All Chapters of Ice Between Rivals : Chapter 141 - Chapter 150

The days that followed were quiet in the way that hurts.Kai didn’t speak to me. Didn’t look at me. The anger that lived in his expression whenever our paths crossed reminded me so completely of our earliest weeks together that it felt like something had been rewound — all the grapes and hot water bottles and three hours on an ice rink floor simply erased, the version of us that had existed before reduced back to two people who occupied the same space without warmth.I told myself it was for the best.I had made the decision for both of us and I was standing by it. Being apart from him was the right thing. I was lying to him — had been lying to him from the beginning — and whatever we had tried to build on that foundation was always going to be compromised by it. The kindest thing I could do, for him and for myself, was let the distance do its work.I almost believed it on the good days.Ken and Miller noticed. Of course they did — they noticed everything that happened on that ice and

Coach looked at me with the careful attention of someone who has noticed that something is wrong and is giving it space to become words.“Noah. What did you want to tell us?”My eyes were still red. I hadn’t been able to do anything about that. I looked around the group — at faces I had trained beside and competed with and built something real alongside — and felt the weight of what I was about to do settle fully into my chest.“We’ve come a long way,” I said. “All of us. And we won today.”They nodded. Waiting.“I can’t stay quiet anymore.” I stopped. Started again. “I have something to tell you.”Coach stepped forward. “Noah. You look pale. What’s going on?”“I’m not Noah.”The room went completely still.Someone laughed — nervous, short, the laugh of a person hoping they’ve misheard something. “Come on, man. This isn’t the time for jokes. We just won — let’s go celebrate—”“I wish I was joking.” The tears came before I could stop them, which was fine because I had stopped trying to

The maids took my bags upstairs and I had barely processed being home before I saw my father coming toward me.“Dad,” I said.He slapped me before I’d finished the word.I hit the ground. For a moment I just stayed there, looking at the floor, understanding with complete clarity that he had found out. Everything.“Stand up.” His voice carried through the hallway.I stood. Wiped a small line of blood from my mouth.“How dare you.” He was shaking with it. “Fooling me this entire time. Is this how you repay me? Is this what I deserve?”I had nothing left to give him in the way of apology. I had been apologising to everyone all day — Liam, the team, Maggie — and standing there with blood on my lip, looking at the man who had never once tried to know me, something in me simply stopped bending.“What you did,” I said, “was always for your own benefit. Never about me. Never about Noah. Just you.” I held his gaze even though my legs were shaking. “You listened to Kai. Not once did you listen

Noah’s POVMonths had passed , here I was chasing the dream I’d buried for far too long. I had always wanted to be a doctor. My father, of course, had other plans that kept me away from lecture halls and stethoscopes. But now I was here, finally. The heavy wooden doors of the School of Medicine creaked as I stepped inside, the scent of old books and antiseptic lingering in the air. This building housed more than just medicine, yet my path was clear: I belonged on this side.I approached the receptionist desk, nerves twisting in my stomach. The woman behind it offered a warm smile.“You’re welcome,” she said softly. “You must be Noah Carter, right?”I nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”Her expression shifted to one of mild regret. “I’m sorry, but your assigned room has already been taken. There was a mix-up with the late enrollments.”I sighed, shoulders slumping. Great. First day and already off to a chaotic start.“But don’t worry,” she added quickly, tapping at her keyboard. “I’ve been reaching

Before I could even process my embarrassment—feeling so small on my first day—what a hell of a start this was. The lecturer strode in and called out, “Everyone, take your seats.”I walked down the aisle like it was some public humiliation ritual, every eye in the room burning into me. I finally spotted an empty desk and slid into the seat next to a boy with an easy smile.He glanced at me. “Hey. I’m sorry about what happened earlier.”I sighed, the knot in my chest easing just a little. “It’s okay.”“I’m Blake,” he said.“Noah,” I replied. “Carter.”“My first day here, I got pranked too,” Blake added. “Luckily Liam saved me.”Liam. The name landed like a punch. I tried to keep my face neutral.“You’ll meet him soon,” Blake continued cheerfully. “He’s the president of this class.”I scoffed before I could stop myself. How ironic. The same Liam who used to shield me from every bully back home had laughed while I was the one being torn apart today. It didn’t make sense unless he really d