All Chapters of Skating on Thin Ice : Chapter 21 - Chapter 27

Roland’s POVRoland and Anna burst out of the bar chasing Jeffery. The cool night air slapped their faces as they followed him down the street. He was stumbling fast for a drunk guy, keys still in his hand. They lost him for a minute near the old warehouses but spotted a crowd up ahead. Loud music thumped from an abandoned house with a half-broken basement door. People were spilling out, laughing and shouting. This was bad.They pushed through the crowd. The basement smelled like mould, cheap beer, and sweat. Dim string lights hung from cracked ceilings. Someone had turned the place into a wild pop-up party. In the middle, on a rickety old table being used as a stage, stood Jeffery. Shirt already off, tossed somewhere. He was fumbling with his belt, pants low on his hips. About to drop his boxers right there in front of everyone.“Jeffery!” Anna yelled, shoving past some laughing guys with phones out.Roland’s stomach flipped. “What the hell, man?”Anna didn’t wait. She jumped up on t

POV: JefferyJeffery sat in the cold conference room, hands trembling under the table. The AC blew freezing air across his neck while his face burned hot. Roland sat right across from him, face blank like a stranger. No smirk, no anger, just nothing. The three sponsors stood at the head like they owned the world and Jeffery had just trashed it. One guy in a sharp black suit slammed a tablet down so hard the sound cracked through the room."Look at this,” the sponsor barked. “Videos of you half-naked, shoving people, drunk off your face. It’s everywhere. Twitter, TikTok, Instagram. Comments are calling you a mess. This is unacceptable. You’re dragging our brand through the mud.” Jeffery’s stomach twisted hard. He wanted to explain the fight with Roland, the stupid call that started everything, how one thing snowballed into that basement nightmare. His mouth opened but the words got stuck. Heart pounding, throat tight, he just sat there frozen.Before he could get anything out, Roland

POV: Jeffery Jeffery stood in the middle of the penthouse, arms crossed tightly, face guarded. Roland stood across from him, looking nervous. The fake relationship had turned into a complete mess of real feelings and broken trust. “We need to talk,” Jeffery said firmly. “I’m going to forgive you. But I have two conditions.” Roland nodded quickly. “Anything. I’ll do anything.” Jeffery held up one finger. “First condition. Tell me who you were talking to on the phone. The one where you said ‘I love you.’ Is it a relationship? Are you just friends? I need the truth.” Roland’s face went pale. He opened his mouth then closed it. “Jeffery, it’s complicated…”— Jeffery’s stomach dropped. He waited but Roland stayed silent, eyes darting away. Anger bubbled up fast. Without another word he turned and walked to the kitchen. He yanked open the fridge, grabbed a soda and some leftover pizza, but his hands shook. He wasn’t even hungry. Roland was still keeping secrets. And Jeffery was al