- 9 hours ago
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Short filmTranscript
00:00I was born with heavy breasts and too many curves.
00:04My half-sister was afraid her boyfriend Jake would lose his mind over me.
00:09So she sold me to a dying mother, Ryder Calloway.
00:14Sure, Ryder's injury means he can't get hard.
00:17But, at least you're spared the pain of having his children.
00:23Three months later, I was begging for mercy every single night.
00:28I desperately wanted to ask Claire exactly what she meant by can't get hard.
00:36Ryder Calloway.
00:38Northgate University's undefeated ice hockey captain and the most feared name in the collegiate league
00:45was carried off the ice in blood.
00:47The hit had come from behind, illegal, brutal.
00:51By the time they reached him, he'd lost consciousness.
00:54His mother, Diana, had already lost her husband years ago.
00:58Now, she stood at the edge of losing her son.
01:02Someone on the family's legal team suggested an emergency contract marriage.
01:06If Ryder were married to a healthy young woman, legal stability and medical next-of-kin status
01:12could help the family manage his care and keep the estate in order.
01:16Claire accepted it for me.
01:18If I refused, she would pull out my scholarship funding and have me transferred to work as an off-campus
01:24cleaner.
01:24I knew she hadn't forgiven me for my history with Jake.
01:29Please! I swear Jake and I are just friends!
01:33What good is a vow?
01:34Do you know how distracting your big boobs are?
01:36Tears came without permission.
01:38Walking around campus with that body?
01:40Which man here wouldn't lose it the moment they laid eyes on you?
01:43It's not that I don't trust you.
01:45It's that I don't trust men.
01:49Do you know who he is?
01:50A billionaire!
01:54If my mother and Diana weren't old friends, you wouldn't even be considered.
02:00Claire, I don't want to be anyone's emergency.
02:02Wife, please don't make...
02:06Eva, are you insane?
02:09Miss Claire, word from the Calumet house.
02:12Ryder has woken up.
02:13Claire dragged me straight to the Calloway house.
02:16I followed her through the entrance hall to a closed door.
02:20Through the gap, I caught a shape on the bed.
02:23The low sound of difficult breathing.
02:26Diana stood near the window, eyes red.
02:29She took Claire's hands.
02:31Claire, thank you for everything.
02:34He's pulled through.
02:36There's no need for the contract marriage.
02:39I won't ruin a girl's future over this.
02:41Claire's eyes moved fast.
02:44Mrs. Calloway, the arrangement should still go forward.
02:47Eva arrived the same day Ryder woke up.
02:49That has to mean something.
02:51Diana hesitated.
02:53She looked at me.
02:55Before she could speak, the family physician stepped out of the room, her expression flat.
03:00Ryder has regained consciousness, but the hit fractured his lower spine and struck deep into his inner, flint deep into
03:06his inner thigh.
03:07The nerve damage...
03:09He can't!
03:11He will not be able to get hard.
03:13Possibly ever.
03:15Diana's knees gave.
03:18Eva, knowing this, do you still want this?
03:23Of course she does.
03:25She's just a girl with no standing.
03:28She should be grateful.
03:30I didn't speak right away.
03:31My mother had been a gifted doctor.
03:33I learned my mother's healing techniques from her notes.
03:36Maybe I could take care of Ryder.
03:38Perhaps it was better to be the wife of a dead person than to be bullied by my stepsister for
03:43the rest of my life.
03:44I straightened and stood in front of Diana.
03:47Mrs. Calloway, I'm willing.
03:49I'll sign the agreement, care for Ryder, and be here as long as you need me.
03:55Diana kept her word.
03:56She had a proper wedding outfit made.
03:59She treated it with full ceremony.
04:01On our wedding day, Claire said to me,
04:04Even though Ryder can't perform, at least you're spared the pain of having his children.
04:10Don't worry.
04:11A man who can't perform there is probably exceptional everywhere else.
04:15I told myself I was simply moving to a new house.
04:19Ryder was too weak to stand through the full wedding ceremony.
04:23I completed the signing beside his team jersey.
04:27The one hanging on the wall.
04:29Number seven.
04:31His number.
04:33Diana watched the whole thing with her eyes wet.
04:37When it was done,
04:38I was Ryder Calloway's wife.
