Don't Fall For Your Rival's Girl

Olivia’s POV. The warm smell of toasted bagels and melted cheese filled my small apartment kitchen, but my stomach was tied up in knots. I wiped down the counter for the third time, my eyes constantly darting toward the clock on the wall. It was seven in the morning. Today was our two-year anniversary, and I had been up since five preparing a special breakfast for Adrian. On the kitchen table sat a small, neatly wrapped blue box. Inside was a custom leather planner I had saved up to buy for him, stamped with his initials and his jersey number, nineteen. I wanted him to know that I believed in his future as a professional hockey player. But more than that, I just wanted a few quiet hours with my boyfriend before our crazy schedules took over the day. My phone suddenly buzzed on the counter, making me jump. Adrian’s name flashed across the screen. I quickly tapped the screen and brought the phone to my ear, a small smile instantly forming on my face. "Good morning, handsome," I said, trying to sound cheerful. "Your breakfast is hot and ready. When are you coming over?" A loud sigh came through the speaker, followed by the sound of heavy footsteps. "Hey, Liv," Adrian said, his voice sounding rushed and distant. "Look, I’m so sorry, but I can’t make it to your place this morning. Coach just called a surprise film session and early ice time. We’ve got to review the tape before the Blackthorn game." My smile faded, and I looked down at the hot food sitting on the table. "Oh," I said, trying to hide the lump forming in my throat. "I thought you said Coach gave you the morning off." "He did, but things changed," Adrian replied quickly. "You know how important this season is for me, Liv. The scouts are watching every single move I make. I can't just skip out." "I know," I murmured softly. I traced the corner of the wrapped gift box with my finger. "I just... I made breakfast. And today is our two-year anniversary, remember?" There was a short pause on the line. "Of course I remember," he said, though he sounded distracted. "We’ll celebrate tonight after the game, I promise. We'll get a big dinner, just the two of us." "Okay," I swallowed hard, trying to convince myself to be understanding. "Are you still coming to my sports management presentation this afternoon? It’s really important to me, Adrian. The head of the department is going to be there." "Yeah, yeah, I'll try my best to be there," he said quickly. "I gotta run now, Liv. The guys are waiting for me in the locker room. Love you." "Love you too," I whispered, but the call had already ended with a quiet click. I set the phone down and sat alone at the table. A second later, my phone chimed with a text message from my best friend, Brielle. 𝘋𝘪𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘶𝘱 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦? she asked. I typed back slowly: 𝘏𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵-𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦. 𝘏𝘦’𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦. Brielle’s reply came back instantly: 𝘖𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘢, 𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬. 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘪𝘮! I locked my phone and shoved it into my bag. I didn't want to hear it. Dating a top athlete required sacrifices, and I was willing to make them. Once Adrian got drafted into the professional league, everything would get easier. We just had to get through this year. By mid-afternoon, I was standing in front of the sports management student board at Westbridge University. I had spent weeks helping organize the upcoming joint charity hockey tournament between Westbridge and Blackthorn University. It was a huge event, and professional scouts were coming from all over the country. If I did a good job running the sponsorship team, I could get a real internship with a professional sports team after graduation. "Olivia, have you received the signed promotional forms from Adrian yet?" the faculty advisor asked, looking up from her clipboard. "He’s the lead representative for our team, but he hasn't responded to any of our emails." I felt a sudden splash of embarrassment burn my cheeks. "He’s been really busy with practice," I said, stepping forward. "Don't worry, I will handle all his paperwork myself today. The schedule won't fall behind." The advisor nodded approvingly, but I felt a tight knot forming in my chest. Adrian was supposed to handle his own responsibilities, but once again, I was stepping in to clean up his mess so he wouldn't look bad. That evening, the ice rink was packed with hundreds of screaming students. I stood near the top of the bleachers, clutching my coat as the chilly air filled the stadium. On the ice, Adrian was amazing. He moved smoothly, passed the puck effortlessly, and scored the winning goal in the final seconds of the game. The entire crowd stood up and cheered his name. I felt a rush of pride. See? I told myself. This is why he works so hard. After the game ended, I walked down to the players' exit, holding the blue gift box tight in my hands. I waited patiently near the cold wall as players walked out. When Adrian finally emerged, surrounded by teammates and fans taking pictures, my heart lifted. "Adrian!" I called out, stepping forward. He turned and saw me, smiling bright. He walked over and gave me a quick, careless kiss on the cheek. "Did you see that goal, Liv? It was absolute perfection!" "You were amazing," I smiled, holding out the small blue box. "Happy anniversary." He looked down at the box, blinking in surprise, then looked back up at me. "Oh, right. Thanks, Liv." He took the gift and shoved it into his gym bag without opening it. "Listen, the team is throwing a huge victory party at the fraternity house right now. Everyone is going!" My heart dropped. "What about our dinner? You promised we would celebrate." "We can celebrate at the party," he said, waving his hand dismissively. "Adrian, you promised," I said, my voice shaking a little. "And... you missed my presentation today. You said you would try to be there." Adrian rubbed the back of his neck, looking annoyed. "Liv, come on. I had media interviews after practice. My career is taking off right now. You know how important this is. Why can't you just be happy for me?" Before I could answer, his teammates shouted his name from down the hallway. "I gotta go," Adrian said quickly, backing away. "Just meet me at the party later, okay? We'll talk then." He turned and ran off to join his friends, laughing and slinging his arm around his teammate's shoulder. He didn't look back once. I stood completely frozen in the quiet hallway. My chest felt heavy, like I couldn't pull in enough air. "How long are you going to keep letting him do this to you?" a voice asked gently from behind me. I turned around and saw Brielle standing there, looking at me with sad eyes. "He loves me, Brielle," I said softly, though the words felt weak and hollow in my mouth. "He's just under a lot of pressure." "He expects you to give up everything for his dreams, Liv," Brielle said firmly. "But he doesn't care about yours. That isn't love." I couldn't answer her. I turned around and walked out of the arena into the cold night air, tears stinging the edges of my eyes. As I walked toward my car, my phone buzzed in my coat pocket. I pulled it out, expecting an apology text from Adrian. But it wasn't him. It was an urgent notification from the charity tournament organizing committee. 𝙀𝙈𝙀𝙍𝙂𝙀𝙉𝘾𝙔 𝙈𝙀𝙀𝙏𝙄𝙉𝙂: 𝙏𝙤𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙬 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙩 8:00 𝘼𝙈. 𝘼 𝙢𝙖𝙟𝙤𝙧 𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙤𝙧 𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙪𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙪𝙥. 𝘽𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙧𝙣 𝙐𝙣𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙮'𝙨 𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙢 𝙘𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙤𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙚. I scrolled down to read the full message, and my feet stopped moving completely on the icy pavement. Attached to the bottom of the email was a name printed in bold black letters. Sebastian Knight. My heart slammed against my ribs. Sebastian Knight was Blackthorn’s legendary team captain, a player known for being ruthless, insanely competitive, and completely unstoppable on the ice. He was also Adrian’s bitterest rival—the one guy Adrian hated more than anyone else in the world. And Adrian had warned me never to go near him. I stared at the name on my glowing screen, a cold shiver running straight down my spine. Tomorrow morning, I was going to have to stand in a room and face my boyfriend's worst enemy alone.