Chapter Six.

Alena shivered as she pulled the top over her head, she hated Wednesday and hated Wednesday's last block even more because she had pe, she wasn't the sporty type and it would take only one look at her to realise that, it didn't help that she only had t-shirts belonging to boys which dwarfed her small frame and shorts that stopped only mid-thigh, her old and dirty converses barely did anything to keep her feet warm.

"Do you think we will be outside today?" Lucy asked as she slowly began to peel off the shirt she wore.

"Probably, the sports hall is set up for the gym and dance shoes and the gym is being used for assessments." Alena shuddered as she thought about just how cold it was going to be outside as she remembered the warmth that radiated from Samuel when they had spent the day on the moors on Sunday. Alena tried not to feel embarrassed but she couldn't help it, Samuel hadn't called or text her and she felt stupid for ever thinking that someone like him would be interested in her; after all she was Plain Jain, nothing special about her other than her magic fingers.

"It's freezing outside, I'm surprised we haven't had any snow." Lucy shivered as Alena took in her friends outfight that was similar to hers.

"We better go." Alena sighed as she stood from where she had sat on the bench and walked through the two doors with Lucy behind her.

"Right guys, outside on the field for rounders. I'll be up in ten minutes." Mr Salmon called out as a number of groans sounded around the two girls who were both suppressing a groan of their own. The field was outside and towards the top end of the school which meant Alena would be freezing before she even got there. And when Mr Salmon said he would be ten minutes, he really meant half of the lesson.

"Ready to freeze to death?" Lucy muttered under her breath as she linked her arm through Alena's and the two girls walked closer together, sharing their body heat as the followed everyone outside. The cold air hit Alena like a tonne of bricks as she shivered closer to Lucy, her breath came out in a fog as she hurried up with Lucy, neither of them wanting to be the last one knowing that it would result in them having to do a lap or two of the field, even if Mr Salmon wouldn't be there for a while neither of them wanted to be caught out just in case he surprised them and came early.

"I hate Mr Salmon." Alena grumbled as the two walked onto the frozen ground of the field to see that they weren't the only class there. Alena could see from across the field that Daniel was training with the rest of the rugby team and that he was already making his way over to her with his friends at his side, a frown was on his face as Alena gently nudged Lucy to get her attention.

"What?" Lucy asked.

"Daniel's coming over." She answered through her teeth that now chattered together whilst her knees knocked a little, to say Alena was freezing would be an understatement.

"Oh and Chris too." Lucy said excitedly while Alena managed a tight smile at her friend's enthusiasm at seeing the dark haired boy walking at Daniels face.

"Alena, what are you wearing? Are you trying to freeze to death? Here." Daniel sounded angry as Alena's eyes widened at his sudden outburst. She watched dumbfounded as he shrugged off the jumper her wore and gently wrapped his hand around the top of her arm and pulled her out of Lucy's hold and closer to him, he easily pulled the jumper over her head and help thread her arms through their appropriate holes. Alena felt like a naughty child that had gone out without a coat on and Daniel was the over protective mother telling her off while dressing her. She was swimming in the material as she remained silent while Daniel rolled up the sleeves so that her hands could be seen.

"Aren't you going to be cold?" Alena asked as she pulled the jumper tighter around herself.

"I'll be fine. But seriously Ana? Oh," Daniel frowned as he took in her still freezing form, her knees continued to knock together while her lips chattered together. "Come here."

Alena wasn't able to ask what he meant before she found herself wrapped in Daniel's arms while he ran his hands up her back at the same time smothering her in his chest. Alena could feel the heat radiating from his body through the jumper of his that she wore; he oozed warmth just like his brother had on Sunday when they sat on the rock in the freezing cold. Alena snuggled herself closer to him whilst pulled her hands between them so that she could bunch them into tight fists and warm them up with the warmth he provided. She felt like she was in a cocoon of warmth and she greedily bathed in it.

"Seriously Danny, you've lowered yourself to that?" A harsh voice sounded behind them as Alena went rigid in his arms and instantly tried to pull away from him but he only tighten his arms around her, not in the way he had before to warm her up but now in a protective manner.

