All Chapters of RIVAL'S TO LOVER'S: My Step Brother Is Now My Roommate : Chapter 81 - Chapter 90

146 Chapters

Chapter 81: Early Morning Light

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,

Chapter 82: Disbelieving Breath

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

Chapter 83: There's Somethings In His Expression

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

Chapter 84: The Jealous One

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

Chapter 85: A Push Off The Bed

HAYDEN’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

Chapter 86: Yes Daddy

HAYDEN’S POV:I didn’t recognize myself.That’s the first thought that keeps looping in my head, over and over again like a broken record I I'mcan’t shut off.I didn’t recognize myself.Because there is no version of me, none, that does what I did last night. My hands grip the edge of the sink as I stare at my reflection, jaw tight, eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep. The room feels too small and quiet, like it’s closing in on me, pressing in from all sides.I kissed him. No. I did worse than that.“Fuck!” I mutter under my breath, dragging a hand down my face.This isn’t me.I straighten slowly, forcing myself to look at my reflection again, as if staring long enough, I’ll find something familiar staring back.“I’m straight,” I say under my breath. The words feel solid and grounding. “I’ve always been straight.”And that’s the truth. It has to be. There’s no confusion there or a gray area.So whatever the hell happened last night? It was a mistake.Just like I said.It was the fuckin

Chapter 87: The Laughter Faded

STEPHEN’S POV:I didn’t sleep, not even for a second.At first, it was just noise like muffled laughter, the creak of the door, the low murmur of voices drifting down the hallway. I’d rolled over in bed, pressing my face into the pillow, telling myself to ignore it.Hayden bringing a girl back wasn’t new.It shouldn’t have mattered but then the sounds changed.The laughter faded into something else. The kind of sounds you couldn’t mistake, no matter how hard you tried.My jaw tightened as I stared into the darkness of my room, every muscle in my body going rigid.No.I squeezed my eyes shut, dragging the blanket higher over my shoulder like it could block it out.It didn’t. It only got louder.A low groan, the creak of the couch. A breathless voice that wasn’t his and then his voice, rough and unrestrained in a way I’d never heard before.Something twisted hard in my chest.I turned onto my back, staring up at the ceiling now, my pulse pounding in my ears.This was normal. This was wh

Chapter 88: The Move For Solution

HAYDEN’S POV:Weeks passed and somehow… everything got worse.At first, I told myself it was just a phase…..a rough patch with a couple of bad nights that would fade if I drowned them out hard enough.So I did exactly that.I drank more, smoked more, and partied so fucking hard.I did everything to keep my head loud enough so I wouldn’t have to hear his voice in it because that’s the real problem.It was not the kiss, the way he held me during sex, or the fight.It was Stephen himself. He was everywhere, even when he was not.The music in the club pounded so hard it felt like it was shaking my bones.Bodies press in from every direction, heat and sweat and flashing lights. Someone hands me another drink—I don’t even know who—and I take it without thinking.That’s how it’s been lately. I did not think. I just acted on impulse. Just… anything.A girl leans into me, laughing at something I didn’t say. Her hand slides up my chest, nails dragging lightly, her eyes already looking at me li

Chapter 89: Tutor Me

HAYDEN’S POV:Coach didn’t call players over after practice unless something goes wrong.So the second I heard, “Hayden. Stay back a minute,” I already knew this isn’t about my performance on the field.Because that part? I’m still killing it.I drag a hand over the back of my neck, sweat cooling against my skin as the rest of the team jogs off. My chest is still heaving from drills, adrenaline not quite gone yet—but there’s something heavier sitting underneath it.Coach watches me approach, arms crossed, expression tight.Yeah, it's definitely not about soccer.“What’s up?” I ask, keeping my tone casual, like I don’t already feel the tension creeping in.He didn’t answer right away. He just studies me for a second, like he’s deciding how much patience he has left.“Your grades,” he says finally.There it is.I exhale through my nose, glancing away. “I’m handling it.”“No,” he cuts in sharply. “You’re not.”My jaw tightens. “I’ve had two professors email me this week,” he continues.

Chapter 90: The Clash Between Them

STEPHEN’S POVI knew before I even saw him.It was the noise. It was not loud like the parties he had been throwing himself into lately but the kind of careless sound that didn’t belong in this dorm at this hour. His laughter and a girl’s voice.My chest tightened anyway.I stayed where I was for a second longer, sitting on the edge of my bed, staring at nothing while the sound carried faintly through the hall. I didn’t need to guess what it meant.Hayden was back and I was sure he wasn’t alone.I exhaled slowly, dragging a hand over my face, trying to push down the sharp, unwanted reaction clawing its way up my throat. It shouldn’t matter. It doesn’t matter.We’ve been avoiding each other for weeks now.Avoiding conversations and eye contact. Avoiding… everything but avoiding someone doesn’t mean you stop noticing them.Especially not when everyone else won’t shut up about it.Hayden this. Hayden that.He is out every night. He doesn’t give a shit anymore. He is going through girls l

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