Grace Bowman will never forget the day her father was killed. Every moment that followed the news of his death would forever be etched into her memory as still frames of the utter heartbreak she and her family experienced on that summer's day. She couldn't stop thinking about him; she'd tried blasting metal music to drown out her thoughts – a very uncharacteristic move for the Christian sweetheart that she was known to be – and she'd paced around her room several thousand times trying to shun all thoughts of him. Her efforts were wasted, though, because every single thing she did somehow reminded her of him.

She couldn't face her family. Her mother had locked herself away in her room a few hours after they got word of the accident and her brother just wouldn't stop crying. Grace knew she should be strong for him, but she'd ended up having a breakdown when trying to comfort him and finally stowed herself away in her room. All she wanted to do was sleep and forget about everything that had happened that day. However, she could only restlessly toss and turn while the thought of waking up the next morning without a father kept her wide awake. How could she ever eat a family breakfast anymore? The family was incomplete. Would she ever be able to live a normal life?

In a sudden burst of emotion she picked up the nearest thing she could find, her favorite stuffed animal, and angrily whipped it across her bedroom. It made a loud thump against the wall, but she still wasn't satisfied. She ripped the plug of her alarm clock out of the wall and threw the electronic on the ground. Tears were rapidly falling as she tore apart every inch of her room and scattered every possible item across the ground. She was making such a disaster and she didn't even care the slightest bit, because who would punish her? Her father wouldn't hear the noise – he couldn't ground her until she picked it all up. He couldn't scold her. He couldn't help her through this problem. He couldn't give her advice. He couldn't do anything because he was dead.

Grace collapsed onto her bed, desperately trying to catch her breath. She wiped away the new coat of tears and tried to silence her never-ending thoughts. Taking a deep breath, she let out a long sigh and rearranged herself until she was comfortable. As she was moving herself around on the bed, she landed on an unfamiliar object and pulled it out from under the covers. Her cell phone, which was coincidentally a gift from her father, was flipped open and a message was flashing across the screen. Adjusting her eyes to the lustrous light, she read the words: 24 New Messages.

Twenty-four? Why, she'd never gotten so many text messages in her life. Despite the stereotype that stated she was the one girl that every guy wanted to be with, Grace had never been as popular as one would've thought. The only text messages she'd ever gotten were from Tom and Jack. Normally this suddenly full inbox would excite her, but tonight it made her feel so desolate. She knew that people were just pitying her. Did you hear? Grace Bowman lost her father, the poor thing... Well Grace wouldn't have it; pity was unacceptable.

She threw her phone onto the ground and sat up against her wooden headboard. Pulling her knees to her chest, she buried her face in her lap and succumbed to the violent sobs. Sleep was definitely not an option for that night, she soon realized.

A sudden rustle outside her window startled her, but while her natural instinct was telling her to find her mace or pepper spray, her tired body begged her to remain still in her place. Who cares if someone were going to kill her? Maybe that would be a good thing; maybe she could be reunited with her father.

"Hi Grace," a familiar whisper echoed throughout the silent room. She immediately recognized the voice and didn't respond, trying her best to stop crying but knowing very well that it was impossible.

The person hopped through her window and slowly approached her.

"I wanted to come by," he paused, "I'm not exactly sure why. I saw the news this afternoon, a-and I was really worried about y-you."

Ricky Underwood was stuttering. When the hell did that ever happen? Ricky was calm, cool, and collected at all times – especially in the presence of girls and especially in front of Grace Bowman. But here he was, standing before a shattered Grace and at a loss for words. Deciding that talking wouldn't be the greatest thing at that moment, he gingerly climbed onto her bed and settled in next to her. He slipped his arm around her and pulled her into him, placing a soft kiss on her bare shoulder and lightly rubbing her other arm. Her body became less tense and she picked her head up, leaning on his shoulder.

For a while the pair just sat there, with the sounds of their breathing being the only thing that they could hear. He steadily ran his hand up and down her arm lightly in a way to comfort her, but although they slowed the tears he knew they wouldn't stop them. His heart was breaking with every second he spent next to her at that time, but he'd never let that show. He told himself that he needed to be strong for her; he wanted and needed to be the solid rock in her broken world.

"I miss him so much," she muttered her first words in a shaky whisper. Ricky reached up and brushed a tear of her cheek, leaving his hand to linger over her delicate face for just a moment before pulling it back to his side. He was unsure of what to say, but went with the first thing that came to mind.

"I know you do, Grace," he replied quietly. Moments of silence followed as she continued to lay in his arms, finally feeling at peace for the first time in what felt like a lifetime – although she wasn't quite sure how peaceful she could possibly feel in such a turbulent time. Ricky, wanting to escape the silence, cleared his throat and began speaking words of comfort.

"I've been reading that Bible that you gave me," he said, pausing even though he knew she wouldn't respond. Breaking between sentences, he slowly went on, "I think you just need to have a little faith in God and trust that He knows exactly what He's doing. He has a plan for it all. This is just a part of the plan, Grace, no matter how screwed it up it seems."

A tear fell down Grace's cheek, but this one was different than the rest. While the others were filled with anger and hurt and sadness, this one was entirely happiness. One: because not only did Ricky accept that gift she'd given him, but also because he'd taken the time to read and understand it. Two: because he was right. Everything happens for a reason and her father's death was a part of the plan. True, it was pretty messed up but it was a part of the plan nonetheless.

For some reason, Ricky couldn't stop thinking of a few months before when he'd broken up with Grace at school. Images of her confusion and tears were continuously flashing in his head and those images were now mirrored in front of him. When they'd broken up and she cried in front of him, he was able to ignore the aching of his heart. Now he wasn't so sure he had the ability to do that.

But this time would be different.

Ricky told himself right then and there that he would never leave Grace Bowman and that as long as she needed him, he would be there. As much as he hated to admit it, he needed her as well.

Because he was utterly in love with her.

I hope you liked that! I know I should be working on THNL, but this idea came to me last night and it didn't take too long to write. Grace and Ricky are one of my all time favorite couples and I'm very surprised by the lack of support that they have. There's not too many stories out there about them, so I wanted to contribute.

Please review! :D