A/N: WOW rachrep! Your review was amazing, and I'm deeply sorry I couldn't respond. I really wanted to, but I didn't have the time! Thanks to FeJoy29 and jb1236, for your lengthy reviews. HisDelilah, I could guess that you love that song. ;) I mean, who doesn't? And omg JohnKrasinskiLover, that was so sweet! By the way, I think it's time you update. ;) Hehe.

I know this is confusing for many, but please. Hang in there.

Disclaimer: I do not own Disney or High School Musical or any of these characters except mine.

P.S. This chapter starts exactly where the last one left off.

Gabriella's mouth dropped open. She had no response. Troy took the opportunity he had while Gabriella was in such deep contemplation, relieved that her hard grip on him had absentmindedly loosened, taking a second to switch off the dim orange light. Troy gently let Gabriella down, her sweaty back connecting with the bed sheets and her head lolling on the pillow as she kept her hands latched to his solid shoulders. Troy widened his legs into a straddle on top of her, bending his knees so he was sort of kneeling. He began pulling out her, gently but not slowly, and Gabriella started to whimper in protest, desperate for his protective warmth. It was difficult for him to hear, but Troy ignored her disapproval, removing the last inch from within her quickly and throwing the drenched condom in her trashcan, which was yet rather bloody.

"Troy—" Gabriella began desperately, her throat seeming to seal the second she tried to speak.

"No, Gabriella," Troy stated firmly, sliding back onto the bed and carefully yanking up the covers over their bodies. Gabriella merely sighed, letting her head droop onto his shoulder, tightening the bed comforter around their tired forms. Troy heaved an exhausted sigh in reply as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against him and allowing her to snuggle up to him. He pressed a loving kiss to her perspired forehead, letting his lips linger as he relished the strong moment he knew he might not get many of. Gabriella was stiff in suspense as she rasped shallow breaths, her heart beginning to pound madly against her chest once more. She felt suddenly awkward, not knowing what to do, what to say, or what would be her next brave move.

"Troy?" she whispered hesitantly, rupturing the silence with her crisp, intimidated voice. Troy hid his face in her hair, egging her on wordlessly. Gabriella drew in a deep, tryingly confident breath before continuing. "Troy, we need to find out a solution. I know that. And I am willing to put time into this, but only if you are. I'm not going to waste my time on something we both don't mutually want." Troy nodded, understanding every single word. She spoke softly, still extremely tentative, "So? Are you willing?"

Troy sighed, knowing beforehand that his answer would be unsatisfactory to her liking. "I have to think about it," he croaked hoarsely. He closed his eyes in pain as she reacted exactly how he had pictured. Her tiny form tensed drastically more in his arms, suddenly rigid and cold.

"What?" she managed to choke. "What-t do you mean? Say it a-again?" Her small hand curled around his tightly. Gabriella was hallucinating. She was sure of it. Maybe she had heard incorrectly. But somewhere deep in the grave pit of her stomach, she had heard each strained word clearly, unmistakably enunciated in her brain.

Troy gulped, his pale lips pursed as he gave a strangled retort. "I need to think this over, Gab."

Fresh tears welled up in her glossy eyes, and she didn't try to veil them, knowing she would fail anyway and any attempt would be useless. Troy's heart shattered at the desolate expression on her face, so lost and confused and helpless. "Wh-Why?" she stammered dejectedly. His organs seemed to wrench terribly at the distressing question, grazing in the fields of his mind. He swallowed forcibly before answering.

"I don't want to hurt you," Troy murmured tenderly, kneading her thigh gingerly. Gabriella flinched at the suddenness of intimate touch. "I need to fix myself first."

"F-Fix yours-self?" Gabriella muttered back, wholly perplexed. Her eyes widened, only glazing themselves with more boiling tears. Troy could feel his heart cascading further and further into the sinister crater that was his stomach with each passing beat of silence.

"Will you wait for me?" Troy whispered faintly. He could barely find his voice, and when he had found and pushed it out of his mouth, he didn't even recognize it. And truly, it scared the living daylights out of him.

"W-Wait for you?" Gabriella mumbled dazedly, suddenly feel dizzy as the world spun frantically about her.

It was like it was all a dream.

Like it wasn't really happening.

