7. The Interception
1082 Words
There was an unwritten rule at Toronto University: if the ice rink belonged to Brandon Walker, then the polished hardwood court in the main gym was Alex Vance’s territory.
I’d just stepped out of my Macroeconomics lecture, planning to high-tail it to the cafeteria to meet Lily, when a massive, imposing shadow completely blocked my path right outside the main auditorium.
I looked up. And then, I had to look up some more. The guy towering over me was easily 6'4". He was sporting a red-and-black sleeveless basketball practice jersey that put his chiseled, tatted biceps on full display, a varsity jacket slung carelessly over one shoulder. His short brown hair was still damp from sweat, and he practically radiated cocky, bad-boy energy.
Great. My internal alarm bells started screaming. This screamed trouble.
“You’re the freshman from Vancouver, right? Hailey?” he asked, his tone smooth but probing. A faint, knowing smirk played on his ridiculously handsome face.
I instinctively took a step back, yanking my baseball cap lower over my eyes. Damn it. How the hell did he know my name?
“Yeah. Excuse me, I’m in a rush,” I said, trying to sidestep him to the left.
But with a quick, practiced shift of his massive frame, he blocked me again. He casually bounced the basketball in his right hand once, catching it effortlessly.
Show-off.
“Take it easy, Vancouver. I don’t bite,” he chuckled, his eyes scanning me. There was a sudden flash of genuine interest in his gaze when he managed to catch a glimpse of my face beneath the brim of my cap. “I’m Alex. Alex Vance. Captain of the basketball team.”
I let out a quiet, exhausted sigh. Fantastic. Another campus heavyweight I needed to avoid like the plague. “Nice to meet you, Alex. But my friend is waiting for me. So, move.”
"Lily, right? The girl with the glasses sitting in the corner of the caf?" Alex raised an eyebrow, looking like a guy who knew every single piece of gossip on this campus. "I can have one of my rookies keep her company while I buy you a coffee across the street. What do you say?"
I opened my mouth to firmly shut down his pushy ass, but the noisy chatter in the hallway suddenly died. The temperature plummeted. That familiar, icy chill crawled up the back of my neck before I even had the chance to turn around.
Heavy, rhythmic footsteps echoed down the hall.
Coming from the opposite direction, the Blackhawks hockey team was heading back from their conditioning session. Leading the pack was Brandon, a small white towel draped around his neck. His tight gray T-shirt was damp with sweat, clinging to his broad chest and a ridiculous set of abs.
When they were just a few feet away, Brandon’s dark eyes locked dead onto Alex. Who was standing way too close to me.
Brandon didn’t stop walking, but I saw his rigid jaw clench instantly. His eyes narrowed into a lethal glare far deadlier than a Toronto blizzard. According to our little deal, he wasn't supposed to acknowledge me or interfere with my life in public.
But seeing the rival basketball captain trying to corner his secret girl was clearly testing the absolute limits of the Ice King’s patience.
Seriously? My life with Brandon is already a mess. If another jock gets thrown into the mix, I’m going to lose my mind.
Brandon deliberately slowed his pace as he passed us. His massive shoulder slammed right into Alex’s, hard enough to send the basketball captain stumbling a step to the side.
Thud.
“Walker, watch where the f**k you’re going,” Alex growled, his voice instantly turning sharp and hostile. The bad blood between these two clearly ran deep.
Brandon stopped in his tracks. He turned slowly, leveling Alex with a cold, condescending stare. He didn’t glance at me, not even for a fraction of a second, sticking perfectly to our script so the whole world would think I meant nothing to him.
"The hallway's narrow, Vance. Don't block traffic with your big-ass frame," Brandon replied, his voice low, calm, and laced with a silent promise of violence
.
Alex let out a sarcastic laugh, stepping forward to challenge Brandon, who only had an inch or two on him. “I’m not blocking traffic. I’m just talking to a pretty girl. Or... do you have a problem with that?” Alex was poking the bear on purpose, throwing a smug glance my way like I was some shiny new trophy he wanted to claim.
God, Alex really is an annoying, provocative playboy.
Behind Brandon, Noah and Liam immediately crossed their arms, instantly shifting into backup mode in case a full-blown brawl broke out between the school’s two biggest athletic captains.
Brandon just stared at Alex for a few agonizingly tense seconds. The tension in the air was so thick that several undergrads chose to literally walk the long way around to avoid them.
“I don’t give a s**t who you’re talking to,” Brandon finally said, his voice as sharp as a skate blade on fresh ice. But the look in his eyes told a completely different story: Touch her, and I’ll end you.
“Let’s go,” Brandon ordered his boys, turning on his heel and leading the hockey team away.
I froze, squeezing my backpack straps until my knuckles turned white. Just before Brandon disappeared around the corner, his left hand, resting casually in his pocket—made a quick, fleeting gesture with his fingers. A signal only I would understand after last night.
The signal meant: Meet me tonight.
“Hockey guys are always such d***s,” Alex muttered, snapping me out of my daze as he turned back to me, his charming smile magically restored. “So, back to that coffee, Hailey?”
I looked at Alex. If I said yes, I might as well dig my own grave. Alex wasn’t just making my life complicated, I knew for a fact that a jealous Brandon Walker was a terrifying, unpredictable storm. I could still feel the phantom burn of Brandon's territorial glare on my skin, even though he was gone.
“Sorry, Alex. Maybe next time,” I blurted out, then practically sprinted down the hallway, completely ignoring him calling after me.
“Wait, what? Did you seriously just blow off Alex Vance?! Hey Vancouver girl!”
- Writer
