LOGINAriana POVEverything happened too fast. One second, Nick was right in front of me. The next, he was gone. They dragged him out like he was nothing, like he didn’t matter, like he didn’t have a choice. And the worst part was… he didn’t fight.He let them take him. Because of me. My chest tightened painfully at that thought. "No… no, no, no," I whispered, shaking my head. I ran toward the door. But the moment I stepped out. Silence. The hallway was empty. Like nothing had happened. Like no one was ever there. "What the hell…?"My heart was beating too fast now. I ran down the stairs, almost tripping, my hands gripping the rail tightly. "Nick!" I called out.No answer. I pushed the front door open and stepped outside. The street was empty. No cars. No men. Nothing. They were gone. Just like that. It felt unreal. Like I imagined everything. But I didn’t. I knew I didn’t. My hands started to shake. "Think… Ari, think," I muttered.Panic was trying to take over, but I forced myself to brea
Nick POVThe door burst open. Loud, hard, like it was never meant to stay closed. Everything stopped for a second. Then...voices. "Don’t move!"Ariana flinched beside me. My grip on her arm tightened without thinking. Three men stepped into the room. Big, serious, not here to talk. My heart started pounding again. This was worse than I thought, much worse. "Hands where we can see them," one of them said.I slowly raised my hands. Ariana hesitated, then did the same. The man from the stairs didn’t move. He just stood there, watching like this was all part of the plan. "You set this up," I said to him.He didn’t deny it. That told me everything. "You walked into it yourself," he replied calmly.I clenched my jaw. Ariana whispered, "Nick… what is happening?""I’ve got you," I said quietly.Even though I wasn’t sure that was true. One of the men stepped closer. His eyes moved between us. Then stopped on me. "Nick, right?"I didn’t answer. He smirked slightly. "Yeah. That’s you."Ariana lo
Ariana POV"Tell her… or I will." The words hung in the air. Heavy and sharp. Impossible to ignore. I turned slowly to Nick. My heart was beating too fast, too loud."What is he talking about?" I asked. Nick didn’t answer. He just stood there. Silent. And that silence…it scared me more than anything."Nick." Still nothing. My chest tightened. "Say something." He ran a hand through his hair, his breathing uneven."It’s not that simple.""There you go again," I said, my voice shaking. "It’s never simple with you.""Ariana...""No," I cut in. "No more half answers. No more ‘I’ll explain later.’ I’m tired."The man on the stairs watched quietly. Like he was enjoying this. "Tell her," he said again.Nick’s jaw clenched. "Stay out of this.""I’m already in it."I stepped closer to Nick. "Look at me."He hesitated. Then he did. And for a moment...everything else faded. It was just us. The same way it used to be, but different, broken. "Whatever it is," I said softly, "just say it."His eyes
94 - No way out.Nick POV"Going somewhere?"The voice came from above us, calm, almost amused. I looked up slowly. A man stood at the top of the stairs, one hand resting on the rail, the other in his pocket like he had all the time in the world.Ariana’s grip on my arm tightened. "Nick…" she whispered."I see him," I said quietly.My mind was moving fast now, too fast. Front blocked. Back blocked. No clear exit. We were trapped. The man beside us, the one who brought Ariana here, stepped slightly back, like he was thinking. Like he was calculating something."Who is that?" Ariana asked.No one answered. Because we all knew this was bad. The man upstairs took a slow step down. Then another. Each step echoed. Loud and controlled."You made this harder than it had to be," he said.I clenched my jaw. "What do you want?"He smiled slightly. "Straight to the point. I like that."Another step down. Ariana shifted closer to me. I could feel her fear now. Real fear. And that made something in
Ariana POVMy hand was on the door. I did not remember walking this far inside the building. One minute I was outside, staring at the address on my phone, and the next minute I was here, standing in front of a closed door that felt like it was hiding something heavy.Something important, something dangerous. The hallway was quiet, too quiet, the kind of silence that makes you hear your own heartbeat, slow, loud and unsteady. I swallowed and looked back over my shoulder. No one. Just darkness behind me.For a second, I thought about leaving. Just turning around and walking out. Going back home. Pretending none of this ever happened. But then I remembered the voice on the phone. "I know what really happened to your father."That was enough. I turned back to the door. My fingers tightened slightly around the handle. "Just open it," I whispered to myself.Before I could move, a voice came from behind me. "Ariana."My whole body froze. I knew that voice. I turned slowly. Nick. He stood a f
Nick POVI had not slept. Not even for a second. My eyes burned, my head ached, but I could not rest. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw it again. Ariana. Her face. The way she looked at me the last time we spoke. And now…She had seen everything. The proposal. The video. There was no going back from that. I sat on the edge of my bed, my phone in my hand. I had tried calling her. More times than I could count. No answer. I sent messages. No reply. She had cut me off. And I could not even blame her.A knock came on my door. “Come in,” I muttered.My manager stepped inside, looking serious. “We need to talk.”I let out a dry laugh. “When do we not?”“This is not a joke, Nick.”I rubbed my face. “I know.”He walked closer and dropped a file on the table. “The situation is getting worse.”“I can see that.”“Your engagement helped a little, but not enough.”I frowned. “What do you mean?”“The media is digging deeper.”My stomach tightened. “How deep?”He hesitated. “Deep enough to start as
Sofia and I decided to have a sleepover at her house since we haven't had one of those in a while and it was also the only way of getting Nick out of my head. We decided to watch a marathon of sisters because it's the only show we could agree on watching. Sofia popped down next to me on her comf
I was stuffing my books into my backpack when a sudden knock on the door pulled my attention."I'm coming!" I yelled, as I dragged myself to the door, and pulled it open.I blinked, taking aback on seeing Eve, Nick's mom"Ariana," She faked a smile as she eyed me from head to toe, sizing me up. I r
Nick* * * *I loved this part. I loved meeting the fans, loved the selfies and jokes and words of praises. I loved the look in all of their eyes as they looked at me, it told me that I wasn't just a player, I was part of their lives. And I lived for it.The team and I walked into the crowd a
"She's gay." He blurted out.I narrowed my eyes. "Gay?""Yes, she's involved with some girl, okay! We're just pretending to be a thing because her parents doesn't approve her sexual choices, and I need her father's influence in growing my career."I swallowed. "But that only complicates this... wha







