a/n: okay here's the third and final chapter for today...but don't worry the next one should be out by Sunday the latest. Anyway enjoy!
Hiding In Your Arms
Chapter 8: Strawberries
She had no idea what to do. Absolutely no idea what to do. She stood in her room barely breathing. She blinked trying to hold back a tear. She hugged herself staring blankly before she turned to look at the clock.
5:31 pm.
She started slowly hyperventilating. She sat down slowly on her bed to try to calm herself down. She put a hand to her chest to slow her breathing down. Once she did she got up and started pacing back and forth., muttering to herself. She couldn't do this, she just couldn't. She took a deep breath and slowly turned back to the door. She opened it slowly ans stared at it blankly. She had no idea what to wear.
She blinked and abruptly stopped panicking knitting her eyebrows together as she thought this. She never thought she would ever be worried about her clothes as much as she just was. She shook her head at how pathetic she was. But in her defense this was her very first date ever, Troy didn't tell her where they were going and she was going on a date with Troy Bolton. She had every right to be nervous.
Gabriella shook these thoughts out of her head and decided to just wear a jean skirt and a pretty half sleeve, light blue top. She was thankful the bruises on her arms and legs had disappeared. Although she did have a big black one on her stomach. The price of going out tonight with Troy. Gabriella didn't get it. Nita didn't care about her or where she was, but Gabriella still got a beating if she wanted to go out. Gabriella shrugged to herself. She didn't know and she didn't care. Troy was worth any bruise and he knew that for sure. Gabriella sighed and glanced at the clock.
5:59 pm.
Gabriella went wide-eyed, grabbing her clothes and rushing into the bathroom to get ready.
He was a girl.
Yep, it was official. After today the 'official god of dudeness' was going to knock on his door take away his manhood and replace it with a load of make-up. At least that's what Troy thought. He had been on a few dates before, but it never really mattered to him. Just some random cheerleaders who hung on his arm at he few parties he actually went to and just stayed there. Even if he didn't want them to.
But Gabriella was different. So very different.
If she wasn't, he wouldn't have just spent almost an hour getting dressed when it usually took 5 minutes. If she wasn't, he wouldn't actually have stayed up almost all night thinking of something to do for the date the practically beg his friends to help him with it. And he definitely wouldn't be ready to throw up and do a happy dance all at the same time.
So that's how he ended up here. Sitting in his car, in his driveway, gripping the steering wheel in anticipation. He blew out a breath frustrated with himself.
"C'mon Troy! Move the damn car!" He thought to himself angrily. But he wouldn't move his fingers which were still gripping the steering wheel so hard his fingers were turning white.
"C'mon Troy. You can do it. Just start the car" He said trying to encourage himself. Troy took a deep breath and actually put the keys in the ignition and started the car, and as he almost threw up he backed out of his driveway.
As Gabriella sat on the front steps of her home or hell-hole as she likes to call it she was getting nervous. She had been sitting there for about 10 minutes and Troy was supposed to be there in 5 minutes. She bit her lip with worry. She wasn't good enough for him, she knew that. He could stand her up and she couldn't blame him. He was a Greek god that she should be dropping to her knees and bowing down to. She didn't deserve him.
What she didn't know was that he felt the exact same way.
She was, however, thankful that no one in her hell-hole cared about her or else they would tell Troy everything, and she wasn't ready for that yet.
Then she saw it.
His car pulled into the driveway. Her breathing quickened with nervousness and his door opened. She was wringing her hands together thanking god he actually came and desperately hoping she looked okay.
Troy, wasn't doing much better than Gabriella. If it wasn't for the fact that he had found Gabriella sitting on the steps, he'd probably be still be in his car trying to stop himself from actually leaving. So as he got out of the car, he tried to make it look like he wasn't shaking like a leaf. He blew out a breath and then he set his eyes on her. Beautiful. She was absolutely beautiful. So beautiful he forgot how to breathe. He then saw she was staring at him and then realized he was standing there like an idiot, drooling over her.
"Nice move Bolton. Nw she probably thinks your some stupid pig" He yelled at himself mentally. He took a deep breath to calm himself and started walking towards her.
Gabriella smiled at him although on the inside her heart was beating faster than it ever had. Her mouth went dry as he started walking towards her. She stood up.
"GOD! HE'S A GREEK GOD!!" Her mind screamed as he finally was in front of her. He smiled at her and she had to smile back as she looked into his gorgeous eyes. Troy leaned in and kissed her cheek softly.
"Hey" He said in her ear. His voice sent those shivers up and down her body.
"Hey" She breathed back. Troy smiled at her.
"You look beautiful. I'm glad your black eye is almost gone" He said softly touching a light mark under her eye. Gabriella closed her eyes and sighed in happiness.
"Thanks. You look great too" She said softly, opening her eyes. Troy grinned at her and slowly ran his hand that was on her cheek, down her arm slowly and grabbed her hand.
"Thanks. You ready to go?" He asked softly grinning as she blushed. Gabriella bit her lip and nodded.
