Neither of us answers right away. The silence says enough.
“Yeah,” I finally admit. “There is.”
His eyes flick toward Tessa, searching her face. She doesn’t look away.
“I fought it,” I say, the words rough in my throat. “For a long time. I tried to bury it. I tried to pretend my feelings didn’t exist. Told myself it was a line I couldn’t cross. But I couldn’t keep pretending.”
Tessa nods. “Me too. We didn’t mean for it to happen, and we never wanted to hurt you. You have to know that.”
Evan nods slowly, his expression unreadable. He looks down for a second, kicking lightly at the slush near his feet before speaking again. “I believe you.”
Tessa blinks, caught off guard. “You do?”
“Yeah,” he says simply. “You both look miserable trying to explain yourselves. I don’t think you’d bother lying to me if you didn’t mean it.”
He looks back up, his eyes flicking between us again. “But I also saw you before you noticed me. Heard you laughing.” He swallows hard. “I’ve never seen either of you look or sound so... happy. Especially not Clay.”
He lets out a breath, shoulders sagging slightly. “I can admit it now. It was never like that with us.” His eyes shift to Tessa. “You laughed with me, sure, but it was different. I think maybe we both wanted something that felt easy. But that”—he gestures faintly between her and me—“it was never like that with us.”
Tessa looks stunned, her voice barely above a whisper. “Evan…”
He shakes his head lightly, cutting her off before she can continue. “I’m not saying this to make you feel bad. I just needed to see it for myself. To know I wasn’t crazy for thinking something had changed long before you ever said it out loud.”
I stay quiet, letting him talk. I rarely see him like this. No jokes, no smugness. He’s just a guy trying to process what he’s seeing.
He looks back at me, and for a second, the tension between us shifts. “I can see the change in you, too. This isn’t just about having hockey in your life again, either. You really do seem happy. Lighter.”
I don’t know what to say to that, so I just nod once.
“Guess what I’m trying to say,” he continues, “is that I get it. Doesn’t mean I’m ready to sit around and pretend we’re all good, or have it shoved in my face. I’m sure eventually that’ll change, but…” He exhales. “If this is what makes you both happy, then… I’m not going to stand in the way.”
Tessa steps closer to me without even realizing it, and I rest my hand on her lower back, pulling her against my side.
“Evan,” she says gently, “I don’t know what to say.”
He gives a short laugh. “Then don’t. Just... maybe next time you have a secret, trust that the person can handle hearing the truth rather than keeping it from them.”
“Yeah,” I say quietly. “You’re right.”
He nods once, his jaw tight. “Take care of her, all right?”
“I will,” I say quietly.
His gaze moves to Tessa, and something in his face loosens. “You deserve to be happy, Tess.”
“Thank you, Evan. You do too.”
Then he turns, walks toward the car waiting at the curb, and doesn’t look back. The quiet he leaves behind settles deep, like the kind that comes after a storm finally passes.
Tessa exhales shakily, her shoulders dropping. “I didn’t expect that.”
“Me either,” I admit.
We stand there for a minute, watching his taillights fade at the end of the street. The air’s cold, sharp in my lungs, but it feels lighter somehow— like the tension that’s been holding everything tight finally let go.
She turns toward me, eyes searching mine. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” I pause, then nod. “Yeah, I think I am.”
