second to him | g.d.

t w o

third person's pov :

grayson watches from afar as elena follows ethan around like a lost puppy, making him snicker in jealousy and slam his locker shut.

he throws on his backpack and leans up against his locker, waiting for his other friends to meet him at their usual spot.

a high pitched scream fills his ears and he cringes as he already realizes who it is. looking up, his eyes land on hannah who is clinging onto ethan and not letting go.

his eyes fall on elena's and she clears her throat, giving hannah a forced but polite smile.

"hey hannah." she smiles, waiting for hannah to reply back

she let's go of ethan and gives elena a quick look over with a dirty glare, making elena's insides turn and her stomach ache.

grayson's jaw clenches and as he's about to walk over to the three, aaron stops him by slamming his hand on his chest and shoving him back against the locker.

"not worth it dude." he sighs, tugging out a piece of peppermint gum from his small pocket of his backpack and tossing a piece over to grayson

grayson shoves it onto his mouth and chews it aggressively, still watching the three with a hard stare.

"jesus, chew slowly. you sound disgusting." aaron laughs, running his hands through his dark brunette hair

"ethan makes me so mad. his fucking girlfriend just insulted his 'best friend' and he didn't do shit. honestly, i wish i was a fucking girl sometimes. men aggravate me." grayson groans

aaron scoffs and holds his hand up to his heart, acting as if he was hurt by grayson's words.

"oh, shut up. don't act like i'm not right." grayson chuckles

before aaron can get a chance to reply back, a loud yell is heard from down the halls and the two boys groan as they realize who it is.

"aye! gray, aaron?!" sam yells, waving his hands around frantically

all eyes are set on him and elena laughs, giving grayson a teasing smile and he rolls his eyes but keeps a smile on his face as he looks down at the glossy floors of the hallway.

"why do you always have to be so loud, sam?" aaron asks as sam walks over to them and slings his arm around grayson and aaron, beginning to walk

"hm, i don't know actually. just like teasing you guys." he snickers

grayson scoffs and shrugs his arm off and begins walking away with aaron as sam stands still with his jaw wide open.

"aw, come on! it was a fucking joke, grayson!" sam yells, trying to catch up with his two best friends

—

"you know, staring at her isn't going to give her the clue that you like her." sam smirks as he grabs a chip from his bag and tosses it into his mouth

"i do not like her." grayson quickly says, slumping into his seat

"oh, ya. you're right, gray. you don't like her. you love her." aaron grins

grayson gives aaron a dirty glare but before they can continue their teasing, soft footsteps are heard from behind them and they turn around quickly as they watch elena approach their regular lunch table.

"c-can i sit with you guys? ethan is ignoring me and giving hannah all of his attention. not that it's bad! i just feel a bit... uhm lonely." elena mutters, staring down at her black vans

"of course you can, lana. you don't even have to ask." grayson smiles, scooting over and patting down a seat for her to sit on

she gives him a small smile and takes a seat next to him, giving aaron and sam a small smile back.

"long time no see, harris." sam teases, quirking his right eyebrow up

she erupts in a fit of laughs, making grayson's stomach fill with butterflies and an immediate smile plasters onto his face.

"ya, it's like you forgot about us." aaron whines

"i could never forget you guys, never say that. i'm sorry, i just got so busy." she pouts, opening up her lunch she brought from home

"but... i got your guys' favorite. double fudge brownies, made by yours truly." she grins, grabbing the ziploc out of her lunch and closing it up again

their eyes light up at her response and grayson rolls his eyes but keeps a smile on his face, watching aaron and sam.

"oh! gimmie, gimmie!" sam yells, making grabby hands

"no! they're mind you, dickwad!" aaron insults

"aye! no insults. i brought you both two pieces so there's enough for both." elena says, sliding the ziploc across the table

"and... i made you your favorite. snickerdoodle cookies!" elena grins, handing grayson a little bag of two snickerdoodle cookies

the smell of them immediately makes him smile but he furrows his eyebrows as he faces elena.

"how did you have time to make these? you slept over at ours yesterday and i dropped you off home this morning for you to get ready for school."

"i have my ways." she murmurs, munching on a baby carrot

grayson just shakes his head and he takes out a cookie, splitting it in half and giving the other half to elena.

"for you." he smiles

she blushes but clears her throat to try to disregard her burning cheeks, grabbing the other half delicately and eating it slowly while aaron and sam continue to throw insults at each other.