The ride out to the coast had been pretty uneventful as three separate cars were taken out to a small ranch Gabriella liked to frequent for those days she wanted to go horseback riding along the coast and on the beach. Taylor, Tessa, and Sharpay had ridden in Gabriella's car while Chucky, Chad, and Ryan rode with Troy in his car, leaving Chris to ride with Patrick in his sports car. As they all got out of the now parked cars, most of the group stretched before a friendly older man came out and greeted Gabriella with a small bow and a grin.

"Welcome back Princess Gabriella," he said, smiling at the other people with the brunette. "Ah, is this the group of friends you mentioned to me?"

Gabriella nodded her head before she made quick introductions of everyone to Piotr, the owner of the ranch. "Is everything set up?"

"But of course. The carriage for those who cannot or do not want to ride is all set up with room in the back for your picnic baskets, and horses have been saddled for those who want to ride," stated Piotr. "Everything will hopefully meet your requirements and your approval."

"Piotr, without a doubt, I'm sure everything is going to be fantastic," replied Gabriella as she gave him a smile before turning her attention back on her friends. "As you can probably see, I plan on having us take a more country and coast appropriate form of transportation to get to our picnic spot. There's a carriage available as well as horses so you can each pick which way you want to go."

"Ah, so this is why you told us to bring pants to change into if we weren't wearing them," commented Sharpay, her eyes focusing on the horses currently being attended to for them. "I can't wait! Ryan and I haven't been horseback riding in at least two years!"

Ryan shook his head and laughed. "You haven't wanted to though in all fairness since Dad told you that you couldn't have that new foal your horse gave birth to. I think it was your way of protesting that."

"Maybe so but Daddy isn't here now," remarked Sharpay as she and Ryan walked towards the horses to take their pick.

"Well, I guess those two are going to be riding. I myself am not adventurous enough to try something completely new so I'll take the carriage," stated Chucky, pulling a picnic basket out of the trunk of Gabriella's car and taking it with him to the waiting carriage.

Taylor smiled at the indecision on Chad's face and placed a gentle hand on his arm. "Come on Chad, let's not pretend we know how and risk injury, especially you. A ride with your brother should be nice."

Chad groaned. "I hate it when you can read my mind like that and are so right," he mumbled before giving her a grateful look from saving him from probably another disaster. "Troy, you coming?"

Troy's blue eyes wandered from the horses, to the carriage, to Gabriella, to Patrick, and then back on the horses. 'I could take a stab at it and try learning it on the fly but that is a bit risky for me. The last time I rode a horse, it was a pony at a kid's farm and it was tied to some contraption that allowed it only to move in a circle.'

Sensing Troy's indecision, Chris decided to help out. "Well I don't know about you but I'm going to save myself bodily injury and body aches tomorrow and go in the carriage. I have no doubt that Rodger would literally give me a new one if I managed to hurt myself before Saturday. Ella, you better be careful too."

Gabriella rolled her eyes at this. "Chris, I know how to ride, honest. I even have a horse here that I do very well with. Don't worry."

Tessa quickly decided on going in the large carriage with Chris, giving him a brilliant smile as he helped her up. This left Troy standing there with Gabriella and Patrick both as he continued to debate on what would be best to do. After a few more moments, Troy had almost convinced himself to play the safe route when he saw Patrick place a hand on Gabriella's back, starting their movement towards the horses.

"Wait, I think I want to try riding," called out Troy, surprising Gabriella and the rest of the gang now in the carriage.

"Are you sure Troy? Have you ever ridden?" questioned Gabriella, not wanting Troy to get hurt.

Troy jogged up to where Gabriella now stood and gave her his best smile. "I may not have ridden more than a pony before but I'm sure someone would be gracious enough to help me out, right Brie?"

Gabriella couldn't help but laugh as she saw his face turn into his pleading puppy dog face. "I guess, with a face like that, I have to."

Patrick meanwhile stood to the side and watched the exchange, realizing that both of his hands that were now hanging on his sides were clenched, especially at hearing Troy use a nickname for Gabriella that Patrick had previously thought she didn't like. His mind flashed back to a date weeks ago when he had tried calling her that but she had told him she would prefer him not to. 'So that's the reason why. "Brie" is reserved only for Troy. Maybe they do have a much deeper connection than I gave it credit for.'

"Princess Gabriella, your horse is ready," called out one of the normal staff members Gabriella recognized as Raul.

