Chapter 113: Confession
Chapter 27 - Confession
Rosie’s POV
Over the next few days, I noticed that Jude had been actively avoiding me, or perhaps I was the one avoiding him. I did not understand the strange dynamic that had settled between us. A part of me did not want to see him yet because I still needed time to process everything, but at the same time, I desperately wanted to be near him. Every single time I caught a fleeting glimpse of him around the penthouse, my heart raced uncontrollably, and the intensity of the reaction was affecting my thinking.
Although we had not talked much since that day I told him I needed space, he was keeping my word. He was giving me all the space I asked for, which meant there was no more constant hovering over me and no more playful teasing. I missed that side of him; I won’t even lie about it, but I simply did not know how to start a normal conversation with him.
He was always the one that started the conversation, pulling me in to talk. It felt like I had forgotten how to act around him. Yet, despite the silence between the two of us, he and Mia were still perfectly talking and interacting like nothing had changed.
That snitch.
I grumbled quietly under my breath, slurping my drink through the plastic straw. Kira had stopped by the penthouse earlier today and insisted that we needed to go out, so we were currently sitting at a cosy local cafe, supposedly enjoying the view of the street while my furrowed brow deepened by the second.
I felt a tap on my shoulder and jolted slightly in my seat, pulling myself away from my swirling thoughts as Kira raised a curious brow at me.
"What is happening inside that head of yours?" she asked softly, her gaze mellowing with concern.
I offered her a small smile, looking down at my hands. That was on my lap. "I’m fine, but..." I trailed off, hesitating. Maybe what I truly needed right now was another insight from a friend’s point of view to help me clear the tangle in my mind.
"Fess up," Kira urged immediately, dropping her coffee cup onto the table with a soft thud as she reached up to pull a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
I let out a sigh, immediately feeling my heart start to skip a beat as a warmth crept up my face and my breathing began to rise. I clasped my hands tightly together in my lap, fiddling with my fingers nervously as I closed my eyes momentarily before opening them to look at her. "I think I am falling for Jude," I blurted out quickly, before a deep redness instantly crept all the way up my neck. My chest was beating widely from my admission.
It was useless to deny it to myself anymore. I had been attracted to him from the first time I saw him all those years ago, but I had forced myself to put him behind my back so I could focus on surviving life. Then, I saw him standing at the altar on our wedding day, and his face was my type. Combined with everything he had done for me and Mia since then, I just could not help myself from falling.
Kira, who was in the middle of swallowing her drink, suddenly choked out in stupor. "What?" she muttered loudly, quickly using her hands to cover her mouth as I hurriedly handed her a clean napkin. She wiped her mouth and then her hands, staring at me with wide eyes.
"I said I have fallen for him," I repeated clearly, leaving no room for doubt.
Kira stared at me in silence for a full minute before she abruptly stood up from the table, reached across, and grabbed my hands firmly, forcing me to follow her out of the cafe.
"Where are we going?" I asked, stumbling slightly behind her, but she did not give me a response as she marched me towards her car.
We drove through the city streets in silence, and I was still relishing the sudden shock of why she was doing this. After driving for a while, the car finally pulled up outside the sports arena, and I paused to look at her in confusion.
Kira just grinned widely at me. "Now that you finally know what you feel, go confess to that boy and pull him out of his misery," while my heart thumps against my ribcage because how could I do that?
We strode into the building and took a seat in the front row of the stands, but before we reached our seats, I could hear the surrounding fans grumbling loudly in frustration, complaining that Winter was not playing like he actually meant it today and shouting that the team was definitely going to lose their home game if things kept going this way. I was shocked to realise the hockey session was still actively on.
When we got to the front row, the players were just coming back out onto the ice for the second period after the period buzzer sounded. I immediately spotted Jude walking at the very back of the line, looking down at the ice with a miserable expression. The team captain, Raphael, slung an arm around Jude’s shoulders and was talking to him harshly, clearly lecturing him about his lack of focus. I felt my gaze lock onto him, and I swallowed hard as my breathing stuttered in my chest.
Kira suddenly stood up besides me, cupping both of her hands around the sides of her mouth. "Winter!" she yelled.
I stared up at her in utter shock, embarrassed as several people turned their heads to look at us, but Kira just grinned, unbothered by the attention.
Jude slowly lifted his head at the sound of his name, and our eyes clashed across the distance. In that moment it felt like a tight knot inside my chest loosened as my heart started to experience the effect of seeing him. Jude’s eyes widened in shock, blinking rapidly as if he could not believe I was actually there, before a happy smile pulled across his lips. Without a single second of hesitation, he turned and ran straight to his post.
I squirmed nervously in my seat, placing my palm flat against my wildly breathing chest. I wanted the erratic rhythm to calm down, but it was not helpful at all as my eyes remained glued to Jude. I watched him dominate the ice, fiercely defending the puck, dropping it down away from the opponents, and guarding the net with precision. Throughout the rest of the play, he was focused and unstoppable.
Some of the fans sitting beside us began whispering in confusion, asking each other who we were to have such an instantaneous effect on him after they had thought they would lose this game. I couldn’t help but smile proudly, joining in with the rest of the crowd as we cheered loudly for every successful move he made in deflecting the puck.
Kira nudged my side playfully with her elbow, a knowing smirk on her face. "Can you see what you do to that poor guy?" while I licked my lower lip nervously, my eyes never leaving his moving body.
When the final period buzzer loudly sounded through the arena, confirming that Blackburn had won the game, the crowd erupted into a wild, deafening cheer. Jude dropped his helmet and his gear onto the ice as he ran straight to the front of the stands where I was standing, and he reached over the barrier, picking my body up effortlessly, and kissed me so hard that my breath was taken away while the fans surrounding us swooned at the sight.
***
We are four Chapters from the finish line :)