I do not own High School Musical.

A/N: First, I would like to thank my dear sister, Anya, for creating a cover page for this story! (story cover image in profile). Second, I would like to extend another apology to my readers about the last-minute termination of my last story (I'm still very sorry!). Also, I would like to thank those of you who reviewed this story so far. I am definitely continuing this one for sure! Here's a new chapter and please enjoy!

Two weeks had passed since I had started at East High. I was slowly beginning to adjust to the way the school functioned. Every week I had spent lunch time with Taylor, her boyfriend Chad and on some days, Troy, if he ever had the time or made the effort to come and hang out with us. I was already sixteen weeks along in my pregnancy but I still wasn't showing. My doctor had told me that I wouldn't be for another month or so. I was fine with that though. Chad and Taylor had been the only friends I had interacted with at school. Although, even though it wasn't Troy's idea, I tried the best I could to keep distance from him while at school. I didn't want to cramp his style by hanging around him. The sound of the morning school bell screeched in my ears as I ran up next to Taylor whom was walking to homeroom, arms occupied with books.

"Do you usually show up to school literally two seconds before the bell rings?" Taylor asked.

"Not usually. I'm just not used to waking up in the mornings anymore" I said out of breath. Taylor cocked a brow at me, not understanding my tiredness. The two of us walked into Mrs. Darbus' class and took our seats. I saw Troy turn his head to look at me and he smiled. I smiled back nervously. But then I frowned when I saw Sharpay walk up to Troy's desk to sit down on it and start flirting with him. I blanched at the sight. I couldn't understand how someone like that girl could think she's wanted around here. She was beginning to get on my nerves just by looking at her. Although, I was amused by watching Troy's pained expression painted on his face. I knew that he wasn't delighted to Sharpay's company. I snapped out of my thoughts when Mrs. Darbus took her pointer and tapped it loudly on her throne to get the students' undivided attention.

"Good morning, my dears" she said with a loving voice.

"Good morning, Mrs. Darbus" the class said in unison.

"First off, and don't be alarmed. But in approximately a month, the East High Drama committee will be hosting auditions for our school's twenty fifth talent show" students in the class murmured. Some sounded excited and others seemed unenthusiastic. For me, I was not, under any circumstances, participating in a school talent show. Not now and not ever! I had no other physical talent besides multiplying huge numbers and succeeding in chemistry. Basically, my only talent was being a nerd.

"Which I will be participating in and hosting auditions with the committee, since I am an active member of the performing arts committee myself" Sharpay pointed out. I saw Taylor turn her head toward me and she rolled her eyes at Sharpay's outburst.

"Thank you for that, Sharpay. You may sit down now and I will hand you the talking stick when its your turn to have the floor" Mrs. Darbus said.

"My apologies, Mrs. Darbus" she kissed up. I shook my head in disbelief.

"Now. The real assignment for today is to see how well you open up to people" Mrs. Darbus said.

Well, that has to be insane. This was something I was anything but good at doing. Jeez, could this get any worse? I thought.

"And your assignment will be for you to come forth to the front of the class and either sing a song of your choice or improvise a skit" she smiled. My stomach sank.

Yep. It just got worse, I thought again.

I couldn't believe Mrs. Darbus wanted us to perform in front of the class. I wasn't even considering being in the talent show. So why did I have to perform in front of the class? I raised my hand.

"Yes, dear" Mrs. Darbus called softly. All eyes were on me. By now, it was becoming hard for me to even remember the question I had for my teacher.

"Ma'am, not that I don't appreciate you taking precious time out of your day to put together a performance, but I wasn't planning on participating" I said nervously, feeling intimidated.

"You don't have to participate in the talent show, my dear. But you do have to do today's assignment if you want to receive a promising grade" she said. I sighed as I slumped in my chair. I wasn't good with people watching me.

"What's the matter, Montez. Afraid that you can't sing as good as I can?" Sharpay shot. The whole class except for Sharpay's brother, Troy, Taylor, and Chad exclaimed. I felt like I wanted to puke.

"She's never even heard you sing before, so give her a break!" Taylor said.

"Excuse me, brainiac, was anyone talking to you? I think not!" Sharpay shot back.

