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The next morning, Gabriella walked into East High with Troy's hand firmly in hers, freezing at the entrance as the noise in the hall instantly quieted as kids became aware that she was now among them. Gabriella looked around and saw every single student in the hall was openly staring at her like she had a second head. "Umm Troy, can we maybe run to my locker or something?"
"Why?" asked Troy, greeting Chad and Taylor, who had just come through the doors themselves.
"They're all staring," pointed out Gabriella, looking from the general student body to her boyfriend, not getting the usual comfort she did from staring into his loving blue eyes.
Troy looked around and saw that she was right. "Then why don't we give them something to stare at?"
"Like what?" got out Gabriella before Troy pulled her to him, passionately kissing Gabriella as he slowly dipped her back. After a little while, Troy ended the mini-make-out session with a peck on her cheek and then her neck before looking around the hall where half the students present erupted into applause, the loudest Sharpay, Ryan, and Kelsi who had witnessed the public display of affection from down the hall, and Chad and Taylor, well Taylor more than Chad.
After that, everyone went back to talking as they had before, leaving the friends to meet up in the middle of the hall before they started walking to their different lockers together. "Guess you showed them huh?" teased Sharpay, getting enjoyment from seeing the blush on both Troy's and Gabriella's face. "I couldn't have done that better myself."
"Thanks, that's my version of improvisation for you," replied Troy.
"Glad you learned something from freshman drama," returned Ryan with a chuckle.
"Well the good news is it looks like there's a real change going on here Gab," interjected Taylor as she walked down the hall holding Chad's hand and showing Gabriella it. "I think that Chad and I here are an example of the change you helped make happen."
Gabriella stopped in her tracks and looked at their intertwined hands. "Oh my God, did he go over to your house last night and ask you to be his girlfriend?"
Taylor nodded her head. "Yes, we're official," she replied with a smile.
Troy and Ryan chuckled, giving Chad a certain look. "Glad you listened to our advice man," said Troy, giving Chad a high five.
"Your advice?" questioned Taylor.
"More like a push in the right direction Taylor," stated Gabriella, not wanting Ryan or Troy to ruin Chad's actions with a teasing comment. "The boys were over last night with Chucky and then Ryan and Sharpay came and the topic did come up and Chad expressed a bit of a fear of losing the opportunity to make your relationship 'official'. I'm guessing he rushed over to your house after Chucky drove them back to their house."
Taylor looked over at Chad. "Is this true? Did you really mean it when you asked me out?"
Chad nodded his head. "I may have been a bit scared into doing it but I meant every word I stumbled over last night."
"Aww, Chad, that's so sweet!" squealed Taylor as she hugged him and gave him a peck on the cheek, pulling away suddenly as she remembered they were standing in the hallway.
"Another couple down," remarked Kelsi with a smile. "Well I have to run off to my locker, we don't have much time left. See everyone in homeroom?"
Everyone agreed before splitting off for their lockers to grab their things and then met again in homeroom to start a new day at East High.
Gabriella smiled at her boyfriend as she walked out of her last class before lunch and she saw him walking towards her. "Hey there Wildcat," greeted Gabriella.
"Hi babe," returned Troy. "Walk me to my locker and then I walk you to yours?"
"Sure," agreed Gabriella, taking his offered hand and walking through the halls to his locker. She leaned on the wall next to his and closed her eyes, focusing on a happy memory as she began to feel the stares and hear the whispers again. 'Guess this technique is good for more than just shutting out Riley.'
Troy gave her a worried look before he shut his locker door, his lunch in hand and his backpack back on his shoulder. "You okay?" he asked, also becoming aware of the gossip in the hall and how all of the attention was focused on Gabriella.
Gabriella nodded her head. "I'll be fine. My turn?"
"Sure," said Troy, this time wrapping his left arm around her waist as they walked through the halls to her locker. As they reached it, Gabriella froze on the spot, jerking Troy back in the process. "What's wrong?"
"That," answered Gabriella, seeing the words "slut princess" written on her locker in pink and black marker.
Troy let go of her as soon as he saw what had her upset and approached the locker, licking his fingers and running it over the words, frustrated that it just didn't come off. He looked at it closer and saw that whoever wrote it also etched it into the locker. 'Damn!' he thought before spinning around eyeing the crowd. "All right, who the fuck did this?"
The students in the hall just stared at him, some looking horrified by either his behavior or what they saw written on Gabriella's locker. When he didn't get an answer, he repeated himself. "Who the hell did this? Come on, be mature enough and admit your slander!"
"Mr. Bolton, what is the problem here?" asked Ms. Darbus as she approached an enraged Troy and a sad looking Gabriella.
"Some jerk did this," replied Troy, indicating the locker but not taking his eyes off the crowd, hoping someone would slip with an expression that revealed their involvement.
"Oh my," expressed Ms. Darbus. "Gabriella, let's get your things out that you need for the rest of the day dear and we'll go see Principal Matsui, all right?"
Gabriella sadly nodded her head and dialed her combination to see black rose petals had been slipped into her locker, causing an involuntary gasp that got Troy's attention.
