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On Wednesday of the following week, the gang found themselves congregating around a common table they had all gotten used to in East High's cafeteria minus Tessa, who was definitely missing them while she was in the halls of West High at that moment. Paul and Curtis were also sitting amongst the teenagers. Over the past week and a half, Gabriella's prediction of everyone ending up getting along great came true as the now group of friends shared in some laughter and jokes at the same lunch table that they had started to share the middle of last week.
Troy grinned over at her and chuckled a little to himself. 'She really is adorable with that deep in thought look she has,' thought Troy, happy to see that his girlfriend not only returned to school last week but seemed to have also returned to her old self mostly. There had been a few times in the past week that she negatively reacted to his touch at first before realizing who he was and relaxed in his hold. Those moments were still hard for Troy to deal with but he knew they were nothing compared to what she was going through.
"You know, you are the reason why we are all sitting here right?" murmured Troy, interrupting Gabriella's thoughts as he slipped his right arm around her waist, curling his hand to hold her waist while he took a bite out of his sandwich with his left hand. "You are pretty influential for a self-proclaimed little girl."
"And you are trying to kiss up why?" questioned Gabriella, turning her head towards him and raising an eyebrow. "Did you do something that you're feeling guilty about or something?"
Troy gave her a playful hurt look. "Me? Misbehave? Never!"
Gabriella laughed a little. "I would only believe that if Chad wasn't with you most of your waking moments. I've learned you two get into quite a bit if given the opportunity."
"Maybe," admitted Troy. "I do mean it though, I don't think I'd have ever thought back in freshman year or earlier even that I would be sitting at a lunch table with my good friends on the team and people from the honors track and thespians, as they like to be called, who are also people I would consider as friends. Not to mention, I have a gorgeous girlfriend who is a former West Knight and who has a secret that very well raises her above my reach."
"And yet here I am," teased Gabriella, kissing Troy on the nose briefly before feeding him some of her string cheese. "You make me sound so wonderful Troy. If only that was all the truth."
Troy rolled his eyes and pulled a face. "You and your self image issues, seriously! Would I be with you if you were anything less than perfectly wonderful?"
"Umm, my hope is yes," returned Gabriella, a bit more serious. "Wouldn't you? I mean, I'm flawed now as I sit here today."
"And you figure that how?" prompted Troy, turning around in his seat and facing his body towards hers, giving her his full attention, not even biting into his sandwich now.
Gabriella thought for a moment and then said, "Well, there's how I keep obsessing over the past instead of living for the now, how paranoid I am, what a neat freak I can be, and I am highly emotional. There's also how I bite my lip when I get nervous or think, how I get jealous of girls who flirt with you in such bold manners, and how I still find myself heads over heels in love with you for sticking through all this mess with me, faltering not once where I would have expected you to be long gone by now."
"Ouch," responded Troy, putting a hand over his heart and comically wincing in pain. "Straight through the heart there much. You think that little of me?"
Gabriella shrugged her shoulders. "You are a young man Troy who has plenty of girls to choose from. You're the popular guy in the school and I mean we're both young. Sometimes I do wonder how I got so lucky to have you, to have someone who seems to understand me better than I do myself sometimes."
Troy brushed back some of her hair, smiling as he thought about this more. "See, this is what makes you so perfectly wonderful. You can sit there and name all your supposed flaws, including loving me and being jealous at times, and then tell me such heartfelt things like you just did. You are wonderfully expressive Brie and I love you for that."
"Hello! People try to eat here!" complained Chad before he got smacked by Taylor, who was enjoying the little dialogue between the couple who had just been staring in that mesmerizing manner that would make any girl in the cafeteria sigh out of the sweetness of it.
"You are such a moron sometimes!" exclaimed Taylor, giving Chad a disapproving look for interrupting Troy and Gabriella's special moment. "Just because they are romantically involved does not give you an excuse to be all big mouth and interrupt it for the fun of it."
Chad rubbed the back of his head. "But it's fun," protested Chad, earning chuckles from Jason and Zeke. "See, they agree!"
Sharpay this time smacked both Jason's and Zeke's arms as they were sitting on either side of her. "Idiotic morons is more like it Tay!"