"Yeah" She said sweetly. Troy smiled and lead her towards his car. He opened the door for her. She smiled and kissed him on the cheek in thanks. Troy blushed and smiled at her. He quickly shut her door and started the car. He put his car in gear. Gabriella then slid her hand into his. He smiled at her and squeezed her hand. Gabriella beamed back at him. Troy pulled out of Gabriella's driveway.
"So... where are we going anyway?" Gabriella asked once they were on the road. Troy grinned and shook his head.
"I can't tell you. It's a surprise" Troy said back. Gabriella giggled a little.
"Oh please Troy. Tell me where were going" Gabriella said in her baby voice, giving Troy her puppy dog look. Troy looked over for a second and instantly regretted it. He bit his lip to keep himself from caving.
'You're not getting it out of me Gabby" Troy said determined. Gabriella blew out a breath and pouted.
"Fine" Gabriella said biting her lip to keep herself from laughing. Troy chuckled.
"Oh you're not mad at me are you Gabby?" Troy asked playing along. Gabriella nodded trying to keep a straight face.
"Yes" She said like a five year old. Troy smiled at how cute she was.
"Oh Gabby, I'm sorry" Troy said still playing along. Gabriella couldn't take it anymore and burst out laughing. Troy loved the happiness radiating from her and he laughed along with her. Once the laughing died down, Gabriella looked out the window to see where she was. Gabriella couldn't recognize where she was and got confused when Troy was slowing down on the side of the highway.
"Troy what are you doing?" Gabriella questioned as Troy stopped the car. Troy smiled assuringly at her.
"Don't worry, I'm not gonna kill you" Troy said jokingly. Gabriella giggled.
"Well, I should hope so" She joked back. Troy smiled and dug around in the backseat. He came back with a bandanna in his hand. Gabriella looked at him confused.
"What's that?" Gabriella asked pointing towards the bandana. Troy grinned.
"Brie, close your eyes and turn around" Troy told her. Gabriella was still confused but did it none the less. Troy smiled and put the bandanna over her eyes. Troy chuckled as Gabriella started to fire off questions.
"Why is there a bandana over my eyes? Where are we going? What are we doing? Troy?" Gabriella asked Troy who still wasn't answering. Troy laughed and shook his head.
"You ask to many questions. Just enjoy the ride, we'll be there soon" Troy said. Gabriella pouted crossing her arms but Troy pried her left arm towards him and intertwined their fingers. Gabriella beamed towards Troy and Troy smiled again.
About 20 minutes later, Troy and Gabriella were still driving and Gabriella was getting very restless. But she still never let go of Troy's hand.
"Troy, are we there yet? It's been 20 minutes" said Gabriella. Troy shook his head at her.
"What? Have you been counting?" Troy asked jokingly. Gabriella giggled ad nodded loving how much fun she was already having and they weren't even out of the car yet. Even though she was nervous before all her fears faded away. She just felt comfortable with him and she could be herself. He had no idea how important that was to her.
"Yes I have, if you must know" Gabriella said in fake snottiness. Troy snorted at what she said.
"Well, then count to 60 and we'll be there okay?" Troy said sincerely. Gabriella squeezed his hand and nodded. Once they got there, Troy parked his car and looked at Gabriella.
"We're here." Troy said. Gabriella smiled at him.
"Good. I counted to 58. You're two seconds early." Gabriella joked. Troy laughed and shook his head.
"Okay, now I'm getting out of the car. Don't take your bandanna off until I tell you to okay Brie?" Troy asked. Gabriella nodded smiling.
"Okay just hold on" Troy said. Gabriella nodded again. Troy got out and ran towards Gabriella's side. He opened her door and gently took her hands. He pulled her out and kicked the car door closed, gently taking her by the waist.
"I'm going to lead you there alright?" Troy asked softly. Gabriella nodded a little nervous. Troy noticed it.
"Do you trust me?" Troy whispered in her ear. Gabriella smiled and nodded instantly. She did trust him. He's the only one that doesn't hurt her.
"Yeah" Gabriella said faintly. Troy smiled, and then Troy gently lead her over to where there date would take place. Gabriella smiled smelling the fresh air and placed her hand over top of Troy's. Troy felt the sparks that he always felt whenever Gabriella touched his body flow through him.
Once they got there, they finally stopped. Troy feeling very nervous had started shaking slightly again. Lucky for Troy, Gabriella couldn't feel it.
"Okay, we're here" Troy whispered in her ear. Then he slowly took the bandana away from her eyes. Once the cover was off Gabriella gasped at the sight she saw. Troy set up a small picnic on the beach. There were a few candles and rose petals scattered all around. Gabriella had tears in her eyes and just stared shocked. No one had ever done anything this nice for her...ever. Troy taking the silence and the tears as a bad sign decided to speak up, looking down.
"Are you okay? I mean if you don't like it we could go somewhere else..." Troy rambled. Gabriella smiled softly and tried to get his attention.
"Troy?" She tried, but Troy just kept on talking.
"I just thought you might like this..." Troy rambled, not hearing Gabriella.
