Todos os capítulos de MY STEPBROTHER IS MY HOCKEY RIVAL: Capítulo 31 - Capítulo 40

NOAH MASON A tie. I stared at the scoreboard for a few seconds after the final whistle, the numbers remaining exactly where they'd been for the last few minutes of the game. Two goals each. Neither team had won. And somehow, that annoyed me more than losing would have. I'd rather take a loss than walk away without knowing who was better. The players around me were already beginning to leave the rink, some congratulating one another while others complained about missed opportunities, but my attention remained fixed on the scoreboard for another few seconds before I finally looked away. The match had been intense from the beginning. The Titans had taken the lead first, and for a few minutes, I was certain we'd maintain it. Then Takumi's team equalized. We scored again. They equalized again. And through most of it, Takumi had been there. Every time I moved towards the puck, he was somewhere nearby. Every time he tried to make a play, I found myself watching him closely enough to

TAKUMI WILLIAMSI had expected Noah to regret agreeing to this.Knowing him, I had expected him to wake up the next morning, decide that spending an entire day with me was a terrible idea, and somehow find an excuse to disappear before I even got out of bed.Instead, when I walked into the kitchen that morning, he was already there.And that alone was enough to make me smile.He stood by the counter in a plain black shirt and grey sweatpants, his hair still slightly messy from sleep as he stared down at his phone, probably checking something far more serious than it needed to be this early in the morning.“You're up already,” I commented, leaning against the doorway. “Isn’t it too early?”His eyes lifted towards me. I followed his gaze, realizing it was the first time in a while I had a shirt on that early.“It's eight-thirty,” he looked away from me. “That’s not early.” “It is for me,” I laughed under my breath as I walked into the kitchen. “I don't wake up that early unless there’s

NOAH MASON One hour later, I was back home, my keys on the counter, my legs crossed as I stared at the TV screen in front of me.I'd turned the television on almost immediately after arriving, hoping the noise would keep me occupied, but I had barely paid attention to anything happening on the screen. Every few minutes, my mind wandered back to the rink, to the way Takumi had fallen and the slight limp I'd noticed as he left.I checked the time on my phone. He still had an hour before his curfew and as long as he returned before then, everything was going to be fine.There was no reason to make a big deal out of a fall. Hockey players took hits all the time, and Takumi was more than capable of dealing with a minor injury. Besides, if it was serious, surely someone from his team would have insisted on taking him to the hospital. I settled back against the couch, forcing my attention onto the television. Thirty minutes later, the house was still as empty as it was the moment I arrived

NOAH MASON By eight, the house was no longer quiet.I’d spent pretty much the entire day in my room, refusing to step out even once unless something urgent came up. And from the way I’d planned my whole day, I’d made sure nothing was ever going to come up. I didn’t have practice so I didn’t need to leave the house. And with Takumi informing me his mum was coming over later, I had an even bigger reason to not step downstairs at all. I didn’t have a problem with Sakura. I just wasn’t in the mood to converse with anyone. Especially if that someone would inevitably be connected to my father. Not like I expecting anything different but we were yet to speak to each other ever since the last encounter at dinner. He didn’t reach out to me and I had no reason to do the same, our relationship the same way it had been for years. By late afternoon, Takumi’s mum finally left the house and the moment evening set in, the peace and quiet the house once had started disappearing. I didn’t need to

NOAH MASONI slammed the door of my room shut, the loud sound of the music finally quieting.I stood there for a few seconds, my back pressed against the door as I tried to catch my breath. I wasn’t running. I hadn’t even walked that fast.Yet somehow, my chest was rising and falling as though I’d just finished a game.I pushed myself away from the door and walked towards my bed, dropping down on the edge of it. My elbows rested against my knees as I rubbed both hands through my hair, pulling at the strands in frustration.What the hell was wrong with me?I had gone downstairs because I was curious about the party. That was it. I wanted to see what was happening in my own house and maybe make sure nobody destroyed it while I was upstairs.Instead, I’d spent most of my time watching Takumi.And then he’d tried to set me up with some girl.My fingers tightened against my hair.I still didn’t understand why that had pissed me off so much.Sophie had done nothing wrong. She was attractive