WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS A LOT OF THE F BOMB.

Chapter 5

I remember the day you told me you were leaving
I remember the make-up running down your face
And the dreams you left behind you didn't need them
Like every single wish we ever made
I wish that I could wake up with amnesia
And forget about the stupid little things
Like the way it felt to fall asleep next to you
And the memories I never can escape

It's been two weeks. Two long, fucking miserable weeks. Well, the times I've been with Marisol weren't so bad, but other than that, it's been freaking terrible. I've sealed myself away from everyone. The only people I've really talked to is Marisol, Mami, and Blake. I have actually been spending a multitude of time with Blake, just trying to forget about Troy.

It's not working. When I wake up, I think about Troy. When I'm not busy, I think about Troy. When I play with Marisol, I think about Troy. Troy, Troy, Troy, Troy. "Mama!" I hear Marisol yell from her room (I'm in my study). I get up from my comfy, plush chair and walk over to Marisol's room. I smile softly as I see her having a party with her stuffed animals. "Yes, bebé?" She looks up at me with a grin and pushes her long, dark chestnut hair behind her ear. "Come play wif me!" She squeals, grabbing my hand and pushing me down in the small pink chair. "So, Marisol, what are we having for this lovely party?" I ask as she pushes up her large teddy bear her favorite Uncle Chad gave her for her third birthday upright again. Marisol turns toward me, tapping her finger on her chin, before her eyes widen in excitement. "Jasmine tea and cwumpets," She says in a fake British accent. I giggle. "Did Aunt Pay teach you that?" She grins and nods her head. Marisol places a cup and plastic bread in front of me, and I reach out and tickle her stomach.

She starts to laugh, and so do I. "Mama, no! Pwe-pwease stop! Hahahahahaha!" Marisol begs between laughs. I shake my head and tickle her more.

The doorbell rings, and I stop tickling her. She looks up at me with her big, clear blue eyes, and I sigh. "Yes, you can open the door. Only if you ask who it is, and you know that person," I relent.

She squeals and runs out of her room and down the stairs. I shake my head and follow her downstairs. I intake a breath, and my heart beats irregularly when I see who's at the door. He looks up at me with his diamond blue eyes, and I see so many emotions I haven't seen for four years before he locks them away. "Troy," I breathe. The realization hits me, and I start to get angry for some reason. "Marisol, call Abuelita and ask if you can spend the night. My cell phone's in the study," I tell her. She nods her head enthusiastically before bouncing up the stairs. I turn back to Troy and cross my arms. "How the hell did you get passed the fence?" I demand to know.

"Chad gave me his code," He answers nonchalantly, like it's no big deal.

Chad. Gr, damn bastard. "Why? Why are you here?" I ask. Before he can answer, Marisol comes skipping down the stairs.

"Mama, Abuelita said she'll be here in five minutes," Marisol says, looking up at me.

I look over at Troy to see him staring at Marisol before turning back. "Vamos, let's get you some clothes packed, sí?" She nods and grabs my hand with her little one. I look back at Troy. "You can go to the living room, down the hall and on your right," I explain. He nods, and I let Marisol pull me up the stairs.

"Mama?" Marisol asks as I grab her pink duffel bag from a shelf in her walk-in closet.

"Sí, bebé?" I ask as I grab a yellow dress from a hanger.

"Why is Twoy here?" Because he's your father.

I shake my head to rid that thought. "Troy and I have to talk about a few things, and I don't want you to be bored." I don't want you to hear us screaming.

She nods. "Ooh, can I wear my white convewses?" She asks in an excited voice. I giggle and nod, and Marisol runs over to her shoes and grabs her white Hi-Top Converse. I place them in her bag before putting purple underwear, pull-ups just in case she has an accident, and a pair of white socks in her bag.

"What PJ's do you want?"

She crosses her arms and taps her top lip. "Hmmm," She mumbles as she looks in her drawers. Her face lights up, and she pulls out her blue Frozen-themed pajamas with Olaf on the front. She hands them to me, and I start to fold them.

"Go get your toothbrush," I say, placing the PJ's in her bag. Marisol nods and skips away, and I grab a pair of black flip-flops before standing up. Marisol comes running back into the room, and I hand her the flip-flops while she hands me her toothbrush. I place it in her bag, and we walk downstairs just as the doorbell rings. She opens the door to reveal Mami.

