All Chapters of Pucking Hate You, My Bully Captain : Chapter 31 - Chapter 39

Ryder’s POVThe kiss hung between us like a live wire, impossible to ignore, dangerous to touch. Zach showed up for our next session exactly on time, eyes fixed on his laptop screen from the moment he sat down. No mention of the confession. No mention of my mouth on his. Just crisp, professional updates on the final slides.“Executive summary needs tightening on the risk mitigation,” he said, voice neutral, like we hadn’t nearly combusted two nights ago.I leaned over the coffee table, close enough that our shoulders brushed. He didn’t pull away, but his jaw tightened. “Yeah. Your section on competitive threats is solid. We sync them here.” My fingers grazed his as I pointed at the screen.Electricity shot up my arm, Zach’s breath hitched just barely, but he kept typing. The awkwardness dominated everything. He threw himself into the work like it was armor, avoiding anything other than the bullet points. Damien hadn’t been mentioned once. Good. At least I had succeeded in creating a d

Zach's PovThe days following Ryder’s promise to make everything make sense had become the most trying of my entire life.I couldn’t push him for answers because he’d said it would come after the final presentation, and I understood that, he couldn’t afford me being distracted at the most crucial point of our work together.But saying I was anything but distracted would be a lie, if anything focusing had become entirely foreign to me.Everything felt tainted, even basic tasks like choosing what to have for breakfast became a battlefield. My options were usually cereal or toast, extremely simple choices by design.But cereal reminded me of late nights at Ryder’s when we’d raid his pantry during all-nighters, the taste of victory mixed with the smell of his cologne still lingered in my memory. And even though toast felt safer, they were bland and uncomplicated like Damien’s easy smiles.Every decision spiraled the same way.Study spots were worse. The library corner where Damien and I ha

Zach’s POVThe apartment smelled like stale coffee and the faint citrus of Ryder’s body wash. Late evening light filtered through the half-drawn blinds as we hunched over our laptops on the coffee table, the final project push demanding every ounce of focus. For the first time in days, the rhythm between us felt almost easy again, and familiar.Comfortable, even.We traded sections seamlessly, his strategic instincts sharpening my detailed slides, my precision cleaning up his broader strokes. No deep talks, or lingering stares. Just work.“You’re right about the transition here,” Ryder said, leaning closer to point at my screen. Our shoulders brushed but I didn’t flinch. “Makes the recommendation flow better.”“Yeah,” I muttered, adjusting the bullet point. “Looks solid.”It was dangerous, how natural it felt. The kiss and confession still hovered like smoke in the room, but we danced around it, letting the deadline be our excuse.I was grateful for the distraction. Gigi’s advice echo

Zach’s POVI erased Ryder from my daily life with surgical precision. No more routes that passed his usual hangouts. No checking the group chats where his name might appear.One day he finally texted me;Ryder: Just making sure you’re okay. Let me know if you need anything.I read it twice, thumb hovering, then deleted it without reply. Distance was the only way forward. The dinner disaster still hurt no matter what way I looked at it.Clinging to whatever complicated thing existed between us would lead nowhere.And even though I knew that he wasn’t the one for me, I leaned harder into Damien for normalcy.He made it easy. Thoughtful texts checking on my day, surprise coffee deliveries to my dorm when I mentioned a tough morning, planned outings that felt light and uncomplicated.One afternoon he took me to a quiet bookstore café off-campus, picking out books he thought I’d like based on our talks.“Figured you could use something different from your spreadsheets,” he said with that w

Zach’s POVThe hallway felt too narrow, the party music a distant, mocking thump. I had tried to run away again while we were outside, the alcohol in my veins replaced with pure adrenaline.But Damien was faster than I expected, and his hand clamped around my wrist before I could get anywhere, yanking all the way back to his apartment, with his car still parked in the middle of the street.Now we were in his house once again and the loving mask was gone. Completely.“Zach,” he said, voice low and calm in a way that chilled me more than shouting would have. “I’m sorry you had to see that, but it’s time we were honest with each other.”I tried to pull free, heart slamming against my ribs. “Let go. What the hell is wrong with you? What kind of freak watches a person for months just for a date?”Damien’s grip tightened, not painful but inescapable. His eyes gleamed with something possessive and cold. “Don’t flatter yourself, you were never the prize, just a pawn in a very very long game.”