My Refuge

Summary: Five years after graduating from Stanford, Gabriella finds herself a victim of rape. Now pregnant with her rapist's child, she seeks a new life in New York City. To her surprise, her new obstetrician is the guy she used to go to for refuge so many years ago…Troyella.

Disclaimer: I only own original characters and settings. The rest of them belong to Disney and the writer of High School Musical. By the way, the Ryan in this story is not Ryan Evans. It's a different Ryan.

Author's Note: Okay, I've decided to start an original piece, which means that I have not read or come across any stories similar to this. This also means that I will know if someone uses my idea, which wouldn't be a smart thing to do. Haha, so yeah, I think I've made you wait enough, haven't I? On to the story, which, by the way, may not be updated every day because I have a life outside of being on my computer all day and because I'm in my first year of college. Also, I have decided to delete my previous story because I couldn't get a grasp on its storyline. Sorry about that, for those that read it. This one seems to have a better storyline, and I've graphed it out for myself, so I should be able to finish this one.

Chapter One:

Twenty-six year old Gabriella Montez anxiously tapped her foot as she sat in the waiting room in her new obstetrician's office. Dr. Carlyle had assured her that, although this doctor was new to the profession, he was very kind and very caring about his patients. She hadn't caught the new doctor's name, but she'd come out of pure curiosity for her first appointment with him. As long as he's not Ryan, I'm going to be patient and trust him, she thought to herself. She cringed as a flashback overcame her, causing her eyes to tear up. The night she'd been raped raced through her mind, and it wasn't until it was over that she noticed she'd curled up into a ball in the hard plastic seat in the doctor's office. She was known to be protective of herself, and the rape hadn't been easy on her self esteem. Her life goal was to protect others, to defend similar victims in court. That's why she'd gone to Stanford, to become a lawyer. She hadn't expected to become a victim herself- which is what had brought her to New York in the first place. It was far enough away from Ryan- from California, even- so that she could begin anew. She'd found a law firm a few blocks away from her new apartment, and she promised herself that after her baby was born, she would try her very best to focus on finding an opening and supporting her small family.

"Gabriella Montez?" a melodic voice called from the doorway. Gabriella looked up to see a nurse smiling at her sympathetically. "We have a room ready for you."

Gabriella nodded and stood up, shaking slightly as she grasped her purse to her chest and followed the nurse to a small white room filled with health posters and medical supplies. The nurse helped to sit on the bed that had been provided for her, and she sighed as she slipped her shoes off after being instructed to do so. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm not usually like this."

"It's perfectly fine, dear. You know, the doctor isn't all that scary," the nurse assured her, smiling. "I promise."

Gabriella smiled a little. "Okay," she replied, still shaking from her flashback.

"I just have a few questions about your previous health conditions and your background, and Doctor will be in to see you in about ten minutes. Sound good?" the nurse asked. When Gabriella nodded, she continued. "Okay, then…estimate for me how far along you are in your pregnancy."

Without hesitation, Gabriella answered, "Twelve weeks. My previous doctor told me while I was on the phone with him this morning."

"Very good," the nurse responded as she recorded Gabriella's answer on her sheet. "And when was your last ultrasound?"

"Um," Gabriella said. "A month ago?"

The nurse nodded. "We'll have Doctor check for you, and if that's correct, we'll run one on you while you're here today. I think he's also going to run a vaginal exam as well."

Gabriella blushed, but nodded. "Okay."

"One last question before I send Doctor in. Who is the father of your child?"

"Um," she said again, her voice shaking. "All I know is that his first name is Ryan."

"Okay, that's fine. Doctor will be in soon," the nurse smiled warmly at her one last time before walking out of the room and placing her chart in its holder.

Being alone gave Gabriella the opportunity to go back into her depression, but she willed herself to think about other things. She carefully studied each poster that hung on the walls of the small room, pausing slightly as she gazed at one about rape victims. She shook her head and moved on to the next poster, a diagram of the different stages of pregnancy. She stood up and slowly walked over to get a better look at the twelve week stage, where she knew her baby was at. She smiled, reaching up with nimble fingers to stroke the picture of the tiny, helpless baby growing inside of its mother's stomach before holding her hand protectively over her own stomach. No matter what, she would let nothing get in the way of the love she felt for the life that was growing rapidly inside of her.

The door opened then, and she heard a familiar voice say her name. "Gabriella Montez…" the voice said. "It's been a while."

Gabriella's head whipped around to see where the voice had come from, and why it sounded so familiar. When she saw the doctor's face, she felt her stomach twist in knots and she began to feel lightheaded. "T-Troy?" she asked, her voice a weak whisper.