Ryan smirked at this, glad he was sitting across the table from his twin and next to Kelsi and Troy. "Stings like a mother huh guys? Who do you think she practices that on?"
Both Jason and Zeke were rubbing their arms. "I think I officially feel bad for you Ryan," murmured Zeke. "Wait until I tell Tessa you are beating me up at school Sharpay!"
Sharpay rolled her eyes. "Right, like she's really going to believe I could beat you up. Besides, I'll be seeing her before you anyway!"
"Who says?" returned Zeke.
"Me," replied Gabriella.
"Huh?" asked Jason. "Are you having a party and not inviting us or something?"
Gabriella shook her head. "No, not really. Just a girls' night in to study."
Chad looked around at the table and laughed. "Right, a girls' night to 'study.' Why do I not believe that's all you are going to be doing? And who is going?"
"Oh, just Gabriella as host, me, Kelsi, Martha, Sharpay, Tessa, and maybe Beth and Sarah if they are free," explained Taylor. "What's the matter Danforth? Scared?"
"Of a bunch of girls getting together to 'study', which actually means gossip? YES!" exclaimed Chad. "Do you understand how much guys dread this type of night?"
"Why exactly would that be?" asked Kelsi, curious as to what the commotion was about, looking up from her composition notebook.
"Because we all know that you girls just pretend to study to get away from us guys to gossip about us," stated Jason. "Like who is the cutest and what not."
"To be fair, I'm sure you also talk about who has better skin, what the latest rumors are about other girls, and maybe a little bit about school work too but the big topic of any girls' night has to be guys," stated Ryan. "Trust me, I've heard my sister's slumber parties for years through our shared wall."
"RYAN EVANS!" screamed Sharpay, turning a bit red in the face. "You never told me you could hear us!"
"Well why would I? I learned some of the best stuff I've ever heard that way," returned Ryan with a grin.
"More reason why we're glad Gabriella is an only child," stated Martha, laughing at Sharpay, who looked ready to leap over the table at her brother.
"You are such a little creep!" yelled Sharpay, loud enough to get the attention of students at other nearby tables. "I'm so going to get you for that Ryan!"
Ryan chuckled. "I'd like to see you try Drama Queen!"
"Siblings, back in your corners!" joked Chad. "Man, I don't know Ryan how you've lived so long."
"Because he deserves a real solid beating right?" stated Sharpay, still upset her brother had heard things over the years when she thought he couldn't.
Chad shook his head. "No, because you seem to want to kill him every chance you get but then you can be so sisterly to him the next moment. It's like a roller coaster."
"Hey, Chad said it, not me!" defended Ryan as Sharpay started to glare at him again.
Sharpay nodded. "He did but I can't hurt him like I can hurt you. Blood siblings, remember?"
"Guess sometimes, as much as things change, some never do," commented Kelsi before she turned back to her composition book, shutting out the continued arguments of the twins amongst the chatter of the rest of the group.
It was Gabriella who started hearing the whispers around the cafeteria first, seeing Ryan had started listening in on them too shortly after.
"Can you believe it? They are all actually… friendly."
"I thought it was a joke, I thought the other jocks put them up to it."
"Why would they be interested in those girls? Cheerleaders are so much better."
"I can't believe they sank so low to hang out with brain dead basketball players."
"Are they insane to be hanging out with the drama kids? That DQ over there should be ripping them into pieces."
"I heard one of them is dating a West girl."
"No, the West girl is now the East girl starting all this humiliation. How could she think she could make this happen? It defies all high school social rules."
"You expect her to know? She's a little miss nobody who just got lucky landing the star basketball player."
"Lucky is key. I heard she did the whole West team and transferred to start fresh with a new team."
"Can you believe the scholastic decathlon captain is flirting with the jock? Talk about opposites attract!"
"How can that music girl be friends with such a weird crowd?"
"You mean how can the popular boys be friends with such a quiet girl?"
"And that smart girl who also dances? Talk about total confusion!"
"Who do they think they are to be all friends like that? It's all that new girl's fault I bet. Everything was fine before she came."
"I agree. East High was such the perfect little high school until Gabriella Montez arrived," agreed Alicia, smiling maliciously in Gabriella's direction, being one of the voices of many Gabriella heard from around the cafeteria.
