Offside Hearts: Crossing the line

Chapter 5: Anonymous message

The girls squealed with excitement after Vanessa shared her plan, feeling confident it would work.

"Let's hurry and get ready for practice. Chloe is in for a big mess," Madison giggled softly.

•••••

THE NEXT DAY.

WESTBRIDGE HIGH.

It was finally the day of the match between Kingston Hawks and Westbridge Wolves. Students were buzzing with excitement, counting down the minutes.

Bit by bit, the stadium got filled with students from both Kingston and Westbridge High.

A sleek bus pulled into the parking lot, and the Kingston Hawks stepped out in their jerseys. KINGSTON HAWKS and their respective numbers were printed boldly across the front.

They made their way into the stadium and filled the section reserved for players and cheerleaders.

Ethan Carter scanned the crowd, but there was no sign of the Westbridge Wolves yet. With the match about to start, he decided to go find Ronnie Calloway himself.

Chloe Hart sat with the cheerleaders, even though she wasn't performing with them. She barely understood the routines, let alone dancing them.

Chloe turned to Tessa, "I forgot to fill my water bottle at school. Let me see if I can get a refill here."

Tessa nodded immediately, handing over her own bottle too, "Love you."

Chloe laughed, taking the bottle from her.

Chloe made her way into the building without having any idea where she was going. Spotting a student walking by, Chloe stopped her, "Hi, where can I get a refill?"

The girl gave her a quick glance before pointing her in the right direction, "Fourth floor, take a right turn, then head straight down. You don't need a refill card, it's open to visitors."

"Thanks," Chloe replied, heading for the elevator.

The doors opened on the fourth floor, and a figure brushed past her, leaving a strong trace of cologne behind. She stepped out quickly but couldn't catch his face.

"What a weird smell," she muttered, scrunching her nose in disgust.

After circling the floor, Chloe finally found the refill station and filled both bottles.

Chloe stepped back into the elevator, though something about it felt off, she felt like she was in the wrong one. Still, she rode it down to the first floor anyway.

The moment the doors opened, Chloe realized she wasn't where she expected to be.

"Does the building have two different elevators?" she wondered, thoroughly lost.

Then Chloe heard voices coming from somewhere unfamiliar. Hoping it might lead her back the right way, she followed the sound.

As Chloe got closer, a familiar voice cut through, "Ethan?"

Chloe stepped out near the pool area and froze. Ethan and another guy stood, shooting daggers at each other.

Chloe caught sight of his face, then his jersey and muttered, "So that is the captain of the Westbridge Wolves...... Hm."

"Stop acting innocent!! You are the reason she is dead!" Ethan shouted at the top of his voice.

Ronnie's expression turned furious, "Stop putting that on me! Claire's death wasn't my fault!"

"Claire? Who is Claire?" Chloe wondered.

"All these years, I've watched you rot in guilt. She reached out to you, and you were nowhere to be found. She died because of you!" Ethan's eyes were bloodshot, gritting his teeth in anger.

"Stop it! You don't know anything!" Ronnie snapped.

"Fine! Tell me where you were that night! Where did you go? What were you doing?" Ethan pressed.

Ronnie's jaw tightened, his fists clenching hard, "That is none of your business!"

Ethan let out a bitter laugh, trying to mask the pain behind it, "She loved you! She would choose you over me a hundred times out of a hundred! Do you know how that felt? I found her first, Ronnie Calloway. She liked me first, until you showed up and ruined everything. You deserve to rot in hell!!"

Ronnie's fist shot up, nearly connecting with Ethan's jaw, when the sound of a dropped water bottle cut through the tension.

Chloe froze instantly.

Ronnie's hand stopped mid-air as they both turned toward her.

She cleared her throat and bent to pick up the bottle.

"Do you always eavesdrop on people's conversations?" Ronnie asked, clearly irritated.

"Do you always fight in public?" Chloe shot back.

"Only when people annoy me," he replied flatly.

Ethan cut in before she could respond, his voice softening, "Chloe, what are you doing here?"

Ronnie glanced at both of them, then walked away without another word.