"I will mop the floor with you, don't even get me started Sharpay!" Taylor said violently. I was almost scared of the girl.

"I'd like to see you-" Sharpay was being interrupted by Mrs. Darbus tapping her pointer loudly on her throne again. There was silence again and finally.

"Ladies, is this how we really behave to each other?" Mrs. Darbus asked disappointed.

"No" the two said in unison.

"I didn't think so. Now Taylor, you learn to ignore comments and Sharpay, one more word out of you, and you will be ineligible for auditioning in the talent show. Understood?" she threatened. Taylor nodded in understanding, although Sharpay confirmed her agreement with a simple pout.

"Gabriella, honey, now I always like to say, if there is any fear in the world that is preventing you from accomplishing a beneficial task, its usually best to conquer it head on" Mrs. Darbus expressed. I cocked a brow at her.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

The teacher sighed as she removed her huge glasses and rubbed her eyes. "I mean, if performing in front of a crown bothers you that much, you should just go first and get it over with" she simplified. As I was about to protest, Sharpay raised her hand.

"I'll go first if chicken- excuse me, Montez wont" she said mockingly. I glared at the back of Sharpay's head. I hated that girl. I didn't know why she always had to be so evil and quick to make someone look like a fool.

"Please, be our guest then" Mrs. Darbus bowed her head allowing Sharpay to come up to the front of the class.

Cue to dramatic sequence, I thought as I rolled my eyes.

Sharpay got into dance position as Mrs. Darbus turned on up-beat music for Sharpay to sing to. She hadn't even started singing and I was already growing nauseous just watching her 'dance'

Sharpay is going to sing "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" by Paris Hilton. (A/N: Sorry, guys, it was the only song I could think of for her)

She sits alone waiting for suggestions
He's so nervous avoiding all her questions
His lips are dry, her heart is gently pounding
Don't you just know exactly what they're thinking?

If you want my body and you think I'm sexy
Come on, sugar, let me know
If you really need me just reach out and touch me
Come on, honey, tell me so

If you want my body and you think I'm sexy
Come on, sugar, let me know

If you really need me just reach out and touch me
Come on, honey, tell me so

His heart's beating like a drum
'Cause at last he's got his girl home
Relax, baby, now we are alone

[break]

They wake at dawn 'cause all the birds are singing
Two total strangers but that ain't what they're thinking
Outside it's cold, misty and it's raining
They got each other, neither one's complaining
He say's I'm sorry but I'm out of milk and coffee
Never mind, sugar, we can watch the early movie

If you want my body and you think I'm sexy
Come on, sugar, let me know
If you really need me just reach out and touch me
Come on, honey, tell me so
Tell me so, baby

"Do you think I'm sexy?" Sharpay said with a seductive voice as she finished her song.

"I think you're smokin' hot!" a boy shouted from a side of the room. The whole class laughed at the boy as Mrs. Darbus dragged him by the collar of his shirt and told him to go to the principle's office.

"Thank you Sharpay for that performance" Mrs. Darbus said as she grimaced at Sharpay's dance. I have to say that I missed the part where she danced. I didn't recall touching yourself to be 'dancing'. The class clapped for her performance. By being polite, I clapped my hands a few times. Sharpay took a bow and then returned to her seat.

"Its your turn, Montez. Now, just remember that the bathroom is down the hall in case you throw up" Sharay mocked. I glared at her as I slowly walked up to the front of the class room. I stood as still as a board once I was in front. I looked at all of the people in the class. If I thought it was weirder before when people watched me, I knew for certain by now. I felt my pitiless stomach churning acid as I grew more nervous by the minute.

What song do I know by heart? I wondered. It took me about a minute before I finally came up with a song to sing. I looked over at Mrs. Darbus.

"Any time you're ready, love" she said. I nodded and then looked around the class again. I looked at Troy whom was in the first seat in the third row of desks. I began to breath heavy, almost ready to run out of the class room. No one had ever heard me sing before.

You can do it, I saw Troy mouth. I smiled weakly at him as my mind played a melody.

Gabriella had chosen "Insensitive" by Leann Rimes.

Deep breath.

