THE SIMPLE NEED
AN:
Wow! I mean seriously... wow! Thank you soooo much for all of your wonderful feedback, each and every single person that reviewed. Know that even though I fail epically at responding, I read EVERY review and each one brings a smile to my face. Thanks also to all of the people who have put this story into their alerts and favourites, I'd love to hear your thoughts if you have a few moments spare :)
A special thanks to everyone at Fan Forum who has been soooo incredibly supportive of this fic. Thanks for turning the Vanessa FanFiction thread into a 'post photos of Zac with guitars' thread for a little while ;) My muse really needed it.
If you read Someday: This Moment; there has been a delay due to uncontrollable circumstances. I apologise and endeavour to publish the next chapter as soon as possible.
Finally, this is going to be more than a three shot. Maybe four or five chapters. :)
~.~
I'm loving what you wanna wear, wonder what's up under there
Wonder if I'll ever have it under my tongue...
I'd love to try to set you free, I love you all over me
Love to hear the sound you make the second you're done
S is for the simple need
E is for the ecstasy
X is just to mark the spot coz that's the one you really want
'S.E.X. by Nickelback
~.~
THE SIMPLE NEED: TWO
Troy leaned over, hot breath tickling against her ear, and murmured, "Believe me. You want to dance with me. I'm very good at... dancing."
"Are we still talking about the same type of dancing?" she asked.
He smiled. "We're talking about whatever type of dancing it is that you want to be talking about."
Troy pressed a chaste, lingering kiss to her cheek, wanting to have kissed her properly but concluding that perhaps it was better to follow his own advice and leave her wanting more. If the look in her eyes was indicative of what she was feeling, he knew he'd been successful.
Gabriella gazed after him as he sauntered away toward the backstage door, her fingertips lightly grazing her cheek where his lips had pressed against her soft skin. He glanced back behind him one final time, gazes meeting across the room. He gave her a wink before finally disappearing through the door to join his band mates.
She picked up her margarita, her lips enclosing over the straw and taking in a long gulp, ignoring the slight burning sensation of the strong alcohol as it hit the back of her throat.
"Wow, go Gabriella. I wouldn't have picked you to be a Troy-boy groupie," Zeke remarked, her new acquaintances making their way back over to the table they'd shuffled away from.
"Someone is going to have a good night tonight," Chad added teasingly.
"We were just talking," Gabriella protested, knowing that her words were weak.
"Troy doesn't just talk," Chad informed her knowingly.
Sharpay turned to Gabriella, and bluntly enquired, "When was the last time you had sex?"
Gabriella's eyes widened. She'd never been particularly forthcoming with discussing her sex life with friends, and so the concept of discussing it with people she barely knew was a bit ludicrous. "Okay, I met you like less than two hours ago so I seriously don't think you should be asking me that!"
The boisterous blonde was not deterred; in fact she was all the more determined to press forward. Five minutes of conversation with Gabriella Montez was enough to sense that she was a good person, a little repressed, but she had a good heart and a spunk that was skimming beneath the surface and waiting to be let out. "You have had sex, haven't you? I mean, if you haven't then..."
"Of course I have!" Gabriella became a little defensive – in a similar way to the defensiveness she'd exhibited when she'd interpreted Troy as insinuating that she couldn't possibly have a boyfriend. She was 26, she had no moral objections to sex before marriage and although she didn't have an overblown self esteem, she knew that she was relatively attractive, or at least, that there was something that men seemed to find attractive about her.
"But the last time was a while ago. I saw that momentary pause where you had to think about your last time. If you have to think about it, it's been too long," Sharpay said knowingly. "I say if Troy is interested, just go with the flow and enjoy it!"
Gabriella sighed irritably. "Just because Troy is interested, it doesn't mean that I am. I'm not... this is... I don't do this! It's not who I am!"
"Maybe it should be," Chad commented. "You seem like you could use a good..."
"Chad!" Taylor chided, slapping him on the arm.
"What?!" he exclaimed, rubbing his arm at where his wife had struck him. Even though it had been playful and in jest, it still surprisingly hurt.
Gabriella picked the straw out of her margarita, tossed it into an empty glass that was on the table, and tipped the margarita glass back to consume the remainder of the cocktail.
"I'm getting another round," she announced abruptly.
"Oh, I'm good with..." Zeke began to say, gesturing to his half consumed bottle of Budweiser.
"I don't care. I don't want to miss any of the show and it's my turn to buy. So I'm buying now."
She marched toward the bar, stumbling a little but catching herself. Taylor was quick to follow the petite brunette.
"Hey, are you all right?" Taylor was attempting to be gentle, needing to coax her new friend out to speak candidly, but the noise of the crowded bar area with people waiting to be served was forcing Taylor to speak at an elevated volume.
