Victoria raised her hands dramatically, palms out like I was holding her at gunpoint. "Whoa, easy there, hothead. I come in peace!"I scrambled upright, my head pounding, my shirt sticking to me like I’d been wrestling in a swamp. Steam practically hissed from my ears. “Didn’t I just say to get the hell out?”For a moment, she just stared at me, then placed her hands on her hips, her jaw dropping like a bad actress. “Wow. Rude much?”I blinked hard. Was this real? A nightmare? Was she seriously this stupid? Instead of walking out like a sane person, she reached for the half-empty bottle of whiskey, inspecting it like it was a fine artifact. Grinning, she tilted it towards me. “Ah, that explains it. Someone’s running low on happy juice.”Somehow, the fight drained out of me. Maybe it was her complete lack of self-preservation instincts, or maybe it was the way she stared around my messy room like she’d stepped into some magical realm. Her wide eyes landed on the couch and cracked walls
MYLES“Cariño,” Mum called me from the kitchen entrance.From the sitting room, where I had my face buried in Leo’s borrowed system, I muttered, “Hmm.”“I was just thinking... what about your friend? Tristan, right? The gentleman who came by when you were recovering?”My fingers froze mid-click, and I slowly looked up. Mum was standing there, wiping her hands with a kitchen towel, her gaze fixed on me like she was trying to read my mind.Of all the topics she could bring up, it had to be him—and today, of all days. A weekend where I was finally, finally starting to forget he even existed.I forced my focus back onto the screen and replied as casually as I could manage, “Oh, I see him around at school. He says hi.”It wasn’t even remotely true. These days, Tristan was rarer than a dodo bird. Between our combined efforts to avoid each other, it was like he’d vanished entirely.I did my part—steering clear of the rink, the shared labs, and basically any space where we might cross paths.
TRISTANMy week was ruined the very hour Victoria announced she was moving in. Announced. Because that’s exactly what she did."What are you doing, Al? You don't even know who she is!" I growled, stomping over to where he was.Al nodded gently. "I don't, but you saved her life. Surely you care about her."I turned sharply, glaring at Victoria, and she gave me an awkward smile. "You're leaving. Right now!"To my surprise, she turned to Al, and I heard him sigh. "I think you're making a hasty decision, Master Tristan," he said. I still couldn’t believe my ears. "Have you heard what she has to say? She doesn’t have anywhere to go."And suddenly that was supposed to be my business? This was my space, my sanctuary. I’d created it to protect myself from people like her, and now I was just supposed to give her a room?I heard her heels clicking, and soon she stood before me. There was no mischief in her eyes as she searched mine. "My father found out about me and Mel. Mel’s in hiding because
TRISTAN Watching the coach lead Myles out of the rink, I sat there, hands buried in my pockets, finally understanding why he was the one kicked off the team. That had been the worst game I’d ever seen. It couldn’t just be nerves—what the hell was he doing out there? Maybe he’d made the right call, giving up the deal. Even if he made it to D-day, he wouldn’t have stood a chance. Jade had gone quiet, her face a mix of worry and confusion as she scanned the rink, muttering something to Leo and Natalie. Well, that was that. I sighed, standing up. My guilt faded, replaced with a hollow sense of vindication. So much for stealing his position—*his fucking position.* But just as I turned toward the exit, he slid back onto the rink, cutting through the ice like a wrecking ball. I froze mid-step, blinking. It was so smooth I had to double-check to see if it wasn’t someone else. But no, it was him—Myles—gliding around his team with a swagger that was impossible to ignore. I dropped ba
MYLES The next week came fast. The high of the match temporarily forgotten as everyone worked in a frenzy finalizing their project and thankfully I didn't have much to do for surprisingly Natalie and Leo had a actually worked together and cleared it up."Wow." I mumbled, looking up at them standing proudly before me, i felt a pang of shame, "So what am I going to do?"The seemed puzzled at my question, looking at each other before Nat shakes her head, "Nothing."I blinked unsure if I heard right. "Nothing?"She nods again. "Yes nothing. All you have to do is go home, get some beauty sleep, and come back tomorrow looking like a million box."Leo nodded in agreement. With the guilt that I let them do all the work, I don't argue. They didn't expect me to, turning away and talking amongst them like I wasn't there.The last thing I expected to see happen was watching Leo and Jade, two polar opposites work so peacefully together without their opinions competing to override the others.But
My fingers dug into the edge of the table, knuckles white, as I leaned in. "All I ask is for a chance to prove myself, and you won’t fucking let me!" "Mind your language, Myles Astor," Coach Daniel snapped, his gaze flicking up briefly. The words were cold, indifferent. Like I was some kid throwing a tantrum. Outside the office, cheers roared from the party in full swing. Each burst of laughter and clinking glass grated against me, a reminder that while my life was falling apart, everyone else was having the time of theirs. They were celebrating *him*—Tristan Medici, the golden boy with the golden ticket, stepping right into my spot, *my fucking spot*, on the team. My chest tightened. I wasn’t breathing. "Please." My voice cracked, more fragile than I wanted it to be. I hated myself for it. I took a step closer to his desk, my hand resting on the edge for support. "At least let me play the next match." The next match meant everything. NHL scouts would be there, watching, eval