"Abuelita!" Marisol squeals.

"Nieta!" Mami says happily, hugging my daughter. I smile at the two before my mom looks at me with a smile. She turns back to Marisol. "Why don't you go get in my car, chiquita?" Mami suggests.

Marisol nods before walking over to me. I bend down and pick her up, and she squeezes me tightly while I do the same. "Te amo, mama," She whispers.

I pull back slightly and smile. "I love you, too, niña. Have fun with Abuelita, okay?" I sit her back on the ground, and she nods before going out to the driveway. We both watch to make sure she gets in the care safely before Mami turns back to me.

"Why am I taking my granddaughter, not that I love spending time with her?" She asks suspiciously.

I bite my lip. "Troy's here."

My mother's eyebrows fly up. "Oh!" She exclaims before clearing her throat. "Well, I'm glad to see the pair of you have made up! Yes, Lucy owes me twenty bucks!" Mami does a little air punch.

I look at her in confusion and shake my head. "No, Mami, no. He's here to discuss our daughter. I have a boyfriend, Mami! Remember, Blake? And ugh, I don't even want to know what you and Troy's mom bet on!"

Mami chuckles before kissing my cheek. "Be smart, Gabi. I love you."

I sigh. "Love you, too." She smiles at me before closing the door.

I close my eyes as I let my head rest against the cool, wooden door. I'm not ready for this, and I'll probably never be ready. I push myself off and head towards the living room.

Troy is sitting on my black leather couch, facing away from me. I take my time in memorizing the back of his body. His chestnut hair is no longer the shag he had it in his whole life. It now is cut much shorter and spiked up. His back is much more muscular than four years ago, due to the vigorous workouts he does. "I know you're staring at me," Troy's voice interrupts my scan.

I blush as he stands up and faces me. "No, I wasn't."

He rolls his eyes. "El, come on. I knew exactly when you stepped in this room, and I've felt your eyes on my back this whole time," He explains. I scrunch up my face, and he grins. I can't help but grin back. I quickly wipe it off, though.

"Why are you here?" I demand.

He crosses his arms, his biceps bulging. "I want to talk with you."

"About what?" I ask, feigning ignorance.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," He says, pointing at the picture of Marisol on the coffee table. "Why? Why did you leave?"

I bite my lip before glaring fiercely at him. "It's been two weeks since I've told you. You should have come to me sooner!" I yell, angry tears starting to form in my chocolate eyes.

"You fucking ran away from me before I could say ANYTHING!" He shouts back, exasperated.

Tears start to drip down my cheek. "YOU DIDN'T CHASE ME!" I scream. He blinks, and realization seems to fill his eyes with the anger that's turned his eyes navy. "You-you did-didn't chase me, Tr-Troy. Tha-that's what's kil-killing me. You-you used to say you'd ru-run to the e-ends of th-the Earth fo-for me. I-it me-means we-we're re-really over," I say shakily. Jesus, why am I so damn weak?

His eyes soften, and he moves closer to me. "Ella.." He whispers, reaching out his hand.

I recoil from him. "Don't touch me!" I snap. Anything is better than this pain, even anger. "Don't touch me, please. I-i have so many emotions ru-running through me, I don't know what I'll do," I warn.

He nods, but I see ice flare up in his navy blue eyes, and I'm shocked. He's pissed, uh-oh. "You have emotions running through you?! Well too damn bad, Gabriella! Wake up!" He runs his hand through his hair angrily before looking back at me. "God, you haven't changed one fucking bit, have you?! You still think the fucking world revolves around you! Newsflash, Gabriella, it doesn't!" He shouts.

A loud pop echos through, and his cheek is red from where I slapped him. "Fuck you, Troy Bolton!"

He laughs cynically. "Fuck me? That's gold, Gabriella, real gold! If fuck me, then fuck you, too," He retorts. "You were the one who left, not me! Jesus, do you have any idea what I was going to do when we got to Albuquerque?" I'm silent, and he grabs his wallet out of his pocket. As he digs through it, I furrow my eyebrows in confusion. My hands fly up to my mouth, and I gasp as he shows me what he was looking for. He places the gorgeous yet simple ring in my right hand, and I look at it. It's a round cut, 14K diamond placed on the silver ring. "I was going to propose. As soon as we got away from everyone, I was going to take you to the rooftop at East High. It would've been decorated, and there would've have been my famous peanut butter & jelly's and chocolate covered strawberries. And once we got done eating and just having a fun time, I was going to get on one knee and ask you to marry me," He confesses, his voice cracking at the end.