04:41A wife of a billionaire ice hockey stars.
04:44His room was quiet when I pushed the door open.
04:47He was sitting up against the headboard.
04:49Pale.
04:50He turned when I walked in.
04:52Up close, he was strikingly good looking.
04:55Strong jaw.
04:56Dark eyes that didn't waste any movement.
05:01I never intended to take a wife in the college.
05:03If you don't mind,
05:06we can treat this like a roommate arrangement.
05:09Tonight the bed is yours.
05:11I'll take that.
05:15Tomorrow you move to the guest room.
05:22All right.
05:23He had thought of everything.
05:26It wasn't what I'd expected.
05:28Before the ceremony,
05:30an older staff member pressed a prawn book for me.
05:33She'd whispered with a strange look.
05:38There are other ways between a husband and wife.
05:41You might find this useful.
05:43I hadn't understood her until I opened it.
05:46He'd moved through me just from the first page.
05:49Is it too warm in here?
05:52Ryder was watching me from bed.
05:55Eyes steady.
05:56Direct.
05:57The formal wear is heavy.
06:00I'm a little warm.
06:05Get ready for bed then.
06:09I set the book on the dresser.
06:11I unpinned my hair.
06:14Then I changed.
06:15Layered dress off piece by piece.
06:18Until I was standing in just a thin nightgown.
06:21I looked in the mirror.
06:23The fabric was not thick enough.
06:25Heavy breasts straining
06:27against the cloth.
06:28Waists narrow.
06:29Hips full.
06:30In a thin nightgown at midnight,
06:32there was nothing left to hide behind.
06:35I moved toward the lamp
06:36and walked straight into his gaze.
06:38He wasn't asleep.
06:40His chest rose hard.
06:42The tips of his ears went red.
06:43His throat worked as he swallowed.
06:45I grabbed my hoodie and pressed it against my chest.
06:50Ryder, I thought you were asleep.
06:53I can sleep later.
06:54My breath caught.
06:57He rose to his feet slowly.
07:00Tall.
07:00His shadow fell over me.
07:03Image from that book flooded back.
07:06What did he want to do?
07:09Then Ryder turned and walked to the door.
07:13The moment cold air rushed in from the hallway.
07:16I came back to myself.
07:18He was already gone.
07:21When he'd looked at me just now.
07:24The shock in his eyes.
07:28Had I actually rattled him?
07:31He came back sometime in the night.
07:33His hair was still damp from the shower.
07:39When I woke up in the morning,
07:40he was already gone.
07:42His side of the room was empty.
07:44His assistant, Sunny, came and took on me.
07:46Ryder, why didn't you tell someone to run you a hot shower?
07:49The water in the rink showers is freezing this time of year.
07:52I'll make you ginger soup.
07:53You're going to catch something.
07:55Does Ryder, Ryder usually take cold showers?
07:58Not that I know of.
08:00I went to greet Diana that morning.
08:03Ryder was already sitting beside her.
08:07She smiled like spring had come early the moment she saw me.
08:11Her face only changed when Ryder coughed.
08:16Ryder, I need to talk to Eva privately.
08:18Go rest.
08:20He left without arguing.
08:22Diana waved me over to sit beside her.
08:25Eva, my sweet girl.
08:28My son waking up is a blessing.
08:30But I can't let that blessing become your burden.
08:34The doctor says the nerve damage is permanent.
08:37No one knows how much time he has.
08:41Some in the family suggested I name a different heir from another branch of the family.
08:45But that would mean trapping you in a life with no future.
08:48You came here to stand by him, and I am already grateful for that.
08:52I can't ask you to give him the rest of your life, too.
08:54I've already thought it through.
08:55If the worst comes, I'll have him dissolve the marriage contract.
08:59You'll be free.
09:00I'll see to it that you have housing and enough to live on.
09:06I hadn't expected her to think this far ahead for me.
09:09It made me think of my mother.
09:11If she had lived...
09:14Diana laughed through tears.
09:16Look at me making you cry, too.
09:20Eva, call me mom.
09:22You might as well.
09:26And one more thing.
09:28Claire mentioned, you know, healing technique.
09:32Ryder's daily health.
09:34The food, the supplements.
09:36Could you take that on?
09:38I just want him around a little longer.
