Chapter 5
1196 Words
Chapter 5
Eli
By morning, the news had spread like wildfire, now the entire campus knew.
I realized it before I even opened my eyes.
My phone wouldn’t stop vibrating against the nightstand beside my bed, the constant notifications coming in was buzzing loud enough to make my skull ache. Initially, I thought maybe the team group chat had exploded after the win last night.
I sat up slowly, still half asleep, and grabbed my phone. The first thing when I tapped on one of the notifications hovering over my screen was Noah’s face, the second was mine.
My stomach dropped so hard it physically hurt. The video was only three seconds long.
Amber had posted that video she had taken of us. I stared at the screen while the clip looped over and over again.
Every replay made my chest tighten more. The comments underneath the post were worse.
People from campus had already started reposting it everywhere through hockey accounts and student pages,
All the school group chats I belonged to was filled with mean comments. Some comments sounded shocked while some were weirdly entertained, like our lives had become another piece of drama for them to consume between classes.
I kept scrolling even though I knew I shouldn’t.
*Noah Kane is gay?*
*Bro ruined his draft stock for THAT?*
*I knew those two wanted to kill each other too much.*
*Wait the scholarship kid?*
That one hit hardest, The scholarship kid not Eli Carter, not the school's hockey player, just the poor transfer student who got caught kissing the wrong person.
I threw my phone onto the bed and dragged my hands over my face hard enough to hurt, tears stung my eyes but I held them back from falling.
"Well there goes my scholarship." I said with a shaky voice already filled with tears.
It was almost time for the first period. It took everything in me to get up from the bed and prepare for class.
When I left the dorm, the entire campus felt different. People were staring openly....no they were full-on watching me while I crossed the quad toward the athletic building.
Students having conversations stopped when I passed by, a girl near the library actually pulled out her phone and looked between me and the video on her screen like she was confirming it was really me.
Humiliation burned hot under my skin. I wanted to disappear, I wanted nothing other than the ground to open and swallow me.
Part of me wanted to find Noah immediately, the other part was terrified to because I didn’t know what happened next.
Guys like Noah Kane didn’t survive scandals like this by telling the truth. His entire future depended on hockey, NHL scouts, sponsors and his family’s reputation.
But me? I was expendable and the thought of it made me feel sick even though I understood it.
Coach Vance was waiting outside his office when I reached the rink. He looked exhausted already.
“You’re late,” he said automatically.
I blinked at him because I was actually early.
Then he sighed and rubbed his face. “Sorry. Rough morning.”
He opened his office door and motioned me inside. I swallowed before entering. Noah was already sitting on one of the chairs near the desk.
My heart skipped when I saw him but I refused to meet his gaze. Without a word, I sank into one of the chairs. His elbows were on his knees, his split lip from last night looked worse this morning, the dark purple bruising was already spreading across his face.
The television mounted on the wall was already playing the clip, it was muted and looping endlessly. I looked away immediately.
“The board called an emergency meeting,” Coach said bluntly. “They want both of you there in twenty minutes.”
Nobody said anything for the longest moment, then Noah stood up slowly, “I’ll handle it.”
I almost laughed at that because what the hell did he mean by he was going to handle it?
Coach Vance stared at him for a long second. “Your father is already on campus, Kane.”
The expression on Noah's face dropped instantly.
I knew enough about Noah’s dad from rumors alone. Richard Kane practically funded half the athletic program and he was rich enough to make problems disappear when he wanted to.
And I suddenly realized with horrible clarity exactly what kind of problem I was.
Noah looked at me briefly before looking away, that hurt more than it should have.
Coach stood up first, we followed suit, then he ushered us out the door.
My head hung loosely as we walked to the administration building, it felt to me like we were walking toward execution.
Students openly whispered when we passed, bringing out their phones without hesitation. Someone near the stairs laughed quietly while another person muttered something I couldn’t fully hear except for the word faggot sliding sharply through the hallway.
Noah heard it too, i knew he had from the way his entire body tensed instantly beside me but he kept walking.
We got to the administrative block and stepped inside. The boardroom looked exactly how I imagined rich people judged others.
The tables were lond and polished with massive windows. The school's officials were sitting stiffly in expensive suits while papers and tablets covered the table in front of them.
Only Richard Kane was standing near the windows.
The resemblance between him and Noah hit harder up close. They had the same sharp jaw and the same cold eyes, except Noah still looked human, his father looked carved from ice.
The second we walked in, every eye in the room landed on us. I suddenly became painfully aware of my cheap shoes and my worn jacket coupled with the fact that I didn't belong here.
One of the board members cleared his throat awkwardly. “Please sit.”
Neither of us moved immediately. Then Noah pulled out the chair beside him for me without thinking.
I wish he hadn't done that, I say regardless.
The meeting started badly and somehow kept getting worse.
One of the board members finally folded his hands together carefully. “Mr. Kane, your father believes this situation may have been misrepresented publicly.”
The words sickened me instantly. Beside me, Noah went completely still.
Richard Kane stepped forward calmly like this was already settled. “My son has been under considerable stress lately. It’s understandable how boundaries may become blurred in emotional situations.”
I stared at the table because I couldn’t look at Noah anymore.
Of course this was happening. The rich golden boy gets confused while the scholarship kid becomes the problem, I should’ve expected it.
Richard continued smoothly, “If Noah clarifies that the interaction was initiated by Mr. Carter, this situation can likely be resolved privately.”
My chest tightened painfully, I felt betrayed beyond words, I kept staring downward because somehow that hurt
less than seeing Noah actually agree to it.
“It was me.” Noah said after an awkward silence, “I kissed him first.”
- Writer
