rolling his eyes.

"Mom, I think the question we should be asking him is 'who's the girl'." Bailey interrupted, coming over to where they were standing, exchanging a look with her mom.

A look of realization swept over Mrs. Bolton's face and she shook her head, wondering how she missed it.

"Who is she?" Mrs. Bolton asked.

"Who is who?" Troy asked, faking a confused look as he leaned against the counter.

"Are you dating someone? Please don't tell me it's one of those times when you make out with the girl and call it commitment." She said with a sigh, wanting her son to be serious about something for once.

"Commitment? Troy?" They heard Mr. Bolton say as he walked into the kitchen, the white socks on his feet stained with a green color because he had just cut the grass.

"Troy's in love." Bailey told him, nodding with all seriousness.

"Ew, don't use the L word!" Troy said quickly, a look of pure horror crossing his face, causing his parents to laugh.

"The L word?" Bailey repeated. "You do have commitment issues!"

"No, I just don't like the word." Troy replied, shaking his head.

"Who is she?" His dad asked with a smirk on his face, knowing his son wouldn't want to have a family discussion about his relationship.

"There isn't anyone. If there was, don't you think I'd tell you?" Troy asked.

"No." The three of them said together, laughing as Troy shook his head.

Troy turned to leave, not wanting to talk anymore to his doubting family and as he did they asked him where he was going, that they wanted to know more, but he simply told him that he was going to work. He'd be working late.

***

Gabriella clicked the lock button on her car key, hearing the beeping sound of her car locking. She walked through the dark parking lot of the book store, walking slowly into the store after the automatic doors opened. She wasn't sure if this was a good idea. Troy's friends could be around, or even worse, he might not want to see her, but it was a chance that she had to take. She walked around the store for a little bit, acting as if she was looking for a specific book, and in reality she was, but she couldn't comprehend any of the titles; she only had one thing on her mind.

The shaggy hair that she spotted as she stood in front of the children's book caught her eye, but the bushy hair that was seen next to it made her sink into the comfy chair next to her where she quickly pulled a book about the ugly duckling in front of her face to hide herself.

She peeked over the book, seeing Chad laughing with Troy, and she couldn't help but smile as she saw Troy's smile, loving how happy he looked. He had on dark blue jeans and his work shirt, a pair of basketball tennis shoes covering his feet as he rocked back and forth while he went on with his conversation. She smiled again, reading the book in front of her, shaking her head at herself since it was a book for children four and up.

About ten minutes later she was jolted out of her trance that had occurred during the part in the book where the ugly duckling felt like no one accepted it when she heard a familiar voice.

"The ugly duckling? I don't think that's an appropriate book for you." She heard as she looked up, smiling softly as she saw Troy standing in front of her, smiling too.

Gabriella stood up, setting the book down on the chair and she shrugged, feeling somewhat awkward because she didn't know what to say.

"What were you doing hiding behind a book?" He asked with a laugh.

"I saw Chad." She said simply. "I thought it would be the best idea to be invisible."

"Probably." Troy replied with a nod.

"So, what have you been up to?" Gabriella asked as they both started to slowly walk around the store.

"Well, I've been here all day so nothing too interesting has happened. Seeing you is about as interesting as it's going to get." He replied, not intending on sounding as if she was uninteresting, but that's what it definitely sounded like to her.

Gabriella squinted her eyes at him, an offended look being somewhat hidden as she tried not to look hurt.

"Oh, no! I totally didn't mean it like that!" Troy quickly said, running a hand over his tired eyes as he shook his head, mentally kicking himself. "That came out wrong."

"It's okay." Gabriella replied with a small smile. "Our… friendship… is definitely going to take some getting used to."

"Yeah, it is." Troy nodded. "But I'm up for the challenge."

"Me too." She laughed. "So, I'm looking for a book."

"Name it and I'll find it." He smiled over at her.