09:40That's my small selfishness.
09:47I went to the kitchen and started planning.
09:50I carried the meal tray down the hall to Ryder's room.
09:55He was at his desk giving instructions to a junior teammate.
09:58Something about defense coverage.
10:01Just leave the meal.
10:02I'll take it later.
10:07You should eat while it's warm.
10:09The supplements don't work right on an empty stomach.
10:11He glanced at the tray.
10:13Then at me.
10:14He sat down without another word.
10:18Going forward, have Sunny bring the meals.
10:20She knows the routine.
10:22I can do it.
10:24It's not necessary.
10:27It's the same either way.
10:32It isn't have Sunny do it.
10:38Let's go out and talk.
10:45That confirmed it.
10:47Ryder Calloway did not want me around.
10:50Was my curve really too exaggerated?
10:55I followed his instruction.
10:57After that, Sunny delivered every meal to his studies.
11:00A week later, at morning check-in with Diana,
11:03Dr. Mills came by for his routine check.
11:06She said his vitals are the most stable she's seen.
11:10Eva, that's your doing.
11:13Then back in my room, I added it to the small box I kept in the dresser.
11:17You never wear any of it.
11:22I will eventually.
11:26If I ever leave, it all converts to something useful.
11:30You'd sell the things mom gave you, not while I'm here.
11:33But if the marriage contract is dissolved one day?
11:36Yes.
11:37That's just practical.
11:41Ryder!
11:43Ryder, did you need something?
11:48I left some team footage in this room, looking for it.
11:53I'll help you find it.
11:54What format?
11:56USB, black case.
12:06Any idea where you left it?
12:09No.
12:23He was really handsome.
12:25Fair skin, sharp brows, dark eyes.
12:39My chest pressed against him, and I could feel his hard dick.
12:51Your footage.
12:53Keep it.
12:55Oh no.
12:57Now he must have a worse impression of me.
13:02After that, I started actively avoiding Ryder.
13:05He was healing.
13:06He needed calm.
13:07I was apparently not conducive to calm.
13:09But a new problem landed in my inbox.
13:12Jake had been messaging me, three times in the past week.
13:15I deleted them without responding, and locked them in a folder.
13:19Eva.
13:21Eva.
13:23Someone's waiting at the side entrance.
13:25He says he won't leave until you come out.
13:27I already knew who it was.
13:32I walked out fast, already irritated.
13:35I pushed open the side door.
13:37Eva.
13:38You finally came.
13:43You can call me Mrs. Calloway.
13:45Or just don't call me anything.
13:47He leaned against the wall.
13:48I'm going to be promoted to senior team after next season.
13:52I just think that's the scene.
13:54I'm going to be promoted to senior team captain next season.
13:59When that happens, I won't need Claire's family connections anymore.
14:04Eva.
14:05Come be with me.
14:07Ryder's finished.
14:08Everyone knows it.
14:10Almost dying.
14:12What kind of future is that?
14:18He reached out toward me.
14:20I stepped back.
14:22You want me as a side piece?
14:24He nodded like it was reasonable.
14:26I laughed.
14:27Actually laughed.
14:31Why would I give up being a Calloway wife to be your secret?
14:36I am standing.
14:37I have a name.
14:39I have a house that could fit your apartment 12 times over.
14:43The whole campus knows Ryder's washed up.
14:49Seems like a waste.
14:53My stomach turned.
14:55I stepped closer.
14:56My voice went quiet.
14:58You want to push this?
14:59I have every message you've sent me saved.
15:03I can have them on Claire's phone in 10 minutes.
15:10How does your captainship look after that?
15:16His face went white.
15:17I turned and walked back through the door.
15:20Behind me, I heard him start to say something.
15:23I closed the door.
15:27I was standing less than two feet away in a dark team jacket.
15:35I hadn't heard him come up.
15:38Ryder, I...
15:40His eyes were level, not cold, something else.
15:43You just called yourself a Callany.
15:45My face got warm.
15:48That was...
15:49I was making a point.
15:50I didn't mean to overstep.
15:54You told him I was the most celebrated athlete in the league.
15:59That's just true.
16:01Ryder tilted his head slightly.
16:03Something moved in his expression.
16:05A minute ago, you said you were my wife.
16:07Now you're back to Ryder?
