Knot me on ice, Captain(BL)-Chapter 18: What is happening to me?

Kayden

He was doing it again.

Rhys was avoiding me for no reason. After he had claimed me on the couch and knotted me until I couldn’t breathe, I had expected a change of attitude from him. Perhaps he would have even tried to talk to me the next morning—but he didn’t.

Instead, I had woken up to an empty living room and a cold house. He had left early for practice before the sun was even up, leaving me alone on that couch.

Now here we were on the rink, practicing because we were heading to the airport for the away game of the playoffs this evening. We were all spread out on the ice, getting instructions from the coach.

"Hey, Vale! Do the groin stretches!" the coach advised.

I nodded and lowered myself onto my knees, inhaling deeply as I slid my knees wide, dropping my chest toward the ice and pushing my hips back into the frog pose.

This was a vulnerable position because it reminded me of Rhys and how he had pumped into me last night.

As I settled into the stretch, I couldn’t help but think about it. I remembered the weight of his body. I remembered the way his hands had bruised my hips while he rammed into me, filling me until I was sure I would break.

Fuck him for acting like I don’t exist, I hissed under my breath. I looked up, my eyes scanning the ice, and then I saw him.

Rhys was a few meters ahead of me, his back turned as he held the same pose. From this angle, his ass was perfectly framed by his training gear, showing every bit of the muscle. Instead of looking away, I stared hard at it. My heart pounded in my chest as I watched him repeat the frog pose, his ass moving in rhythm.

How can he sit there? I wondered. How can he act like he didn’t have his cock in my ass last night?

Suddenly, as if he could feel my piercing gaze on him, Rhys turned his head. He didn’t break the pose, but his blue eyes caught mine. The world around us—the sound of skates scraping, the teammates laughing, the coach barking out orders—it all faded away.

Rhys didn’t look away. He didn’t offer a smile; he just stared at me with an unreadable, dark, intense gaze that made me swallow hard. For a split second, the tension was so unbelievable that I thought the ice might crack beneath us.

"Hey," I mouthed to him, trying to break the tension, letting a small smile spread across my face.

Rhys didn’t smile back.

His brows furrowed into a stern, deep frown. His eyes, usually so expressive, showed a flash of what looked like annoyance before he looked away toward the far wall of the arena.

A low, frustrated groan escaped my throat, muffled by the sound of the skaters around us.

Was that it? I thought, my chest tightening. Was I just a rut toy to him?

It wasn’t as if I was expecting him to confess he loved me, but I wanted him to acknowledge my presence at least and stop pretending I didn’t exist.

For him, I had risked everything. I had let a True Alpha knot me, risking a permanent bond, my secret, and my career.

After I left the house that morning, I hunted down the strongest contraceptives I could find and took them to avoid getting exposed.

And for what? To be treated like an idiot yet again.

I didn’t deserve to be treated like that, especially not by Rhys.

"Alright, listen up!" the coach’s voice boomed, echoing off the rafters. "Pair up! I want you to assist your partner in these stretches. Deepen the hold. We need those hips loose for Game 2. Move now!"

This was it—my chance to ask him why he was avoiding me.

"Fuck you, Rhys," I whispered as I stood up, wincing at the sharp ache in my thighs and the heavy, bruised feeling between my legs.

I was still sore. I mean, who wouldn’t be? Especially since last night was the first time I had ever bottomed.

The only sex I’d ever had was just hand jobs and mouth jobs from omegas I didn’t even find attractive. I couldn’t bring myself to top anyone, not even the omegas I was always seen with. That was the price of having a fake identity. But last night, I let it all out for Rhys—who wouldn’t even look at me now.

"Rhys!" I shouted his name as I skated up to him while he was beginning to reset. "Hey, wanna be my partner?" I asked, then I leaned in close enough that only he could hear and whispered: "We need to talk about this morning. You just left and..."

Rhys didn’t even turn his head. He adjusted his gloves, his jaw set so tight I could see the muscle jumping in his cheek.

"Not here, Kayden," he snapped.

"Rhys, seriously, I am—"

"What the hell is wrong with you, Kayden? We are practicing here. Take it seriously," he cut me off, throwing a sharp, cold glance at me. "We are in the middle of the playoffs. I don’t have time to talk about anything right now. I am the Captain, and I have a responsibility, so you should do the same and be professional."

He stood up and skated away toward the other end of the circle, leaving me standing alone in the middle of the ice.

Fine. I thought as I gripped my stick so hard my knuckles turned white. If he wanted professional, he’d get it. I wasn’t going to chase him. I wasn’t going to beg for a word or a look. I was done with his stupid games. I would continue doing what I do best—keeping my secret and acting like the night on the couch was nothing but a fever dream I had already forgotten.

I am not talking to him again, I vowed, my chest heaving.

I turned around and had not taken two steps when suddenly, a white-hot flash of pain sliced through my lower abdomen. It wasn’t the dull ache of the knot or the soreness of last night. This was sharp—like a knife was twisting in my gut.

I doubled over, my skates carving a crazy line as I nearly lost my balance.

What the hell was happening to me? Was this due to the contraceptives? Or the stress? Or the fact that my body was still trying to process a True Alpha’s seed while I was forcing it to perform like an Alpha?

Whatever it was, it felt like my insides were being torn apart.

"Kayden, you okay, man?" I heard Miller call out, but I couldn’t answer.

Another cramp hit me, even stronger than the first, blurring my vision. I felt a cold sweat break out across my forehead despite the freezing air of the rink.

"Coach," I gasped, my voice shaking terribly as I raised my hand to excuse myself. When he nodded, I rushed out, scrambling toward the gate on shaking legs. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

I hit the floor of the tunnel, but I didn’t stop; the sound of my skates clattering against the rubber mats echoed through the hall. I made it to the private restroom in the back of the locker room and slammed the door, locking it just as I collapsed against the sink.

"Nngh... God..." I whimpered, clutching my stomach as I slid down the wall to the floor.

I curled myself into a ball, my head resting on my knees, trying to breathe through the waves of nausea and pain. I was alone, hurting, and terrified. And the worst part was, I didn’t even know why the hell I was feeling like this.

What is happening to me?