"In another life, I would be your girl,
we'd keep all our promises,
be us against the world"
-Katy Perry, The One That Got Away
I was driving through New York with my best friends when I heard her on the radio. There we were; Troy Bolton, Chad Danforth, Zeke Baylor and Jason Cross. We were on our way to Zeke's wedding. The car was silent, apart from the radio. Zeke was extremely nervous, as anyone getting married to Sharpay Evans would be, and everyone else was silent so we didn't say the wrong thing as freak him out more.
"And now introducing, the song by the new girl on the block… here's 'The One That Got Away' by Gabriella Montez." If the car could've gone even more silent, it would have. I froze in the passenger seat, and Chad shot me a nervous glance from the drivers side.
"Turn it up." My voice sounded croaky, but Chad nodded, turning the radio up as they played the song my ex-girlfriend had written.
"Summer after high school,
When we first met,
We'd make out in your mustang,
To Radio Head,
And on my eighteenth birthday,
We got matching tattoo's."
I could feel Zeke and Jason staring at me. We'd all gone to University of Alberquque alongside Chad's, Jason's and Zeke's girlfriends (Taylor, Kelsi and Sharpay), and I'd met Gabriella Montez the summer before we started there. She was staying with her grandmother in Alberquque, who was incredibly ill and needed help with everything. She'd come into the bar I worked in and asked for a Vodka and Coke, and she'd ended up staying the whole night. We'd exchanged numbers, and I'd asked her out for dinner later that week.
I'd taken her to the fanciest restaurant I knew, and we'd been together shortly after that. We'd then spend days parked in random places in my mustang when the stress got too much. Then, on December 20th, her birthday, we'd gone to the tattoo parlour. We'd each got a tattoo of a blue swallow, mine on my wrist and hers on her hip. She'd got it because it was the colour of my eyes and she loved birds. I'd got it because it was free, like her.
"Used to steal your parents liquor,
And climb to the roof,
Talk about the future,
Like we had a clue,
Never planned that one day,
I'd be losing you."
I remembered the first time she'd come to my house and I'd wanted to introduce her to my parents. I hadn't realised, but they were leaving for a funeral, so they were gone when I brought her home, so I'd told her how I climbed on the roof whenever I was upset or couldn't sleep, just to stare at the stars. We'd been up there until midnight talking about the future, how I'd always be there for her. She'd then got to cold so I'd taken her inside, and held her until we fell asleep.
Chad made a motion to turn off the radio, but I shook him away. "Leave it."
"In another life, I would be your girl,
We'd keep all our promises,
Be us against the world,
In another life,
I would make you stay,
So I don't have to say you were,
The one that got away,
The one that got away."
My eyes closed as I remembered her kissing me before she'd got on the plane to New York. We'd been broken up for a few days then, but I'd promised her that I'd be there, and I was. I told her that we'd meet again, and we had, three months later. She didn't speak to me, she'd just walked past. She'd had her earphones in, and when I'd called her she hadn't heard. I'd hated my friends that day for not letting me go after her.
"I was June and you were my Johnny Cash,
Never one without the other,
We made a pact,
Sometimes when I miss you,
I put those records on.
Someone said you had your tattoo removed,
I saw you down town,
Singing the blues,
It's time to face the music,
I'm no longer your muse."
That was it! That's when I'd seen her! She'd been visiting her grandmothers grave, and I'd been with my friends. I'd bought my guitar with me to the streets, and we were singing all the way through town. They'd told me not to go after her, she'd of stopped if she'd wanted to talk to me. I'd told Chad that I'd hated him, and it was the first time I'd ever said that. We'd apologised immediately, with Chad saying that the only reason he hadn't let me go after her was that he'd heard from Taylor that she'd changed, and he wanted me to remember her as I did.
I don't know where she heard that I'd removed my tattoo, though. I'll never remove it, as long as I live. When I'm eighty, I want to look at my wrist, and no matter how faded it is, I know I'll be able to say that I was in love with this girl.
"In another life, I would be your girl,
We'd keep all our promises,
Be us against the world,
In another life,
I would make you stay,
So I don't have to say you were,
The one that got away,
The one that got away."
