Gabriella ran into her apartment still crying, and still hiding behind her huge glasses from when she had left Julian's apartment. She didn't want the cabbie to ask any questions, but he had anyway, in Spanish, English, Indian, French, he had even tried in something she thought was Swahili, but she couldn't understand it at all. She didn't or wouldn't tell him what was wrong with her. She just wanted Troy's arms wrapped around her and she didn't want to leave the comfort of them for the rest of the night. She knew as soon as morning came, early morning, he'd have to go straight to practice and she'd be alone, but for the rest of the day she just wanted Troy's arms and nothing else.

She dropped her purse on the credenza, her keys beside it, crying for Troy. "T? Troy?" She sobbed louder than she had been, finally in the safety of her home away from the eyes of the world. "Troy?" No answer came. She came to the end of the couch, gripping onto it tightly, sinking slowly down to the floor. She was scared. What if the last few nights and this morning had been one long dream? She was so scared. Her sobs came out loud and her tears fell to her lap as the door opened behind her.

Troy pulled his suitcase and a few other bags into the room. When he saw Lily sitting on the floor, he dropped his bags by the door and ran over to her, dropping down beside her. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her against him, rocked her against him, kissing the side of her head. "Baby, what is it? What happened?"

Gabriella curled over in his arms, wrapping her arms tightly around him, shaking like a leaf. "Troy," she sobbed, holding him weakly, but as strongly as she could, holding him tightly against him.

"What happened, baby? Why are you crying?"

She pulled back, looking up at him as the tears softly fell from her eyes. He was already comforting her just by holding her in his arms, just by being here with her.

"I went to see Julian," she started her voice shaky, but at least she was able to form her words now, "and he was drunk, plastered drunk. It was horrible. I had never seen him like that."

Troy took a deep breath, pulling her onto his lap, leaning against the couch, letting her rest her head against his. "I told him it was over and he started saying all this rude stuff." Troy rubbed her back, kissing the side of her head. She was already upset and he wasn't going to upset her more by making her repeat the words he had already said. "I tried to leave and he threw himself on me–"

Troy's eyes widened drastically, only too happy he wasn't anywhere around De Aquila. He'd rip the fucker's spline out of the man's gullet. Nobody ever touches his girl. He'd made sure they knew it while they were in high school, and he'd make sure they knew it now. He wasn't a violent man, but if some one ever touched his girl, he'd step in and make them wish they hadn't. Taking a deep breath, he pulled her closer to him.

"He didn't hurt you, did he?"

Gabriella dried her tears more. "No," she shook her head. "No. I," she swallowed hard, "kicked him in the … I kicked him in the balls and got away before giving him his ring back and leaving."

He looked down at her hand, rubbing his thumb over her ring finger. Not that she had ever really belonged to De Aquila, but he liked that she wasn't wearing his ring anymore even though he didn't remember her wearing the ring at all.

"That's my girl!" He kissed the side of her head, holding her closer to him.

She smiled weakly, resting her head more against his shoulder. "How did things go with Sharpay?" she asked softly and he lowered his head slightly.

"She was crying when I left."

Gabriella bit her lip and frowned softly, sitting up to look at him, placing her hand softly on his face, letting her thumb brush softly over his lips. "I'm so sorry," she whispered.

Troy placed his hand over his, kissing her thumb sweetly. "She had cried herself to sleep last night when she got home over a Ben & Jerry's and Chinese takeout."

Gabriella took a deep breath, resting her head against his. "Do you think she'll ever forgive us for this?"

Troy nodded gently, not pulling his head away from hers. "I do. It will take time, but I do."

Bri pulled her head to look at him. "I was afraid you weren't going to be here when I got back here," she slowly admitted biting her lip.

Troy shook his head, taking her face in his hands. "Shhhhh. We're together now, baby. Just like we planned ten years ago. Nothing is going to keep us from being together, ok? It's you and me, ok? No one else."

Gabriella nodded her head softly as Troy pressed his lips to hers, kissing her gently. "I love you, Lily, forever."

She smiled, her lips still pressed against his. "Por siempre."

Lucille Bolton opened the door to Sharpay Evans, letting her walk into the house. "I'm so glad you're here, Sharpay, I didn't know who else to call."

