I showered in Gray's bathroom as he went ahead downstairs to get us something for breakfast. Knowing him and his horrible cooking skills, there isn't much that he can do. He might just whip up some instant oatmeal or something.

Changing into the clothes I brought, I ran a brush through my hair before putting it up into a messy bun. Checking the time on my phone, I frowned to find out that I didn't have any time to practice the triple flip this morning.

The competition was fast approaching, we have less than a week to get everything done. Time was ticking and I could say the same for Gray, I know he's already on edge with the oncoming game – it was on his shoulders to get rid of the football drought that came upon our team.

Applying the finishing touches on my makeup, I put on my wedge heels and after giving myself one more look at the mirror, I grabbed my bag and went down.

Just like I predicted, Gray just got the instant oatmeal, whacked it in the oven, and tried to pull it off by serving it with a bruised banana at the side of the bowl. Although it wasn't the best, he was grinning there with the proudest expression on his face.

He was like a child showing off his distorted clay figurine.

It's the thought that counts.

"You should have just asked me to cook, you know," I laughed, sitting on the kitchen island next to him.

"When was the last time I let you use my kitchen?" he questioned and when I didn't reply, he chuckled, "Exactly."

The last time? Well, never. Not that he was afraid of the house burning down, he just said that he doesn't believe that the guest should be the one doing the cooking.

I don't know about you, but I love this side of him. I think it's completely adorable.

Our conversation drifted off to different topics about school and our clique. I tried to bring up Erin, but he has a way of turning the talk around whenever he wants to. I know that there's a part of him that's afraid of what I can do.

That's why he doesn't tell me when there's a new girl.

A few fights might have sparked when I took action, but he has always forgiven me when I apologized. That's all we need actually – one of us has to drop our pride and say sorry.

Footsteps behind us sounded and before I could even turn around, I already knew who it was. Gray's mom is away and his dad has a night shift so he doesn't get home until nine. There's only one other person in this house.

"Clara!" the tall man greeted with his incredibly deep voice as he strutted into the kitchen in nothing but his pajama bottoms, "Long time, no see."

If I didn't know any better, I would have assumed that a Gray three years in the future suddenly discovered time travel and came back here.

Bryan Martyn stood there in all of his masculine glory, complete with the wonderfully messed up hair and nicely sculpted abs.

He's Gray's older brother and if you couldn't tell from the way the guy sat next to me gritted his teeth, it's quite obvious that he doesn't get along with him very well. I've met him in a few occasions and during his time in our high school, he was exactly what Gray is right now.

The bad boy star of the football team that attracted girls like flies to honey.

Those traits of his is the exact same reason why Gray isn't fond of him, but then again, that's a story for another day.

He's currently a third year at the local college and is rarely around here. I've stayed overnight for a couple of times and I can confidently say that he hasn't been around during those times. I might have bumped into him a few times when I sneak out, but it only happened about once or twice.

"Morning Bryan," I said courteously, finishing up my breakfast.

He smirked when his eyes went over me before turning to Gray, "I really envy Gray sometimes when he has such a girl always by his side."

And just like his little brother, he's extremely flirty. Though unlike Gray who's a bit toned down, he really plays the field without shame.

If I was any girl and a guy like him suddenly gave me the time of day, I would have melted into a puddle there and then. Too bad I'm too into his brother to entertain his advances.

"Oh really?" I quipped, resting my elbow on the counter, putting my chin at the back of my hand, "What a nice compliment."

"I see that you stayed the night," he pointed out as he took out a carton of orange juice from the fridge, "Gray treat you right?"

"That's it," Gray growled, going down on his stool and grabbing my hand, "We're going to school."

Before Bryan can protest, I was already getting pulled out. Thankfully, I managed to snatch my bag on the way to the door. The next thing I knew, I was already strapped into the passenger seat of Gray's car as he was driving us away from his house.

He was definitely annoyed.

"I hate him," he stated without any hesitation in his voice, "How could he just act so casually in front of me?!"

