Chloe shifted through her locker, pulling her sweater out and over her head. With lunch in full swing and the halls filled with clicks of kids, she knew it was time to make her way to Grayson's cafeteria table.
She grabbed her purse, slinging it on her shoulder as she took her starting steps. Nervous to meet his friends, “More Wolves.” Heading through the main hall, down the stairs, and towards the big glass doors of the cafeteria, she watched the kids buzz around her. The tables were full and packed with students from all the grades and poplar standings.
She saw Grayson's table, closest to the kitchen like he described. Sitting with Mike laughing, he appeared so normal to her, she never would have guessed he turned into a large, beast-like, amazing wolf.
Taking a deep breath, she walked for him. Once inside, she hoped she'd make the entire lunch without panic.
She murmured his name to herself as she picked up her pace. He stood when he saw her and she stepped up to him, “Hey.”
“Hey.” He smiled, “How was class?”
“Fine,” she said in a soft voice as he helped her sit.
The blonde, almost albino looking boy by the name of Mike glanced to her, “Eh, Finally! Grayson has a ma...”
Grayson snapped his hand to the back of his friend's head as he sat next to him – giving Mike a hard look, “This is Chloe.”
Mike leaned into the table, cocking his eyebrow, “Nice to finally meet you, Chloe. I'm Mike, in case you didn't know and welcome,” he took a huge bite of his food, chewing incessantly on it. Chloe knew what he was doing and Grayson looked upset as well.
He sighed and pointed across the table, “Jason, Lilly, Kyle and then, Ashton, you know.”
Chloe nodded to the unfamiliar, yet familiar faces of Polar High, “Hi.”
They smiled at her. “Hi,” they all said together and went back to eating their food.
One word came to Chloe's mind; Awkward.
Grayson leaned into her, “It took you awhile to get here; I was going to go look for you.”
She looked to him, “I had to stay in English and talk to the teacher. Next time, I'll book it and remember I have a curfew.”
He chuckled, “How'd the teacher convo go?” doing his best at small talk, it amused her.
“I just have to catch up on some things...” she pulled her purse to the table and dug around for some change, “I'm going to get lunch.”
“Oh, I have food for you. My mother made me an extra lunch,” he dropped a paper bag in front of her.
“An extra lunch?” she questioned.
He smiled, “Alright, I asked her to make you one.”
“Grayson,” her embarrassment rising, making lunches for a girl she didn't even know, “Don't ask her to do that again.”
“She doesn’t mind.” He finished the sandwich in front of him and started to drink the pint sized carton of chocolate milk.
She sighed, “Still...” Chloe opened the bag carefully and pulled out a sandwich, chocolate milk and an apple. She started to eat, listening to their conversations, but not understanding most of the inside jokes.
Grayson dropped his mouth to her ear, “Are we boring?”
“No. Confusing more.” Chloe sipped her chocolate milk. She felt his hand drop to her thigh under the table and she clenched her knees together. Tugging his hand off her, “Grayson.”
“Relax, Little.”
Chloe took in a sharp breath and crammed a huge bite of apple in her mouth as she tried to distract herself.
He seemed to get it, that the touching made her uncomfortable and returned his hand to the table top.
She relaxed, he was testing her and thigh caressing would have to wait.
He leaned into her again, “Sorry, Chloe.”
Of course he would apologize to her. It’s how he constantly made up for being bad, “It's cool.”
“Maybe one day, I'll be able to touch you without you flinching.”
She looked to him, “We'll see, Grayson Holtz.”
He smiled at her in amusement, “I guess we will.”
She shook her head and went back to trying to figure out his group of friends; without a doubt, they were a bunch of hungry wolves.
***
She wasn't sure how popular Grayson was by the end of lunch, but he sure got a lot of attention. Including girls and boys just saying hi to him in passing by. Lunch came to an end and the table dispersed. The cafeteria faded as the popularity contest ended for the day. She gripped Grayson's shirt as they got to the glass doors.
Squishing past a group of female ninth graders, who stared at Grayson like a god. She rolled her eyes and almost told them to wipe the drool.
