Page 81 of Boots & Scars

"Cooper, I don't know what happened," I continued, my voice soft but insistent. "And I know you're not ready to tell me. But I think you shouldn't shut out the possibility?—"

"Leave it," he said through clenched teeth.

"—that maybe there's a chance the two of you could reconcile," I finished, ignoring the tension that radiated off him.

"Shut up," he snapped, pulling away from me and standing up. "Just shut up for five seconds. Slow down and think, little girl. You don't know shit about my father, about what he's done to me. And you think I'm just going to tell you because we fucked a couple of times? Who the hell do you think you are?"

His words hit me like a physical blow, causing my eyes to prick with unshed tears.

"You want to know why I won't ever forgive my father?" he asked as he started getting dressed. "I'll tell you why."

He paused, his eyes boring into mine with a mixture of anger and pain.

"I caught my mother cheating on my father when I was ten," he said, his voice cold and detached. "And when I told my father, he gave me these scars. He threw his hot coffee at my face, begging me to shut the fuck up. Because he already knew. He already knew about my mother's affair, but now that I knew, he had to actually do something about it."

I gasped, unable to comprehend the horror of what he'd just revealed.

"See," Cooper continued, his voice growing harder. "As a former NHL player, he had a reputation of being perfect to uphold, and I didn't fall into line. All because I told him what I saw."

I stared at him, my heart breaking for the boy he'd been and the man he'd become because of it.

"Cooper..." I whispered, reaching out a hand toward him.

But he turned away from me, his shoulders tense with unresolved anger and pain.

There were no more words left between us at that moment; only silence filled the space where understanding should have been.

"Cooper, I'm so sorry," I said, my voice trembling.

"Not what you wanted to hear, is it?" he asked, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

"I didn't know," I whispered, my eyes pleading with him to understand.

"It's not your place to know," he shot back, stepping closer. "Who are you to me, anyway? Just because you're here doesn't mean I care about you."

"You don't mean that," I said, my voice shaking. "I know you do. I know you're angry with me, and you're just... you're pushing me away?—"

"You think so, do you?" he interrupted, his eyes cold. "You need to open those big eyes of yours, little girl. I've been telling you this whole damn time I'm not a good person, and yet, you look at me like I am. Like I'm going to change or some shit. I'm not. I couldn't change for the bitch I was going to marry, and you expect me to change for you? Jesus, you're arrogant, aren't you?"

"Cooper, I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have pushed?—"

"Oh, now you're sorry," he snapped. "Now, after everything. Now that you know. And you know what the best part of this whole thing is?"

I pressed my lips together, fear tightening in my chest.

"Your dad isn't dead," he said flatly.

"What?" My voice barely rose above a whisper.

"Your mother lied to you. Your whole life. Why? I have no fucking clue. Maybe she's embarrassed. Your dad left you in order to be with my mom. See, that was who she was cheating on my dad with."

"That's not... that can't be..." My voice trailed off as the weight of his words settled over me like a suffocating blanket.

"Guess no one loves you," he said with a cruel smirk. "Not when they all keep lying to you."

His words felt like a knife twisting in my gut. The room seemed to spin around me as the reality of his revelation sank in. All these years of believing my father was gone, all the stories my mother had told me—it was all a lie.

I stumbled out of bed, needing space to breathe. My legs felt weak beneath me as if they might give out at any moment.

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