The blood was rushing to her head, blocking her thoughts. Her vision was blurred completely. Her elegant face was blank. She was hardly on the earth; hardly alive; hardly conscious; hardly sane. She couldn't feel Troy's gentle fingers stroking her thigh so affectionately. She couldn't feel his gorgeous face dug in her hair, inhaling her aroma while leaving his own unique scent on her. She couldn't feel his solid, muscular form pressed tightly up against hers. She couldn't feel his arms protectively snaked around her. She couldn't hear the angry rain, pattering furiously against the empty streets and slippery sidewalks. She couldn't taste the miserable bitterness seeping through her parched tongue.

Nothing.

Nothing. At. All.

She wasn't blinking. She wasn't feeling. Smelling. Hearing. Seeing. Tasting. Being. She was unoccupied of soul for those paranoid hours in that infinite, strenuous haze, which in reality was only a single minute or two. Instead of a cacophony of harsh, cackling noises, there was silence. Pure silence racking her mind.

Troy was strictly soundless as he deemed the ambiguous yet still harsh options and observed Gabriella through her sickeningly frightening vacancy, biting his lip in worry and concern as he noted her expressionless, dull eyes. Her face was nauseatingly pale, so drained of color that Troy had never witnessed that particular shade of white before.

And she still looks so beautiful, Troy thought to himself as he freed a breath he had not known he had imprisoned. Troy knew he had messed up big time. Was he only hurting her more with that answer? Should he just have gone for it? Should he just have agreed, and said he would put the time in to fix the dilemma? But he didn't want to let her down. He didn't want to agree, and then be unsuccessful for her. Troy only wanted the best for her, and it was as simple as that. It didn't have to be any more complicated. Then why did the troubles only persist to grow more complex?

Gabriella was barely breathing as he gazed at her, transfixed by her glowing, enchanting magic that just seemed to capture him, pathetically easily. "I want the best for you," he choked finally.

Gabriella blinked. Once.

"How can-n I b-believe y-you?" she stuttered back emotionlessly. It was as if there was nothing going on in her head. Unfilled, unpossessed, and untaken.

"Because," Troy sputtered helplessly, "I am trying. I care about you. If I didn't care about you, I wouldn't be really thinking it through and telling the truth."

"B-Because you're laz-zy," Gabriella faltered clumsily, a centimeter away from hysterically breaking down in uncontrollable tears. "You're fucking l-lazy so you tell me you d-don't want to put in the t-time. You don't c-care about me. Y-You are a l-lying—ly-ying b-bastar-rd."

The instant that heartbreaking sentence left her mouth, Troy died. He truly was perished by those piercing, fatal words. He felt his throat closing up, his mind fogging over completely. "Wh—what-t?" he jabbered gracelessly, not really feeling himself speaking, his thin lips numb and feeling like they were out of his control to move.

Gabriella was shaking as if she was naked and it was twenty degrees below zero in the room. Her frail bones were trembling and knocking against her skin. Her teeth were shattering frantically. Her dreary eyes were suddenly dry of moisture. She suddenly regretted her choice of words. She knew they weren't true. It was merely the anger and impatience that had driven her to sputter out those false words. She was in denial, and that was the one thing she couldn't deny. She knew she was insecure, and that she had serious problems. How could she not identify, realize, recognize the unnatural, awkward behavior? Her father had been the perfect example.

"I didn't mean that-t," Gabriella hawed apprehensively, biting her lip anxiously in wait of his response. "I take it b-back."

"I take back what I said too," Troy exhaled out exasperatedly, ultimately relieved. He smiled genuinely at her, placing another remaining kiss to her forehead, his tired eyes drifting shut at the warmness of her delicate skin. He pressed his lips to her forehead again and kept them there, just breathing her in. Gabriella didn't seem to mind, but her little form showed no signs of decreasing its firm tension.

"So what's y-your answer?" she finally whispered in a brittle, hollow voice.

Troy let out a haggard breath. "I'm willing to put time into this. Just—give me time to think of a solution. Because I want to be with you. More than anything in the world."

Gabriella crumpled in his arms. "Are you sure?"