"I know," I sighed, reaching out to gently touch his arm, "Don't let him get you."

He grunted and focused his attention on the road as we reached farther, the looser his grip on the steering wheel was becoming – a good sign that he was slowly calming down.

"By the way," I suddenly remembered, "Mind if you come to my cousin's wedding with me?"

He glanced towards my way for a quick second before turning back front again, "And why?"

"I can't possibly show up in the haystack with no date," I reasoned before batting my lashes to his way, "Please."

We fell into silence for a moment and as we stopped at a red light, he turned to me with my hands clasped together and giving him a puppy dog look. Blinking towards me, he exhaled loudly before smiling, "Fine."

I could practically pump my fist in victory.

Point one for the cheerleader.

Though if he denied, I would have reminded him of the countless time that I went along to dinner with his parents because they wanted him to at least have one consistency in his life. And let me tell you, as much of a bitch I am at school, I can play the "decent girlfriend that keep your son in check" role if you want me to.

As long as they don't catch me tiptoeing out if his room one morning, we're good with this act.

We arrived at the school parking lot and let me tell you, I enjoyed basking in the attention as I step out of his car with him. There's no better way to catch other people's attention like this and as my eyes zoomed in on Erin in the crowd, I fought the urge to smirk.

Though why am I feeling that deep inside, this isn't going to end well?

By the time it was gym period, you could tell that I was already sick and tired of the day. I'm not really concerned of what happens during classes since there isn't much to do, but what I am thinking of is the events during breaks and after school.

That is when almost everybody is able to prance around with no problem.

I heard the whistle from the teacher sound throughout the room, gathering everybody's attention, "Alright, choose your teams of six. Today, we're doing volleyball."

I literally just stood there with Vivian and our team was easily formed. There were few from the cheer team, two from the dance team, and one was the amazing captain of the volleyball team.

Oh this is going to be so darn fun.

After deciding which team will play with which, we tossed a coin and headed to positions. I stood there at the center front and with a scan of our rivals, I can see the gentle little Erin standing there with the most nervous expression on her face.

Well, she should be considering the girl who's about to serve for our team was the reason our school is always in the championships when it comes to women's volleyball.

The teacher whistled and the ball was sent flying to the other side of the net. One of the boys from the lamb's team managed to do a good receive followed by another player and it was safely back into our side. Vivian step back a little and gave it a soft toss as I pushed myself up and did a hard spike, sending it straight downwards to the opponent's side.

One more thing, even if I'm a girly girl, I still kind of rule when it comes to sports like these. I'm as fit as ever due to the cheerleading that I do and I'm mighty proud of it.

The teacher gestured to us, signaling that we got the point.

We barely made any rotations because the points kept going to us. We might flunk by doing an outside receive or something like that, but we were doing an amazing job. Soon enough, we were only a point away from winning.

Nails are still perfectly polished and I don't reek of sweat. Today was a good session.

I was once again at the center front and directly at the other side in front of me was Erin. From the game, I could tell that even though she looked like that, she didn't totally flunk at the sport. Sure, she may not be as skilled but she's good enough that she can do a decent receive or a light toss at the very least.

And because of the happenings, my eyes were laser focused on her.

When I heard the whistle, I saw the ball go from my back and one of her teammates hitting it perfectly, sending it back. Just like before, Vivian did the toss and I made the move for a spike. I could see Erin about to jump to block it, but I was much faster. With an open hand, I gave it a loud smack, whirling it to her side.

And maybe because she was in the position to block it, it hit her square on the stomach, catching the ball before it could make it to the ground.

That has got to hurt.

She instantly fell to the floor, hugging her stomach in pain. Some of her friends went to her side, trying to ask if she was alright as the teacher tried to make her way to me.

"Are you finally taking action?" Vivian questioned with a smirk as she stood next to me along with the other four girls who was playing with me.

"It was an accident," I said honestly, placing a hand on my hip, "If I would like to do something, it wouldn't have been so obvious."

