Don't Fall For Your Rival's Girl

Chapter Five

Olivia’s POV.

My hands tightened into hard fists at my sides, my nails biting painfully into my palms. I couldn't believe what was happening. I had spent my entire day running around, starving, and practically begging people for money just to save an event that Adrian couldn't care less about. And now, instead of asking if I was okay, he was standing in the pouring rain, accusing me of having feelings for his biggest enemy.

"Are you serious right now, Adrian?" I asked, my voice trembling with a mix of fierce anger and deep hurt. "You actually think I'm doing this for fun? Sebastian gave me his jacket because I was standing in the freezing rain while waiting for a ride! A ride I had to call because you were too busy to help me!"

"Oh, so now it's my fault?" Adrian yelled back, stepping closer, his wet hair dripping into his eyes. "You're wearing another man's clothes, Olivia! A man who hates my guts! He's just using you to mess with my mind! He wants to embarrass me!"

"Nobody is trying to embarrass you, Cole," Sebastian interrupted calmly. He stood a few feet back, his dark eyes steady, his body completely relaxed despite Adrian's loud shouting. "We're standing in a public parking lot. The tournament is in forty-eight hours, and your girlfriend is the only reason it isn't canceled already. If you want to fight, save it for the ice."

Sebastian's quiet control only made Adrian angrier. Adrian glared at him, then whipped back to me. "I don't trust him, Liv. He doesn't care about your charity project. He just wants to win something that belongs to me!"

Those words sliced through my heart like a sharp piece of ice. A prize that belongs to him. He didn't see me as a partner or a person with her own dreams. He saw me as a trophy in his stupid hockey war.

"I don't belong to anyone," I said softly, my voice cold and flat. "Get in your car and go home, Adrian."

Adrian stared at me, shocked that I was standing my ground. He swallowed hard, pointed a shaking finger at Sebastian, and said, "We're not done talking about this." He turned around, got back into his red sports car, and slammed the door shut so hard the glass rattled. The engine roared, and he speeded out of the parking lot, spraying rain water everywhere.

Silence fell over the parking lot. I stood there, taking slow, shaky breaths, trying to hold back the hot tears stinging my eyes. I took off the heavy jacket and held it out to Sebastian.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered, looking down at my shoes. "You shouldn't have had to hear any of that."

Sebastian took the jacket, but he didn't put it on. He looked at me with soft, genuine concern. "You don't need to apologize for his jealousy, Bennett. You didn't do anything wrong." He paused for a second, rubbing the back of his neck. "Are you actually happy with him?"

I froze, looking up at him in surprise.

"I'm not asking so you'll leave him," Sebastian added quickly, his tone calm and respectful. "I'm serious. I just watch you work so hard, and every time his name comes up, you look exhausted. You don't have to keep pretending everything is okay just because you've been together for two years."

My heart pounded against my ribs. No one had asked me that in months. I had been hiding my sadness for so long that hearing someone state it out loud felt almost terrifying.

"My relationship is my own business," I said quietly, trying to protect my own feelings.

"Fair enough," Sebastian nodded without arguing. "I just wanted you to know that you deserve someone who actually shows up for you. See you tomorrow morning, Bennett."

He turned and walked toward his truck, leaving me standing under the streetlights. My mind was completely racing. I expected him to talk trash about Adrian, but he hadn't. He had given me space to think. For the first time, I caught myself wondering why Sebastian had all the qualities I had been wishing Adrian had—respect, focus, and real honesty. But I quickly shook the thought away. I wasn't going to be the girl who fell for another guy while still in a relationship.

The next morning, Sebastian proved his word again. He set up a high-level video meeting with his family’s sports foundation representatives. I spent four straight hours perfecting my presentation slides and practicing my financial talk until I felt completely ready.

When the call started, I took a deep breath and delivered the presentation of my life. I explained how the funds would directly help injured student-athletes and how both universities were working side by side.

When the meeting ended, the foundation head smiled and agreed to cover twenty thousand dollars on the spot. We had saved the tournament!

"You were terrifying in there," Sebastian teased as soon as the screen turned off, a wide, bright smile spreading across his face. "I think the foundation president was actually scared to say no to you."

I laughed out loud, feeling lighter than I had in weeks. "Be careful, Knight! I might just take your spot as the most intimidating person on campus."

For a few minutes, we sat together in the quiet room, laughing and enjoying the victory. For a sweet, fleeting moment, there was no hockey rivalry, no stress, and no Adrian. Just us.

Then, my phone buzzed with a text from Adrian:

𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙮 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚 𝙩𝙤𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙖𝙩 𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩. 𝙄'𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙡𝙤𝙩 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙪𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙛𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚. 𝙒𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙗𝙞𝙜 𝙙𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨.

A tiny ray of hope lit up in my chest. Maybe Adrian had finally realized how much he hurt me. Maybe he was ready to apologize and work on our relationship. I texted back an agreement and spent the rest of the afternoon hoping that we could fix what was broken.

At eight o'clock sharp, I knocked on Adrian's apartment door. He opened it, wearing a neat shirt, and pulled me inside.

"Liv, I'm glad you're here," he said, taking my hand and leading me over to the dining table. "I realized yesterday that we've been arguing too much because we don't have a clear plan for life after graduation. So, I took care of it."

"You did?" I asked cautiously, sitting down across from him.

"Yep!" Adrian smiled brightly, turning his laptop screen around so I could see it. Spread across the table were job listings, apartment leases, and emails. "I spoke with my agent's sports management contacts in Chicago today. Since I'm getting drafted by the pro team there, they found an assistant desk job for you at a local gym near my training center!"

I stared at the screen, my smile completely vanishing. "A desk job at a local gym?"

"Yeah!" Adrian said excitedly, not even noticing my pale face. "You won't have to worry about finding an internship anymore. You can manage my daily schedule, move into my apartment in Chicago, and support me while I play my rookie season. Isn't that great? I solved all our problems!"

I sat frozen in my chair, looking at the contract draft on the screen. He hadn't asked me what I wanted. He hadn't asked about my dreams in professional hockey management. He had completely mapped out my life as his personal assistant, expecting me to throw away everything I worked for just to follow him around.