Sharpay still didn't know why she was there to begin with. "I came as soon as you called, Mrs. Bolton. What can I do for you?"

Mrs. Bolton was tired. She was worn out and helpless. She was at a loss for what to do for her son. She could call youth services, but she didn't want to get the authorities involved. That wasn't the type of attention her family needed. Chad nor any of Troy's other friends had been able to help and she had no idea where Gabriella was. She had left her cell phone and her parents didn't know where she was either. Her parents didn't even seem to be too worried about her either. When Mrs. Bolton had gone over to speak to them, they accused her of taking their daughter from them and had practically kicked her off of their property and threatened to call the police if she didn't leave.

Mrs. Bolton knew why Gabriella didn't like to come home too often, but she thought that something might have made her want to go home, so she had checked there. She also went over to her grandmother's home. She had gone there quite often, especially on Sunday afternoons, but she wasn't there either. Bri wasn't around and Mrs. Bolton didn't know who else to turn to for help with her son.

"I don't know what to do, Sharpay. He won't listen to anyone. All the guys from the team have been over. Chad and his girlfriend Taylor have been here. I don't know where he's getting his alcohol, but he's," Mrs. Bolton covered her mouth with her hand, shaking slightly, "he's been drinking for days. He hasn't eaten anything. I don't know where Bri is..." She started crying, wrapping her arms around herself.

Sharpay placed her hand on Mrs. Bolton's shoulder. "I don't know where Gabi is, Mrs. Bolton, but I'll do what I can with Troy. I promise." She gave Mrs. Bolton a reassuring smile, giving her arm a gentle squeeze before walking up the stairs toward Troy's bedroom. She'd been here a few times with Gabi to know where his room his. She wasn't sure what she'd do, but she had just made a promise, and no matter what happened between Gabi and Troy, she knew Gabi would want her to take care of him and make sure he was alright. They were best friends, and she knew Gabi would do the same for her if situations were reversed.

When Troy didn't answer after she knocked at his door a few times, she turned the handle, pushing the door open. "Troy?" If he hadn't been dead drunk, the bottle he had just tossed probably would have hit her. Instead, it lazily flew toward her, but fell short, hitting the wall beside the door.

"Fucking A-" he cursed, leaning back against his bed.

Sharpay came around the other side of the bed where he was sitting, another bottle in his hand, a half pack of bottles of beer beside him. She swallowed hard, sitting down beside him. "Hey, what's going on here?" she asked, reaching forward to take the beer from his hand.

He glared over at her. "Anyone ever tell you it's not nice to take someone else's drink?"

Sharpay took a small drink, turning her nose up at it making a nasty face at it. "Troy, this is nasty and it's warm. Come on." She put the beer back by the rest of them, taking his hand and giving him a slight tug. "Lets get out of here. Go get a pizza. We'll call Chad and Taylor. You need a shower too. Come on."

Sharpay pulled him as tightly as she could to his feet but he was like a ton of bricks. He looked down at her as he came up to his feet.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

She helped him into the bathroom, reaching in and turning on the water and regulating the temperature as she held him by her side. "I'm helping out a friend," she told him, shaking her head, taking a deep breath, coughing at the heavy alcohol stench.

Troy scoffed, rolling his eyes. "If you haven't noticed, Lily is loooooooooong gone... I don't know where the fuck she is."

Sharpay shoved his ass into the water, shaking her head. "I wasn't taking about Gabi, blockhead. I was talking about you!"

He screamed out loud at her, his hands bracing at the sides of the wall. "FUCKING HELL, SHARPAY! The water is ice fucking cold!"

Sharpay nodded her head. "Yeah, I know!" she leaned in, testing the water until the water was warming up. "You can fix it to where you like it now. I just needed to get your attention." She stood back up, turning to a towel on the wall, her head facing him. "Take a real shower and I'll go wait for you to get ready to go. Do you think you can handle that on your own or do you think I should call Chad down here?" Troy glared at her, taking a deep breath, coughing the water out of his mouth. She smirked at him, walking out of the bathroom. "I'll be out with your mom, honey! Don't take too long!" And with that, she left him alone to get himself ready to go.

