"I have a confession to make." Gabriella said in an unknown sultry voice. She hadn't talked the whole ride home as she just let the feeling of their connected hands take over. It was a nice feeling; a feeling that she could get used too. And she would get used to it as now that they were officially girlfriend and boyfriend, she wouldn't have to worry about any other girl taking Troy away from her.
Troy parked his truck against the curb in front of his house. "What is it?" He unbuckled himself as he turned a little bit more to look at Gabriella who had already unbuckled herself as they turned onto their street.
"You know back during homecoming week? And how we got into little, little fights and you thought that I didn't notice anybody else besides me and my friends?" Her voice was small as he had to strain his ears to hear.
"I really didn't mean that. Well…obviously I did, but I understand now, and I was a jerk that week; being in a bad mood is all." Troy tried to reason. "Hey," he cooed as he reached over and lifted her chin up so that he could see her eyes that he has just recently been memorizing. "I thought that was in the past?"
"It is. I just…I just want you to know that I noticed you." It seemed to Troy that her dark eyes were twinkling. It was like they were the only two in the world and nothing else mattered. "It was back in freshmen year and basketball try outs were happening. I basically had a whole week to myself and I got bored. I just…I remember watching you play basketball day after day. And you never missed a shot." Gabriella said with a hint of excitement in her voice.
"You're telling me this NOW?" He grinned at her from ear to ear as in that moment, he told her silently just how carefree he could be with her. How he was a different person around her. How he didn't have any boundaries with her. He wanted to share everything also, and that's what would make them work as a couple. He was different with her than with anyone else and Gabriella just knew. She knew that was true as she watched him and Lilly the beginning of junior year. Even then he rarely smiled as he was good at the whole brooding thing.
"Why not now?" Gabriella asked back as a genuine smile crossed her face. "Like I said before, I'm a lot better listener when not around the whole high school scene."
"Even if that's true, you could've fooled me. It seems to everyone at school that you're in control."
"I am, it's just…refreshing, you know? To just get away from all the drama that entails with being a cheerleader at a school that goes by cliques." Gabriella leaned into his hand that had traveled it's way up her arm and onto her cold cheek. "It's a nice feeling."
"Well since we're all into the honesty and confessing thing right now, can I ask you a question?" Troy's tone was soft as Gabriella's hand reached up to his hand that was holding her cheek and covered it with her own.
"Anything."
"Since you know about my very little dating past, I want to know about yours too." Troy watched her sigh a little and he didn't know whether to take that as a bad thing or not.
"I've gone on a lot of dates with different guys. But for some reason they'd only last one or two dates. But for long term relationships? I believe my longest one has been three weeks."
"Oh?" Troy was surprised. The previous years he was almost like a no one at their school. He wasn't counted as being in the book smart type of people, but he wasn't at the top of the jock chain either. He was average; normal. And that gave him a chance to watch things and people. People including Gabriella Montez.
"You're surprised." Gabriella noted.
"Well…yeah. We're on the second date here, should I be worried?" Troy asked light heartedly.
"I think you're safe."
"Well then what happened? Is there some type of trick I should know about?" Troy was kind of worried. He tried to cover it up by staying light hearted, but there was only one guy who managed to stay with Gabriella for three weeks. And even though he himself had only been in one serious relationship, he managed to outlast Gabriella by five months and a week.
"It just didn't feel right. I guess I'm a sucker when it comes to romance." Gabriella admitted as it surprised her a little bit that she was admitting it so freely. "My mom started me at an early age with Disney princess movies and books. I guess it kind of rubbed off. Not to mention she's a sap when it comes to this stuff too."
Troy took in the gentle and opening smile that made it's way across her face when she talked like that. He never would've pictured Gabriella being so into romance, but he should know by now that after the last couple of weeks, anything could happen.
"So it feels right when it comes to you and me, right?" Troy asked after a moment of hesitation.
Gabriella didn't think as she let her mind and heart do the talking. "It feels perfect." Gabriella turned her head and pressed a kiss into the palm of Troy's hand.
On Saturday evening Troy and Gabriella had said goodbye when Troy walked her to her front door. The kiss they shared was strained as they could both feel the want between the two to take the kiss to the next level. But they both managed to keep it a nice Disney rated kiss without tongue.
