Feel-Good Story Marriage 短篇故事與小說

Two weeks before the wedding, I took my parents to dinner at my fiance Derek Matthews's family home in Larkhaven, Franklin. The evening was supposed to be the last planning meeting between both sets of parents, where we would finalize the ceremony and the honor-table seating. I hadn't expected Derek's childhood friend, Paige Bennett, to be there too. Mrs. Matthews suggested a little dinner-table game. Everyone would draw a numbered envelope. Whoever drew the highest number could ask one small favor of whoever drew the lowest. I drew the lowest number. Derek drew the highest. Everyone urged him to make his request. Paige smiled as though she were only joking. "Derek, let me choose for you. "At the wedding, my parents should sit at the honor table." I thought Derek would at least say that a game was a game and wedding arrangements were not prizes to be claimed. Instead, he merely frowned at me. "It's only two seats. "Paige's parents have always been close to our family. "I won the draw, and the rules say you owe me one request. "Don't embarrass everyone over this." I set down my fork, picked up my phone, and posted a message in our family-and-friends group chat. "There has been a change to the wedding seating. My parents will no longer be at the honor table." Derek visibly relaxed. Paige smiled at me through shining eyes. "Thank you, Hannah. I knew you would be generous." I didn't look at her. I simply continued typing. "Because my parents will not be attending this wedding. "Neither will I."

The day after our wedding, Justin Hudson and I are finally about to leave for our honeymoon. A trip that's supposed to be just for the two of us. But as we're about to board our flight, his mother, Karen Cruz, shows up beside him with a suitcase and a warm smile. "I'm not here to get in your way," she says. "I'm just tagging along." I freeze. Justin simply takes my hand and tries to reassure me. "My mom raised me all by herself. It wasn't easy. If she wants to come, let her. Don't start acting selfish the minute we're married." The entire trip, the two of them sit together, reminiscing about relatives I've never met and sharing stories I've never heard. Karen even jokes that the neighbor's daughter used to insist she'd only ever marry Justin. Justin laughs as he peels an orange for her. "Mom, don't start." He never even looks at me. When we arrive at the hotel, the front desk informs me that the honeymoon suite I booked has been changed to a family room. Karen immediately takes my hand. "Zoe, I was just trying to save you two some money. We're family. Why pay for two rooms?" That night, she complains that the air conditioning is too cold, the shower is too loud, and my perfume gives her a headache. By the end of the night, she's called Justin over to sit beside her bed. He stays there until dawn. Only then does he finally turn to me. "My mom's getting older. Just let her have this." I stare out at the pale gray ocean. And in that moment, I finally understand. This honeymoon gives the two of them exactly what they want. As for me, I'm nothing more than the extra bride in their story.

Three days after divorcing my ex-husband, Julian Hendricks, I receive a message from him. "Why haven't you wired your salary for this month to me yet?" I assume that he's pulling my leg and reply, "We're already divorced." "So what?" he retorts. "You're supposed to transfer 19,000 dollars out of your 20,000-dollar salary to me every month. You can spend the remaining 1,000 dollars however you want, just like before. "I took care of you when you weren't working in the past. How dare you stop giving me money just because we're divorced?" I stare at his messages in stunned silence. Throughout our three years of marriage, I give 19,000 dollars of my 20,000 dollar salary to Julian every month. Julian claims he's using the money to plan our overall household expenses, when in reality, he's using it to pay for his civil service exam, cover his meals with his friends, and treat his "study buddy" whom I've never even met. He scolds me when he catches me playing games after work, criticizing my lack of desire to improve myself even though I'm the one who cooks, cleans, and does the laundry. The audacity of this man. How dare he think that I'm still obligated to give him money when we're already divorced? The reason that Julian gives me is that he's worried that I'll spend my money frivolously. I block his number. Three seconds later, he calls me from a different number. "You'll regret this. This is the last time I'm ever helping you." I burst out laughing. Help me? No one has ever extended a helping hand to me in the last three years.

