The Way Things Work

She is neither the protagonist nor the antagonist in this game. She’s the hand that control and move the pieces on the board. Humans are her chess pieces, and the school is her chess board. This is her game. Join Mal Pandora on her twisted game as she slowly reveals the dark truth behind the system, and witness how she plays the game mischievously. Be prepared to see how she deceives them with her plan and tricks, and how she can turn the tables even in the worst of circumstances. This is a mind game involving strategy and deception, and all she asks of you is that you trust her. The question is... Will you trust her as she plays THE SCHEME?

A single message at 2:17 AM changed everything. “Follow the instructions.” At first, it felt like a joke. A random message from an unknown number. Easy to ignore… until it wasn’t. When the instructions start getting personal, too personal, he realizes something is watching him. Learning him. Controlling every move before he even makes it. Then he meets her. A girl who has already been through it. A survivor of the system. Someone who knows the rules… and the consequences of breaking them. But there’s one problem. The system doesn’t make mistakes. And it doesn’t let people go. The more he resists, the deeper he’s pulled in, into a hidden network built on control, prediction, and manipulation. Every choice feels like his own… until he realizes it was never his to begin with. Now, he faces an impossible decision: Follow the instructions… Or risk losing everything, including the people he’s trying to protect. Because in this system… Freedom isn’t given. It’s taken.

I was the company's marketing director, but my salary had always been only sixteen hundred dollars. One day, Timmy Sunderland from finance accidentally sent the payroll spreadsheet to me by mistake. On it, I saw the lines: Technical Director–10,000 dollars. Marketing Assistant–5,600 dollars. Receptionist–2,000 dollars. It also clearly stated that my salary was ten thousand, but most of it had been deducted and given to Timmy! Only then did I realize that after a decade of service at this company, they still treated me worse than everyone else. I rushed into the office belonging to my boss, Jessica White. "I want an explanation." She said to me, "This is a business decision, and I'm not at liberty to explain anything to you. Haven't you always been the one who understood me the best?" Because I had feelings for Jessica, I gave in. A few days later, when the holiday arrived, I did not rest. I went out to negotiate an investment of five million for the company. I treated the client to dinner and drank with him until I suffered internal bleeding. When I took the receipt of 2,000 dollars to Timmy for reimbursement, he transferred only 100 dollars to me and even said I was just trying to take advantage of the company. Jessica also scolded me to my face. "Only incapable people need to spend that much on clients. Timmy's right, you're just trying to take advantage of the company." This time, I decided not to endure it any longer. In anger, I quit and joined another company. The first project that I was put in charge of was worth over ten million, and Jessica's company was the investment target…

When I returned to the Costello family as the long-lost daughter, I was dressed in my adoptive sister's hand-me-downs, and the family driver came only for her. Still, they felt guilty toward the daughter they had raised in my absence. So when the government rolled out the Fairness System, they registered the whole family before I could blink. My father exhaled with relief. "With this system enforcing absolute equality, Brittany won't ever have to suffer again." My mother took my hand, her voice leaving no room for argument. "You came home and stole everything that belonged to her. That's not fair to Brittany." My brother didn't bother hiding his contempt. "I only acknowledge one sister. You already got more than you deserve. Don't push your luck." I ate leftovers while she had private chefs. I sweated in a closet while she slept in a custom-designed suite. I almost laughed. When the system went live, they were the ones who fell apart.

Charlotte Hartwell built Hartwell Industries from the ground up. Every late night, every sacrifice, and every success made the company more than a business—it became her life’s work. So when the powerful Blackthorne Global offers to buy her company for the fourth time, Charlotte is prepared to do what she’s always done. Say no. Darrien Blackthorne isn’t used to hearing that answer. As CEO of one of the world’s most influential corporations, he’s convinced Charlotte’s company deserves the resources to become something even greater. He isn’t trying to destroy her dream—he wants to help it flourish. But the more time he spends with the brilliant, fiercely independent entrepreneur, the less certain he becomes about where business ends and something far more personal begins. Caught between them is James—a man whose connection to Charlotte is deeper than either of them realizes. As long-buried secrets begin to surface, strange coincidences become impossible to ignore, and an unseen force quietly weaves their lives together. What began as a corporate acquisition soon unravels into something far older, far more dangerous, and far more magical than any of them could have imagined. With betrayal hiding behind a trusted smile, loyalties tested at every turn, and destiny refusing to be ignored, Charlotte must decide whether protecting the company she built is worth risking the future she was never meant to face alone. Some lives are changed by choice. Others were Entangled by Design.

Every action generates a reaction, every act has its consequence regardless of whether it is good or bad. What goes around comes around and there you go. Nothing was planned and this careless act had a consequence that hit everyone hard. She didn't know what to do and he didn't want someone she didn't love, but think about that before anything else. Both put up with each other, one hates the other, for thinking that one destroyed the other's life. They don't know how to control themselves, she gets hurt and he doesn't know how to go back, maybe it's too late or maybe not. There is still hope, hope that unites them forever and ever.