The Space Between

Chapter 38 : Shocking news

Matteo's POV

Everything had been a blur since the tournament kicked off. I was caught up in practices, strategies, and endless team meetings. It’d been days since I last spoke to Sophia—two, maybe three—and I could feel the weight of the silence between us. But I figured we’d catch up once things slowed down. After a grueling practice session, Coach called me over, saying my parents were waiting outside the locker room. A jolt of excitement ran through me. Finally, I’d get to tell them about Sophia, set things straight, and maybe start smoothing things over with Mom.

I hurried to the locker room, grinning as I found Marcus and Ethan. “Hey, I’m about to tell my parents about Sophia,” I said, my excitement barely contained. Marcus gave me an encouraging nod, but Ethan’s expression was off, like he was holding back. It bugged me for a second, but I brushed it off. Ethan hadn’t said anything against Sophia in a while, and I figured he knew better than to push it now. Plus, Derek had warned him to back off, and I hoped he’d gotten the message.

I headed to meet my parents, but my steps faltered when I saw them. Bianca was there, too, flanked by her parents. A cold unease settled in my gut. “What’s Bianca doing here?” I asked, frowning at Mom.

“Is that any way to greet your parents?” Mom chided, frowning back. I sighed, swallowing my frustration, and went through the motions of hugging them. They brushed off my questions, insisting we’d talk about everything over dinner. We all piled into my car, the silence heavy, and I drove us to a fancy restaurant where Bianca’s parents were already waiting.

As we took our seats, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was about to walk into something I wouldn’t like. Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore and turned to my mom. “What is this all about?”

Mom glanced at Bianca’s parents, who were beaming. “You’ll see,” she said, and I didn’t like her tone one bit.

Bianca’s parents exchanged looks of delight, then turned to me. “Congratulations on your engagement, Matteo!” they announced, beaming like they’d just handed me the best news ever. The floor felt like it had been pulled out from under me.

“What? Engagement? What the hell are you talking about?” I demanded, my voice rising as I stared at them in shock. “Who decided this? Who said I wanted to get engaged to Bianca? We’re over!”

Bianca’s mom looked stunned, like she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She turned to my mom, who quickly jumped in, trying to smooth things over. “It’s just a misunderstanding, Bianca’s parents. We’ll get this sorted,” she said, but there was an edge in her voice that made it clear this wasn’t just a misunderstanding to her.

Dad, who’d been quiet until now, leaned forward, his face stern. “We’ve heard things, Matteo. About Sophia, about the trouble she’s causing on campus. This isn’t the right path for you, and we’ve decided that an engagement to Bianca is what’s best.”

“Are you serious?” I shot back, my anger boiling over. “I didn’t agree to this! I don’t want to be with Bianca—I’m with Sophia. She’s the one I love.”

Mom stood up abruptly, her expression hardening. “Enough, Matteo! Enough about Sophia. We are your parents, and we know what’s best for you.”

The argument escalated from there, voices rising, emotions flaring. Bianca tried to interject, suggesting I listen to my mom, but I was too furious to even register her words. I was about to storm out when Bianca stopped me, a sly look on her face. “You know, Sophia already knows about the engagement. She didn’t even try to contact you. She just believed you were a liar, Matteo. She didn’t trust you.”

I stared at her, speechless. “What are you talking about?”

“It’s all over the university forum,” she added, smirking. “Sophia saw it and didn’t even bother to ask you what was going on.”

Her words cut deep, and for a moment, I didn’t know what to say. The thought that Sophia would believe this without talking to me hurt more than anything my parents or Bianca could have thrown at me.

Bianca’s parents took their leave, pulling her along, but not before she whispered to me, “Think about who you can really trust, Matteo.” I watched them go, feeling like I’d been sucker-punched.

I turned to my parents, trying to make them understand. “You’re making me choose between you and Sophia. Why can’t you see that she’s not what you think?”

Mom just shook her head, disappointment etched on her face. “Sophia will always bring drama into your life, Matteo. You need to decide what kind of future you want.”

The weight of their ultimatum settled heavily on my shoulders. I was furious, hurt, and completely lost as I stormed out of the restaurant, my mind spinning with everything that had just happened. I needed to find Sophia, to talk to her, to sort this out before it spiraled any further. I headed back to my dorm, each step feeling heavier than the last, hoping that somehow, we could still fix this.