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Gabriella looked at the setting sun and let out a sigh as she allowed herself to rest her head on Patrick's shoulder, having really talked herself into giving him a fair shot, at least more of a shot than she had unconsciously been giving him before the talk she had with Emma and her mother a few days before. Patrick tightened his hold around Gabriella's shoulder with his right arm, smiling a little more as he looked down at the content looking woman.
"What are you thinking about? It can't be the dread of an upcoming work week," teased Patrick, grinning as he heard a soft giggle from her.
"True, it is a Sunday and I'm not here worried about a deadline or anything but I was thinking about everything going on in my life," replied Gabriella, turning her head slightly so she was looking back into Patrick's brown eyes. "What are you thinking about?"
"About how special you've become to me," confessed Patrick, secretly loving the blush that appeared on her cheeks with his words. "It's been a little over two months since we were formally introduced and I'd like to say that our time spent together has left quite the impression on me. I do have to wonder if that will all change in a few weeks."
Gabriella gave him a quizzical look. "What do you mean? What would happen in a few weeks that would change this between us?"
Patrick debated on whether or not to expose his insecurity but decided that he should just lay all his cards on the table for her to see. "The ball your grandparents are having. It may not be written in the invitation but I know it's an event where you will be expected to meet more eligible men and will have more choices to choose from put in front of you."
"Patrick, you make it sound like I'm going to choose my favorite chocolate out of an assorted box," returned Gabriella. "Just because I'll be dancing and meeting new guys doesn't mean that's going to change what we have."
"Really? And what exactly do we have Gabriella?" ventured Patrick, knowing in the back of his mind that he was pushing this a bit far.
She took her time gathering an answer for him but in the end settled for being honest. "Truthfully Patrick, I'm not really sure. Look, I really do like you, I enjoy our time together. You, out of everyone else I have met, have made our time very special and meaningful and you have shown that you care about who I am as a person. That says a lot to me."
Patrick nodded his head in understanding. "I know what you mean. I can't tell you how many dates I have been on that were set up by my father or my older brothers that were complete disasters or short lived. To be honest, I was so very relieved that you turned out to be you and not my worst case scenario I dreamt up while waiting for you that first night. I also understand this is an odd situation to be seeing each other under."
"To say the least," murmured Gabriella, laughing a little along with Patrick at her words. "No matter what happens though Patrick, I want you to know that you are special to me too."
He grinned back at her before he slowly leaned his face towards her, inwardly happy that she met him halfway as their lips met, both feeling that special connection that continued to spark as the kiss deepened, Patrick running his left hand through Gabriella's long dark brown locks. For the first time, in a long time, Gabriella gave herself the freedom to return the passion he was giving the moment, running her own right hand through his black hair, smiling against his lips as the kiss eventually cooled off and they broke apart. They leaned their foreheads together as they both caught their breath, Gabriella keeping her eyes closed to focus on the feeling of attraction she felt for Patrick at that very moment. When she finally opened them, she lost her breath as she saw the intense look in the other pair of brown eyes, only to have the moment interrupted as a flash of light went off from nearby.
Gabriella and Patrick instantly jumped apart, Patrick's gaze searching until he spied the culprit. Without another word, Patrick jumped out of his convertible and ran towards the man with the camera who Gabriella didn't recognize. The man took off running, leading both out of sight of Gabriella, who now was standing outside the car, straining her eyes to see where they had gone. A few minutes later, an out of breath Patrick slowly trudged back towards Gabriella, his shoulders slumped in defeat.
"Didn't get him huh?" asked Gabriella, giving him a sympathetic smile.
Patrick shook his head. "I'm sorry, I tried but the bugger was too fast. Speaks of me being out of shape and all. How embarrassing!"
Gabriella shook her head and stepped towards Patrick, surprising him by wrapping her arms snugly around his waist. "Not at all. That type of guy, paparazzi as I call them, are used to running for their life and livelihood. Besides, I know for a fact that you run circles around me. Shall we discuss how you left me in the dust yesterday morning when you came for a morning run with me?"
"That's true but it was only so I could sneak back around and scare you," admitted Patrick, a chuckle escaping his mouth.
She playfully slapped him on the chest for the reminder. "That's right, I almost forgot about that mean thing you did."
"Oh, come on Ella, you know you can't stay mad at me for long," teased Patrick, wrapping his own arms around her before kissing her again on the lips, keeping it light just in case the paparazzi guy came back. "We better get going, it's a few hours drive back from the coast to Louvis."
"True. Patrick, thank you for a wonderful afternoon and now evening out here. I really don't get to see it enough," said Gabriella, smiling up at him and feeling oddly comfortable in his arms.
