A/N: HSMandChelseaFCfan isn't around atm, so this was just me. And I won't be able to update from Monday because I'm away. Don't worry, I've got my laptop so I'll be writing...I just can't update.

Don't own HSM or 'Do ya' by McFly (A British band who I love so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) x

Chapter 11 – Lovebug

Troy walked into his house, humming some song he had heard once on Kelsi's mp3 player. Chad was right. Ever since he met Gabriella – even more since she became his girlfriend – he had been much more enthusiastic about everything. To be honest, he thought his parents were getting a little freaked out by it. His game was so much better – Jack had actually started saying 'well done' – and he didn't argue when Lucille asked him to do chores. He was much more talkative around his friends again – unless they were discussing college or Knights – and it just then occurred to him that it was because of Gabriella. She was like the light at the end of a dark tunnel of confusion.

He jogged through to the kitchen where he heard his parents talking and he burst through the door, grinning at them both. "Isn't life simply wonderful?" He asked.

Lucille paused her chopping of carrots and Jack lowered the newspaper he was reading. Blitzen came bounding in from the back yard and skidded at Troy's feet. He placed his front paws on Troy's torso and began licking his neck and cheeks. He eventually calmed down and trotted over to eat some of his biscuits in the corner.

"Wonderful? Son, are you high?" Jack asked sceptically.

"Ha ha!" Troy laughed sarcastically before he wandered towards Lucille and kissed her cheek. "Yes, wonderful. Can't your only son simply enjoy life?"

"Troy, it's not that." Lucille said softly. "We were just worried. We thought a few weeks ago, you were going back into…well, you know what happened."

Troy rolled his eyes and turned to Blitzen. "Nah! That big hunk of hyperness would never let that happen."

Jack chuckled. "Do your friends know Blitzen is your baby?"

Troy shrugged. "If I'm not talking about basketball or girls, all they hear is 'blah, blah, blah'."

Lucille giggled. "And you? Which girl has you acting like a crazy man?"

"I'm not crazy!" Troy exclaimed indignantly.

Lucille raised her eyebrows. "Really?"

Troy shrugged. "I don't think so."

"Okay…" Jack spoke slowly. "I still think you're high."

"Jack!" Lucille exclaimed. "Our son is not on drugs."

Jack folded his paper and held his hands up. "I'm sorry but I haven't seen our son this happy since…well, since when we first brought Blitzen home."

Blitzen woofed happily at the sound of his name and trotted over to Troy. Said teenager ruffled the dog's fur and then turned back to his parents. "Why can't I simply enjoy life without being accused of doing drugs?"

Jack sighed. "Son, these past weeks, with all the college talk, you just haven't been…uh…"

"Excited?" Troy tried.

"I was going to say on Earth." Jack admitted.

"Jack! Not the way to improve our son's self esteem." Lucille exclaimed.

Jack frowned. "He's captain of the Wildcats. He has plenty of self-esteem."

Troy rolled his eyes and wandered over to the fridge for some milk. He began to sing softly under his breath the song from Kelsi's mp3 player. Images of Gabriella fleeted across the front of his mind. She was so beautiful. With her dark, luscious curls, her innocent, chocolate eyes, her high cheekbones, her small, soft hands, her toned, golden legs and everything in between. Her giggle had begun to be like a song he had heard on the radio and now it was stuck in his head. His brain began registering every single time they had touched. The way her body felt against his as he swam to the surface of the lake, the feeling of his lips over hers as he saved her, the way her hand felt in his whilst he drove to Santa Fe, the feel of every curve beneath his hands…and, oh, my god, her tongue against his was like dying and floating up to heaven.

Do ya, do ya, do ya love me?
Do ya need a little time?
Do ya, do ya, do ya want me?
Oh, to hold you when you cry

Gabriella was like a damn angel. He suddenly chuckled to himself. Yeah, a damn seductive angel. Since he had saved her, he had lost count the number of times he had woken up after a dream about her and then needed an extremely cold shower. And she was basically oblivious to how much exactly she affected him.

"Troy?" Lucille whispered carefully.

Troy pulled the milk carton from the fridge and turned to his mother as he shut the door. "Yeah?"

"Who is she?" She asked knowingly, sending her son a smirk when she was facing away from Jack.