The tears that built up during his speech starts to leak, and I hand him the ring back. "Troy, I-,"

He looks up at me, and for the first time in four years, I see just how broken he is. How much I broke him. "Just tell me why you left me, Ella. Was I not good enough? Did I not make you happy?" He asks, his insecurities showing.

I close my eyes and roll my lips in. My heart is breaking seeing him torturing himself with self-hatred. "Stop, Troy. Please. You were too good for me. You made me the happiest girl in the entire world." I connect my eyes with his vulnerable sapphire pools.

"Then why?" He asks, his voice cracking at 'why.' "We would've been a family. I wo-would have given up everything if it meant I could have had you and Marisol," He admits, and tears swim in my eyes.

"Don't you see, Troy?! That's exactly why I left! If I would've stayed, you would've quit basketball and resented Marisol and me forever!" I shout, desperately trying to get this through to him.

"Dammit, Gabriella!" He explodes, and my eyes widen. He's never been this angry.. except for when I left. "Open up your damn eyes! Life without you was fucking pathetic! All I did was merely exist! All I did was go through the motions during the day and just get fucking hammered at night! You were all I ever wanted!" He shouts, and his chest rises and falls heavily. The tears in my eyes slowly dribble down my cheeks as he takes a step towards me. "You still are," He pants in a whisper, and I let out a small gasp before his lips touch mine.

Holy hell, I haven't had this feeling in four years.

I wrap my arms around his neck, and he pulls me closer, his thumbs rubbing the exposed skin on my hips where my shirt has risen up. Our kisses turn from slow and steady to hard and passionate. Troy picks me up, and I gladly wrap my legs around his torso. He slams me against the wall, and I don't even flinch at the small throbbing pain in my back. He removes his lips from mine, and he starts a trail of hot, wet kisses down my neck while I thread my fingers through his silky chestnut hair and pant.

He pulls away from my neck a few moments later. "You're perfect, Ella," He says lowly. I smile softly before leaning forward and connecting our lips in a slow, meaningful kiss.

"Gabi?" I hear someone call through my house before the front door slams.

My eyes widen, and I slide off of Troy. I look in the mirror and gape in horror. My hair is going every which way, and my lips are swollen. I quickly pull my hair in a bun before looking at Troy, who doesn't look any better than me. I walk over to him and smooth his hair down. His captivating blue eyes stare at me intensely, but I force myself to ignore him. Instead I pull him quickly on the couch and turn on the TV just in time as Blake comes walking in.

"Gabi, I've called your name a million times!" He says in an annoyed tone, brushing his hand through his blonde hair.

I shoot him a little glare, but he doesn't notice. "Sorry, honey," I kick Troy with my foot seeing him laughing silently, knowing I only say honey when I'm pissed, "I was catching up with Troy, Chad's best man." I gesture towards him, and Blake's mouth drops open as Troy and I stand up from my couch.

"The Troy Bolton?! Dude, you're amazing!" Blake exclaims, shaking Troy's hand.

Troy chuckles. "Thanks, man," He pauses, "So what do you do for a living? Ella's rarely talked about you." Blake looks over at me, and I glare at Troy before Blake clears his throat.

"I'm a personality, and I own two Finish Line's in LA," He replies. I inwardly scoff. God, he sounds like such a snob. Why haven't I noticed this before? It's probably because Troy's making see all of Blake's flaws. Ugh, he needs to leave.

Troy nods. "That's cool," He says before turning to me. He kisses my cheek, and I feel my face flush. "I have to go. See you, Ella. Thanks for helping me with Violet," He says and winks at me before turning to Blake with an outstretched hand. "Nice meeting you, Blake," Troy says, and Blake shakes his hand.

"I'll walk you out," I say, forcing a smile. "Blake, babe, I'll be right back," I say, and he smiles at me. Troy gestures for me to lead, and I take us to the outside. I shut my front door before running a hand through my hair. "We shouldn't have done that," I say immediately.

He rolls his eyes. "Oh come on, you wanted it just as bad as me."

"I have a boyfriend, and you have a girlfriend, Troy. We don't always get what we want," I hiss.

His bright blue eyes turn navy as he glares at me. "We don't, do we?" He says icily.