"Thanks Raul," she replied, walking towards him, leading both Patrick and Troy in the same direction towards the horses, neither man looking at the other as they each got on a horse on either side of her.

"Dude, he doesn't know how to ride!" exclaimed Chad once he got over his shock of seeing his best friend walking away from the carriage. "What is he doing?"

"He's fighting for the woman in his heart, any way that he can," replied Taylor, instantly seeing the change of heart Troy had in the end as soon as he realized that Patrick and Gabriella would be alone otherwise, albeit with Sharpay and Ryan as well.

Tessa shook her head. "God, this is going to get ugly, even more so after we leave isn't it?"

"Could be as it doesn't look like either man is going to give up this fight," commented Chucky, watching with the others as Gabriella, Sharpay, and Ryan started off, leading the carriage with Patrick right behind them. Troy, after having some trouble getting his horse to start moving forward, was given some quick tips by the groom before he also caught up with the group on horseback just as the carriage itself started moving.

As the carriage traveled behind the riders, the individuals inside the carriage admired the scenery but mostly focused on the scene in front of them. For the most part, Gabriella was occupied by talking with Ryan and Sharpay but there were moments where it was narrower and the Evans twins would fall back and allow Patrick and Gabriella lead, Troy still trailing behind as he got the hang of riding. At one point though, Gabriella looked over her shoulder and saw that Troy was a good distance away, far closer to the carriage than the rest of the riders so she dropped back and waited for him as he drew closer to her. Patrick was about to pull up as well but Ryan, almost sensing what was about to happen, struck up another conversation with Patrick, forcing him to continue to ride at Ryan's pace, following Sharpay's lead now.

"Wait, are we seriously following blondie's lead? Aren't we going to get lost?" asked Chad, panicked by the idea of following Sharpay somewhere, especially in a situation where she wasn't at all familiar with the destination.

"I doubt Gab will let that happen. Aren't you at least happy that she's taken notice of Troy struggling a bit and is making the effort to spend time with him for trying to hang with them?" answered Chucky, nodding towards the pair who were now laughing as they talked to each other, Gabriella making sure she was close enough to help reign in the horse in case something happened.

Chris noted the way Patrick kept glancing back over his shoulder and started to feel a bit bad for the other man. "You know, in some ways, I feel sorry for Patrick."

Tessa head snapped in his direction at this. "What? How can you say this?"

"Well, I mean," he started, wondering in his head how to explain this without giving away Gabriella's secret he knew she hadn't let out of the bag yet. "It's just that I know he and Ella have gotten close and I think the guy at least cares very strongly for her and he's decent."

"But Troy has changed his whole life for her!" argued Tessa. "I mean, I admit, I was very defensive about his intentions with Gab when he first got here but he's made it clear that he really loves her and will do what it takes to keep her in his life and happy."

Taylor nodded her agreement. "Not to mention that although I don't know Patrick that well but from what I am sensing from him, he doesn't love her, not really. However it isn't like he's after her money or her status either. I can't quite put my finger on it but it's not the normal dating thing going on out of love."

"Maybe it's lust," suggested Chucky, half joking. "I mean, it's not like Gabriella is unattractive or anything. I've always thought her stunning but that is just me. It could be anything really."

Silence fell over the carriage as they continued to watch the scenery of the coast of Copanvy pass them by in between breaks of watching the scene unfold up ahead, which got just a tad bit more intense as Gabriella rejoined Sharpay and Patrick up front to make sure they were going in the right direction while Ryan traded places with her to ride with Troy, teaching him some tips as well as they continued to all travel to the spot for the picnic.

After an hour or so of riding, they finally reached the open field that was one of Gabriella's favorite spots because of the open space and also the great view of the ocean that spread out directly in front of them and down below where the side of the cliff met the raging ocean. Gabriella smiled at Patrick as he rushed to her side to help her dismount after he got off his own horse. She bit her lip a little nervously as she felt those familiar sparks between them as Patrick allowed her body to slide down against his, brown eyes meeting brown eyes as they stared at each other a bit longer than necessary while Patrick kept his hands on her waist even after her feet touched the ground.

"Thank you, that was very sweet of you," she murmured, leaning up and kissing him on the cheek.

Patrick grinned back at her. "Anytime my fair Princess."

"Excuse me, I know she's a princess and all but can someone help me down?" interrupted Sharpay, huffing at not having any assistance herself in dismounting from her horse nearby.

