Ex-Hockey Star Regret のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 61 - チャプター 70

Nicole’s POVThe room felt different when I woke again — not brighter, not warmer either… just different. A little quieter and also a little heavier as if the air knew something I didn’t.My eyelids stung when I tried to open them although not as bad as it did when I tried to open them the first time. The faint beeping beside me pulsed in a slow rhythm that matched the ache behind my ribs. I shifted slightly, and even that small movement sent a thin sting through my side and in turn, I sucked in a shaky breath.For a moment, it seemed like I forgot where I was.Then everything rushed back — the road, the horn I didn’t hear, the blur, the pain shooting through my leg, the way my chest felt like someone had punched air out of itAnd before all that, the picture that Sophia had sent to me, which made me rush down to the restaurant and saw Brad and Sophia together on a bed.A slow wave of nausea rolled through me at the thought of that all over again.I turned my face toward the window, t

Nicole’s POVThe nurses fussed over us like we were some kind of small victory as we were about to leave the hospital while I was just discharged. Even as Brad and I stepped out of the sliding doors, a chorus of “take care” and “be good to each other” trailed behind us. One of the younger nurses blew me a kiss and the senior whispered something about “real love” with a soft, conspiratorial smile. It made my cheeks warm in a way I hadn’t felt in a long time.Brad gripped the car key between his fingers and looked at me with that half-smile that always made my stomach do a silly flip. “You know,” he said as he opened the passenger door for me, “this was supposed to be a surprise. I planned tonight days ago, but I couldn’t keep it a secret anymore and so, I wanted to tell you now.”I liked the way he said it—like he’d been saving the words up. “You could’ve surprised me,” I said, climbing in. “But I’ll take the news now. Tell me later.”He laughed, a small, relieved sound. “I’ll drop you

Brad’s POVI just got back from making the best dinner date preparation anyone could imagine in their entire life. It wasn’t like I couldn’t have made the arrangements over the phone. You know, of course I could but something in me wanted to be there physically, to check every tiny detail. The lighting, the music, the table arrangement and the exact placement of the dessert I knew Nicole would love.I wanted everything perfect for her or better still, for us.I’m ready… so ready to take this “baby girl treatment” thing to a whole different level for the absolute love of my life. If proving my love to her meant going overboard or acting like a fool in love, then I didn’t mind. I wanted her to feel chosen, safe, cherished and absolutely nothing less.I even drove home thirty minutes earlier than I told her. I wanted us to have enough time to get ready together before the dinner. Maybe I wanted to watch her get excited about it or maybe I wanted to see her blush when she realized it was

Brad’s POVFor a few seconds after the hit, I didn’t even breathe but I still managed to have my eyes on the road, particularly in the direction my mum's drove but somehow, I can't even see a trace of them.The other car had slammed into the left side of my car hard enough to squeeze the metal used in the car's body, but my first instinct wasn’t to check myself as it was to yank the wheel and try to keep going, keep chasing them, keep Nicole in sight.But the car stuttered, coughed, and just died off like that.The engine made a sound like it was choking on its own frustration.I tried the ignition once, twice and a third time but nothing happened.“Come on… come on…” I muttered, hitting the steering wheel so hard my palm burned. “Not now, please not now…”I knew then — I wasn’t catching up with them in this car. At least, not like this.I shoved the car door open and stepped outside. My legs were shaky but nothing was broken. The side of the car was dented badly, metal pushed inward

Brad’s POVI’d been standing in the same corner of the station for so long that my legs felt numb, but I couldn’t sit. Sitting would feel too close to waiting, and I couldn’t afford that. At least, not while Nicole was somewhere out there with hands tied behind her and fear crawling all over her.Every few seconds, I found myself walking back to the counter.“Has there been anything?” I asked again, forcing the words through a throat that felt too tight.The younger officer—Officer Daniel, as I had heard his colleague address him, looked up from the screen with the same calm and steady patience he’d been giving me since I arrived. “We’re on it, sir,” he said. “You’ll know the moment something pops up.”I nodded, but it didn’t help. My heartbeat stayed loud and stubborn in my ears.Another minute…another two.I walked back again. “You don’t understand,” I muttered, rubbing my palms against my jeans. “She’s in danger. My mum… she’s not herself when she’s angry. And this isn’t just anger