FAKE DATING MY EX'S RIVAL HOCKEY STAR

MIA'S POV

“I have no choice but to break up with you, Mia.”

The words slammed into me like a punch to the gut. The smile I had been carrying froze, then shattered.

“W-What?” My voice cracked.

Logan leaned forward on the park bench, elbows braced on his knees, refusing to meet my eyes. His fists clenched tight. He looked tired. But I should know him better.

“I know this will hurt, but...”

“Might hurt?” I cut in, my chest squeezing. “You think this might hurt?”

For two years, Logan Brooks had been my world. Two years of love, or what I had believed was love. I had left school and stayed with him. Helped build his hockey career from the ground up. Planned his training sessions, scheduled his meetings, tracked every game. He used to call me the best thing that ever happened to him. That I was his great support.

And I had believed every word.

“I thought you called me here because you missed me,” I whispered, throat tightening. “Like you always do.”

God, this couldn’t be real.

“I’m sorry, Mia.” Logan stood abruptly.

I rose too, legs trembling. “You’re serious?”

I searched his familiar brown eyes for any sign of a joke, the kind he had  pulled before just to surprise me later. But this time, his gaze stayed flat and distant.

“This is no joke,” I tried to laugh, but it came out hollow. Deep down, I already knew. I just didn't want to accept it.

It was Ligan after all.

“Honey, why are you taking so long to finish with her?”

The voice sliced through the air. I whipped around. Nyra Owen stood a few feet away, elegant in a tailored coat, that smug, perfect smile on her face.

“H-honey?” The word barely escaped me.

Nyra stepped closer and slipped her arm through Logan’s, staking her claim. “Yes, you heard right.”

My stomach dropped. “Of all the girls… you chose her?”

“He chose me,” Nyra said sweetly, flashing the massive diamond on her finger. “We’re engaged.”

The ring glinted under the afternoon light, and the world tilted. My knees buckled. For a second, I couldn’t breathe.

“I had to, Mia,” Logan said quietly. “Her father promised me a spot on the national team. You know what that means for my career.”

A bitter laugh almost escaped me. All those nights I had stayed up encouraging him, pushing him to earn his place the right way and he took a shortcut through her.

“You know that’s not you, Logan,” I said, fighting to keep my voice steady. “You always said you would work for it. The right way. Just like Ryan Hayes despite the fact that he is a jerk."

“Stop with all that ‘right way’ nonsense,” Nyra snapped, stepping between us. “If you were really helping him, you wouldn’t have gotten yourself suspended from school, would you?”

The implication hit like a slap. I turned to Logan, who was now staring at the ground.

“So it’s true?” My voice shook. “You were involved in framing me?”

Nyra’s smile widened. “Tell her, Logan. Tell her you knew everything.”

I stared at him, fury rising hot in my chest. “She’s lying, right?”

“I’m sorry,” he said, the words final.

“But I couldn’t let you see me with Nyra at school,” he added, as if that explained anything.

“What he means,” Nyra cut in, “is that we’ve been together for months.”

The confession landed like a blow. I looked from her to him, the man I thought I knew. “You’ve been lying to me? Living with me while sleeping with her?”

This wasn’t the Logan I fell in love with. This was someone else entirely.

"Y-you did this to..to..."

“That’s why you need to move out, Mia.” He finally met my eyes. There was no regret there. No remorse. “And I won’t be able to help with your mother’s medication anymore. You’ll have to figure that out yourself.”

Nyra’s eyes widened theatrically. “She was laying all that on you?”

I stood frozen, nails digging into my palms. I had stayed in Michigan after the suspension because of him. Because he promised to cover Mom’s cancer treatments so I could focus on supporting his dream. Even when I told him to let me go and find a job, to help my mom, he refused, saying he would help. That I shouldn’t worrg. But now? He spoke as if I had been a burden.

“Put my keys in the flower pot outside,” Logan said, already turning away.

"L-Logan, y-you don't want to do this to us..."

"Let it go already, bitch." Nyra interrupted, tugging him along.

I watched them walk off, arm in arm. I still couldn't believe my eyes. My chest felt heavy, my mouth sour, my legs weak that I almost fell off. But I stilled myself as I watched tbem until they disappeared down the path.

“What just happened?” I whispered.

The bench felt cold as I sank back onto it. The park blurred around me. Everything I had sacrificed, school, my future, my dignity, had just been thrown in my face like nothing.

This wasn’t the end of my story, right?

Eventually, the tears I tried so much to put at bay, came rushing out like water. I couldn’t stop myself anymore.

"I-its sudden, but he is not worth it, Mia." I tried to tell myself, my hands clasped together in my forehead.

Right now, I felt like someone was twisting my heart with a dagger. It was even hard to breathe as I wiped the tears away.

Deep down, I held some hope. Maybe he didn't mean it. Maybe he would come to me, right?

"H-he isn't worthy." A rough, thick voice brought me back to reality and I slowly raised my head and my eyes met the least person I expected. Tall, broad shouldered with a youthful handsome face.

"Ryan Hayes?"