I opened the front door and stepped outside. The rain hit my face immediately. Cold and sharp. It woke me up.

Cole stood there in the middle of my driveway. Soaked to the bone. His hair was plastered to his forehead. His jersey clung to his chest. He looked like he had been standing there for a while.

"Mia." His voice cracked. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For everything. For the fight. For Lucas. For making you feel like you had to choose." I stepped closer. "Cole..."

"I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I just..." He ran his hand through his wet hair. "I couldn't keep watching you. I couldn't keep pretending I didn't care."

My heart started pounding. "Why do you care so much?"

He looked at me. His grey eyes were red. Like he had been crying. Or like he hadn't slept in days.

"Because I've been in love with you since sophomore year."

The words hit me like a slap.

"What?"

"I know. It's crazy. It's stupid. You were with my brother. I had no right. But I couldn't help it. I watched you skate. I watched you laugh. I watched you work harder than anyone I've ever known. And I fell for you. Hard."

I couldn't breathe. "You never said anything."

"Because he was my brother. You were his girl. I couldn't do that to either of you." "But you paid for my skating fees."

His face tightened. "Yeah."

"How? How did you even do that?"

"There was a scholarship. You applied for it last year when your dad couldn't afford your training. You didn't get it. The committee turned you down."

"I know."

"I went to them. I told them I had a donor who wanted to fund it anonymously." My eyes widened. "That was you?"

"I had savings. My dad gave me money for graduation. I didn't need it. You needed it more." "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because you would have said no. You would have been too proud. Too stubborn. You would have refused help from Kingston."

He was right. I would have.

I stepped closer to him. The rain kept falling. Neither of us moved to get out of it. "You watched me from afar," I said. "For years."

"Every day. Every practice. Every competition. I was always there. Just in the background." "And you never said anything."

"I was scared. Scared you would reject me. Scared you would hate me for going behind Lucas's back. Scared of what it would do to our family."

"But you're saying it now."

He nodded. "I'm tired of being the guy who stays quiet. I'm tired of watching you hurt. I'm tired of pretending I don't want you."

The words hung in the air between us.

I didn't know what to say. I didn't have words. All I had was this feeling. This overwhelming feeling that had been building for weeks. Months. Years.

And then I grabbed his face.

I pulled him toward me and kissed him.

It wasn't gentle. It wasn't soft. It was years of tension breaking loose. Years of stolen glances and secret feelings. Years of wanting something I thought I couldn't have.

He kissed me back. His hands found my waist. He pulled me closer. The rain was falling all around us. Neither of us cared.

He tasted like rain. Like desperation. Like everything I had been too scared to feel. When we finally pulled apart, we were both breathing hard.

His forehead rested against mine. "That was..."

"Yeah."

"I've wanted to do that for so long."

"Then why didn't you?"

"Because you were with him. And I thought you would never see me that way." "Cole..." I touched his cheek. "I see you. I see you now."

He closed his eyes. Let out a shaky breath.

Then he pulled back. His face changed. His jaw tightened.

"Mia, I need you to know something."

"What?"

"Lucas is sabotaging me."

I blinked. "What?"

"He's been calling coaches. Sending emails. Spreading rumours." Cole's voice was low. Angry. "He's trying to get my hockey offers pulled. He's trying to make sure I don't get scouted."

I stepped back. "That's insane. He's your brother."

"I know."

"Why would he do that?"

"Because he's jealous. Because he's scared. Because he knows you're choosing me and he can't handle it."

My heart started racing. "Cole. That's serious. That could ruin your future." "I know."

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know." He looked at me. "I don't know what to do. I've worked my whole life for this. And he's just... taking it away. One call at a time."

I grabbed his hand. "We'll figure this out."

"We?"

I looked up at him. "We. I'm not walking away. Not now."

He stared at me like he couldn't believe what I was saying.

"Mia..."

"I mean it." I squeezed his hand. "You came for me. You paid for my skating fees. You watched over me when I didn't even know it. Now it's my turn."

"You don't have to do this."

"I know. I want to."

He pulled me into a hug. Wrapped his arms around me. Hold me tight.

I felt the rain soak through my clothes. I didn't care.

I felt his heartbeat against my chest. Steady and strong.

For the first time in a long time, I felt like I was exactly where I was supposed to be.

He closed his eyes. Let out a shaky breath.

Then he pulled back. His face changed. His jaw tightened.

"Mia, I need you to know something."

"What?"

"Lucas is sabotaging me."

I blinked. "What?"

"He's been calling coaches. Sending emails. Spreading rumours." Cole's voice was low. Angry. "He's trying to get my hockey offers pulled. He's trying to make sure I don't get scouted."

