Falling for the hot alpha hockey star

Skylar's POV

I wasn't expecting to see her here.

The cafeteria was going on with its usual midday chaos, plastic trays clattering, chairs scraping against the tiled floor, the mingled scent of fries and coffee hanging in the air. Laughter burst from tables in uneven waves, conversations overlapping in a messy symphony of noise.

And then she walked in.

Sienna Hale.

My stomach tightened. The last time I'd seen her, words had been exchanged that still burned in my memory. The kind of burn you don't forget half anger, half humiliation.

She spotted me almost instantly, and the smirk that curled on her lips was poison laced in sugar. I knew that look. It promised trouble. And I wasn't sure if I was ready for the storm she was about to bring with her.

The perfectly manicured, sugar-sweet viper who had somehow glued herself to Liam's side over the past few days ... except last week, when I'd seen her half-naked in someone else's room.

Her eyes found me instantly. Of course they did. Like a predator scenting blood. She smirked slow, deliberate and strutted toward my table, her heels clicking over the tile like a countdown.

Mila, sitting across from me, froze mid-bite of her sandwich.

"Oh no," she muttered, voice low but tight. "This isn't gonna be good." she said, rolling her eyes.

I didn't answer. My throat was already tightening, my palms slick. I forced myself to keep chewing, even though my stomach had knotted so tight it felt like swallowing nails.

Sienna stopped in front of me, one hand on her hip, her perfume hitting me like a thick, cloying cloud.

"Skylar," she said in that honeyed, fake-innocent tone she used on teachers and parents. "How is our fear of Alpha's pub?"

I raised an eyebrow, refusing to give her the satisfaction of a flinch. "Girl fuck off." I said

A flash of anger cracked her perfect mask. "How dare you. I'm your senior you know."

That little pause before you like the word itself was a disease made something hot coil in my chest.

"Right. Whatever hoe."

Her eyes narrowed. "Why all the hate you sound like a jealous ex."

"Jealous?" My chair scraped back as I stood, my pulse hammering so hard I could hear it in my ears. "I'm not jealous, Sienna. I'm disgusted. Disgusted that Liam's too blinded to see you for what you are. And disgusted that you think you can walk in here and play the victim."

She leaned in until her words were warm against my ear. "Maybe if you weren't so plain... so forgettable... Liam wouldn't need someone like me."

The insult landed like a blade between my ribs. My fists clenched, nails digging into my palms, but before I could spit something back that I'd regret, a voice cut through the tension like a blade.

"Wow," Mila drawled, standing up beside me. Her eyes were blazing, her smile razor-sharp. "Sienna, honey, you must've been practicing that in the mirror all morning. Too bad it still makes you sound like a dollar-store Regina George."

Heads turned. The table behind us went quiet. Someone's phone camera tilted toward us.

Sienna's head whipped toward her. "This isn't your business."

"Skylar's my best friend. That makes it my business," Mila shot back, stepping in front of me like a human shield. "You can play whatever games you want with Liam, but don't you dare stand here and try to tear her down because you're afraid she's better than you in every way that matters."

Sienna scoffed. "Better? Please. I've seen her try to get his attention-it's pathetic."

Mila's voice was cool, precise, and lethal. "Pathetic is cheating on your boyfriend and still pretending you're the prize. Pathetic is walking around thinking people can't see the desperation in your eyes. And pathetic, Sienna, is coming to start drama in a cafeteria on our school tour day because deep down, you know Skylar doesn't have to do anything for Liam to notice her. He just... does."

The air between them was so tight it might have shattered if someone breathed too loudly.

Sienna took a step closer, her gaze flicking to me. "Do you let her fight all your battles, Skylar? Or do you just hide behind her because you're too afraid to admit you're still in love with Liam?"

A ripple went through the crowd. A couple of people muttered, and I caught my name in the whispers. My skin burned. "I'm not hiding," I said, my voice steady but low. "I'm just done wasting my breath on people who mistake cruelty for confidence."

Sienna's lip curled. "Cruel? Oh, sweetheart, this is me being nice."

"Then maybe you should try being quiet," Mila snapped.

Phones were definitely filming now. A guy in the corner murmured, "This is better than Netflix."

Sienna's jaw flexed like she might lunge. Her hand twitched half a second more and she would've shoved Mila. I saw it, braced for it, almost wanted it. But she froze, realizing half the cafeteria was watching.

"You'll regret this," she hissed, stepping back. "Both of you."

"Better us regret something than spend our lives being you," Mila said sweetly.

Gasps. Someone actually clapped.

Sienna's eyes went wide for a fraction of a second before she turned on her heel, her hair swinging like a weapon as she stalked out.

The cafeteria slowly resumed its noise, but I could feel the lingering stares. Mila sat back down, still smirking. "Always fun shutting down a wannabe queen bee."

I sank into my chair, my whole body trembling with adrenaline. "You didn't have to do that."

"Yes, I did," she said firmly. "Sky, you've spent too long letting people talk down to you Liam included. I'm not gonna let some knock-off Barbie think she can get away with it too."

A knot of gratitude and guilt twisted in my chest. "Thanks, Mila."

She grinned, biting into her sandwich like nothing had happened. "Always, babe. Now eat before your food gets cold. And if she ever tries that again..." Her eyes glittered. "I won't just use words."