~

The car ride home was a very silent one. After shooting at the door, Jay had pushed us out and locked the door behind him.

We didn't know what happened to him after that, but we- well, I- decided to be optimistic. I didn't know how Gray felt.

He had barely said a word since we got into the car and just held my hand as he kept staring at the back of the driver's seat.

Aaron and Zyair were in the car with us, and while Aaron drove, Zyair sat at the passenger seat.

Gray kept caressing my hand with his thumb unconsciously, his eyes a shade of light red. I could tell leaving Jay alone was affecting him a lot more than he let on.

I rest my head on his shoulders and feel his tensed muscles relax when my head makes contact with his shoulders.

He raises his left hand and places it on my cheeks, stroking my face gently without saying a word.

"Do you need-, " Zyair turns his head but stops mid-sentence when he sees Gray and me.

He leans back on his chair. "They are fine," He mutters to Aaron.

"Should I take you to the hospital or your house?" Aaron asks, staring at us through the rearview mirror.

"The hospital," Gray says

"My house," I reply at the same time.

Gray's eyes are focused on my bruised hands, and I raise my head to him. "My hands are fine. I can care for them at home."

Gray leans forward and taps the headrest of the driver's seat. "The hospital."

"Gray, please. I don't want to go to the hospital, " I drew my brows together as I plead with him.

Going to the hospital would make everything all too real. And in the town we lived in, no one minded their business. I didn't want to imagine the multiple stories that would swirl around if I went to the hospital with evident handcuff bruises.

Gray stares at me for a while before he sighs. "So home or hospital?" Aaron asks.

"Home."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Silence again.

We had just gotten home, and Gray literally carried me all the way upstairs and into his room, turning a deaf hear whenever I tell him my legs were doing just fine.

I was seated on his bed while he was on his knees, helping to clean my wounds. I made sure not to make any sounds no matter how bad it stung because I didn't want to make him feel worse than he already did about the incident.

I watch as he applies the cream to my bruises and covers it with bandages. His gaze still directed at the floor, refusing to meet my eyes.

"I'm sorry, " He says, using his index finger to rub circles on my palm.

"Don't worry. I was given royalty treatment, " I smile and raise my hands, wriggling my wrists.

Gray raises his face and looks at me- a sad and sorry expression flowing through his electric blue eyes- for the first time that night.

He tucks a strand of my curls behind my ear. "I guess I should tell you everything, " he speaks in a deep low voice.

I nod my head silently, urging him to speak.

He then proceeds to tell me about how his dad disappeared when he was fourteen, and his recruitment into the Cagers when they threatened to kill his mother and siblings. He explained how his father left them with dept, and his mother had to work four jobs to support and care for them.

He told me about his first kill and the chip the gang wants to install in his body as the final initiation process. I listened to him tell me about his past- for the first time- as we lay on his bed together.

He also tells me about Jay and how he helped him in the gang. Jay was the only person who was always on his side and always stood up for him.

"You can leave me now if you want, " he chuckles softly.

I shake my head and tilt it to stare at him. "Never."

"Jay would be fine. We can't know for sure that he's dead, " I say, resting my head on his chest, listening to the steady beating of his heart.

"Everything is my fault, " He says, and I rest my chin on his chest so that I could see his face.

"You do realize that there are some things in life that we can't control. We don't get to chose our country, skin color, or family. We just get lucky, " I shrug, drawing circles on his chest with my finger.

"And you didn't get to choose your father, neither did you make the decisions for him. It's not your fault you got sucked up into that world, and you shouldn't blame yourself, " I add.

He remains silent, the guilt he felt slowly eating him up.

"You have no idea how proud I am of you for holding yourself up and not letting your problem with the gang define or change who you are, " I lay on my side and prop myself on my elbow.

I've seen a lot of situations where some guys go all out, killing people without batting an eyelash because their lives got ruined when they were younger. They supposedly have no heart and derive joy from other's pain. In order words, they become psychopaths.

Gray tilts his head and stares at me, his eyes searching my face. "But it's hard. I have to live in constant fear of losing the people I love, and it's not a good feeling. You have no idea how scared I was when.., " his voice trails off, and he tilts his head back to stare at the ceiling.

"I was ready to kill all of them, Kelch. I had such monstrous thought about sucking the life out of them if anything ever happened to you. I've never felt such a way before."

Tears begin to accumulate in my eyes, hearing the anguish laced in his voice. "But I'm here now. I'm fine, " I say, wrapping my arms around his neck and nuzzling my face in the crook of his neck, letting myself drown in the intoxicating scent of his perfume.

He reacts to my touch and wraps both his arms around my waist, his hands trailing up and down my back. "Yeah, and I never want to let you out of my sights."

We stay like that for a while, enjoying the feel of our bodies against each other, not in a sexual way, but in a comfortable way.

Like a safe place.

"But what if I want to poop. Would you follow me?" I ask, trying to earn a laugh from him.

He shrugs. "Definitely. The Kardashians do it anyway."

I fake gasp and pull away from him, placing a dramatic hand on my chest. "You watch Keeping up with the Kardashians?"

He smirks at my reaction. "Used to with my mum. When my dad left us, she became clinically depressed and refused to accept our reality. I had to take care of her and try to make her feel better even if it included watching Keeping up with the Kardashian."

A smile tugs at my lips, and I couldn't believe how cute he was. "Someone's a mama's boy, " I tease with a small pout.

He laughs and places his palms behind his head, flexing his biceps in the process. "Not really. But I did feel really bad for her. Chloe was just three years old at the time, and Harry was like- how old is he now?" He furrows his brow, unable to remember his brother's age.

"Anyway, " He says after he makes no progress recalling Harry's age. "They were both really young then, and she had to fend for us all on her own. It was a really tough time, and the least I could do was watch Keeping Up with the Kardashian."