Patrick chuckled as he reluctantly let go of Gabriella and went to help out her friend, making sure to keep space in between their bodies as Sharpay gratefully took his assistance. Gabriella meanwhile turned her attention on Ryan and Troy as Ryan was trying to coach Troy on how to successfully get off the horse he was riding. Although she knew it was bad of her, Gabriella couldn't help but giggle a little as Troy made it safely to the ground only to be wacked in the face by the tail of Ryan's horse as it swung back and forth. Troy heard the familiar giggle and looked up at her, rolling his eyes as he saw that the slap in the face by a horse's tail was at least amusing to someone.

"Glad you got a kick out of that Brie, really," he called out dryly as she slowly came closer to him. "A little compassion would be nice here."

"Aww, Wildcat, you did so good all the way here too up until then. At least it was just a tail slap in the face and not Sharpay's claws right?" joked Gabriella. "Really though, you did a lot better than I thought you would."

"Thanks, I think," he got out before finding himself actually smiling when she placed a quick kiss on his cheek before hurrying off to greet the others in the carriage as it finally pulled to a stop.

Chad and Chucky were the first ones out, helping Tessa and Taylor both out while letting Chris jump down himself. Chris and Chucky took the two large picnic baskets out of the carriage as Gabriella, Taylor, and Tessa brought out the blankets and spread them on the ground close enough to the edge of the cliff to enjoy the view. Meanwhile, Chad meandered over to where Troy was, tying up his horse and Gabriella's up to a nearby tree, following Ryan's lead on how to properly do it.

"Dude, did you really just get smacked in the face by a horse's tail?" asked Chad, still laughing at having seen that.

"Yeah, and it stung, but Brie's kiss made it all better," said Troy, knowing that would gross Chad out, as innocent as it was.

Troy was rewarded with a scrunching of Chad's face before he rolled his eyes at his best friend. "Seriously? You are so sickly sweet still about her!"

Ryan laughed at this. "And you expected this to change how since high school?"

Chad shrugged his shoulders. "Guess I thought adult Troy would be more slick about her is all. After all, he has played the field quite a bit since high school where he really only dated two other girls besides Alicia and Gabriella seriously."

Troy felt an involuntary shudder go through his body at the mention of one of his ex's name. "Honestly, do you have to bring Alicia up? I still have random nightmares of losing Brie at her hands, not to mention the jerk Riley too."

"Hey, that's totally understandable Troy," replied Ryan, placing a comforting hand on Troy's shoulder. "That was a hell of a lot to go through as a teenager, especially within one year even."

"Alicia is supposedly out of the mental institution now, stuck seeing a psychiatrist for the next few years I heard. Chucky said he ran into her sister, Sammy, the other day and she told him about it. I guess she and Riley's older brother Tom got married recently but don't really keep in touch too much with their younger siblings. I don't blame them for a second," relayed Chad.

"Riley still is in prison right? No loose nut job on the street?" asked Ryan.

Chad shook his head. "I think Paul and the security team would have been informed about it before it even hit the news if he got let out of there early. Anyway, back to Troy and his wooing skills. Man, they have improved. You won over Celeste that way too."

"I think you should stop while you're ahead man," remarked Troy as he felt his mood dampen a bit as he thought of his ex-fiancé and began to wonder where she was at that moment. 'I may not be in love with her but I still do care. Has it been enough time to call yet as a friend? Probably not.'

After everything was set up among the blankets, everyone settled down to feast on the range of food the picnic baskets contained, from roast beef sandwiches to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, fruit to cookies, and every other finger food the palace cooks were able to put together for them that morning. Gabriella found herself in an awkward position between Troy and Patrick but was grateful that Chucky kept Troy talking most of time when she talked to Patrick while Patrick talked to Chris who sat next to him on the other side while Gabriella talked to Troy.

'This isn't too bad but I can still feel the high amounts of tension between the two. I can't keep doing this though, dating both. It's tearing me apart while I know it's hurting both of them in some way but how do I choose when it's so hard, my heart over my responsibilities?' she wondered as she found a quiet moment to herself, breathing in the fresh air and letting it out slowly, trying to relax the stress from her body. Gabriella felt eyes on her and looked up to see Tessa, Sharpay, and Taylor all looking back at her. "What?" she mouthed.