Troy saw this and shook his head, becoming more furious at the unknown torturer. "Shh, it's okay Brie," comforted Troy, pushing his anger aside to be Gabriella's strength as he wrapped his arms around her waist and felt her tremble a little, grateful for once for Ms. Darbus and her not telling them to stop their affection at the moment. He spotted Gabriella's lunch and what she would need for the rest of the day and gently took Gabriella's bag from her and started to fill it, keeping her stuff from earlier in the bag. "We'll put the rest of your stuff in my locker, all right?"
Gabriella showed her understanding but continued to stare at the black petals and imaging in her head the words on the other side of her locker door. "Come on Miss Montez, let's get you out of here."
Troy closed Gabriella's locker after making sure Gabriella was turned away so she wouldn't have to look at the words again. They stopped by Troy's locker and put Gabriella's morning books and notebooks in, moving on to see Principal Matsui in his office, who was not really all that surprised.
"I knew there would be some immature backlash but not exactly this. My apologies Miss Montez, we'll make sure it gets cleaned up. Should I be calling you princess actually?" stated Principal Matsui.
Gabriella shook her head. "No, please don't. I don't really want to feel any more weird than I am now."
Paul showed up at that moment, knocking on the door before sticking his head in. He was still shadowing Gabriella but took less of a presence among her and her friends to give her some privacy but was there to witness the locker scene, grateful that Troy was there to take care of her. "Principal Matsui? I just checked and none of our security team saw who perpetrated this vandalism."
Principal Matsui sighed. "I was hoping someone did otherwise there will be no way for me to punish someone for this."
"No, no punishment is needed Principal Matsui, really. I just want it cleaned up," expressed Gabriella.
"Are you sure?" asked Principal Matsui.
"Yes and I promise my father will not come down on you for the lack of punishment," added Gabriella, knowing the principal was most likely worried about that. "Can we go to lunch now?"
"Are you sure you want to stay?" questioned Ms. Darbus. "I don't think it would be out of the question to excuse you from school after this morning."
Gabriella shook her head. "No, I need to stay. I missed the past two days and I can't bear to have people think they succeeded in scaring me off."
Troy agreed with her. "I'll make sure she's okay, promise."
The couple walked out of the office with Paul on their heels as they headed into the cafeteria where more whispers and outright gossip awaited them, increasing as they sat down at the gang's table, Troy's arm still securely around Gabriella's waist.
"Don't please," begged Gabriella as Gabriella saw all the sympathetic looks on the gang's faces, especially from Sharpay, Taylor, Kelsi, and Martha.
Everyone nodded and started making small talk, respecting Gabriella's wishes. The rest of lunch continued that way, Gabriella only smiling a few times including laughing at Jason and Zeke, who made a few jokes about each other and then Chad as he got involved in the argument. Troy made sure to walk her to her next period, never leaving her side until he had to let her go to her classroom. "See you at PE and then the ride home?"
Gabriella gave him a small smile in response. "Thank you," whispered Gabriella before she leaned up and kissed his cheek before ducking inside the classroom, leaving Troy with a small smile of his own face before he ran off to his own classroom.
Emma Collins stared at the young princess, the young woman in front of her and was inwardly amazed at how strong Gabriella was becoming after hearing about her day at East High. "So you spent the rest of your day focusing on your classes and using your happy place as needed?"
Gabriella confirmed this statement with a nod of her head. "I especially needed it in the girls' locker room. There was just so much gossip and the locker room amplifies everything. Of course it didn't surprise me to see Alicia glaring at me, seeming to also take joy out of my misery."
"Alicia… She's Troy's ex, right? The one you said showed up at that fraternity party before everything happened?" questioned Emma, writing some things down on her notepad.
"Yes," confirmed Gabriella.
"Do you think she did the locker writing?" pushed Emma, having her own suspicions about the other girl.
Gabriella thought for a few moments, pondering whether or not Alicia could be capable of it. "I think it's possible but I don't know for certain," admitted Gabriella. "I know she's been pretty upset since Troy and I kissed the night of the Masquerade Ball, rightfully so too as we did kiss while they were technically together and I do feel bad for that still. I think she became more distressed when she found out her new crush, Riley, was obsessed with me, and then again when I showed up at East. Remember that confrontation at PE I told you about a few weeks ago?"
"The one where you and she butted heads after she pushed you, right?" asked Emma.
"That's the one. She had told me then that she thought that I was just taking over her life. I swear that's not my intent. I don't know how we keep being drawn together by things like guys and schools. She can have Riley though, I'd be happy if he was erased from my life," confessed Gabriella. "Is that bad?"
Emma shook her head. "No, after all that has happened to you and the history you have with him, it's natural you feel this way. Let's talk about these happy places you've chosen. What and where are they?"
Gabriella thought for a few moments. "Well the one that got me through the trial and that I used today too was from Sunday early morning when Troy and I were just spending time talking and being in each other's arms on the beach while we were in Maui. The other one is of when Troy and I slow danced on my balcony of our old house one night when he snuck up the tree, just me and him. You aren't going to tell my parents any of this right?"