"Alisha," Daniel warned her harshly. "I suggest you leave before you say or do something you will regret and I can promise you that you will not like the consequences."

"But Danny," She whined as Alena realised that girl behind her was his ex-girlfriend. Alisha was beautiful with her fiery red hair and bright green eyes, she was small but what she lacked in height was made up for her personality. Alena had never spoken to her before and she doubted that she even knew that she existed until she saw Daniel hugging her. "I thought you and I had something special."

"No, we didn't. Now leave." Daniels tone held so much authority that Alena shrank in to his arms as she heard what sounded like a whimpered behind her before retreating footsteps could be heard. Alena took that moment to wriggly herself free of Daniel arms and he let her go and Alena instantly went to stand with Lucy who seemed a little surprised but the frown on her face was evident. She saw that her friend wore a boy's jumper to only she wasn't swimming in it like she was.

"Girls gather around." Mr Salmon called and both Alena and Lucy looked behind them to see that Mr Salmon was waiting impatiently for them both.

"We'll see you two after." Daniel said as he nudged them both gently in the direction of their class. Neither of the two girls said a word as they walked to their class and merged themselves with the crowds, Alena could feel the eyes of most if not all the girls in her class and she knew it was because of her new found friendship with Daniel. She blushed deeply as she thought about what it looked like to the other around them. But she saw Daniel as the big brother she never had, even if she had only known him for a short time he was the brother she had never had but always wanted.

"That Alisha is a real piece of work." Lucy muttered as the two stood in the line waiting for their turn to bat.

"She's kind of scary." Alena admitted shyly.

"Alena your scared of anything that moves, even you own shadow." Lucy teased and Alena opened her mouth to defend herself but Lucy only raised an eyebrow and Alena's mouth shut into a pout. "It's not a bad thing, you cutie."

"Lucy your up." Alena hissed as she saw that they now stood at the front of the line and everyone was waiting patiently for Lucy to take her position. Lucy stood straighter and confidently walked to the batting square with her head held high as if nothing had happened.

After Lucy had hit the ball Alena was up and she found that she began to loosen up and enjoy the game of rounder's, and with the warmth of Daniel's jumper she was no longer cold. Although Alena wasn't very good and missed the ball the majority of the time she was still having fun and before either her or Lucy knew it Mr Salmon was blowing his whistle and the end of the lesson was called. Neither Alena or Lucy had any more problems with Alisha or her friends and it seemed that they had taken Daniel advice when he said if they wouldn't leave then they would regret it.

"Good game ladies. Now you can go get change." Mr Salmon said as he began to make his way over to Mr Hitt the rugby coach who was sending the rugby players to the changing rooms.

"Alena, Lucy." Her name was called from behind her as the two girls turned around to see Daniel jogging over towards them with Chris and Alena guessed that it was Chris' jumper that Lucy wore. That reminded Alena that she still wore Daniel's jumper as she gripped the hem and began to pull it off only to be stopped by two giant hands that stopped hers, she looked up to see that Daniel was giving her a one sided grin that had her raising and eyebrow.

"You're going to need that." He smiled as he lazy slung over her shoulders and began to lead her back towards the changing room. Alena saw over his shoulder that Lucy was engrossed in a conversation with Chris.

"Why am I? Don't you want it back? I mean you must be freezing." She pointed out the obvious even though she could feel the heat radiating from him as they walked together.

"I'll get it another time," He smiled knowingly and it had Alena's stomach clenching in a knot as she knew he knew something she didn't. "But when you get back to the changing rooms you need to grab your bag and walked straight out." He instructed her making Alena frown.

"Why?" She asked.

"You'll see, know run along, I'll be waiting out here." He said as he released her and pushed her gently in the direction of the girls changing room. Alena was still frowning as she walked through the two doors and towards the hangers that her bag hung from, She slowly placed her folded clothes in to her bag before zipping it up and turning to face Lucy who was already waiting to go.

"Come on Ana, Chris is taking me out." Lucy gushed excitedly as she beamed at her.

"Where's he taking you?" Alena gushed excitedly as the two began to walk out the changing rooms.

"Just to the coffee shop. But I can't believe he asked me, I mean I'm plain Jane and he super-hot." Lucy said.