Ryan looked over at his friend and caught her gaze. "Don't worry about them, they're idiots," assured Ryan. "I'm glad you came. We are certainly much better and not worse for it."
Troy had also heard some of the murmurs and pulled Gabriella into his arms. "Ryan is right babe, they're just a bunch of immature high school kids. What would you expect at a place like this? Don't worry about them."
Gabriella nibbled on her corner lip. "Could you imagine what they would do if they knew who I really was?" whispered Gabriella, low enough so only Troy could hear her while she rested her head on his shoulder.
"You mean what you are, not who you are," reminded Troy. "Sure they'd freak but you know what? You know who your friends are, you know who loves you. That's what matters the most, right? Remember, 'no one can make you feel inferior without your consent'."
She smiled, having her worry and stress from the moment wash away at his words. "You really do make me feel so much better, all the time, without me having to say a word even at times."
They shared a sweet little kiss before turning back to their lunches, knowing the usual groans and fake gags would come soon if they didn't break it up. 'Maybe we did decide a few weeks ago not to be the PDA couple but it's just too hard sometimes,' thought Troy with a grin on his face as he watched Gabriella take a dainty bite out of her sandwich, chuckling at how very well-mannered she was in contrast with Chad, two seats down, who was devouring his second sandwich as if it would run away. "Dude, don't worry man, I don't think the sandwich is going to disappear if you don't eat it right away."
Chad gave him a confused look so Troy just waved him off, chuckling again before focusing on eating his own lunch, holding Gabriella's hand in his under the table at the same time.
"HOW DO YOU HAVE THIS?" demanded Sharpay, coming out of Gabriella's walk-in closet, Tessa close on her heels. "Gabriella Montez, I demand to know how you have this exclusive Versace dress you haven't ever worn?"
Gabriella glanced up from her notebook where she was studying her notes for the AP English exam next Tuesday. "Sharpay, I'm studying here. As you should be too unless you want to prove the guys right."
"I could care less about the guys. Tell me, how do you have this plus other outfits I see in your closet that I couldn't even get my hands on?" persisted Sharpay.
Tessa gave Gabriella an apologetic look over Sharpay's shoulder. "Shar, it's clear Gabriella is trying to study," argued Tessa, trying to get her best friend out of this. "Let's just look at the other clothes, all right?"
"No, I want an answer. How?" pushed Sharpay, a determined look on her face.
Gabriella sighed, putting down her pencil while Taylor, Kelsi, and Martha gave her their attention as well from where they were studying. "Sharpay, if you must know, my dad knows someone who is close to…"
"SHUT UP! NO WAY!" exclaimed Sharpay. "That's it, you are so hooking me up on these exclusive deals! All right, now that demand has been issued, Tessa let's look in that closet and see what other goodies we can find. Oh, and Gabriella? I'm borrowing this."
"Fine," returned Gabriella, inwardly relieved she got off that easy. She glanced over at Taylor, who gave her a knowing smile before they both returned their attention to the books and notebooks in front of each of them. Gabriella focused on reading the notes she took in class from last week but could hear the little squeals from both Sharpay and Tessa as they discovered more in her closet. 'As long as they don't go into the boxes, I'll be okay. Tessa knows to not sniff around too deep in there.'
After another hour of letting the four girls study uninterrupted, Sharpay and Tessa both jumped on the bed where Gabriella and Taylor were laying down studying. "Break time!" yelled Tessa. "Come on, I come all the way here and all you guys are really going to do is study?"
"Umm, yeah, that's why it's called a study time," replied Taylor.
"Duh but the words 'girls' night' were also mentioned," responded Sharpay.
Gabriella looked at the blonde and brunette and started giggling. "What?" demanded Tessa.
"I'm just realizing how very much alike you two actually are. It's quite hysterical actually," explained Gabriella between giggles. "Especially in your case Tessa."
"What? You've always known I love going through your closet," protested Tessa, trying to give Gabriella an intimidating look to quiet her down.
Taylor, who was also laughing, stepped in. "Right but I don't think we've ever seen you get so super excited and saying 'fabulous' like Miss Pink over here."