All three women shook their heads but Taylor at least made a little sign with her hands, that of a triangle. Gabriella rolled her eyes as she immediately caught her meaning. 'See, this is bad when even they can see it all and feel it. It still feels so surreal to have Troy here, for good, to give us another true shot that we were robbed of years ago but I still also feel this attraction with Patrick and he's the one that I should choose for the sake of my family and the country, right?'

"So Troy, are you excited about your first pre-season scrimmage next week? I can't wait to sit courtside and see you play. Ella has told me about how wonderful you are on the court," said Chris as he wrapped an arm around Tessa. "She's not much of a liar so that must be the truth."

Troy blushed at this and gave Gabriella a small smile for the compliment before he turned his blue eyes back on Chris. "I do all right. There are guys on my team though that are superb. I think we have a great shot as a team of winning the championship this year."

Chad scoffed at Troy's modesty. "Dude, don't let Bolton fool you. He's awesome on the courts and I should know since I played with him through most of our lives until I got seriously injured. Troy's not only a strategic thinker while playing but he's also speedy. I've never seen someone work the court like he does."

"He didn't used to be so fast though," added Chucky with a laugh. "I think all that running from sorority houses when the house mother would find him in one of their rooms made him that much faster running for his life."

"CHUCKY!" protested Troy, feeling the blush deepen on his face as he carefully glanced over at Gabriella to see her expression.

She surprised him by having a small smile on her lips as she arched an eyebrow at this revelation. "Running for your life from sorority house mothers? Do I want to know what other trouble you got yourself into in college?"

"Well, there was this one time," started Chad before he stopped talking as he got pelted in the middle of his forehead with a melon ball. "Man, that was perfectly good melon ball too!"

Troy rolled his eyes. "I had to get you to shut up somehow and you're too far away to smack."

Taylor laughed as Chad continued to pout as she wiped his forehead for him, taking away the stickiness left behind from the melon ball where it made contact. "Oh, it's not that bad and there's plenty more of the fruit salad for you to eat Chad."

"And listen to that sympathy," teased Ryan, chuckling. "I'm glad some things never change."

Tessa shook her head as Chad gave Taylor a silly grin just because he felt like it when he looked at her. "I don't think most of us have though if you really think about it. We're all pretty much the same personality wise. Troy is still the sports hotshot, you Chad are still the goofball, Chucky is the wise guy, Taylor is the smartie pants, I'm still the sarcastic one, and Ryan still is fashionable. The only one that really has changed is Gabriella becoming a codified princess while Sharpay just wishes and acts like she was one."

"Hey!" protested Sharpay with a laugh, throwing a grape at Tessa. "I'm my daddy's princess and that's all that matters."

"Besides, I don't think she'd deal with all the pressures that Gabriella handles with grace nearly half as well," commented Ryan, ducking quickly as a melon ball flew his way. "Oh come on sis, you know it's true."

"What type of stress and responsibilities could Gabriella really have? She's not next in throne yet anyway," replied Sharpay.

Gabriella froze mid-bite at this turn of events, realizing that her friends were unknowingly crossing some pretty fresh and serious ground as far as she was concerned. She felt coldness on her face and knew then that she had probably paled considerably, especially seeing the worried look on Chris's face. 'He must realize that I'm thinking about this arranged marriage that's hanging over my head,' she thought as she looked over and also saw Patrick gazing back at her, his face more with a curious look. 'Patrick is probably wondering if they know and what I'm going to do about this if I haven't. God, maybe I should just come clean, tell them all now.'

Meanwhile, Patrick was watching the mixed emotions cross Gabriella's face as she continued to ponder the situation she was in, unaware that her friends had already moved onto another topic of conversation, back to Troy and his future with the Knights. After years of being schooled on how to behave in public in order to not disgrace his family, Patrick was able to control the looks of jealousy from showing on the surface but it didn't stop him from feeling it. 'Well, now that I know for sure he's contracted to play with the Knights, I know for sure that Troy is here to stay. I wonder though how he would feel if he knew that Gabriella has a responsibility to uphold in which he's not a part of. No, even I cannot be as low as to expose that to him if she doesn't want to. I can however prove my worth of her over him in another way…'

Troy had just finished telling his friends about how awful he felt about trying on his Knights jersey for the first time as it reminded him of West High all those years ago when he heard Patrick clear his throat. He turned his head and saw Patrick curiously looking back at him. "What's up Patrick?"

Patrick returned his look, careful not to look in Gabriella's direction. "I was just thinking, since we all know you are fast on the ground, especially on the basketball courts, that we could test your speed in another form, say riding a horse."

