Chapter 3

Troy's POV

I walked inside the Montez' large two storey apartment and my mouth fell open. The main room was large with pale beige coloured walls and brilliant white sofas on one wall there was a huge flat screen TV. There were a few magazines scattered on the coffee table. The next room that Gabriella led me into was the kitchen. It was modern and sleek with every appliance that you could think that you could need, even a few you wouldn't think that you would need.

She also led me into a large office with a man sitting at the desk looking over some paper. "Daddy, this is Troy." Gabs said.

The man looked up and came over hook my hand "Robert Montez."

"Troy Bolton." I said, "Would you mind terribly if I could have your autograph? My mum is kind of obsessed with your entire family." I looked rather sheepish, knowing that I was pushing it, asking for an autograph when he was at home.

"Sure, what's your mom's name." Mr Montez asked me.

"Lucille." I told him.

"That is a very pretty name." Mr Montez told me holding out a piece of paper.

"Thanks, I'll tell her that." I said.

Gabriella interrupted me and said "Daddy I thought that you could show Troy the workout room?"

"Sure honey." Mr Montez said smiling at me.

"Thanks Daddy, I'm going to my room for a bit you can send Troy up when you're done in there." Gabriella said to her dad before kissing him on the cheek and walking out the room.

"Right let's go, so what sport do you play?" Mr Montez asked me leading me out of the study and up some stairs to a large spacious room with high-tech workout equipment.

"Basketball sir. I looked over at the treatment room that was on the side of the room. "Woah, Mr Montez this room is crazy, its all the things I wish we could have at school for the workout sessions." I turned and smiled at him.

"Well you can come by and use them when you want to, as long as it's after 9.30am. I don't think that Gabi would ever forgive you for that." Mr Montez said smiling at me.

"Noted sir, do you know what the time is a promised my dad I'd be home before 6."

"You've got half an hour to get there, get Gabi to drive you, it will be quicker, her room is two doors down to the left." Mr Montez said after looking at his watch.

"Thanks Mr Montez, I'll see you again." I said to him hopefully.

"Definitely." Mr Montez said before he suddenly stopped me as I reached the door, "And Troy,"

"Yes sir?" I said surprised.

"If you do anything to hurt Gabi you will have me to answer to is that clear?" Mr Montez said coming close to me and staring intently into my eyes.

"Crystal." I said before backing out of the room and quickly walking to Gabi's room. I lifted my hand up to knock on the door when I heard singing coming from inside.

I used to wanna be

Living like there's only me

And now I spend my time

Thinking 'bout a way to get you off my mind

I used to be so tough

Never really gave enough

And then you caught my eye

Giving me a feeling of a lightning strike

The song was really good but I could only go that far into it before hesitantly knocking on the door.

"Come in," Gabs said.

I pushed the door open and saw Gabs slipping her guitar over her neck and setting it down leaning against the wall. "Sorry but could you drive me back to my place?" I asked her sheepishly.

"Sure." She said standing up grabbing her purse, "I know you heard me you know.

"Wait, what? How?" I asked stopping in the middle of the hall.

"Because Troy you've got the look that everyone seems to get after I sing." She said sighing and turning away.

"Gabs your amazing at singing and everything but I want to be your friends even if we do get followed by the paps. Even if we don't get any privacy. Even if you have crazy sweet workout equipment. I like you, your personality." I sighed "you have to know that I will never use you to get anything like some people at school might, if they do I'll be there to help you pick up the pieces." I told her.

She turned around and gave me a hug. "Thank you, and by the way if you ever brake that promise I will kick your ass."

"Permission granted." I said and she laughed.

"Come on we need to get you home." She said grabbing my hand and leading me out the door.

We were met with flashes again when we stepped out the door, "I'm so bringing sunglasses with me tomorrow." I said and she smiled at me.

"Good, tell Chad too, I want to test a song on you tomorrow, can you come after school again?" Gabs asked me as we set off to my house.

"Not straight after we have practise, but its only for an hour tomorrow so we should have time to come and listen, and maybe do some studying after?" I asked her.

"Yeah, you can stay for dinner, my parents won't mind, they like it when I can make friends, since we move a lot." She told me pulling into my drive.

"I'm glad I can call you my friend." I told her "Can I have your number in case I can't make tomorrow?"

"Sure, but don't go giving it to any creepy reporters or anything." She said sternly handing over a piece of paper.

"Now why would I do that," I asked her grinning. She grinned back at me, and I lent forward and kissed her on the cheek, "see you tomorrow." She smiled at me again and I got out of her car, I walked to my house and saw her turn around and drive away back to her apartment, I smiled to myself before turning the door handle to my house.

"Wow back 10-minutes early obviously Miss Montez is a good influence on our son Luc," I heard dad say. I shook my head and headed into the kitchen to tell them all about my experience at the Montez house.

Gabriella's POV

I smiled to myself again when I remembered Troy's little speech he gave me earlier today. I was touched when I thought again to him saying that he wasn't using me to meet my mom or dad but he wanted to be friends with me for who I am inside, underneath the popstar exterior.

I looked back down at my algebra textbook doing all the questions that the teacher had told us to do. I heard my phone ringing so I put my pen down and went over to my bedside table to grab it.

"Hello?" I said into the phone after seeing it was an unknown number.

"Hey!" Troy said on the other end.

"Hi Troy. What can I do for you?" I asked him.

"Haven't you seen the article?" Troy said puzzled.

"No what article?" I asked.

"Type your name into Google." Troy instructed.

