September 1, 2012
"So are you over that bug?" Taylor asked Gabriella as they curled up on the couch. They were having a movie night while the Boys were out and about. Taylor popped a couple of pieces of freshly made popcorn into her mouth before she turned to Gabriella for her answer.
"Yep." Gabriella said shortly. "It was just a stomach bug." She sipped her tea slowly, enjoying the warmth fill her body. "Dr. Gladstone says I can come back to work tomorrow."
"Did you get your books yet?" Taylor asked, glancing over at her friend.
"Not yet." She said softly.
"You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Gabriella said, getting up. "I don't think I'm up for a movie tonight actually. I just going to head off to bed, I'm pretty tired."
Taylor frowned. "Okay, I'll see you in the morning then."
"I'm sorry Tay." Gabriella said with a frown.
She forced a small smile. "It's alright, goodnight."
"Night." Gabriella dumped the tea in the sink and went off into her room. She took a seat on her bed and pulled the book out from under her pillow. It'd been a week since she took the test, a week since she went to the doctor and confirmed. Bolton had knocked her up. She'd been avoiding him, avoiding everybody actually.
Gabriella picked up the What to Expect When You're Expecting book from Barnes and Noble on the way back from the doctor. She was seven weeks today. She flipped to the book marked page and started reading a little more about her condition. She knew she had to tell Bolton, she had to tell somebody. This little secret was tearing her apart mentally- or maybe it was just the emotions that came with it.
Just remembering that she was actually pregnant made her a little queasy. She played off the worst week of sickness as the flu, now she just had to choke it down until her insomnia kicked in or if she was alone. She tried not to draw too much attention to herself especially to her friends. There was a knock at the door. She closed the book and shoved it under her pillow. "Come in."
Bolton and Chad stepped into her room, looking at the red faced girl sitting on the bed. "Hey." Chad said wearily. "Are you okay? Tay said you were acting weird, is that bug still bothering you?"
Gabriella swallowed. "Kind of." She did feel bad about lying to her friends, but she couldn't tell them yet. "I'm just tired and I didn't want to sit though another romance movie again."
Troy quirked his eyebrow. "Why are you all red?"
"Because it's hot in here Bolton." Gabriella snapped. "I'm tired, can you let me sleep?" She asked impatiently.
"Are you on drugs?"
"Are you stupid?"
"No drugs." Chad said with a defeated sigh. "Gabi, you know you can tell us anything right? We've been friends forever."
"Nothing is wrong Chad." She said calmly.
"Just let her sleep." Troy said, looking over at his friend. His eyes flicked over to her and she narrowed her eyes at him. Chad turned out and walked out the door. Troy closed the door behind him and walked over to Gabriella. "Are you mad at me?"
"A little."
"For what?"
"No reason."
"Gab."
"What?"
"What's going on?" He asked, concerned.
Gabriella sighed, annoyed. "Nothing Bolton. I'm just having an off couple of weeks, can I go to bed?"
"Can I have a kiss?"
"Get out." Gabriella said shortly. A sudden anger bubbled up inside of her, that was the reason she was in this situation in the first place. "Get out." She hissed.
"Whoa, sorry." He said, getting up. "Night Gabs."
She didn't say anything as she got up and locked the door after him. She took her seat on her bed and picked up the book again. She sighed, feeling a sudden rush of emotions. Her baby was the size of a blueberry the book said. Weird. It was all so weird to her. She was going to be a mom and Troy a dad. Her parents were going to be grandparents. She had to tell her parents. She closed her eyes, feeling a bit nauseous. Maybe it was time for bed. She closed the book and put it back under her pillow. She turned out the lights, sliding under the covers.
"Hello?" Sharpay's voice said at the end of Taylor's phone call. It was round noon. She was working in the Political Science department at Stanford. Gabriella worked over in the Law department. They did everything from tutoring to paperwork. Taylor was sitting at her desk, her sandwich untouched.
"Have you talked to Gabi lately?" Taylor wondered.
Sharpay thought back. "Not since like that day we went to lunch. Why? I heard she was sick. Is she okay?"
"Yeah, she was. She had some kind of flu. She puked for like four days straight." Sharpay made a sound of disgust. "She said she was fine but I think something else is up with her. She hasn't been herself lately."
Sharpay popped her gum. "It's probably just from the flu. I remember when I had the stomach flu, I didn't feel like myself until like three weeks later. We're still on for tonight right? Dinner in the city?"
Taylor nodded even though her friend couldn't see. "Sounds good. I'll drag Gabi out tonight."
"Good. We go to the hookah lounge after." Sharpay suggested. "Hey, my class is about to start, call me if anything changes."
"Of course. Love you."
"Love you too, bye." Sharpay said, hanging up her phone.