16:14Ryder, I'll go check on your afternoon supplement timing.
16:18I tried to step past him.
16:20His hand caught my arm, gentle but there.
16:24I stumbled sideways into his chest.
16:33I looked up at him from three inches away.
16:36His eyes were dark and very close.
16:39The things you said just now...
16:43Were they true?
16:45I couldn't tell him the whole truth was just a bluff for Jake's benefit.
16:48So I looked up at him and said nothing.
16:52Ryder's eyes stayed on my face.
16:53The distance between us was wrong.
16:55Too close, his breath warm, his hand still around my arm.
16:59Eva.
17:01The supplement timing.
17:02I should go check.
17:04He let go.
17:06I walked away fast.
17:07Behind me, nothing.
17:08No footsteps.
17:10Just silence.
17:11That was the first time I'd seen colour in Ryder Calloway's face.
17:17My heart was going completely haywire.
17:22That night, I dreamed about him.
17:26Nothing specific.
17:27Just his voice in the dark.
17:29Low and close.
17:30Eva.
17:30Saying my name in a way that made my chest ache.
17:32I woke up with my pulse pounding and the sheets twisted.
17:36Sunny knocked and came in.
17:37I asked her to bring cold water.
17:39It really is getting warmer.
17:43I pressed a handful of cold water against my face.
17:46Then, I thought about Ryder going to take that cold shower in the middle of the night.
17:51I shook the thought out of my head immediately.
17:53He had nerve damage.
17:54He was healing.
17:55This was absurd.
17:56Mrs. Calloway is having dinner in the courtyard tonight.
18:00She'd like you both there.
18:02Diana's housekeeper came to find me.
18:04I'd been finding reasons to avoid shared meals all week.
18:07Diana had noticed.
18:09I couldn't keep saying no.
18:11I walked out to the small yard behind the house.
18:14As the evening light came through the trees,
18:17the spread on the table was everything I liked.
18:19I stood there looking at it.
18:21Ryder remembered.
18:22He asked the kitchen this morning.
18:26My mother had died the night I was born.
18:31No one had ever made a point of the date.
18:34Something moved in my chest.
18:36Small and uninvited.
18:37How did you know today was my birthday?
18:40I forgot myself.
18:41The marriage registration paperwork.
18:44It listed your date of birth.
18:47She says they did have to think and say it.
18:49I do that.
18:51This is a bottle I've been saving.
18:54Good apple cider.
18:56And it's so or not.
18:58I'm opening it for you tonight.
19:00Don't let either of you drink too much.
19:05Actually, the night air is too cold for my joints.
19:08I'll leave you two to enjoy it.
19:13She was gone before I could say anything.
19:16The yard went quiet.
19:17To avoid the silence, I poured a glass and drank it faster than I should have.
19:22It was sweet.
19:23It was also stronger than it tasted.
19:25I poured another, then another.
19:27The warmth spread up through my chest and behind my eyes.
19:32I reached toward the last small cake on the plate in the middle and found it empty.
19:37Where did the last one go?
19:39I ate it.
19:43I don't know where the nerve came from.
19:45I leaned toward him.
19:47Who said you could have the last one?
19:48Give it back.
19:49Spider stared at me.
19:50Then he opened his mouth.
19:51You'll have to come find it yourself.
19:53I looked at his mouth.
19:54Then back at his eyes.
19:55Then back at his mouth.
19:56I leaned forward and kissed him.
19:58He went completely still.
20:00His breath stopped.
20:01Then his hand came up to the back of my head.
20:03And the kiss went deeper, slower, like he'd been waiting for it.
20:07Footsteps on the gravel path.
20:08We broke apart.
20:09Ryder!
20:10Diana said it's getting cold.
20:11She wanted me to...
20:12She stopped.
20:13Looked at us.
20:14I'll just leave these here.
20:16I stood up too fast.
20:17The yard tilted.
20:18My knees went the wrong way.
20:20Everything went dark.
20:21I woke up to the morning light and a headache like a fist behind my eyes.
20:25I sat up fast.
20:26Diana.
20:27The church visit.
20:28I'd promised I'd go with her this morning.
20:30Don't rush.
20:31Sunny appeared in the doorway.
20:32The car isn't ready yet.
