Chapter 59 Chapter 59

Chapter 59 Chapter 59
COLEEN

Hayden’s phone buzzed against my coffee table. We’d just come back from grabbing takeout, and he was halfway through demolishing a carton of lo mein when the screen lit up. His jaw tightened the second he saw the name.

I didn’t even need to ask who it was.

“Parents again?” I asked carefully, setting my fork down.

He gave a short nod, swiping to answer. “Hey.” His voice was clipped, polite but cold.

I tried not to stare, but it was hard not to catch the tension in his shoulders as the voice on the other end started in.

“…No, I’m not... Dad, listen...” He dragged a hand through his hair, pacing a little. “I already told you. I’m not declaring early.”

I froze, chopsticks halfway to my mouth. He’d never said those exact words to me, but the weight in his tone made it clear this was a fight he’d been having over and over.

He turned away slightly, but I still caught fragments. “Scouts aren’t everything. …No, I’m not wasting my shot. …I said I’ll decide when I’m ready.”

When he hung up, the silence was heavy. He didn’t sit down right away, just stood there with the phone dangling loosely in his hand.

I finally broke it. “That bad?”

He let out a bitter laugh. “Depends on your definition. My dad thinks I’m throwing my career away. Again.”

I leaned back against the couch cushions, trying to keep my tone light. “Well, for what it’s worth, I think you’d look terrible in an NHL jersey. College colors suit you better.”

That earned me a crooked smile. “You’re ridiculous.”

“Ridiculously right,” I countered. “Besides, isn’t hockey supposed to be fun? I thought the point was to love the game, not stress every time your phone rings.”

His shoulders eased a little. He finally dropped onto the couch beside me, setting his phone face-down on the table. “It used to be fun. Some days it still is. But with them breathing down my neck, it feels like I’m constantly skating uphill.”

I nudged his knee with mine. “Then tonight, no uphill skating. Just lo mein and dumb TV. Doctor’s orders.”

“Doctor?” he asked, arching a brow.

“Therapist. Sage life coach. Take your pick,” I said with a grin.

He chuckled, shaking his head. “You always know how to make things sound less… heavy.”

“Exactly. That’s my superpower. Now, pass me the egg rolls before I revoke my services.”

We fell into easy silence for a while, eating and watching some terrible rom-com Mark had left playing on the TV. Hayden stretched out, his arm draped along the back of the couch. I wasn’t sure if it was deliberate, but it made the space between us feel smaller, warmer.

“So,” I said between bites, “do you ever actually want the NHL? Like, when you take your parents out of the equation?”

He paused, chewing thoughtfully. “Yeah. I do. But on my terms. Not theirs.” He sighed. “I want to finish college first. I’m not ready to leave all of this behind yet.”

“All of this?” I teased. “You mean cafeteria food and freezing showers?”

He shot me a look, then smirked. “And you.”

Heat rushed up my neck, but I covered it with a dramatic eye roll. “Smooth, Michaels. Real smooth.”

“Worked, didn’t it?” he said, his grin widening.

I shoved an egg roll at him to hide my own smile. “Eat your feelings.”

Mark wandered in then, hair tousled like he’d been napping. “Wow. Cozy night in, huh?” He plopped down in the armchair with zero invitation, eyeing us. “Do I smell tension? Or egg rolls?”

“Both,” Hayden muttered, and I kicked his shin lightly.

Mark smirked. “So what’s the deal? Did Daddy Michaels call again to tell you you’re wasting your life?”

“Mark,” I warned, shooting him a glare.

But Hayden just snorted. “Pretty much.”

Mark shrugged. “Figures. Parents never know when to quit. Mine still send me articles about ‘real jobs.’ Like, hello? I’m a musician. My career path is disappointment by default.”

“Comforting,” Hayden said dryly.

Mark leaned forward, serious for once. “Look, man. Do what makes you happy. Screw the rest. You’ll regret it if you don’t.”

Hayden studied him for a moment, then nodded. “Thanks.”

“Don’t thank me,” Mark said with a grin. “Thank your girlfriend for feeding me egg rolls.”

I groaned. “He’s not...”

But Hayden cut me off, his voice easy, almost amused. “We’ll let you know when the press release goes out.”

My jaw dropped. “Did you just...?”

Mark laughed so hard he nearly fell out of the chair. “Oh my God, I like him. He’s finally giving you crap back.”

I buried my face in my hands. “I hate both of you.”

After Mark left to “practice guitar” which was code for playing the same three riffs until his fingers cramped, Hayden and I settled back onto the couch. The movie had ended, but neither of us made a move to turn it off.

“Thanks,” he said suddenly.

I frowned. “For what?”

“For not making it weird. For… being here. For making me laugh when I wanted to throw my phone through the window.”

I tilted my head, pretending to think. “Well, I do accept payment in the form of hot chocolate.”

He chuckled. “Done.” Then his expression softened. “Seriously, though. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Something in my chest squeezed. I looked down at my hands, not sure what to do with the sudden rush of warmth. “Good thing you don’t have to find out,” I said lightly.

His hand brushed mine on the couch cushion and I didn’t pull away.

We ended up talking late into the night. We talked about everything and anything, even about Mark’s most embarrassing concert performance. The weight from earlier never fully disappeared, but it felt lighter somehow, like we were carrying it together.

And when he finally left, long after midnight, the look he gave me at the door lingered long after I crawled into bed.

Maybe I wasn’t his fix. But I could be his quiet place to land. And for now, that felt like enough.