I feel guilt wash over me, and I start apologizing. "Troy, I'm sor-"

He puts a hand up. "Forget about it. I have to go," He mutters coldly before walking away from me. He gets into his black Rolls Royce and speeds down my mile-long driveway, and I know that paparazzi are just waiting at my gates.

I sigh before going back into my house. I walk back into my living room to see Blake flipping through my yearbook from senior year. I clear my throat, and he stands up, placing the yearbook on the coffee table. "I didn't know you knew Troy Bolton," Blake says in an accusing tone.

I glare at him. "I didn't know I had to tell you everyone I'm acquainted with," I defend myself.

He looks shocked that I'd talk back to him, and he smirks a moment later. He saunters towards me and places his hands on my hips. "You know, babe, it's super sexy when you talk back to me," He leans in for a kiss, and I try to push him away from me.

"Stop, I don't want to kiss you right know," I order. He ignores me and starts to suck on my neck roughly. I feel anxiety rush through me. "Blake, stop!" I yell and knee him in the balls.

Blake groans before his eyes flash in anger. "Bitch!" He yells, slapping me hard enough to make me fall on the ground. I grab my face in shock, and my eyes start to water. His face softens. "Brie, I-i didn't-"

"Get out," I whisper.

His eyes plead with me. "Brie, plea-"

"GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE!" I scream, and he flinches. Blake complies and rushes out of my house. I get up with my hand still on my cheek and walk downstairs. I go into my music room and grab a bottle of wine before walking out and into the master bedroom. I turn on the lights and go over to the large closet. I grab a scrapbook that's on the top shelf in the closet. I smile sadly as I read the title: '2 Years Filled With Love and Fun.'

I climb on the bed and open the wine battle, gulping down a few sips. I open the book and smile bittersweetly as I look at all of mine and Troy's picture. Tears drip down my cheeks the further I go in the book, and I finally reach the last page with no more wine and tear-stained cheeks. More tears come as I look at the last picture. The picture is us at his basketball banquet junior year, and Troy's looking down with a smirk as I'm whispering something in his ear with a smile on my face. I go to shut the book before my eyes catch a piece of paper escaping from behind the picture. I pull it out, and my eyes widen as I realize it's a note. I've had this book since I was 17. How could I have missed this? I frown, but I begin to read Troy's scrawny writing.

'Dear Ella,

Can you believe it's already been two years? Two years since I, the nervous, lanky freshman, asked you, the shy, smart girl, to be my girlfriend. I still remember that day like it was yesterday. On March 14th, 2006, you were wearing a white, laced dress with a yellow cardigan on top, and your hair was down in its natural curls with a yellow headband. The reason I remember your outfit so vividly is because it was the first time I've seen you without any hair blocking your perfect face. You just looked even more gorgeous than normal. Anyways, it was a Tuesday afternoon, and we were at the park next to my house. I remember how your eyes lit up when you saw the swing sets. You pulled me over to them and asked if I'd push you. I, of course, agreed, and you hopped on the swing. You laughed so hard and so carefree that I knew I needed to make you mine. When you jumped off the swing, I walked over to you, and you still had this ghost of a smile. And even when I stuttered the entire time like a complete idiot, you said yes. We both grinned before you launched yourself at me. That was the first time I really held you in my arms, and I knew that instance that I never want to let you go.

I hope you enjoyed this book of us through the past two years.. and I hope for my forever with you, El. You're it for me, baby. But I'm going to hide this letter behind the last picture. Why? Because if something does happen to us or you question my love for you, you'll look through this book and find this note to reassure yourself how crazy in love I am with you. Knowing me, I've probably screwed up somehow since I'm a total dick. I love you for how you hardly wear any makeup. I love you for how you always make me Mac n Cheese before every home game. I love you for how your nose scrunches up when you laugh. I love you for hating being called honey or sweetie. I love you for how smart you are and how you don't rub it in. I love you for always fighting back with me and never letting me push you around. I love you for always being you, never-changing for anything or anyone. I just love you, baby girl.

Forever Yours,

Troy

Tears now cascade freely down my cheeks as I let out a heart-wrenching sob. I clutch the note tightly as I just cry.

One thought runs through my mind as I sob, 'I shoud've stayed.'

so how was it? :) Got a little Troyella action, but Blake smacked Gabriella! Will she dump him or stay?

Review :)))