"Patrick, Troy just learned how to ride today!" exclaimed Gabriella, not getting a good feeling in her stomach about this idea. "He is in no way ready to race you especially because I know you and how you've basically grown up riding horses. That's totally an unfair advantage."

After a few moments, Patrick reluctantly nodded his head in agreement. "Sorry Ella, I didn't think of that. That would be an unfair advantage, I'm sorry I suggested it," he murmured, kissing the back of her hand that he had picked up off the blanket as he finally looked her back in her eyes with an apologetic look on his face. "I just thought it could liven up our little outing is all but you are very right. I wasn't thinking."

Troy felt his eyes narrow on the image of Patrick's lips on Gabriella's hand and felt not only envy but a bit of anger flow into his bloodstream. His heart began to speed up as Troy then saw the connection the two had and how slick Patrick really was. 'Oh, he knows how to play this game all right but this is one game I intend on not losing, even if it has to go into overtime…'

"I take you up on your challenge Patrick," said Troy, unable to stop the passion driven words from tumbling out of his mouth. "Shall we do this now?"

Patrick tore his gaze from Gabriella and looked back at Troy, intrigued by the courage the other man just showed. "Troy, it's okay, it was a stupid suggestion. Maybe another time when you are more seasoned on riding a horse."

"No, I want to do this. Come on Diaz, let's do this now. We'll see if beginner's luck is on my side or if time and skill is on yours," replied Troy as he got up off the blanket.

Gabriella scrambled up to her feet and placed her hands on Troy's shoulders, making him look at her. "Troy, please, think this over. You don't need to do this, honestly. No one will think less of you if you don't. This is just some stupid macho challenge that you don't need to take on. You have nothing to prove."

Troy gazed over Gabriella's dark head and connected with the intense brown ones a few feet away. "No, I have everything to prove. I'll be fine, don't worry Brie."

He quickly kissed her forehead before stepping around her and meeting Patrick as they walked to their separate horses, discussing the route in which they would take around the field and the number of times they would have to complete it. Basically, Patrick marked out the perimeter of the open field, suggesting it be completed four times to declare the winner. Without hesitation, Troy agreed and got back onto the saddle after untying his horse.

Ryan, sensing Gabriella's unease along with everyone else's, got up and ran over to Troy before anything could start. He quickly gave Troy as many tips as he could as to how to make his horse gallop faster but still keep control, reminding Troy of what to do to make the horse stop or go and how to indicate speed. When Ryan was satisfied he shared as much helpful knowledge as he could, he took a step back and assumed the role as judge by counting down from ten to one before waving his arm, signaling the start of the race.

All eyes were on the two men, who instantly set off racing, most impressed with Troy's ability to keep pace with Patrick although Gabriella knew that Patrick was pacing himself for Troy at the moment. 'We've ridden together and I've seen Patrick ride much faster than that.'

Chris glanced over and saw Gabriella silently nibbling on her lower lip out of nervousness as her eyes never left the two riders. He walked over to her and wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders, pulling her body close to his as Chucky and Chad both went over to stand with Ryan to help judge and cheer Troy on. "He's going to be okay Ella, honest. They are racing but it's not at any dangerous speed," stated Chris, kissing the top of Gabriella's head. "Don't worry, everything is going to be okay and we can all laugh at this in a year."

Gabriella shook her head, barely registering Chris's presence around her. "No, I had a bad feeling about this and I should have stopped it for good instead of letting this go on."

Tessa, Taylor, and Sharpay also got up from the blankets and stood with their best friend, who was now wringing her hands from her worry as Troy and Patrick completed the second lap fairly close to each other, Patrick letting Troy have a bit of a lead.

"Gab, he's doing fine. Troy is even leading and Patrick looks sturdy in his saddle. Both will get this macho act over with and we can call it a day," assured Tessa, hoping that she was right in the end.

"They are just trying to compete for your love you know," Sharpay pointed out rather bluntly. "They've been sizing each other up since the moment they met, even before they met officially after your performance, and this is just an outlet."

"Yeah but what if this outlet proves deadly?" asked Gabriella, gasping as she saw Troy almost fall out of the saddle only to gain control again at the last second. "God, I can't believe these two! This is so ridiculous, they don't have to do this!"

