Disclaimer I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters.
A/N: Sorry for the wait. Christmas break is almost here so I'll be able to update a little more frequently :) Enjoy…
Last Time…
Gabriella wasn't really sure what came over her in the coming moments but the combination of the little speech Troy had just given her, the sincerity in his voice and way he had listened and comforted her had triggered an extreme gratitude which she decided to express by pressing her lips against his in a simple kiss.
But as soon as Gabriella felt Troy's surprise she pulled away babbling nervously,
"I don't know what came over me, I just…I don't know. It just happened and-"
She was cut off by Troy's lips on hers. At first she was shocked, but she allowed herself to melt into the soft, simple kiss letting her arms wrap around his neck. She felt his hands move gently down her back. Gabriella smiled against the sweet kiss before she slowly pulled away, keeping her forehead pressed against his.
"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that" Troy whispered. Gabriella smiled,
"I think I might"
Chapter Thirteen- Stamp of Approval
Two days before Thanksgiving Troy sat around the dinner table with not just his parents like usual, but with his brother and sister. His 23 year old sister Nora had just returned home from medical school in California that afternoon. While Alex, his 21 year old brother had returned from Duke University the previous afternoon.
Wrapped up in the excitement of their two eldest children returning home his parents were currently paying no attention to Troy. But Troy wasn't complaining, in fact he was quite content to listen to his siblings' tales of college life. For once it was nice not to be grilled about every aspect of his day.
As Nora began using medical jargon to explain cases she had seen while interning, Troy quickly found himself bored and drifting into his own world of thoughts.
It had been about a month since his date with Gabriella and he had never been happier. The pair was even more inseparable than before. They had become each other's best friend, confiding in each other every worry and every happiness. They spent long hours on the phone at night and were in almost constant communication.
The day after the date was the day Troy had told the rest of the gang about Gabriella's past. They were all completely shocked and devastated by the news. It was almost impossible to picture sweet Gabriella being tortured in her own home. Nevertheless, they promised to support her in any way they could.
Troy could feel himself changing, for the better of course, because of Gabriella. She was beautiful, intelligent, kind hearted, and as cheesy as it sounded, she made him a better person. She was the person he worked hard at practice and in school for, she was the one he got out of bed in the morning for and she was the one he would do anything for.
Troy sighed as his thoughts were interrupted. He heard his name being used in conjunction with Gabriella's in the conversation at the other end of the table. He looked up from his food to listen in.
"Woah, wait what? Troy has a girlfriend? Our Troy?" Alex asked mockingly.
"No, the place Troy." Nora muttered sarcastically.
"Ha. Ha" Alex laughed dryly at his sister. "What's her name?" he asked, directing the question to Troy.
"Gabriella" Troy answered simply.
"Ooh, that's such a pretty name. How'd you meet her? What's she like? What does she look like? Do you guys like her?"Nora asked excitedly turning to Mrs. Bolton.
"Well I wouldn't know. I haven't met Gabriella yet" Lucille said, slightly annoyed.
Nora looked shocked as she looked between Troy and her mother, "What? How long have you been together?"
"It's been a month, but they've been friends since the beginning of the school year." Lucille answered before Troy could even open his mouth.
"A month! What is wrong with this family? I swear you're taking after Alex, it took him 6 months to introduce his girlfriend to us, and now Troy is going down that same path. What is wrong with you guys?" Nora exclaimed.
"Nora chill, a month is not that long. Maybe Troy's gonna end it soon" Alex pointed out.
"Oh my god Troy, how are you going to do it? Don't be an ass, do it in person. Trust me, it will be better that way." Nora explained.
"Woah, who said anything about ending it? I don't plan on ending it anytime soon." Troy said.
"So why haven't you brought her home?" Nora demanded. "Are you afraid she won't like us? Are you afraid we won't like her, because I'll be cool with her as long as she's not some psycho, stuck up bitch. Hasn't dad met her already? He hasn't said anything, so he must like her –huh dad?"
"She's a very nice girl. And I can tell that Troy over here likes her – a lot, so she gets my stamp of approval." Jack explained.
"Well she still needs my stamp of approval" Lucille reminded them.
Suddenly Nora gasped, "I have the best idea! Invite her and her family for Thanksgiving!"
Lucille grinned, "That's a fantastic idea! What do you think Troy?"
Troy thought about the proposal. He liked the idea, mostly because he knew Gabriella would love the idea. This only slight worry was that his family would get really nosey and ruin everything for him. But maybe if he just laid down some ground rules things wouldn't get so bad.