They continued down the hall, her fingers slipping the hem of his shirt. She had to remove contact from him, what turned through her mind too inappropriate for the halls of Polar High.
She walked into the biology next to him and he led her across the room to his table at the back and sat her beside him. Mike had been bumped down at spot, and looked to be grumbling because of it.
She set up her notes and text books, looking up to see Annie and Dayna in the front of the class chatting it up with Bruce and Scott. Neither of the boys had said a word to her since the party. It felt kind of awful to have been outcast so fast from people she had at least thought would be decent friends.
“Can I borrow a pen?”
She looked to Grayson as he dropped his bag on the ground and leaned back in his chair.
“You don't have a pen?” she echoed.
He smiled, “I wouldn't ask if I did, Little.”
She noticed his lack of a note book or even a text book, “Grayson, are you passing this class?”
“Sort of,” he admitted with a shrug.
She rolled her eyes and ripped out some paper for him and a pen, “Take notes, Wolf-boy.”
Mike started laughing at the end of the table, “What did you just call him?”
“Aw, shut up, Mike,” Grayson whacked him in the arm and Mike actually shut up.
Chloe made a face and noted his obvious dominance of the relationship, “Don't be so mean, Grayson.”
He lifted an eyebrow and smirked, “Mean? I'm not mean.”
“That was mean,” she hit his shoulder back.
He leaned in her, “I can't wait till we're alone in the truck.”
Chloe pushed him away, trying not to let his low voice get to her, “I don't know what you're thinking, but it's definitely different than what I'm thinking.” But it really wasn't and she knew that.
The rest of class went by quick, leaving gym to end her school day and of course she could never end the day on a peaceful note.
The boys dragged outside to do some sort of Alaskan necessity, and with it, came Grayson's need to pout as he left her side.
“Oh god, you'll live.” She joked at him.
“See you after school.”
She watched him leave the gym with the rest of the boys as the teacher ordered them into running laps around the gym.
“Hey,” came a quick voice at her side.
Chloe swung around, spooked from by the appearance of the girl earlier introduced as Lilly. “Hey.”
“So...” Lilly swung her strawberry blonde braid over her shoulder as they jogged, “You and Gray are close, huh?”
Chloe shrugged, she was starting to huff from being out of shape, “We're friends.”
Lilly didn't miss a beat, “Well, aren't you two together?”
“What!” Chloe shot, “Did he tell you that! We are not together!” She felt her anger rising.
“No!” Lilly blushed, her breathing fine through all the running, “No. I just assumed.”
“We're friends.” She made it clear for the girl.
Lilly glanced at her, “But you're...” She stopped her sentence and shook her head, “Never mind.”
She had to know the end of that sentence, “What is it?”
“No, it's nothing.” Lilly protested, “Seriously.”
“I know, okay!” The words flew from her mouth, “I know what you guys are.”
Lilly creased her brow, “He's going to turn you!” she exclaimed.
Chloe's head snapped to her, her toes caught on the floor and she tripped face first to her own demise, “Dammit!” she shot, gripping her knee. “I never get hurt this much! What the hell is wrong with you people!” She cracked.
Lilly backed from her, “Sorry, Chloe.” Something seemed wrong and Chloe guessed it wasn't because she had tripped to the ground.
Rubbing her sore knee, the gym teacher walked over.
“Chloe, are you alright?”
She limped up, “I need to sit down, I think.”
“You okay?” Lilly asked.
“Fine.” Chloe grunted.
The teacher pointed to the side of the Gymnasium as Lilly continued the run. She slumped into the old bleachers and went over the last two minutes of her life.
She gasped, figuring it out, “Turn me into a Wolf-girl! No!” Rubbing her knee in her new hysteria, she didn't notice it had become the size of grapefruit.
“Lilly!” Chloe leaned out, waving her hand to flag the lean girl back over.
She slowed her step and came up to Chloe, “Yeah?”
“Lilly, please don't tell anyone I know. Please. Grayson will kill me.” Chloe couldn't believe she was actually afraid of him or them, but she had promised him.