Our break up was terrible. She was on her way to class with me, I was walking her to the music department on my way to the sports centre. She'd got a phone call informing her that someone was in critical condition in the hospital, and had a 'Gabriella Montez' listed as an emergency contact. Gabriella had begged me to take her to the hospital, and I had done, driving her to where she needed to go.
She'd left the hospital room that I was waiting outside at 4.53pm, with news that her grandmother had died from the cancer. She'd collapsed into my arms, and I'd taken her to my house, making her sleep on my bed whilst I took the sofa. After a week, she'd gone into denial, and she told me that she hated me and never wanted to see me again. She told me how she was going to New York to become a musician, and I promised her that I'd be at the airport. Now, aged twenty-two, I'm finally hearing her music.
"All this money can't buy me a time machine, no.
Can't replace you with a million rings, no.
I should've told you what you meant to me, woah.
Cause now I pay the price."
Did she love me? I loved her. I still love her. I wish she had a time machine, it'd mean we could go back and do things right. I'm glad she can't replace me, I never want to be replaced in her eyes.
"In another life, I would be your girl,
We'd keep all our promises,
Be us against the world,
In another life,
I would make you stay,
So I don't have to say you were,
The one that got away,
The one that got away."
The silence after the song was painful. Chad flipped the radio off, no one wanting to hear her name again. Everyone stayed quiet, and I stared straight ahead, thoughts running through my mind. Did she really miss me? Did you want me to stay or follow you?
"I have to find her." I announced, and I could almost feel the stares on me.
"Troy, think this through." Chad warned, and I shook my head.
"Chad, the only person I've ever loved, besides my family, is her. I miss her, dammit." Chad sighed. He'd obviously heard the urgency in my tone and decided not to argue.
"She's at my wedding." Zeke's quiet voice filled the car with hope as I turned in my seat, glancing back.
"What?"
"She's one of Shar's bridesmaids." He told me, and I grinned.
We pulled up at the church after a few minutes, and I hurried out of the car, only to be stopped by Chad whilst Zeke and Jason walked in. "She'll of changed, Troy. She may of even moved on." I nodded.
"I have to take that chance, Chad." I told him, and he gave me an exasperated look. "I'll never be able to live with myself if I knew there was another chance we'd be together." I shoved past him and began to walk into the church.
"She won't be here yet." His voice came, and I turned to him, a questioning look in my eyes. "The bridal party are arriving at 12:30. It's twelve now. I'm guessing that if she's here, they'll spend a while chatting, bringing the ETA up until 12:40. So you've got all the time in the world."
Not looking back, I went into the church, silently sitting on a bench near the door and waiting.
It was 12:38 when the bridal party arrived. I heard them giggling, and listened hard for her. All I heard were Sharpay, Taylor and Kelsi. They'd been best friends since university, much like Zeke, Chad, Jason and I. They were all couples as well. Chad and Taylor were engaged, and Jason and Kelsi were four months away from expecting a baby. Everyone was all loved up besides me. Unable to sit patiently any longer, I jumped from the bench and turned so I was stood in the door frame. Sharpay was dressed in a white, sparkly yet elegant dress. Taylor, Kelsi and the girl who was half hidden were in pale pink floaty dresses that had thin straps and came to the knee. They were tight to the waist, and then flowed out. Taylor saw me and her eyes widened as she gasped. Sharpay and Kelsi followed her lead, and the mystery woman looked up at me. I forgot about the whole world as her chocolate brown eyes widened.
"Troy?"
"Gabby?" I stumbled forward, and she dropped the flowers she was holding, running towards me in her silver heels. I ran too, desperate to reach her. We met in a few metres, and she jumped to my arms, clinging to me and sobbing.
"I missed you." She stuttered, and I held her tightly.
"Am I the one that got away?" I asked quietly, and she nodded. Then, without a moments hesitation, I leant down and touched her lips to mine.
After that, we went in and let Sharpay and Zeke finally get married. After that, we began dating and were together for six months before marrying. Now, we're married with two children. I was the one that got away, but now I'm here to stay.