Before my wife went into labor, a nurse handed me a stack of consent forms. Buried among them was an optional prenatal paternity screening offered through St. Briar Medical Center's new genetic-services program. I'd barely started signing when my mother-in-law, Margaret, charged at me and slapped me across the face. "You monster! My daughter is risking her life to give you a child, and you want a DNA test?" Before I could explain, the hospital-room door flew open. Vanessa pressed a pair of medical scissors against her neck, her eyes bloodshot. "Daniel, I've given you seven years of my life. You know who this baby's father is. Why would you humiliate me like this?" When I saw the thin line of blood on her throat, my heart broke, and I dropped to my knees. I tore up the testing form and ordered my attorney to draft an unconditional agreement transferring assets to the baby. To comfort her, I drove across Aldercrest searching for her favorite honey-lavender shortbread. But when I returned to the hospital room, I heard laughter inside. "Vanessa, thank God we reacted quickly. If he'd signed that testing form, everything would've been over." "Why worry? Daniel's an idiot. I only have to cry, and he believes me." Then a familiar male voice said, "Once the birth certificate gives the child the Raleigh name, everything Daniel owns will belong to the three of us." The words froze me outside the door. I turned away and called my attorney. "Cancel the agreement. Then hire an investigator and uncover everything." At the baby's welcome reception, I would personally present Vanessa with the gift she deserved.

On my wedding day, the officiant had just asked me whether I would take this man as my husband. Then my fiancé's secretary shoved her way onto the stage, heavily pregnant, sobbing that her baby couldn't grow up without a father. The whole audience was in an uproar. Adrian grasped both of her hands, turned to look at me, and kept his voice mild. "Vivian, she's stood by me for five years. That has to count for something." "The baby's already seven months along. I can't let him come into this world without a name." "You'll remain Mrs. Locke and we can treat her as part of our family. The three of us will build a harmonious life together." I looked at the big backdrop screen behind him, emblazoned with both our names side by side, and I started to laugh. "Adrian, did you forget?" "For this wedding, the hotel is mine and the guests are all those I invited." "Even that tux you're wearing was paid for with the card I gave you." I pulled off my wedding veil and dropped it onto the floor at his feet. "You want to give her a name? Fine." "First, cough up every last cent you owe me."

Frank Carter has been my private driver and personal assistant for the past three years, but lately he has become impossible to deal with. I ask him to pick up fresh seafood for dinner, but he comes back with nothing more than a bag of frozen shrimp and a few sausages. "Frank, didn't I ask you to buy fresh seafood from the market?" He tosses the grocery bag onto the counter and shrugs. "The seafood isn't fresh today. I'll check again tomorrow." The next day, he comes back with a bottle of Worcestershire sauce. "Seafood's expensive," he says with a grin. "This is premium Worcestershire sauce. Just a splash of this, and the food will taste just as good." I sigh. "You don't have to worry about the cost. We can afford to have seafood every now and then." But things only get worse. Over the next week, Frank keeps bringing home cheaper groceries. Soon, seafood disappears from the menu altogether, along with any decent cuts of meat. Just as I'm debating whether to grab a proper meal somewhere, I overhear Frank talking on the phone in the garage. "Lucas Reed is such a loser. He doesn't deserve a wife like Vivian Grant. Once I introduce my son, Mike Carter, to her, she'll dump that freeloader in no time. Mike will take his place soon enough." I almost laugh. I've been planning to renew Frank's contract for another year. I even plan to help his newly graduated son land a job at Vivian's company. Well, not anymore.

Right before bed, I stumbled across a post titled: [My wife has a second family on the side. What do I do?] Something made me click on it. According to the poster, his wife had grown busier over the past year, always traveling for work at the company's branch office. The money she handed over had grown too, and at first, it hadn't worried him. He'd just felt grateful that she was working so hard for their family. Then he saw a post about a man trying on a suit, and he recognized his wife's hand and the back of her figure in the photo at once. He was desperate, and he wanted to know what other people thought he should do. I scrolled further down, curious to see the true face of the woman he was calling a cheat. The next moment, my blood ran cold. Because even with the picture blurred out, I could tell it was the exact photo he'd used, the same one from my own post the week before.

I finally agree to purchase all the items in my wife Serena Porter's wish list after she bothers me about it for a month. Serena is overjoyed as she leaves the house with my black bank card. Some time later, I receive a notification on my phone, informing me that someone had purchased ultra-thin condoms from Francisia using my card. I'm still utterly confused when I coincidentally come across Serena's junior, Felix Jenkin's, social media account. He's showing off a screenshot of an order of the same condoms. "Serena treats me so well! She's going all out this time!" His comment section is filled with people urging him to secure Serena as soon as possible, since she is wealthy and is already being unfaithful to me. They also ask him to create a tutorial on how to charm their way into an easy life so that they can follow his example. I scoff and dial Serena's number. I also take a screenshot of Felix's post and send it to her. "What's the meaning of this? You're not even bothering to keep a low profile even though you're cheating on me?" I can hear the bed squeaking on the other end of the line. "Why do you get jealous over everything?" Serena snaps impatiently. "It's just one of the gifts that I prepared. It's almost Christmas, so I'm giving presents to all my employees." I immediately freeze my card after I hang up. I also send the screenshots of Felix's post and the order to the Porter family's group chat. I'm willing to match Serena's energy if that's how she wants to play the game. However, I don't think that she's ready to face the consequences after I freeze the card.