"I'll ask her tomorrow" Troy answered finally. "But she'll have to bring her brother and sister, they're 10"
"That's perfect, Uncle David, Aunt Lisa, Jacob and Grace are coming so the kids can play together. What about her parents?" Lucille asked.
Crap.
"Her dad is away on business" Troy lied. He figured he might as well stick to Gabriella's original story.
"At Thanksgiving?" Nora sounded shocked.
"Her mother must be so disappointed" Lucille said.
Troy sighed, there was no way getting around this one. He had to just tell them about Gabriella's mom.
"Gabriella's mom isn't in the picture anymore. She left them when Gabriella was 10" Troy explained quietly. "So please don't bring it up tomorrow."
"So she's taking care of her siblings all by herself right now?" Lucille asked.
Troy nodded.
His mother gasped slightly, "Then make sure that she comes. She deserves a good thanksgiving meal"
--
The Bolton house was buzzing with people on Thanksgiving Day. All of the excitement was centered in the kitchen, where the family was chatting.
Lucille's younger sister, Lisa had arrived that morning along with her husband David and their two kids, Jacob and Grace. Jacob was 11 and Grace was 9. Jacob and Grace were working on a puzzle while the adults were preparing food. It was almost 3 o'clock and with the way things were going dinner would probably be ready at around 5.
"What time is Gabriella coming at?" Lucille asked.
"I said about 3" Troy explained.
"And what are her brother and sister called again?" Nora tried to recall their names.
"Lucas and Lily." He reminded them. Just then the sound of the doorbell rang through the kitchen.
"That must be them!" Lucille exclaimed, setting down her knife. Troy was suddenly nervous too, he prayed this wouldn't be a disaster. Putting down his own knife, he made his way to the doorway of the kitchen. Just before exiting the kitchen he turned back to his family,
"Just please try not to harass them with questions" he warned.
"We won't now go! Go answer the door!" Lucille insisted.
Troy turned and made his way to the front door. Opening it, he found a slightly nervous looking Gabriella and two excited ten year olds.
"Hi Troy!" Lucas exclaimed.
"We made you guys these cookies! Well, Gabi helped, she's the only one who knows the recipe except grandma, but Lucas and I did the hard parts!" Lily insisted.
Troy laughed, "Is that so? Why don't you go into the kitchen and give them to my mom? You won't be able to miss her, she's the one that's really excited to meet you" he motioned down the hallway. Lucas and Lily slipped off their shoes and handed Gabriella's their coats before they walked down the hallway.
Troy turned back to Gabriella and pulled her close, kissing her softly. He smiled into the kiss as he inhaled her sweet scent. Pulling away from the kiss he whispered,
"You smell like lemons and cinnamon"
"I do? Oh god!" Gabriella exclaimed, trying to rummage through her purse to see if she had anything to cover up the smell, but Troy quickly stopped her,
"No, no I love it." Troy said kindly.
"Really? It's just we spent most of the day baking all the cookies and I guess the smell kinda stuck" Gabriella confessed.
"Well I like it" Troy grinned. "Now, give me your coat so we can go into the kitchen before my mother dies of anxiousness."
"I don't know what she's expecting, it's just me" Gabriella almost laughed as she pulled off her coat and hand it to Troy along with Lucas and Lily's coats.
"And that is exactly what she is expecting. You" Troy grinned, "My beautiful girlfriend"
Gabriella blushed slightly, running her fingers through the first section of her hair, "You sure I'm dressed ok for the occasion? I wasn't sure what to wear"
Troy glanced at Gabriella's outfit. Gabriella was dressed in a casual, blue turtleneck sweater dress. She wore black tights and black shoes which matched the black beaded necklace she had on. Her curls tumbled down her back and over her shoulders and her makeup was done naturally.
"You look perfect" Troy assured her. Gabriella smiled,
"And you look very handsome yourself wildcat"
Troy grinned and took Gabriella's hand in his,
"You ready?"
Gabriella nodded.
Troy led Gabriella down the hallway and into the kitchen. He could see him mother leaning over the kitchen table, introducing Grace and Jacob to Lily and Lucas. The rest of his family were all busy preparing their assigned foods. He cleared his throat to signal his presence. Immediately his entire family turned to look at the couple who had just entered the kitchen. A grin spread across Lucille's face as she saw Gabriella.
"You must be Gabriella. It's lovely to meet you" she greeted warmly as she made her way over to the pair. Gabriella let go of Troy's hand so she could extend it to shake Lucille's hand.
"It's nice to meet you as well Mrs. Bolton, thank you so much for having us over, it means a lot" Gabriella said kindly.
