0016

Rowan’s Pov

Two days.

That was all I had left. Forty-eight hours before every single drop of my scent suppressants vanished, leaving me completely unprotected in a school packed with powerful Alphas.

My heart pounded heavily as I stared down at my phone screen. The text from Aunt Ivy glared back at me: Delayed shipment. Next week at the earliest.

"Rowan?"

I jumped so hard I nearly dropped the phone. Asher was standing right in front of me, his crystalline eyes filled with worry. He had been right there the whole time, watching me fall apart piece by piece, and I couldn't even tell him why.

"I'm fine," I lied, my voice shaking. I shoved the phone into my pocket and forced my feet to move. "I just... I need some air. I need to get on the ice."

Avoiding Alpha students was hard enough when my life was normal, but now it felt like trying to dodge bullets in a dark room. Silvercrest Academy was preparing for its biggest home game of the season, and the pressure was suffocating. Every single player was on edge, schedules were packed, and the air in the hallways practically hummed with Alpha energy.

Then came the announcement that nearly made me pass out right in the middle of the locker room.

Coach Brooks blew his loud silver whistle, gathering all of us around the bench before practice. "Listen up, team! Because of the new league regulations, mandatory physical evaluations for every single player are locked in. Full medical check, blood panels, and conditioning tracking. No exceptions."

My stomach dropped straight through the floor.

A mandatory medical check. The exact thing I had spent years running away from, forging documents for, and lying through my teeth to avoid. If a doctor looked at my charts, or tested my blood, my secret would be exposed in five seconds flat. Expulsion, disgrace, and a one-way ticket off the ice forever.

I stood frozen in my skates, my breath catching in my throat as the world around me blurred into a terrifying haze.

Skip it, a voice screamed in my head. Just pack your bags and run.

But running meant giving up. It meant letting Bianca win without a fight. And worse—it would make me look completely guilty, drawing every pair of eyes in the academy straight to me.

After practice ended and the locker room finally emptied out, I stayed behind, sitting on the bench with my head in my hands, trying to stop the cold sweat dripping down my neck.

Heavy footsteps approached, and the wooden bench dipped as someone sat down beside me.

"You're shaking," Asher’s voice was quiet, low, and terrifyingly perceptive.

I kept my eyes glued to the floor. "I'm not shaking."

"Rowan." He reached out, his warm fingers gently brushing against my shoulder. The simple touch sent a jolt straight through my skin. "Whatever is happening, whatever evaluation Coach announced... you don't have to face it alone. Tell me what's wrong. Let me help you find a way around it."

I wanted to. God, I wanted to turn to him, bury my face in his chest, and tell him everything. But I couldn't. If I told him I was an Omega hiding in an Alpha academy, I risked dragging him down with me.

"I can't," I whispered, pulling away from his touch and standing up too fast. "Just... leave it alone, Asher. Please."

Before he could answer, I turned and bolted out toward the secondary practice rink. I needed ice. I needed speed. I needed something physical to beat the panic out of my system.

Ten minutes later, we were out on the ice together—just the two of us in the cold, empty arena. The harsh overhead lights cast long shadows across the white sheet as we pushed our bodies to the absolute limit. We didn't talk about the medical evaluations. We didn't talk about Bianca or the missing suppressants. We just skated hard, our sticks clacking against the puck, breathing heavy clouds of white mist into the freezing air.

"You're lagging, Hayes!" Asher yelled across the neutral zone, a sharp, challenging grin stretching across his face as he stick-handled the puck with dizzying speed. "Is that all the Silvercrest first line has?"

"In your dreams, Knight!" I shouted back, adrenaline roaring in my ears.

"Alright, let's settle this right now," he called out, stopping near the blue line and dropping into a defensive stance. "First one to score five goals wins. If I win, you have to actually talk to me about whatever is scaring you. If you win..."

He paused, his eyes locking onto mine with a spark of pure competitive fire.

"If I win, you drop all the questions for a week," I fired back instantly.

"Deal."

The next ten minutes were an absolute blur of pure chaos and speed. We tore across the ice, trading goals back and forth like a pair of wild animals. Every time I drove toward the net, Asher was right there, his defensive skills sharp, forcing me to pull off every trick Aunt Ivy had ever taught me. But I refused to lose. I pushed my burning muscles past the breaking point, sliding past his checks and firing quick wrist shots toward the corners.

When I slammed the puck past his blocker for the fifth time, I threw my hands up in the air with a triumphant yell.

"Yes! That's five! I won!"

I skated over to him, laughing breathlessly, my chest heaving. Asher coasted to a stop right in front of me, leaning heavily on his stick with a crooked, disbelieving smile.

"You cheated," he accused playfully, catching his breath. "There is no way you legitimately deked me out on that last shot."

"I totally did and you know it! Admit it, Knight, you just suck at defense."

"I am the captain of this team," he shot back, his eyes dancing with amusement. "Which means I clearly let you win to cheer you up."

"Oh, please! You hate losing more than anything in the world. You didn't let me win anything."

The teasing banter slowly died away as we drifted closer together on the ice. The empty arena went completely quiet around us, save for the hum of the Zamboni machinery echoing from the tunnels.

Asher's smile faded, replaced by something much deeper, much heavier. He dropped his hockey stick onto the ice, letting it slide away across the surface.

He took a step closer, invading my space until I could feel the intense, overwhelming heat radiating off his body. His crystalline eyes searched my face with a raw, fierce intensity that made my breath hitch in my throat.

"You know," Asher murmured, his voice dropping into a low, husky whisper that sent shivers straight down my spine, "you are honestly the most frustrating, stubborn, infuriating person I have ever met in my entire life."

My heart hammered against my ribs, but I forced myself to meet his gaze, lifting my chin with a defiant smirk. "And yet... you keep coming back for more."

"Yeah," he breathed, his eyes dropping slowly to my lips before flickering back up to meet my eyes. "I really do."

He reached out slowly, his large, gloved hand cupping the side of my face, his thumb gently tracing the line of my jawline. The touch was electric, burning right through my skin and making every single nerve ending in my body stand on end.

My eyes fluttered half-closed. The rest of the world—the looming medical check, the missing suppressants, Bianca's threats—vanished into thin air. There was only the cold ice, the smell of pine and winter air, and Asher standing right in front of me, closing the distance between our lips so slowly it felt like torture.

We were mere inches away. I could feel his breath warm against my mouth….

CLACK-BANG!

The heavy metal doors of the arena flew open with a deafening crash, shattering the quiet instantly.

"Captain! Rowan!"

Mason’s loud, obnoxious voice echoed off the concrete walls as he sprinted halfway out onto the ice, waving a stack of papers frantically over his head.

"Sorry to interrupt whatever intense staring contest you two are having," Mason yelled, stopping short as he realized how close we were standing. He blinked, a massive grin spreading across his face. "Oh, wow. Did I bad-timing this? Should I leave?"

Asher dropped his hand from my face, letting out a heavy, frustrated groan as he closed his eyes for a second.

"What is it, Mason?" Asher snapped, turning around with a glare that could melt steel.

Mason held up the papers, his expression turning serious. "Just got the updated schedule from the athletic office. The mandatory medical evaluations? They didn't schedule them for next week. They moved them up."

My blood ran instantly cold.

"Moved them up to when?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

Mason looked right at me, dropping the bomb. "Tomorrow morning."