Chapter Three

Troy Bolton watched his son standing on the edge of the sofa in the family room, knowing very well litle Logan would try to take his first steps. Sharpay was currently focused on replying to emails on her cell phone next to him on the loveseat they were sharing. Troy gently rubbed her upper thigh, earning a sigh from the blonde.
"What is it, babe?" Sharpay asked, glancing at her husband.
"Look at Logan," Troy nodded towards their son, staring at the coffee table just two feet away from the sofa. "I think he's going to try to take his first steps."
"Oh my Gosh!" Sharpay squealed and sat closer to her husband, gripping his leg tightly. "Our baby is going to do it!"
"Shh, he's going to lose focus." Troy whispered.
The parents watched for a couple more seconds before Logan finally decided to make the commute to the dark wooden table, cautiously taking his first step, before rushing into the last steps leading to the table. Once he grabbed onto the table, he grinned and looked at his parents; Sharpay had tears flowing from her eyes while Troy rushed over to pick his son up.
"Congratulations, Logan!" He congratulated the one year old. "You finally did it!"
"Aw," Sharpay bumped Logan's nose with her finger. "My little baby isn't all that little anymore."
Troy grinned and shared a soft kiss with Sharpay before they both kissed Logan's cheeks. "I can't wait to brag about our little munchkin at his playdate with Martha's daughter this afternoon."

The couple went further and further apart while helping Logan perfect his walking abilities for the next twenty minutes before Troy got a phone call.
He excused himself before answering the call. "Hello, this is Troy Bolton?"
"Troy, it's me." A familiar voice said on the other end.
"What do you want?" Troy asked, quietly so his wife wouldn't hear. "I can't be speaking to you, Gabriella. You know that."
"Honey, who is it? My dad said he wanted to call you earlier. Is that him?" Sharpay's voice asked.
"Um, no. It's not him. It's a business call," Troy walked out of the family room and into his office just across the hall. He finally spoke into the phone again. "Seriously, leave me alone."
"I'm not trying to win your heart back of anything dramatic like that-"
"Good because that's not going to happen." Troy answered firmly.
"As I was trying to say, I'm just calling to tell you that I'm living in Albuquerque from now on," She announced, earning an immediate groan from Troy. "I've got a job offer and I've accepted. You're probably going to see me around. A lot."
Troy thought for a while. She was going to be living in Albuquerque? "Yes, honey. Coming," Troy pretended to hear Sharpay calling his name, "I have to go. Don't call me back."

"Yes, honey. Coming," The words coming out of her husband's mouth were odd. She didn't remember calling him. She was just walking past his office. "I have to go. Don't call me back." She heard him say in a shushed voice.
Once she heard the call end and Troy place his phone on his desk, she walked through the door. "Would you mind putting Logan down for a nap? I have something to do."
Troy looked startled. "Yeah, I'll put him down for a nap," Sharpay turned to leave. "What are you doing?"
"I'm just going to run a few errands. They don't get completed by themselves." Sharpay fake laughed and kissed him on the cheek. "I love you."
"You too."

"Why would he be speaking to Gabriella?" Sharpay's friend Marina asked. "I thought she left him."
"She did," Sharpay told her. "She's recently returned to New Mexico out of nowhere. I'm really worried."
"Why are you worried, babe?" Marina asked. "Troy is the sweetest guy ever. He'd never cheat on you."
"I'm not worried about Troy. I'm worried about William and myself," she answered truthfully. "Will because I don't think he can handle it. Even at his age. I don't want him to get in the middle of a custody battle. I mean, I've helped raised him. Troy and I have a family. I'm really worried like-" Marina interrupted before Sharpay rambled away for the next hour.
"I think what you mean is you're worried about your marriage." Sharpay looked at Marina surprised. How in the world did she surpress that from her thoughts? It was kind of true. Kind of.
"That might be it." Sharpay sighed and looked down at her plain black coffee.
"I think if your ever-so-sweet husband still loved her, he wouldn't have married you, and had such beautiful babies with you. Troy doesn't come off as a guy who would marry someone as a rebound." Marina said.
"I know that, too. But I just can't help but be worried that he'll pick her over me."
"If you really want to see if the guy loves you.." Marina began, before reconsidering what she was going to say. "You know what, actually? Nevermind. Forget I said anything."
"Oh my Gosh, I hate when people do that."
"Do what?"
"When they're about to tell you something and then change their mind and you just can't help but want to know what was going to come out of their mouth. It drives me crazy." Sharpay sighed.
"Fine," Marina huffed. "I was going to say to be as friendly as her as possibl. Invite her for dinner or invite her to a family gathering. Watch how Troy responds to it. If he's uncomfortable around her, he might still have feelings. But if he doesn't seem to mind that much, there's nothing to worry about."