"Who's who?" Troy asked, feigning innocence.

Jack raised his eyebrows. "The girl that's got your panties in a twist."

"For your information," Troy started as he took a gulp from the carton, "my boxers are very untwisted."

"Give me that!" Lucille exclaimed, snatching the milk from her son.

"Is it Lindsay?" Jack enquired.

"The cheer captain? Hell no." Troy replied, pretending to puke.

"Then who is it?" Jack asked.

"It's, um, you don't know her." Troy confessed.

"It seems like you have the lovebug, Sweetheart." Lucille sang as she scraped some chopped up carrots into a pan.

"The lovebug?" Troy asked uncertainly. "Why don't I like where this is going?"

"Do you like this girl?" Lucille asked.

"Yeah." He replied. It was as if his mother had just asked if the sky was blue.

"Do you get butterflies around her?"

Troy glanced at Jack and sighed. "A little bit. Okay, a lot."

"How many cold showers have you needed because you've been thinking about her?"

"Mom!" Troy exclaimed. "I'm not answering that question."

Jack stifled his laugh with the back of his hand and lifted his newspaper to hide his grin. "Son, you're hooked."

Troy rolled his eyes. "Since when do you two decipher my love life? I thought that was Chad's job?"

Lucille laughed. "Baby, you haven't been on a date in months."

Troy shrugged. "So?"

"You've fallen for 'mystery girl'." Jack spoke slowly, as if Troy didn't speak English.

Troy brought his cell phone out upon feeling the vibration from it and smiled when he saw it was a text from Gabriella telling him that she already missed him. As he replied, telling her he missed her, too, he pondered his parents' words. Was he in love with her? The most prominent reason for a guy to fall in love with her was because of three words. Drop. Dead. Gorgeous. But, he knew her. He knew what she felt, what she thought…what she wanted to do when she left college. She was so innocent – something that girls who were mildly interested in him never showed – and caring. She felt the same about the feud as he did. She lived because she dreamt of saving people's lives.

Troy breathed out as he snapped his phone shut and stuffed it into his jeans. He turned away from his parents and used his hand to cover his eyes. "Oh, God."

"He finally realises it." Lucille squealed.

Troy turned back to her and glared. "Funny. I'm not admitting it because it's not true. I'm not going to be here for dinner."

"When did you decide this?" Lucille asked.

"Just now." Troy replied.

"Where are you going?" Jack asked.

"I'm going over to Chad's tonight. So, I'll see you later." He dashed out of the room and pulled his cell phone out as he left the house and headed back towards West Albuquerque. He called Chad, telling him that his parents though he was at his best friend's but was, in fact, going someplace else. When Chad asked where Troy was going, he simply replied that he needed some space and asked Chad if he could cover for him. Whilst walking towards Gabriella's house, he bought a couple of kebabs and ate them just in time to see Gabriella's house come into view. He threw his trash into a nearby can and headed around to the backyard.

He climbed up Gabriella's tree but paused as he looked down and saw her eating dinner. She was surrounded by her brothers – sitting next to Carl – and she looked happy. She and Carl were obviously teasing each other but he could see her smile. She had obviously resolved things with him as well as Sharpay. She seemed truly happy. He now understood why she hadn't told them that she wanted to be a doctor – she didn't want to disappoint them. She looked so comfortable down there. Surrounded by her family. He released an uncontrollable chuckle when he saw her glance towards her tree and her eyes widened.

He continued climbing onto her balcony and checked the handle on the door: open. "Is she crazy?" He muttered as he entered her bedroom and shut the door behind him. He slipped his shoes off and wandered over to lie down on her bed. He saw her Romeo and Juliet book on her bedside cabinet and he picked it up.

How ironic. His thoughts flew back the beyond-embarrassing conversation he had with Jack and Lucille. Romeo had been truly in love with Juliet from the moment he saw her. Troy hadn't been able to stop thinking about Gabriella from the moment he met her. His friends would so kick his ass if he knew he was thinking of love at first sight, especially that it had been with a Knight.

That's right: Troy Bolton finally realised he was in love with Gabriella Montez.

He turned to the door when it creaked open and Gabriella stepped in, locking the door behind her. She crawled onto the bed and curled into him, already basking in his glorious scent. "What are you doing here?" She asked whilst running her hand over his arm.