"Just feeling the need to be drunk, that is all," Gabriella said.
There was a forced cheeriness to her tone that didn't go over Taylor's head. Taylor raised her eyebrows. There was nervous energy radiating from her new friend, and she felt a certain protectiveness. She was the one who had invited Gabriella out. She and Sharpay had known Troy would come visit them, and they hadn't acted to make Gabriella aware of Troy's flirtatious and charming tendencies, even when they'd been aware of Gabriella's blatant attraction. And so she felt a little responsible for any negative fallout that may occur as a consequence. So Taylor grabbed Gabriella by the hand and pulled her away from the bar and toward the hallway near the bathrooms.
"Gabriella... talk to me. Please," Taylor said, now able to speak a little more softly that they were in a quieter area.
Gabriella let out a sigh. Truthfully she wanted to talk. She was sick of being guarded and with a trio of margaritas in her system, she was willing to let go of that barrier. "Can I be completely honest with you and trust that you won't think less of me?"
"Yes."
She leaned forward and whispered into Taylor's ear. "I'm really, really, really attracted to him."
Taylor hid a smirk. "I wouldn't have known," she said, sarcasm dripping.
Gabriella gave a tipsy giggle. "Well I am. Like... ridiculously attracted. I don't do this stuff. Never, ever. There's this boring Gabriella who sits in my shoulder, like the devil, and she tells me that it's wrong and immoral and that sex is about love, not lust, and that this is crazy and irrational and that I'll regret it." She drifted off, her eyes hazing over a little.
"I'm sensing a but?" Taylor prompted.
Gabriella nodded. "But... I have this feeling somewhere inside... you know, somewhere here..." she gestured to her lower abdomen. "That just... that wants him so badly, that doesn't care about the consequences, that doesn't care about tomorrow and just wants to do what feels right tonight."
A lazy smile spread across her lips. She didn't know what would eventuate if she allowed herself to forget about ramifications. At a minimum if it meant she had a conversation with a really hot guy then that would be more than she would have gotten otherwise. Merely feeling his lips against hers would be a bonus. However she couldn't help but know somewhere deep down that the energy between them had been electrifying, and as brief as their conversation had been, if things continued to build from where they'd began – there would be a whole lot more than kissing taking place.
"You know, there's nothing wrong with that. I mean ultimately it's your own sense of morality but... sometimes sex can just be sex," Taylor said frankly, before quickly covering herself and explaining further. "I love Chad very much, but before we were dating, I had a few one night stands. It doesn't make you less human – if anything it makes you more human."
Gabriella allowed this advice to sink in, before asking somewhat randomly, "What did you do for New Years this year?"
Taylor thought for a moment. "Sharpay managed to score us entry into this fancy party at a nightclub, there was free champagne, it was a really fun night. Why?"
"This New Years, I sat alone in my hotel room wearing my monkey pyjamas watching the fireworks on television," Gabriella said, her voice bitter and tainted with self loathe. "I received this 'happy new year' text message from my mother, telling me that she was out at a party and hoped I was having fun. My own mother who is in her fifties was out partying and here I was, in the city that never sleeps... alone."
"Well, you were new in town," Taylor pointed out.
"Doesn't matter. I got a couple of obligatory invitations to house parties from work colleagues I'd just met I'd just met and it would have been the perfect opportunity to get to know people. But I made excuses. And so my new years' resolution was that I wanted to start being more spontaneous, to take risks, to ignore logical, boring, rational Gabriella and just... and just do the things that I feel are right."
"So what do you feel is right tonight?"
"I feel like I should just go with the flow and see what happens." Her tone was decisive, empowered.
"Good girl," Taylor said, and then hesitated. "Except..."
The confidence of moments earlier faltered. "Oh no... do you think I made the wrong decision? Do you think I should listen to my brain?"
"No! I don't. But just... I hope you realise..." Taylor trailed off. "You know what, never mind."
"You have to say it now!" Gabriella insisted, rolling her eyes. "'You can't say that much and then stop."
Taylor sighed, and then spoke carefully. She didn't want to directly influence, rather she just wanted Gabriella to have all the facts before making that decision. "I've known Troy a long time. At heart, he's a good guy. Even before we were really friends, I never really had anything against him personally; we just weren't in the same social circle. But I just hope that you realise that... he's not exactly a commitment kind of guy. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
Gabriella blinked. "Taylor. I might not be Miss Social Butterfly but I'm not naive. I'm in a bar fantasising about having sex with a musician who I've officially spoken to for a total of like, fifteen minutes. I'm not picking out bridesmaid dresses in my head or anything."
Relief filled Taylor's face. "Okay. Good. Just... just checking."