On the day Naomi Alder rose from the ashes, she secretly brought her childhood sweetheart—the one who had abandoned her years ago—into the company behind my back. When I found out, she swore in front of me, "I only want to punish him. I don't have even the slightest feelings for him." I did not lose control. Instead, I made him Naomi's assistant. Tristan Sawyer assured me with absolute certainty, "Don't worry. Between her and me, it will only ever be a superior-subordinate relationship. I would never come between you." I believed him. After all, back when Alder Co. went bankrupt, Tristan had humiliated Naomi in every possible way just to break free from her. It was not until the car accident, when Naomi threw herself forward without hesitation to protect him, that I finally understood. All these years, she had never let him go. When Naomi woke up in the hospital, she had lost her memory. Looking at Tristan and me standing by her bedside, she asked, "Who are you?" This time, I pointed at Tristan and spoke first. "Ms. Alder, this is your husband. I'm your assistant."

I spent two years and went to a lot of wine-and-dine before finally snagging the 100-billion-dollar deal with Mr. Lawson, the industry leader. On the night of the signing, my fiancée gave my client to the fake heir who had just returned from his study abroad. I asked her why she did that, but she held the fake heir's arm and looked at him like she was heartbroken. "He already had it rough, getting sent away. You're his brother. Surely, you can help him." Chris Riverson had a smug look on his face as he mocked, "You might be Dad and Mom's real son, but you should study how I handle business. Otherwise, you'll just end up embarrassing the family." The bastard stole my client and had the gall to lecture me? I laughed mirthlessly and looked at my mother, but she seemed proud as she took Chris' side. She announced, "Chris is right. He studied abroad for two years and has more experience than you. Besides, he's been with the family for more than 20 years. He has a stake in the company. You must be tired after managing everything for two years. "Let him handle things from now on." I didn't bother arguing. After all, Mr. Lawson only signed that deal after triple-checking that I was the person in charge. He had also made it clear that he had the right to pull out at any moment if I were to leave. These people wanted Chris to take over so hard, did they? Fine, they could have it, but I wasn't going to clean up any of their messes.

I'm a family law attorney. My specialty is winning divorce cases for other people. I never imagined that one day, I'd be drafting my own divorce papers. For six years of marriage, Adrian read to me for ten minutes every night. He said it was our little marriage ritual. That was until I came home early from a business trip and heard his voice coming from my female neighbor’s apartment next door. "Vivi, which chapter do you want to hear tonight?" I stood outside her door, still holding the birthday cake I'd bought for him. I turned around, went home, opened my laptop, and went through our marital asset inventory from top to bottom. Later, Adrian knelt outside my law firm, his voice so hoarse it was barely recognizable. He said, "Serena, I was just helping her fall asleep. I never touched her." I set the voice recorder in front of him, and out came words he'd said himself. "She'll never leave me. She's too rational, which actually makes her the easiest to manipulate." I smiled. "Adrian, do you think the judge will find me easy to manipulate too?"

I was the only female in the Golden Feather Clan born with a complete, pure, and powerful beast core. The priestess prophesied that I would become Queen of All Beastfolk and bear the cub destined to unite the Twelve Clans. From that day on, every eligible male saw me as the perfect mate. But I only ever loved one person: my childhood sweetheart, Ronan. Everyone was certain I would end up with Ronan. I waited three years for him, helped him secure his place in the clan, and claimed victory after victory in battle. Instead, he cast the only bonding ring I'd ever have into the mud and crushed it under his heel. Then he fastened the silver fang necklace, a symbol of lifelong protection, around the neck of Selena, the White Deer healer. Taking her hand, he sneered at me. "You can go ahead and bond with some pus-covered Rotskin Beastmen for all I care. I still wouldn't go back to you." Just like that, I stepped down from the altar. A monster covered in festering sores crouched in the mud, cleaning my bonding ring. He couldn't speak. He didn't even bear a clan mark. Every beastfolk shrank away from him in disgust. That monster was afraid of dirtying what belonged to me. He tore the only clean strip of cloth from the lining of his cloak and carefully wiped the mud away, bit by bit. I cut my finger and let a drop of blood fall at his feet. "My name is Evelyn. "Will you bond with me?" Three years later, we crossed paths again. When Ronan realized I was pregnant, he lost his mind.