I stepped back. "That's insane. He's your brother."

"I know."

"Why would he do that?"

"Because he's jealous. Because he's scared. Because he knows you're choosing me and he can't handle it."

My heart started racing. "Cole. That's serious. That could ruin your future."

"I know."

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know." He looked at me. "I don't know what to do. I've worked my whole life for this. And he's just... taking it away. One call at a time."

I grabbed his hand. "We'll figure this out."

"We?"

I looked up at him. "We. I'm not walking away. Not now."

He stared at me. Like he couldn't believe what I was saying.

"Mia..."

"I mean it." I squeezed his hand. "You came for me. You paid for my skating fees. You watched over me when I didn't even know it. Now it's my turn."

"You don't have to do this."

"I know. I want to."

He pulled me into a hug. Wrapped his arms around me. Hold me tight.

I felt the rain soak through my clothes. I didn't care.

I felt his heartbeat against my chest. Steady and strong.

For the first time in a long time, I felt like I was exactly where I was supposed to be.

I don't know how long we stood there. Minutes. Maybe longer. The rain kept falling. Neither of us moved.

Finally, he pulled back and looked at me.

"Your parents are going to see us," he said.

"Probably."

"You don't care?"

"Not really."

He smiled. That small, crooked smile I was starting to love.

"Same time tomorrow?" he asked.

I laughed. "You always ask that."

"Because I always want to see you."

My heart melted. "Yeah. Same time tomorrow."

He kissed my forehead. Then he let go and walked back to his truck. He was soaked. He looked tired. But he also looked happy.

I watched him drive away. The rain was still falling. I was still standing in it. I didn't care. I walked back inside. Sophie was waiting on the couch. She had a huge grin on her face.

"So?" she said.

"So what?"

"I saw the kiss. Through the window."

My face turned red. "You were watching?"

"Of course I was watching." She jumped up. "Tell me everything."

I sat down next to her. "He confessed. He said he's been in love with me since sophomore year."

"I knew it."

"He also paid for my skating fees. All of them."

Sophie's jaw dropped. "What?"

"He set up a fake scholarship. Used his own money."

"Wow. That's..."

"I know."

She grabbed my arm. "So what happens now?"

I shook my head. "I don't know. Lucas is sabotaging him. Trying to get his hockey offers pulled."

Sophie's face went serious. "That's really bad."

"I know."

"What are you going to do?"

I looked at her. "I'm going to help him. Whatever it takes."

Sophie nodded. "That's the Mia I know."

I leaned back on the couch. My mind was spinning. But for the first time in a year, I felt hope.

Cole was worth fighting for.

And I wasn't going to let Lucas take that away from him.

The rain kept falling long after we stopped kissing. Cole’s arms stayed around me like he was afraid I would disappear if he let go. I pressed my face into his soaked jersey and breathed him in. He smelled like ice and rain and something that was just him. I did not want to move. I did not want the night to end.

He finally pulled back just enough to look at me. Water dripped from his hair onto my cheeks. His grey eyes searched mine like he was still waiting for me to change my mind.

“You’re shaking,” he said.

“It’s cold.”

“Come inside.”

I shook my head. “My dad is home. He’s asleep, but if he wakes up and sees you like this, he will ask questions I am not ready to answer.”

Cole nodded. He understood. He always did. He took my hand and led me under the small overhang by the front door. We stood there with our backs against the wall while the rain poured off the roof in sheets. His thumb traced slow circles over my knuckles.

“About Lucas,” I said. The name tasted bitter. “What exactly has he been doing?”

Cole’s jaw tightened. “Three different coaches called me last week. They said they got emails about me. About my attitude. About how I am a distraction on the team. One of them mentioned a fight I never even had. The other said I was using performance stuff that is not true. Someone is feeding them lies. I traced one of the email addresses back to a burner account. The IP was from Lucas’s campus.”

My stomach turned. “Have you told Coach Harris?”

“Not yet. I need proof that will stick. Right now it is just my word against his. And Lucas is the golden boy who already made it to college. I am still the one trying to get there.”

I squeezed his hand. “We will get proof. There has to be a way.”

He looked at me for a long second. “You keep saying we.”

“Because I mean it.”

He leaned in and rested his forehead against mine again. The contact sent heat through my whole body even though we were both freezing. “I do not want you in the middle of this, Mia. He is already angry. If he finds out you are helping me, he will make it worse for you.”

“He already made it worse for me a year ago. I am not scared of him anymore.”

Cole was quiet for a moment. Then he said, “Stay with me tomorrow after practice. Just for a little while. We can figure out what to do.”