He chuckled and tightened his arms around her. "I thought you wanted me to come back?"

"I thought you were having dinner." She sat up and looked down on him. She smiled softly and brushed her fingers through his hair. "You need to have some dinner."

He shrugged. "I grabbed some kebabs on the way. It's fine."

She smiled and leaned down to kiss him chastely. "Your parents don't mind you being out this early and not going home?"

He shrugged, looking up at her in admiration. "I told them I was going to Chad's. And before you say anything, I called Chad to warn him and told him I just needed some space. So, if my parents call his house, he's going to say I'm in the bathroom, then call me to call them on my cell phone."

"Got it all figured out, huh?" She asked and then looked towards his hand. "What are you doing with my book?"

"I was just thinking, is all. You're not still in the middle of dinner, are you?" He asked suddenly.

She giggled and shook her head. "We finished. It's fine. Could you do me a favour, though?"

"Of course, Baby. Anything." He whispered, stroking her cheek.

She blushed and turned away to point at the shelf. "Could you get 'Dear John' from the shelf, please? As you won't let me stand on my chair and all…"

Troy got up from the bed and stretched onto his tiptoes to get her book down. "Hey, I would die if you were hurt, had to go into hospital and I couldn't see you." He walked back over and lay down again. He handed her book to her and smiled when she got comfortable again, her head resting on his chest. "Baby, what's the book about?"

"Have you ever read a Nicholas Spark book before?" She asked absent-mindedly as she scanned the blurb.

"Isn't he the dude that wrote The Notebook?" He asked thoughtfully.

"Uh-huh. I love him. I mean, his writing. Uh, because I've never met him and he's married…" She furrowed her brow and flicked to the first page. "Anyway, it's a romance, obviously…"

"You like romance?" He asked quietly.

"I love it." She whispered. "My brothers sometimes tease me about it."

"How are you and Carl doing now?" He asked seriously.

"We're better. Troy, he's my brother, we're going to fight. But, we always make up. Besides, we're twins. It's like something clicks in our heads when we see each other the next day and we just forget about it." She explained, giggling.

Troy looked intently into her eyes and something there made him lean down and press a light kiss to her lips. However, she obviously wasn't satisfied and dropped her book over the side of the bed and pulled Troy even closer to her. He carefully lay on top of her and smiled against her lips. Her hands wrapped around his neck and she immediately parted her lips the moment she felt his tongue begging for entrance.

He pulled back momentarily and smiled down at her. He pushed some curls behind her ear and kissed her nose. "Are you okay?"

She nodded shyly from underneath him. "Yeah. Just you being near me makes me more than okay."

He lowered his face her neck and sighed against her skin. "Brie, you mean so much to me."

Her hands wandered down his back and tugged on his shirt. "Troy, you're amazing." She whispered breathlessly as her fingers traced his well defined eagle wings.

He leaned back onto his haunches and looked down on her as she pulled his shirt over his head. She let her fingers trace the contours of his chest and she bit her lip. "Like it?" He asked teasingly.

"You're mine?" She asked herself more than him.

He lowered himself onto her again and nodded, smiling down on her. "No one else's." He whispered. "But, the question I need the answer to is: how on Earth did I find you?"

She giggled as he kissed her cheek. The action was simple, but as she felt his hand softly caress her waist, she could sense and reciprocate his desire and adoration he felt for her. She moved her hips slightly to get more comfortable when she frowned and gripped his shoulder. "Troy?" She asked curiously.

"What?" He muttered into her neck.

She sat them both up and giggled softly at his bemused expression. "I just wondered…It's, um, oh, God, I'm sorry."

Troy reached across and held her cheek. "Hey, it's okay. Are you alright? I didn't hurt you, did I?"

She shook her head and kissed his palm. "I'm fine. I was just curious…Troy, you're the one guy I've let things go this far with. I don't know why, really, because we haven't been together all that long. But, I always imagined that as soon as the guy's shirt was off, things would…go up and, you know…Why hasn't it?" She asked, looking away to hide her face which had gone a deep crimson.

"Brie?" Troy whispered. "Brie, come on, look at me. It's just me. You don't have to be embarrassed about it. It's fine."

