All Chapters of CRAVING THE BAD BOY: Chapter 181 - Chapter 190

238 Chapters

181 - Cold fire.

Ariana POVThe moment Laura's father stepped into the room, every conversation died instantly. He carried the kind of presence that demanded attention without raising his voice. Tall, impeccably dressed despite the late hour, and wearing an expression that suggested he had already reached the end of his patience long before entering.His eyes moved across the room carefully. First Claire. Then Ethan. Then me. And finally Nick. The longest look was reserved for Nick. That alone told me everything I needed to know. Nobody spoke immediately. The silence stretched until it became uncomfortable.Then Laura's father broke it. "So this is where the disaster management team is hiding."His voice was calm. Too calm. The kind of calm that usually came right before something exploded. Nick straightened slightly. "Mr. Bennett."Laura's father stared at him. "Do not start this conversation pretending we're on friendly terms."The bluntness hit the room like a slap. Even Claire looked uncomfortable

Last Updated : 2026-06-01

182 - Bitter truth.

Ariana POVFor a moment, I genuinely thought I had misheard him. The room fell into complete silence after Mr. Bennett spoke. Every pair of eyes turned toward me, and the weight of that attention felt suffocating. My heart hammered violently against my ribs as I tried to process what he had just said.Apparently, someone wants us to believe you're the mastermind behind everything. The accusation was so absurd that I almost laughed. Almost. Instead, I stared at him in disbelief "What?"The word escaped before I could stop it. Mr. Bennett's expression remained serious as he held up his phone. "I'm not saying I believe it. I'm saying someone sent me a message claiming that every leak, every photograph, every rumor, all of it was orchestrated by you."I felt like the floor had disappeared beneath my feet. "That's insane.""It is," Ethan agreed immediately.Nick stepped closer to me without hesitation. "Nobody here believes that." His certainty should have reassured me, but the damage had

Last Updated : 2026-06-02

183 - Stay away

Ariana POVBy the time I left the hospital the next morning, I felt like an entirely different person. The last forty-eight hours had changed everything. Relationships had ended. Secrets had surfaced. Friendships had fractured. Most importantly, the version of my life I had been desperately trying to hold together no longer existed.The morning air was cool against my skin as I stepped outside the hospital entrance. The crowd of reporters had finally disappeared after security forced them away during the night, but the damage remained. My phone was still flooded with notifications. My social media accounts were filled with strangers debating my life as if I were a fictional character instead of a real person.For the first time since everything began, I switched my phone off completely. The silence felt incredible. Nick noticed immediately. "You finally did it."I slipped the phone into my bag. "If I read one more opinion from someone who doesn't know me, I'm going to lose my mind."A

Last Updated : 2026-06-03

184 - oops, bad idea!!

Ariana POVMonday morning arrived far too quickly. After everything that had happened at the hospital, the last place I wanted to be was campus. Unfortunately, life did not care whether I was emotionally prepared or not. Classes continued. Assignments remained due. Professors expected attendance.The world kept moving. I hated it. As soon as I stepped out of my car, I noticed people staring. Some looked curious. Some looked sympathetic. Some looked eager for drama. None of it was subtle. For the first time in my life, I understood why celebrities wore sunglasses indoors. People were exhausting. "Ignore them."I turned to find Maya walking beside me with two coffees in her hands. "You appeared out of nowhere."She handed me one of the cups. "I've been stalking you since the parking lot.""That's concerning.""It's friendship."Despite myself, I laughed. Maya studied my face carefully. "You look terrible.""Thank you.""You're welcome."We continued walking toward the business building

Last Updated : 2026-06-03

185 - hell no!

Ariana POVI spent the entire afternoon regretting my decision to smile. Not because Nick had done anything wrong. The problem was that I knew him well enough to recognize that expression. Whenever he called something a bad idea, it usually meant he had already decided to do it.That realization stayed with me through two lectures, one group meeting, and an embarrassingly unproductive study session. By the time evening arrived, I had accomplished absolutely nothing except wondering what he had meant.Naturally, that was when he texted me. Meet me at the football field in twenty minutes. I stared at the message. Then I stared some more. There was no explanation attached. No details. No hint about why I needed to be there. Just the message. I immediately called him. He answered on the second ring. "You couldn't just explain over text?""No.""Why?""Because then you'd talk yourself out of coming."I narrowed my eyes despite the fact that he couldn't see me. "That sounds suspicious.""It

Last Updated : 2026-06-04

186 - Just us.