The shrill sound of my alarm clock wasn’t what jolted me awake. It was the yelling. My stepfather’s voice cutting through the walls. I stared up at the ceiling, straining to hear my mom’s voice fighting back, but it never came. It never will.. “If this was toast, the whole of America would be fucking dead!” His voice boomed again. I sighed, sitting up in bed. Pain shot from my hips and... lower down, a raw reminder of last night. It wasn't a dream. It happened. *“Changing the list?” The phone camera clicked. “You little devil.”* “Listen, it’s not what you think,” I had said, heart pounding. “Oh, I know *exactly* what I think.” His voice dripped with amusement. Shit. “But I’ll keep my mouth shut," he whispered, stepping closer, "if you fuck me." I shook my head, the memories flooding back with nauseating clarity. The worst part was I didn’t even know who he was. Yet, I had agreed. “Myles?” My mom’s voice, soft and hesitant, floated through the door. “You’re late for school
“Yes, Myles, what’s the answer?”I blinked, yanked out of my trance by the teacher’s voice. The whole class turned toward me, eyes wide, some barely stifling laughter. I stood up, trying to shake the fog from my mind.“Sir… could you repeat the question?”“Repeat the question?” He raised an eyebrow. “Caught you smiling. Figured you knew the answer.”If only class made me smile that much. But no, my smile was all because of the little chat I had with Coach Daniel earlier."I had a nap and realized I wasn’t fair to you. There’s a way to get you back on the team, but it’ll cost you your dignity."That “dignity” translated into being the water boy during training, just so I could hold on to a sliver of a chance of rejoining the team. It was humiliating, but at least it was something.“Sir, I have no idea.”“The answer is ‘cell,’” a soft voice offered from behind. “The smallest unit of life.”Natalie. My brows furrowed as I turned to see her offering a small, sympathetic smile. I nodded in
MYLES The next week came fast. The high of the match temporarily forgotten as everyone worked in a frenzy finalizing their project and thankfully I didn't have much to do for surprisingly Natalie and Leo had a actually worked together and cleared it up."Wow." I mumbled, looking up at them standing proudly before me, i felt a pang of shame, "So what am I going to do?"The seemed puzzled at my question, looking at each other before Nat shakes her head, "Nothing."I blinked unsure if I heard right. "Nothing?"She nods again. "Yes nothing. All you have to do is go home, get some beauty sleep, and come back tomorrow looking like a million box."Leo nodded in agreement. With the guilt that I let them do all the work, I don't argue. They didn't expect me to, turning away and talking amongst them like I wasn't there.The last thing I expected to see happen was watching Leo and Jade, two polar opposites work so peacefully together without their opinions competing to override the others.But
TRISTAN Watching the coach lead Myles out of the rink, I sat there, hands buried in my pockets, finally understanding why he was the one kicked off the team. That had been the worst game I’d ever seen. It couldn’t just be nerves—what the hell was he doing out there? Maybe he’d made the right call, giving up the deal. Even if he made it to D-day, he wouldn’t have stood a chance. Jade had gone quiet, her face a mix of worry and confusion as she scanned the rink, muttering something to Leo and Natalie. Well, that was that. I sighed, standing up. My guilt faded, replaced with a hollow sense of vindication. So much for stealing his position—*his fucking position.* But just as I turned toward the exit, he slid back onto the rink, cutting through the ice like a wrecking ball. I froze mid-step, blinking. It was so smooth I had to double-check to see if it wasn’t someone else. But no, it was him—Myles—gliding around his team with a swagger that was impossible to ignore. I dropped ba
TRISTANMy week was ruined the very hour Victoria announced she was moving in. Announced. Because that’s exactly what she did."What are you doing, Al? You don't even know who she is!" I growled, stomping over to where he was.Al nodded gently. "I don't, but you saved her life. Surely you care about her."I turned sharply, glaring at Victoria, and she gave me an awkward smile. "You're leaving. Right now!"To my surprise, she turned to Al, and I heard him sigh. "I think you're making a hasty decision, Master Tristan," he said. I still couldn’t believe my ears. "Have you heard what she has to say? She doesn’t have anywhere to go."And suddenly that was supposed to be my business? This was my space, my sanctuary. I’d created it to protect myself from people like her, and now I was just supposed to give her a room?I heard her heels clicking, and soon she stood before me. There was no mischief in her eyes as she searched mine. "My father found out about me and Mel. Mel’s in hiding because
MYLES“Cariño,” Mum called me from the kitchen entrance.From the sitting room, where I had my face buried in Leo’s borrowed system, I muttered, “Hmm.”“I was just thinking... what about your friend? Tristan, right? The gentleman who came by when you were recovering?”My fingers froze mid-click, and I slowly looked up. Mum was standing there, wiping her hands with a kitchen towel, her gaze fixed on me like she was trying to read my mind.Of all the topics she could bring up, it had to be him—and today, of all days. A weekend where I was finally, finally starting to forget he even existed.I forced my focus back onto the screen and replied as casually as I could manage, “Oh, I see him around at school. He says hi.”It wasn’t even remotely true. These days, Tristan was rarer than a dodo bird. Between our combined efforts to avoid each other, it was like he’d vanished entirely.I did my part—steering clear of the rink, the shared labs, and basically any space where we might cross paths.