Gabriella Montez got out of her SUV and shoved her keys in her pocket. "Mmm, so many memories."
Gabriella recalled to the first time she came to this school. It was for Troy's cousin Annabella's first play in the sixth grade. She smiled at the memories of meeting Troy's aunt, and his cousins. Those were nice times.
"Mom, let's go." Alicia grabbed her mother's hand and lead her up to the front doors
"So eager to learn," Gabriella laughed. "Let's do this, meha."
"Isn't that what Abuela calls you?" Alicia questioned while holding the door open for her mother and closing it once they both entered the school.
"Si, it is," Gabriella's inner accent came out. "But you're my meha. I'm Abuela's meha."
"I forget most of my Spanish." Alicia admitted while following her mother down a hallway towards the main office.
"We're going to have to do something about that," Gabriella told her daughter. "Don't let Abeula find out. She'll be upset. When I began to forget some of my Spanish, she gave me the cold shoulder for two days."
"I'll make sure not to, mami." Alicia smiled.
"Here we are." Gabriella grabbed her daughter's hand and they entered the office.
"Hi, I'm Debby," the secretary greeted. "What may I help you with?"
"My name is Gabriella Montez. I'm here to register my daughter." Gabriella answered, holding her hand out for Debby to shake it.
"Nice to meet you," Debby stood up and shook it, making her beaded earrings more noticable. They were beautiful.
"You as well," Gabriella smiled at her earrings. "I love your earrings. Where'd you buy them?"
"I bead. So I made them myself. It's a Native American tradition. My CooCoo taught me when I was a young girl. I actually sell these while I'm up north in Canada visiting my family," Debby told her. "Anyways, Miss. Meyers will be right out. She's just finishing talking to a student."
"I want to make earrings." Alicia looked astonished at the Native woman.
"Maybe I'll teach you sometime, amow." Debby smiled at Alicia before reaching into her desk and handing her a beaded key chain.
"What?" Alicia asked while examining the key chain.
"Amow means honey in my language," Debby told her. "That's a key chain. You can keep it until I teach you how to make your own."

Before the Montezes' could respond to Debby's kind gift, the principals door opened and she smiled at the sight of Gabriella and Alicia Montez. "Ah, Gabriella!"
"Nice to see you, Andrea." Gabriella smiled and shook her old friend's hand.
"You look gorgeous!" Andrea took in Gabriella's appearance. "I mean, wow!"
"Thank you. I work hard," Gabriella twirled around as a joke. "Shall we get to it?"
"Yes, we shall," Andrea looked at Alicia. "I'm just going to be speaking to your mother about boring school stuff and signing papers. Are you going to join us or would you like to wait until we're finished to talk?"
"I'll wait."

