Wow, guys, I'm impressed! Who would have thought that I'd get so many reviews, once I made a promise to update faster than normally? You won't believe how incredibly happy I was to get !!eighteen!! reviews for one chapter! If that were the case every time I posted, I'd be a very happy girl :D So, since you kept your part of the bargain, I'll keep mine: Here it is, the twelfth chapter of 'Enemies or Lovebirds'. I hope you're all going to enjoy it and that I don't disappoint you in your expectations. Keep the reviews coming; they would make my already perfect day even more perfect. :]
So, I guess this chapter is dedicated to HudgensHomie09. I think your review is one of the sweetest I've ever got. Thanks so much for the compliment and for wishing me more reviews. I would very much like to give you a teddy bear such as the one you described, but I'm afraid that won't be possible. So instead, I give you the dedication for this chapter. I really hope that it's payback enough :]
This is a derivate piece of fiction featuring characters copyrighted and trademarked by Disney Enterprises Inc. It is based upon High School Musical, copyright 2006 by Walt Disney Enterprises Inc., all rights reserved; and High School Musical 2, copyright 2007 by Walt Disney Enterprises Inc., all rights reserved and High School Musical 3, copyright 2008 by Walt Disney Enterprises Inc., all rights reserved. The author is not connected with nor is this work authorised by Walt Disney Enterprises Inc., or any other motion picture studios. This work is solely intended for posting on Fanfiction, for the benefit and enjoyment of its intended audience. No commercial or financial benefit accrues or is intended to accrue to the author as a result of said posting. Any unauthorised copying or redistribution of this work might subject the party responsible for such unauthorized copying or redistribution to legal action by the owners of the aforementioned copyrights and trademarks.
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Recap of the last chapter:
But why did he do that? She had done him wrong; he had done nothing vicious, it was her that had committed the error. Deep in thoughts, she pulled up in the driveway and entered the house, climbing the stairs and letting herself fall on her bed. What should she do now? The apology was already overdue and she didn't even know if he would accept it. He probably would be furious at her for having to hear Amber talking about it to finally see him as innocent. And if they could ever work out this big misunderstanding… what did she expect? Starting over with him? She had feelings for him, there was no denying that. But had he kissed her because he returned her feelings or because he had wanted to prove something either to himself or to her?
And if he actually returned her feelings… would she be able to rebuild her trust in him? Although knowing that he hadn't cheated on her, she heavily doubted that she could confide in him. He hadn't been a cheater back then, well. But what was with his current self? She had witnessed his constant changes of girls and she didn't know why he did that. Had he changed into a player? She was nearly sure of that. And maybe he was just trying to get with her, because she was defiance for him, hence to the fact that they were enemies. She definitely didn't want her heart crushed a second time. Continuing on debating with herself, sleep finally overwhelmed her and allowed her to log-off her brain.
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Chapter twelve – What are we?
A new day had begun once again. The sun rose above the sky and it shone more brilliant than the days before. Everything was indicating a sudden rise of the temperature and a beautiful day without any unwelcome surprises. Which was unfortunately only referring to the weather, seeing as the sun had no influence on human's fate whatsoever. And for that point everything was indicating a very uncomfortable day, if you asked Gabriella Montez. Having woken up to the sun beams flooding through the window and meeting up with her face, she had only groaned, not paying the least attention to the wonderful weather. Lacking of sleep due to the fact what had happened the day before, she wasn't a huge fan of going to school right now. And that wasn't the only reason.
How the hell was she going to get through the day? With the knowledge she was now possessing? Heck, what was she supposed to do? Apologize? To someone who she had claimed to hate for the past two years? To someone whose heart she had most likely broken with her distrust in him? To someone who hadn't – not in the slightest – deserved what she had done to him? To someone who had turned into a player after she had crushed him? To someone who had been very content living life without her after a couple of days? To someone to whom she possibly was only a new toy; a challenge to get her despite all their history? To someone who she had begun to fall for head over heels once again?
Gabriella was nearly laughing at herself. She had thought about all of this the entire night long until she had finally fallen asleep and now she brought it up again. Really seemed as if she was trying to torture herself with everything she could. But she couldn't stop thinking about it, how could she ever? And slowly anger built up in her. How had Tiara dared? How had Tiara dared to demolish her life? How had she dared to take Troy away from her with a little scheme? With her plotting, with her evil plan? Gabriella was seething. Once again, as if the two hours she had spent yesterday doing that weren't enough.
