Page 13

Hayden

The ring of the alarm has me putting down my dumbbells and checking my phone. It’s seven-thirty already and time for me to take a quick shower at the gym before heading to the library for my tutoring session with Liam.

A sliver of worry snakes around my chest, making me wonder if he’ll even show up.

Liam has missed the last two tutoring sessions this week.

Ever since the incident at the restaurant, he’s been completely silent. I’ve tried calling him and even sent him several texts but Liam has ignored all my attempts to talk to him.

Liam is punishing me with his silence.

I know I deserve it after the way I treated him but damn! It hurts.

I want my grouchy, beautiful, sweet nerd back in my arms. If he’d just talk to me, I’m sure I can win him back.

“Hey, where are you rushing off to?” Mitchikov asks as I haul my gym bag over my shoulder. “It’s a Friday, right? You don’t have any morning classes today.”

“I’ve got a tutoring session this morning.”

A few feet away, Logan stops the treadmill and comes to a halt. “You’re taking your grades quite seriously this semester,” he says, gulping down a mouthful of water from his bottle.

“Yeah, I’ve to stay on top of things,” I mumble. “I can’t let anything get in my way from being drafted this year.”

“Do you think they care about grades that much?” Mitchikov asks, looking anxious. “I’m barely passing my statistics class.”

“I’m sure Bastian can help you,” Logan says, slapping my back. “I think he’s in the same class as you.”

Mitchikov stares up at me with hopeful eyes.

“Yeah, sure,” I say, glancing back at the time on my phone’s screen.

“Your tutor must be quite good for you to be this excited to study,” Logan says, looking at me closely.

“Well, yeah,” I say, avoiding his gaze.

“I’ve never seen you show so much interest in another human being before. It’s kind of refreshing to see you be so committed to someone, Bastian.”

Anxiety settles in my gut. Did Logan see Liam with me the other day?”

“Do you think this tutor guy can help me too?” Mitchikov asks.

“No,” I bark at once. “He’s my tutor!”

Both Logan and Mitchikov look surprised at my sudden outburst. “I need to get going,” I mutter, controlling the tone of my voice. “I’ll catch up with you guys during afternoon practice.”

I catch them exchanging a look just as I turn away from them.

Letting out a sigh, I walk away. There’s no time to worry about them when I still have no idea if Liam will show up for the session today.

My phone pings, signaling a notification. Coming to a halt by the lockers, I bring it up and take a look.

“An email, huh?” I mumble, clicking on the notification to open it up.

Subject: Tutoring sessions canceled

Hi Hayden,

I’ve let the department know I won’t be continuing as your tutor. You’ll be reassigned soon.

Liam.

Shit.

A wave of cold washes over me as I grip my phone tightly. I re-read the words, again and again, like they’d somehow change if I just looked hard enough.

But they don’t.

Liam is done with me. And I can’t even blame him.

The scene at the restaurant plays in my mind, reminding me of the way I’d panicked the second Logan had walked in. Liam noticed my terror-stricken expression and the shift in my mood. If that wasn’t enough, I’d thrown my drink at him, soaking him in the cold, sticky-sweet beverage.

I’d practically thrown him aside to hide my shame and guilt.

I’d seen the hurt and disappointment in his face but I still let him walk away from me while I stayed back to chat with Logan and lie about why I was there.

Oh, God. I hurt him.

The realization hits me like a punch to the gut.

And now, Liam has chosen to disappear from my life completely.

Panic surges in my chest, clawing up my throat.

I can’t lose Liam. I can’t let the only person who’s ever made me feel accepted walk away from me.

His warm blue eyes flash in my mind, making my heart ache. From the very first moment I met him, Liam has been someone who sees me for who I am.

Somewhere along the way, between the teasing and the stolen moments, I’d noticed the way Liam looked at me. With him, I always felt safe and at home.

I don’t know when it happened. But my attraction to him turned into something deeper. Something very much like love...

The realization leaves me reeling. I was in love with Liam, the nerdy, superhero-worshipping Physics grad who’d pulled me out of the raging sea.