William Bolton strolled down the hallway with his laptop in hand, grinning at the younger students that waved while he walked by. "Nice haircut, Carmen! It looks good."
"I like your shirt, Georgia."
He finally reached the office and walked in, setting his laptop on the desk in the corner. "Hey, Debby!"
"William, we have a new kid joining us at Jimmy Carter," Debby nodded towards Alicia sitting quietly in an office chair. "Would you mind showing Alicia around while her mother's speaking to Miss. Meyers?"
"I was going to show you how much of the slideshow I have done before going back to History but sure, whatever keeps me out of class longer." William laughed and made his way towards Alicia.
"I'm William T. Bolton," William introduced himself s politely as he was taught. "Everyone calls me Will, though."
"Will is the captain of the basketball team and also the leader of the Writing Club," Debby told Alicia. "He's going to show you around."
"I'm Alicia Montez." She smiled.
"Cool," William held his hand out for a shake. Once she shook it, he lead them out of the office. "So, this might take a while since it's such a big school."

"Alicia's homeroom is Mr. Cross. She has him for most of her subjects but everything changes throughout the cycle." Andrea explained.
"Sounds good. Is she good to start today?" Gabriella asked.
"Yeah, of course." Andrea opened her office door and the duo walked out.
"I think you'll really enjoy it at Jimmy Carter," the thirteen year old boy told Gabriella's daughter. "It was nice meeting you."
"You're good to start today, sweetheart. Maybe my ol' little buddy," Andrea put her arm around her favorite student. "William here can walk you to your homeroom."
"I mean I can if you want." Will answered.
"Sure." Alicia nodded.
"This is Alicia's mother, Miss. Montez," Andrea introduced Gabriella, not knowing that Gabriella knew the young boy.
"I'm Will," William grinned, resembling his father. His grin. His bright blue eyes. His chestnut brown hair. "William Bolton. Everyone calls me Will, though."
Gabriella took a deep breath. "Nice to meet you," her voice cracked. "William."

"So, a new girl joined the club?" Sharpay asked as she refilled her stepson's water glass. The Bolton family were enjoying a nice homemade dinner for the first time in a week. Due to Sharpay being away for most of the week. "How is she?"
"She's really cool," William told his parents. "She's in sixth but she's cool as hell."
"Watch your language." Troy told his son.
"Oooo," Dylan put her iPhone down. "Willy has a crush!"
"No. Dylan, I don't," William gave his younger sister a dirty look. "I'm not into girls yet."
"When it happens, you just flash those pearly whites of yours and you'll have any girl's heart, carino mio." Berta told William.
Berta was William and Dylan's nanny when they were younger but Sharpay and Troy decided to let her go but rehired her after Graham arrived, and she had just been with them since. She was more than a nanny. Sharpay called her the family's wife when she wasn't around. She took care of the housework, and helped with the kids during the day.
"My boy's quite the charmer." Troy grinned.
"Looks just like his father," Sharpay softly smiled at Troy and they joined hands under the table, earning a groan from Will. "What?"
"We're trying to eat, Mom." Dylan laughed, William joining.
Sharpay giggled. "Hmm, you think that was gross?" Their kids nodded. She left a soft kiss on Troy's lips, making the table erupt in ews.
"Exactly," Troy laughed. "Anyways, Dylan, you have dance class in twenty minutes. You better get going."
"And William," Sharpay looked at her stepson. "you still have a few more worksheets to finish for math. If I get one more call from Mr. Datuin, I'm not talking you out of an ACU."
"Okay." Will nodded as he pushed his plate forward, signaling he was finished. He then made his way to his bedroom to finished his much-hated math homework.
The table was quiet for the next couple of minutes until Dylan was finished her dinner.
"You finished?" Troy asked.
"Um, yeah, let's go." Dylan grabbed her dance bag on the floor and left the dinner table.
"I'll see you when we get back." Sharpay got up from her chair and left a kiss on Troy's cheek.
Troy nodded and walked his girls to the car in the driveway. Once they were situated in the Mercedes SUV, Troy gave a final wave as they drove out of the driveway.
"Berta," Troy joined the nanny in the kitchen and rolled up his sleeves. "guess it's just you and me. Let's get these dishes finished. You wash. I'll dry."

AN: The lack of reviews is disappointing me but at least there's a few. If there's more than at least five within the next twenty-four hours, I'll have an update posted by this time tomorrow. But if not, you're going to have to wait a while.
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