How could they all have? Amber, Sarah, Tiara, probably the entire cheerleading squad. How could they have dared to set her up? To set him up? And then possess the cheekiness to send her a text, making sure she would catch them? How could they have! No! A little voice inside her head reported back. Shouldn't you be asking how could you have dared to fall for it? How could you have no trust in Troy whatsoever? How could you believe them over him? How could you not even give him a chance to explain himself? To tell you his point of view? How could you just assume he was a cheater? Gabriella buried her face in her hands. The voice was right. It was just as much her fault as everyone else's.
Which definitely didn't make things any easier. Groaning once again, she got out of bed, hitting her bed stud in the process. Swearing loudly, she skipped all the way through her room, vanishing into the bath room to take a shower. She desperately hoped that the shower was washing all of her problems away. It would be so easy to just wash them off and let them flow into the waste pipe. It was too bad that former attempts to do so had been vain. Gabriella sighed softly. And it certainly was bad luck that there are things that never change, so that there wasn't even hope to rely on.
Ten minutes later, she felt only vaguely better than beforehand. And even that went down the drain as soon as she paid full attention on the weather for the first time this morning. It was going to get hot. And the last thing she needed today were guys hitting on her, not being able to control their hormones because of the short outfits girls were bound to wear if they didn't want to melt in the warmth. It was not as if she was flaunting herself, but she knew at least one boy who would instantly take advantage of her short outfit. Brandon. Well, maybe he's not the only one and Troy will forgive you more easily for what you've done to him if he sees you in a miniskirt. She cursed herself for the sudden whiff of dark humour. Not funny, Gabriella, she reminded herself. This is really nothing to be laughed at.
With a huff, she went down the stairs, into the empty kitchen. Looking around and feeling the missing life in the house for the first time since her mother had left for her business trip. And for the first time in ten years she once again wished more than everything that her mother would be at home more often. She hadn't had that desire since she had been old enough to comprehend that they needed the money her mother was earning. Well, she had wished for her mother to be home, but she had never taken that desire over her knowledge. But now she was just wishing that her mother would be here, taking her into her arms and telling her what she should do about Troy. And there was nothing that she could use more than an advice of an experienced woman.
And Gabriella knew that her mother would have told her the right thing to do. Sure, she had messed up with her husband, but that had been more his than her fault. But don't you already know what to do? The little voice was back. There is no other option, really. She sighed. She knew what to do, she knew it so well. But she had to admit that she was scared. More scared than ever before in her life. What would Troy say when she apologized? Hell, she didn't even know what to say. She couldn't just walk up to him and say: "Hey, Troy, I'm really sorry. It was my entire fault, I should have trusted you. I just overheard Amber and Sarah talking about how Tiara set us up; so, please, forgive me." And then just move on with life? That wasn't exactly what was bound to make him forgive her.
*
As soon as Gabriella turned into the school's parking lot, she was already out of her car and heading up to school. She needed to talk to her best friends, and she needed to talk to them before she met Troy. It was important that she got at least one bit of advice before having to go all of this. And what would be even better: Hopefully she wouldn't have to go through all of this completely alone. She was sure that Taylor and Sharpay would help her as soon as they heard about Tiara's plot. Ejecting a relieved sigh, she saw the two of them leaning against her locker, obviously waiting for her.
She made her way over to them, blocking out the whistles that followed her down the corridor, due to the black miniskirt and the red neck-holder shirt, leaving at least half of her back uncovered. And it didn't help that she was swaying her hips, even if it was unintentionally. Suddenly, three metres before she would have reached her locker, there were hands slipping around her waist, holding her back from walking any further. She immediately stiffened, not knowing what to do. She didn't even know who it was, but was sure that it wasn't Troy. She would have recognized his touch. But judging by the facial expression it wasn't anyone she couldn't stand either, otherwise Sharpay would be breathing fire and brimstone already, especially if it was Brandon.
Turning around curiously, she found herself in Chris' arms. Smiling relieved, she freed herself, starring up at him. "What did you do that for?", she asked him, shoving him playfully away. He was quick with his answer: "Because I don't want you to escape that easily, missy! What did I hear about you and our beloved basketball captain?" His tone was off-handed, but his eyes showed that he was being serious. He didn't know if the rumours were true; he hadn't been in the hall the day before. And he just didn't want to believe anything like this until Gabriella herself did confirm them. Which she did, much to his shock. What the hell had happened to her? The last time he had seen her, she had been all against the idea of ever speaking to Troy ever again and now she had kissed him? In public?