"Hey!" exclaimed Sharpay. "There is nothing wrong with pink or the word fabulous. In fact, they are… fabulous!"
Kelsi rolled her eyes. "Honestly, this is the behavior the guys are expecting girls. Not studying and discussing silly things like clothes."
"Oh you did not say clothes are silly Kelsi!" said Sharpay in disbelief. "You just don't know what you are missing."
"Sharpay, it's fabric sewn together to cover your naked form so you don't get laughed at in the halls. Not the cure for some terrible disease," stated Martha, going back to her notebook.
Sharpay huffed in frustration. "You girls are clearly deprived if you don't know how important fashion really is. I bet you haven't even heard of Fashion Week let alone gone."
"You got us there Sharpay," deadpanned Taylor.
"Come on, we have to do something besides watch you study," pleaded Tessa. "Please Gaby?"
Gabriella sighed. "All right, like what? Not too long, I really do need to study for this test."
"Gaby, when is that test?" questioned Tessa, knowing her studying habits of her best friend too well.
"Next week," returned Gabriella in a quiet voice.
"Exactly! Now, come on, let's see if there's anything on this big TV of yours," said Tessa, grabbing the remote from the nightstand next to the bed and turning it on. She flipped the channels and found some of the latest music videos, which caught Martha's attention as well. Sharpay settled back down on the bed and watched with them for a little while before she started texting someone.
"Who are you texting Shar?" asked Gabriella, curious as to what her friend was doing.
"Oh, just my boyfriend. Did I tell you he's a fourth? Michael Thomas Williams the fourth! How dignified sounding is that?" returned Sharpay, a huge grin on her face. "He is so perfect for me."
"The fourth? Sounds like it just by that, really," murmured Taylor before watching Sharpay get back to texting.
There was a commercial break so Tessa changed the channel to see what else was on and stopped as she saw the headline on the news channel at the bottom of the screen, "Mystery Federal Case in New Mexico." Tessa glanced over to Gabriella, who nodded her head for Tessa to keep the channel there as the reporter began speaking again.
"Yes, that's right, I'm standing out here in front of the United States New Mexico district, tenth circuit court house where the case against a teenage boy named Riley Sutton will start a week from Monday. The mystery here is why a teenage boy is being tried as an adult for first degree sexual assault and two additional counts of aggravated assault on a federal level. Not much has been disclosed to the public about the case as minors are involved but it is known that Riley Sutton was a junior who attended West High in Albuquerque, New Mexico up until a few months ago when he was arrested and had his bail set higher than normal for his list of supposed offenses. Rumors have been circulating in Albuquerque as to what actually happened and who is involved but as I am a factual reporter, I will not be airing those interviews. The truth will come out in another week and a half when the first day of the trial begins and we see more of this story revealed. Until then, I'm Tracy White reporting from New Mexico," concluded the reporter before the news station went to another story.
Gabriella stared at the television, a bit in shock at the sudden wakeup call that just happened to remind her that life was not as simple as it used to be. 'The trial, how did I forget it was so close, even for a second?'
"Gab, you okay?" asked Taylor, concerned with how pale her best friend had gotten. "It's just a stupid news story."
"Yeah, the first of millions," threw in Sharpay, getting a hard glare from both Tessa and Taylor. "What? It's so true!"
"Not helping," muttered Tessa. "Gaby, come on girl, you knew this was coming. Your dad has talked about it in front of us."
Gabriella blinked a few times before nodding her head. "I know but I guess somewhere in my head I convinced myself it wasn't that big of a deal and that it wasn't any time soon but it is, a week and a half away roughly if that reporter is right."
"Gabriella, why is it a federal case?" asked Kelsi, picking up on the fact that Riley's assault before summer shouldn't be elevated that high on its own.
"I'm sorry, I can't discuss it," said Gabriella, grateful that she was telling the truth this time. "I was told not to speak about the specifics of the case with anyone who isn't involved."
"But we know what happened," countered Martha. "I mean, from what little you've said."
Gabriella nodded her head. "I know, and I want to tell you but right now is not the right time. I don't want to jeopardize anything and have Riley let go for me blabbing my mouth. I'm sorry."
Kelsi gave Gabriella a reassuring smile. "If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't want to give Riley a free ticket to roam the streets either so I don't blame you one bit. Just know we are here okay?"