Gabriella swallowed, her teeth delicately chewing on her lower lip. "I just said that, didn't I?"
"Said what?"
"I, Gabriella Montez, am fantasising about having sex with a musician I've spoken to for a total of fifteen minutes." She shook her head slightly, as though shaking the disbelief away. "I need that drink. We're going back to the bar."
Taylor obliged, the girls queuing up at the bar and managing to select one of the quicker sections of people, going behind a lot of guys just having beers poured rather than behind the girls who would have fancier drinks made. Gabriella promptly ordered their three margaritas and two bottles of Budweiser, and the bartender efficiently mixed up the cocktails. When the drinks were placed down in front of the girls, Taylor's brows furrowed at the sight of one of the three cocktails.
"Um... we didn't order this," she said, gesturing to the creamy looking cocktail.
"Troy insisted that if the young lady here came back to the bar, that we make this particular drink for her," the bartender said, gesturing to Gabriella. "He promised that you would enjoy it."
Taylor was about to protest further but Gabriella cut her off. "Does it have alcohol in it?" she asked the bartender.
He nodded. "Yes ma'am."
"Then it's great."
Gabriella pulled cash out of her wallet but the bartender waved it away. "It's been covered. Enjoy the show."
Even though Taylor had drank more than Gabriella, she suspected she was a little more clear headed and quickly picked up the three cocktails with her two hands, leaving Gabriella to carry the beers.
"What was that about, it's been covered?" Gabriella asked Taylor.
Taylor shrugged. "It's free drinks, I'm not about to argue with it! I bet Troy just asked them to give us more freebies."
"He wants me drunk," Gabriella said bitterly. "Fantastic."
"Well, you wanted to get more drunk, so it seems that all in all, it works out okay for everyone," Taylor said dismissively.
They arrived back at the table, Taylor carefully setting the cocktails down.
"Oooh, what's that?" Sharpay asked, eyeing off the creamy cocktail.
"I don't know. Apparently Troy told them to make it for me when I went to the bar. Said that I'd enjoy it," Gabriella said, shrugging. She picked up the glass, tentatively taking a sip out of the black straw, before her eyes closed and her head tipped back slightly a smile crossing her face.
"Oh my God that is heaven in a glass," she said, breathing in deeply. "And I don't even know what it is."
"Let me taste," Sharpay requested, holding her hand out. She was the queen of cocktail hour, and had no doubt she would be able to identify the cocktail. Already she had a sneaking suspicion.
Gabriella obliged, passing the glass across the table. Sharpay took a sip, a slight smile spreading across her face. "That is an Orgasm. Troy ordered you an Orgasm," she said with a smirk.
The guys snickered and Gabriella's eyes widened.
Chad laughed. "Subtle Bolton, subtle."
"Well. That um... well." Gabriella was a little flustered, and her solution was to pick up the cocktail and take a long sip.
A shrill shriek from the front of the room caused people to look forward, seeing that once again the drummer had appeared on stage.
"They're starting back," Sharpay observed.
Suddenly all bashfulness about Troy's gesture with the drink was dropped, Gabriella's attention fixed entirely upon the small stage. She'd contemplated briefly moving right to the front of the stage to get perfect view, but for some reason she preferred it from their safe distance back. She could ogle without risking having her eyes gauged out by other fangirls. And she didn't want to appear desperate. Because there was the Troy on the stage who she'd been attracted to, and there was the Troy she'd conversed with who she was also attracted to, but on a different level. On a more real level.
Just like the first half of the set, the band continued with playing relatively safe mainstream contemporary rock. None of them had a great deal of time to dedicate to the band, it was just something extra they did on weekends and only practiced once a week, so they didn't really have the time to invest in learning new songs, they stuck to slightly older songs from the late 1990's and early 2000's and threw in some new ones – such as from the latest Nickelback album. Overall, it suited Gabriella's music taste perfectly. Even if the lead guitarist and backup singer hadn't captivated her, she would have enjoyed their music, with Counting Crows, Kings of Leon, Matchbox 20 and Oasis all featuring within their set list.
To the unobservant eye, Troy just appeared to be performing as he would every other night, and perhaps looking out into the crowd a little more often than usual. However the observant eye could see that there was a pointedness to his sneak glances.
He was watching her.
He wasn't being too blatant about it, he was still performing and needed to get the job done. But his gaze penetrated straight into her somewhat glazed chocolate eyes for brief moments, those brief moments enough for Gabriella. With the Orgasm registering in her system, she was finding herself feeling increasingly compelled to march straight up to the stage and to pull the man away. She didn't like him being up on display. She didn't like hearing the shrieks of grown women when there would be an instrumental bit and his guitar playing was the feature of the section. She didn't like when he would smile in their direction, knowing that they relied upon having fans to maintain this gig. She had no claim to him and yet she wanted to scream to them all to back off because that night – he was to be hers. Whatever that should entail.
