My Hockey Alpha Neighbor

As the days pass, Aiden’s recovery steadily continues. His physical therapy becomes more and more easy with each passing day. Soon enough, he’s able to move around on crutches-albeit slowly. I can’t help but feel a swell of pride as he regains his strength, his determination unwavering.

Now that Aiden is feeling a bit more active, we’re able to go out for very short periods of time. Aiden’s wellness seems to encourage more people to visit with Aiden at the house to offer their support.

Mr. Whitlock stops by a few times to discuss Aiden’s recovery and updates with the team. Coach Henry comes by, too, badgering Aiden about his recovery program but giving some genuinely decent advice.

Oliver stops by again over the weekend. He flew back to Statford just to check on his friend again. Even I feel touched, and I’m not the one that he’s visiting

I am more than happy to let Oliver inside to see Aiden again. He’s dressed a bit more casually, this time wearing a classy turtleneck, tinted sunglasses and expensive jeans.

“Good afternoon. Carol, he greets enthusiastically, pulling me into a friendly hug. “How’s Aiden holding up?”

I smile as I pull back. “He’s getting much better every day,” I reply with a smile. “It’s the alpha genes, probably.”

Oliver laughs brightly. “Oh, you’re a delight, Carol,” he says. I let him inside, and the two of us head toward the kitchen table where Aiden is resting

Aiden looks up from his lunch with a smile. “Oliver! Came by to bother me again, huh?” He jokes.

“Obviously, Oliver shoots back with a grin. He settles into one of the chairs at the table. “What a fantastic place here. No wonder you don’t like visiting the Capital!”,

“Right That’s obviously the only reason.” Aiden laughs

“So, how are you feeling? Carol here tells me you’re getting better”

Aiden nods. “Mostly thanks to her. She’s been helping me with my physical therapy.”

YOU’VE COL

“Oh? Is that right?” Oliver looks at me appraisingly. “Businesswoman, assistant coach, physical therapist what can’t she do?

“You flatter me.

Oliver,” I say, a bit embarrassed by the attention. Aiden beams with pride.

“I think she can do anything,” he says sincerely.

Oliver spends a while catching up with Aiden. He gives a few updates on how things are back home. Aiden, of course, asks him about his family’s business.

“They said someone’s acting out, huh?” Oliver muses. He rubs his chin thoughtfully. “Well, I haven’t heard anything about that, but even my sources are more loyal to the Cruz family than they are to me. If there’s a problem, no one’s going to hear about it.”

“Except for me, apparently,” Aiden sighs. “It feels like a manipulation tactic. But… if it’s true…” he trails off, a complicated expression on his face.

“I’ll keep my eyes peeled, Oliver promises. “But in the meantime, you need to get some more rest. You are moving around far too much considering your bones are basically dust.”

“It’s not that severe,” Aiden points out. I shake my head

“Oliver is right. You need to spend less time upright and more time sleeping.” I scold him gently. “Let’s get you back to bed

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III

for a bit, alright?”

Although Aiden looks unhappy with the development, he begrudgingly nods. Oliver and I help him back to our room, where we set him up to get some rest.

Oliver and I step out of the room and close the door behind us. turn to him with a grateful smile.

“Thank you for coming to check in on him,” I say sincerely. “And thank you for helping me get him to rest. He’s been pushing himself a lot lately

“I can’t say I’m surprised. Oliver sighs. “He’s always been like that, ever since we were kids. He was never satisfied by being just enough. He always had to find something to excel at and push himself past his limit.”

My interest is piqued by Oliver’s words. Since Aiden only moved to town recently, I haven’t really spoken to anyone who knew Aiden before he met me. Aiden’s family was obviously a no-go for finding out more about Aiden. Oliver, however, was a wonderful potential resource.

“Hey, Oliver,” I begin tentatively as I walk him toward the door, “if you don’t mind. I’d love to know a bit more about Aiden’s upbringing. He’s understandably not always happy to talk about it.

Oliver’s eyes shine with understanding, “Ah, I see. You’re hoping to hear some of his embarrassing childhood stories, huh?” I laugh, a slight flush to my cheeks. “That’s not exactly what I meant, but I certainly wouldn’t mind,” I say.

“Well, you’ve come to the right person! Everyone says one of my greatest weaknesses is that I don’t shut my mouth, but I think it’s one of my greatest strengths,” he jokes. “But we should get out of Aiden’s hair if we’re going to talk. How does dinner sound?”

I’m a bit surprised to hear that someone from Aiden’s life wants to spend more time with me, but I readily accept. I’ve already come to terms with the fact that Aiden’s parents are unlikely to accept me with open arms. If I can have a good relationship with even just one person Aiden cares about, that would mean the world to me.

a bit too

Oliver offers to drive me to a dinner place he knows. It’s Italian You’ll love it,” he assures me enthusiastically. “It’s al gaudy for Aiden, so I’m sure you’ve never been before. Let’s go!