Taylor sadly shook her head. "But they do because they're guys and this is how they handle things. You know all the stories and memories of Chad, Chucky, Troy, Jason, Zeke, and Ryan fighting things out on the basketball court or via video games as well as using those methods to just have fun with each other. They're all just that competitive."

"But why was Troy so stubborn? He's barely hanging on as it is and I know Patrick is holding back from riding as fast as he really can. Is he trying to encourage or goad Troy?" wondered Gabriella as she now saw Patrick advance ahead of Troy, picking up some speed, which of course encouraged Troy to push his horse into galloping even faster.

Everyone watched as the two men raced to finish their final lap, Patrick now firmly in the lead with several yards separating him from Troy, who was still desperately trying to catch up. It was no use though as Patrick easily passed where Ryan, Chad, and Chucky stood, which served as the finish line, slowing his horse down into a slow canter before he turned around to watch Troy just finish, successfully slowing down his horse as well. Patrick grinned as he saw the relieved look on Troy's face and rode over so that they were side by side on their horses. He extended his hand out to Troy and said, "Great effort out there Troy. If I didn't know better, I would have thought that you've ridden before."

Troy eyed Patrick, trying to determine if Patrick was being sincere or not, and decided to go with the flow and shook his hand in return. "Well, I think if you had gone your full speed, I would have been left in the dust so I don't know how well I really and truly did. You are an excellent rider Patrick."

"Thank you," replied Patrick with a smile. "Maybe after some more time here in Copanvy and experience riding we can have a rematch?"

"Sure," agreed Troy, still feeling uneasy with Patrick.

Patrick nodded his head and dismounted, immediately tying up his horse again next to Gabriella's as he faced Gabriella and her friends approaching. He honestly didn't know what to expect as he knew he pulled a fast one in suggesting the race and following through with it but was relieved when Gabriella threw her arms around him and hugged him. Patrick's heart dropped a little though as he realized why he was getting such an embrace.

"Thank you for taking it easy on Troy in the race. It helped me feel better that you weren't both galloping at your normal neck breaking speed that you do when you race with your friends," she whispered in his ear, before giving him a kiss on the cheek and pulling away.

Troy watched Gabriella instantly approach Patrick and felt the blood rushing through his veins again with hints of jealousy and dislike for Patrick once again mingling in. Just like before, Troy felt his heart speed up as he literally could hear each of the distinct but quick beats of his heart as Gabriella whispered something to Patrick before kissing his cheek. Anger began building up as Troy began to think about how he actually was humiliated by Patrick and was manipulated into some ways into looking to be the loser in this situation, not only in finishing last but also clearly being pitied by Patrick, so much that Patrick slowed down his pace for him.

Unbeknownst to Troy, his hands gripped the reigns still in his hands tight as he focused on this train of thought while his whole body tensed. The horse he was riding began to move a little as a result and eventually reared up onto his hind legs as Troy unconsciously tightened his hold on the reigns so much that he pulled back on them, hard, causing his horse to react that way. Troy didn't even realize what hit him until he landed on the ground, flat on his back, feeling the air pushed right out of him on the impact before he closed his eyes and blacked out.

Gabriella watched in horror as she stepped back from Patrick as she began to see the nervous movements of Troy's horse before he threw Troy out of his saddle and onto the ground with a loud thump. She closed her eyes briefly before she immediately opened them again to run over to where he was currently laying, eyes closed. "Troy! Oh my God Troy, please be okay," she begged as she fell to the ground beside him. Gabriella heard the horse protest as Ryan and Patrick both worked to calm him down but could only focus on Troy, who was unresponsive to her touch. Hearing his shallow breath was enough for her to know that he was still alive but Gabriella knew that being thrown from a horse could mean so many things from internal bleeding to broken bones and everything else in between.

"Tessa, can you call Paul for me please? He's at the ranch. Tell him we need to get Troy to the hospital immediately," cried out Gabriella as she saw Taylor kneel down on the other side of Troy, starting to check his vitals and for anything out of place she could check without moving him, putting her medical knowledge so far to use.

After some time had passed and Troy had made no signs of stirring, Gabriella let the first tear that had threatened to fall since she saw the horse begin to throw Troy from its back, not caring enough to wipe it away as it was quickly joined by others. "Please Troy, please be okay. You can't leave me now, please Wildcat, don't leave me. I need you. I love you," she whispered to him, Taylor being the only one around to hear her as Gabriella leaned the side of her face against the palm of his hand she was holding, praying for a miracle.

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