They'd already performed Burn it to the Ground and I'd Come For You from Nickelback's 'Dark Horse' album, but there was one final song from the album they'd been rehearsing and wanted to test on the crowd.
The people who knew the song went off immediately, the distinctive guitar riff indicating what song was coming up. Gabriella recognised it as well, being a Nickelback fan and in particular liking Dark Horse. Her cheeks automatically flushed. She was the kind of girl who liked to keep everything about sex private and behind closed doors. If she was watching a movie with her mother and the content became a bit risqué, she would automatically become a little uncomfortable. And so a song which by title – S.E.X. – was so blatantly about what she liked to keep private – it had the tendency to induce embarrassment.
However this experience was causing a flush of a whole different kind.
It wasn't until the pre-chorus that Troy was actually meant to join in, his voice blending in and harmonising with the lead singer. During the first verse it was business as usual, occasional glances around the room, winking at the women at the front. But once the pre-chorus began, Troy's gaze penetrated straight into Gabriella's eyes. There was nothing discreet about his stare, nothing coy.
S is for the simple need
E is for the ecstasy
X is just to mark the spot coz that's the one you really want
It was blatant, his eyes reeking of sex. He mimed his way through every word of the chorus, singing aloud the lines he was actually meant to sing. He only looked away from her for the briefest of periods, to glance at his band mates with their silent forms of communicating and signalling one another.
Yes, sex is always the answer
It's never a question
Coz the answer's yes.
Oh the answer's yes
Not just a suggestion
If you ask the question then it's always yes
By the end of the first chorus, Gabriella couldn't handle the intensity of the gaze, her glazed eyes shifting away and shifting about the room. Troy could be playing and singing along to a song about cotton balls, and with that stare, succeed in eliciting a severe reaction from her. Singing about sex merely served to heighten the intensity – and although Gabriella would feel uncomfortable to admit it aloud – to heighten her arousal.
One thing was for certain – the band couldn't finish quickly enough. In that moment, the rational Gabriella devil had completely left the building.
. . .
After the set was complete, it was Gabriella who dragged Taylor and Sharpay with her to the bathroom, pushing through the crowd to beat the rush. She knew that Troy would take a few minutes to pack up but there was this voice in the back of her brain that couldn't help but worry that if she was not present when he emerged into the club, it would take about two point seven seconds for his attention to be diverted to one of the gorgeous women who fawned over him and for Gabriella to miss out on her shot before she even really had the chance to attempt to impress him. She did her business and then stood in front of the mirror fluffing her hair beneath the hand dryer and reapplying lip gloss.
"I wish you'd told me that Adonis was going to be here. I would have dressed nicer," Gabriella commented as Taylor emerged from her toilet cubicle.
"Adonis?" Taylor repeated.
"You know, the figure of West Semitic origin who became a part of Greek mythology and in modern literature is used as a figure of youthfulness and attractiveness and..."
"I know who Adonis is. I was just amused by you labelling Troy that way."
"Don't you think he's like, completely perfect?" Gabriella asked, blinking slightly.
"See, I knew Troy back before he became hot and when he was just very pretty," Taylor mused. "I can admit that he is attractive but I just can't be attracted to him."
A flush came from the nearest toilet cubicle to the sinks and Sharpay emerged, having overheard the exchange.
"She's right. Troy's like a brother or something. But you – you're welcome to him."
Gabriella glanced at her thin silver watch. "Okay, are you guys done?"
"Calm down, he'll be helping to pack their equipment away for a little while," Sharpay said, while washing her hands. She quickly dried her hands with a paper towel and then quickly examined Gabriella. "Can I make one quick modification?"
"Umm... sure?" Gabriella said warily.
"Okay... don't be alarmed. I love my boyfriend and I am not attracted to women," Sharpay warned before reaching forward, grasping onto the bottom underwire of Gabriella's strapless bra, pulling it down and then pushing it back up.
"Hey!"
"Much better," Sharpay said with a decisively nod, before pausing. "Wait, and this." Her final touch was to pull down Gabriella's halter top, just the slightest amount, revealing a touch of cleavage. "Gorgeous. I'm so jealous that you didn't even attempt to dress up tonight and yet you look perfect."
Gabriella rolled her eyes, her arms folding across her chest a little, feeling slightly violated but really being beyond caring. "You approve now? We can go?"
"Yes, let's go."
The bathroom was beginning to crowd up and Gabriella led the trio away. Her eyes lit up upon seeing that Chad and Zeke was standing at their table without any additional company.