Lilly nodded, “No, its fine. I won't...” the girl took in a sharp breath. “So, he's... he's going to turn you?”
Chloe swallowed, shaking her head, “No. No.”
“Oh, thank god!” Lilly washed with relief, “So, you're really just friends?”
Chloe nodded, “Yeah, of course.”
“Okay,” the girl sighed. “I should keep running.”
Chloe waved her off and started in on the mental craziness of Lilly's words. If turn meant what she thought it did, then Lilly was saying it was possible for Grayson to turn her into a werewolf.
All of a sudden, she wanted nothing more than to confront Grayson Holtz and that's what she planned on doing, as soon as class ended.
***
She limped her way outside. It had taken her twice as long as it should have with the bummed knee. Looking up to see Grayson waiting inside his rumbling truck for her. They were expecting another snow storm that evening and the temperature was plummeting.
She started to limp across the parking lot. Her mind in overdrive as her heart tried to keep up. All she could think about was gym class and turning into a werewolf.
A car came to a screeching halt beside her. In a panicked frenzy, she tripped back and landed on the compacted snow and ice.
“What the hell is going on with me!” she shouted, staring at the bumper of the car she had just collided with.
“Chloe!”
Her blue eyes shot up to see Grayson running across to her, “I'm...” she went to speak as he came to a sudden stop in front of the car.
He slammed his hand into the hood, denting it. “What are you doing!” he shouted at the driver.
Chloe stared at him as the woman rolled her window down and the two of them got in a loud argument over the situation.
“Grayson!” she shouted. “Stop it!”
He came to her, grumbling and bent down. “Are you okay?”
“I'm fine. You can't just...”
“Well, well.” Dayna had stepped out of the passenger side. “This is interesting,” she shot in their direction.
Grayson picked Chloe off the ground, into his large arms and growled, “Get in your car, Dayna.”
Dayna sneered and sat herself back in the car, slamming her door as she did. The car sped off and Grayson walked across the parking lot to the truck.
“Put me down, Gray...” it was a mute protest.
He brought her up into the bench seat and crawled in after her, “Are you alright?” Invading her personal space.
She nodded, sitting up, “I just slipped on the ice.”
“They almost hit you,” he snapped.
“Calm down, Grayson. Take a breath.”
He growled, “That's not going to happen, are you okay?”
She cringed, “I have a swollen knee now to go with my swollen forehead.”
“Your knee!” he went to inspect, but she stopped him.
“I hurt it in gym, its fine.”
“How?”
She couldn't believe the level of concern that was radiating off of him, “Gray, I'm fine.”
He growled, but not his normal human growl. This one was low and deep in his chest; something else contributing to it.
She put her hand on his and caressed his fingers. If anything she hoped it would settle his raging wolf-ness, “Grayson, calm down.”
He relaxed back into his seat and took a deep breath, “I'm sorry. I just didn't enjoy that.”
Chloe smiled, “I usually have better luck than this.”
He flipped the heat down a level and put the truck in drive, “Let's get home before the snow starts. How did you hurt your knee?”
“I tripped when I was running.”
“Uncoordinated human,” he mused.
Chloe rolled her eyes, done with the conversation and ready to move on, “Grayson, I need to know something and please answer me this time.”
He glanced at her and swallowed, “I can try.”
She sighed, “Please.”
“What is it, Chloe?”
She sighed, “It's... well you said you wanted to make me yours and... well I...” she wouldn't rat Lilly out, “Can we even be together?”
Grayson paused, “What do you mean?”
Annoyed with his avoidance, she pushed it on him, “Don't I have to be like you?”
He gripped the steering wheel with both hands, not saying anything.
“Grayson,” she snapped at him.
He snorted, “Not now, Chloe.”
“Now, Grayson,” she demanded of him. He kept driving and she rolled her eyes, “Grayson now!”
He slammed on the breaks and pulled the truck over, putting the vehicle into park and turning towards her, “Chloe Pryce... I don't understand how a human is my mate. I don't understand any of it, but you are and that makes this situation very hard for me. Chloe, this should be impossible!”
“Mate?” she stared at him like a deer in headlights, “What the frick is that!”