"I promise," he whispered lovingly, his lips falling onto her swollen ones sweetly. Gabriella's response was immediate but gentle, and her mouth replied by gnawing softly at his in a sensual form of a kiss. Troy grunted, and Gabriella pulled away, only to glance in his glimmering sapphire eyes and smile amiably at him. Troy's hands slithered up to her breasts as he reconnected their lips, tugging so tenderly at her bottom lip before diving his tongue into her mouth and exploring eagerly. Sparks were shooting every which way. Gabriella was eliciting moans, pouring out of her mouth, and making Troy harden. He just couldn't help himself. Gabriella also felt an aching pulse begin to form between her legs, but there was no way she was up for round three. She was exhausted, and it was only the wee hours of the morning. There was no way she was going to—

But then she suddenly felt Troy's hands slap to her ass, pushing her up his entire body length with his built muscles so she was sitting on his collarbone. Her sore thighs hugged his head on either side, her knobby knees parallel to the top of his skull. And before she could object, she could feel wet and warm darting in and out of her opening, her eyes widening tremendously at the realization of what is was. Her hands flew to his moist hair, balling up handfuls in her tiny fists as his tongue continued to zip around her entrance. "Tr-Troy!" she managed to gasp as pleasure came near in sight, Troy's breathing hitching at the sound of her so aroused. Gabriella's legs reflexively tightened around his head, making Troy moan out. Gabriella could feel fireworks in between them, her stomach flipping and her rationality plunging as she kissed Troy full on the mouth, entirely and boldly, sure of her action. The unendurable throbbing between her legs intensified so much that she felt like she was on fire. She could feel Troy's tongue playing with her clit, the temperatures in the room skyrocketing. She keeled over his head instinctively, gripping Troy's sticky hair with all she had as she tumbled over into ecstasy, her breathing wildly irregular as she collapsed on top of her lover.

"Gab…" Troy whispered softly, a hand levitating up to her head and gently stroking away the dark, ruly hair that was pasted to her face. He reached his other hand above him, and tenderly began to rub her tense, hard thighs that were clamped tightly around his head until they relaxed. "Gabriella…" He cherished the way her name rolled off of his tongue so easily. He couldn't wrench away his eyes, no matter how hard he tried. He was truly hypnotized by her. His eyes were starry and thoughtful as he gazed at her, in a sort of a dreamy reverie, entranced eternally by her natural beauty and manner. He wanted her. He wanted her, and there was no doubt about that. He had to save this connection. He could. He would. He knew he needed to put the diligent time into their relationship. Into the problem, and into the solution. But mostly, her.

Troy sighed in sleepiness as he carefully scooped Gabriella into his arms, lowering her down on his defined chest, her head falling onto his skin lazily. Her hand gravitated over his distinct muscles, silently searching for his heartbeat, and placing her palm over the stable rhythm once she found it. "Gabriella…?" Troy whispered again, electricity pumping through his blood at the feel of her hand on his heart. He continued to thread his fingers warmly through her damp hair, admiring the way her heavy eyelids delicately fluttered close. Gabriella's face softened at the velvety sound of his voice, slipping into her ears and uniting with his steady heartbeat to lull her to sleep.

"Troy?" Gabriella croaked weakly, her breathing pattern still rather uneven.

"Yeah?" Troy whispered back lovingly, trying to keep the anxiety low in his voice and his thumb rubbing adoring circles on her shoulder. Gabriella wavered at the ghosting, just-barely-there smoothness of his touch.

"Do you think God f-forgets people sometimes?" Gabriella whimpered timidly in a small voice, almost embarrassed at her question. Troy felt his throat dehydrate of liquid immediately, his heart plummeting and splitting into smithereens for the millionth time in the past few hours.

"Don't say those things, Gabriella," Troy murmured with a chaste kiss to her forehead, pushing her closer to him and pulling the covers higher over their fatigued bodies. Gabriella sighed as she cuddled up closer to her ex-boyfriend, her cheek pressed up against his chest.

"Do you believe in destiny?" she asked in substitution. Troy wasn't sure what was up with all these deep questions. And neither did the girl lying leisurely on top of him, but they were spurting out of her mouth and she had no clue where they were coming from. All she knew was that she desperately needed his answers to them.

Troy choked as he answered truthfully. "I guess I do, because…well, it brought me to you." He coughed lightly before adding reassuringly, "So I guess I do." Gabriella merely nodded, pondering over his response in her head and analyzing it. She wasn't sure why. But it felt like she had to. Troy sighed and wrapped an arm around her petite figure, burying his face into her hair. "Just go to sleep, baby," he said, unable to dismiss the way Gabriella froze at the term of endearment.

"What?" she whispered, her heart thumping at the one paralyzing word. One word. One single word could make the world of a difference.