But their fivesome wasn't alone for long, as within minutes, Troy and his band mates appeared from the backstage area. Gabriella was facing the other way but she could hear the slight commotion, and gripped onto Taylor's arm.
"Is that them?"
"Yes. Now be cool!" Taylor said, rolling her eyes.
"I am cool. I'm perfectly cool. Don't I seem cool?"
"Well, other than the gripping onto Taylor's arm, you appear totally normal," Zeke observed.
"Oh." Gabriella sheepishly dropped her hand from Taylor's arm.
"Hey guys," Troy's silky smooth voice came, as cool as a cucumber. He'd slid into their circle around the table between Gabriella and Sharpay.
Gabriella stared at the table, attempting to appear calm and natural but internally, she was melting just at the proximity of his location.
"Hey man. Second half of the set was even better than the first," Chad complimented him.
"Well you know, save the best 'til last."
Gabriella felt a hand lightly rest on the small of her back and could deduce it wasn't Taylor's hand. Taylor's hand wasn't this large, Taylor's hand couldn't possibly cause tingles to radiate throughout her body.
"I see you stayed, beautiful," Troy murmured softly, leaning over so she could hear him over the din.
To say he was pleased to see her was an understatement. He'd never packed up their equipment as quickly as he had that evening. The thought of her leaving, or even worse, the thought that he may have emerged to see her being snapped up by some other guy – it was horrific. And so seeing her still there with his friends had been a good feeling. He felt like half the challenge had been getting her beyond first impressions, beyond that point where she had the time away from him to rationalise things. He couldn't control those things. But while he was with her – he knew he had the upper hand. He knew how to read the way that a woman was reacting to his advances. He knew how to play up to her desires. He knew how to affect her and make her desire him.
And if Troy was reading Gabriella's reaction to his presence right, then he knew that it wasn't going to be too much of a challenge. He could see that she was trying to act nonchalant, but trying was the operative word. She couldn't control the shiver, and she couldn't hide the look in her eyes as she glanced up at him.
She swallowed. "Well... you did ask me to stay, after all."
From that moment, the pair was encased within their own bubble. Taylor and Chad, Sharpay and Zeke – they didn't exist. Neither did any of the drunken patrons who surrounded them, gradually gravitating toward the dance floor as the DJ began his set, the bar taking its turn toward a club for the evening. Gabriella and Troy were standing close, each time they spoke shifting closer toward the other, not wanting to shout and ruin the ambiance between them but the noise of the room prohibiting conversation at normal volume and distance apart.
"That I did. And thank you for staying," he said simply. "Did you like the song that I dedicated to you?"
Gabriella knew what he was referring to, but she chose to play dumb.
"I wasn't aware you'd dedicated a song to me."
He smiled. The heated gaze they'd maintained throughout a significant portion of S.E.X. couldn't be boiled down to a casual gaze. He knew that she knew what he was referring to, and she knew that he knew she was just playing dumb. Nonetheless, he chose to play along and explain it to her.
"Maybe I wasn't explicit enough. You see, there was this song in our set which we played for the first time ever tonight. And I just couldn't keep my eyes away from you... the lyrics resonated for some reason. So unofficially, the song was in fact dedicated to you."
"The lyrics resonated?"
He leaned over closer, and in a soft voice began to sing in her ear.
"I'm loving what you wanna wear, wonder what's up under there, wonder if I'll ever have it under my tongue..."
Gabriella's eyes fluttered closed momentarily, an unmistakable gasp escaping from her lips that was border lining upon being a moan. Troy smirked, deciding to continue with the next lyric.
"I'd love to try to set you free, I love you all over me, love to hear the sound you make the second you're done..."
His hand rested lightly on her waist for a moment as he pulled back a little. "So yes... the lyrics resonated. I can keep singing, if you like."
"I can't say I'd argue with that concept. You have a beautiful voice," Gabriella murmured.
Just like the previous time where he'd been singing that song on stage – it wasn't only the content itself which was stimulating. It was first and foremost his voice, the sensuality within it, the sensuality of having his lips so close to her hear and singing those words to her.
"Speaking of sounds you make when you're done..." Troy said lewdly, and gestured toward the empty cocktail glass in front of her, a smirk filling his features. "Did you enjoy your Orgasm?"
Gabriella giggled and confessed, "I did."
"If you play your cards right..." he paused, and once again leaned further forward so he could murmur into her ear, "that could be the first of many orgasms tonight."
His right hand ghosted lightly down her upper arm, squeezing gently. Gabriella felt herself flush lightly just from the graze of his finger.
"You were thinking about it just then, weren't you? Just like you were thinking about it when I was singing?"
Gabriella narrowed her eyes slightly. "That's rather presumptive of you."
"You're not denying it."
