cheerleader-ethan and emma

chapter twenty eight

emma's pov:

"chamberlain?" a familiar voice called from behind me.

i instantly recognized it as ethan and allowed myself to relax a little. i was safe. grayson couldn't touch me. not that he would in the first place.

ethan walked in front of me and placed his hands on my cheeks to lift my head.

"what's wrong?" he asked softly. at this point every boy was watching this go down. some looked suprised by ethan's behavior, but others looked excited for a potential fight.

"nothing. i-i'm.. im f-fine, dolan." i stuttered in between my sharp breaths.

"no you're crying.... did grayson do this?" he asked, while watching grayson's guilty face from over his shoulder.

i stayed silent and my eyes shone with fear. that was all the confirmation he needed before releasing my face from his hands and striding towards his brother, who was now fully clothed.

"what the fuck did you do to her gray." he said lowly, trying to draw the attention away from what was happening. however, everyone continued to watch.

my back finally met a wall and i sunk against it, bringing my knees to my chest for comfort. ethan looked back at me to check on how i was doing, then turned to grayson once more.

"it was dail- he.. he was telling everyone they had sex, and then he grabbed her or some shit when she confronted him. i was just concerned and i yelled and then she started to cry..." grayson rambled, trying to prevent a fight.

ethan clenched his jaw and looked for jack amongst the crowd, probably planning how he was going to end him.

i pushed myself up off the floor and grabbed onto ethan's bicep, still cowering slightly from grayson's screaming.

"he's telling the truth. i-i'm sorry.." i trailed off, guilt rushing through me. i caused this. if i hadn't been such a pussy when grayson yelled at me then maybe we wouldn't be here now.

"hey, you're okay. i'm-i won't hurt dail if that's what you want." ethan said quietly.

grayson looked shocked and confused but mouthed an im sorry, to me. i smiled slightly and nodded to ethan, confirming what he had just said.

"let's just get you home, alright?" ethan whispered. all of the boys that were watching before had scattered. the locker room was practically empty by the time we left.

ethan placed his hand on my lower back while grayson trailed in front of us. he was slouched over slightly and still looked guilty.

i tried to ignore the heavy feeling in my stomach too. grayson and i had never fought, ever. we were best friends.

grayson stepped into his bronco and gave me a sad smile before pulling out of the parking lot.

ethan silently led me over to his jeep and opened the door for me to step inside. after he closed my door he jogged over to his side of the car and started the engine.

"i'm sorry emma." he said softly, before placing a chaste kiss on my lips. my eyes fluttered closed and i kissed him back. his breath was minty and comforting.

"i love you." i mumbled as i pulled away. he smiled goofily as pink rushed to his cheeks.

"love you too..." he said happily. he laced his hand with mine and placed them on the center console, rubbing his thumb over my knuckles occasionally.