20:34Did I...
20:34How did I get back here?
20:36Ryder carried you in.
20:37I looked at her.
20:38She nodded seriously.
20:40I didn't say anything strange, did I?
20:42You kept grabbing his sleeve and calling him baby.
20:45She pressed a hand over her mouth.
20:47Over and over.
20:48He turned so red.
20:49I thought he was gonna faint too.
20:51Sunny, if you tell anyone...
20:53She was already running.
20:54I found Diana at the front door.
20:56We drove out to the botanical gardens.
20:58She liked the greenhouse there on weekend mornings and said it was peaceful.
21:01I sat in the passenger seat staring out the window, still half mortified.
21:06Diana glanced over.
21:07You're not thinking about what I think you're thinking about.
21:10I've...
21:10talked to about anything.
21:12Eva.
21:12She kept her eyes on the road, but she was smiling.
21:15I arranged this dinner on purpose.
21:17I'm not sorry about it.
21:19Ryder and I are not...
21:21I know, I know.
21:22She waved a hand.
21:23I just want you two to be able to talk.
21:25Even if it can't be more than that.
21:27I'd rather you were friends than strangers living in the same house.
21:30I was about to answer her.
21:31The car lurched.
21:32A sharp horn.
21:33Diana yanked the wheel.
21:35The car swerved hard onto the shoulder and the engine sputtered out.
21:38The brakes!
21:39She pressed the pedal again.
21:41Nothing.
21:41We were on the incline road above the park, still moving, getting faster.
21:46I looked ahead.
21:47A concrete barrier at the curve, maybe 300 meters.
21:50Diana.
21:51Unbuckle.
21:51We have to get out now.
21:52Eva, that's too dangerous.
21:54Barrier is faster.
21:56Unbuckle.
21:57Hold on to me.
21:58We go on three.
21:58She was shaking, but she moved.
22:00I got my door open, locked my arm through hers, and the moment the car drifted toward the
22:05far shoulder, I pulled us both out and hit the slope hard.
22:08We rolled.
22:09I got my arms around her and took the ground on my side.
22:12My back.
22:13My elbow.
22:14The car struck the barrier 20 meters ahead with a sound like a gunshot.
22:18Silence.
22:19Diana, are you hurt?
22:20I'm well.
22:20I was already checking her.
22:21Eva, you're bleeding.
22:23The gravel had opened up my forearm and one side of my face.
22:26I didn't feel it yet.
22:27Adrenaline.
22:28I'm fine.
22:29Are you hurt anywhere?
22:30Nothing serious.
22:31Eva, you covered me the entire way down.
22:34I helped her sit up against the slope.
22:36She was already crying.
22:37I'm fine.
22:39Sunny's car.
22:40She's always right behind us.
22:41She'll be calling for help.
22:42I heard my own voice as if from a distance.
22:45Steady.
22:45Calm.
22:46While every nerve in my body screamed.
22:47A sound.
22:49Footsteps.
22:49Fast.
22:50Coming down the slope.
22:51I thought I was imagining it.
22:53Eva!
22:53Don't move!
22:54I've got you!
22:55Ryder's voice.
22:56He came down the bank fast.
22:58Pale.
22:58Jaw set.
22:59Eyes scanning me.
23:00He took my arm in both hands.
23:02How much blood is this?
23:03Where's the source?
23:04Surface.
23:05I'm fine.
23:06Stop saying that.
23:07He pulled off his jacket and pressed it to my forearm.
23:10You're not fine.
23:11He looked at his mother.
23:12She waved him back to me.
23:13I'm alright, Ryder.
23:15Take care of Eva.
23:16He tied the jacket around my arm and lifted me before I could protest.
23:19I was in his arms, off the ground.
23:21I could feel his chest rising too fast.
23:23He could have been killed.
23:25Like he was saying to himself.
23:26He carried me to the road.
23:28The whole way I kept telling him I could walk.
23:29He kept not listening.
23:31By the time the medics arrived, his face was still wrong.
23:33Too tight.
23:34Too pale.
23:35Diana told the medic everything.
23:37Eva pulled me out.
23:38She took all of it.
23:39Every impact.
23:40I walked away without a scratch because of her.
23:43Ryder stood at the edge of the group, hands in his pockets, looking at me.