"You're a lot of talk. I'd like to see you put your money where your mouth is."
"Oh you would, would you? Is that an invitation? Because there's this backstage area just through that door, and I guarantee you that number two and three can take place almost immediately."
"Number two and three?" Gabriella enquired, before realising what he was inferring. Her eyes widened, cheeks flushing. "Oh."
"You're so gorgeous when you blush."
"I kind of hate it," she confessed. "I can't even pretend that this is something I do on a regular basis."
"This being?"
"Whatever you and I are doing right now."
"You've never talked with a man before?" he teased.
"I've never talked with an attractive man who orders me a cocktail called an Orgasm and has the bartender tell me how much I'll enjoy it."
"It's just the name of a cocktail," Troy said teasingly, before turning slightly serious. "Nothing is happening here unless you want it to happen. Okay?"
Gabriella nodded, knowing that he wasn't the kind of guy who was about to coerce her into something. "Okay."
"How many drinks have you had?" Troy asked.
"Three... or is it four?" she pondered. "Four."
"Four cocktails? At your size? And I'm guessing you don't drink often?" Troy had brought a water bottle out with him which he'd set down upon the table. He picked it up and thrust the plastic container at her. "Drink that, and come with me."
"That was very commanding of you," Gabriella teased, but she wasn't about to argue with him.
His hand took a hold of hers to pull her through the crowd and to the bar. He waited at the end where there was a sign saying it was a no service area – but no area was no service to Troy Bolton. As they waited, his arm slung across her shoulder – making it seem like he was keeping her close to him within the crowd, but in reality, he just wanted the contact. He needed the contact.
He leaned across when the bartender arrived, promptly made an order which was brought over efficiently. A shot of a dark liqueur was placed onto the bar, which he promptly tossed back into his throat. He then picked up a glass of bourbon and coke, and handed Gabriella another creamy cocktail which she promptly sipped from before they'd even left the bar.
"It tastes different," she commented.
"It's half strength. The first was quite potent."
"A half strength Orgasm?" Gabriella asked, eyebrows raising teasingly. "That's all you're capable of?"
"I'll make up for it later, I promise," Troy promptly shot back with a smirk. "Come on."
Again their hands entwined and instead of returning back to the table with the others, Troy led Gabriella further into the back of the room where some small booths were against the back wall. A few of them had reserved signs on them, and he promptly gestured for her to slide into the booth, and then slid in after her. There was enough room for maybe four people, five at a squeeze, but Troy chose to sit as closely to her as he could, their legs pressed up together.
She became serious, and turned to him. "Troy?"
"Yes beautiful?"
"Why half strength? And why the water? I would have thought you'd want to get me drunk." That was what she'd assumed when he'd organised for another round of their drinks to be paid for without telling her.
Troy was a little taken aback by this interpretation. He shook his head firmly. "No, Gabriella. I'm not in the habit of taking advantage of drunk women. Shedding inhibitions is one thing, but any more and it won't be a coherent decision. I don't wanna be that guy that you wake up and regret... regret whatever may happen between us. You should never regret your decisions, even if they are made purely out of impulse and to adhere to your physical urges."
"You do realise that if I was completely sober, I wouldn't even be sitting here talking with you?"
"Yes. But you would have gone home regretting that you were too scared to follow your instincts, your instincts that told you that this is something that you want. A few drinks allows you to shed your inhibitions and follow your instincts."
"And you care about whether I regret things? You care about how I would feel about... whatever may happen?"
"Of course I do," he said seriously, before adding teasingly, "Manhattan isn't as big as people think. It's not wise to make enemies."
Gabriella smiled, her right hand resting upon his left knee. "Beneath all this... bravado... you really are a good guy beneath it all, aren't you?"
Troy paused, not sure how to respond to that. It was true. Deep down he was a good guy. He didn't want to deny it but he didn't want her thinking he was some kind of misguided spirit either. He decided upon a somewhat teasing, somewhat serious response. "Maybe. But let's keep that between you and I."
She sensed that he didn't want to discuss the point, and nodded. "Okay. Deal."
"So. Gabriella. Tell me about yourself. I know that you're really gorgeous and that you live in the same apartment building as Chad and Taylor and that is pretty much it."
She giggled. "Okay. Well. I grew up moving around about a million different cities. I went to college in Boston, I fast tracked through my undergraduate at MIT and then through my studies at Harvard Med." She spoke pretty quickly. She wasn't ashamed of being intelligent but she was always wary of people interpreting that she was bragging. She wasn't, she simply had to explain how it was that she was 26 and already in the life position she was in – it was because she completed her tertiary studies at an accelerated pace.
Troy let out a low whistle. "Fast tracked through MIT and Harvard? Okay."