But with just the Disney kiss, Gabriella still walked into her house with a smile on her face. She kept the same smile on her face while she sat with her parents who were eating take out for dinner. She held small talk with them as she knew that her mother was dying for details again, but this time Gabriella would be reluctant to give them to her. Only due to the fact that she wanted to keep certain conversations private between her and Troy. There was something more special about having conversations that only the two of them knew about.
Gabriella had gone to bed with the same goofy smile on her face, and when she woke up it was a different story. She threw her second pillow over her head to block out the hallway light that was shining through her room due to her bedroom door being open.
Her mother kept things in an orderly fashion. It was her father who hated going by routine when he was a kid. Gabriella knew that she was a mixture between her parents, but it was on every other Sunday that she would hate her mother for her 'routine'.
"Honey, it's 7:30. If you get up now then you'll have time to get ready for church at 8." Anna whispered as she sat on her daughter's edge of the bed.
Gabriella groaned as she knew that her parents liked to go to church at least every other Sunday. Her mom would do the same thing and ask if she wanted to go, but Gabriella would always have the same response.
"I don't have to work today. I'm not getting up." She snuggled into her soft mattress again as she pulled her comforter closer to her body.
Gabriella got her looks from her mother and her dad said that he was thankful for that, but Gabriella's friends all knew that it was too hard to decipher what parent she was most like. It was easy to tell for Jason, as no matter how much he didn't want to admit it, he was like his father when it came to school and friends. He was the best. When it came to Sharpay, anyone could tell she was like her mother who supposedly worked with the best actors and actresses on movie sets around the world. But when it came to Gabriella, she was good at school like her mom, and had a semi carefree loving spirit like her dad; although she was one of the most rationalist people at school. She mellowed her group of friends out. Along with being stubborn when her mind was made up.
"Are you sure you don't want to go sweetie?" Anna persisted one more time. "There's this one girl who looks to be about your age that goes."
Gabriella rolled her eyes as she kept them shut and under her pillow. "Mom, she plays the piano so she can't talk, and even if she didn't play, we still couldn't talk. Now sleep, sleep is something I can do perfectly."
Anna's side of the family made a big deal about going to church. They were Methodist and when Anna married Carlos who was Catholic, they wondered how the religion between the two would work out. In the end, Carlos became Methodist for Anna's mother's sake.
Anna sighed as she stood up and left her daughter to be. She knew that in a teenagers' eye, going to church wasn't all too exciting. But it was important to her, and sooner or later Gabriella would realize that.
Gabriella wrapped the thin gray cotton robe around her body tighter. It was only 8:30 in the morning and someone was at her front door. After her mother left her room, she tried to go back to sleep, but it wouldn't happen as she felt an underlying guilt settle in the pit of her stomach. But she still didn't go to church as it just wasn't her thing.
So instead she just laid in bed. That was until someone started ringing her doorbell. Gabriella was wearing a long t-shirt with girl boxers on. And instead of taking her time to search around her room for a pair of sweats or shorts she just wrapped her robe around herself and ventured downstairs.
She stood on her tip toes and looked through the eye hole. If it was someone who she didn't know then she just wasn't going to answer, but if it was Taylor or Sharpay then it wouldn't really matter what she was wearing since they were all girls.
Before Gabriella opened the door she rolled her eyes and tied her robe from around the waist to make sure that she was at least a little bit more presentable.
Gabriella opened the door, but was stopped as the door handle didn't turn. It was no wonder why he just didn't walk right in like he usually did.
"I already tried that Gabi. REAL smart." The other person on the side of the door said sarcastically as Gabriella unlocked the door that her parents locked 'just in case' something were to happen.
Gabriella smiled cheekily at Jason as he entered the house. "Hello to you too Buddy."
Jason shared a true genuine smile with her as he stopped using a sarcastic tone. "Hey Buddy. What's up?"
Gabriella motioned down to herself. "Other than the fact that normal people are still sleeping at this time? Nothing much. Did you eat yet?" Gabriella started making her way into the kitchen with Jason following.
"I could eat. What are you making?" He sprang up and sat down on top of the counter. He had been used to Gabriella's house ever since he was little. There was no place in that house that he hadn't been. It was like a second home to him.
Gabriella laughed good heartedly. "Oh no. Not what am I making? But it's what are you helping me make?"
Jason narrowed his eyes on Gabriella as they stared at each other playfully. It was a game they played to see who would win the little banter going on between them. Gabriella put her elbow down on the counter and her chin on top of her fist that was propped up. She kinked one eye brow up as her face held a perfect smirk.
