Disclaimer: I do not own High School Musical or any of its characters.

A/N: Ok, so pretty much all of you said you'd rather I split it. So, that's what I did. Just a quick side note though, how many of you saw 17 Again? How many of you loved it the way I did =D – that would be a lot just so you know. Enjoy…

Last Time…

She closed her eyes, trying to pretend that Troy was holding her, comforting her. She thought back to Sharpay's party, where she'd woken up in his warm, strong arms. She remembered opening her eyes that morning only to see Troy's sleeping face just above hers. She remembered feeling his chest rising and falling under her head and his strong arm wrapped around her, drawing her in closer. She remembered being slightly shocked at first, not remembering how she'd gotten into this position, but then she'd realized just how natural the position felt, how lovely it was. She remembered snuggling closer – if that was possible – and falling back asleep.

As she lay in her bed with her eyes closed, she could hear Troy's soothing voice lulling her to sleep. She could feel his gentle touch. She could see his face, smiling at her. Those three things were what enabled Gabriella to fall asleep that night because they provided with the only comfort she could get.

Chapter Twenty Three – Lunch

Troy didn't know how to deal with the pain he felt. He'd never had to deal with this kind of excruciating pain. Troy Bolton was used to feeling physical pain from injuries because of basketball. He was used to being able to go to the school trainer to get the pain fixed, to make it go away. But the pain he felt right now hurt so badly he didn't know what to do.

His heart just ached, it ached so badly. It felt like there was a hole, a hole that kept getting bigger each time he thought about Gabriella. There was this emptiness inside of him that could only be filled by Gabriella. His missed her so damn much it hurt every time he thought about her.

It would be totally different if he knew she was just on vacation or something. Obviously he'd still miss her, but he wouldn't be in immense pain every time he thought about her.

The difference now was that he didn't know when or if he'd ever see her again. That was what truly caused a pang in his heart, the fact that he may never see Gabriella again. Troy had come to the realization that he needed her. He hadn't realized just how much his day revolved around being with her. How much she had affected him and changed him. Living in a world without her was like hell.

A hell that he didn't know how much longer he could handle.

Troy felt so helpless. He knew Gabriella was hurting, which made him hurt, but what hurt more was the fact that there was nothing Troy could do to help her. He hated himself for letting this happen. He had promised Gabriella he wouldn't let her father hurt her again. For breaking that promise, he could never forgive himself. Gabriella didn't deserve someone like him. She deserved someone who could protect her properly. The problem was Troy couldn't imagine giving her up. He had fallen so deeply in love with her, it would be impossible for him not to be able to call her his. He was too selfish for that.

The loud school bell interrupted his thoughts and Troy realized he didn't have any idea what they had just learned. Truthfully he didn't really know what class he was in. He'd become a zombie since he had lost Gabriella, just floating through life.

He glanced around the classroom and quickly realized he had been in history. The classroom was mostly empty, so Troy hastily gathered his things and made his way out of the classroom.

When he tried to think about which class he had next, nothing seemed to come to mind – his mind was too consumed with thoughts of Gabriella. Somehow though, his feet knew where they were taking him and he ended up in the cafeteria. He was able to spot his lunch table pretty easily.

By the time Troy was sitting at the table most everyone was there except Jason, which was odd because Jason was usually the most eager of the group to get food.

Since Gabriella's kidnapping, the table had quieted considerably. The gang was still processing the news, so the usual playful atmosphere had been replaced with one that was dreary. Troy didn't really mind though. He didn't think he could deal with a table that was lively right now, not in the state he was currently in.

It was then that Jason finally appeared at the table, looking extremely angry.

"Urg! I can't believe Mrs. McMann!" Jason exclaimed.

"What did she do?" Kelsi asked. Jason exhaled loudly and began,

"Remember how I decided I was going for extra help yesterday afternoon?" the gang, who were all listening by this point, nodded, "Well, I went and she asked me what I needed help with. So I said everything and then she was like well I need more than that and she told me to come back when I had specific questions. So, I left and then just now, after math class she asked me if I had my questions. I told her that I didn't know what I needed help with, I just knew I needed help. Then she was all, Jason, I can't help you if I don't know what you need help with."

Kelsi sighed, she knew Mrs. McMann was right, but she really didn't want to upset her boyfriend. Fortunately (or unfortunately depending how you looked at it) Sharpay had no problem telling Jason was she thought.

"Jason, Mrs. McMann is right you can't just walk in there and expect her to know exactly what you're having trouble with and be able to fix it just like that."

"But isn't that her job?"Jason tried to defend himself.

"Dude, it's her job to teach you, not read your mind," Chad pointed out. Jason still frowned and looked hopefully towards his girlfriend.