Taylor got up and picked up her lunch. She decided to pay a visit to her best friend across campus. She nibbled on her sandwich as she made her way to the Law department. You would think, two majors that go hand and hand would be right next to each other, but they aren't. They're a five minute speed walk away. She finished her sandwich by the time she got there.
Gabriella was picking at the PB and J Troy made her for lunch. He offered and she reluctantly accepted, they were her favorite. She knew she should eat it but she didn't feel like eating. She did, however, sip her smoothie that her coworker brought her. She had a sudden craving for something fruity and the smoothie hit the spot.
"Hey!" She looked up to see Taylor standing in the doorway.
"Hey Tay." She said, ripping off a piece of her PB and J. "What are you doing over here?"
Taylor took a seat in front the desk. "Just coming over to say hi and to tell you we're going to dinner tonight with Sharpay."
"Bu-"
"And we're not taking no for an answer." Taylor said firmly. "So you better be ready by the time Shar and Zeke get there." Taylor said, taking a drink of the water bottle she was holding.
Gabriella sighed. "Fine, I'll go to dinner."
Taylor smiled. "Great! Maybe the boys will come too."
Gabriella laughed half-heartedly. "Yeah."
"Alright, I should be heading back. I'll see you tonight." Taylor said popping up. "Bye Gab."
"Bye." She replied softly, waving as her friend walked away. She managed to eat half of her sandwich without even noticing. She glanced at her watch and decided to get back to work. She wanted to get home early to have a little time for herself before everybody came over.
She walked in her house calling out a greeting. She was met with only silence. Gabriella made her way to her room. She picked up her towel and went into her shared bathroom.. A nice long shower would do her some good. She managed to clear her head and have a peaceful shower, feeling much better than she had since she came back from Albuquerque.
Gabriella got dressed into a nice loose fitting dress. All of her tight dresses would not zip up. She surprising wasn't as upset as she thought she would be. She checked the time and pulled the book out from under her pillow. She brought it into the living room and took a seat on the couch.
She opened it to the book marked page. She stared long and hard at her book mark. It was a sonogram picture. She kept the only copy that didn't have her name on it. There wasn't much to look at it was a circle in bigger circle. It was a just going to get bigger. She shook out of her thoughts and continued reading the chapter she was on.
Gabriella made it through half of a new chapter before she heard the door opening. She froze, putting her book under the coffee table and sitting back on the couch, quickly turning on the TV. "Hey Gabster." Chad said, walking in with Troy.
"Hey guys." She said, giving them a small smile.
"You look nice." Chad commented. "Dinner tonight?"
She nodded. "You guys coming?"
Troy shrugged. "We're thinking about it."
"Okay." She said with a small smile. She leaned back against the couch and looked over at the TV. Chad walked by patting her head. She then felt a kiss on the top of her head. She shook her head to herself with small smile.
"Hey!" Taylor said walking in ten minutes later. "I'm in need of a serious shower." She murmured, walking past Gabriella. "Sharpay will be here in a half hour, you might want to do your hair."
"You're right." Gabriella said, turning off the TV. She got up and went into the bathroom.
"I need to shower." Troy said, walking in after her, turning on the shower. "You don't mind right?"
She shook her head, pulling out her blow drier. "Go ahead." Troy closed the door behind him and took off his shirt. She plugged in her blow drier as he walked by her, naked. She took a double take and watched him climb into the shower in the mirror.
She started on her hair, brushing through it while she dried. Once it was completely dry she plugged in her straightened. She separated her hair into sections while it heated up. Troy stepped out of the shower, grabbing his towel. He rubbed the towel against his head before he wrapped it around his waist.
"What?" Troy said when he noticed her staring.
"Nothing." She said, picking up her straightened and started on her hair.
He sighed, walking out of the bathroom. She brushed her straightened hair after she was done. She parted it down the middle before putting her tools away. She walked out of the bathroom just in time for Sharpay to walk in.
"Hey!" Sharpay said in her usual flamboyant tone. "Look who we picked up on the way here." She pointed to the doorway towards her brother.
"Ryan." Gabriella said softly, wrapping him in a tight hug. "What are you doing down here?"
"Just needed to get away from New York and I thought I'd see my favorite people." He said. "Love your hair."
Gabriella smiled. "Thank you."
"Where the hell is Taylor?" Sharpay asked, sitting on the couch.
"She got off a little late, don't be too hard on her."
Ryan took a seat next to his sister while Gabriella took a seat on the chair in the room. "What magazines do you have?" Ryan asked as he bent down to look under the table. He looked wide eyed as he picked up a book. "What's this?"
"What's what?" Zeke asked as he walked in the house, closing the door behind him.
"What to Expect When You're Expecting." Ryan read the cover.