"Thanks," murmured Gabriella as she heard a familiar ringtone go off.
Tessa knew that ringtone's assigned owner and rolled her eyes as she grabbed it. "Bolton, what are you doing calling and interrupting girls' night?" demanded Tessa, grinning at Gabriella as she listened to Troy.
"Hello to you too Tessa. Nice to hear your voice again. I just wanted to check on Brie, make sure she was all right," explained Troy.
"Don't you think we can handle it here? I mean, there are five of us caring girls here for her in the same room as her. What are you going to do several miles away?" challenged Tessa.
"I'm actually just down the street," revealed Troy. "If you say she's fine though, I'll turn around and leave. I just wanted to be here in case she needed me."
"Seriously Troy, you need to stop being this sweet of a boyfriend or I will get jealous," said Tessa. "Here's your little girlfriend."
Gabriella gladly took the phone from Tessa and got up off the bed to walk over to the little couch in the retreat area of her bedroom. "Hi," greeted Gabriella, a bit of shyness in her voice.
"Hey Brie," returned Troy. "Tessa is still Tessa huh? Glad that hasn't changed."
"And you expected it to since the last time you talked to her because?" responded Gabriella, laughing a little.
"Well I'm glad you are able to laugh. I just wanted to call and make sure you were okay. The local news station had a blurb about the case being federal and starting a week from Monday. I wanted to make sure you were all right," explained Troy. "I mean, you've been doing great and all but I didn't know if this would trigger something somehow."
"Thanks Troy for being ever so sweet but I promise, I'm doing fine," assured Gabriella, getting up from the couch and walking in front of her windows, looking up into the night sky. "It's just a reality check right? Things are not normal, I'm not normal, as much as I wish I was. Sometimes I wake up wondering what it would be like if I didn't have this highly complicated life, if I could just be me and take away everything that's happened. What would it be like? Would I be happier or would it somehow sadly be worse?"
She heard Troy sigh before he said, "You really don't wish everything in the past was different do you? I am part of your past Brie and no matter what, my wish is that you never want to strike that part of your life out."
"No, I wouldn't," answered Gabriella softly. "Wildcat, you are the best thing about my past, through and through. I don't think I would have made it this far without you."
"Yes you would have because you'd still be the strong young woman you are today. Anyway, if you're all right, I'll head home," replied Troy. "I left Chad and Jason playing a video game at my house to drive over in case you needed me."
"Wait, you're here?" questioned Gabriella. "Where are you?"
Troy chuckled. "Right in front of you. Do you see off in the distance, beyond the iron fence a silhouette of a truck? That's me babe."
"Well if you're here, why don't you come in?" returned Gabriella, smiling at the fact that Troy was so dedicated to her and their love that he left behind his best friends at his house to be there for her.
"Girls' night. Let's leave it at that," stated Troy, chuckling as he spoke. "I've seen a mini session and I really don't want to be in the same room as what is going on in there when Sharpay and Tessa BOTH are in the mix. I'd end up with makeup and a dress on in no time."
Gabriella laughed at the image Troy just described. "You do know that we aren't eight right and this isn't a sleepover?"
"Well, yeah, but I also know that you are seventeen and still prone to mischief. I'll talk to you tomorrow at school all right? I love you Brie," said Troy, his voice getting huskier as he admitted his feelings.
"I love you too Troy and thank you, for being there for me, even when you aren't here," replied Gabriella, blowing him a kiss even though she couldn't tell if he really saw her from that distance.
She hung up the phone and turned around to see five faces all looking at her with curious looks on their faces. "What?" asked Gabriella, feeling the blush on her cheeks warm her face.
"Nothing," they all chimed in before dissolving into fits of giggles and laughter. While Gabriella had been talking to Troy, all five friends decided that they needed to keep Gabriella's mind occupied and off the upcoming trial and they intended to do that with a real girls' night, even if it was for only another hour or so. As soon as Gabriella sat back down on her bed, there were laughter, giggles, and definitely girl talk in the air, effectively keeping Gabriella's earlier worries and stress at bay, allowing her at least one more night of being happy before she had to face whatever came her way the next morning.