"Well, we'll just have to make it a regular thing now won't we?" replied Patrick, kissing her one last time before helping her back into the car to start the drive back to the palace.
A few hours later, as Patrick cut the engine after parking in his usual spot on the side of the palace, he looked over and smiled at a peacefully sleeping Gabriella. He watched for a few minutes before he released his seatbelt and kissed her lightly on the lips, chuckling when that didn't wake her. Patrick instead nudged Gabriella lightly and then a little firmer until her eyes fluttered open. It took her a moment to realize who she was with and where she was but he was greeted with a soft smile from her. "Hi Sleeping Beauty," he greeted.
"Hi," she sheepishly replied. "I guess I was more tired from my morning rehearsal and helping at the homeless shelter than I thought."
"Guess so," agreed Patrick, "but I don't mind. The rest is the least you deserve for all that you are doing. Actually, I have a surprise for you."
Gabriella looked at him suspiciously, seeing the happy look on Patrick's face. "A good one?"
"Would I dare give you a bad one? I think I'd be in big trouble if I did. Come on, close your eyes," he coaxed.
She continued to eye him before she decided to give in, reminding herself that she could trust him and genuinely wanted to give Patrick a real, honest chance. Gabriella waited a few moments with her eyes closed, listening to him move around the car, most likely searching for something, before she felt her left hand being picked up from her lap. Slowly, she felt something cold touch her body, causing her to shiver a little in anticipation and from the coldness, as she felt whatever it was slide upwards before she felt something warm over the back of her hand. "Can I look?"
Patrick let out a low laugh before he said, "Open those beautiful brown eyes for me Ella."
Gabriella smiled at the way her nickname sounded coming from his lips before opening her eyes, which darted immediately to her left hand where Patrick kissed her again. "Oh my… Patrick…"
He grinned back at her, gently dropping her hand back to her lap as he placed both of his hands on the sides of her face, turning her so she was fully looking at him. "It looks beautiful there Ella, as much as I had hoped it would when I was in the jewelry store, contemplating if this would be right for you, for us."
Before Gabriella could say anything further, Patrick leaned down and captured her lips with his, distracting Gabriella enough to forget about her new piece of jewelry as she lost herself in the man in front of her. She surprised both of them as she was the one to deepen the kiss, the first of many they shared that evening between talking of their future, at least until she reluctantly brought herself to finally say goodnight. When she was at the door, Gabriella waved goodbye to Patrick with her left hand, his token of affection sparkling in the moonlight.
Troy sat at his desk in their apartment, trying to focus on writing the verbiage of the wedding invitations for his marriage to Celeste in the spring. He let out a frustrated groan as he balled up another piece of paper and tossed it over his shoulder to join the thirty-odd other paper balls. 'Why can't I get this right?' he wondered, dropping his head into his hands in frustration. 'Celeste asks one simple thing of me to help and I can't even do it!'
After giving himself some time, Troy cleared his thoughts and focused on the loving feelings that were always associated with weddings and what it felt like to commit one's self to the perfect soul mate, the other half of one's being, for the rest of time. Troy put the pen to paper and allowed whatever he thought to be written without thinking about it, without giving himself the chance to second guess himself. Twenty minutes later, he grinned down at the first full draft he was able to put together after only about two hours of time. As he picked up the piece of paper from the desk, Troy breathed in before he allowed himself to finally read what he wrote.
'Not bad,' he thought to himself as he continued to read the intro until he got to the bride's name. "Gabriella Felicia Anna Lauren Montez…"
"What about Princess Gabriella?" asked a voice, startling Troy out of his shock.
Troy whipped his head around and felt his heart beat faster as he saw Celeste leaning against the doorway of their second bedroom, which served as a study of sorts. "Umm, hi Celeste."
"Hi," she returned, looking at Troy oddly. "Why were you just saying Princess Gabriella's name?"
"Me? Say her name? Oh, I just finished talking to her on my cell," replied Troy, kicking himself inwardly for thinking of such a stupid cover.
"Funny, I didn't hear you talking just now," remarked Celeste, searching Troy's face for a few moments before shrugging a little. "So, do all these paper balls on the floor mean no success yet?"
Troy instantly thought of the version he now had face down on the desk and nodded his head. "I know, it's taking me forever but I want it to be perfect for you."
Celeste smiled at this, making Troy feel even guiltier for the position he was putting everyone in. "That's sweet. Well, I'll leave you to it. Come outside when you're ready? I'm looking at different favors."
"Sure," said Troy, relieved when Celeste left the room.