"Don't be silly Lu, you're beautiful." Alena smiled at her best friend who really was beautiful with her bright green eyes and fiery red hair, she was taller much taller that Alena but she was slim and curvy.

"Oh shut up." Lucy said as she blushed making Alena grin at her.

"You're too cute Lu." Alena giggled as she remember how Lucy frequently told her the same as they walked out to see that Daniel and Chris were leaning against the opposite wall both of them still in their sportswear but they had their bags hanging from their shoulders as they straightened up when they saw the two approaching. Chris also gave her a knowing grin as he approached Lucy and immediately engaged in conversation with her as Daniel came to her side.

"What going on?" She frowned not liking how everyone knew something that she didn't.

"What makes you think something's going on?" He asked innocently as they headed outside and towards the front of the building.

"All these knowing smiles I'm getting, and the fact that you're not letting me get changed and you told me to keep your jumper." Alena pointed out as she motioned to the huge jumper she was still swimming in.

"You'll see." He grinned as she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket as they walked outside. Alena looked at her phone to see that she had a text message from an unknown number as she frowned but pressed open anyway.

Turn to your left, was displayed across her screen as she looked to her left while feeling Daniel's eyes on her. To her left was nothing but the usual pupils, building, tree and benches that were located at the front of the building, nothing seemed out of the ordinary as Alena's phone once again went off and she saw that she had yet another text message from the same unknown number. I'll read this and then block the number, she told herself as she sighed before reading the message.

Your other left, it read as she discreetly looked to her other left to see that Samuel was leaning casually against his car. As soon as he saw her looking at him he grinned and waved his hand to show her the phone he held, she instantly knew that Samuel had been the one texting her as she blushed at the attention he was inflicting on her as student looked around to see who the beautiful man was waving.

"Is that him Ana? Sexy pants." Lucy asked in awe as Alena looked to see that Lucy was openly staring at him.

"Lucy stop calling him that." She hissed as her cheeks flamed as she saw that Samuel now stood in front of her with a charming smile on his face.

"Sam." Daniel said as he grinned at his brother.

"Dan, do you mind if I steal Alena for a bit?" He asked his brother as his eye continued to stare at Alena making her squirm uncomfortably under his gaze.

"Not at all, have fun kids." Daniel chuckled as he saw Alena face before walking off.

"I'll see you later Ana." She heard Lucy called as she looked to see that Lucy was still starring in awe at Sam while Chris was leading her towards his car by her hand.

"Bye Lucy." Alena called out before she turned slowly to face Samuel who was watching her intently. It was silent between the two as Samuel continued to watch her, Alena found herself once again lost in the chocolate pools that seemed the captivate her every time she looked into them. The attraction she felt between herself and Samuel was so unnatural but yet it seemed to be so right as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"So.." Alena mumbled as she forced herself to look away with great difficulty.

"Can I take you somewhere?" He asked as he smiled softly at her.

"Where?" She asked already knowing that she'd be going with him no matter where they went. Alena knew that most of the student body had seen her with Samuel and would see her leaving with him, Lucy knew who she was as well as Samuel so if anything did happen to her the finger would be pointed at Samuel but she was still going to text her parents letting them know that she would be spending time with a friend.

"Would you be annoyed if is said, surprise?" He asked with a childish grin as she walked past him slowly and towards his car. She know knew why she would be needing Daniel's jumper, it had gotten considerably colder since her pe lesson and Daniels jumper was just right to keep her warm and she pulled it closer around her. Alena sneaked a glance at Samuel to see that he was frowning at her gesture but she choose to ignore. She was probably thinking too much into it, there was no way that Samuel didn't like the fact that she was wearing Daniel's jumper, he couldn't be jealous, she was friends with Daniel just like she was Samuel

"Maybe, depends what the surprise is." Alena admitted as Daniel opened the driver's side of the door while she slide through the open passenger side.

"You do like hot chocolate right?" He asked as he grinned at me from the driver's seat.

"I suppose so." She lied casually, she wasn't about to spill and say that hot chocolate was her favourite hot drink of all time. Alena quickly pulled out her phone and text both of her parents to tell them that she would be home late as she spending time with a friend.