Lucille smiled, "It is our pleasure. We've been looking forward to meeting you. And thank you by the way for the cookies, you really didn't have to bring anything"
"Lucas and Lily had a lot of fun making those today, trust me we were happy to make them" Gabriella insisted. Troy stepped forward, placing his hand on the small of Gabriella's back as he began to introduce her to the rest of his family.
"That's my sister, Nora, my bother Alex, you've met my dad, my Aunt Lisa and my Uncle David, Then over at the table with Luc and Lily are my cousins Grace and Jacob." Troy explained motioning to each family member as he said their name. "And family, this is Gabriella"
Nora moved around the counter to talk to Gabriella, "Gabi – may I call you that?"
Gabriella nodded.
"I love your dress; it's so perfect for winter. Where did you get it?" she asked.
"Thank you. It's from Urban Outfitters, but I ordered it online." Gabriella explained.
"I love that store. I might have to order one for myself" Nora confessed.
"They had one in red that would match your shoes, which I have to say are so cute"
"Thank you, I haven't gotten to wear my pretty shoes for a while now because I'm a med student and in the hospitals heels aren't allowed and I have barely anytime to go out anymore."
"You're a med student. That's so exciting. How is it?" Gabriella asked clearly intrigued. Nora smiled,
"Come help me make the pumpkin pie and I'll tell you all about it. You'll never believe some of the crazy things I've seen happen in the ER and the OR."
Nora pulled Gabriella away from Troy and back to where she had been making pie pastry. Troy watched the two girls chat and laugh as they mixed the ingredients into a bowl.
He felt his brother come up behind him and pat him around the opposite shoulder,
"Looks like you just lost your girlfriend to Nora" Alex smirked.
--
A little while later after the pumpkin pie was finished Gabriella had migrated over to where Troy was working on peeling potatoes.
Gabriella peeled the potatoes with ease, it was like second nature to her. However Troy wasn't having so much luck. This knife kept slipping up and almost cutting him. Then he'd miss tons of spots of potato skin and have to go back to get it all off. Eventually he finished peeling his first potato. Proudly he set it in the large pot. As he peered in his mouth dropped when he saw 3 perfectly peeled potatoes already placed at the bottom.
"How'd you do that?" Troy asked in awe.
"Do what?" Gabriella asked looking up at Troy as she finished peeling her fourth potato.
"Peel them so fast"
"Oh, I'm not sure really. I just kind of go around in a circle and press down and it works" Gabriella shrugged her shoulders. She took a new potato and tried to show Troy how she peeled them, "I guess I just keep applying even pressure and turn the potato not the knife."
Troy took his own potato and taking Gabriella's new advice he concentrated hard and managed to peel quite a bit off the skin in one sweep.
"There you go" Gabriella smiled brightly.
Lisa shot Lucille an impressed look as she watched the two interact. Lucille glanced at the two and smiled as well,
"I must say I'm impressed. Troy's never been able to peel potatoes that well. Good job Gabriella" Lucille said. Just as the words left Lucille's mouth Troy's knife slipped up nicking the skin of his finger slightly.
"Ahh!" Troy exclaimed. "Mom! Look what you did!" he held up his index finger to show her the small amount of blood that was leaking out. Gabriella stifled her laugh due to Troy's dramatic outburst to such a tiny cut.
Sticking his finger in his mouth in hopes of stopping the blood flow, Troy pouted like a child at Gabriella.
Gabriella couldn't help the laugh that slipped out of her mouth, "Poor Troy" she giggled.
"This is not funny." Troy said, pulling his finger out of his mouth to show Gabriella the injury. "I could have died" he spoke dramatically. Gabriella rolled her eyes,
"Oh yes, you're going to bleed to death from a prick." Gabriella gasped sarcastically. "I bet it has stopped bleeding by now."
Troy examined his finger and frowned in defeat, sure enough the bleeding had stopped. Gabriella smirked before she turned back to peeling potatoes. Troy walked to the sink where he washed his finger quickly before he returned to help Gabriella finish. As the two continued to peel Lucille couldn't contain her curiosity any longer.
"So how long have you lived in Albuquerque?" she asked.
"Since August. We moved from Connecticut" Gabriella explained.
"Ahh an eastern girl, just like us, we're from New Jersey" Lisa said. "How do you like it here?"
"New Mexico has been very good to us. I'd say that we like it here very much" Gabriella explained.
"Now I have to ask. Do you play any sports?" Alex questioned.