How do you cool your lips
After a summer's kiss
How do you rid the sweat
After the body bliss
How do you turn your eyes
From the romantic glare
How do you block the sound of a voice
You'd know anywhere

[Chorus]
Oh I really should have known
By the time you drove me home
By the vagueness in your eyes
Your casual good-byes
By the chill in your embrace
The expression on your face
That told me you might have some advice to give
On how to be insensitive

How do you numb your skin
After the warmest touch
How do you slow your blood
After the body rush
How do you free your soul
After you've found a friend
How do you teach your heart it's time
To fall in love again

Oh you probably won't remember me
It's probably ancient history
I'm one of the chosen few
Who went ahead and fell for you
I'm out of vogue, I'm out of touch
I fell too fast, I feel too much
I thought that you might have some advice to give
On how to be insensitive

[Chorus]
Oh I really should have known
By the time you drove me home
By the vagueness in your eyes
Your casual good-byes
By the chill in your embrace
The expression on your face
That told me you might have some advice to give
On how to be insensitive

I took my last breath as I finished my song. The whole class grew silent. Then I looked at every face my eyes let me see at a time. On Taylor and Chad's face, it was almost as if they could cry. On Sharpay's she seemed in shock by my hidden talent, and Troy's expression was unexplainable. He had looked like he had fallen in love with the song. His eyes shined in mine as mine did in his. It was hard for me to believe that I had just sang in front of people. Everyone began to clap, and including Mrs. Darbus whom looked as if she really enjoyed my singing.

"Bravo, Ms. Montez!" Mrs. Darbus shouted. I smiled and took a bow before returning to my seat. Troy turned his head and looked at me again. I exhaled and smiled back at him and he winked, making me blush.

Class periods later, It was lunch. I walked down the halls of my school to get to the lunch room to meet with Chad and Taylor but I was stopped by Sharpay and her twin brother, Ryan. I stood still and eyed the blonde until she finally spoke.

"I was wrong about you, Montez. Looks like you could be some healthy competition for the talent show after all" she gave a sickly smile.

"Um, thanks?" I said. She smiled again.

"But, I'm not doing the talent show, so you have nothing to worry about" I reassured her.

"Oh, come on and stop it with that 'I'm so shy' act of yours. You can really show people that you do have some talent underneath the nerd cap" she said.

"I would but its just not me. So, I'm not going to" I said as I tried walking past her. But she stopped me again.

"Montez, you've got a lot of potential. I can tell just by looking at you. Just don't blow it by being hidden behind books. Chat with 'ya again later. Tootles!" she said as she walked a different way. I shook my head in disbelief. I didn't understand Sharpay's sudden change in heart. For the past two weeks, she had made my life in our class miserable and now she was telling me that I possess great qualities. I was confused. I stopped thinking when I was being approached by Troy.

"Well, if it isn't Ms. Montez, future super star of East High" Troy said jokingly as I laughed at his random approach line.

"Well, I don't know about 'super star' but according to Sharpay, I've 'got a lot of potential'" I said as the two of us walked down the halls of our school.

"Sharpay really said that?" Troy asked.

"Yeah" I answered.

"Hmm. She's probably trying to scare you down before the auditions" Troy guessed. I chuckled.

"Actually, I'm not doing the talent show. Its just not my thing" I said. Troy's eyes widened.

"Why not, Brie? You definitely have a better voice than Sharpay does! All she likes to do is sing about herself and that's it" Troy pointed out.

"Troy, you really think I'm gonna sing with a huge belly hanging on the front of me?" I asked in a whisper.

The thought dawned over Troy's head as he remembered. "Oh, yeah. I forgot" he apologized.

"No worries" I said as I sighed and continued to walk with Troy to the cafeteria. When we finally entered the cafeteria, Troy and I looked at our friends sitting at the table we per-usually sat at for lunch.

"Gabs, I know this isn't my business but when did you plan on telling them that you're pregnant?" he asked.

I sighed. "I guess when I start showing in a month" I replied in monotone. I wondered why he would ask but I guess things were growing more weird the longer I waited to tell them. Chad and Taylor had already made it as my friends. I owed it to the both of them to know the truth about me. But then I worried for what they would think after that. I sat down beside Taylor as she greeted me with a smile and complemented me on my performance in drama class. All I could do was smile and express my modesty.

