CHAPTER 9: The Wall

Fate can be defined as destiny, doom, fortune, chance. If a person was to think the glass was half empty, it is most likely that doom would be one of the words they would use to characterize fate. On the other hand, if a person was to say the glass was half full, fortune would be one of the words to portray fate. It all comes to the fact that some people are more positive than others.

Gabriella Montez was a positive person. As was her offspring and her parents.

Their belief was that whatever happens has some good in it.

On Christmas, when Maria Montez's cookies had burnt, they had said they were fattening anyway, and all they'd be useful for was weight gain. And when one of Gregory Montez's articles hadn't been published, they had thought about what negative things the people might've said against it.

All in all, the Montez's believed that whatever happens happens for a reason.

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Silence overcame the living room as they heard the sound of the buzzer buzz,

"That must be my guests," Gabriella noted getting up and smoothing down her attire. Her black flowing top reached the top of her matching black super skinny jeans. The halter neck-line of her top embroided with silver, gold and grey sequins matching her smoky eyes and shiny bangles, and natural sexiness radiating of her body unknowingly.

"I wanna get it!" Samuel cried from his seat on his uncle's lap, "Please."

And using the infamous pout he inherited from his paternal side, his wish was granted.

As fast as his little legs would carry him, he ran towards the front door just as the individual on the other side knocked once, twice, thrice.

Standing on the wooden stool his mother had bought him, he lifted his hand towards the doorknob and opened the already unlocked door to reveal...

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Troy Bolton looked up from the area of ground where his eyes had been previously situated upon hearing his name.

"Troy!" a young voice called.

"Hey!" he replied, equally shocked, "How are you, Man?" crouching down to the younger boy's level.

But just as the young boy was about to reply another voice was heard, an older voice, a very familiar voice.

"Samuel, who is it?" a dark skinned man asked, approaching the door. His wild and typically untamed hair left naturally bouncy, his eye's glowing as he spoke to the younger boy, not yet realizing the gaping twenty four year old male who stood at the entrance.

"This is my friend Troy," Samuel stated little index finger pointing at the basketball player.

And that was when Chad Danforth finally realized that his best friend was standing in the doorway.

"Danforth?"

"Bolton?"

It was like something out of a romantic drama. When the two lovers are looking into eachother's eyes for the first time in ages in utter shock and disbelief. But like reality, in the movies, something was always bound to go wrong, and Chad and Troy weren't lovers.

"What are you doing here?" both Lakers players asked at the same time.

The stood in silence for a minute, both parties wondering why the other was there, but none realizing that the five year old boy had gone to fetch his mother and her friends.

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"Momma, you're guest is here!" Came the sound of the young boy's voice, four minutes after he had run out of the room to open the door.

"Really? Well, we should go give them a big welcome with everyone, shouldn't we?" Gabriella asked, standing and picking up her light son, resting him on her right hip.

Her friends following her lead they walked out of the sitting room and into the foyer to be greeted with the sight of Chad Danforth talking animatedly with the guest about the Lakers.

"Chad?" she called, surprising both males.

Time stood still as the tousled hair man turned around to face the utterly shocked and confused brunette female standing in front of his very own friends, now looking very pale.

And as blue met brown, it seemed as if, as cliché as it sounded, the whole world had frozen.

The normally extremely chatty, bright and bubbly Sharpay was silent.

The dark-skinned brainiac, Dr. Mc'Kessie, was silent.

The green eyed, teasing yet charming, Mr. Tony James was silent.

The usually calm, collected and friendly Chef Baylor was silent.

Even the young five year old boy was silent, as he stared from his guest to his mother, too afraid to speak.

Everyone was silent as they felt the tension in the room increase and Gabriella's face go pale. No one spoke a word, for they knew that once someone let one sound escape their vocal cords, the invisible wall between Troy and Gabriella would tumble and crash to the ground, releasing the evils that kept the wall cemented together.

It was Troy who spoke first, but he immediately regretted it after seeing the look on his ex-lover's face.

"Gabriella?"

And that was it. The wall was gone, broken into a billion tiny pieces.

It seemed to have snapped something in Gabriella, for the colour returned to her pale face, her eyes darkened it anger and her hands clenched into fists.

"What are you doing here?" she said, attempting to keep her voice levelled, but failing miserably.

And before he could answer the buzzer buzzed again.

Gabriella looked from the intercom to Troy and then back.

And then it clicked, she had unknowingly invited her ex-boyfriend to dinner. Fuck.

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Alicia stood at the main entrance of the very modern apartment building, her pink heels tapping impatiently on the ground as she waited for the door to be answered.

After explaining her situation to her boss, they had come to the resolution that the meeting was to be postponed until the next day.

"H-h-hello?" A female voice came from the intercom, it sounded far from calm, but the Italian lady couldn't quite put her finger on the emotion that oozed out of the voice.

"Um, hi! It's Alicia," she replied, secretly hoping that she had in fact got the right apartment number, "Is this Gabriella Montez?"

Alicia heard the woman on the other side take a deep breath in before answering a simple, cheerful greeting, a complete change from how she had first answered the door.

"Oh Alicia! Come in, please!"

And with that the door was opened, the elevator was taken to the third floor, door number seven was knocked on, and the door was opened to reveal cheerful young boy.

But behind the boy stood seven mixed-emotional adults. Some of their eyes filled with shock, others, anger, others sadness, the hostess however had a mix of all three in her eyes.

Alicia walked into the apartment, keeping her eyes on her boyfriend, who was looking down at his leather shoes.

"Hey," she said softly, pecking his cheeking with her pink lips which, not surprisingly, matched the bright pink of her shoes.

And then she turned to face the brunette hostess who was looking at her emotionless.

"Hi, Gabriella!" Alicia said cheerfully, ignoring the other adults in the room when Gabriella flashed her award-winning smile before moving forward to hug her.

But before they even reached eachother, another female voice spoke harshly.

"Ahem, who," Sharpay asked looking the designer up and down, "are you?"

Alicia, oblivious to the harshness directed towards her, cheerfully smiled, "Alicia Lucking, I'm Troy's girlfriend."

Sharpay scoffed, "Jeez, nice choice, Troy," she commented sarcastically.

Everyone remained quiet as Alicia glared at Sharpay, "Who are you, may I ask?"

"Sharpay Evans, one of Gabriella and Troy's BEST friends, not so pleased to meet you!"

"Listen here you hor- Wait, did you say Gabriella AND Troy's best friend?"

The other seven in the room stood horrified as Alicia eyed both Troy and Gabriella.

"Jesus, Troy, have you told this girl anything?" Taylor asked, finally vocalising her thoughts.

Silence overtook the room as Alicia stood, staring at her boyfriend.

"Troy?"

But Troy wasn't looking at her, rather, he was looking at the brunette opposite him who was staring downwards at the little boy who sat naively on the floor.

AN: I'm not even going to try and write my excuses, it's simple, as the fact is, I'm a bitch.
This chapter was supposed to be waaayyy longer, but it isnt due to writers block, college life, and this just seemed like the right place to stop.

I'm so so sorry, and yeah. Everyone go read "You and Me," "LOVe," "Shades Of Bolton," and I can't remember the rest... Oh yeah! "Reborn..."

So yeah, and due to my bad memory, I've already forgotten the name of a story I read two days ago, it's a round six chapters long, and basically, in the beginning Gabriella attempts suicide and Troy finds her in the bathtub... and I cant remember no more.

Eh... The Bitch Of Updating Late, Amy.