She didn't acknowledge his awe, but merely continued with her explanation. "I never really wanted to practice medicine, I'm more interested in research. I worked for a medical research lab for a couple of years and I was just offered a position to start at NYU teaching undergrad and doing research of my own. So I moved into town in December, and I just moved into my new apartment a few days ago."
"You're a professor?" he asked, before adding, "That's really hot."
She giggled. "I would have thought an exciting guy like yourself would find it rather boring."
He shook his head. "Smart chicks are sexy. Hang on... so you're also technically a doctor?"
"Um, ish. I haven't completed my residency though."
"You're getting hotter and hotter by the minute."
She blushed once again, and Troy was still fascinated. His thumb came up to graze against her cheek. "Don't be embarrassed. You should get used to people complimenting you. Obviously people are dumb and don't compliment you enough."
She shrugged, deciding upon saving her blushing cheeks and changing the topic. "So tell me about you. Just the basics. Other than Troy, high school classmate of Chad and Taylor and now member of really hot Manhattan based band... what are you guys called anyway?"
"Well... we had a name but we found out there's another band out there with that name so we're kinda between names at the moment."
"What was your name?"
"Little Black Book."
Gabriella rolled her eyes. "And here I was thinking that you wouldn't even bother collecting the phone numbers of your conquests."
Troy couldn't help but laugh, and be impressed that she was able to make fun of his ways even when she was in the process of becoming one of those 'conquests' as she had eloquently labelled them.
"Of course I collect them. But in my cell, not in a book," he smirked. "Anyway yeah... so, grew up in Albuquerque. Came here for college. Majored in music and education to my father's dismay. I taught for one year after graduating and hated it and now I sorta... do a whole bunch of jobs. I'm assistant manager of a vintage record store. I teach some private music lessons. I also have my own DJ equipment and I do some parties and stuff. And of course there's the band."
"What do you mean, to your father's dismay?" Gabriella asked.
He paused and scratched the back of his neck as he took a long sip of his bourbon and coke. "Umm... I used to play basketball. I'm sorta self taught with the guitar, I never did music properly in high school. Guess he expected me to do the basketball thing. I like the sport but... just not for a career, you know?"
"That must have been hard, going against his wishes," she said softly. She could hear the bitterness in his tone, despite his efforts to be casual about the matter. Obviously it was something that still stung somewhere deep down.
"I think it's harder now because I really don't know what I want to be doing. If I'd given basketball the flick and then become super successful doing something else, it would have been better."
He gave her a grin, not liking the look of sympathy she was casting upon him. "So you're new in New York? Do you like it?"
Gabriella paused. "So far, definitely. I love this part of the city in particular. I don't really know many people yet but I was never exactly a social butterfly back in Boston either."
"I find that so hard to believe," Troy mused.
"Why is that?"
"Because you're funny and witty and gorgeous," he said bluntly.
She shrugged. "I worked a lot in Boston, I was at the lab more than I was at my apartment. I'm hoping to change things here. So far it's been pretty quiet but... I think Taylor and I might become good friends."
He'd somewhat tuned out as she'd responded to him, because somehow she'd succeeded in getting a smidgen of her cocktail smeared across the corner of her mouth. A smile was playing on his lips and Gabriella trailed off, realising he wasn't paying attention.
"What? What's funny?"
"Oh, nothing is funny, it's just cute. You uh... you have a little something..." he turned to face her, his right hand reaching up and his index finger gently swiping at where the cocktail had been. He held it up so she could see, and then promptly suckled his finger lightly. "All gone."
And then it struck them. That moment in time when two people are gazing at one another and they are just inches apart, when breaths hitch, when she subconsciously runs her tongue along her lower lip to moisten the flesh.
A part of Troy had formulated his 'game plan' whilst he'd been packing up their equipment backstage, and within that plan it had included going slow and not rushing into things. But in that moment, he didn't care about his plan of attack. Troy was a man of instinct, his instinct said to kiss her and there was simply nothing to do but to follow that instinct.
His right hand rested lightly upon her waist as he dipped toward her, pressing his lips against hers softly without another moment's hesitation. He'd intended for the kiss to be brief and tender, but it was Gabriella who responded, Gabriella who moaned into his kiss and coaxed his lips to continue to be parted. Her hands came to rest at the back of his head, the fingers of her right hand toying lightly with the hair at the nape of his neck. Their rhythm was perfectly in tune, no awkward bumping of noses, lips moving together slowly, luxuriously, in wide, deep kisses.
As they pulled away, the gaze which followed was pure lust. Troy hadn't been so aroused by a kiss since he was a teenager. A part of him wanted to demand that she assure him that they were on the same page because he was at the point where he wasn't sure he could handle it if the flirtation went further and it didn't eventuate in the bliss he was fantasising about. But he didn't need her to verbalise it. Any doubt that had been within her mind had pretty much been swept away.