"Gabs, you were so great! Why the hell wouldn't you want to be in the talent show?" Taylor asked.

"There's something stopping me" I explained vaguely.

"Well, what is it?" Chad asked impatiently. I sighed heavily as I looked at Taylor and Chad in their eyes before replying with my sorry truth. I prayed they would take it well.

"I can't do the talent show because I'm having a baby" I got out.

"What?" Taylor exclaimed. Chad furrowed his eyebrows and looked at me.

"You don't look pregnant" Chad said. Taylor nudged him in his arm and whispered to him to shut up.

"When did you find this out? And how did this happen?" Taylor asked impatiently. Her questions overwhelmed me.

"It happened before I came here. About three months ago" I said as my eyes rolled to look at the roof, feeling a load being taken off my back.

"That's amazing! You're having a baby!" Taylor said as a smile stretched on her lips wide. I smiled too, feeling Taylor's excitement.

"Did you know about this, Troy?" Chad asked.

"Kinda" Troy replied briefly as he stuck his hands in his jean pockets. During the entire lunch period, Taylor and Chad could not stop holding onto my arm. It was almost as if they had fallen in love with me or something like that. It was making me feel better that I was getting positive attention. I was glad that the two had quickly come to terms with pregnancy. But something had been irking me for a while. Every time I took a glance at Troy, he seemed upset. Usually when he was around, he wouldn't drop the smile on his face. He looked as if he had received bad news or that someone had died. After school, I thought that I would catch up with him so that we could walk home together.

"Troy!" I called for him but not too loudly. No answer and not even to turn his head.

"Troy!" I called again as I reached his side.

"Oh, hey" he said with a sullen tone.

"I was just wondering, would you like to walk me home?" I asked. He nodded as we followed the way home that Troy usually did. Him and I just lived a block away from each other.

"So how come you didn't want to perform in Mrs. Darbus' class today? That assignment we did today is worth half of our grade" I pointed out.

"I know" he responded in monotone. I couldn't take wondering about him any longer. I needed to know what was on his mind.

"Did I do something wrong? Because ever since lunch you've been acting a little bit strange" I said.

"You don't even know me, Gabriella. So how would you think I were acting strange?" he snapped. I was taken aback by his sudden harsh tone and felt a little bit hurt.

"Well, usually you wouldn't snap at me like you just did" I said softly.

"I'm sorry. I've just had a lot on my mind" he said as he tried to speed walk to his house.

"You feel like talking about it?" I asked him.

"I don't know if I'm ready to talk about it just yet" he raised his head, not wanting me to see that he was hurt. But he couldn't fool me. There was something bothering the poor guy and I wanted to know about it.

"Someone once told me that keeping things bottled in wasn't good. And if I have a problem, I should bring it to the table" I said as my way of persuasion.

Troy chuckled. Well, those weren't my exact words but..." he hesitated.

"But what?" I looked in his eyes.

"Come with me" he said as he took my hand and led me to the park where we stopped in front of a tree.

"Troy. Am I really supposed to climb this tree?" I asked looking at the spread out branches.

"Don't worry, its easy. Just take it step by step" he smiled as he held onto my hand as I climbed up the tree. I sat on a sturdy branch beside him.

"If I ever feel like talking or thinking, crying, this is the place I come to let it out" Troy said as he gazed at the view of the park. I could see from the look in his eye, he had strong feelings that needed to be explained.

"This seems like a nice spot to do that" I replied softly as I followed his gaze. Suddenly I began to worry when I saw Troy's eyes well with tears.

"Troy?" I said. No response. Tears flowed down Troy's cheeks. The mood was strange to me. At first, he seemed so happy and now he was crying!

"You remember when I told you how we have untold complicated stories?" he asked as he wiped a fallen tear. I nodded.

"I have one. And just this one tears me to pieces when I think about it" he said. I looked at him sympathetically.

"You can trust me with it, Troy" I reassured him.

"Its not a matter of trusting, Gabriella. It just hurts to talk about it" he said.

"Well, you can talk to me about it. I'm a good listener" I reassured again. He looked at me and read my sincerity before replying.

