A/N This is part of the apology for not updating in a long long time. I began a new story. Let me know what you think!

Troy Bolton entered his homeroom class and scanned the room. He found a certain brunette that he was madly in love with and his face broke into a smile.

Gabriella Montez looked up and saw her twin brother, Max's best friend, Troy smiling at her. She could have sworn that her heart stopped beating for a minute when their eyes met. She smiled shyly and Troy quickly dropped his gaze.

"Troy!" his best friend, Max said snapping his fingers in front of Troy's eyes. "Which world are you in, man?"

"Sorry," Troy muttered. He could feel Gabriella's gaze on him and his cheeks grew hot. "What's up?"

"I'm skipping the homecoming dance," Max announced.

"What?" Troy asked. "You can't skip the dance, dude!"

"You're skipping the dance?" Gabriella asked walking over to them. "Why?"

"I don't have a date," Max muttered.

"You don't have a date?" Gabriella asked. "Since when did that start happening? You're like one of the most popular guys in school. You're number one on some girls' list. Troy is on the other girls' list. How can you not find a date?"

"This time I can't!" Max said.

"Wait," Troy said. "What list is this?"

"Almost every girl in East High has a list," Gabriella explained. "They write the guys they think are the hottest on theirs."

"And, Max is on top of some lists?" Troy asked.

"Yup," Gabriella said. "And, it annoys the hell out of me when girls come and beg me to ask you out for them."

Max chuckled and Gabriella smacked his arm.

"It's not funny," Gabriella scolded him as Troy sat on the table in front of Max's.

"Who's on top of your list?" Max asked.

"I…uh…err…" Gabriella glanced at Troy and his eyebrow shot up.

"I'm on the top of your list?" Troy asked his eyes wide. A smirk appeared on his face.

"I don't have a list," Gabriella said, quickly. "They're lame."

"Wait a second, Max," Troy said. "You're not the only guy who's having problems with the whole date thing."

"You can always take Gabi to the dance if you don't have a date," Max said.

"Excuse me?" Gabriella asked.

"You wouldn't mind?" Troy asked.

"Why would I mind?" Max asked. "It's not a real date."

"Hello?" Gabriella said. "I'm right here. Did it occur to you that I might already have a date?"

"You do?" Troy asked his heart falling.

"Um…no," Gabriella admitted. "But, I might!"

"You're right," Troy said. "Sorry."

"But, if we're both dateless by Saturday night, then, we'll go together," Gabriella smiled.

"Okay," Troy nodded as Ms. Darbus, their homeroom teacher walked into the classroom.

Troy slid onto his seat and turned to face their teacher. Ms. Darbus had not said a word when the principal, Mr. Matsui hurried into the room.

"Max and Gabriella Montez?" he said, sharply and the two siblings stood up. "Come with me."

Not soon after Mr. Matsui left, Jack Bolton, the coach of the East High's basketball team and Troy's dad, walked into the room.

"Really, Bolton!" Ms. Darbus exclaimed. "I cannot have you walking into my classroom like that."

"But, aren't I supposed to be here, Ms. Darbus?" Troy asked, cheekily.

"That would cost detention for you, young man!" Ms. Darbus snapped.

"Darbus," Jack snapped. "I need Troy."

"He's in class," Ms. Darbus said.

"Darbus, you don't understand," Jack said urgently. "Max and Gabriella need him right now."

"What for?" Ms. Darbus asked.

"For him to be there as a friend," Jack said. "Can't we talk about this later, Darbus? This is important."

"Dad, what happened?" Troy asked.

"Maria Montez is dead," Jack said, quietly.

"What?" Troy froze as the rest of the class gasped.

"She was in a car accident," Jack explained.

"That's their mother, right?" Ms. Darbus said and Jack nodded. "And, they don't have a father, either?"

"He passed away when Max and Gabriella were thirteen," Jack said.

"Where are they?" Troy asked suddenly.

"Matsui's office," Jack said.

Troy took off down the hallway without a word. He could not believe it. He had always turned to Maria for any motherly advice he needed since his own mother passed away a year ago. He ran down the stairs and caught sight of Mr. Matsui's office. He slowed down to catch his breath wondering what he was going to say when the door burst open.