"Troy?" she breathed.
"Yeah?"
"Why me?"
"What do you mean, why you?" he asked, genuinely confused.
"You... you are the most stunning man I've ever seen, like, ever, anywhere, hotter than the movie stars and everything. And I currently am afraid to go anywhere without a body guard because the girls here would probably come gauge my eyes out for swooping in and stealing their guy. You could have any of them. And yet you're here with me. Why?"
He tucked a strand of her bangs that she was growing out back, it as presently hanging slightly over her eye. "Because you just had to ask that question," he said simply, before pressing his lips to hers in a short, tender kiss.
The clearing of a throat caused Troy and Gabriella to look up. Chad and Taylor were standing there, smiles playing on both their faces.
"Sorry to interrupt, but we wanted to let you know that we're leaving," Chad informed them. "Sharpay and Zeke left about ten minutes ago."
"Oh okay. Well have a good night," Troy said, not even caring to be discreet about wanting to get rid of them.
"Here's your coat, Gabriella," Taylor said, hanging the black woollen trench over.
Gabriella smiled and accepted it, placing it down onto the seat beside her. "Thank you. And thanks for inviting me."
"Yes, thanks for inviting her," Troy chimed in. She hit him teasingly, the back of her hand thwacking against his chest, causing him to laugh.
Taylor leaned over to give Gabriella a hug goodbye, murmuring in her ear, "You okay?" Gabriella nodded definitively as Taylor pulled back, giving her a small assuring smile. "Well you have my number, so um... call me if you need me. Any time."
Gabriella understood Taylor's implied warning that she could call her that night if she needed help at any time. "Yes I do. Thanks."
Troy wasn't lost on the exchange between the girls, and he wasn't entirely surprised, it was just like Taylor to be all protective and Mother Hen of her new friend. He was somewhat grateful – he didn't like the idea of Gabriella being alone in New York without anyone she could call in a bind; it wasn't the kind of city for a young woman to be put into a position of not having 'in case of emergency' people. However it was clear that Gabriella was fine, and Taylor should know him well enough that he wasn't about to abandon her in the middle of a strange neighbourhood and leave her to fend for herself.
"Well thanks for coming guys, as always I appreciate it. Give us a call, we'll chill," Troy said, wanting to wrap up the goodbye.
Chad caught the hint, and nodded. "Come on Tay. Night Troy, night Gabriella." He escorted Taylor away, once again leaving Troy and Gabriella alone.
He picked up his bourbon and coke and finished the beverage, and then gestured to the little that remained of her cocktail. "How about you finish that and we go dance?" he suggested.
She nodded obligingly, and picked up the glass to complete the drink. Dancing served ulterior motives in allowing them to become physically closer, however sitting and talking with this woman, Troy was finding himself revealing more than what he knew how to comprehend. Sometimes women would press him to talk about himself, as soon as conversation became anything beneath the surface he would shut them down, turn the tables, ask about their life, distract them with a kiss or a graze of the hand over a damp panty-covered mound. But with Gabriella, for some reason, it didn't feel wrong. It felt natural. Which was somewhat scary for Troy. The longer he'd spent sitting conversing with this woman, the more attracted he was to her, and the more that attraction was expanding to be more than just physical. It was the way she carried herself, the sound of her voice, the way she spoke, the way she looked at him.
He wasn't sure what to do with these levels of attraction and so dancing was all around the best solution.
"Um, what should I do with this?" Gabriella asked, indicating to her coat. "I'd rather not leave it here."
"Umm... I can put it backstage if you want?" he suggested.
"Okay," she agreed with a nod. "Um... I might just go to the bathroom if that's okay?"
"You're not afraid you'll get your eyes gauged out in there?" he teased.
"It's a risk I'll have to take, I guess," she giggled.
"I'll meet you outside the bathroom," he said. "Actually... do you want me to put your purse back there too?"
Gabriella hesitated. Truthfully she'd like to be able to dance without the impediment of a purse, but she was wary of letting it out of her sight.
"I promise it'll be safe back there, it's a locked area, I have a key. Only staff and the band members have access and literally only one staff member goes in there anyway. Chad and Taylor would kill me if I lost your stuff anyway."
"Umm... okay..." she said, thrusting her purse out at him. "Oh wait, hang on, I should get my lip gloss." She went to reach out for the purse but Troy held it away.
"Who are you trying to impress? Because if it's me, I'm just going to kiss it off your lips anyway," he pointed out with a grin.
She smiled and sighed. "Okay fine. I'll meet you back out here."
He pressed another kiss to her lips, murmuring by her ear, "Don't take too long."
~.~