Jason's eyes narrowed even more as he tried to intimidate her, but everyone knew that Gabriella was the only one who wouldn't back down to him. It was Jason who blinked first and groaned with distaste of the whole situation.
Gabriella smiled happily as he jumped down from the counter. She had just won a staring contest.
"I guess it's cereal today, and here I was thinking that you'd make your mom's famous pancakes." Jason grumbled as he didn't miss a beat in where he was going in Gabriella's kitchen to retrieve the bowls, spoons, and cereal that he automatically knew Gabriella wanted. It wasn't that hard as there were only four different kinds: Captain Crunch, Cocoa Puffs, and then two cereals that he had never heard of but they sounded healthy.
"Yum! Chocolate." Gabriella cried with joy as she watched Jason pour a bowl for her. After he finished with getting together their breakfast--Gabriella with her Cocoa Puffs and Jason with his Captain Crunch--they both sat down at the counter. Jason was on top again as Gabriella chose to stay at a bar stool.
He didn't come over every morning for breakfast like that, but he came over often enough in order to have a routine down with Gabriella. But it was Sunday's like those where her parents were gone for sure and they had the house to themselves that pleased him. He liked to just kick back with his best friend and do nothing in particular.
"So what brings you here?" Gabriella asked in between bites of her cereal.
Jason put down his bowl as he was only half done with eating it. "Can't a best friend just stop by?"
"I guess. My parents probably won't be home until the afternoon. They usually like to get brunch after church, and then they wind up talking to all the usual Sunday people." Gabriella recited as if she had said it a million times.
Jason flashed her a boyish grin. "You seem to forget that I've known this now for what seems like my WHOLE life. What's up with you?" He looked at his friend who had her hair up in a messy curly bun.
She yawned tiredly as that same goofy grin she wore the day before came onto her face. Just thinking of Troy brought that out in her. "Just tired I guess." Gabriella lied the best she could considering the circumstances.
"You don't have to lie. I know what you were doing yesterday." Jason told her quietly as he looked down at his cereal that was slowly turning soggy.
Gabriella found that her cereal was more interesting too. "Sorry. I guess it's just…weird."
Jason sighed at the exact same time that Gabriella did. "Yeah. Weird." He agreed as his rough fingers played with the small metal spoon just sitting in the cold bowl.
"Hey. You know what?" Gabriella asked in a very light tone to bring the normal conversation back.
"What?"
"I have my whole schedule free today. Want to do something?" Gabriella asked while looking up into brown eyes that looked nothing like Troy's.
"Why do you think I'm over here? To watch you eat?" Jason teased.
"Great." Gabriella quickly maneuvered herself so that she had better access to Jason's bowl of cereal. She took a quick scoop before Jason could stop her. "Yum. Captain Crunch with chocolate. I knew I liked you for a reason."
"Yeah." Jason scoffed as he protected his cereal better. "You use me to share cereals. How nice."
Gabriella smiled cheekily at him as they both knew that Jason really didn't mind. The same thing happened time and time again. They would both get different kinds of cereal and end up taking spoonfuls of the other one.
"You know you don't mind." Gabriella challenged.
Jason smiled at her with his white pearls glistening. "Nope." He took a very slow deliberate bite of her cereal. "I guess I don't."
They ate their cereal in peace as it only took a couple of minutes to finish. Gabriella collected both of their bowls without even having to ask if he was done or not. She turned on the sink to wash out the bowls and was surprised to see Jason right behind her as she turned around to put the utensils in the dishwasher.
"Gabi?"
"Hmm?"
"You had a good day yesterday, right?" He really did want to know if her date went well or not, he just wanted to get around the subject of Troy.
Gabriella smiled that goofy smile once again. "Yeah. It was better than good."
"How so?" Jason pondered. He couldn't even remember seeing her this happy after seeing her in bed with Lyle at a party. And that's saying something since when it's your first time with someone, people say that you glow.
"Because I have a boyfriend."
Jason's curfew for school nights was ten o'clock. His mom was the one who forced the curfew thing as his dad couldn't care less unless it came to sports. Unfortunately for Jason he was creeping into his house an hour late, and it wasn't only going to be his mom that was pissed because Jason ran out on his dad that morning.
