The Hockey Star’s Remorse

Chapter 95

Aria paced around my room, her eyes darting left and right. It was if she had succumbed to mania upon hearing Bruce on the other end, a voice she had never had the misfortune of hearing until then.

“I’ll decide on the location,” Bruce said finally, and I could hear the delight in his gravelly voice. “There’s not backing out now, so you’d better show that pretty little face of yours.”

I cringed as he let out a rough laugh, pleased with himself. It dawned on me that I was choosing to be in his presence once more, inhaling his stale scent and taking in that eerie smirk of his. This would have to be the last time, because his very existence was like a tricky shadow casting itself over my existence.

“All right then,” I said, my voice clipped. I hung up before he could answer, but kept the phone pressed to my ear. My fingers trembled against my clammy, numbed skin.

When I tucked the phone away, Aria eventually stopped and plopped herself down beside me. She

leaned in close, then pulled the phone away from my ear with a surprising amount of effort. I eventually came down from my state of shock and my grip on the phone loosened, allowing her to take it away.

“It’ll be okay,” she cooed, chucking the phone away. Even with it at a distance, I could still hear Bruce’s grimey voice coming through the receiver. “We’re going to put that bastard behind bars.”

“We’d better,” I said, wrapping my arms around my torso. “I already screwed him over before, so this could turn deadly if we’re not careful.”

“Deadly?” Aria scrunched up her face, but then the realization slowly took over. She nodded, then hesitated to say the name, as if it were forbidden, “From when…. When Timothy got stabbed.”

I slumped my shoulders, still feeling the awkwardness of our last discussion. Telling Aria about my history with Timothy was something I never thought I’d have to do. Of course, I was foolish to believe that since most secrets don’t stay kept for long.

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Chapter 95

Still, here she was offering to assist me after I had lied to her for a good portion of our relationship. I wasn’t even sure how she felt about Timothy at this point, having been a dedicated fan of his for so long. I don’t want to know if it was the lie that crushed her or the destruction of her fantasies.

“You can say his name, you know,” I said quietly, giving her shoulder a nudge. “It’s not that serious.”

“Stop, Evie,” said Aria coolly. “Just the thought of him recording you like that makes my skin crawl. Ugh, and to think I had a bunch of posters of him in my

room.

“Have,” I corrected, lifting an eyebrow. “I know you’re hiding them in your closet.”

“I was trying to be a loyal friend,” she stated firmly with a fire in her eyes. “You know what? I’m throwing them away.”

I almost choked at that. “A–Aria! You don’t need to do all of that.”

her way to her room. “Our friendship matters more to me than his

of Timothy merchandise, I couldn’t help but laugh. She

to prove a point, and I’d argue that she was more determined than I was to erase his existence. I had let him in after what he’d done, but

how much was going to truly change between us? It seemed like the men in my life all acted the same, even

never pulled away from the booze, even when he knew his daughter needed him. Bruce was still desperate to make my life miserable, and he’d moved on to more deadly measures. Even my boss was adding himself into the line of

all. Even with all the stories and smiles that we’ve shared, I could only believe that things would go downhill from here.

out, a bunch of rolled up posters tucked under her

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Chapter 95

point of looking me in the eye before hastily stuffing each one in and jamming them down with her foot. I looked on, wondering how long until she retreated, but then she took the pitcher

hysterics to come. “You’re going to hate yourself in a week,” I said,

hands and grunted. “Maybe. But at least

is

started to say right as the doorbell went

aside the shoes that we’d lazily kicked off at the

before Timothy stuck his foot in the frame. “Wait a

want to see

head in, meeting my gaze from across the room. “Evie, it’s important.

had given him a good amount of struggle, I found myself

She waited for me to change my mind, but I stayed firm in my position.

stopped just a few steps away, looking more disheveled than before. There were dark circles beneath his eyes and his clothes were barely clinging onto his frame. Had he

even react, his eyes trained on me with a certain intensity. I looked away, finding the

to make

boiling to the surface. “Help

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Chapter 95

Timothy?”

sorry. I never meant for that

“You think that’s an excuse? You think a half- hearted apology erases what you did

to the side and I realized that Aria had slowly edged her way out of the room, likely sensing

it right, but I want to try.

with emotion. “I don’t want your help, Timothy. I’ve managed to keep my life together despite what you did.

flicker of recognition in them. Bruce. He knew. A shiver ran down my spine, and I could feel the

Timothy whispered, his voice desperate, “I need to know

my fists, torn between wanting to confide in Timothy and wanting