"Sweetie, they're right," Kelsi began quietly. "Look at it this way, let's say you were coaching someone in basketball and one day they came to you and said, I need help. Then you would say, well what do you need help with, right?" Jason nodded. "So, then what would you say if that kid said, I don't know?"

Jason seemed to think for a moment, but finally he saw the point Kelsi was trying to make. He sighed,

"Ok, ok fine. I see now. I wouldn't know if they wanted help with blocking or free throws or three pointers. I wouldn't know where to begin."

Kelsi smiled and quickly kissed her boyfriend on the cheek, "Exactly.

"Wait a second," Troy muttered, furrowing his eyebrows, "it doesn't make sense."

"Are you kidding me Troy, how can you not get it? You don't call 911, say help and then hang up, now do you?" Taylor exclaimed. Little did Taylor know, however, that Troy's mind was in a completely different place.

"No! Not that. The note! It doesn't make sense," he exclaimed. The entire gang looked bewildered at Troy; every single person had no idea what he was talking about.

"Gabriella asked for help right?" he paused, waiting for his friends to nod. "So, she wouldn't just ask for help and then not tell us anything else. It's like the paramedic, you don't call for help and then not tell them were you are." To Troy, this was like the light at the end of the tunnel. Maybe there was something he could do. Maybe Gabriella had left something for him to grasp hold of.

"Of course! Why didn't we think of that sooner?" Sharpay said dramatically.

"Where's the note?" Troy asked. Taylor was already rummaging in her bag for the key item.

"Here it is!" she said, pulling it out. Laying it flat on the table so everyone could see she spoke, "Ok, look for anything weird, anything, I don't know, just anything."

The gang stared intently at the small piece of paper, scrutinizing it for any little clue, something, anything that was out of place.

"Home. Home, that has to mean something," Kelsi said, becoming the first to speak. "Why not just say where she was actually going?"

"She moved from Connecticut. So home has to be Connecticut," Zeke offered.

"But where in Connecticut?" Troy pointed out. The gang got quiet again, some stared at the paper, searching for something more, while others thought back to past conversations with Gabriella. Had she ever told them the town she'd lived in?

No.

That was conclusion Troy came to. He was going over all conversations in which Gabriella had talked about Connecticut. She had always just said Connecticut though. Always.

Just then, Sharpay's phone beeped loudly. She quickly pulled her bedazzled, pink blackberry out to answer the text message.

"Perfect," she murmured happily. Slipping her phone back into her bag, she refocused on the task at hand.

Taylor raised her eyebrow at Sharpay,

"What was that about?" she asked curiously.

Sharpay rolled her eyes, "If you must know it was my hairdresser. She was just confirming my appointment for this afternoon. See, I was going to get my hair highlighted on the 17th, but I'd scheduled it months in advance and didn't realize it was the same date as the game, so today was the next appointment she had open and can you-" Sharpay was cut off by Troy,

"Wait, the 17th? The 17th was the date on Friday?" Troy babbled, the gears in his mind turning.

"Yeah," Zeke confirmed, furrowing his eyebrows in slight confusion.

"So, then why does the date on the note say the 16th?" Troy asked.

Everyone simultaneously leaned closer to the note, checking to see if, in fact, what Troy had pointed out was true. The gang sat in silence as each person mulled over a possible answer.

"What if she just wrote it on the 16th?" Chad suggested.

"Chad has a point, we're assuming that she was taken on the Friday, but what if her dad showed up on the Thursday and just waited until Friday night to take her away," Taylor pointed out.

"But that doesn't make sense. Gabriella would have been acting weird all Thursday and Friday," Kelsi countered.

"And Brie, was just as," Troy paused, trying to think of the right word, "she was just as perfect as always," he finished softly, his voice cracking slightly in the process. The gang nodded solemnly, showing their agreement with Troy's opinion.

"So, if we're sure, or at least as sure as we can be that she was taken on Friday, why would she have put Thursday's date on the note?" Zeke thought out loud.

"Well, what if she just forgot the date?" Jason questioned.

Sharpay shook her head, "This is Gabriella we're talking about. She's the type of person who puts the correct year on the first day back, while I'm stuck putting the old year for the first two months back."

The mood lightened slightly as everyone let out a laugh, knowing what Sharpay said was precisely what Gabriella did. However, once they were all pulled sharply back down to earth, they realized the task at hand was still unsolved.

"What if something important happened on Thursday that she wants us to remember?" Troy suggested. The table went silent at that moment as each gang member tried replayed Thursday in their mind, scrutinizing every detail, but there was absolutely nothing that came to mind.