‘Gaudy” is certainly the right word for it. The restaurant is tucked away in a lesser known part of the city. Its inconspicuous location only makes its beautiful architecture stand out more. From the outside, it almost looks like a church with its beautiful and intricate design.

The restaurant has its own valet that takes away Oliver’s expensive sports car. sight that makes me so overwhelmed I pretend not to see it.

Oliver tips him with hundred dollar bills

The two of us step inside, and I’m immediately blown away by the beauty of the establishment. Extravagant chandeliers hang from the ceiling, and each table is surrounded by plush dining chairs. The waiters move around quickly, each holdin a more delicious looking dish than the last

Oliver seems to already know everyone at the restaurant. He chaos with the host like they’ve been best friends for years. With a little smooth-talking, he gets us in without a reservation. He scores us a small booth tucked away in a corner for privacy.

This place is incredible,” I breathe as we take our seats. He grins

“I’m glad you think so! Order anything you want. It’s my

“Oh, no, I couldn’t I begin, but he raises a hand.

treat,” he says.

my best friend. Someone has to pay you for practically being a live-in nurse.”

“Come on, Carol. You’ve been taking care of my

Although I want to argue, I decide against it. Oliver seems insistent on paying for me and quite honestly, I would be

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Chapter 60%.

nervous to order anything otherwise. The menu doesn’t list prices, but I can guess they’re high.

The two of us quickly get to chatting about Aiden’s upbringing Ele tells me a bit about their experience growing up as the elite in the Capital. It’s just as classy as 1 imagined they met at a business retreat when they were five and have been fast friends since. The two went to all of the same private schools together and seem to have been completely inseparable.

*I was the first person Aiden told that he wanted to pursue hockey.” Oliver said proudly. “He had been playing it ever since we were in middle school, but his parents never took it seriously They assumed it was just a phase he would grow out of”

“How did you respond?” I ask.

“Oh. I told him it was a terrible idea”” Oliver laughed. “We had just graduated from business school, and all of a sudden he tells me he wants to be an athlete. I thought I was going to have a heart attack! That was the only big fight we’ve ever had.”

1 can’t say I’m completely surprised by Oliver’s response. Oliver and Aiden grew up almost like princes in line for the throne. They had been told for all of their lives that they would go into the family business. As an alpha, even more pressure was on Aiden to be a leader. Oliver is a beta-it made sense he felt he had to go along with the desires of society

“It took us a while to get over that bump Oliver admitted. “We didn’t talk for quite a while. I was miserable. Eventually, though. I came around to the idea

“Why was that?

Oliver sighed, a faraway look in his eyes. The Gladwell Family

my family has been closely linked with the Cruz family

for years. We’re mostly betas, and since the Cruz family are mostly alphas we largely have acted in service to them. That means I’ve had insight into the pressure Aiden is under

1 nod with understanding. “I can’t even imagine.

There must have been large expectations on him to take over the family

品

“Exactly. He’s the eldest son, too, which gives him a unique position for their family business. I realized that he must have felt like a prisoner in his own home. So I sucked up my pride, showed up at one of his college games and told him he should go for it

I can’t help the smile that tugs at my lips. “That’s really sweet,” ay quietly. “Honestly, I’m amazed that he managed to make such good frends with that kind of pressure on him.”

“Me too, Oliver agrees readily. “It’s honestly a miracle he turned out to be kind to people from all different backgrounds and statuses considering his upbringing

I nod thoughtfully. “Honestly, how did that happen?” I wonder. Oliver hums to himself.

“I have a few suspicions,” he says. “Aiden has always been kind and charming. It helps that he has a good heart. Bu think it might have something to do with his little cousin, Arthu

That catches my attention. A little cousin? Could this be the person who they say is disrupting the family business? I w

“Arthur? What’s their relationship like?” 1 ask. Oliver smiles enigmatically.

“Well… I won’t go into too much detail. I’m sure that Aiden would be happy to tell you some of this himself. But.. for context, Arthur is not an alpha. It was a bit of a scandal, actually his father was an alpha, and his mother a luna. When little Artic came out a beta, it caused an uproar. There were plenty of cheating rumors.”

My heart aches at the thought. “I can’t imagine how hard that must have been,” I say sadly. “Tm sure the family wasn’t exactly the most supportive

Oliver snorts. “Oh, absolutely not. No one was, except for Aident think their closeness really helped perspective of the world”

to shape his

The rest of the dinner goes by with more enthusiastic conversation. I feel a deep sense of gratitude for the newfound

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