Gabriella chuckled slightly at the thought of her being that coordinated,
"No. No I'm not coordinated enough. Lucas is the athlete in the family."
"Really? What sport do you play Lucas?" Jack asked turning to the kitchen table, where the kids were sitting.
"Basketball" Lucas stated proudly.
Jack grinned, "Excellent choice. What position?"
"Whichever needs to be played, but my favorite is shooting guard" Lucas grinned
Jack grinned even brighter, "And what's your points per game average?"
"I'm not really sure, but I like shooting 3-pointers."
Jack's eyes widened, "You do? How many do you make a game?"
"Jack! The boy is 10. Don't get ahead of yourself" Lucille reminded her husband.
"Fine, but keep your love of 3-pointers alive for high school and I'll keep a spot for you on the team" he winked. Lucas grinned.
"What about you Lily? You play sports?" Lucille asked.
Lily shook her head, "I'm in the same boat as Gabi. I like art though"
"Really? I'm an art teacher. What kind of art do you like?" Lisa asked.
"I mostly like drawing, but I do this thing afterschool now and I get to do painting and sculpting so that's opened a whole new world of artistic expression. But I'm starting to really really enjoy painting" Lily explained.
"Well you'll have to show me them sometime. I'd to see them" Lisa said kindly. Lily's face lit up with joy.
"And Gabriella, you still haven't told us what you like to do?" Lucille pointed out.
"Well, I'm just kind of me. I guess I'm more academically inclined." Gabriella said.
"Don't be modest Brie" Troy said softly to Gabriella. "She's more like a genius" Troy clarified "You know Taylor, Brie is in like all of the same classes as her. And she's the reason I'm not failing math"
"That's why your grade went up. Thank you Gabriella" Lucille smiled.
Gabriella blushed slightly, "It wasn't all me. I can't open Troy's brain and put the information in, he did the learning. I only explained it"
Troy rolled his eyes at Gabriella modesty, "Well you must be doing something, because before you the information didn't go into my brain. So I'd have to say it's you" Troy grinned triumphantly as he saw that Gabriella had nothing else to respond to.
"She sings too! You should have seen her while we were baking today!" Lucas exclaimed suddenly. Gabriella shot Lucas a look.
"Only a little bit and just for fun. Nothing serious" Gabriella clarified. Troy leaned over Gabriella's shoulder to whisper, "Can I assume you were dancing as well?"
"Maybe" Gabriella whispered. Troy laughed, kissing her discreetly on the cheek.
---
The group sat around the dining room table after eating a delicious and satisfying thanksgiving dinner. After about an hour of chatting they came to the consensus that it was time for desert.
Everyone got up to bring all the dishes in from the table. As Gabriella was walking out of the kitchen after putting a stack of plates on the counter, Troy grabbed her hand and pulled her into a kiss. At first Gabriella was surprised, but as Troy rubbed the small of her back gently she relaxed into the kiss, deepening it further. When Troy ran his tongue over Gabriella's lower lip she allowed him entrance. As the kiss's passion heightened further Gabriella realized they could be caught at any moment and pulled away from the kiss. Her hands fell on Troy's chest as she spoke.
"Troy!" she whispered, a hint of scolding in her voice "We can't do this here." Gabriella emphasized, referring to the large number of people that could walk in at any moment.
"Well, we just did" Troy grinned. Gabriella giggled and pecked Troy quickly on the lips again,
"You're crazy wildcat"
She grabbed Troy's hand and they slipped back into the dining room. They took their seats next to each other as Lucille began showing all the desserts.
"Let's see we have pumpkin pie, apple pie, ice cream, and mate…mate…" she struggled remembering the name of the cookies Gabriella had brought.
"Mantecados" Gabriella pronounced. "They are traditional Spanish cookies, usually eaten at Christmastime" Gabriella explained.
"But we brought them today because they're really really delicious!" Lily exclaimed.
"Well I don't know about you guys, but I'm thinking about having a little bit of everything" Alex confessed, laughing.
After a few minutes everyone had at least two of the desserts on their plate. Nora bit into a mantecado and immediately wanted more – they were delicious.
"Oh wow. Gabi! These are amazing. I need the recipe" Nora exclaimed.
"That might be slightly difficult for me. I kind of just know how much of each ingredient to put in. But I guess I can try to figure it out" Gabriella explained.
"Where did you learn to make them?" Nora asked.
"My grandma and I used to make them every summer when I used to visit her in Spain. I guess after we stopped visiting I just retained the recipe." Gabriella explained softly.