I ran to grab my laptop before sitting down on the bed and searched what Troy had told me to "Shit." Is all I could say after seeing an article with a picture of Troy kissing my cheek. The headline said, "Who's Gabriella's New Beau?"

"No, no, no, no." Was all I could say. "I'm so sorry Troy." I said into the phone.

"Why are you sorry?" Troy asked me confused.

"If I hadn't invited you over to my house, your face wouldn't be all over the Internet, and…" I started.

Troy interrupted me "I don't mind Gabs, I just called to ask you if you could pick me up in the morning cause I don't think that walking is going to be an option,"

"Why not?" I asked.

"Because of the amount of paps that are currently camped outside my house." Troy said casually."

"Oh my god I'm so sorry Troy, stay near your phone and I'll talk to my dad to try and fix this, but remember
don't talk to the paps, don't acknowledge them and only pose for one or two photos. Got it?"

"Yep. Sure thing Gabs I'll text all my mates to tell them not to talk to them and I'll also tell my parents." Troy said.

"Good I'll phone you again soon Troy." I said

"Bye." Troy said before disconnecting the call.

"DAD." I shouted loudly.

I heard footsteps coming up the stairs and voices. "Yes Gabs." Dad said opening my door.

"Come here," I said turning my laptop towards my parents.

My mom and dad read the article before turning to me "What's wrong with this Gabs? There have been hundreds of pages like this before and you haven't cared. What's special about his one?"

"I care about this one dad because Troy's involved. All the other ones like this were with other celebrities; Troy is a normal person without the paps following him around every single minute of the day. Currently Troy has 15 paps crews sitting outside his house, trying to find out about my 'latest boyfriend'. It's not fair on him and I don't know what to do to make it better." I said tears starting in my eyes.

" Hey, hey Gabs it will be okay," dad said sitting on my bed and pulling me into a hug.

"I gave him lessons earlier on how to act around the paps." I said smiling at the memory.

"Well that's good Gabs at least you've prepared him a bit for what's to come but trust me this isn't the last we're going to hear out this story. The only advice I can give you is, make sure you know who your friends are and who your enemies are." Dad said before letting me out of the hug. "Call him and tell him and his family to come around the phone and I'll give them a few words of wisdom, but Gabi." He said as I was turning around to reach my phone,

"Yeah" I said looking back to him.

"Look after that kid I trust him and so should you." Dad said before walking out the room. I stared after him wondering how Troy had won over my dad in a couple of short hours.

I called Troy and my dad gave him and his family some advice. After a while of talking we hung up and went to bed. I tossed and turned a lot that night not being able to shake anything from my mind.

Normally when this happened I wrote songs and suddenly I thought of some lyrics and I grabbed my songbook from my bedside table and turned on the small light that was there, I scribbled down the lyrics and looked at them happily. Smiling I put the book back and turned off the light. I slept happily knowing that I had written everything that I was feeling down, songs were my version of a diary.

Pulling up outside Troy's house the next day the atmosphere was different than it was yesterday, it had an excited and busy feel to it instead of the quiet neighbourhood that I witnessed the day before. I put on my sunglasses and picked up my purse, getting out the car. When I shut the door the noise it made caused people to turn and look at me.

I wasn't fussed about my appearance today so I just slipped on a short dress that was blue. It was tight fitting around the waist before going slightly flowy down to my mid thigh. My hair was in its natural waves. I had on some blue-strapped high-heeled sandals. I ignored all the paps and walked up to the house the flashes going off all around me. After pressing the buzzer I heard voices coming from inside.

"I got it dad its just Gabs." I heard Troy say.

"But Troy how do you know?" I heard Coach Bolton's voice ask him.

"Because dad I looked though the peephole and it is Gabs so can you know move out of my way so I can open the door for my friend." Troy retorted to his father. I heard a grunt before the door swung open.

"Hey!" I said "come on let's go before we're late."

"Right," Troy said waking backwards and grabbing his books and putting his sunglasses on his face. "Lets go!"

The paps started taking even more pictures of both of us together. We got in the car. "Today is going to be a very long day," Troy said and I smiled.

"Don't worry there not allowed in the school otherwise it completely invades my privacy and my dad could sue them and none of them are really willing to take that risk." I told him before starting the car, "You just have to be careful outside of school, even I have a bodyguard cause my dad is worried that I'll get kidnapped. I'm sure that one of ours wouldn't mind a few days, weeks, months, I don't know, looking after you." I said turning into the school's car park and groaning after seeing all the paps lined up by the main entrance.

"There's a back entrance that goes through the gym no one will see us go in apart from a few of the guys that might be in the gym." I nodded following Troy's instructions to find where to park.

If today wasn't going badly already it was just getting even worse. Just after my first class Sharpay came up to me and started talking nineteen to the dozen about some play she had been in a few years back.

"We should hang out you know." She said staring at me.

"Wait, what? When?" I asked her shocked at the girls' bluntness.

"Today, after school, the mall." Sharpay said excitedly.

"No thanks I can't do today Sharpay maybe some other day." I told her turning away from her to try and get to my next class without having to deal with her again.

"Wait are you turning down an offer to hang out with me?" Sharpay asked pretending to look offended, "What are you doing that's more important than me?"

"Well, today Sharpay I have a meeting with my agent and then I'm going to the recording studio and then I'm going to do some damage control with the press, so I'm sorry if I don't have time to hang out with a random girl from my school who I don't even know that well." I told her angrily and stepped past her and walked to my lesson knowing that doing that to Sharpay was probably not the best of ideas.

I hope that your enjoying this story so far keep reading and reviewing!

song: Somebody to You- The Vamps