The day after our wedding, my wife claimed she didn’t know me. I’d spent years working myself to the bone and saving every penny before I could finally marry the woman I loved. Between the house, the car, and everything I’d paid toward the wedding, I’d spent three million dollars. But the very next day, my wife stared at me in terror and insisted she was single. Worse, the county clerk’s office had no record of us ever getting married. The house and car were both in her name. Half a lifetime of savings had vanished overnight. Furious, I tracked down her friends, certain they could prove the truth. Instead, every one of them claimed they’d never seen me before. I stormed into the county clerk’s office demanding answers. The staff thought I was delusional and called the police. “You’ve gone crazy from wanting a woman that badly, haven’t you? You probably got married in a dream. What bride refuses to recognize her husband the day after the wedding?” After trying to mediate, even the police decided there was something wrong with me. Desperate to recover my house and car, I fought to take back what was mine. Instead, my wife accused me of running a marriage scam and trying to steal her property. Whenever I showed up, the building’s security guards beat me and threw me out. My wife posted videos of my breakdowns online, and the entire internet mocked me. Everyone believed I was insane. In the end, exhausted and tormented beyond endurance, I wandered into traffic and was struck dead. But when I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day we were supposed to get our marriage certificate.

My fiancee, Winona Ziegler, moves her childhood sweetheart, Caeden Gardner, who has just come back from abroad, into our future marital home. When ordering takeout, I add an eight-dollar omelette and a five-dollar caramelized onion soup to the order, but Winona deletes them all in disgust. "Caeden can't stand the smell of onions. Do you want to make him throw up? Can't you just have some plain water?" Moments later, she orders a seafood feast worth a thousand dollars for him, complete with king crabs and a premium seafood boil. Holding a glass of plain water, I watch her fuss over Caeden with endless concern. Then, my phone vibrates. My bank account has just been charged 1,000 dollars. She uses my money to spoil her childhood sweetheart, yet refuses to even buy me an omelette that costs eight dollars. Five years of love completely fall apart in that moment. This time, I don't argue or beg like I used to. I simply pick up my phone and press "Freeze Authorized User Card".

A friend of mine sets me up on a blind date. He says she has a lot going for her, but she's a hardcore believer in rating people based on what they have to offer, so she has pretty high standards. We're supposed to meet at a cafe—but when I arrive, another man is waiting for her, too. Madison Stuart, the hardcore believer in judging people based on their merits, produces two profiles. "Sorry about this, but my time is precious. That's why I decided to meet the two of you at the same time." She points at me. "Levi Hopewell, right? You did graduate from one of the top universities in the country, but you didn't even serve on the student council. I guess that's just about enough for two points. But you didn't list who your employer is, so it sounds like you're just self-employed. That's minus three points. "There's no information about your parents' jobs, either. Either they run a hole-in-the-wall business somewhere or work some kind of blue-collar job. Whichever it is, that's minus four points." After a ruthless evaluation of every bit of information she can dig up on me, she finally awards me with negative 18 points. "Just how did you get so deludedly confident that you think you're good enough to go on a blind date with me?" Madison snorts. Before I can even speak, she sneers and turns toward the other man. "As for you, Huxley Lockwood, your situation is way different. You're a senior engineer at a major tech company with an annual salary of 250 thousand dollars. Your parents also work for the government and are entitled to a healthy pension. They can even help take care of the kids in the future. "Your score is practically perfect. Congratulations, you've passed the test. We can start dating today!" she declares. I glance between Madison and Huxley, who have clearly taken a liking to each other, and awkwardly set down the coffee I just got for her. She was half-right, I guess. I'm actually the founder of a rising unicorn company, but the information about me has not been revealed to the public yet. As for my parents… well, they do run a business. The two of them own a mine in Frenesia and spend most of their time traveling the world, too busy having fun to check on me. I was going to introduce myself properly to Madison, but from the looks of it, that won't be necessary now.

After I quit my job to become a full-time househusband, my wife, Brooke Lowell, left me with nothing but a bank card capped at 1,000 dollars a month. She said children had to be raised with hardship to grow up strong, and was always worried I might secretly give our daughter special treatment. But 1,000 dollars was nowhere near enough to cover a household's monthly expenses. Every time the kindergarten asked for nutrition fees, I could only swallow my pride and beg for leniency. "She's just a child. Why does she need that much money? You've got some nerve, living so comfortably on 1,000 a month." I had thought Brooke's harshness was meant to temper our daughter's character. That illusion lasted until I asked Brooke for 300 dollars to buy clothes for our daughter's Children's Day performance. What I received instead was humiliation and ridicule from everyone. Brooke accused me of acting like a spoiled rich kid, wasting money on unnecessary clothes. My mother-in-law complained that I dressed too poorly, like a beggar bringing shame to the family. Even my daughter blamed me for embarrassing her, saying I had ruined her Children's Day and damaged her props. I bowed my head, apologized, and paid compensation. Only then did I discover that my bank card had been frozen. The very next moment, Brooke's crush posted on social media about his son receiving a luxury mansion. 'Already a house-owner at three! Who'd believe she's not his birth mother?' Only then did I understand. People who truly loved someone would never be stingy when spending on them.