"What to what?" Troy asked, walking in the room.
"Oh my god." Sharpay said. "It must be Taylor's! Did she say anything to you about it?"
"There's a picture in it." Ryan said, holding up the sonogram picture. "What is this? She must have just found out."
"She didn't tell me anything." Gabriella said, trying not to show the fear and anxiety she was feeling.
"Chad definitely doesn't know." Troy said. "Maybe they're trying to keep it under wraps."
"Probably." Zeke agreed."
"We shouldn't bring it up then." Gabriella piped up quickly.
"Agreed." Ryan said. He put the picture back in the book and the book under the table.
Taylor and Chad came out of their room, laughing. "Are we ready to go?" Taylor asked with a smile.
We all stood up and filed out the door. We were seated at a restaurant just an hour later. "Bathroom time." Sharpay piped up. "Ladies."
Gabriella groaned. She hated going to the bathroom with Sharpay. She talks the whole time; while peeing, after peeing. She slid out of her chair, standing up. They made their way into the bathroom. Gabriella went straight into a stall and Taylor went into the one next to hers while Sharpay looked at herself.
"Can you hand me some toilet paper?" Taylor asked. Gabriella handed her some. They seemed to flush and walk out at the same time. Gabriella let Taylor wash her hands first. She moved out of the way to let Gabi wash her hands.
"I totally wasn't going to bring this up. Why didn't you tell us you were pregnant?" Sharpay asked Taylor. Gabi froze as she washed her hands.
Taylor looked at Sharpay, confused. "What? Did you say pregnant?"
"Yeah! We saw your picture and the book in the living room."
"What picture? Wait what are you talking about?"
"Your pregnancy book!"
"I'm not pregnant!" Taylor said, laughing a little bit.
"What do you mean you're not pregnant? Who's stuff was that then? There was a book and a picture and you're-" She stopped and turned to look at Gabriella who was drying off her hands with a paper towel. "Gabi?!" Shar shrieked.
Gabi looked at both of her friends wide eyed. "Gabi." Taylor said more softly. "You're pregnant?"
She looked away from them. "Oh my god." Sharpay managed to say. "Who's the father?"
"Who is the father?" Taylor asked.
"I was going to ask you why your tits looked bigger, now we know why." Sharpay said.
"Sharpay!" Taylor reprimanded Sharpay. "We have to tell everybody."
"No!" Gabi said, on the verge of tears. "please, please don't tell anybody. Can you pretend like you're pregnant for like a week while I tell the father?"
"Is it Troy? I bet it's Troy. Or Ryan."
"It's it professor Gladstone? Is that how you got the week off?"
Gabriella closed her eyes, rubbing her forehead. She was getting a major headache. "I'll tell you after I tell him. I promise."
"Fine. I need a drink after all this drama." Taylor muttered.
"You're telling me." Gabi mumbled, leading them out of the bathroom.
They took a seat. "Is everything okay?" Chad asked as they took a seat. The girls nodded silently, picking up their menus. It got awkwardly quiet while they browsed their menus.
The waiter came up and walked over to us. "Hi I'm Dan, I'll be your waiter. Can I start you off with drinks or appetizers?"
"I'll have iced tea." Ryan started off, he was closest to the waiter. "Unsweetened, extra lemon."
"Glass of merlot, please." Sharpay said, without even glancing up at the waiter.
"Water for me."
"A margarita." Taylor said, half of the table looked up at her. We shot daggers at her. "Um, kidding. I'll have water… with lemon." She mumbled, glaring Gabriella.
Gabriella frowned, mouthing an apology. "I'll have a Stella." Chad said, glancing over at her. Gabriella didn't know how she always ended up between Troy and Chad.
"Water." Gabriella said. "No lemon, extra ice."
"I'll just have a coke." Troy said, glancing over at Taylor. Gabriella avoided eye contact from her friends who knew the truth. "Gabsy, what are you going to get?" Troy's warm voice asked her.
"Not sure yet."
"I'll get chicken and you get salmon and we'll share?"
Gabriella shook her head. "I'm not in a fishy mood." She frowned, looking over at Troy. "Sorry."
"It's okay." He said, touching her back gently.
"I kind of want pasta." She murmured. "What do you think?"
Troy licked him lips, looking at the menu. "Steak?"
"Ooh, you should get a baked potato and give me some."
He looked at her with a little smirk. "Baked potato and pasta doesn't go well together."
Gabriella rolled her eyes. "So."
"I'll give you my baked potato. Too many carbs anyway."
"You are such girl." She said, rolling her eyes again, setting her menu down just as Dan the waiter came back. She stuck the straw into her water when she got it. She took a drink before she set it down. We ordered our food and She watched her friends talk amongst them selves, laughing when appropriate.