After watching the doorway for several minutes to make sure she didn't come back, Troy slowly grabbed the piece of paper from the desk and flipped it back over to stare at his writing. He read it over several times and just couldn't believe he had written Gabriella's name in the place of the bride. 'My God, if Celeste ever saw this, she would flip out and leave me for sure,' he said to himself in his head, instantly looking around for a place to put the piece of paper. For a few moments, Troy was tempted to ball it up and throw it away but he couldn't, for a few reasons. Once he reexamined the wording of the verbiage, Troy discovered he really liked what he wrote as it expressed what he would imagine he would feel on that day of his wedding. Another reason was that it represented a fantasy of his, one that was coming to the surface more and more frequently as time went on.
Troy dragged in a deep breath and let it out as he stared at their names together. 'Gabriella Felicia Anna Lauren Montez and Troy Anthony Bolton… God, that really does look so perfect like that.'
His eyes flew back up to the doorway as Troy heard Celeste's soft voice singing in probably the dining room and felt his gut wrench over the large amount of guilt he currently felt, having lied to her more in the past week to cover his true thoughts and emotions than he had since he had met her until this past week. Letting out a sigh, Troy grabbed for a legal sized envelope and stuffed his writing in, sealing it with the saliva from his tongue as well as the brass clip, smoothing tape over the seals on both ends for good measure. 'What are you afraid of? Celeste finding the wedding invitation verbiage you wrote for your marriage to her with the name of your first love, your ex? Of course you are, you know what a bastard you are being to her right now. Celeste deserves more than your love which you give freely but not completely Troy. She's a wonderful woman that deserves so much more than what you are offering.'
Once the drawer where he put the envelope was closed, Troy got up and stretched a little before he bent down and cleaned up all the paper balls and deposited them in the recycling bin out in the kitchen. Troy got a clean glass from the cabinet and filled it with water, taking the time to slowly drink it as he tried to clear his mind. When the water didn't help, Troy knew he had to get out, if even for a little while.
"Hey Celeste, I'm going to go take a walk, maybe pick up some groceries for dinner. Do you want anything?" he asked as he walked into the dining room where Celeste had all the different magazines spread out again. Another guilty pang filled his gut at this sight but he pushed it away.
Celeste tore her gaze from the glossy page in front of her and looked back at her fiancé, knowing him too well to know that something was troubling him. "Hey, you look bothered. Do you want me to come with you? We could walk in Central Park, get some ice-cream, and just talk if you want."
'She has to be sweet Celeste and make this harder too,' thought Troy as he put on what he hoped was a convincing smile. "No, don't worry about it. You've got a lot you want to accomplish today and I just need to take a little breather, get some fresh air. Do you want me to bring back ice-cream though since you suggested it?"
Her eyes lit up immediately at this idea. "That sounds divine right now! Cold Stone? Can you get me the Coffee Lovers Only with extra Heath bar pieces?"
Troy chuckled at the excited expression on Celeste's face. "Well when you ask that way, how can I possibly refuse?" he teased as he walked over and kissed her on the lips a couple of times before forcing himself to break away. He gave her a wave and one last smile before he grabbed his keys and cell phone before heading out the door of their apartment.
Troy walked through the streets of New York City, battling with himself over the situation he was now facing. Either way he looked at it, he was hurting someone, whether it be Celeste, himself, or even Gabriella. 'That is if she still cares about me that way. She does have a rich boyfriend now who her family probably loves to death.'
That thought made Troy's stomach twist in knots again, proof that even if she moved on after he supposedly did that he still cared and loved her. More memories flooded his mind of the past seven and a half years, which were mostly void of Gabriella. He thought back to his first sexual experience and remembered how he had been picturing Gabriella in his mind at certain key points. When he reflected on the reason why he ended his relationships before Celeste, Troy realized it was because they didn't compare to Gabriella, whether Troy consciously thought that or not at the time. Even the memory of winning the division title in college with his team involved Gabriella in that he thought of her for strength and support while he struggled only to snap out of it a moment later, playing his best ever to help his team win.
As Troy thought more and more, the realization hit him that no matter what he was doing, Gabriella had always been with him, in his mind, his heart, and even his soul. 'Could that be right though? Could being with a person for less than a year be enough for her to live on for this long? For seven and a half years filled with seeing other people? It is if you truly love her as much as you think, no, you know you do Troy. But how can I love both Brie and Celeste?'
Troy's cell phone vibrated, startling him out of his deep thoughts. He pulled his phone out and let out a dry chuckle at his best friend's timing. "You seriously have the best timing these days Chad."