Losing Liam will shatter me, both body, mind, and soul.

I can’t let this relationship end before it even began. I didn’t even get a chance to show him how I truly felt about him.

I need to see Liam and fix this.

Shoving my bag in the locker, I grab my jacket. Maybe I should’ve taken a shower first but I feel like I have no time to lose. I need to find Liam and talk to him before he leaves me for good.

As I walk out of the building, I wonder what I’d say to him. I don’t have a plan, no explanation for my cowardice.

It doesn’t matter , I tell myself. I have to fight for Liam. I’ll fall at his feet and beg him for another chance if I have to.

“I just can’t let you go, Liam,” I speak aloud, heading toward the Physics department.

A perfectly blue sky stretches overhead but fails to lift my mood as I remember Liam has no reason to be on campus this early. It’s Friday and without my tutoring session, he’s free until the afternoon.

Just as a sliver of disappointment coils around my gut, I spot him in the distance.

Relief washes over me at once. I finally have a chance to talk to him.

Crossing the grounds, I move toward him, only to realize he’s not alone. A tall, dark-haired guy in a varsity hoodie stands in front of him, laughing at something Liam is saying.

My feet come to a halt.

Liam continues to talk with a casual grin on his face, unaware that the other guy is leaning too close to him. He’s oblivious even as the stranger takes a quick whiff off the top of his head and closes his eyes, savoring Liam’s natural scent.

Caramel, sprinkled with sea salt , my mind whispers, making me miss Liam even more.

I don’t recognize the guy but something sharp and ugly twists in my gut as he steps closer to Liam.

Liam is mine . No other man has the right to stand this close to him.

My hands curl into fists and before my brain can catch up with the emotions lashing at me, I’m moving across the lawn, closing the distance between us.

Liam doesn’t even get a second to react to me as I grab his wrist and pull him away from the stranger.

Liam gasps, losing his balance and crashes against my chest.

“What the hell?” he groans, struggling to get back to his feet. He glances up and finally looks up at me. “Hayden?” He jerks back immediately.

“I need you to come with me right now,” I say, grabbing his hand and pulling him alongside me. The stranger stares at us but I ignore him. I just need to get Liam away from him.

Once we’re several feet away, Liam yanks his arm free, eyes blazing. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

My pulse thunders in my ears. Anger, desperation, and fear crash through me, tangling up my emotions so badly that I can barely make sense of how I’m feeling.

“Who was that?” I growl, my voice coming out rougher than I meant it.

Liam frowns. “Excuse me?”

“The guy,” I snap. “Who is he?”

Liam lets out a humorless chuckle. “Why do you care? Besides, it’s none of your business who I talk to.”

The words hit me like a slap. My jaw clenches with rage. “So that’s it? You just—what? Move on? Just like that?”

“Move on from what, Hayden?” Liam says, his tone icy. “What exactly is there to move on from?”

I freeze.

Liam takes a step closer to me, his voice calm but no less sharp. “You don’t get to be mad,” he says, eyes flashing with anger. “You don’t get to act like I meant something to you when the second your teammate walked in, you—” His voice cracks and he has to swallow past a hard lump in his throat to continue. “You threw me away.”

I want to hold onto my anger but the pain in Liam’s voice is like a stab to my heart. “That’s not—”

“That’s exactly what happened.”

Liam’s blue eyes fill up with tears but he refuses to shed a single drop. He holds my gaze, refusing to yield to me.

I want to tell him I’m sorry, that I didn’t mean to hurt him, that I reacted that way out of sheer panic. I swallow, wishing the words on my tongue would pour out and soothe Liam’s pain.

“I have nothing left to say to you, Hayden,” he says before I can say the right words to him.

He turns away, refusing to give me a chance to even apologize to him.

I stand rooted to the spot as my gut twists with jealousy and fear.

Liam walks toward a building in the distance and disappears through the doors. He didn’t turn back even once.

My anger wanes, leaving nothing but desperation in its wake.

Is this it? Will Liam never forgive me?

A wave of cold washes over me, making me feel lonelier than I’ve ever felt in my life.