And that wasn't the only thing that was going to shock him this morning. Sensing that Taylor and Sharpay hadn't waited at her locker, but had walked up to her and Chris, she spluttered out what she had been longing to tell them since she had left the house. "He didn't do it!" Her words didn't exactly enlighten her friends. "We're talking about Troy, right?", interrogated Shar, a confused look crossing her face. "He didn't do what?", asked Taylor, scrunching up her nose. "He didn't do it. He didn't cheat on me in Sophomore Year!" Gabriella's voice was showing that she was going to hyperventilate any moment. "Ahh!" A look of understanding flickered across their faces, before they went back to being puzzled. "What?!?!" Sharpay's scream was so loud that it easily over tuned any other noise in the entrance hall.
"Could you please repeat that?" Taylor and Chris had been speaking at the same time. "He… didn't…cheat…on me!" Gabriella emphasized every single word, near a nervous break-down. "What am I going to do, guys? I can't just go and apologize to him; God alone knows how much I hurt him!" The looks on her friends face showed that they couldn't follow her. "Gabriella, what happened? Why do you think that he didn't cheat on you, all of the sudden?" Chris inquired silently, not believing what he was hearing. A wonder had happened. That was the only explanation that was there.
He himself had never really believed in Troy cheating on her, basically because he knew that the sandy-brown haired boy wasn't a cheater. But he had never tried to convince Gabriella of that, plainly because he knew that she wouldn't listen to him. So what had happened that she suddenly changed her mind? He looked her square in the eye, trying to work out the answer to his question, as Gabriella wasn't going to answer it, seeing as she seemed to be all in a fluster. But all he could find there was confusion and fear. Fear because of not knowing what to do, he concluded.
"Gabs, tell us what happened, alright?" This time she seemed to get that she had to. "I overheard Amber and Sarah talking in the girls' bathroom yesterday in lunch time. That was the reason why I skipped the rest of the day, you know?" While she was mentioning that, she noticed that Taylor's face darkened. "Exactly, miss! How could you dare to miss decathlon practice?" She pointed accusingly at Gabriella, but Sharpay impatiently swept her hand away. "So not the point right now, Tay!" Taylor seemed to get back to the situation. Nodding her head, a guilty facial expression, she agreed: "Right. So, what did they say, Gabs?" Gabriella repeated what she had heard the day before. "So, what do I do now?" She desperately looked at her friends, begging for them to show her an expedient.
But they didn't even have a chance to say anything. "Gabriella?" Gabriella's insides turned upside down. No! Please, God, don't do this to me!, she begged silently, throwing a horrified glance at Taylor and Sharpay. But both of them just gave her an apologetic shrug, meaning to tell her that they couldn't do anything. Out of the blue, there was a hand on her shoulder, squeezing softly but firmly. It was Troy. There was no doubt. And what would follow now would be the worst moment of Gabriella's entire life, she was sure of it.
*
As Troy entered the school building this morning, his gaze instantly searched for Gabriella. He needed to talk to her. This thing between them couldn't just go on the way it was now. They needed to talk; they needed to work things out. And he wasn't going to let her off easily this time. So he made his way determinedly over to the lockers, as soon as he had spotted her and their friends leaning against them. It was time that he undertook other things than kissing her at random points of the day.
Being only a few steps behind them, he firstly noticed the faces of Sharpay and Taylor, both wavering from shock to astonishment back to shock. Whatever Gabriella was telling them right now… obviously it wasn't pretty. Accomplishing the last metres between him and her, he could only hear her say: "So, what do I do now?" Well, Troy didn't know what she was talking about, but he knew what she would be doing now. She would talk to him. And this time there was no escaping. Grabbing her shoulder in a firm grip, but taking care of not hurting her, he uncertainly let her name spring from his lips. "Gabriella?"
He had felt her stiffen the instant he had dared to touch her and he knew that she knew that it was him. A slight wave of hurt sweeping over him, he chose to try and ignore that. He had to do this and he would do this. It wasn't any less embarrassing for him than it was for her, but he wasn't going to hide away again, waiting for her to make the next move. He had never been one having the nerve to be depending on another human's acting. So he turned her around with just the pressure of his hand, expecting her to start screaming at him immediately. He was surprised all the more that she didn't.