A sadness came over Gabriella as she spoke about her grandmother. She'd been so close with her grandma. As a young girl she used to spend summers in Spain with her grandma and she always had a ball. She had been ten years old the last time she had seen or spoken to her grandmother. After her mother left them, her father refused to take them to see his wife's mother. The pain of which had dulled over the years but the cookies had brought it back to life. She had been able to picture her grandmother mixing the dough as she had been baking that morning.
Gabriella felt Troy's hand on her thigh and his eyes on hers asking if she was alright. Gabriella smiled at Troy and placed her hand over his, rubbing it gently, in attempt to convince him she was alright.
--
After the dessert had been eaten and cleared away the group retired into the Bolton's living room.
Laughter filled the air as family member's told somewhat embarrassing tales of each other. Troy, who had his arm wrapped around Gabriella, was glad to see that her face was glowing with joy. He pressed a quick kiss in her hair, which caused her to smile up at him.
Gabriella looked over at her brother and sister, who were sitting on the sofa opposite her. She watched as Lily let out a long tired yawn. Glancing around the room she tried to find a clock that would tell her the time. When her eyes fell upon a large grandfather clock she discovered it was almost 10:30 – which meant it was probably time to go home soon.
She waited for an appropriate time in the conversation before she said,
"Luc and Lily, you guys looked tired, maybe we should head home"
The twins nodded slowly. Gabriella shifted under Troy's arm so she could stand up.
"Is there anything I can do to help you clean up?" she asked. Lucille shook her head,
"No. I think we actually were able to fit a lot of the dishes in the dishwasher. Don't worry about it"
Gabriella nodded. "Well, thank you so much for having us. I really enjoyed myself. The dinner was delicious"
"Gabriella you are more than welcome. You three are welcome to come over for dinner anytime." Lucille said kindly. Gabriella smiled,
"It was so nice to meet all of you"
Nora got up to hug Gabriella, "Oh you'll have to come again. Or if you're ever in California give me a ring. And Troy, keep her around, I like her"
Troy grinned, placing his arm around Gabriella's waist, "I'll drive you home" he said softly.
"Oh! What about you cookies? Do you want to bring them home?" Lisa asked.
"No, you can keep them. You have a lot more mouths to feed than at we do" Gabriella assured her. Alex grinned widely,
"Thank you!" he exclaimed. Everyone laughed.
Gabriella nudged Lucas and Lily to remind them to thank Lucille and Jack.
"Thank you so much for having us, Mr. and Mrs. Bolton" they chimed politely.
"Well thank you very much for coming. Did you have fun?"
Lucas and Lily nodded enthusiastically.
"Next time I see you Lucas, we'll have to face off in basketball. It's a shame we didn't have time tonight" Jack said.
Lucas grinned, "You're on" he challenged.
"And Lily, I'll want to see your artwork sometime" Lisa reminded Lily. "You'll have to come by again before we leave"
Lily looked up at Gabriella, hopeful that it could be arranged. Gabriella smiled,
"We'll stop by sometime, if that's alright with you guys"
"Gabriella dear, remember what I said, our door is always open to you." Lucille reminded her before turning to Troy, "and don't you let her forget that Troy"
"I won't mom. Shall we?" He extended his arm towards the doorway.
"Bye everyone" Gabriella addressed the group one final time, giving a small wave before she turned and walked out of the room.
"I'll be back in a bit" Troy said before he followed Gabriella out of the room.
Once the Bolton family heard the front door open and close, telling them that Troy, Gabriella, Lucas and Lily had gone they immediately turned to each other to start gossiping.
"So…what do we think of Gabriella?" Lucille asked.
"I love her." Nora exclaimed quickly. "She is so sweet!"
"And she's so polite and intelligent" Lisa pointed out.
"Definitely, and Lucas and Lily were as well" Jack said.
"Lucas and Lily were so fun to play with!" Grace exclaimed.
"Oh my god and can I just say that she is so pretty. And not like the superficial, look at how much makeup I can wear pretty, like natural beauty" Nora said.
"Troy definitely picked a great girl" Alex concluded.
"What about you mom? What do you think?" Nora asked.
"I think that Gabriella is amazing. She's funny, sweet, intelligent and just a caring person. Besides that, I can tell Troy really likes her, so she definitely gets my stamp of approval"
A/N: Wow! I did not expect that to be as long as it was. I hope it didn't get boring.
Just a little random fact, the potato peeling scene was inspired by me…guess who I was? Troy…seriously I suck at peeling potatoes–any other vegetable I can do, but I swear potatoes hate me.
I'm putting a picture of Gabriella's dress in my profile! Please review!