"Baby. You're my baby," Troy gulped hesitantly, as he thought he might have said the wrong thing. It took everything Gabriella had in her to stop from completely wailing like a little kid. She had cried enough that night. She balled her hands up into fists, as if to control herself. Troy quickly noticed this and immediately began to sputter, as if he could fix it all, "I-I mean, I just…I didn't mean to! It sort of c-came out of my m-mouth…and I wasn't-t thinking at all…because I was j-just so used to calling you that-t…sorry, I won't call you that anymore! I p-promise."

"It's fine," Gabriella flinched uncomfortably. "Don't worry about it. And—I won't call you Hunter anymore. I mean—we're not in San Diego anymore, right? So…um, there are no Hamilton Hunters, are there?" Troy nodded understandingly as he recalled their former high school, Alexander Hamilton High School, where he was on the basketball team. "There are just the—Wildcats? Is that it?" Gabriella bit her lip as she strained herself to remember, squinting as she pondered. Troy couldn't help but smile, as she looked so damn cute thinking so intensely like that.

"Yeah, that's it," Troy confirmed.

"I hear you're Capitan again," Gabriella smirked knowingly.

"You've heard correctly," he answered.

A still, almost strange silence befell the two seniors, tangled together under the bed covers. The eeriness in the atmosphere was rather bizarre, but the awkwardness soon evaporated once Gabriella fell to a peaceful sleep, her bare chest moving up and down with each deep breath she took. Troy couldn't help but take the chance to admire her, pressing a kiss to her forehead before falling asleep himself.

It all just happened so fast.

First I heard the door swing open, the deafening crack it made once it connected with the wall burning my eardrums. Then I felt Troy's warm fingers on my exposed back, pressing me closer to him protectively, almost as a signal not to look behind me. But how was I not supposed to? I was naked…in bed…with a boy…. My eyes widened as the facts sunk in, and I swiveled around and sat up, pulling the comforter up above my swelled breasts as I did so. And whom else did I come face to face to? None other than my soon-to-be stepbrother. His face was sickeningly pale, and his mouth hung ajar. He was utterly speechless. The air in the room was suddenly so dense that I could barely breathe.

Would Eric tell? He wasn't the guy to do that. But had this gone to far? Possibly and probably.

But Eric just stood there numbly, his feet rooted to the spot, his eyes spiraling down at the unexpected scene. I felt Troy timidly curl a hand on my waist, as if to reassure me he was there. I thought Eric would never speak, when finally he managed to croak in short gasps, "What…the…fucking…hell?!" Eric was breathing heavily, just hardly able to control himself. I noticed that I was also breathing heavily, and Troy behind me as well. I was in so much trouble. I choked forcibly at this, my hands absentmindedly floating behind me and searching for Troy's, weaving my fingers through his and squeezing.

"Dude," Troy started desperately. I could feel him trembling, and I knew he was incredibly nervous. "Eric, I can explain."

But Eric didn't want any explaining done. He didn't want to hear bullshit coming from two of his closest friends, whom were currently naked together in bed. I suddenly felt sick to my stomach. What had I done? How could I have been so stupid?! My breathing became very raspy and uneven as I began to grow anxious. I could feel myself hyperventilating. What would my mother say? Would she disown me? I knew she did not tolerate any hanky-panky action or this "wild" and "delusional" behavior. She would never expect this to happen. She would be shocked beyond her mind. What would Preppy say? Would he kick me out of the house? What would Elizabeth say? Would she begin to spread rumors at school? I felt lightheaded. Troy noticed, but didn't dare say a thing, only pulling me back closer to him slowly as if Eric wouldn't notice.

"What?" Eric fumed hotly, his face still painfully white. "What?! I'm sorry, but I really don't want to hear the details of what my supposed best friend and stepsister are doing in bed together, when they don't even fucking know each other!" Eric shakily ran his fingers through his hair, steam emitting from his ears. "That's shallow, Troy. Even coming from you. Fucking on my stepsister, who you hadn't even met yet, the night you return from that basketball camp in Nevada. That's—that's really low of you, Troy. Of anyone."

"Eric, it's not like—" I began, feeling bad I wasn't helping Troy in our defense.

"Just—just save it, Gabriella," Eric spat disgustedly, unable to hear anymore. He hastily sprinted from the room and slammed the door shut loudly, leaving Troy and I positively gawking. Neither of us made a move or noise. I felt my stomach churning, and I suddenly leapt up, not caring I was naked, kneeling over the toilet and preparing to vomit. I heard fast, heavy footsteps, and before I knew it, Troy's arms were around me, enveloping me to his chest as I erupted in pitiful tears.

A/N: Tada!