She shrugged and followed as I approached the scene. As my black sneakers stopped right in front of her, she looked up and her eyes widened as she saw me, "Sorry for that."

Hey, I'm not mean enough not to apologize.

One of her friends scowled at me, probably finding the sorry insincere. She was about to yell, when her other friend pulled her back, probably afraid of the damage that may come out if she didn't.

The teacher sighed and told everybody, "The next game should start while someone take this girl to the clinic."

When they all walked away, one of the girls saw exactly what could have happened and let out a huff, "Those losers are absolutely horrible, they were about to blame you Clara!"

Thank you for that amazing new research findings.

"I'll pass by the clinic before the next class," I muttered as I started walking away.

You know about what I said about this not ending well?

Well, that feeling got stronger with each passing minute.

After I changed out of the gym clothes, I walked by the clinic on my way to my next class. As I quietly opened the door, I saw Erin sitting at one of the beds with a pack pressed against her stomach as she talked to an unknown figure being blocked by the curtain.

Lifting a brow, I allowed myself in before I could finally identify the voices. I don't know what I was expecting – sure, maybe I thought that it was the nurse or maybe her brother, but when I realized the familiarity, I knew it was Gray.

Before one of them could spot me, I stepped to the side where I was out of their view to listen to their conversation.

"Couldn't you just skip classes somewhere else?" she groaned, clearly annoyed.

"No can do, princess, this is my favorite place," Gray chuckled.

Hold a minute... princess?!

What the fuck is happening?

And is that darn boy skipping? I told him time after time to stop playing around or else he's going to get kicked out of the team before he could even lead them to victory.

"Your girlfriend is the reason why I'm like this," she muttered lowly.

Honey, I'm not his girlfriend and watch your tone, it was clearly an accident.

But I don't blame her for thinking that, in her little mind, I'm out to get her. The thing is, I'm not taking action until I see real proof.

I'm starting to go crazy, but hey, the blonde cheerleader is always crazy. May it be with pep or extreme adoration for the main guy – She. Is. Crazy.

I saw Gray shake his head, "I don't believe Clara did it on purpose."

"Oh so now you're defending her?"

"All I'm saying is that I know her," he explained, "She's good, even if people say otherwise."

Even though my blood was already boiling, I could feel myself slowly calm down as a smile fought its way to my face. Resting my head at the wall, I kept my attention to them, finding myself reassured after Gray said those words about me.

"You've seen it first, Gray," she tried to reason, "She tortures anyone who gets near you."

"That's because she cares," he said, his opinion still not swaying, "I don't like it when others think wrong of her."

I'm always your ally, remember?

His words sounded in my head and I pushed myself off of the wall, slowly exiting the room. Somehow, after witnessing that, I could tell myself not to worry.

Even if I'm scared that Gray might be taken away, I should remind myself that he'll always be there for me. He defended me, even if she was trying to convince him not to.

And that was enough to keep me preppy the rest of the day. By the time practice came, I had all the cheer within me to make sure this practice was going to be the best. Clapping my hands to get the girls' attention, I lined them up to the stretches as I gave them the instructions.

"We're going to do the full routine then we're going to allot about an hour or so to practice the cheer for the football game on Friday," I told them, bending down to touch my toes, "Questions?"

"No," they replied in chorus as we did the last bit of the warm up. I stepped back and hooked my phone up to the small speaker by the edge of the mat to the remix that we had edited for the routine.

With a nod, I started the song and we all ran into the starting formation, chanting the basic school cheers while doing the most ridiculous moves. Spinning and twirling, we went to the second position, just as the main music was to start.

Needless to say, we nailed it. I usually tell the girls not to exert too much effort into the practices so most of the flips and tricks weren't actually done. We were saving up the energy for the real performance and the more dangerous the move is, the higher the chances of an injury before the competition.

Besides, it a big excuse not to do the triple flip while I wasn't ready yet.

