THE SECRET
609 Words
Chapter Four — A c***k in the Wall
The next morning, I woke up with one thought in my head.
Ethan Hayes.
Not because I liked him.
Definitely not.
I was thinking about what Coach had said yesterday.
You two work well together.
I hated that he was right.
Ethan was good. Better than I wanted to admit.
And that made everything more complicated.
By the time I reached school, Maya was already waiting for me outside the training facility.
“You look annoyed.”
“I am.”
“Ethan?”
I sighed.
“Who else?”
Maya grinned.
“You know, for someone you supposedly hate, you talk about him a lot.”
“I talk about him because he stole my position.”
“Right.”
She gave me a suspicious look.
“Don't start.”
“I didn't say anything.”
“You were about to.”
She laughed and opened the door.
We walked inside.
The team was already warming up.
Then I saw him.
Ethan was standing near the field, talking to Coach.
As if he felt me staring, he turned.
Our eyes met.
He smiled.
I immediately looked away.
“Morning, Lena.”
His voice came from behind me.
I turned.
“Morning.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“That sounded almost friendly.”
“Don't get used to it.”
He laughed.
Coach blew his whistle.
“Everyone on the field!”
We started training.
For the first hour, everything went smoothly.
Then Coach announced another scrimmage.
And once again, Ethan and I were placed on the same side.
I wasn't happy about it.
But I wasn't going to complain.
The game began.
This time, I tried something different.
I trusted him.
When he passed the ball, I didn't hesitate.
When I saw him running toward the goal, I passed it to him.
He scored.
Our teammates cheered.
He turned toward me.
“That was a good pass.”
I smiled despite myself.
“Don't make a big deal out of it.”
“Too late.”
We continued playing.
For the first time since Ethan arrived, I wasn't thinking about him as the boy who stole my position.
I was thinking about him as my teammate.
And that was dangerous.
After training, everyone left except us.
I was packing my bag when I noticed Ethan sitting on the bench.
He looked different.
The confidence was gone.
He was staring at the ground, completely lost in thought.
“Are you okay?”
His head snapped up.
“Yeah.”
“You don't look okay.”
He forced a smile.
“I'm fine.”
I knew that look.
He was hiding something.
Before I could ask anything else, his phone rang.
He glanced at the screen.
The color seemed to drain from his face.
He stood quickly and walked away.
I watched him answer.
“Hello?”
There was a pause.
His expression tightened.
“I said I'm handling it.”
Another pause.
Then he lowered his voice.
“No. They can't find out.”
I froze.
They?
Who was he talking about?
Ethan turned and noticed me standing there.
Our eyes met.
He immediately ended the call.
“What?”
I shook my head.
“Nothing.”
He stared at me for a moment.
Then he picked up his bag.
“Good.”
He walked past me without another word.
I watched him disappear through the doors.
Something was wrong with Ethan Hayes.
I didn't know what it was yet.
But I was going to find out.
Because whatever secret he was hiding...
I had a feeling it could change everything.
- Writer
