Semua Bab RIVAL'S TO LOVER'S: My Step Brother Is Now My Roommate : Bab 41 - Bab 50

HAYDEN’S POVI knew Stephen was back before I even opened the door.The music was louder than usual and it wasn't his normal background noise either, this was louder, like he wanted the entire building to know he was home.Or like he wanted me to know.I stood outside our dorm room for a second longer than necessary, hand hovering over the handle. We hadn’t talked since that night. Since the kiss and I had told him I might transfer.I pushed the door open and froze.Stephen was pressed against the wall near the couch in the living room, with Marcus’s hands tangled in his shirt, their mouths locked together like they were trying to erase the world.My stomach dropped so hard it felt like I’d missed a step on a staircase.Marcus’s hand slid into Stephen’s hair. Stephen made this low moan in the back of his throat, one I had never heard before and something inside me snapped.“Marcus.”My voice came out sharper than I intended.They broke apart, breathing heavily. Marcus looked annoyed an

STEPHEN’S POV “Let's have some fun….” I whispered into Tory’s ears and he smiled. “But I can't let Marcus find out.” He gave me that smirk that told me that he was happy to sneak around with me and that's what I wanted. I needed to fuck this energy out of my body and since Tory is offering….who am I to say no. He held my hands and dragged me towards the boys dorm. “I have a single room. That would be perfect.” “Yapp…lets go. I cant wait to put you in different posititon.” I said to him, licking my lips as I thought about the task ahead. We got to his room, immediately he opened the door, he dragged me inside and his lips landed on me with such force, I took a deep breath to stabilize myself. “hhmmmm…..bitch are you in heat?” I asked. He gave me no reply and continued with what he had been doing. He kissed me with so much intensity, you would think that he it had been all he thinks about. I guided him to the bed without disconnecting the kiss. I pulled my shirt, my pants and was

HAYDEN’S POVThe stadium lights were too bright.That was the first thing I noticed when we ran onto the field. They made everything look exposed—every mistake, every hesitation.Coach blew the whistle, and we spread out automatically. Muscle memory took over. My legs moved and my lungs expanded. My body did what it had done a thousand times before.But my head? It was somewhere else.“Focus, Hayden!” Coach barked from the sideline.I blinked. The ball rolled past my foot. Damn it.“Switch on!” Mateo hissed as he sprinted past me to recover.I muttered an apology and jogged into position, but it felt like I was underwater. My chest was tight for reasons that had nothing to do with cardio.It was Stephen.The memory hit me again like it had all afternoon.His hand fisting in my jersey. His breath warm against my face. The way his eyes had looked…….and then—The kiss.My stomach flipped.The ball came toward me again. I trapped it this time, but my pass went wide.Coach’s whistle shrie

HAYDEN’S POV:Practice ran late. Coach kept us doing drills long after the sun dipped low, like he was trying to sweat the mistakes out of us or maybe just out of me.I pushed harder than usual. Hard enough that my lungs burned and my legs felt like concrete. It was easier to focus when everything hurt. It made it easier not to think. But the second the whistle blew and we were dismissed, the thoughts crept back in.I grabbed my bag and headed toward the locker room. That’s when I saw him.Stephen was standing near the bleachers, phone pressed to his ear. His posture was tense, shoulders tight like a drawn bowstring.“Ella, just…..” he started.I slowed without meaning to. “I just want to talk,” he said, voice low and strained.There was a pause.Then his jaw clenched.“I know you’re not busy. I can see you’re online.”Another pause which was longer this time. Whatever she said, it wiped the last bit of hope off his face.“Are you serious right now?” he snapped.A couple of guys walki

HAYDEN’S POVThe next morning felt like it hadn’t earned the right to exist.I barely slept. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Stephen pacing across the room. Heard the way he had said, ‘You’re my brother,’ like it was both a fact and a warning.I left before he woke up.The campus was already buzzing when I got there. Groups clustered near the fountain, coffee cups in hand, backpacks slung over shoulders. It was a normal Tuesday, well annoyingly normal. Like nothing had shifted on its axis.I kept my head down and headed toward my first class.That’s when I saw her…..Lilian.She was standing near the steps of the humanities building, blonde hair pulled into a high ponytail, cheer jacket zipped halfway up. She spotted me almost immediately, and the second our eyes met, I knew I wasn’t getting out of this.She walked straight toward me.“Hey,” she said, offering a small smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.“Hey.” I adjusted the strap of my backpack, pretending I wasn’t bracing myse