Gabriella ran out of the office. Troy dropped his bag onto the floor and caught her as she tried to run past him. Several teachers ran out and stopped when they saw that Troy had caught her.

"Gabriella!" someone called and Max rushed out of the office.

"No, Troy!" she shrieked hitting him. "Let me go."

Troy ignored her and held her tightly as she continued to struggle and hit him.

"Brie," he whispered softly. "It's okay. She'll be watching over you."

"She shouldn't have left me!" Gabriella cried hitting his chest hard with her fists. "She should stay with me. She was all I had, Troy. I've got no one, now."

"Brie," Troy said a bit sharply and she turned her head to look at him. "Don't ever say or even think that you have no one. Max and I are right here with you. We won't leave you. We'll never leave you."

Gabriella stared at him. She tried to wipe away the tears which kept on falling.

"It's okay to cry, Brie," Troy said, softly.

That was all it took. All her emotions flowed out and she started shaking. Troy hugged her tightly and she held onto him as she cried. Troy kissed her head gently and just held her close to him avoiding the eye of every teacher who stood their staring at them. Jack arrived and quietly whispered something to the teachers and they turned away awkwardly. Max walked over to Troy and Gabriella.

"Hey, Gabi," Max said softly. "Come here."

Max held his arms out for his sister and Gabriella pulled away from Troy and hugged Max tightly. Troy walked away to give the siblings some time alone. He walked over to his father. Jack was quiet, too. He treated Max and Gabriella as if they were his own children and it killed him to see them so upset, especially Gabriella looking so helpless.

"Take them to the hospital," Jack said. "They would want to see her. But, stay with them. Especially Gabriella – she was very close to her mother, closer than you know, Troy."

"Believe me, dad," Troy said. "I know how close they were."

Jack gave his son a hug and then Troy went back to Max and Gabriella.

"We're going to the hospital," Max said. "Can I borrow your car? We took the bus today."

"I'll drive you two to the hospital," Troy offered.

"Troy, it's okay," Max said.

"I'm driving and you two aren't going to argue," Troy said. "You two were there for me when my mom died last year and now it's my turn."

"Thanks, man," Max smiled giving Troy a brotherly hug.

Troy smiled a bit and the three headed out of the school. Gabriella stood in the middle of the two guys. Max had his arm around Gabriella's shoulders and Troy's was on her waist.

They arrived at the hospital. Gabriella did not say a word on the way to the hospital. Max was quiet, too, but, he spoke when Troy spoke to him.

"Um…you guys stay here," Troy said as they stood at the doorway. "I'll go and see where she is."

Max just nodded and Gabriella glanced at him for a second before looking away again. Troy hurried towards the counter.

"Excuse me," he said and the nurse there looked up and smiled at him.

"Can I help you?" she asked winking at him smiling a flirty smile.

"Where can I find Maria Montez?" Troy asked ignoring the flirting.

"I'm sorry, but, I can't give that information to you," the nurse said.

"Why not?" Troy asked.

"No one's allowed to see her," the nurse said.

"You don't get it, dude," Troy said his temper rising. "Her children are here."

"I'm not a dude," the nurse frowned.

"Whatever," Troy rolled his eyes. "Where can I find Maria Montez? Her children are here to see her."

"I won't tell you unless you apologize for calling me a dude," the nurse said.

"Oh, shut the fuck up!" Troy yelled. "I'm not going to ask again. Where is Maria Montez?"

"You just asked again," the nurse smirked.

Troy took a deep breath trying to calm down. He looked around trying to find another nurse and spotted Dr. Brandon, the doctor who cared for his mother while she was in the hospital with leukemia.

"Dr. B!" he yelled.

"Wait," the nurse said, hurriedly. "I can tell you where Maria Montez is. He'll be mad if he finds out that I didn't tell you."

"Your problem, not mine," Troy glared at her. "Dr. B!"

Dr. Brandon turned around. He smiled warmly at Troy as he walked over to him.

"What are you doing here, Troy?" he asked.

"Max and Gabriella Montez are here to see their mother," Troy explained. "I don't know where she is."

"Why didn't you tell him where she is?" Dr. Brandon asked the nurse.