Victoria raised her hands dramatically, palms out like I was holding her at gunpoint. "Whoa, easy there, hothead. I come in peace!"I scrambled upright, my head pounding, my shirt sticking to me like I’d been wrestling in a swamp. Steam practically hissed from my ears. “Didn’t I just say to get the hell out?”For a moment, she just stared at me, then placed her hands on her hips, her jaw dropping like a bad actress. “Wow. Rude much?”I blinked hard. Was this real? A nightmare? Was she seriously this stupid? Instead of walking out like a sane person, she reached for the half-empty bottle of whiskey, inspecting it like it was a fine artifact. Grinning, she tilted it towards me. “Ah, that explains it. Someone’s running low on happy juice.”Somehow, the fight drained out of me. Maybe it was her complete lack of self-preservation instincts, or maybe it was the way she stared around my messy room like she’d stepped into some magical realm. Her wide eyes landed on the couch and cracked walls
TRISTAN"How was it?" Al asked as I carefully yanked off the nose mask. The cap went next."I guess not good."I turned to him, a tight frown owning my lips. "Why?"He nodded to my chest. "Your jacket needs a new zipper."I looked at the metal in my hands, severed from the jacket, and grimaced. What the fuck. What the actual fuck was up with me?Running into him every day didn't make it easy when all I wanted was to grab at him and... And what? I wasn’t even sure anymore.And the mistake on the group pairing? He had waited behind, not moving an inch. In that moment, I could sense it—his readiness to damn all consequences just to avoid being on the same team as me.Also, what was that little stunt in the chemistry lab? It was so fucking obvious he’d always had a thing for Nat. Damn the "friend talk." There was nothing stopping them from getting down to it in the damn chemistry lab.I began to walk away. I needed the pills. The scars hidden beneath thick locks of dark hair had begun to
"Each and every one of you will be paired in groups of three. One of the three will be from different departments," the science teacher, a grim-looking man in his fifties, boomed in the hall, glaring at each of us as murmurs of protest filled the room. "I demand that you all keep your reluctance to yourselves." But the grumbles grew louder. We were in the event hall, every eye on the smallish man in the lab coat. Although his booming voice made up for his size, every time he spoke, there was silence. I leaned my back against the wall, sighing and looking around. Annoyingly, my gaze caught him at the far end of the room, hands stuffed in his pockets, staring ahead with his chin tilted forward. How many days had it been since that night? Surprisingly, he had given in to my demands, ignoring my entire existence even when we ended up in the same room—which was more than a few times, if I were honest. Maybe it was because Tristan was so easy to spot. No one else walked into schoo
**TRISTAN** For a Monday, El Refugio was packed to the brim. The bass from the speakers vibrated through the room, shaking the floor beneath my shoes. I sat on the couch opposite my uncle, watching him converse with Connor. He kept stealing glances at me. I couldn’t hear everything they were saying, even though they were close, but the few words I caught were my uncle defending his decision to put me in the ring. “...He needed it.” My uncle chuckled. “Just look at him—he came alive in that ring.” Maybe I did. In my rage, striking the brute’s neck and crushing a nerve, I felt like myself again—the familiar anger, the person I was before I had a taste of *him*. That’s why I didn’t stop, even after the man collapsed. The rage was comfortable, and I wanted to cling to it, even though I could still hear his voice in my head... *"The deal is off..."* My fists clenched tighter. I was always the one who called the shots. I was the one who decided when it was over. But he had j
**VICTORIA** If anyone had told her that the spoiled nephew of the Italian Mafia would ever step into an underground cage fight for her freedom, she'd have laughed at their stupidity while setting them on fire. But there he was, in the ring, wrapping his bandaged knuckles with a strip of soft black cloth. He’d taken off his shirt showing of tattoos and scars and now stood before a man twice his size who seemed rather insulted by the person before him.This was it. Victoria clutched her soulmate’s shirt, her head resting on the comfort of her shoulders. They were never going to make it. "You shouldn’t have come," she whispered into Mel’s clothes, tears filling her eyes. "It would’ve been only me, but now..." "Hey..." "Mel," her voice trembled, "you should leave. At least one of us has to get out of here..." "Mistress." The soft, choked voice made her raise her head. Mel’s dark brown eyes, filled with hopeless concern, met hers. Yet, she smiled. "I told you I’d follow you