Quite the reverse: She wasn't even looking at him, having cast down her eyes as soon as she felt herself turn around. Damn, why did he have to do this? Why did he have to make this so difficult for her? She wasn't ready, she hadn't even gotten an advice from her friends and she didn't know what she should do or say. What did you say after finding out that your enemy wasn't the one you had always judged him to be? She was sure that there was no precedence. But what definitely wouldn't help was standing here, looking bashfully at the ground. So she hesitantly looked up, not certain how he would react to her unusual attitude. She was fully aware of the fact that she wasn't coming up to his expectations.
Troy saw her looking up, but he was more than just confused. What was up with her? And why were Taylor and Sharpay as well as Chris looking at him as though he was going to experience the biggest surprise of his life? And why did he get the feeling that it wasn't going to be a good one? The thoughts floating out of his mind as soon as Gabriella's eyes met his, he tried to give her a smile. But somehow smiling didn't work for him right now. So he decided on simply leaving it out and cleared his throat. "Gabriella, what's up?" She starred at him, unbelieving he had asked such a casual question. Until she got that he didn't want to know how her life was going, but what was the deal about them, the situation, her. And that was the question she would have liked to avoid.
But now it was too late for that. Trying to hold her gaze on his face, she swallowed hard, trying to find the right words. Which was particularly difficult, seeing as she didn't have a clue what to say. Meant that she didn't have them in her mind; what made any kind of search redundant. So she just settled for the first ones coming to her brain. "I'm sorry." Nothing more, just this little apology. Troy didn't think he had heard right. "What?" He starred down at her, incredulous to what she was saying. "That's not a fitting answer to my question, is it?" Gabriella just looked helplessly at him. Troy turned to Chris.
"Chris? What the hell is she trying to do?" He didn't remember anything she should be sorry for… Well, he did remember a lot of things, but nothing for what she actually would apologize. But the boy just shrugged and replied: "I guess, it's better if she tells you, that's really none of my business." And with that he tucked the two other girls at their elbows and vanished with them down the corridor. Troy shook his head. This was getting stranger and stranger. And he very much intended on finding out what was going on. "Gabriella, what's happening? Between us and with you? Just everything!" She continued to ogle at him, not knowing what to say.
Stupid, Gabriella. How was he supposed to know for what you're apologizing? Mind-reading isn't in the order of day anymore. Her little voice was taunting her again, but this time she chose to ignore it. "I don't know, Troy." He blinked. Once. Twice. Thrice. But it still didn't make any more sense than it had made beforehand. How could she just say she didn't know? She had to know! What where they going to do if nobody knew what to do anymore? Because he didn't know what they were going to do; that was for sure. "What? You have to know, Gabriella. You always know everything!"
It was true. There hadn't been one single time he had witnessed her being without a solution for a problem. And to stay true, he had hoped to never get to see the day she would be completely clueless. But now here he was, standing in front of her, worrying. What the heck did she mean by saying sorry? For what? And why didn't she know what to do? It was unbelievable. "Do I?", her small voice shocked him. Why was she sounding so… so faint? So… so sorry? "If I knew everything… don't you think I would have known you didn't cheat on me?" Alright, Troy admitted. She would have…
Suddenly he snapped. What had she said? "What?!", he asked back. "What would you have known?" She couldn't have… she wouldn't have said that she knew he hadn't cheated on her? "You didn't cheat on me." She said it as if he hadn't known that. "You didn't cheat on me, and I broke up with you nevertheless. I'm so sorry, Troy." Now not able anymore to look away, she searched his face for any signs of emotion, but there was nothing. His worried gaze had changed into an unreadable expression. And there was no indication that he was going to say anything anytime soon. Gabriella felt dizzy. She should have known it. She should have known that he wasn't going to make this easy on her.
"Troy?", she requested an answer. "Say something!" She was practically begging for him to say something. And he did her the favour. "What the hell? You break up with me, resolute on your idea of me cheating on you; you take every chance to make my life miserable; you more or less become one of my enemies and then out of the blue you decide I didn't cheat on you? That's messed up, Gabriella!" Troy had to withhold himself from jetting an unbelieving huff. It wasn't that he was angry, it was just that he was confused beyond belief. Gabriella, however, mistook his actions.
Closing her eyes to hold her tears back that were threatening to fall, she couldn't stand it any longer. It was obvious that he wasn't going to forgive her. Why would he anyways? If he had done this to her, she probably wouldn't forgive him either. She didn't deserve his forgiveness, although she had hoped for it. Not even giving him a chance to finally speak, she turned around on her heel, deciding on absconding from him. She knew that he would start laughing at her as soon as he had regained his presence of mind. And she was sure that she was most likely not capable of standing that. She didn't know what she would do if he rejected her apology and instantaneous it sure did look like he actually would.
