His Saving Grace.

Chapter 4.

He was smiling at me when I walked over to him. "Hey, good morning. You look lovely today, as always." He gave me a shy smile, scratching the back of his neck. "Good morning to you too, and thanks Kyle. You don't look so bad yourself." I giggled. Giggled? Seriously. He was wearing black jeans and a white v-neck tee. It didn't take much for him to look good though.

"Come on let's go. I don't want to be late." I said pulling him along. "Coming, Miss Smarty pants." He laughed at his own joke while I just gave him the stink eye. He pursed his lips, still smiling and kept quiet. He threw his arms around my shoulders and lead me towards our first class, English.

When we entered the class, Allison and her little followers looked at us and glared at me. Wow, if only looks could kill.

"So, you finally got yourself a boyfriend. How'd you get him to agree? Put a hex on him?" Allison said, almost proud of her lame verbal attack. They all snickered.

"No, we're no-" I was interrupted by Kyle. "Actually, she didn't even have to do anything. Unlike some people, she didn't have to be bitchy to get what she wants. You should try it sometimes." He said through clenched teeth. Allison huffed and just mumbled a 'whatever' and turned away. Wow, smart comeback, I thought sarcastically.

Mr Barnes entered the class so Kyle just smiled sweetly at me, "Sorry about that" he mouthed. I just shrugged and went to my seat.

"Okay class, I need to grade some papers so just continue reading the novel, and don't make any noise." Mr Barnes said.

Pssst. I turned back and a piece of paper hit my face. Kyle was trying not to laugh and pointed at the piece of paper on the floor. I rolled my eyes and picked it up.

"Are you mad at me?" It said. I looked back at Kyle and gave him a 'why' look. He scribbled something else down and threw the paper again. This time I caught it.

"About the whole Allison drama. I'm really sorry, I didn't mean for it to come out that way. Can we talk later at lunch? *puppy dog eyes*" I laughed quietly at his message.

"Didnt I tell you that those puppy dog eyes don't work on me? But, sure we'll talk at lunch." I wrote back and threw the paper at him. After reading it, he looked up at me with a triumphant smile. I rolled my eyes and looked away, trying to concentrate on the novel. Damn, his smile, I thought.

The rest of the classes were uneventful, other than the constant glares and whispers from Allison and her puppies.

I was making my way to the cafeteria when I was stopped by Zoe, who was panting and looked like she ran a mile. "Zoe, what's wrong?" I asked, concerned. She held up one finger, silently asking me to give her a minute. Then she shrieked. I was beyond startled.

"Zoe, what the hell? Are you trying to permanently ruin my ears?" She was beaming and practically jumping up and down. "You didn't tell me you're dating Kyle Edwards." Edwards? I didn't know that. Wait, dating? "What are you talking about, Zoe? I groaned. "I was hurt that you didn't tell me. I mean, I heard it from this girl in French class and I completely flipped. But, never mind, I'm so happy for you that I just sprinted when the bell rang."

"Zoe, those are just rumors. I assure you that Kyle and I aren't dating. If we were, you'd be the first to know." I winked at her.
Suddenly I felt two hands cover my eyes and hot breath fanning the side of my neck. "Ready for our lunch date?" Kyle whispered in my ear. Zoe apparently heard it because she gasped.

I pulled his hands off and slapped his chest. "Shut up and don't scare me like that again." I glared at him but I failed miserably when he had this fake hurt look on his face. "Ouch you violent woman." He put his hand on his chest, pretending to be hurt. "Oh, grow up Kyle." I stuck out my tongue at him.

"Ahem! Uhm, Gray?" Zoe coughed awkwardly. I forgot she was still standing there. "Oh, Zoe, uh, sorry about that. This is Kyle. Kyle, this is my best friend, Zoe." They shook hands and Kyle said, "Nice meeting you, Zoe. I'm gonna go ahead and save us all a seat."

"Not dating, my ass." Zoe whispered to me. I rolled my eyes and followed Kyle, with a weird smile on my face.

When we were seated, Kyle spoke first. "Grace, about earlier, I don't know what came over me, but I'm really sorry." I waved it off, "Stop apologizing Kyle, really. Although I should be the one apologizing." He looked at me, confusion written all over his face. "Apparently, there are rumors going around that we're dating. Allison must have said something, I guess. I don't care what people talk about, really, but I don't know about you." I trailed off.

"Oh? Man, that girl has a big mouth. But that's okay, I don't mind." He said knowingly. I just laughed awkwardly because I didn't know how to reply to that.

"What's going on? Sorry about what?" Zoe asked suddenly. Oh, right. Then I told Zoe everything that happened earlier. When I was done, she breathed out audibly. "What's wrong with Allison? That girl seriously needs to get an attitude adjustment." I just shrugged and continued eating my lunch.

Soon, the bell rang, signalling the end of lunch hour. I have art class with Zoe so we both got up and said our goodbyes to Kyle.

"Wow, I can actually feel the chemistry between you two." Zoe teased when we were in the hallway. "Oh shut up, Zo. Nothing's gonna happen between us. We're just friends."

"Just friends. Sure, keep telling yourselves that." She laughed and pulled me to art class. I huffed.

*~*~*~*~*~*
"Hey guys, do you need a ride home?" Kyle asked Zoe and I. I was just putting my books in my locker. "I have a car, but thanks. You can drive Grace home, though." She said and smiled evilly. "See you guys tomorrow." She winked at me playfully and left. I just rolled my eyes.

"Well?" Kyle asked. "Oh, I actually have to finish some extra credit stuff in the library. It's a lot so I'm just going to walk home when I'm done. But thanks for the offer." I smiled up at him.

"Are you sure? I can wait for you if you want." He said. "No, don't be ridiculous. I don't want to bore you to death by making you wait for me." I laughed. He looked sad so I gave him a quick peck on his cheeks. Well, that made him happy. "I'll see you tomorrow, Kyle. Have a good night."

"You too, Grace." He smiled at me.

It was 5 in the evening when I was done with my work. It was beginning to get dark so I quickly made my way home, ignoring the weird chills running up and down my body. I was nearing my neighborhood when I heard some noise. The noise came from a dimly lit alleyway. It sounded like someone was groaning in pain. I wanted to just ignore it and walk straight home, but my conscience was telling me otherwise. Stupid conscience. If I get mugged tonight, I'm blaming you.

I made my way to the alleyway, hesitantly. When I got there, I saw a body slouched near a dumpster. It was a boy. His head was hanging low and he was moaning in pain. I crouched down and touched his shoulders, careful not to hurt him more. He looked up at me and his face went from being shocked, to guilty, to angry in just a matter of seconds.

I felt the air leave my lungs when those familiar pair of blue eyes looked at me, glossy from the unshed tears of his pain.

"Hunter?" I asked shakily.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

❤Fenny❤