Once he was gone, Chloe snapped, "None of your business!"

"Chloe, you have every right to be mad at me. I'm sorry about yesterday, I didn't mean for it to happen like that," Ethan said, stepping closer, but she moved back before he could reach her.

Ronnie, who hadn't actually left the hallway, heard every word before finally walking away for real.

Chloe didn't stick around either, she hurried out the way she came.

On her way, she collided with another Westbridge player and stopped to ask for directions.

"Hey cheer, I'm Kai!" Kai, the goalkeeper, greeted her, grinning like a fool.

"I need to get back to....."

"C'mon, I know a shortcut. I can't leave a pretty face wandering around lost," Kai replied, already waving her forward.

"I just wanted you to point me....."

Before Chloe could finish, Kai was already leading the way, taking a different route back toward the stadium. By the time she turned to thank him, he had already vanished into the crowd.

Chloe made it back to her seat, but Tessa wasn't there. She sighed and sat down alone.

•••••

The match kicked off a few minutes later, and both teams lined up at their positions. The stadium roared as students cheered on their respective teams.

Watching with growing excitement, Chloe suddenly felt a prickle at the back of her neck. She turned and caught Madison, Vanessa, and Tiffany staring straight at her.

Chloe rolled her eyes and looked away, lifting her pom-poms and cheering harder for Kingston Hawks.

As the clock ticked on, the first half ended scoreless with both teams locked at zero.

The pressure sat the heaviest on Kingston's end as Westbridge wasn't letting up for a second.

Chloe's heart pounded, hoping against hope her school would come out on top, at least this time.

The whistle blew for halftime, and both teams stepped off the field for their fifteen-minute break.

Ronnie scanned the crowd from the sideline, a slow smirk spreading across his face.

They resumed back to the field after the break, and they had barely gone far into the second half when Ronnie Calloway scored the first goal for Westbridge High.

The Westbridge side of the stadium erupted, chanting their team's name.

With the lead secured, Westbridge dug in to keep Kingston from equalizing, but luck wasn't on Kingston's side when Westbridge found the net again.

Another wave of cheers thundered through the stadium.

"WESTBRIDGE!"

"WESTBRIDGE!"

"WESTBRIDGE!"

"WESTBRIDGE!"

Ethan hissed through gritted teeth, panting heavily. He checked the clock, and they had barely ten minutes left to salvage anything.

As the captain and attacking midfielder, Ethan fought for the ball, dribbled past two defenders, and passed it to Kelvin, their striker, the moment he was cornered.

Kelvin sprinted toward the goal, and with Westbridge's defense caught out of position, he aimed straight into the net.

Kingston's side exploded with cheers, not excluding Chloe.

The final whistle sounded, and Westbridge came out on top. Ethan exhaled hard, defeat settling over him.

Was he ready to accept it?

No.

Ethan didn't believe luck would always favor Westbridge. Without waiting for his teammates, he stormed off the field, leaving them behind as Westbridge celebrated their win.

Westbridge Wolves were really the pride of their school.

Chloe felt a small ache watching Kingston Hawks walk off the field with their heads low.

That was just how it goes sometimes. Some days you win and some days you don't.

Suddenly, phones buzzed all across the stadium at once, students not caught up in the celebration pulled them out, confusion spreading through the crowd.

Ethan checked his too, and it was a photo of Ronnie, Claire, and himself, sent by an anonymous account with the caption, "Ronnie Calloway blames himself for Claire Hayes' death, turning both captains into enemies."

Ethan balled his fist in rage as he scanned the field for Ronnie.

Ronnie was still celebrating with his team when Sinker, a substitute, ran up holding out his phone, "Ronnie, take a look at this."

Ronnie's face darkened the moment he saw it. Spotting Ethan closing in fast on them, Ronnie shoved Sinker aside, but he wasn't quick enough.

The punch meant for Ronnie caught Sinker's arm instead. Without hesitation, Ethan swung again, this one landing square on Ronnie's face, sending him stumbling backward.

The stadium erupted in a collective gasp.

Ronnie slowly wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his eyes flashed with rage as he charged towards Ethan with full force.

What was happening?