Chapter 4
1170 Words
Rina had never attended a Halecrest game before.
She preferred quiet spaces, safe corners, places where no one looked long enough to form an opinion. But tonight, thanks to a contract and a viral campus obsession, she was walking straight into the loudest arena on campus.
When she stepped into the stadium, the noise hit her like a wave; shouting, chanting, drums, the electricity of a thousand eyes pointed toward the court where Jace Ezan warmed up.
He moved with the kind of confidence that wasn’t practiced, it was inherited. Fast, sharp cuts. Clean shots. Every motion pulled attention to him whether he wanted it or not.
Rina swallowed, gripping the strap of her bag.
“Rina! Over here!” Bree waved her down from a lower row, practically bouncing in her seat.
Rina managed a small smile and made her way through the crowd. Students parted for her, some curious, some whispering, some pretending not to stare.
Bree dragged her down to the seat beside her. “Oh my God, you actually came. I thought you’d hide under your bed.”
“I considered it.”
“I’m proud of you,” Bree whispered, squeezing her hand. “And also terrified, because if Jace sees you, he might spontaneously combust.”
Rina’s stomach twisted. “He’s busy,he won’t…”
He saw her.
Instantly.
Jace was mid-drill when his gaze lifted, searching the stands, skimming rows like he was looking for a specific star in a crowded atmosphere.
And when he found her…
His entire expression changed.
Not dramatic.
Not smiling.
Just… aware.
Like every sound dropped away for one breath.
His teammate tossed him the ball again, but he didn’t look away from her until the last possible moment.
Bree let out a low whistle. “If he looks at you like that again, the school’s going to set itself on fire.”
Rina could barely inhale.
She tried focusing on the court, on the noise, on her drink, anything except him. But her body was too aware of the fact that she was here for him. Because of him.
And everyone knew it.
As the game started, the students directly behind her whispered loudly:
“That’s her, Jace’s girlfriend.”
“She’s so quiet though?”
“I heard she was in his room”
“No, he posted about protecting her”
“They look serious.”
Rina stiffened.
Bree shot them a dangerous glare. “Do you want to get blocked by the entire school? Because keep talking and I will ruin you.”
The whispers stopped.
Rina exhaled shakily. “Thank you.”
“Girl, I will fight anyone.”
On the court, Jace fell into his rhythm; fast, focused, impossible to look away from. Every time he made a shot, the stadium shook. Every time he missed, the air tightened.
And every few minutes, he glanced up at her.
Small, quick looks. But enough to send heat crawling up her neck.
By halftime, the announcer boomed over the speakers, “Halecrest leading by eight! Ezan dominating tonight!”
The crowd roared.
Rina’s heart pounded.
But then something shifted on the court. Jace was heading straight toward her section, towel slung around his neck, jaw set in that determined way that always made people move aside.
Bree gasped. “No. No way. He’s not… oh my God, he is.”
Rina’s breath froze.
Jace climbed the small set of stairs, cutting through the crowd with ease, eyes locked on her like she was the only solid thing in a world made of noise. Students stepped aside instinctively, wide-eyed, whispering.
Then he was right in front of her sweaty, breath slightly uneven, but still somehow devastating.
“Hey,” he said quietly.
The stadium didn’t fall silent, but it felt like it did.
“You came.”
“You told me to,” she said, trying to sound calm.
His smile was quick, almost shy. “Still. I wasn’t sure.”
He stood there for a moment, taking her in like he needed proof that she was real.
Then…
“Can I…?” He gestured with a small tilt of his head.
She blinked. “Can you what?”
“Make this look real.”
Before she could ask what he meant, he reached out and gently tapped his fingers against her cheek, brushing away a stray curl. The touch was feather-light. Intimate. Too intimate for a crowd this big.
Someone in the row behind them gasped.
Phones lifted instantly.
Rina’s breath stuttered.
“Good luck charm,” he said quietly, voice warm with something she couldn’t name. “Don’t leave early, okay?”
“I won’t,” she whispered.
He nodded once, satisfied, then turned to head back down to the court but stopped when he saw someone approaching behind her.
Dylan Maddox.
Rina tensed as Dylan stepped closer, hands in his pockets, eyes locked on her with a gentleness she didn’t expect.
“You made it,” Dylan said softly, ignoring the crowd, the phones, the storm around them. His voice was meant only for her. “You okay?”
Jace froze.
Rina swallowed. “I… I’m fine.”
“Sure?” Dylan asked again, sincerity threading through every syllable.
Something flickered across Jace’s face, displeasure, territorial heat, something dark he hid behind a neutral expression.
Dylan glanced down at the towel around Jace’s neck, then back at Rina. “If it gets too loud or too much, you can come sit by the tunnel. Fewer people there.”
Her chest tightened. “Thanks, but I’m okay here.”
Jace stepped closer, close enough that the air between the three of them tightened.
“She’s with me,” he said quietly. No emphasis, no aggression, just fact.
Dylan’s jaw flexed. “Didn’t ask you.”
Students nearby went wild mentally even if they stayed silent physically.
Rina felt the tension rising like heat from the court floor.
She quickly intervened. “It’s fine. Both of you. Really.”
Dylan’s eyes softened at her tone. “If you need anything, I’m around.”
He walked off before Jace could reply.
The moment Dylan disappeared down the stairs, Jace exhaled through his nose, jaw still tight.
Rina watched him. “Are you okay?”
He didn’t answer immediately.
…“I don’t like him talking to you.”
Her breath tripped. “He was just checking if I’m alright.”
“That’s the problem.”
“Why?”
Jace looked at her with something raw and unguarded.
“Because that’s my job now.”
The words hit her so hard she forgot how to breathe.
Before she could respond, the buzzer sounded, and Coach yelled Jace’s name. He gave her one last look, meaningful before heading back down to the court.
Bree grabbed Rina’s arm. “Bestie… he is falling for you in 4K.”
Rina swallowed hard, pulse racing.
Because she didn’t know what scared her more:
That Bree was wrong…
or that she wasn’t.
- Writer
