LOGINHAYDEN’S POVI didn’t wait.The second the words leave my mouth,what the hell did we do?—something inside me snaps into overdrive. Panic, sharp and suffocating, crawls up my throat before Stephen even has the chance to answer because I know exactly what we did and I can’t….I won’t….let it mean anything.I push off the bed so fast it makes my head spin. My pulse is hammering, my chest is tight, like the walls are closing in on me.This is wrong. This is so fucking wrong.“Don’t,” I say quickly, dragging a hand through my hair, pacing a few steps away from him like distance will fix this. Like it’ll undo it. “Don’t say anything.”Behind me, there’s a pause. I can feel his eyes on me, heavy and searching.“What?” Stephen’s voice is rough, confused. “Hayden….”“I said don’t.” My voice comes out sharper this time, harsher than I meant it to.I hear the shift immediately. The way his breathing changes and the way the confusion starts turning into something else.But I can’t stop now.If I
STEPHEN’S POV:I shouldn’t be enjoying this. I really, really shouldn’t be enjoying this.But as I stand across the room, watching Hayden stand there in the middle of the party with that same tight expression he gets when he is trying too hard to act like he doesn’t care… I can’t help it.I’m amused. No—more than that. I’m satisfied.Because for the first time since all of this started, since the tension and the fights and the bullshit excuses… I saw it.Clear as day. The jealousy.Hayden Cross was jealous of me.My lips twitch slightly at the thought, even as I take a slow sip of my drink, eyes still locked on him. He is not looking at me yet and he is too busy dealing with the aftermath of his little public breakup, the crowd still buzzing around him like sharks sensing blood.That was… something. I didn’t expect him to actually do it.Break up with Lilian, right there, in front of everyone.My chest tightens slightly at that, the amusement softening into something warmer, something
HAYDEN’S POV:For a second, neither of us moves.The air in the restroom feels too thick, like it’s pressing in on my lungs, making it harder to breathe. Stephen is still looking at me like he’s trying to solve something—like I’m a problem he doesn’t have the answer to.Maybe I am.“Say something,” he finally mutters, voice rough.I don’t because if I do, I might say the wrong thing or worse—the right one.His jaw tightens. “Yeah. That’s what I thought.”He pushes off the wall, brushing past me toward the door.I won't stop him this time.The door swings shut behind him, and just like that, I’m alone again.The music hits me the second I step back into the party, it is loud and overwhelming, but it doesn’t drown anything out. If anything, it makes everything louder inside my head.I run a hand through my hair, exhaling sharply, trying to get a grip.That was a mistake.Everything about that was a mistake. Except… it didn’t feel like one.“Hayden!”I don’t even have to turn around to k
HAYDEN’S POV:The party was already loud by the time we got there. The music was blasting through the house, bass heavy enough that I could feel it in my chest before we even stepped inside. Lights flash, people are everywhere—laughing, shouting, bodies pressed close together as they dance. It is the kind of chaos that’s supposed to be fun. The kind I usually thrive in.“Come on,” Lilian says, grabbing my hand and pulling me in like she owns the place.She looks good tonight. She always does. She had a tight dress on which showed her curve, her hair was styled perfectly and she had the most confident smile, completely in her element. People notice her when she walks in.I should feel something about that, maybe pride or some sort of satisfaction.Instead, my eyes are already scanning the room, looking for him.I don’t even realize I’m doing it until Lilian squeezes my hand. “You’re not even here yet,” she teases.I glance down at her. “I’m here.”She raises a brow like she doesn’t be
STEPHEN’S POV:I barely slept and it was not because I couldn’t but because I didn’t want to admit why I couldn’t.The ceiling above my bed had become way too familiar by the time my alarm finally went off. My arm was thrown over my eyes, blocking out the early morning light, but it didn’t stop my thoughts from looping towards the motherfucker next door….Hayden. Of course, it was him. It’s always him.I exhale slowly, dragging my hand down my face before forcing myself up. My body feels heavy, like I didn’t rest at all, but I push through it anyway. I don’t have the luxury of being off today.Today matters a lot to me.It was the tournament selections.Coach had made that very clear all week that today decides everything. Who starts, who gets benched, who even travels and I’m not about to let anything or anyone mess that up.Especially not Hayden.The thought tightens something in my chest, but I shove it down as I pull on my training gear. By the time I step out into the main area,
HAYDEN’S POVI don’t know what pisses me off more—him… or the fact that I care.The living room felt too small and tight, as if the walls were closing in on me. That guy is still sitting on Stephen’s lap, watching us like he accidentally walked into the middle of something he doesn’t understand and he did.Because I don’t even understand it.“Are you serious?” I ask again, my voice lower now, sharper.Stephen tilts his head slightly, studying me like I’m the one being unreasonable. “I asked you the same thing.”My jaw tightens. “You just met him.”“And?” he shoots back.“And you brought him here?” I gesture vaguely, like that explains everything.Stephen’s expression shifts, something colder slipping into place. “It’s my dorm house too, remember?”That hits again, right where it shouldn’t.I exhale sharply, dragging a hand through my hair. “Yeah. Fine. Do whatever you want.”The words taste like crap coming out of my mouth, but I force them out anyway because that’s what I’m supposed
STEPHEN’S POV:The bruise was already forming.I could see it in the mirror above the sink in the locker room bathroom, it was a dark purple creeping along my jaw, swelling just enough to make it obvious. Hayden had always hit hard. That was the thing about him. When he committed to something, he d
STEPHEN’S POV:The world felt quieter afterward, like the ocean below had swallowed every sharp edge inside me and spit back something calmer.We were stretched out on the hood of the car, side by side, the metal still warm beneath our backs. The stars looked closer from up here, scattered across t
STEPHEN’S POV: The door had barely stopped swinging when the air shifted. Hayden was gone and suddenly it wasn’t about him anymore.Marcus’s hand was still on my waist, his breath warm against my ear, his body pressed close enough that I could feel the steady thud of his heartbeat or maybe that wa
HAYDEN’S POVThe hallway felt too small.I didn’t realize how fast I was walking until I nearly collided with a freshman turning the corner. I muttered an apology without slowing down. My lungs burned as I had just run drills for an hour straight.I needed air.I pushed through the side exit of the