23:47I looked back.
23:48You need to lie still.
23:49When they finished wrapping my arm.
23:51I know.
23:52We're going straight to the doctor.
23:53I know.
23:54He helped me get into the car.
23:55We drove in silence.
23:56His hand stayed on the back of my seat the whole way, not touching me, just there.
24:01At one point, I felt something hit my face.
24:04I looked up at the clear sky.
24:05Then, I realized it wasn't rain.
24:07I reached over and covered his hand with mine, just for a second.
24:10He turned it palm up without hesitation and held on.
24:13I didn't let go.
24:14Dr. Mills patched my arm and told me to stay in bed for a week.
24:17No fractures.
24:18Lots of bruising.
24:19A dislocated finger that she reset without ceremony.
24:22I lay there after she left and looked at the ceiling.
24:25Sunny came in with soup.
24:26She kept talking.
24:27The car had been tempered with.
24:29Something in the brake line.
24:30The private security team was already investigating.
24:33Who would go after Diana's car?
24:34And why now?
24:36I was still turning it over when the door opened.
24:38Ryder.
24:39He stood in the doorway, holding a small wooden box.
24:42He set it on the nightstand and sat down in the chair beside the bed.
24:45He didn't speak right away.
24:47The brake line was cut.
24:48It wasn't an accident.
24:49Do you know who?
24:51Working on it.
24:52He looked at my wrapped arm.
24:53His jaw moved.
24:54You kept my mother from going over that bank.
24:56She would have done the same for me.
24:57That's not the point.
24:58He was quiet again.
25:00Eva, I need to tell you something.
25:02He looked at the window.
25:03I've known for two months that I was going to have to dissolve the marriage contract.
25:06I asked Dr. Minz to start preparing the documentation.
25:10My chest went still.
25:11I knew you were waiting for it.
25:12The way you kept your distance.
25:14The box of things you were converting to cash and your-
25:16You were always going to leave.
25:17I told myself I was just getting ahead of it.
25:19For you.
25:20He turned back to me.
25:21His eyes were flat and direct.
25:23The dissolution papers are ready.
25:25You can go whenever you want.
25:26I had Sonny prepare an account and a sum that will cover you for as long as you need.
25:30You don't wait for me to die.
25:31You don't have to keep pretending.
25:32I opened my mouth.
25:34Nothing came out.
25:35I know you've been counting the days.
25:36You don't have to do that anymore.
25:38Just go.
25:39He stood up and walked out.
25:40I sat there in the quiet after he left.
25:42In your mind, that's who I am.
25:44My throat was burning.
25:45I couldn't find words for it.
25:47I just sat there with both hands in my lap, staring at the door he'd closed behind him.
25:51By afternoon, a formal notice appeared outside the university athletic office.
25:55His name on it.
25:56Claire came and found me before I could read it myself.
25:58She was pale.
25:59Eva.
26:00Ryder.
26:01He's been accused.
26:02An anonymous report submitted to the league.
26:04They're saying he deliberately threw the Westfield championship game two years ago.
26:08Fix the outcome.
26:09Share defensive plays with the other team.
26:11I read the notice twice.
26:12Ryder Calloway.
26:13Through games?
26:14He had more championship trophies than any athlete in the league's history.
26:18He had nothing to gain.
26:20And he had rushed to dissolve the contract before this broke.
26:23Sonny found me in the hole, twisting her hands.
26:26He basically grew up on that ring.
26:28He would never.
26:30Eva, is there anything?
26:31I sat down.
26:32I made myself think.
26:34My mother had treated a sports official years ago.
26:36A serious lung condition before I was born.
26:39He'd come to thank my father afterward.
26:41I'd overheard the conversation.
26:43He was still with the collegiate athletics board.
26:45I remembered his name.
26:46I spent the next hour finding his office number.
26:49He was harder to reach than I expected.
26:51Three calls.
26:52Two messages.
26:53The fourth time he picked up.
26:54I know this is unusual.
26:56I'm Eva Calloway.
26:57Dr. White treated my mother years ago, before I was born.
27:01I know you remember him.
27:03I remember.
27:03My husband is being investigated.
27:06I believe the evidence was planted.
27:08I'm not asking you to interfere.
27:09I'm asking for the name of whoever submitted the report.