"Alright, it's called 'Thanks' by Tom Tee." She told him, seeing a pondering look appear on his face as he thought of the book.

"I don't think I've ever heard of it." He replied honestly.

"Everyone always says that." She giggled. "That's why I can't find it, but I know it's out there!"

"Well, I'll keep an eye out for it, but I know it's not here now." Troy replied, fixing an out-of-place book.

Gabriella nodded, sighing softly as a silence fell upon them. Troy's arm brushed against hers and they both looked at each other, smiling secretive smiles as they continued their random walk around the store.

"What are your plans for the rest of the night?" Troy asked her, nodding politely at a passing customer.

"I was thinking about just relaxing and doing nothing. My mom's on a business trip so I'm home alone." She answered.

"Well, that's good. You're always working." He said.

"I have days off." She said with a laugh.

"Yeah, Thursdays." He laughed, winking at her.

"And today!" She laughed, realizing that it was actually the only Saturday she had off in a really long time.

"Wow, you're a slacker now." He smiled at her, laughing as she swatted him on the arm, laughing with him.

"Okay, since the book isn't here, I think I'm going to start my evening of relaxing early." Gabriella said as they neared the front of the store.

"Well, our visit was too short." Troy said with a laugh. "But have fun."

"Thanks. It was nice seeing you, Troy." She said with an awkward nod, causing Troy to laugh.

"This is so weird." He said in a sing-song voice, walking towards the cash register as Gabriella laughed at his comment, leaving the bookstore after watching Troy trail away for another hour of work.

***

Gabriella was currently engulfed in the romantic movie that was occupying the big screen TV in her family room and as the sad music erupted from her surround sound, she grabbed another handful of popcorn, happy as she breathed a relaxed sigh. There wasn't a light on in her house- something she'd probably regret later when she had to find her way to her room- but for now the only light that was visible was the light from the TV.

Suddenly, as Gabriella wiped tears from her face, there was a knock on the back door, causing her to scream loudly and nearly fall off of the couch. She placed her hand on her chest, feeling her heart pounding heavily and as she tip toed slowly towards the back door she began shaking her head, pissed and surprised all at the same time.

"What the hell," She began as she opened the door. "Are you doing using the back door?"

Troy chuckled as he saw her, her sweat pants and t-shirt surprising to him as he took in her appearance. He didn't mean to scare her, but he didn't think using the front door would be a good idea, considering someone could have seen him if they drove by.

"I didn't think using the front door would be a good idea." He explained. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"Well, let me tell you, you did." She said with a raise of her eyebrows. "But that's beside the point. What are you doing here?"

"I felt like seeing you again. I was working so we couldn't really talk." He answered her, watching as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"We can sit on the hammock if you want to." Gabriella told him, secretly telling herself it would be a bad idea to bring him into the house. She wasn't up to explaining to her mom when she got home that nothing had went on between the two, so staying outside was a much better idea.

"Sure." Troy said with a nod, backing away from the door as she stepped out.

They walked quietly over to the hammock, both standing in front of it as they tried to figure out a way to sit on it without falling off. Gabriella laughed as she and Troy caught their balance as the braided fabric underneath them would stop swaying side to side.

"This isn't going to work." Gabriella laughed, standing up as Troy tried not to fall off.

"Well, how about we lay on it instead of just sitting. It's probably less dangerous." Troy laughed as he held the hammock still so that Gabriella could lie down next to him.

Gabriella shook her head with a sigh as she plopped down on the hammock, giggling as it violently moved around with Troy next to her now. She was pressed up against his arm and was uncomfortable as his elbow went into hers.

"Alright, so maybe this was a bad idea." Gabriella said quietly, sitting up slightly when he moved his arm away from her, coming around her so that it came around her, causing her to be warmed as she pressed against his side.

"This is kind of awkward." Gabriella whispered as she realized how comfortable she was.

"I kind of like it." Troy said with a chuckle, turning to look at her.