And there was no way in hell she would stand still and watch him take away her last bit of self-respect. Not bearing to be near him any longer, she eventually took off, not noticing Troy's attempt to speak as he opened his mouth. And she also didn't notice both the hand that attempted to grab her arm, trying to hold her back, and his regretting facial expression. Watching after her retreating figure, he finally grasped what had just happened. She knew that he hadn't cheated on her. She knew it. And at this particular moment Troy didn't bother why she finally had gotten that into her head. She knew it. She believed him. After all this time. And that was the only thing that counted.
The only questions left now were: Why had she taken off? Why hadn't she stayed to see his reaction? Why had she left him standing there dumb-struck once again? And the biggest one of them: What would he do, now that she knew?
*
Troy spent the entire time until free period thinking over the questions and their answers. And to his biggest shock he didn't know even one single answer. He could only assume and he didn't really like his postulations. One was worse than the other and that was worse than another one. This wasn't going to get him anywhere. And he knew only one way to have at least a slight chance of working all of this out. He had to go to dancing practice. He was sure that Gabriella hadn't cancelled it. Beating Amber was overbidding any eventualities. She would never give that up. And so it wasn't a surprise that he really found them in the gym, already training hard.
What was a surprise, however, was the girl entering the gym only two minutes after Troy. He hadn't approached the practicing team yet, because he didn't want to disturb Gabriella during her explanation of the next dance move. He would have to talk to her before they started dancing together again and he preferred to not do it in earshot of everyone else. And so he had made up his mind and stayed in the shadow of the hall, watching them from afar. He had noticed that Gabriella wasn't half as relaxed as she was usually, but his attention was pulled off of her as Troy heard the squeaky gym door open. The person that entered was the last he had expected to show up in here to this time.
Having been refracted from the dancing since hearing the door grating, Gabriella had turned around and her mouth fell open in shock. Amber whereas stayed cool, flipping her hair over her shoulder and for a short moment her eyes flickered over to where Troy was standing. Nearly sure that she knew he was there, he hold in his breath, but she didn't make any attempt to approach him. Instead she made a few steps into the middle of the gym and faced Gabriella. "How's it going, loser?" Troy couldn't believe it. Not only was that low, but it was also lame. What was Amber thinking? That Gabriella would break out into sobs by hearing that insult?
If she was thinking that, then she was going to be disappointed. Not even bothering to show an interest in the question, the brunette just gave back: "What are you doing here?" Her voice was cold; so cold it would possibly have managed to freeze better than a refrigerator. But Amber wasn't reacting to her tone. "Oh, nothing special, you know?", she replied, flipping her hair back once again. "I just want to borrow Troy for a short moment!" The still-hidden boy didn't miss Gabriella's flinching at his name. "He's not here!" Her tone was sharper than she had intended to, but when it came to Troy… well, at the moment all it took was his name to nearly throw her over the edge.
Amber just grinned greasily. "That he doesn't want to be seen by you doesn't mean that he's not here, Montez!" Slowly she turned her head to Troy and the eyes of everyone else followed hers. "Why are you hiding in the shadows, Troy sweetie? Come on out." He groaned inwardly. Great! What would Gabriella think of him now, after she had become aware of that he had, indeed, been hiding? But he understood that it was no use staying put where he was standing right now. Strolling over in the most casual way he could do right now, he was very aware that his every move was being watched by at least thirty people. He saw Amber beckoning for him to stand next to her, which was the main reason for him to take his place next to Gabriella.
He watched an offended flicker cross Amber's face, but he really couldn't care less. How the girl besides him was going to react was all that counted. Looking down at the brunette, he saw with hurt that she didn't look up to meet his gaze, avoiding taking a look at him at all costs. Well, if she insisted on doing it this way… "What do you want, Amber? You know you've nothing to do in here." Amber just smiled sweetly at him, in a way that made Troy want to puke. "I just wanted to borrow you for a short moment, darling. Thought I would get you away from those losers in here." Troy felt Gabriella starting to shake next to him; whether it was hurt or rage, he didn't know.