Emma laughed a little. "No, of course not, just as I haven't anything else you have told me. I just give them status reports is all and I have to say that they have been very happy to hear that you are making progress again. But let's get back to these places, these memories. They all involve Troy don't they?"
"They do," admitted Gabriella, realizing that Emma was very right. "Oh God, I've gotten dependant on him haven't I?"
"Well yes and no. I don't think it is a bad thing, not at all. Troy Bolton has shown over the past few months, especially these past weeks, that he is actually more mature than I would have expected a teenage boy to be. He respects you and genuinely cares and love you Gabriella, that's rare for teenagers these days. The one thing I wanted to point out here though is that Troy has won not only a place in your heart but a place in your mind. He has taken up the role of being the one person who you feel the safest with," explained Emma.
"But shouldn't that be my parents?" asked Gabriella, feeling guilty at the unconscious change she had over the past few months as far as the people in her life.
"I don't think it's anything to do with them and what they are lacking if that's your concern," replied Emma. "Troy is someone you have grown to love and who loves you back, he has been through quite a bit with you, has gotten into fights for you, and I think all that together completes the picture of being protected with him. Didn't you say he called the night the news started talking about the case being federal and it turned out he was right off the property but didn't insist on coming in once he knew you were okay?"
Gabriella nodded her head, remembering that night. "It was a girls' study night and he called, showing his concern. I was touched by him ditching Chad that night just to drive over in case I needed him."
"Exactly my point. I do have to be honest here though Gabriella. I am concerned as to what will happen to you when you eventually have to move back to Copanvy. There's nothing wrong with Troy being so special to you, being this comfort, but I worry as your psychologist what it will do to you. I'm not saying it's going to happen right away but I need you to start thinking about this so your mind isn't shocked when it happens," expressed Emma.
"I understand," returned Gabriella, sadness filling her voice again. "I've thought about that too, especially after I kind of got that gist from my parents while we were in Hawaii, just as Tessa, Taylor, and Troy did too. I think we've all tried to push that aside for now as I am still here."
"And there's nothing wrong about that but I need you to at the same time not allow yourself to live in a false state of existence where you believe you'll always be together. I know this is harsh but I have to be real with you. I've never lied to you and I'm not going to start now. For yourself Gabriella, you need to prepare for the day that you do leave. I don't think it will necessarily be the end of you and Troy and your friends but it will not be the same. Your role in Copanvy is not an easy part of life and it will take a lot of adjusting being in that life. Just be ready for it, all right?" stated Emma, looking a bit more concerned as she saw Gabriella bite down on her lip again. "What are you thinking Gabriella?"
"Just that when that day comes, and it is when not if, it's going to be so hard. I know that it will happen, I'm not foolish enough to think that it won't, but it's going to be tough. You just highlighting how important Troy is to me just confirms to me what I've been thinking, that Troy has come to mean the world to me, whether I intended that or not. The funny thing is that I've known him less than a year and I feel this way," remarked Gabriella.
"Well, certain people do find that connection that instantly ignites within both of them and people can form bonds like what you and Troy shared rather quickly. It's not common though, otherwise we wouldn't have so many people in this world looking for true love, their matches, including myself. Is it weird to use your wording? No, not at all. It's clear to me Gabriella how much Troy and his love means to you. My suggestion is to be realistic about what is going on with your present and future but at the same time don't let it get in your way of enjoying your time with him. The love you two share, the concern you both have for each other, it's one of the most purest forms I have ever seen in my lifetime Gabriella," confessed Emma. "Enjoy it while you can, you deserve this happiness and as much as you may doubt it after everything that has happened to you, you really do deserve this."
Gabriella glanced at her watch after acknowledging she understood Emma and looked back at the psychologist. "Speaking of, Troy is actually studying in the library while I'm here with you. He didn't want to leave me just yet I guess. Is it okay if we end here?"
Emma nodded her head. "I don't see the problem with that, in fact I would say sending you off to him would be the best medicine for you right now. You trust him without question Gabriella and it shows in how you can accept his looks and his touches without the problems from before. Just remember what I said, all right?"
"Sure," agreed Gabriella as she got up from the loveseat and thanked Emma before heading out the door of Gabriella's personal lounge in search of her boyfriend.
Emma stayed in the lounge a little longer, writing up a few more thoughts on what was discussed today but was distracted half an hour later by laughter coming from outside. She got up from where she was sitting on the couch and put her notepad down as she walked over to the windows that overlooked the backyard.
There on the basketball court down below her, Emma spotted Gabriella and Troy playing one on one basketball, Troy evidently giving Gabriella a form of help by keeping his left hand behind his back. She found herself laughing as Gabriella succeeded in stealing the ball from Troy, an amazed look on his face before he went right after her. Troy picked up Gabriella using both arms now and spun her around after she successfully made the shot and kissed her soundly, both pulling away looking happier than ever just then. Glad to see that Gabriella was really making an active effort to enjoy the present with Troy, Emma returned to the couch and picked up her notepad, jotting down a few more things before she left the lounge, a smile playing on her own lips as she thought of Gabriella and Troy, the perfect picture of young love.