Chapter 3: Friendship Destroyed
Gabriella starts humming as she walks into East High. For some reason, she's happy. Despite the fact her best friend is in love with another girl; despite the fact that she's in love with her best friend, she's happy. Genuinely, completely (to a certain extent, of course) happy.
Taco Bell had been… an experience to say the least. Troy had ended up with no money, leaving Gabriella to pay for their meals. Troy, being the "man" he is, insisted that he'd pay her back. She had simply rolled her eyes and laughed.
So, Gabriella's happy. That all changes when Troy pulls her up the stairs towards the "secret" garden during free period. It's their spot when they need to talk about.. anything really.
Troy lets go of Gabriella's arm, and she frowns as the sudden coldness. She quickly plasters on a smile as she watches Troy lean on the rail.
"Troy? What's wrong?" Gabriella hesitantly asks as she slowly walks towards him.
"Gabriella, Don't walk over here, okay? If you do, I'm pretty sure I won't be able to get the words out." Troy says, looking anywhere but Gabriella.
He never calls her Gabriella, unless it's something serious.
You know the feeling of climbing up a large rollercoaster, knowing your stomach's about to drop, you just don't know when? That's exactly what Gabriella is feeling. A storm is coming, Gabriella can easily tell.
She waits for him to start talking.
"Sharpay told me that.." Troy trails off, leaving a weird, uncomfortable silence in his wake.
"Told you what?" She says softly.
He closes his eyes and says, "She said that… I can't be friends with you anymore, Gabriella."
The words hit Gabriella like a ton of bricks. She feels like someone just punched her in the gut.
"W-w-what? Why?" Gabriella manages to say.
"She thinks you're in love with me." He says quickly.
Her eyes widen in shock, "In love with you? Troy, we're best friends. Simply platonic—nothing more!"
"That's what I told her, but she said if I didn't stop being friends with you.. we'd break up." Troy says, suddenly having the courage to look at Gabriella.
Tears spring up in Gabriella's eyes as she wraps her arms around her body. She shakes with unshed tears.
"So you're just going to let her take away our friendship?" Gabriella whispers, closing her eyes as tears roll down her face.
"Gabriella, I-" Troy starts, but cuts himself off, immediately realizing he doesn't know what to say.
Gabriella opens her eyes and glares at him angrily.
"So, this is it? Years of friendship out the window for a relationship that was doomed from the start?" Gabriella yells.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Troy yells back.
Gabriella shakes her head, "I can't believe you, Troy! Sharpay is just another one of your flings!"
"Hey! Shut up! I love her!" Troy yells, although not quite sure of how truthful the words he said are.
Gabriella raises an eyebrow, "Really? If so, you're not the person I thought you were, Troy."
She turns to walk away.
"Hey, remember that day when we had our fight a couple weeks ago? I had a bad day and I didn't want to talk about it? Well, here's a hint," Gabriella says bitterly, "talk to your girlfriend. She had something to do with it."
With that said, Gabriella marches down the stairs. Troy is left with the gut-wrenching feeling that he just made the biggest mistake of his life.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-YBWM-.-.-.-
Troy walks up to his girlfriend, not bothering to give her a kiss.
"Hey Troysie," he literally cringes, "How did it go with Isabella, or Ariel, or whoever that little bitch is."
Troy clenches his jaw as he says, "It went horribly with Gabriella. She says you had something to do with the bad day she had a couple weeks ago?"
Sharpay closes her locker and says quickly, "She's lying!"
Troy narrows his eyes and crosses his arms across his chest.
"Somehow, I doubt it. Gabriella can't lie without bursting into laughter. So, spill it or we're done." Troy demands, causing Sharpay to sigh.
"Well, she was being annoying AS AWLAYS and so I decided to teach her a lesson."