Faking It With The Hockey Star

Harper’s POV

I had never seen silence hurt before, not until today.

Justin stood in the middle of the living room, completely still. Everyone else had left: the police, the detectives, his grandparents, even Ethan and Vanessa. Only three people remained in the quiet house: Justin, his father, and me.

I looked over at the man standing a few feet away from us. Richard looked old. It wasn’t because of his age, but because decades of grief and sudden realization had settled onto his shoulders all at once. For the first time since I had met him, he looked like a man who understood exactly what he had lost.

Justin didn’t even look at him. He simply reached for my hand, his fingers ice-cold to the touch. I squeezed them gently, offering whatever strength I had left.

"We should go," Justin said, his voice completely empty. He took one step toward the door.

"Justin," Richard’s voice cracked behind us. "Please."

Justin stopped walking, his body rigid. My heart clenched for him.

Richard swallowed hard, his eyes filling with tears. "Can... can I talk to you?"

For a long, excruciating moment, Justin didn’t answer. Then, he slowly turned around. I had never seen so much raw pain on someone’s face before.

"You want to talk now?" Justin’s voice shook violently. "Now?"

Richard nodded weakly. "I’m sorry."

Justin let out a dry laugh. It wasn’t a happy laugh; it was the kind that came right before someone completely broke apart.

"Sorry?" Justin asked, his breathing becoming uneven. "You think ’sorry’ fixes this? You were my father." His voice cracked, raw with emotion. "You were supposed to protect me."

Richard’s shoulders trembled. "I know."

"No!" Justin shook his head violently. "You don’t know! You don’t know what you did to me!"

I reached for his arm gently. "Justin..."

He didn’t even hear me. His eyes never left his father’s. "You cheated on Mom. You brought that woman into our lives, and you trusted her over your own son."

Richard buried his face in his trembling hands. "I didn’t know—"

"You didn’t know?" Justin exploded, stepping forward. "You didn’t know? How? How didn’t you know? She sent me to school hungry, sometimes for days! I had bruises! I showed you! You looked at me... and told me I was lying!"

Richard slowly shook his head, his tears spilling over. "I didn’t... I thought—"

"You thought I was making it up!" Justin shouted, the agony pouring out of him. "I was a child! I was begging you to believe me!" His voice cracked so badly that I felt hot tears sting my own eyes. "I kept wondering what was wrong with me. What did I do? Why didn’t my dad love me anymore? I kept blaming myself!"

Richard was crying openly now, his chest heaving. "I’m sorry. I’m so sorry."

Justin took another sharp step forward. "No. Don’t. Don’t say you’re sorry. You don’t get to say that now."

Richard looked completely broken. "I never wanted this."

Justin laughed bitterly again. "You never wanted this? My mother is dead! My childhood is gone! My family never existed! And you’re standing here telling me... you never wanted this?"

Richard covered his mouth as another sob escaped him. "I loved your mother."

Justin’s entire body stiffened like iron. "No," he said, pointing toward the doorway where Diane had been taken away in handcuffs. "You loved her. You chose her. You chose her every single day."

Richard couldn’t answer.

When Justin spoke again, his voice became quiet and low, which somehow hurt even more. "If you had never cheated, my mom would still be alive."

Silence hung heavy in the room.

"If you had believed me, I wouldn’t have spent years wondering why my own father hated me."

Silence.

"If you had protected me, I would have had a family."

I felt my own tears falling freely down my cheeks. Justin looked at the man standing in front of him, then slowly shook his head.

"I hate you," Justin said quietly.

Richard physically flinched as if struck.

"I hate what you did to us," Justin continued. "I hate what you let happen. I hate that you made me question whether I was worth loving." He wiped his face roughly with his sleeve. "You wanted that company so badly? Keep it. I don’t care. I’ll make my own future. I have hockey. If hockey doesn’t work out, I have my degree. I’ll build something myself. I don’t need anything with your fingerprints all over it."

Richard fell straight to his knees on the floor. "Please... my son... please don’t leave me."

Justin’s face twisted in profound pain. "I’m not your son anymore." The words echoed through the silent house like a final judgment. "I lost my father years ago. This..." He looked at Richard one last time, "...is just the day I finally accepted it."

Richard let out a broken, agonized cry.

I couldn’t take watching it anymore. I gently wrapped my hand around Justin’s arm. "Justin... baby... it’s enough."

His entire body was trembling violently. He turned his head to look at me, and for the first time since we had walked into this house, his anger completely disappeared. All that remained in his eyes was absolute exhaustion.

"I’m tired," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "So tired."

"I know," I said softly, stepping in close and wrapping my arms tightly around his waist.

He buried his face against my shoulder without hesitation. For a brief moment, he became that little boy again—the one who had spent years wishing someone would choose him. I rubbed slow, comforting circles over his back.

"We’re going home," I murmured.

He didn’t answer out loud, simply nodding against my shoulder.

Earlier, while everyone had still been arguing, I had quietly sent one text to Mason: Please come. Justin can’t drive. Please.

By the time we stepped out the front doors into the cool air, a familiar SUV was already idling by the curb. Mason climbed out the moment he saw us walking down the steps, his usual lighthearted grin completely gone.

"What happened?" Mason asked softly.

I shook my head, keeping my arm around Justin’s waist. "I’ll tell you later. Can you drive?"

Mason looked at Justin, and one glance at Justin’s shattered expression was all it took. "Yeah. No problem."

Ava stepped out of the passenger seat, taking the keys from my hand. "I’ll drive Justin’s car back."

I offered her a grateful smile. "Thank you."

Neither of them asked another question. They simply understood the weight of the moment. Mason opened the back door, and Justin climbed in without saying a word. I slid in right beside him.

The second the door closed, Justin leaned his head heavily against my shoulder. I intertwined my fingers firmly with his, holding on tight.

"Mason," I called up quietly. "My house, please."

Mason nodded in the rearview mirror. "No problem."

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