Gabriella turned to him and smiled weakly as she moved into his open arms, nuzzling her nose against her neck. "I just ruined the mood, didn't I?"

"Hey, it's fine." Troy soothed her quietly, rocking her back and fore. "The reason I don't have an erection – by the way, Brie, we're both grown up, you can use the actual word – is because I can see it in your eyes. You're not ready. As much as I love the thought of making love to you, you're way too important to let my testosterone push you away." He kissed her hair comfortingly over and over again, knowing she was way too embarrassed to say anything.

"I'm sorry." She muttered.

"I don't want to hear it. You've got nothing to be sorry for." He whispered.

She finally lifted her head after a couple more moments and sighed. "I was just curious." She muttered.

He smiled and touched her cheek. "You're simply perfect. If I'd gone that far with an East girl, we wouldn't be talking right now."

She giggled and suddenly lunged at Troy, pushing him back onto her mattress. Her hands rested either side of his head and she leaned down and captured his lips in a passionate kiss. She felt his arms curl around her waist and she pulled back, looking deeply into his eyes. "You're so considerate and caring…I love…" She paused when she saw his eyebrows rise in curiosity, "that in a guy." She finished quietly.

There was suddenly a knock on the door and then they heard Maria's voice yell down the hall before there was another knock on the door.

Gabriella got up to make her way to the door whilst Troy quickly grabbed his shirt and shoes. She pulled her door open and smiled at Maria. "Hey, Mom. What's up?"

Maria eyed her daughter curiously. "Nothing. I was just wondering if you wanted to join us? We're going to be watching Sixth Sense and Zeke has baked us some of his cookies."

Gabriella bit her lip. "Mom, I've seen that film six times and I'm still scared. I don't like it. I was planning on having a quiet night."

"Are you okay, mi hija?" She asked suspiciously.

"Mmmmhhhmmmmmm." Gabriella replied, smiling softly.

Maria looked down the hallway and leaned towards her only daughter. "So, is Mr Hero making you stay in your room or what?"

Gabriella pulled Maria into the room and shut the door. "Mom, will you listen to yourself? It's ridiculous."

Maria raised her eyebrows. "Ridiculous?"

Gabriella nodded. "Yeah." She whispered.

"Why is there a hand on the floor, then?" She asked, looking directly at a hand poking out from under Gabriella's bed.

Gabriella turned to where she was looking and rolled her eyes. She bent down and tugged on it. "Very subtle." She muttered sarcastically.

Troy began crawling out from under her bed and smiled sheepishly up at Maria. "Hello, Mrs Montez."

Gabriella helped Troy up and then realised that his lack of shirt could've been taken the wrong way. "Mom, this isn't what…um…Oh, dang it. I'm sorry, Mom."

Troy wrapped an arm around her waist and he kissed her temple. "I'll go home, Mrs Montez. I'm sorry for the intrusion." He let go of her and pulled his shirt over his head.

"Calm down, the both of you." Maria said sternly.

Gabriella and Troy glanced at each other and both sat down on Gabriella's bed. Troy took her hand and squeezed it. "Okay…" Gabriella spoke slowly, looking wearily up at Maria.

Maria sighed. "I know my daughter. I know that she wouldn't sleep with anyone unless she was positive he was the one. So, calm down. Just answer me one question: why didn't you tell me this boy had made his move?"

Gabriella giggled softly and shrugged. "I don't know. It happened on the night I went to Santa Fe with him. But, Mom, this isn't some…fling. We want this. Honestly."

"Mrs Montez, it's true. I've never met anyone more perfect than your daughter and I don't plan on giving her up for anything." Troy said seriously.

Maria smiled. "I get that. And I understand that your relationship is complicated so I'll let you stay. Just don't let your father catch you like that."

"I don't plan on it." Gabriella said as she stood up and hugged her mother. "Thank you, Mom."

Maria kissed her forehead and headed for the door. "No worries, mi hija."

Gabriella locked the door behind Maria before returning to Troy. She immediately straddled his lap and bit her lip. "Are you okay with my mom knowing?"

Troy leaned down and pressed reassuring kisses to her neck and her collar bone. His fingers drew lines lightly up and down her back. "If you're okay with it, Baby, I am, too." He whispered.

She sighed contentedly as she fiddled with his hairs. "As long as you're with me, I'll be just fine."