Taylor and Sharpay were watching her eat. Gabriella felt unnerved with all the attention. Chad excused himself and walked to the restroom and everybody then turned their attention to Taylor. "So does Chad know about the baby?" Ryan asked.
She choked on the rice she was eating. "Excuse me?"
"How far along are you?" Zeke asked from a couple seats down. "Do you know your due date?"
Gabriella shifted uncomfortably. Her stomach started churning a little bit, flash of nausea came over her. She choked it down, trying to seem as normal as possible. She really needed to tell Troy soon. Taylor took a drink of water. "You guys. I'm not pregnant."
"But what about-."
"My coworker Michelle came over and she left it." Taylor said simply.
"Oh." Ryan said, sitting back. "Why didn't you just say that in the first place?"
"You guys never gave me the chance to." Taylor said, crossing her arms. Her eyes were burning Gabriella's skin. She looked up at Taylor and pushed her own hair back. "So now we don't have to talk about it anymore, got it?"
"Got it." The boys repeated.
"They have the coolest hand dryer in the bathroom." Chad said as he sat down next to Gabriella. He put his arm on the back of her chair.
"Glad to know you wash your hands after you pee." Gabriella said sarcastically.
Everybody else chuckled. Chad squeezed her side and she squealed. It was one of her many tickle spots that the boys knew about. They always picked on her. She grabbed his hand, placing it in his lap before punching his leg. "What were we talking about?"
"Your pee hands." He reached over to tickle her again. "Do it again and I swear to god, I'll shave your head while your sleeping."
Chad frowned. "You're not touching my hair."
Gabriella giggled, feeling a little accomplished. She got up, heading off to the bathroom herself. She frowned when she saw blood. She wasn't feeling too bad. But she decided she needed to get checked out anyway. She swallowed nervously.
Gabriella cleaned herself up and washed her hands. She back to the table, picking up her purse. "Where are you going?" Sharpay asked, looking up at her friend.
"Something came up and I have to go. I'll be back tonight." Gabriella said, pulling out a couple of bills and handed them to Troy. "Here, I'll pay you back the rest when I get home. I have to go."
"Do you need me to come with you?" He asked.
"No, no. I'm fine, I just have to go." She leaned down, kissing Chad and Troy on the cheek. "It's nice to see you Ry. If you're here for a while come back to the house and see me, okay?" She gave him a cheek kiss as well. "Bye guys." She waved briefly and rushed out of the restaurant.
She walked down the street, there was an emergency room just a block away. She tried to keep calm but her mind was racing. Gabriella could feel a slight cramping in her abdomen and prayed it wasn't what she thought it was. She rushed in and had to fill out paperwork. She did it as fast as she could and handed it back.
Time seemed to be still as she waited to be called in. They took her in and gave her a gown to get dressed in. She laid on the bed when she was ready. These past two weeks that she's known she hasn't intentionally touched her belly. Under these circumstances she pressed her hand on her flat stomach. She felt nothing inside of her and she prayed it was a good thing.
"Hello, I'm Doctor Ashford. I understand you're pregnant and you've had some bleeding?" Gabriella nodded her head. "Eight weeks along?"
"Seven." She corrected quietly. "No major cramping. I was just concerned."
He nodded his head. "I'm just going to make sure everything is okay. You'll feel some slight discomfort." Dr. Ashford poked and pried and she tried not to think too much about it. "Everything seems to be okay. I'm just going to give you an ultrasound and we'll know for sure."
"Alright." Gabriella said with a deep breath. She pulled up the drape across her lap and laid back.
The doctor came back in with a machine. He spent a couple minutes setting up. He pulled up her gown to expose her stomach. She felt the cold gel as he put it on her body. He held the wand in his hand and turned the second screen towards Gabriella.
He pressed the device on her stomach. He moved it around and she watched on the screen. She saw a bigger circle where the little circle was in the picture she had in the book. It's so weird how much it could change in the two weeks that went by. There was a loud wooshing noise that filled the room.
"Fantastic. It looks like everything is just fine. Bleeding is common. If it get worse or any cramping continues, come back. Just get a lot of rest, drink a lot of fluids, and relax. I'll get you a picture and you can be on your way."
"Can you call me a cab?" Gabriella asked. "I was eating dinner and walked over here."
"No problem, Gabriella. I'll be right back."
Dr. Ashland came back with a picture. Gabriella got dressed while somebody called for her. She gathered her things and walked out of the room. She waited for the cab outside and took a deep breath of relief. Everything was fine, for now. Her baby was okay.
Not alot to say today. Well except that i am in love with Ariana Grande's new album. I can't help it. She's so freaking talented. sigh. Okay. Don't forget to review.