Ariana POVThe problem with life-changing conversations was that the world never paused afterward. No dramatic music played. No giant sign appeared in the sky announcing that everything had changed. The campus remained exactly the same when I woke up the next morning. Students rushed to classes. Professors assigned work nobody wanted. Coffee lines stretched across the student center.Everything looked normal. I was the one who felt different. The conversation with Nick at the football field replayed in my mind throughout the entire night. Not because he had said something shocking. The opposite, actually. For the first time in months, there had been no confusion hiding behind his words."I don't want to spend another six months pretending."The honesty of it refused to leave me alone. By lunchtime, I had reread the same page of notes three times without absorbing a single word. Maya finally snapped her fingers in front of my face. "You've been staring at that notebook for ten minutes.

Last Updated : 2026-06-04

187 - Yours?

Ariana POVThe strange thing about happiness was how suspicious it felt after a long period of chaos. For nearly three weeks, my life had been one disaster after another. Every day brought a new problem, a new argument, or a new emotional crisis. Now, suddenly, things were quiet. Not perfect, but quiet enough that I kept waiting for something to go wrong.Unfortunately, Maya noticed. "You've checked your phone twelve times in five minutes."I looked up from my seat in the library. "No, I haven't.""You absolutely have."I glanced at my phone again. Maya pointed dramatically. "Thirteen."I rolled my eyes. "This is why nobody likes you."She looked offended. "Everybody likes me.""That's concerning."Despite my response, I found myself laughing. It felt easier lately. For the first time in months, laughter didn't feel forced. Maya closed her notebook and leaned forward. "Okay, serious question."I immediately became suspicious. "Why do you sound like a therapist?""Answer the question."

Last Updated : 2026-06-04

188 - One more minute.

Ariana POVThe closer graduation got, the stranger campus felt. Every day seemed filled with reminders that our time here was ending. Posters advertising graduation events appeared on every bulletin board. Students constantly discussed job offers, moving plans, and future goals. Even professors seemed determined to remind us that adulthood was waiting just around the corner.I wasn't sure I appreciated the reminder. By Thursday afternoon, I found myself sitting on the library steps watching students hurry across campus. Some were carrying textbooks. Others were carrying graduation gowns they had just picked up. The sight made everything feel real in a way it hadn't before."You look like you're having an existential crisis."I glanced up to find Laura standing nearby. A smile immediately appeared on my face. "That obvious?"She sat beside me and laughed softly. "You've been staring at the same tree for five minutes.""The tree seemed trustworthy.""That's definitely an existential cri

Last Updated : 2026-06-05

189 - Let's start over.

Ariana POVSaturday arrived with exactly the kind of chaos I should have expected. Graduation was less than two weeks away, which meant the entire campus had collectively lost its mind.Students were running everywhere carrying forms, schedules, gowns, cameras, and enough coffee to fuel a small city. Every building seemed packed. Every parking lot was full. Every conversation somehow led back to graduation.By ten o'clock that morning, I was already exhausted. Unfortunately, Maya was just getting started. "I made a checklist."Those four words immediately ruined my mood. We were sitting inside her apartment surrounded by graduation materials she had somehow accumulated. There were printed schedules on the coffee table, sticky notes attached to walls, and color-coded folders stacked on the floor.The place looked less like an apartment and more like a command center. Ethan stared at the mess. "I'm genuinely concerned.""You should be grateful.""I'm afraid.""Same thing."Laura laughed

Last Updated : 2026-06-05

190 - Chosen.

Ariana POVThe smile I gave Nick should have been a simple thing. A small moment. A silent answer. Instead, it changed everything. Not in some dramatic, earth-shattering way. The sky didn't crack open. Nobody appeared to interrupt us. There wasn't some magical realization that suddenly solved every problem in our lives.What changed was simpler than that. For the first time, neither of us stepped backward. For months, every meaningful moment between us had ended the same way. One of us would hesitate. One of us would retreat. One of us would find a reason to wait.Standing beneath the string lights, surrounded by the sounds of the evening market, neither of us moved away. And somehow, that felt bigger than any grand declaration. Nick's smile grew when he saw mine. "I'll take that as a good sign."I laughed softly. "Maybe.""Maybe?""I have a reputation to maintain."He looked genuinely confused. "What reputation?""The one where I don't make things easy for you."Nick groaned dramatic

Last Updated : 2026-06-06

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