27:12And ten minutes with whoever is reviewing it.
27:15Come to my office tomorrow.
27:17Eight in the morning.
27:18I was there at 7.45.
27:19It took two hours.
27:21He walked me through the documentation.
27:23I asked questions, took notes, and found three inconsistencies in the timeline that didn't line up with the away game
27:29schedule.
27:29When I came out, Ryder was standing against the wall outside the building.
27:33He looked at me with an expression I couldn't read.
27:35What are you doing here?
27:36I heard where you'd gone.
27:38He pushed off the wall.
27:39Eva, you don't have to do this.
27:40I know.
27:41I put my notes in my bag.
27:42I wanted to.
27:43He took one step toward me, then stopped.
27:46His voice was rough.
27:47Why?
27:47I looked at him straight.
27:48Because you're not guilty.
27:50Someone is trying to take you apart for it.
27:52He held my gaze for a long time.
27:54That's it?
27:55You saved my mother's life, and now this.
27:57She's my family too.
27:58I paused.
27:59Whether you dissolve the contract or not, that part doesn't change.
28:03Something shifted in his face.
28:04He crossed the remaining space between us, and his arms came around me, careful, like he wasn't sure I'd allow
28:10it.
28:10I didn't move away.
28:11He held on.
28:12I could feel his breath unsteady against my hair.
28:15I know what you must think of me.
28:16Pushing you out?
28:17Telling you to leave.
28:18Eva, I...
28:19I know.
28:19I pressed my palm against his chest.
28:21His heart was going too fast.
28:23I know why you did it.
28:24We stood there on the pavement outside the athletics board building in the cold morning air.
28:29A long moment of nothing needed.
28:31On the way back, I told him about the timeline gaps.
28:34He listened without interrupting.
28:35When I finished, he was quiet for a moment.
28:38Then...
28:38The report was filed by someone on the Westfield side.
28:41A coach who lost his position after the game.
28:44He blamed me.
28:45Then we find the proof.
28:47We?
28:47I looked at him.
28:48We?
28:49The corner of his mouth moved.
28:50Small.
28:51Barely there.
28:52It was the first real smile I'd ever seen on him.
28:54The evidence came through on day five.
28:56Sonny and I were standing outside the university athletic office when the new notice went up.
29:01The report against Ryder had been filed by a former Westfield assistant coach.
29:05A man who'd been let go after the championship and blamed the loss on Ryder's defensive play, breaking his system.
29:12The timeline the board reviewed didn't hold.
29:14The submission had been made anonymously from an account linked to his home address.
29:19The league cleared Ryder's record the same afternoon.
29:23By evening, it was everywhere.
29:24Social media.
29:25The campus athletic board's official page.
29:28Ryder Callaway.
29:30Undefeated.
29:31Unblemished.
29:32Fully reinstated.
29:33Claire found me in the garden.
29:35She looked like she hadn't slept.
29:36Hair down.
29:37No makeup.
29:38A plain coat.
29:39Can I sit down?
29:40I moved over on the bench.
29:42She sat.
29:43She didn't say anything for a while.
29:44The wind moved through the yard.
29:46Somewhere on the other side of the house, Diana was laughing at something.
29:49I heard what you did.
29:51Claire said finally.
29:52Going to the board.
29:52The phone calls.
29:54All of it.
29:54It needed to be done.
29:55That's not...
29:56She stopped.
29:57Tried again.
29:57I wanted to say I'm sorry.
29:59For a lot of things.
30:00Not just the slap.
30:01For all of it.
30:02I looked at her.
30:03Jake is gone.
30:04He resigned before the league could remove him.
30:06His whole involvement with the Westfield side.
30:08They've been looking at him for months.
30:10He was passing information.
30:12Ryder's injury wasn't just bad luck on the ice.
30:16Someone arranged for it to happen.
30:17My hands went cold.
30:19Jake?
30:19I said it quietly.
30:20He had debts.
30:21Gambling.
30:22The Westfield side paid them off.
30:24All he had to do was make sure Ryder got that hit.
30:26Her voice didn't waver, but her hands were gripped tight in her lap.
30:30I didn't know.
30:31I need you to believe I didn't know.
30:33I looked at her for a long moment.
30:34I believe you.
30:35She let out a breath.