He had gone over to Gabriella's house to escape a little as his dad had gotten him up at an unforgivable time that morning, 5:30 a.m. to go for a run. Jason did it however, and by the time they returned at 6:40, he was worn out. But his dad wanted to keep going by playing one on one. It was a mistake however as Jason knew well enough that training with his dad was on the borderline of bad and okay, but playing an actual game with him was just horrible.
Andrew Cross always was competitive. No matter what it came in, he wouldn't stop until he won. Even if it was some logical puzzle against yourself, he always found a way to win and get a victory. Jason learned the hard way when he was younger never to play a game against his dad. Unlike other fathers who let their kids win at games to boost their confidence, Jason had to work for that. His dad never held back.
So Jason refused that morning. He didn't need a reminder that his dad was in as good of shape as he was. And he didn't need his dad pushing him to be better. Because if Jason played and actually got in the lead with points, then Andrew would push for another game, and then another game until he actually won one. It took Jason from the age of seven to the age of sixteen to actually beat Andrew Cross at a game of one on one, and he was furious. So Jason decided to just walk away from the proposal of the game and go to Gabriella's house.
But Andrew Cross was even more furious once he found out where Jason was going. But Jason couldn't care less because he was tired of his dad real easily. He got his carefree attitude from his dad, whether he liked it or not.
"You're home late." Andrew's deep voice said as Jason jumped in his spot.
He shut the front door normally as it was no use in trying to sneak further into the house. He was going to have to face him sooner or later.
"Yeah. I didn't mean to, but I kind of got tied up in things." Jason said the lie as easy as it was to say the alphabet.
"Another fight with West?" Andrew asked as he put down the newspaper he was reading and actually looked at his son for the first time that night.
"Um…no. I was at the Montez House. I was just hanging with Gabi." Jason explained unnecessarily.
"You really like her?" Andrew asked as Jason's eyes went wide in shock. He was expecting anger from his dad. He was expecting getting into another fight. But then again, Andrew could surprise people with the things he asked.
"She's my best friend. What do you think?" Jason asked with a little bit too much defensiveness in his tone. Jason saw his dad smirk, and his eyes narrowed. "Why?" He spat out.
"No reason. Just I saw her parading around the mall with Troy yesterday. Thought that might interest you. Just a heads up that your girlfriend might not be so innocent like everyone thinks she is."
"Cut the crap dad. She's dating Troy. Not me. I'm her best friend. Always have been, always will be." Jason started up the stairs as he couldn't be around his dad anymore.
"You know, anyone who's been friends with a girl for this long is bound to be attracted to her." Andrew said as he was really trying to get through to his son that girls like Gabriella Montez don't just come along. And she was a lot better than the other cheerleaders that Jason hung around with.
Jason stopped in his tracks and kept his back turned towards his dad. "You know, believe it or not, some guys can keep their dick in their pants. But I guess you wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"
"You really think that once she starts dating someone that she'll need you around?!" His dad's voice was hard as he talked through gritted teeth.
Jason just smirked as he continued up the stairs. Trying not to let his dad's words get to him.
Gabriella was just getting to bed at 11:30. She had to finish typing a one page assignment she forgot about, and then she had to take a shower and change before finally getting into her warm bed. It was just when her eyes were drooping shut five minutes later that she heard a tapping at her balcony door.
She got up slowly as her long t-shirt fell to her mid thigh and covered any sign that she was wearing her light blue and white girl boxers that fit just as well as spandex for volleyball players. She rubbed the sleepiness from her eyes as that night just happened to be one of the nights that she actually did have her curtains down and in front of her door.
When she pulled the curtain aside a little bit she nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw that Troy was on the other side. She shut the curtain again and quickly put her hair up in a messy pony tail, anything to make her already bed hair disappear. She opened the door for him as it wasn't locked.
"What are you doing here?" Gabriella whispered in surprise as she couldn't keep a smile off her face for long.
It wasn't until Troy withdrew his right hand that was behind his back that Gabriella noticed he was holding something. He held the single red rose out to her with a grin that spoke wonders.
"For you." He whispered back.
Not in a million years had if you asked Troy where he would be that night would he have come up with that scenario. But there he was, standing on his girlfriend's balcony, and giving her a rose.
Gabriella took the rose, but not without letting her fingers slide alongside his to grab onto the stem. "Come in, please?"
"Anything for you."
Troy followed Gabriella in and that was the first time that he noticed that her bed was unmade.