Suddenly, I felt very grateful for my privileged life. I've never known hardship and was a very bubbly child. I couldn't believe Gray had to take on the role of his father with the gang at such a young age.

I keep staring at him, a smile plastered on my lips. "What?" He asks.

"Nothing, " I reply, my smile still intact.

He sits up and stares back at me, a small smile playing on his lips as his eyes took in my every feature, making me the self-conscious one in the blink of an eye.

"What?" I ask, dropping my gaze to the bed.

"Nothing."

I laugh and place my hands over his eyes. "Stop staring at me like that."

"My eyes have a mind of their own, Kelch, " He gives me a full-blown grin, clasping my hands in his.

"I'm the Alice to your wonderland, " I say the stupidest thing ever.

"What?" he laughs.

"Nothing. I don't even understand what I said either, " I shake my head, feeling dumb.

Gray smiles and tilts my head with his index finger, leaning towards me until we're inches apart, and I could feel the rapid beating of his chest.

"Are you nervous to kiss me?" I ask with a smirk.

His long lashes flick up, and his sea-blue eyes meet mine. "Yes. Because I'm worried I'm might go further than just a kiss."

Time almost stops in that split second as fire erupts in my chest, the intense electricity that bounced off him landing perfectly on me. I wanted nothing more than to melt in his embrace and have his hands caress every inch of my body.

We lean in closer, and just as our lips touch, the doorbell rings.

You've got to be fucking kidding me.

I grab my phone to check the time and frown. I knew dad and Shelia had gone to California with the kids, and we weren't expecting anyone else.

Gray and I exchange glances, and he slips his hand under his pillow. My eyes widen when he grabs a gun from it.

"You've got a gun?" I ask, the shock evident in my voice.

"No, it's a cake, " He replies dryly, and I realize how insensitive my question might have sounded.

As we walk downstairs with me cowardly holding Gray's shirt from behind, my phone rings, scaring the daylights out of me.

I heave a sigh of relief when I see Zyair's name on the caller ID. I pick it up and place the phone next to my ear, covering my mouth so that my voice won't be loud.

"Hey, Zyair, " I whispered into the phone.

Loud crunching noises came from the other end, signaling that he called while eating. "Why are you whispering?" he asks.

"There's someone at our house, " I whisper as I watch Gray walk up to the door.

"Oh, that. I ordered Postmates for both of you. I figured you guys might go to bed without eating, so I got you food, " Zyair replies.

I roll my eyes and walk to place Gray's hand, which was already pointing the gun at the door. "It's Zyair, " I tell him.

Gray rolls his eyes and tucks the gun in his back pocket before opening the door to collect the food.

After eating, we lay in bed and quickly fall asleep, both our bodies tired from the events of the day.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••

The sun rays shine through the window, filtering through my eyelids, waking me up the next day. I open my eyes slowly and come face to face with a very special female.

Placing my hands on my pillow, I rest my head on it and stare at her every perfect feature.

I must have saved the world in my past life because I didn't know what I did to deserve her. She always makes me feel better, and her outlook on life inspires me.

When I look at her closely, I realize how much I need her and how she meant the world to me. I wanted to become a better person for her.

I smile when she stirs on the bed, wishing every morning could start this way- with her next to me.

Slowly, I stand from the bed and tiptoe to my bathroom. I had this sudden urge to look good for her and get rid of my morning face.

I rinse my face and brush my teeth in a flash. When I get back to the room, she's still sleeping peacefully.

Slowly, I crept into the bed and lay down next to her to continue my shameless incessant stalking.

A few moments later, her eyelids flutter open, the white sun rays brightening her hazel colored eyes.

I see her struggle to open her eyes and raise my hand above her head to cast a shadow on her eyes. "Good morning, princess, " I smile as she opens up her eyes.

She squeezes her body and wraps her hand around my waist. "How do you look so good in the morning?" She yawns, nuzzling her face in my chest.

I smirk and drape my arms around her neck. "Good genes."

She nods in agreement and raises her head to look at me, her puppy dog brown eyes, turning me on.

"So it has nothing to do with the five minutes you just spent in the bathroom, " She chuckles, mirroring my smirk.

My face drops, and my ears almost turn bright red. "Okay. Maybe I did wash my face and apply some to my face," I come clean, laughing along with her.

I raise her face with my index finger to kiss her lips, but she ducks her face. "Morning breath, " She announces.

"I don't care, " I reply, cupping her small face with my hands.

I really didn't. I was going to give her a lot of morning kisses in the future, anyway.

But I knew she was uncomfortable about kissing me, so I kiss her forehead instead. I dip my head and place a gentle, teasing kiss on her collar bone. She gasps and grabs a fistful of my hair.

"Gray, " She moans my name when I keep teasing her with wet kisses. I knew her neck was the most sensitive spot on her body.

I've never felt so turned on by the sound of my name before. I bring my head closer to her face, my lips inches from her plump pink ones.

Badly, I wanted to kiss her. She arches her back closer to me, and I take that as my cue to kiss her.

Just as our lips were about to touch, someone knocks on my door. I was about to ignore it when the person on the other side calls my name.

"Grayson," my mum calls.

Shit.

Kelch pushes me off, catching my off guard and making me land on the floor with a thump.

"Oh, my gosh. I'm so sorry, " Kelch gasps, her eyes widening as she sees me sprawled on the floor.

"Is that Dove?" My mum questions and I could swear she said Dove's name in cursive.

Double shit.

••••••••••••••

QOTD- What's your go-to outfit.

>> Mine is a big top and mom jeans. I hate anything tight because I'm never comfortable in fitted outfits.

Kindly, vote and/or comment to support me ❤️