"Today when you told Taylor and Chad about your pregnancy, and how they looked so happy. It just crushed me" he explained. I furrowed my brows in confusion. I didn't understand what he mean. Just a few weeks ago, he was suggesting that I should be happy about having a baby.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because its happened to me before" he answered. I was still confused. He read the confusion on my face and continued his story.

"Last year, I had a girlfriend and we were going to have a baby together" her said, fighting back his tears of remorse.

"What happened?" I asked. I could feel my heart becoming heavy.

"She left me. Two months before my son was born, she left me. We had planned to live together. I even set up a crib in my room for when I had my son over night. And then I get a call last minute and she tells me that she's on a plane to Florida and that she's staying there" he recalled. My heart grew heavier.

"Did she say why she was moving there?" I asked.

"No. She didn't even tell me what part of Florida she was moving to. When my son was born, she had called me and sent me an e-mail with his picture in it. I hadn't heard from her since" he cried.

Tears had started coming into my own eyes as I felt for Troy's sorrow. "I'm sure you'll find them someday, Troy" I said.

"I don't think I ever will, Brie" he said in monotone.

I didn't know until now that Troy was a father himself. He seemed genuinely hurt by his girlfriends disappearance. I could understand if she never wanted to see him again but how could she take his son away from him before he was even born? It was unbelievable. I put a comforting hand on Troy's shoulder as he cried to himself. I had never seen a man so hurt in my whole life. And not that I was amused by it, but I found it cute that Troy could cry in front of me.

"I know how you feel now" I said. He nodded.

"I'm sure she was very special too" I added. He nodded again.

"She was special. I feel like I'm mourning the loss of dead person" he joked. I chuckled slightly.

"But she truly was special. I even wrote a song for her after she left. I poked my head up and twisted one of my curls.

"Do you remember it?" I asked.

"Like I wrote it yesterday" he replied. He gazed back at the view of the park as he prepared to sing.

Troy is about to sing "Find Me" by David Gates.

The skies are not as blue, when you're not with me
The stars, they never seem to shine as bright
And the hours crack like days across the ages
And a year or two pass by with every night.
It makes me know if i should ever leave this world before you do
When you follow you must promise, cross your heart and promise to

(Chorus)
Find me...look hard, and don't stop, I'll be waiting 'till then
Don't sleep, and don't eat 'till I'm back, back in your arms again
I don't wanna have to spend all my forever without you.
Just knowing that your out there somewhere too.
So darlin...please I'm begging you on bended knee...
Find me...

I've tried to tell this world how much I love you.
But they dont understand how deep it goes.
And i can't even find the words to tell you
So I'm the only one who really knows.

And though we have our times together, I am always wanting more
So if we get separated wont you do just like before and

Find me...look hard and don't stop, I'll be waiting 'till then
Don't sleep, and don't eat 'till I'm back, back in your arms again
Through a hundred million faces you will see me shinning through.

'Cause I'll glow when you come close , I always do.
So darlin' please I'm begging you on bended knee..
We can share our love through all eternity
'Cause with you is all I ever wanna be...
Find me

My eyes burned with the tears I had shed throughout Troy's song. Every lyric had explained his feelings so well, everything was more clear. Troy had smiled at me and wiped my tears away. His song was beautiful. He had wrote it for his love that he missed dearly.

"That was beautiful, Troy" I sniffled.

"I wrote it just for her. But your the first person whose heard it" he sighed.

"You mean, you've never sang, ever?" I asked. He shook his head. I bowed my head and then shot it back up.

"I know this probably isn't the best thing to say in response to that but, I feel special now that I know that I'm the only person that's heard your beautiful voice" I smiled.

"And you should feel that way. I can't even remember when was the last time I actually hung out with and talked to another girl" he said.

"You being pregnant just makes it easier for me, Brie" he added.

I narrowed my eyes in confusion. "How so?" I asked.

"Because now I know that I have a friend I share something in common with besides basketball" he answered. I smiled and took his hand. It hung loose in mine.

"I'm glad that I can be that friend. And I promise, I'll never give up on you for anything" I expressed my gratitude. Troy enclosed his hand with mine, promising his friendship.

"I do too" he said. We stared at each other for a long time before I looked down at my watch and saw how the time passed since we had stopped at the park.