He felt anger flicker inside him and spat: "Stop calling me nicknames, Amber, and especially those. I dumped you, don't you remember? Or do I need to refresh your memory?" From behind him, Troy could hear Chad speaking: "What? He dumped her? Why am I the last to know that?" A thump could be heard. There was no doubt that Taylor had hit him over his head. "Hey! What's that? Why did you do that?" His whiny voice easily over tuned whatever Amber had tried to answer. "Why do you think he kissed Gabriella?", Taylor hissed, seeing that the attention had turned from Troy, Amber and Gabriella to her and Chad.
However, that was changing quickly, as Gabriella decided to finally say something. She had been the only one not even listening to Chad and Taylor's bickering, but had held her attention at Amber. "Why did you really come here? You know that Troy wouldn't come with you. Why should he? You're just here to disturb the peace, aren't you? What's up with you, Amber? Do you get any satisfaction out of messing with other people's lives?" She didn't even need to ask that, it was more than clear. But it had one advantage: Amber's mouth stayed close, eyes widening in shock. She hadn't expected for Gabriella to snap back that acidly. That was more like Sharpay.
Closing and opening her mouth, making her look like a mute fish out of the water, Amber just couldn't find the right come-back. And she didn't need one. "Brie is right." All heads snapped up at hearing Troy calling Gabriella by her old nickname. "Zoom off, alright? If you just want to disturb us, then we've got no use for you and your awful comments. Tempting and insulting her isn't going to work in your favour, Amber, and that's why I'd heavily advise you to cut the crap. Whatever contentions you two have, it's going to be solved at the contest, alright?" He smirked slightly, remembering that the reason that all this had been started had been he himself.
To his luck both girls missed the grin. Instead they both took to glare with intense hate at each other. "You'll never get him!", Amber eventually spat, before turning around and leaving the gym, head exalted in pride. "Who says I'm trying to get him?" Gabriella's reply went unheard, since Amber had already slammed the door behind her. Swallowing hard, Gabriella noticed her being close to Troy for the first time. Sure she had noticed that he hadn't stopped next to Amber and she had felt him near her, but she hadn't put her mind in it. But now, being attentive, she felt more than uncomfortable. Having regretted running off as soon as she had gotten to think again, she knew that this cause wasn't finished.
And if she had stayed, then maybe they would already have worked this out. Even knowing that he thought low of her would be better than this … knowing nothing. Because now she would have to try to get through this without having put it straight what was the matter with them, seeing as she wouldn't discuss their private lives in front of nearly everyone, even if they were her friends. The only problem was that Troy looked as if he was going to force her to discuss this. And she would do everything to obstruct that. It wasn't as if it could go on like this forever, it was unstoppable. It was bound to happen sooner or later and Gabriella definitely preferred later.
"Okay, guys! After this little episode, I guess it's time to get working… after all we want to beat her, don't we?" For a few minutes everyone was speechless. How could she switch from cold and distant to perky and warm in just a matter of seconds? But then again it didn't really matter. They all wanted to beat Amber, especially after this. And so there was no one complaining, not even Troy. And already two minutes later everyone was ready for a complete rehearsal. It was time to put all sections of the dance together, so they could see if everything went the way they wanted it to.
Gabriella pressed 'play' on the recorder and flitted back into her position. Directly in Troy's arms. Alright, there was nothing she could to do prevent that, the only thing she was hoping was that he wouldn't tell her how he thought of her while they were dancing, because she was sure that she wouldn't get the dancing moves right if he did. And he seemed to know it, for he stayed quiet the entire dance long. Instead they were listening to the lyrics of the song; the song that had meant something to the both of them.
It hadn't been the lyrics – hell, they hadn't fitted in the slightest back then -, it had been the memory of the dancing contest that had made the song so special. But now, listening to them again for the first time in about two years, it somehow described their present lives. Letting the song wash over her, Gabriella concentrated more on the lyrics than on the dancing, but thanks to all her practice she didn't mess up, seeing as she had done this countless times before. She nearly smiled at how perfectly well the text suited her and him. Wasn't she always asking herself why it had to be Troy she had fallen for? And she had tried to deny it all the time... And what the song was saying about sometimes being up against the wall and being kissed by him… Gabriella grew red with embarrassment. That was definitely the most fitting part of the entire text.
Troy was observing Gabriella and to the same time he managed to get her and himself through the dance, while profoundly trying to hold himself back from shower her with all his unrequited questions. He knew that she wasn't really concentrating, having nearly missed out on a beat a few seconds ago. And he was sure that he knew what she was thinking about… the same things as him. Those lyrics really fitted well… so well it was somehow scary. But everything in that text was true. Hanging in his thoughts for a while, he nearly missed the part where he should have let her go into the Pirouette. But it seemed like Gabriella had managed to come back from her thinking and broke loose from Troy. Spinning herself around, she nearly lost her balance, but once again Troy was there to prevent her from falling.