Gabriella had just wrapped up shooting a tv show episode and was sitting at a bar down the street from the set just close to closing time when a tall Latino sat down beside her. She was discussing the night with Tay about tomorrow's flight back to California. Taylor told her she was spending the night with Chad, the Lakers were playing the Knicks, and that she'd see her in the morning before their flight.

Taylor gave her best friend a hug around her shoulders, kissing the top of her head. "Ok. Did you want me to tell Chad hi for you?"

Gabriella shrugged slightly. "Sure."

She hadn't seen him since she had left Albuquerque almost six years ago... and who she hasn't seen in that same amount of time was the man's best friend... Taylor sensed the hesitation in her best friend's voice and hung back for a moment.

"You can come with us, if you want, G. Chad can call him." They were supposed to be alone tonight. It was supposed to be a special night for them, but if Gabriella was missing him more than usual, Taylor would gladly give up her romantic night alone with Chad just so her best friend and her soul mate could get back together.

Gabriella quickly shook her head, taking a quick breath. "No! No! I can't. I'm just going to go to the hotel and get some sleep." Taylor nodded.

Gabriella was true to order. She never wanted to go see Troy. She left him six years ago and she was never going back. Well, not until she was ready, not until she could tell him everything.

"Ok, honey. I'll see you tomorrow at the airport. Sleep well."

Gabriella turned back to the bar, picking up her glass, sipping at her water, thinking about Troy. She missed him. She knew how easy it would have been for Tay to call him and she could just go back to him, but she couldn't. It had been six years, but she still couldn't face him. She had left him and told him she had never wanted to face him again. If she went back to him she'd be a liar. She wanted him, she needed him, but she couldn't go back to him, not after...

The Latino leaned over, making the first move, breaking the silence between the two of them. There wasn't many people at the bar and he wasn't one for silence. "Mind if I buy the beautiful lady a drink?"

She shook her head, setting her glass down on her napkin, uncrossing her leg and crossing her other leg over the it, away from him, turning slightly away from him. "No, gracias. Prefiero beber solamente."

The Latino sighed slightly, leaning a little closer to her. "Eso es una mi desgracia. Tu es visión y quisiera familiarizarme con le."

Gabriella turned slightly back to him, narrowing her eyes in on him. "¿Tu sabe quién soy?"

He shook his head, offering his hand to her. "Una vez que nos han presentado. Mi nombre es Julian De Aquila. ¿Y tu?"

Gabriella looked down at his hand and back up into his eyes. He seemed to be sincere. Lifting her hand, she took his and shook his hand slowly. "Ella Leigh."

He smiled, rubbing the back of her hand. "Mucho gusta, Ella. Nombre muy bonito para una muchacha muy bonita."

Gabriella pulled her hand back from his grasp, blushing slightly. He genuinely didn't seem to know who she was, but she truly wasn't used to the attention he was showing her. "Gracias, pero um, debo ir a casa."

Julian placed his hand on the back of her chair. "¿Está seguro tu no me dejará comprarle una bebida?"

Gabriella shook her head, picking up her glass in front of her. "Agua," she told him, picking up her glass. "Yo no bebo."

Julian looked down at the glass and back up at her. "¿Permanezca alrededor de un rato conmigo mientras que entonces tengo una bebida? ¿Tu puede beber su agua?"

Gabriella looked down at her glass of water and back at Julian. Staying here with him was definitely better than going home alone with herself and her memories of Troy. She missed him. She wanted his arms wrapped around her. She wanted to be in his bed and to be with him all the time, but it had been six years since she had left him. She couldn't expect that he could just welcome her back into his arms, into his bed after all these years. She still loved him, but they couldn't just get back together because she missed him, especially after the way she left. She smiled at the Latino, nodding. "Sí. Permaneceré. Pero tengo que ser despierto temprano por la mañana, tan no de largo."

Julian smiled brightly, turning to the bartender. "Another water for the lady and another beer." He turned back to Gabriella smiling. "So, Spanish was a defense mechanism? A way to fend off unwanted advances from strange men?"

She laughed, finishing the last of her water as the bartender brought her new water and Julian his new beer. "Actually, yes. I don't always expect people to understand me and they either turn away or if I'm really lucky, they walk away."