"Good job," I praised after we did the final pose as the last note sounded through the speakers. We were all puffing, out of breath from the consistent intricate movements. I dropped to the floor before pushing the stray pieces of hair that escaped my bun, "Take a break then we'll do the cheer for the game."

Fixing my hair again, I released a loud exhale and craned my neck side to side to give it a little stretch. Vivian plopped down next to me, "You seem happier."

"Should I not?" I countered, turning to her.

She shrugged before speaking, "I don't know, considering the happenings during gym."

"Let's just say that I still have Gray with me," I told her.

"He's a player, Clara," she scoffed, "You've seen it time and time again."

"And I've prevented all of them before anything got serious," I pointed out, "I know you want him as well, Viv."

She didn't seemed shock and she shouldn't be, she's really open with her advances. She just simply waved off my statement, "But apparently, you're the only one who can get to him."

"Correct," I said, hopping to my feet, "Now let's go girls, the earlier we start, the faster we finish."

Since we were basically trying to memorize two routines, it was difficult for some to get it. What I thought was just a simple practice turned into a full on training. Football was a huge thing for this school, so I predict that the crowd will be louder than ever and it's our job to lead them in the burst of energy.

That said, we have to put on a show like we just drank five cans of red bull.

By the time we were finished, the gym was almost empty and from the tired looks on the girls, they wanted nothing else but to go home and crash on their beds.

"I think we're done for the day," I declared. They all filed into the locker room after I dismissed them and I went ahead to fix the mats. Sitting on them after I finished, I sighed as I opened my water bottle, blinking at the unoccupied room.

My eyes then focused on the mat, it was pushed to the side and in double layers to save space. It did limit on what I can use, but I think it's enough for one try.

Looking around, I made sure that no one was really watching before I listened, checking if I could hear any faint voice. When it was all clear, I dropped my towel and water bottle at the side as I walked to the end of the mat, jumping up and down to pump myself up.

I clapped once for a start before I threw my body forward, pushing myself up on my hands to do the first burst of momentum, I did it once again and as I was still in the air, I maneuvered myself to do one flip, two flips, and just as I was to do the third, my heart fell to my stomach and I stopped, falling ungracefully to the ground.

Shit, I only have three days left and I still can't do it.

The gym door opened loudly, causing me to gasp dramatically at the thought that somebody might have found out. When I whipped around, I was slightly relieved to see Evan, though from the expression he was holding, he was far from feeling the same thing.

"Have you seen Erin?" he asked, out of breath.

"No," I replied, standing up, "Why?"

"I looked for her everywhere and she's not answering her phone," he explained, "Her teachers after her gym period all said that she didn't attend their classes."

Not good. Not good at all.

"Her friends know nothing and we're all trying to contact her," he continued, worry leaking in his voice.

"Calm down," I said, bending down to grab my belongings, "I'll just get my bag and jacket. I'll help you."

His shoulders slumped as his eyebrows knitted together, "That's very out of character of you."

"Well, you helped me," I told him, "And I can't just leave my friend troubled like that."

"So you consider me as a friend now?"

Flashing him a smile, I nodded, "You're my ally now. Let's go, time's ticking."

Who knew I was about to join a search part for my possible future enemy? Oh well, beats going home.

---------------------

This is going up a day earlier since I'm going away this weekend and there's no assurance that there's going to be internet at the place I'm staying in. 

I have a huge distaste over my professors. When will they realize that when I have my hand up, I know the answer and when the hand is down, I don't know the answer. At least I answered the question, but if you only had three hours of sleep and somebody suddenly called you out, it will take everything in you not to snap.

Moving, let's go with the question.

Question: What happened to Erin?

By the way, Happy Advanced Chinese New Year! What's your sign? I'm a tiger, which speaks a lot for my extremely short temper.

Please give me a little comment, vote, and follow. I love you guys and see you all next chapter!

P.S. Someone is pretending to be me on facebook. Please report the account (the link is on the latest post on my profile).