Giving her a gentle shove into the right direction while sinking down, she went back to dancing without having missed a single move. Gratitude towards him spread through Gabriella's body. If he hadn't done that, then she would be lying on the ground at this specific moment. And he hadn't let her fall. Did that mean he still wasn't that mad at her? Shaking her head, she tried to concentrate on the dance. If she completely spaced out now, then the lifting figure would end as a total disaster. Suddenly she freaked. What was if he didn't hold her this time? What if he let her fall to the ground because he wanted payback for all the time she had been mean to him because of something he hadn't done?
Now you've really gone nuts, haven't you, Gabriella? Really, that's pathetic. Thinking he would let you fall… where the hell have you been the last years? He would never do that! Gabriella swallowed. He had called her 'Brie' just a couple of minutes ago. He had given her assistance for her last dance move. He had never let her down. Of course he wouldn't start becoming vengeful now. Running up to him and jumping off the ground, she saw his hands grabbing for her waist and felt them encircling her only milliseconds later. She was safe. He hadn't let her down. And he never would.
With a newly found self-confidence, she accomplished the last steps of the dance, taking to observe the other pairs carefully. They were good. All of them had managed to get to the last steps and obviously no one was hurt. Which was a very good sign. And then everything was over. The last beats of the music faded away and she found herself back in Troy's arms. Breathing more lightly than last time, she starred into his piercing eyes. They were full of emotions and she was sure that hers were too. And once again she thought back to the song lyrics and knew they were right. She didn't want to like him… but she did.
And her cognizance had to have been displayed in her eyes, because Troy couldn't seem to resist anymore. Having sworn to himself the day before he would never again kiss her before they hadn't sorted things out, he completely forgot about that and leant in. And this time his lips didn't meet hers in a passionate kiss. No, this time they were taking it slower and much more sensitive. Moving his lips against hers until he felt her kiss back, he slowly grazed her lips with his tongue, gaining access the instant he did so. Not battling for dominance, he just took to exploring her mouth like an unfamiliar territory, although he did know her mouth inside out.
Letting one of her hands tangle itself up in the sandy-brown hair and one slipping around his neck, Gabriella felt his hands encircle her waist and pulling her more to him. Responding to his soft lips moving on hers, she felt the far too conversant sparks flaming up in her stomach, the ones that had been there all those years ago. The ones that had been missing for the past two years. And the ones she had never expected to ever feel again. A warm feeling washed through her, but it couldn't overlay the feeling of confusion that was brought with it. Feeling his lips part from hers, she hesitantly entangled her hand and let it slip from his hair over his cheek until it was hanging loosely alongside her body again.
Nobody spoke, not even the other teenagers in the room made a noise; even though you could tell that most of the girls were trying so hard to keep back a pleased sigh. This was so romantic! Gabriella, however, couldn't tell if it was romantic. For her it was more confusing than anything else. "Wow. That was… unexpected." As soon the words had left her mouth, she was swearing at herself. Stupid, stupid, stupid, Gabriella! You didn't have anything better in store, had you? Really… unexpected! That was the best you could come up with? She shook her head inwardly. What had she been thinking? If she had been thinking at all….
"Was it?" Troy belted out a short laugh. "I don't think so. Quite the contrary, I thought it was pretty obvious this was bound to happen." He looked at her with a heart-warming smile tucking at his lips. He hadn't noticed – or better, he hadn't paid attention to it, but now there was no way missing it. He had forgiven her… had forgiven her a long time ago, actually. She couldn't have possibly known that he didn't cheat on her… sure, she should have listened, but to be honest… he didn't know if he himself would have listened to her if he had caught her kissing another boy. But now she knew… she knew he hadn't cheated and that was everything that counted. And in his opinion they should really try to work this out… talk about it, apologize – each on their part – and maybe… start over? He still had feelings for her and he was pretty sure that she had, too, according to the way she responded to his kisses.
So now there was only one question left: What were they? Where did they stand to each other? Had she even once thought about giving them another chance? Seeing the way she gazed at him, he was sure that she hadn't. But how couldn't she? They had kissed, for God's sake. And not only once, no. It had been two times, three if they counted the one from just now in. What was holding her back from telling him what she wanted from him? He was about to get his answer.