"We should be getting home now" I broke the silence.

"I guess so" he replied. We carefully climbed down the tree and walked back to our neighborhood with our hands still connected. We didn't think anything of us holding hands, we just couldn't let go since we left the park.

"I'll see you at school" he said as he finally let go of my hand, not wanting to.

"Bet on it" I mocked. Troy smiled and then waved as we parted ways. All I could think about was how beautiful Troy's voice was. The song he sang had read his mind out loud like a poem. It showed that he was sensitive and that he could really love a girl. It was only a shame to see that his love was wasted on someone who didn't even have the decency to break up with him properly or even let him see his son. Troy was ready to be a father to his baby boy but he felt like every chance he had involving him being in his sons life was snatched away from him forever. It was nice for me to see that there were some guys out there who did love their girlfriends and didn't treat them like their property or just a piece of garbage. I would have been lucky to have Troy as my baby's father instead of Jules. Jules only cared about himself and his game on women. He hadn't any time to care about his kids. I sighed as I approached my house. When I was around Troy, I was in a better mood. But when I was home, I felt like I could cry a river.

"Well, its about time you got home. We still have to schedule another doctors appointment. You're entering your fourth month, you know" my mother said as she was fluffing the pillows on the couch in the living room.

"Yeah, Mom. I know" I said in monotone, dropping my handbag by the coat hanger near the front door.

"We're having pasta for dinner tonight" she added. I pulled out my cell phone and checked for any missed contact information. I had gotten a text message from Troy.

'Thanks 4 talkin with me today. I really enjoyed it. Cant wait 2 see u again tomorrow. -Troy' the text read. I smiled to myself. I didn't know my mother was watching me.

"What are you so happy about all of a sudden?" my mother asked. I shook my head and couldn't drop my smile.

"You know, you seem to be taking to your pregnancy better than before" my mom smiled. I frowned as I turned on my heels to leave her sight.

"What did I say to upset you now? Before you got pregnant, you never to act this way to me" my mom sighed.

I my face grew red with anger, "Its not what you've been saying, Mom, its what you've done. You moved me away from the person I need in my baby's life!" I yelled.

"So that's what all of this is about, huh? You know what, Gabriella, you should be thanking me right now" she said.

"For what?" I shouted.

"For moving you far enough from someone who didn't want that child in the first place and whose emotionally abused you!" my mother shouted back. I stood still and turned my head. I heard my mother sniffle. I hated it when she cried.

"I'm just so sad to see that my only little girl is being forced to grow up because of someone else's wrong actions" my mom said as she tucked my locks behind my ears. I nodded, feeling my mother's disappointment come out in sobs. I knew I had no reason to be upset with my mother. I was truly just angry with myself but I couldn't admit it.

"I'm sorry, Mom" I said. Tears fell down my cheeks as I went up to my room. I slammed the door shut and plopped on my bed and began to cry myself to oblivion. I hated when I was reminded of Jules. I didn't love him. Nor did I like him. It was just important to me that he at least wanted to be in my child's life so that he or she did not have the same issue I did growing up. Being without a father. I didn't want to give up on him and make up excuses to my child about why their father couldn't be with them. If I had hated when my mom had done it so badly, my child would probably feel worse about it. I just cried until my eyes couldn't produce anymore tears. I rubbed my stomach gently as I talked to my unborn child. Little did I know, Troy had climbed the tree to my room and stood on my fort and watched as I mourned.

"I'm so sorry, honey" I said referring to the baby.

"Mommy really screwed things up for you big time" I sobbed.

Gabriella begins singing "Lost" by Katy Perry.

I'm out on my own again
Face down in the porcelain
Feeling so high but looking so low
Party favors on the floor
Group of girls banging on the door
So many new fair-weather friends ooo:

[Chorus]
Have you ever been so lost
Known the way and still so lost

[Verse 2]
Caught in the eye of a hurricane
Slowly waving goodbye like a pageant parade
So sick of this town pulling me down
My mother says I should come back home but
Can't find the way cause the way is gone
So if I pray am I just sending words into outer space

[Chorus]
Have you ever been so lost
Known the way and still so lost
Another night waiting for someone to take me home
Have you ever been so lost

[Bridge]
Is there a light
Is there a light
At the end of the road
I'm pushing everyone away
'Cause I can't feel this anymore
Can't feel this anymore

[Chorus]
Have you ever been so lost
Known the way and still so lost
Another night waiting for someone to take me home
Have you ever been so lost
Have you ever been so lost

I closed my eyes and lay on my back as I eased my mind by thinking pleasant thoughts about my future.