"Well, you get double for your money because Chucky's conferencing in. We both wanted to check up on you and see how NYC is," said Chad.
"Hey man!" greeted Chucky shortly after. "How you doing?"
Troy laughed at this greeting. "Better now that you both are on the line!"
"Sounds like a dilemma. So, what is it this time? What colors the flowers should be for the bridesmaids' bouquets or who to cut off the invite list?" asked Chad, having given Troy his input on things a few times in the past week.
Troy was silent at this making Chucky worry. "Troy, what is it?"
"I'm ending things with Celeste, tonight I think. The wedding is off guys," stated Troy, finding it hard to start but easier to accept as he continued to talk. "I know that I did the right thing in trying to stand by my promise to her, to stay with Celeste, but I think I've realized that this just isn't fair for either of us to continue this whole thing when one of us isn't fully committed."
"Dude, she didn't cheat on you did she?" questioned Chad.
Troy shook his head, despite the brothers not being able to see him. "It's more like I have the cheating heart. Maybe you two will think I'm stupid but I still, completely and totally, love Gabriella. Yes, I've known that I will never forget her as my first love but, as cliché as this is, Brie has never really left me, not to me anyway. God, I'm such a bastard for leading Celeste on so much."
Soon after he was done speaking, Troy was startled by the excitement coming from one of the other lines. "Excuse my little bro Troy, he's just excited you have accepted and acknowledged something we have all known for a while now."
"You've even known Chad?" asked Troy.
Chad scoffed and protested by exclaiming, "Hey, I'm not as dense as I used to be! So what are you going to do?"
"Find the courage to talk to Celeste and be as gentle as possible. Celeste has been nothing but wonderful and I really love her guys," replied Troy.
Chucky saw this as his chance for another big brother moment and jumped in. "But you aren't in love with her Troy. There's a difference. Celeste is smart and a woman. I wouldn't be surprised if she is somehow expecting this."
Troy paled at the thought. "Do you really think she knows?"
"Of course not man!" comforted Chad while Chucky said, "Yes, I bet she does."
Upon hearing Chad's words, Chucky made a disgusted sound. "Dude, honestly? You are married and still don't understand women. Of course Celeste knows!"
"How? She doesn't even know about what went on here in Albuquerque. It's not like you know all that much, you're still single!" exclaimed Chad.
"By choice Chad! You can ask any of my past girlfriends, who are still among my friends by the way, and they'll tell you we didn't end things over mistreatment or misunderstandings. I don't know how Taylor handles you!" threw back Chucky.
"Well you may be friends with them but what of Vanessa? The one that got away?" challenged Chad, flustered by Chucky's words, hating the fact that his brother was right.
There was silence before Troy spoke up. "Chad, stop. Think about what you are saying."
"I am! She was the fucking love of his life!" responded Chad.
"And I lost her," replied Chucky in a quiet voice after a few more moments of silence. "I lost her in a house fire in the middle of the night. You're right Chad, Vanessa is the love of my life but unlike Troy, I don't get another chance with her. Troy, please man, go after Gabriella before it's too late and you end up like me."
If nothing else had sunk into Troy's conscious mind, Chucky's plea certainly did. "I hear you Chucky. True loves never really leave your heart huh?"
"No Troy, they don't. It's been three years since that fire and I can't even begin to think of dating another woman now," confessed Chucky. "In some ways, I think that's why I've at least tried to push you to start you thinking about whether or not marrying Celeste is really what you want. If it is, then go for it Troy, but the more I hear you talk, the more I know this would be a mistake to continue down this road but it is your call. You know your heart, you know how you feel about these two amazing women. Chad and I, well all we can offer are our own outside opinions, right Chad?"
After a pause, Chad reluctantly agreed, following his brother's lead. "Right. First, Chucky, I'm sorry bro, I totally forgot about what happened with Vanessa in my frustration. Second, Troy, if you want to go after Gabster, I'll be right behind you. If you want to get married to Celeste in the spring, I'll be beside you as your best man. You've been my best friend since pre-school, I'll support you no matter what."
Troy let out a long sigh as he heard Chad's words, feeling less certain about what he was sure he was going to do only a few minutes ago, smiling only when he heard Chucky's acceptance of Chad's apology. "I think I know what I want to do guys but I think I need to think this through before I head back on my own, no offense. I just, well I want to make sure I'm doing this for the right reasons."
Suddenly, a huge round of screams was heard on one of the other lines but this time it was feminine screaming. "Chad, what was that? Tay okay?" asked Chucky, concerned along with Troy.