--

Gabriella sat in a small, dimply sit bathroom stall, on the toilet with her lunch on her lap. The girls' bathroom wasn't such a bad place to eat lunch, Gabriella supposed. It was quiet and secluded, a little dirty, but it wasn't too disgusting. The lunch room was loud; there was no quiet for Gabriella to think in. That's what she needed right now, quiet.

It was her first day at her new high school and she was already overwhelmed. If the stress of going to a different school wasn't enough, she was already terrorized by her father at home. She'd had to get back into the swing of covering up bruises in the morning and checking to make sure Lucas and Lily were ok before she went to bed.

Gabriella's father had already tightened the reins on his children. Internet access had been completely cut off in their house and cell phones were out of the question. Gabriella's phone had been taken from her even before she'd left Albuquerque. She had been driven to school that morning and was expected to be outside the school as soon as it ended for her father to pick her up.

She had slipped right back into the old ways. Gabriella did everything around the house. She cooked, cleaned and took care of Lucas and Lily. Truthfully though, doing all that didn't bother her so much – she was so used to caring for everything and everyone.

It was what came after her hard work that really frightened her. Even if she had done a flawless job cleaning and cooked a delicious dinner, she still was in for the beating of her life. He beat her for running away, for taking Lucas and Lily with her. He beat her because he still held her responsible for driving his wife away. He beat her just because he was angry.

She'd slipped right back into having fear be a constant in her life. She was afraid to go home from school, she was afraid to go to bed at night and she was afraid to get out of bed in the morning. She'd been back under her father's roof for 2 days and already the fear was back, stronger than ever.

In a way she kind of liked the bathroom, it was almost like a safe haven for her. There was no one watching her or judging her. She felt safe – or as safe as she could feel given the circumstances.

Gabriella only felt safe in the arms of her beloved – Troy. She felt safe in Albuquerque. She knew the people who had been surrounding her had been good, caring people. She had been away for less than 5 days and she already felt her heart crumbling without them.

She'd spent hours wondering if they'd figured out the clue. If they'd seen her cry for help or if they knew where she was. What if they hadn't seen anything at all though? What if her clues had been too cryptic? What if they hated her because they thought she left without any explanation? No, she couldn't bring herself to ever think that. The pain that associated itself with the thought of the gang – especially Troy – hating her was indescribable. It was by far worse than the physical pain she felt. Just thinking about it, made her heart break further. No, she couldn't bring herself to think that.

But then, if they had in fact found the clues, what were they even going to do about it? She hadn't really thought about what would happen after they figured out where she was. Gabriella let her head fall into her hands as she fought fiercely to keep the tears back. She let out a shaky breath. They lived across the country, what were they supposed to do? She was always trapped inside her house, under the watchful eye of her father. How were they going to get to her without him knowing? Maybe they would think of something, or at least that was all she could hope for.

Gabriella stood up with her unfinished food and unlocked the stall door. She threw out her food and walked straight towards the mirror, opposite her stall. Leaning on the sink, she closely examined her face. She had to look away from the broken girl who was staring back at her. Since Friday her entire life had fallen apart. Spending 6 months in Albuquerque was like fixing something with duct tape. If you rip off the duct tape said object falls apart. That is exactly what was happened to Gabriella. The old wounds had opened up again. Only the second time everything hurt more.

Slowly, she looked back up at herself. Her makeup hid the bruises pretty well, but no makeup could cover her broken, terrified eyes or her unreadable, depressed expression. She stared for a while, thinking about what Troy would think if he saw her now, what he would do. Her head fell in shame as she hiccupped back a sob.

She knew he would hold her, he would tell her it would alright. He would make it all away. But she couldn't believe that without him standing with her. She didn't know what would happen, what the future held for her or if she'd ever see Troy again. She did know however, that as long as she wasn't with Troy there would be a gaping, aching hole in her heart.

That was the thought that broke down the levies in her eyes she had worked so hard to keep strong all the time she'd been here. She gasped for air and immediately the tears poured from her eyes.

She cried because of her painful injuries.

She cried because she was afraid – for both herself and her siblings.

She cried because she didn't know what to do.

She cried because, most importantly, she missed Troy so much so that it was beginning to take its physical, mental and emotional toll on her.

That was another thing Gabriella liked about the girls' bathroom; she could cry without anyone watching.

A/N: I know that was another depressing chapter, but on the slightly bright side in the next chapter Troy and the gang might (will) figure out where Gabriella is. Any guesses?? I have a specific town and state written down…it's actually right next to my computer. As of right now it's impossible for you to get exactly what I have written down (unless of course you can read my mind) because I haven't given you one tiny very important piece of information. HOWEVER you can figure out how to figure out where she is. I'm not sure if that makes sense…but it's the best I can do. Hopefully, you enjoyed the chapter! Thank you for reading! Please review!