"I prefer Dr. Bolton," he replied, smiling. "But yes, it's me. What brings you in to see me today?"

She immediately gained some confidence and made a face at him. "Why do you think?" she asked sarcastically. She hadn't seen Troy Bolton in years. They'd broken up during their second year of college when Troy had had to transfer to a University in Boston. It hadn't been a bad breakup, but they hadn't kept in contact with each other.

"Okay, okay," he replied, sensing the annoyed tone in her voice. "So, uh, who's the lucky guy?"

She folded her arms across her chest and looked down, tears welling up in her eyes once again. "I wouldn't call him lucky," she mumbled.

"And why's that?"

"Just do whatever you need to do, Troy, and let me go home," she snapped, angrily wiping the betraying tears from her eyes with her sleeve.

"Hormones," he murmured softly, scratching something onto her chart with his pen. "It's okay, some day I will talk it out of you."

"Just fuck off, okay, Troy? It's none of your business who I fuck and who I don't."

"Gabi, Gabi, calm down. It was only a question. You don't have to tell me if you're not ready," he responded, setting her chart down on the counter. "However, I will need you to sit up here," he added, patting the bed quickly.

"Don't call me Gabi," she replied moodily as she climbed up onto the sheets and lay down.

"Then what do you suppose I should call you?" he asked.

"Gabriella. That's my name."

"Okay, then, Gab-Gabriella. Melanie showed me your chart, and it looks as if you're ready for a complete checkup," he began, sliding his hands into his gloves and preparing her for her vaginal exam. "Ready?"

She nodded, hoping that having her ex-boyfriend perform a vaginal exam on her wasn't going to be something she regretted later on. "I guess if you have to, then yes, I'm ready."

He chuckled and held out a small stuffed bear. "This helps my patients keep their minds off of what's going on down here," he explained. "Maybe you'd like to hold it?"

She smiled at him for the first time that day, taking the bear into her arms. He had always been one to care sufficiently about other people and their feelings. "Does it have a name?" she asked, giggling.

"Uh…sure he does," Troy replied, racking his brain quickly. "His name is Mr. Snuffles."

She giggled again. "Oh, okay," she said knowingly.

Ten minutes later, Troy tossed his gloves into the sink and stood up, helping her to sit up. "Good news," he said. "You look perfectly healthy. And now we're going to go down the hall to the sonogram room and have a look at your baby."

She nodded and followed him to the sonogram room. She carefully pulled her pants back on and laid back against the pillow. Troy helped her to lift her gown up enough for the machine and put on yet another pair of gloves. He took a tube and rubbed its contents on her belly to prepare her for the sonogram. She shivered, and he smirked.

"Cold?" he asked.

She nodded. "Just a little," she replied.

"Ah, it gets better," he assured her, using the hand-held contraption to her stomach. After a few moments, he smiled. "Can you hear it?"

"The heartbeat?" she asked. She nodded. "Yeah."

He smiled. "It's nice and healthy," he proclaimed. He pointed to the small screen next to her bed. "We have a nice view today. See, here's your baby's head, and down here…" he moved his hand, "are your baby's feet."

She smiled when she looked up and saw her baby moving on the screen. "What's that?" she asked, pointing to something small near the baby's mouth.

Troy zoomed in closer to examine the small obstacle. "Ah, that's its tongue," he said, laughing.

"Tongue?" she asked, giggling. "It's sticking its tongue out at me?"

He nodded. "That's how it seems," he said.

She laughed again, and within ten minutes Troy had printed out several ultrasound pictures. She reached out to take them, and smiled. "You printed the one of its tongue?" she asked.

He nodded. "That one made you smile," he replied. "And the other ones are good, too."

She smiled and stood up, changing back into her own clothes. "Thank you, Troy," she said. "I can't believe…well…I never expected to see you again, especially not as my obstetrician."

He laughed. "Well, maybe fate has brought you to my office," he teased, resting his hand on the small of her back as he guided her to the front desk. "Lauren will take care of you now, and I'll see you in a month," he said. With that, he turned and headed to the next exam room.

Gabriella stared after him in amazement. A doctor. Troy Bolton had sure made something of himself, that was evident. She couldn't help but wish that what he'd said about fate bringing her to him was true. She smiled, happy for the first time in months as she turned to the woman at the desk. Maybe her life would take a turn for the better now that she'd found the one person who had always been her refuge, her strength, her life. Maybe, just maybe, fate really had taken its turn.

How was it? Should I continue? Please review, and try to say more than just, "update soon"? I'll love you forever, and maybe it will get me to update sooner rather than later!