Chad groaned as he walked with his cell phone into the living room where Sharpay, Taylor, and Tessa were gathered around a phone on speaker. "Just the women giddy about something," he muttered, leaning against the wall as his curiosity was also piqued.
"It's about time you fucking admitted to actually liking Patrick to us Gaby!" exclaimed Tessa, a wide grin on her face. "Shar and I have been tracking you via tabloids for two months now! Out of all the guys we have seen pictures of you with, he is by far the best looking too."
Sharpay quickly agreed. "Why didn't you bring your special guy to Tay's wedding Gabriella?"
"Because I wasn't sure about him before but I think he just may be the one," confessed Gabriella.
"You aren't just saying that because of that bling right?" questioned Taylor, always being the grounded one of the four women.
Gabriella laughed. "No Tay, don't worry. However, diamonds are rather sparkly, even in the moonlight."
All three women started giggling again, which prompted Chad to roll his eyes, becoming aware of who was on the other side of the lines when he heard Chucky discreetly coughing. 'Shit, Troy did not need to hear any of that,' he thought as he walked back into his and Taylor's bedroom and closed the door. "Sorry, hopefully your eardrums aren't ringing like mine are after that screaming."
"No but I so don't envy you having all three of them at your place when they are on the phone with Gab," answered Chucky, chuckling as he heard another groan from Chad.
The third line though was silent, Troy having absorbed every word he heard. 'Is it possible that I'm too late? Could Patrick have proposed in only two months to Gabriella? Well of course he could have. He isn't stupid enough to let an amazing thing pass him by I'm sure.'
"TROY BOLTON!" yelled Chucky, snapping Troy out of his thoughts again.
"What?" asked Troy, a bit dazed.
He heard two sighs before Chad spoke. "What crazy thoughts are you thinking of now dude?"
"Just that Gabriella sounds like she's moved on with her life now with this Patrick guy and the three girlfriends of hers seem to approve of him," replied Troy.
"Troy, they've never even met the guy," Chad reminded his best friend.
"Still though, they sound excited so she must have said nothing but positive things about him to them. Maybe Celeste is who I'm supposed to end up with at the end of this. Maybe this was just the closure I needed," murmured Troy as he sorted through the new information he had just heard. "I mean, Gabriella has a right to move on as I have."
"That's true but even with what you just learned, do you still think this is fair, being with Celeste when you aren't in love with her?" asked Chucky, trying to be as sensitive as he could be in regards to this topic.
Troy rubbed the back of his neck as he thought about this, knowing that Chucky highlighted a good point. "I'm not sure. Big brother, what do I do?"
"Follow your heart," advised Chucky. "And stop listening to everyone else, especially Chad. Like I said Troy, only you know what's right."
"Man, we're starting to sound like the three in the next room," whined Chad, hearing another burst of screams and laughter.
"I think Chad has a point. Let me be all girly by myself while you guys talk sports or something to compensate for this sensitive talk to make Chad feel better. I need to go take a walk and clear my head some more. Shit, I need to get Celeste's ice-cream too," stated Troy, remembering Celeste's request.
Hearing Troy's need to be alone again, Chad and Chucky quickly said goodbye, which left Troy flipping his cell phone closed before he slipped it into his pocket again. He wandered around the streets for a little while longer before he ended up at the Cold Stone Creamery near their apartment. Troy was still thinking about what he wanted to do and felt he needed to do when his turn was finally up.
"What can I get for you sir?" asked a smiling young Hispanic girl on the other side of the counter, dressed in the Cold Stone uniform.
"Umm, a Love It of Coffee Lovers Only with extra Heath in it," replied Troy, absently thinking again as the girl started to work on Celeste's ice-cream.
Looking at the different ingredients lined up and the ice-cream flavors in the freezer begging to be chosen, Troy's mind wandered back to senior year in high school when he and Gabriella fell in love with their special sundae. He smiled as he thought of the experimentation they both did that one night, the ice-cream on faces and body parts, and the sweet kisses they shared through it all.
"Will that be all sir?" asked the girl, looking at him patiently.
"Oh, no," said Troy. "Can I get chocolate with marshmallows? Actually, can I get mint with M&Ms? Wait, sorry, I can't decide."
"Do you need extra time sir?" she pushed as she began to lose that patient look on her face.
Troy thought for a few moments before he finally focused on what he wanted. "No, I know exactly what I want, for sure this time. This one is special. Let's start off with strawberry…" he replied, continuing to tell the girl the ingredients of that special sundae from years ago. When he was done, he paid for the two ice-cream creations, making sure to leave a large tip before he left and headed back home, a final decision residing in his heart.