He laughed, shaking his head as he lifted his beer to her in salute. "How do you explain your conversation you had with your Nubian friend?"

Gabriella pursed her lips at Julian picking up her glass of water, lifting her eyes slightly. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she giggled, taking a sip of her refreshing beverage.

Julian swallowed his sip of beer, nodding. "Riiiight." He laughed, enjoying her giggle, looking her over from head to toe, admiring the Latina Goddess in front of him. "So, Señorita Ella, what is it you do for a living?"

Gabriella sat her glass down on the counter, turning over to face him more. Did he seriously not know who she was? "I'm an actress," she told him, her finger lazily dragging along the rim of her glass.

He nodded, watching her over his beer. "What kind of actress? Theater? Street performing in Central Park?"

Gabriella bit her lip, looking down at her water. "I haven't done theatre in a while," she told him, picking up her glass, lifting it to her lips.

"What do you do now?" Julian asked, taking a sip of his beer.

Gabriella tried not to choke on her water as she swallowed some water, setting her glass down. "I actually just finished filming a guest appearance on a tv show."

Julian leaned closer to her trying to discern if she was telling him the truth or pulling his leg. "I don't think you're lying."

Gabriella shook her head. "No. No, I'm not. I'm actually quite well known. I've been acting in Hollywood for years."

Julian was the one to actually choke on his beer this time, setting the bottle down. "¡Ay carumba! ¡Soy un tonto!"

She giggled some more, placing her hand on his. "No es ninguín tonto. No puedo decirle cómo siente para no ser adulado encima para quién soy."

Julian looked up at her, smiling slightly. "Gracias, Ella."

She smiled back at him, retrieving her hand. "What about you, Julian? What do you do?" He lifted his beer to her. "I play basketball for the LA Lakers. I just signed with them this season. You're looking at their newest center."

Gabriella looked down at her water, taking a deep breath. She wasn't going to talk about Troy for the life of her. She knew he had just signed with the Lakers as well. He had always been a point guard and she was sure that's what he had been signed on as with the Lakers as well as their point guard along with Chad as a shooting guard. She didn't ask Tay about it. She knew if she did, she knew that would show her interest, and she wasn't going to do that. She had to show that she didn't miss him at all, when all she wanted to do was run back into his arms, but she couldn't do that. She left him and she couldn't go back. But she knew everything, because she paid attention, more than she wished she did.

"That's great. I don't know much about sports," she told him, smiling back up at him. It wasn't true at all. She was pretty good at them herself, not the best, but she could hold her own. And she watched all of Troy's games, something she had always loved doing. She'd loved the way he'd smell after his games and didn't care about the sweat either. It was kinda sexy, really. But she wasn't thinking about that. She wasn't thinking about Troy. She smiled at Julian and took a sip of her water.

"That's alright. Not many girls do know much about sports anyway. You've got a lot to worry about with your acting, right?" he nodded to her, taking a sip of it.

She shrugged her shoulders. Gabriella was finished for the night. She couldn't continue doing what she was doing. She had to go home and continue lying to herself there. She was thinking too much about Troy and if she didn't stop, she'd ruin a good night with this nice guy. "I need to be going. Thank you for the nice chat, Julian." She stood up, leaving her glass on the table.

"Wait. Can I get your number?"

Gabriella bit her lip, looking at him as he turned toward him, taking his phone from his pocket. She contemplated the notion for a moment as she let her teeth rake over her bottom lip.

"Alright," she said, opening her purse, handing it to him as he handed his phone to her.

They both input their numbers and names into each others phones before handing them back to each other. Julian looked back at her. When she stood up, she was practically still the same height as he was while he was sitting, maybe even still shorter than him, and he found that a bit of a turn on, that she was so much shorter than him.

"I'll call you," he said, sliding his phone back into his pocket.

She smiled, putting her phone back into her purse. She didn't expect anything to come of it. If he didn't call, she wouldn't care, and if he did, she'd deal with it then. She couldn't make any plans with him. She was still in love with Troy and would always be. Just because she left him didn't mean that she would ever move on. She couldn't move on. She didn't know how. Her heart belonged to Troy. She belonged to him in every way that mattered and that would never change.