"I was told not to," the nurse replied.

"But, if her children are here to see her, you have to tell them," Dr. Brandon said.

"I didn't know," the nurse said.

"Come on, Troy," Dr. Brandon said. "Where are Max and Gabriella?"

Troy turned and gestured towards Max to come over and he came with Gabriella.

"I'm very sorry," Dr. Brandon said. "We tried everything. All the head doctors of the hospital were attending to her, but, it wasn't enough."

"Thank you," Max nodded. "But, we would just like to see her."

Dr. Brandon led them to a room. Troy stayed outside, but, Max pulled him in. the three teenagers froze at the sight of Maria Montez. Her features were unrecognizable. Troy felt something sharp on his arm and looked down to see Gabriella clutching his arm. Her finger nails were digging into his arms and her knuckles were white.

All of a sudden, Gabriella fell onto her knees crying. Within a second, Troy was hugging her. Max stood there, staring at his lifeless mother.

"Let's go," Max said, suddenly. He could not bear to look at his mother anymore.

Troy nodded and stood up pulling Gabriella to her feet with him. Max headed towards the door, but, Gabriella could not move.

"Come on, Brie," Troy said, softly.

Gabriella shook her head.

"Come on," Troy said. "I'll give you a piggy back ride like I used to when we were little."

Gabriella wrapped her arms around Troy's neck and her legs around his waist.

"I won't jump into the swimming pool this time," Troy promised her.

Gabriella giggled as she remembered the time when Troy had jumped into the swimming pool when there were fourteen.

Troy carried her out to his car with Max next to him. Gabriella got into the car.

"Max," Troy said just as Max was about to get into the car. "Are you okay?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure," Max said and got into the car.

Troy ran his fingers through his hair as he got into the car.

"Where do you want to go?" Troy asked.

"Your place," Max said.

Troy shrugged and drove to his house. He got out and opened the door for Gabriella as Max got out.

"Listen, I'm going to take a walk, okay?" Max said.

"I'll go with you," Gabriella said, quickly.

"No," Max said. "I need to be alone for a bit."

"Max," Troy began.

"I'll be fine," Max assured them.

"Don't do anything stupid," Gabriella said giving her brother a hug.

"Same goes to you, little sis," Max smiled. "Troy will take care of you."

Max left and Troy led Gabriella into the house.

"Um…you want something to drink?" Troy asked.

Even though he was very close with Max and Gabriella, this was the first time he had been left alone with Gabriella.

"How did you get over losing your mom?" Gabriella asked, softly ignoring Troy's question.

"I didn't," Troy admitted. "You can't get over these things, Brie. You know that. You haven't got over losing your father, either and now, your mom's gone, too. You'll just have to learn to with it."

"How do you do that?" she asked.

"It's hard," Troy told her. "But, sooner or later, it happens. For me, there are two things that distract me. Most of the time, I stopped thinking about my mom and thought about those."

"What two things?" Gabriella asked curiously.

"Basketball and…" Troy's voice trailed away. "Basketball and a girl."

"Oh," Gabriella said.

"People let their emotions out in different ways," Troy said. "I kept everything bottled up for a long time and played basketball trying to get rid of them."

"But, you couldn't," Gabriella remembered.

FLASHBACK

Gabriella walked out to the backyard at the Bolton house. Troy was playing basketball. He kept missing every shot. His mother had died a week ago and it was clear that he was not okay.

All of a sudden, Troy threw the ball hard without aiming at anything and it hit a window inches away from Gabriella. Gabriella screamed as she jumped aside. Troy realized that Gabriella was standing there.

"I'm sorry," he muttered awkwardly. "I didn't see you there."

"It's okay," Gabriella said, walking over to Troy. "How're you doing?"

"Not so good," Troy admitted, softly.

"Come here," Gabriella said.

Gabriella hugged Troy and Troy hugged back. And then, tears started rolling down his cheeks. It was at that moment that Gabriella realized that she had fallen in love with her brother's best friend.

Jack, who had heard the glass being broken, went to see what was going on and when he saw Troy crying, he smiled. He had been worried about Troy because he was keeping everything bottled up and was glad to see that he was letting go of everything.