“Okay.”

He kissed me once more. Softer this time. Like he was memorizing the shape of my mouth. When he pulled away, he looked younger somehow. Less like the captain of the hockey team and more like a boy who had been carrying too much for too long.

“Go inside before you get sick,” he said. “I will text you when I get home.”

I watched him walk to his car through the rain. He looked back once before he got in. I raised my hand. He did the same. Then his headlights cut through the dark, and he was gone.

I went inside and stood under the shower until the water ran cold. My lips still tingled. My chest felt too full. I climbed into bed and stared at the ceiling for a long time. Sleep did not come easy. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Cole in the rain saying he had been in love with me since sophomore year. Every time I opened them, I remembered that Lucas was out there trying to destroy the one person who had actually shown up for me.

My phone lit up around one in the morning.

Cole: Home safe. You okay?

Me: Yeah. You?

Cole: Better now. Get some sleep, skater girl.

I smiled at the nickname even though I used to hate it. I typed back goodnight and put the phone face down. For the first time in months, the quiet in my room did not feel lonely.

The next morning the rink felt different. The air still smelled like cold metal and rubber mats, but everything else had shifted. Cole was already on the ice when I arrived. He looked up the second the doors opened and something soft crossed his face before he wiped it away. We did not speak while the other players and skaters filtered in. We did not need to. The look we shared said enough.

Practice was brutal. Coach Harris ran the hockey team through drills until half of them were bent over the boards, gasping. My coach worked me on my triples until my landing leg burned. Every time I finished a run, I found Cole watching from the other side of the rink. Every time he scored, he glanced over to see if I was looking. I always was.

When the ice cleared for a short break, he skated over. No one else was close enough to hear.

“Still on for later?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“My place. My dad is out of town. We will have the house to ourselves.”

My pulse jumped. “Okay.”

He nodded once and skated away before anyone could notice how long we had been standing there. Sophie caught my eye from the boards and raised both eyebrows. I shook my head. Later.

After practice, I changed quickly and met him by the side exit. He had already showered. His hair was still damp, and he smelled like clean soap instead of sweat. We walked to his car without talking. The silence felt comfortable instead of heavy.

The Kingston house sat on a hill overlooking the water. I had been there before with Lucas, but it looked different now. Bigger. Quieter. Cole parked in the garage and led me inside through a side door. The kitchen was all white marble and stainless steel. He poured two glasses of water and handed me one.

“You hungry?” he asked.

“Not really.”

He set his glass down and leaned against the counter. “We need a plan for Lucas.”

I nodded. “Can you get copies of those emails the coaches got?”

“I already asked. One of them is willing to forward what he received. The others are hesitant. They do not want to get involved in family drama.”

“Then we start with the one who will help. Screenshot everything. Save the headers. If we can prove the IP came from his school, we have something.”

Cole watched me with a small smile. “You sound like you have done this before.”

“I have spent a year putting myself back together after he lied to me. I am not going to let him do the same thing to you.”

He crossed the kitchen and stopped right in front of me. His hands settled on either side of my hips on the counter. “You are dangerous when you get protective.”

“You have no idea.”

He kissed me then. Slow and deep and thorough. My back pressed against the edge of the counter. His body was warm and solid against mine. I slid my hands under the hem of his hoodie just to feel the heat of his skin. He made a low sound in his throat and pulled me closer.

When we broke apart, we were both breathing hard. He rested his forehead against mine again like it had become our thing.

“I keep thinking this is a dream,” he said. “That I am going to wake up and you will still be with him and I will still be watching from the sidelines.”

“It is not a dream.”

“Good.” He brushed his thumb across my lower lip. “Because I am not giving you back.”

We spent the next hour on the couch going through his phone. He showed me the emails. The language was careful and cruel. Professional enough to look real. Personal enough to hurt. My anger burned hotter with every message.

“He is not going to stop,” I said.

“I know.”

“Then we do not stop either.”

Cole set the phone down and pulled me into his lap. I went willingly. His arms wrapped around my waist and I rested my head on his shoulder. Outside the windows, the sky was turning the soft purple of early evening. Inside the house, it was just us and the quiet and the knowledge that the war with Lucas was only beginning.

“Stay a little longer,” he said against my hair.

“Okay.”

I stayed until the sun went down and the first stars appeared over the water. When he finally drove me home, he walked me to the door and kissed me like he was already missing me. I watched his car disappear down the street and felt the same strange calm I had felt in the rain the night before.

I was choosing him. Fully. Completely. And for the first time the choice did not scare me. It felt like the only true thing left in my life.