The sky above them was clear and full of stars, but the summer-looking sky was the only thing that felt like summer because as they lay in the hammock, Gabriella realized how cold it was outside now that it was night time. She didn't intentionally snuggle against Troy, but she ended up doing so and he smiled softly as he saw the light of the movie inside flashing against the windows of the back of the house.

"I'm sorry for interrupting your night alone." Troy said as they lay there together.

"It's okay." Gabriella said quietly. "I'm glad you came, otherwise I would be crying like a baby as I watched 'The Notebook' for the fiftieth time."

"Oh, so you're one of those girls." Troy teased.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Gabriella laughed, poking him in the side, surprised when he flinched with a chuckle.

She eyed him, slowly moving her hand to his side again and then she started tickling him, laughing as he began to laugh hysterically, trying to get her to stop tickling him in his ticklish spot.

"We're going to fall off!" He said through his laugh, laughing harder as her laugh was heard next to his ear.

"You're so ticklish!" She laughed as she stopped, knowing that they would fall off if she didn't. "Troy Bolton is ticklish. I'm going to tell every high school around here that you're ticklish so they can use that against you while playing you in basketball." She laughed. "That would definitely be a sight to see."

"Hey, if that gets you to one of the games, I'll help spread the rumor." He laughed, feeling her hand lying against his side, ready to tickle him at any moment. "So are you ticklish? I think I need to get you back because now you know my weakness."

"The back of my thigh is really ticklish, but if you even think about touching me there I'd have to call your dad to report sexual assault." She smiled at him, although to him she seemed serious.

"Thanks for warning me." Troy said with a smirk, looking up at her because now she was leaning on her arms, which were now against his chest.

"Are you sure you don't have anything better to do right now other than lying with me on a hammock?" She asked him quietly as she looked at his blue eyes.

"Yeah, actually Chad and Zeke invited me over right as I was parking in the drive way, wondering if we could have one of our annual farting contests." He said seriously, seeing her smile falter slightly.

"Oh." She said with a nod. "You can go if you want to, I mean, I wouldn't want to keep you away from your friends or your weird bodily functions."

"I was joking." Troy said with a smile, running his hand that wasn't wrapped around her waist though her hair, so that it wasn't falling in her face.

"Are you sure?" Gabriella asked.

"I'm positive." Troy nodded. "I like talking to you, Gabriella. You're not like everyone else." He added.

"Wouldn't it be easier if I was?" Gabriella asked him somewhat sadly; feeling deep down inside that moments like these wouldn't last forever.

Troy shook his head slowly. Gabriella could feel herself being drawn closer to him as they laid there and as her heart beat extremely fast and as she tried to stop herself from doing what she wanted, she kissed him softly, not sure if he would pull away or not. Troy would be too afraid to admit this to anyone, but as he kissed Gabriella back, he felt closer to her than he had ever with any girl before. She made his heart beat faster and as she pulled away from him, he realized that she was the only girl that made him feel disappointed when he wasn't close to her.

"I'm sorry." Gabriella whispered. "I forgot we were just friends."

"So did I." Troy told her. "But like you said, I don't think we were meant to be friends."

Gabriella swallowed roughly, biting her cheek as her stomach twisted and turned. She nodded, surprised when Troy kissed her again and she smiled when he did.

"How do you know you want this?" Gabriella asked him, because after all, he could have any other girl he wanted.

"Because you're the only person who's been close enough to me to find my ticklish spot." He said seriously, but with a smile.

Gabriella smiled softly, kissing him again slowly.

"Troy," She began after they pulled away.

"Yeah?"

"Get your hand off of my ticklish spot." She said in a whisper.

"Oh. Right." He chuckled, lifting his hand away from the space too close to her butt and as he did she laughed too, hoping that they'd end up working out in the long run because as of now, she couldn't picture herself working with anyone else.

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Much love,

unknownbyhim22