END FLASHBACK

"I never got to thank you for that day," Troy said, softly. "So, thank you."

"You're welcome," Gabriella said.

They sat in silence for a moment.

"Can I use the bathroom?" Gabriella asked. "I want to wash my face."

"Sure," Troy shrugged.

He got up and went upstairs with Gabriella behind him. He showed her to the bathroom. Then, he went to his room leaving his bedroom door open and stood by the window staring outside.

"Troy," Gabriella said, softly and Troy turned around.

He looked at her expectantly.

"That day when you broke down in front of me," Gabriella began. "I realized something important."

"What?" Troy asked curiously as she walked towards him.

"I realized that I was very much in love with you," Gabriella whispered softly.

Troy's eyes grew wide. He took her hands in his and she looked up at him.

"How come you didn't tell me before?" Troy asked.

"You're my brother's best friend," Gabriella said, softly.

Troy could not help laughing a bit.

"What's so funny?" she asked.

"You know the reason why I didn't tell you that I'm in love with you?" Troy asked smiling and she shook her head. "You're my best friend's sister."

Gabriella smiled and Troy ran his finger down her cheek gently.

"You're in love with me?" she asked.

"Yeah," Troy smiled. "I am."

Gabriella smiled as Troy leaned towards her and kissed her gently. The kiss was short but sweet and it was certainly unforgettable. Troy pulled away for air.

"I've wanted to do that for some time, you know," Troy smiled.

"Me, too," Gabriella said before pulling him towards her.

And, then, a heated make out session began. Troy pushed Gabriella against the wall and lifted her up. Gabriella wrapped her legs around Troy's waist, not breaking the kiss for a moment. Troy led her towards the bed and fell back onto it with Gabriella on top of him. Gabriella's hand slid under his shirt and her fingers ran slightly down his chest. Troy felt a bulge in his pants. He was sure that Gabriella felt it too. She smirked at him as his hand wandered under her shirt. His hands fingered at her bra strap.

"I want this off," Gabriella whispered tugging at his shirt.

Troy sat up with Gabriella on her lap and pulled the shirt off. He tossed it onto the floor and their lips met again. Gabriella pulled away and then pushed Troy back onto the bed and covered his chest with butterfly kisses. Troy felt another bulge in his pants. Gabriella noticed and smiled. Troy just pulled her towards him and kissed her. His hand slid underneath her shirt once more and just as he was about to undo her bra, they heard the front door close.

"Troy!" the two heard Max call. "Gabs!"

Both Troy's and Gabriella's eyes grew wide. Gabriella quickly got off the bed and adjusted her shirt as Troy pulled on his shirt. He glanced at Gabriella and gave her a quick peck on her lips and opened the door.

The two headed downstairs to the kitchen.

"What are you guys doing upstairs?" Max asked.

"I went to wash my face," Gabriella said, quickly.

"Okay," Max said. "Um…the hospital called and asked when the funeral was."

Troy and Gabriella were jolted back into reality. For a moment, Gabriella had forgotten everything. Troy's kisses were too amazing for her to remember anything.

"Right," Gabriella said. "Shall we have it during sunset?"

"You're right," Max said. "Mom loved the sunset so we'll have it then."

"Troy," the three heard Jack call.

"In the kitchen, dad," Troy called.

Jack walked into the kitchen.

"Hey," he said giving Gabriella a one armed hug. "I just want to tell you two that this house is always welcome for you. You can stay with us if you want."

Gabriella looked at Max and then at Troy and back at Max. She shook her head.

"What about our house, then?" she asked.

"That's up to you," Jack said.

"We'll stay at our house," Max said. "It's our home. We've lived there since we were kids."

Gabriella smiled gratefully at Max. She did not want to leave her home.

"You guys want to stay over tonight, then?" Jack asked. "If so, you're welcome here."

"Thanks," Gabriella said and Max nodded.

Jack headed into the kitchen and the three went to the living room. Max sat on the armchair and Gabriella sat on the couch. Troy sat on the other end of the couch.

"Do you guys want to stay over?" Troy asked.

"Yeah," Max said. "If it's okay with Gabi."

"It's fine with me," she said.

A/N Like it? Hate it? Let me know!