"Liar." Samuel exclaimed loudly as she turned to stare at him wide eyed.

"I'm not lying." She said with a frown but she could feel the corner of her mouth twitching as she fought against the urge to smile.

"Of course you're not." Samuel said as his voice oozed sarcasm.

"Whatever." She said with a grin as she sank back into the chair to see that they were driving through town and had just gone past the library.

It was silent as they continued to drive towards the edge of town before Samuel pulled up into the car park of a small coffee shop. Alena unbuckled her seat belt and began to climb out with her bag slung over her shoulder.

"This place does the best hot chocolate I've ever tasted." Samuel explained with a huge smile as he waited for Alena to join him at the front of the car before placing his hand lightly on the small of her back and leading her towards the entrance. Alena itched uncomfortable as she resisted the urge to lean back into his touch. Get a grip, she mentally scolded herself.

"I doubt that," Alena said as she snorted in a very unlady like manner, instantly her cheeks flushed as her hand flew to her mouth in embarrassment.

"We'll see," Samuel said as he grinned down at her completely unaffected by her snort.

Samuel held the door opened for the both all the while keep his hand on the small of her back. The inside was warm and had a welcoming feeling as she took in the fire roaring in the corner before Samuel lead them both to the counter where an old lady smiled widely at them both.

"Mr Smith what would you like?" She smiled kindly as she bowed her head a little that had Alena frowning ever to slightly.

"Two of your own hot chocolates please." He said with a huge smile on his face as Alena began to dig in her bag for her purse only to be stopped by a large hand that swallowed hers up. She gasped out loud as the tingles she felt when he had grabbed her hand in the library, the sensations travelling up her arm warmed her insides as she looked up and purposefully looked just below his eyes so that the chocolate pools wouldn't captivate her once again.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"I can pay you know, put your money away." He said as Alena finally looked up into his eyes to see that they were set in a hard stare meaning he wouldn't back down. Alena raised her eyebrow in a challenge as she began to stare him down, something in his eyes flashed as she slowly looked away, unable to take then intensity of his gaze any longer she starred at the counter to the left of them.

"Fine." She muttered after she realised he was still waiting for her to answer as she began to put her money away with a defeated sigh. She didn't like the idea of Samuel buying her her hot chocolate; she liked buying her own things with her own money. She turned back to see that Daniel was being given his change by the lady behind the counter who smiled kindly at her, she returned it with a small smile of her own.

"I'll bring it over to you in a minute." She said kindly.

"Thank you." He smiled kindly before returning his hand to the small of her back and leading her through the little cafe shop toward the back and close to the fire. Alena took the chair opposite his as she dropped her bag to the floor while taking her time to look around the shop.

"I'm sorry for snapping." Samuel muttered softly as she turned to look at him to see a smouldering look on his face making him look even more attractive more than he already was, if that was even possible.

"You didn't really snap." She said with a frown while she watching him shrug.

"And I'm sorry for not calling your sooner, it's just work had been crazy and my dad keep pushing me to take over the business." He sounded stressed just talking about it.

"You don't have to explained yourself to me." She said with a smile on her face showing him that she meant it.

"I feel like I owe you an explanation."

"It's cool, honestly I thought that Sunday had made you run the over way." She admitted sheepishly as she blushed and looked away when she saw this disbelief on his face.

"You're crazy, I wouldn't do that." He stated as if the mere thought of ignoring her was impossible.

Before Alena had a chance to answer the old women that had spoken to Samuel from behind the counter came with two hot chocolates on a tray. She gently placed one in front of her and the other in front of Alena.

"Thank you." She said in awe as she starred at the master piece before her. She could see at the bottom of the glass that marshmallows had been stuffed deep down while the hot chocolate melted them, marshmallows floated on the tope while whipped cream rested on the top like a mountain, chocolate flake was sprinkled on the top, it looked delicious as she liked her lips in anticipation.

"The best hot chocolate." He announced as he watched her raise the glass to her lips and take a sip. The hot chocolate invade her mouth as she swallowed hungrily, the warm liquid warming her insides, while her tongue darted out to taste the whipped cream.

"The best hot chocolate ever."