"Brie?" I heard a familiar voice. I shot back up and looked around to find where the voice sounded so close from. I nearly peed my pants when I saw who was standing on my fort.

"Troy? What are you doing here?" I asked as I walked over to the balcony to be closer to Troy on the fort.

"I needed to see you" he replied in a whisper. He hopped from the fort onto my balcony, and tried his best not to make too much noise.

"Troy, if my mom sees you here, I'm going to get in trouble and trust me, you will too" I said as I tried pushing back outside.

"Brie. I can't leave now. Not after we talk, then I promise I'm gone" he begged. I sighed.

"Fine. What is it?" I asked, giving up.

"I heard you sing. And that song meant a lot" I said. I scoffed in reply.

"Troy, just because we heard each other sing, doesn't mean the both of us need to be there every time we do. I sang that in confidence" I said.

"And it sounded just as beautiful as you did today in class" he remarked. I stood quiet and blushed at his charm. Troy seemed to really be growing on me lately.

"That's very sweet of you, Troy. But seriously, you need to leave here. My mom could come up any minute to get me for dinner" I said, trying to push him back again.

"I promise, after this" he paused. I stood still as he took a stray hair and removed it from my face. The both of us we locked in each others gaze for some time. Eventually, Troy pulled me closer to him, so that our bodies stuck together like glue. Soon our lips found each other and we began to make out. I felt goosebumps traveling across my body. My stomach tickled with nerves as my body began to overheat.

"Wait, Troy" I said breaking the kiss.

"What?" he asked.

"This is crazy, we barely even know each other" I gasped. Troy nodded. Suddenly, I didn't care anymore. I resumed kissing him until I heard bold footsteps approaching my door but I reacted too late before the door swung open. It was my mother.

"Mija! dinner is-" my mom paused. Her eyes grew wide with shock when she saw me standing in my room kissing Troy.

"Hi, mom" I said nervously.

"Hi, ugh, Ms. Montez" Troy cleared his throat. My mom sighed and the looked at the both of us.

"And who might this be?" she asked.

"This is Troy. He's a friend from school" I said as my eyes wandered back and forth between Troy andf my mother.

"Is that so? Well, I'm sorry, Troy but Gabriella's got to eat dinner and finish the rest of her homework, so you'll have to leave" she said.

"Right. I'm really sorry about this. And Gabriella, I'm sorry for getting you in trouble"he said sincerely.

"I'm not in trouble yet. But I'll see you soon" I smiled. Troy planted a kiss on my cheek as he climbed down from the second story. When he was ear shot, I waited for my mother to yell, curse, or do whatever she had in mind for having a guy over past curfew.

"So, he's friend from school, is he? So why were you kissing him?" mother asked.

"I don't know, he just showed up to my room and we just started kissing" I said, feeling awkward.

"Does he know about your pregnancy?" she asked.

"Yes, he does" I replied.

"Well, at least he knows, I'm fine with that. But I'm just warning you, Gabriella, to please be careful with who you run around with here. You don't want Troy to be another Jules, do you?" my mom asked again.

Before responding, a smile tugged at my lips. "I have a feeling he wont be. I can tell that he's different" I said. My mother sighed.

"Just be careful, Mija. That's all I ask of you. I just don't want you to get hurt again" she said.

"Thanks, Mama" I said. My mom extended her arms and reached out for me to hug her. I gladly accepted her love and hugged her back. Although she was afraid for me to fall for Troy, it was too late. I had already fallen for him. The moment we had just shared had to mean something. The both of us had shared so much more with each other since we first met. And I could tell that Troy was a loyal and true person. But we were supposed to be friends! I was crazy if I thought that we could actually end up together. Then again, I couldn't be sure until time passed. Only time would tell where we stood from today. I just hoped that my heart was right this time.