30:37My father is pulling my funding and making me move back home.
30:40He says I need to...
30:41I don't know.
30:42Start over.
30:42She laughed short and hollow.
30:44I'm not sure I know how to do that.
30:45You'll figure it out.
30:46I said it simply.
30:47You're not actually as bad at things as you pretend to be.
30:50She looked at me sideways.
30:51Was that a compliment?
30:53Barely.
30:55We sat there until the light started going.
30:58I watched her go.
31:00Then I went looking for Ryder.
31:03Jake arranged the hit.
31:05Jake arranged the hit.
31:07Did you know it was him specifically?
31:10Not until today.
31:11I suspected someone on the inside.
31:13I didn't let myself land on him.
31:17The dissolution papers.
31:19Withdraw them.
31:20I'm not leaving.
31:21I know that's not what you expected.
31:23I know you had the whole thing mapped out.
31:25Contract, dissolation, housing, clean exit.
31:28But I'm telling you it's not what I want.
31:31Eva.
31:33I mean it.
31:34I'm staying.
31:37You understand what you're saying?
31:40Yes.
31:41The family politics.
31:43What comes with the Callaway name.
31:45It's not a simple life.
31:47I know.
31:49I almost got you killed on that road.
31:51That was Jake's doing.
31:52Not yours.
31:55I spent two months trying to clear the path for you to leave.
31:58I told myself it was for your benefit.
32:00I kept your distance for you.
32:02I didn't reach for anything because I thought if I did, you'd feel trapped.
32:06And still you want to stay.
32:08Still I want to stay.
32:11Eva, I need you to be sure.
32:13Because once I stop holding back...
32:15Ryder, I've read that entire handbook cover to cover.
32:18I'm absolutely sure.
32:19You still have it?
32:20The handbook?
32:21It's in my nightstand.
32:25Eva.
32:27I've been thinking about you since the night you walked across that room in your nightgown
32:31and looked in the mirror and didn't know I was watching.
32:33You were supposed to be asleep.
32:34I tried.
32:39Completely.
32:40I failed completely.
32:42The cold shower, Ryder?
32:45Yes.
32:47Shall I show you what I've been holding back?
32:50I nodded.
32:51He carried me down the hall.
32:57You're thinking.
32:59I'm always thinking.
33:00About what?
33:05About the fact that I told Dr. Mines you were leaving.
33:09And now I have to call her in the morning and explain that I was wrong.
33:13She'll be relieved.
33:14She likes me.
33:16Everyone likes you.
33:18Diana.
33:19Sunny.
33:21The doctor.
33:23The old man at the athletics board.
33:26It took me longer than all of them.
33:28You were managing a lot.
33:30You were managing a lot.
33:34Eva.
33:35That handbook, page 23.
33:38Now?
33:39We have time.
33:42I woke up to light coming through the wrong window.
33:46We were in his room, not mine.
33:48I sat up and remembered why.
33:50Ryder was already awake.
33:52He was dressed.
33:53Dark track pants, a plain sweatshirt, hair still damp from the shower.
33:57He was holding a mug and watching me with a quiet, deliberate expression.
34:03You said you wanted to see the sunrise from the rink.
34:05You remembered that.
34:07I remember most things you say.
34:09Coffee.
34:10Coffee.
34:13Come on.
34:14The air was cold and clean.
34:16The rink behind the Callaway estate was empty this early.
34:20Boards, ice, the high ceiling of the outdoor covers just catching the first gray light.
34:26Ryder opened the gate.
34:27We stood at the edge of the ice.
34:29He put his arm around me from behind, and we faced east together.
34:34The sun came up slowly.
34:35First, the sky goes from gray to pale blue.
34:39Then gold cracks along the horizon.
34:41Then the light spreads fast across the ice, until the whole surface is lit and burning.
34:47Beautiful, he said near my ear.
34:50Beautiful.
34:51He held on tighter.
34:52He didn't say anything else.
34:54He didn't need to.
34:55I'll watch every sunrise with you, he said against my hair.
34:59Everyone, for as long as we have.
35:01I turned and kissed him once.
35:03Quick and sure.
35:05Deal.
35:06I hung up fully, and the rink filled with gold.
35:09Our shadow stretched long behind us across the ice.
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