"Why was it bound to happen, Troy? Heaven, you said it yourself: First I hurt you, break your heart and then I come saying sorry after two years! Two freaking years, Troy! And it wasn't like I decided to believe you! No, I had to hear it from Amber to get it into my stubborn head! Why the hell would you want to kiss me after all of that?" Her voice had gone from sounding lost, to sounding shrill and a mixture of desperation and disbelief. Troy's throat went dry. "What does Amber have to do with this?", he asked her, his voice hoarse. "They planned it. They planned every fucking detail of it. Tiara just had to follow you after you had played basketball, wait until you got in the shower, get your mother to let her in and take your cell phone to send me a text. And then she kissed you, hoping I would get to see it… or even more."
She was barely audible, her voice teary and suffocated. Troy's face went hard, hearing all of this from Gabriella. He silently vowed to himself that Amber would pay for this. It was just a shame that Tiara had already moved. She would have wished to, anyway, after he would have finished with her. But so he'd have to be satisfied with paying Amber back. However, he had to do something first. Seeing Gabriella standing helplessly in front of him, waiting for a reaction, his heart nearly melted into pieces. Raising his hand to her cheek, he looked her deep in the eye, wiping the tear that fell down her cheek away with his thumb.
"But that what really matters is that you know that I didn't cheat. How you got to that cognizance doesn't matter.", he softly assured her, not even perceiving most of the dancers and basketball players leaving the gym, wanting to give the couple a bit privacy. In the end it was only Taylor, Sharpay and Becky, who had been held back from leaving by tripping over her own feet, who remained. "But how can that not matter to you? I hurt you!" Now Gabriella's voice wasn't above a whisper and Troy had to lean in slightly to hear her. Getting vaguely frustrated at her question, he briefly closed his eyes.
Why didn't she understand? Why didn't she understand that it was just as much his fault as hers and that he was just as sorry as her? He had let Tiara stay, he hadn't thrown her out. She wasn't the only one to blame and he knew it. And he knew that it had been the biggest mistake of his life, a mistake that he was intending on ironing out. "It doesn't matter to me because I like you, Brie. Very much." Opening his eyes again, he met her uncertain look and he couldn't help himself. He leant in again, capturing her lips and kissing her in the most feelingly way ever.
He sensed her lips against his and he only pulled back as he felt something wet hit his nose. Shocked to see tears streaming down her face, he stood there, unable to help in any way. What was wrong? He didn't know and he was afraid he wasn't going to find out. How was he supposed to know that it was just fear taking over Gabriella? This wasn't anything like she had expected of the day and it scared her. It scared the wits out of her and she didn't know what to do. And so she did the first thing coming to her mind. She ran. The escape instinct kicking in, she spun around, taking off as fast as she could.
And once again Troy was watching her running from him and if it was possible it hurt even more than two years ago. His heart crumbling, he didn't have the faintest clue what was going on right now. But apparently he was the only one there. Full of confidence, the three girls who had remained in the gym strode over to him, patting his back with participation and following his eyes riveted on Gabriella's disappearing figure. "Don't worry, Troy. She'll come to her senses eventually.", Sharpay told him, smiling at him.
He only threw her a doubting glance. Right now he wasn't so sure. "You sure you're not just trying to pick up the pieces, Shar?" The blonde nodded with poise. "She loves you, Troy, there's no doubt. She just needs to clear her head a bit, you know? Working out what exactly she feels and what she wants. Girls are a little bit more complicated than boys." Troy looked at her, appreciating her words. "And is there anything I can do to quicken things up?" This time it was Becky who answered. "Do something sweet. Something that'll convince her that you're right for her. That you love her. That you know her and that you know what she wants."
Taylor nodded supportive. "She's right, think of something!" And he thought. Thought until he got an idea. "I've got it!" And suddenly there was a spark of hope flashing through his eyes. He had waited for two years. He surely could wait a few days longer. And in the meantime he would do anything to convince Gabriella of what she wanted. Him.
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Now, won't you look at that? Now everything's out in the open and Gabriella's not that sure of what she'll make of it. While Troy wants her back. Who's of the opinion that Gabriella's being a tad bit difficult in this? I can tell you I am. But I can't really complain, can I? After all, I wrote this :] Anyways, I'll make you a second deal. Fifteen reviews or more until Wednesday evening and you get the next one then? So, who wants to see what Troy's got up his sleeve to convince Gabriella of being his again? And how desperately do you want to know? It's all up to you. *grins evilly*
So, until Wednesday or the weekend,
xoxo
Lena