"Troy?" Gabriella said a little louder but Troy still didn't hear her.
"I knew this was a bad idea..." Troy said. Gabriella smiled at how adorable he was being but needed to stop him from talking.
"TROY!" Gabriella yelled. Troy blinked and finally looked at her.
"Yeah?" Troy asked nervously. Gabriella smiled at him and went to wipe her tears away but Troy beat her to it. He gently wiped her tears away and she smiled wider.
"I'm sorry" Troy whispered. Gabriella shook her head and looked into his eyes.
"Why are you saying sorry? This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. Thank you so so much. It's beautiful" Gabriella said sincerely. Troy smiled slightly, a little unsure.
"Are you sure?" Troy asked. Gabriella smiled and nodded. Then she leaned up and kissed his cheek.
"Yes, thank you Troy" She said softly in his ear. Troy closed his eyes as he felt her warm breath on his face. He sighed in relief and smiled.
"You're welcome. Now you want to sit down and eat?" Troy asked. Gabriella nodded and bit her lip as she sat down.
"So what are we eating?" Gabriella asked. Troy grinned and started to dig around in the picnic basket.
"Well, we are having my world famous specialty..." Troy paused and took something out of the basket "peanut butter and jelly sandwiches!" Troy said proudly handing her, her sandwich. Gabriella giggled at him, taking her sandwich. She unwrapped it ad took a bite.
"It is good. You have a gift Troy" Gabriella teased. Troy puffed out his chest in fake proudness.
"Thank you, it was a natural born talent" Troy said in mock cockiness. Gabriella but her lip to try to remain serious but a few seconds later they bursted out laughing. Once they calmed down, Gabriella but her lip with a smile on her face. She needed Troy to be happy. This night so far had only proved it. She looked into Troy's eyes and smiled.
She needed him. A lot.
It must be illegal to like someone this much, he decided. He knew she was different from the other girls. It's what he liked about her in the first place. She barely wore any make-up, unlike any other girl in the school who wore so much he didn't know if they even had a face underneath. She was more quiet, reserved and didn't flaunt herself even though she was more beautiful than anyone. Whereas every other girl in the school was loud, flirty and showed everything, even when they shouldn't. But now he knew he was everything he ever wanted. As he thought this he thought another thought that made him smile.
He was totally and completely in love with her.
But he wouldn't push her and tell her now. It had only been about a week, he didn't want to scare her ... and he was too scared of rejection to even think about telling her...yet.
Right now they were walking slowly along the shoreline, their hands interwined and swinging back and forth between them. They were talking a little but mostly just enjoying hanging out together. Troy smiled at her. Gabriella looked up and smiled giddily back with a slight giggle. Then she looked out to the ocean and smiled when she saw the sunset.
"Oh, can we watch it please Troy?" Gabriella asked in her sweet voice. Troy grinned and nodded. Gabriella smiled excitedly and say down on the sand pulling Troy down with her. Gabriella giggled as Troy landed with a thud in the sand. Troy smiled hearing her giggle again. Gabriella watched the sunset completely enthralled while Troy watched her.
"It's beautiful" Gabriella said smiling, never taking her eyes off of the sun. Troy smiled distracted.
"Yea it is" He breathed staring at Gabriella. As Gabriella turned to look at Troy, Troy quickly turned his head to look at the sunset. He blushed but tried to hide it. Gabriella stared at Troy and smiled. She hadn't had this much fun in such a long time. She had to smile again at how amazing he had been so far. He was so sweet and gentle with her. She knew if this were any other night the giant bruise on her stomach would've been throbbing. But she totally forgot she even had a bruise, she forgot she had even gotten beaten, she just forgot everything. Nothing existed except for them. She barely smiled before Troy and even if she did it was fake, but now she was smiling all the time and couldn't stop. The only thing bugging her was she hadn't kissed him yet. She bit her lip in longing as her eyes trailed down his face to his lips. She wanted to kiss him. She sighed. She wanted to kiss him now.
Troy feeling her eyes on him turned back to look at her. He stared into her eyes, he smiled and his heart soared when she smiled back. Then his gaze dropped to her lips. Troy wanted to kiss her since he picked her up. Hell, he wanted to kiss her since he met her and that feeling hadn't gone away. Troy licked his lips and couldn't help himself as he leaned in. She leaned in too and softly pressed her lips against his. They were going gentle at first but Gabriella wanted more. Troy felt her tongue at his lips begging for entrance and immediately allowed it. He loved her strawberry taste and shifted closer to her. He softly ran his hand up her arm and cupped her face. Gabriella ran her hands up his chest and ran her hands through his hair. Troy moaned slightly and smiled into the kiss. When air finally became an issue they finally pulled back. They stared into each others eyes and Gabriella smiled with a giggle. Troy beamed back, deciding something right then and there.
Strawberries were officially his favourite food.
a/n: okay that's it for today. I know this may seem cheesy and a little sudden but I need to be able to do Troyella in my story and it was going to slow. Anyway hope you liked it. R&R