"Crap, you were sleeping, weren't you." His tone held remorse for his actions.
"Don't worry about it. I just laid down." Gabriella said as she was fishing around her bathroom quietly. She came back out with a cup filled with water in it; along with the rose sitting just nicely in it.
Troy couldn't keep his eyes off of her as she was wearing a faded gray t-shirt that clung to her small stomach. It cut down in the front so that you could see some of her cleavage that let his imagination run wild. It fell to mid thigh, and Troy couldn't deny that he wasn't checking out her backside as she was rummaging through her bathroom drawers seconds before.
"Troy, thank you. This is really sweet. You really didn't have to do this." She whispered. "How did you even get up on my balcony?"
"I tied a rope from mine to yours." Troy took in her horror struck face, and then chuckled quietly. "I'm kidding. I just climbed the tree. Nothing big."
"You could've hurt yourself." She scolded lightly. "And I would like to make it through at least one day of having a boyfriend who isn't broken and hurt."
Troy grinned again with a glint in his eye. He took steps closer to her as her smile matched his. "What if I did get hurt? You would dump me then?"
"It depends which part of you got hurt." Gabriella teased. "I would just have to kiss it to make it better."
"Well if that's how this thing works, I think I hurt my mouth climbing." Troy reached out and gently pushed a curl back behind her ear.
"Well then…what are you waiting for? Just kiss me already." She whispered as his hand snaked up to where her pony tail was and pulled her towards him. His lips slammed down on hers as she leaned up to wrap her arms around his neck.
Their bodies molded together as chests were pressed against chests. Her legs were trapped between his as his other hand that wasn't massaging her head went to the small of her back. She had never felt this kind of feeling with anyone else when they kissed. And that said more than words could express.
Troy didn't know when in the kiss that they started moving backwards, but he soon realized that he wasn't standing anymore as Gabriella's legs hit the edge of her bed and she fell back on it softly. He soon followed as their lips rejoined.
It was like the kiss on her doorstep Saturday evening; except now no one was around to peak at them if they decided to take their kisses one step further. After all, they were officially dating, it wouldn't be bad if they actually used tongues.
Gabriella's hands played with the little light brown hairs at the nape of Troy's neck as it seemed like everything slowed down for her once she felt his tongue sliding across her bottom lip. She opened her mouth as their two tongues played tag together.
In between kisses and the dance their tongues were creating, Gabriella's legs had wound themselves around Troy's blue jean waist. Her shirt riding up a little as if Troy was looking down at her pelvis, then he would see that she wasn't even wearing shorts. And that would just make his thoughts run even more wilder through his mind.
It wasn't until they both heard soft footsteps pad down the hallway and go into the other upstairs bathroom that they froze and took a much needed breath. They stayed in their position until they were sure that the coast was clear and that Anna Montez had gone back into her bed room. Their breaths were ragged as Troy's forehead leaned down on Gabriella's and one of her hands were swiping his bangs out of his face.
Troy was half leaning on Gabriella as his feet were still stationed on the floor; not the most comfortable position, but yet, he wouldn't trade it for the world.
"As much as I don't want you to, but you should probably go." Gabriella said reluctantly as she tried to stop her mind from recapping what they were just doing. She could still feel his teeth sinking down onto her bottom lip and tugging playfully. Much like what she did to him in reciprocal.
"Yeah. It's getting kind of late." He agreed, but didn't move as Gabriella's legs were still around his lower waist. He looked down at her tan legs that would make any man look twice. "Uh, Brie?"
"Yeah?"
"You're still holding onto me." He said with a grin as Gabriella's face flushed a red that matched East High colors.
"Right. Sorry." She said as she untangled her legs and slowly sat up with him as Troy pressed one last kiss to her forehead.
"Goodnight beautiful. And sweet dreams."
Author's note--So what do you guys think? I'm interested in what your take is on Troyella's relationship. In my previous stories I've either taken them too fast or taken their relationship too slow, so I really kind of need your guys' opinions. And if you have any questions on the story, feel free to ask. And once again, THANK YOU. The reviews last time were so nice and genuine. I still laugh a little at how this story started off to just be one for me to let out steam with, but once I started writing it, I'm getting all these ideas and thinking about reactions from certain characters. And no matter if this story is just kind of centering around Jason, Troy, and Gabriella, they still pull the other supporting characters together and I just love that. I'm excited for the chapters coming up. I hope you guys are too.