When I returned to the country over holiday to complete my child's citizenship paperwork, I had barely landed before three men blocked my path. There was my ex-boyfriend, Jace Walker, with whom I had been entangled for years. Adrian Hayes, my childhood friend who had been secretly in love with me. And finally, my stepbrother, Simon Lent. "Grace, we were in the wrong back then, but don't make things hard for Brooke this time you're back." "Whatever anger you have, just take it out on us. Brooke's a gentle soul. She won't be able to handle it if you go after her." "Come on. I'll take you back to the manor. Make do with it for now, alright? I've given your villa to Brooke." Every one of them stood on edge, as if they were facing a formidable enemy. They looked oh-so afraid that I might bully Brooke Lent, the girl I was switched with at birth. After all, everyone in our circle knew that they had poured all their guilt into doting on Brooke after I left the country in disgrace, spoiling her twice over. So, rumors spread like wildfire that I was here to get back at her due to my sudden return. I took off my sunglasses, finding the whole thing faintly amusing. "Sorry, but I'm in a hurry to get home to see my son. And as for the manor, I won't be staying there. If anything, I'll be staying at my husband's place." It had been five years since we last saw each other, and I had long since moved on while they were clearly still stuck in the past.

With the start of school approaching, my son's long-dormant parent-teacher group chat suddenly announces that there will be a Parent-Teacher Community Night this evening, which also serves as the first parent-teacher conference of the semester. The only requirement is that both parents need to be present. A flurry of messages from the other students' parents appear below the announcement, all of them confirming their attendance. I'm just about to reply when I notice that someone else has already done it faster than me. A woman with a family photo as her profile picture sends a voice message into the group. "Got it! Teddy's parents will both be there!" I stiffen at once and click through all the accounts in the group chat to double-check everyone. My son's name is Theodore Baird, and everyone calls him "Teddy" for short. But, if she's representing Teddy's parents, then who am I supposed to be? I immediately call up my husband, Joseph Baird. However, before I can even get a word in, I hear him speaking in a cheerful voice. "Darling? Derrick just invited me over for dinner tonight. I'll be bringing Teddy along. You can just have dinner without me and go to bed early." I feel my heart drop to my stomach. Derrick Johnson's wife, Angela Peters, is one of my good friends. However, I clearly remember seeing her showing off a vacation photo of her and Derrick having the time of their lives in the Palmives just this morning. How can Derrick possibly be inviting Joseph over for dinner, then? I remain silent for a short while. Then, I smile and reply that I got it. After hanging up, I immediately call an Uber to bring me to Teddy's school. I'm going to see for myself who this "other parent" of Teddy's really is.

In the ward, Lydia Webb leans bashfully against Hayden's chest as he tenderly feeds her soup. Lydia pouts. "It's all your fault, Hayden. You were so rough that you made me bleed." "I just couldn't help myself," Hayden says, his voice thick with affection. "I'll be gentler next time, okay?" Outside the door, Melissa Smith clutches a lab report so hard her knuckles turn white. Her heart aches as if crushed in a vice. The report states, "Two months pregnant, with healthy fetal development." The man inside is her husband—the very man who swore to love her forever. Ten days ago, Hayden said he had to work overtime and hasn't been home since. She never imagined he spent those ten days indulging in another woman's bed.

The Dempsey family has two adopted sons. I'm one of them, and the other is Julius Haysworth. On the day Elena Dempsey and Julius get engaged, a car accident leaves her crippled. Julius tearfully breaks off the engagement, while I marry Elena to repay the Dempseys for taking me in. For the next ten years, I wait on her hand and foot, support her rehabilitation, and help her walk again. I even give up my chance to attend college for her. Yet, on the very day Elena regains her mobility and takes over the family business, she announces that she wants to bring Julius home. A wealthy woman has scammed him out of every penny, and Elena now wants to divorce me for him. I confront her in fury, destroy everything in our home, and even beg her to reconsider, but Elena refuses to change her mind. Even my adoptive parents believe that a man without a college education is no longer good enough for the now-successful Elena. I'm so furious that I spit out a mouthful of blood and jump from the top floor of the Dempsey residence. When I open my eyes again, I'm back on the day Elena will choose between Julius and me as her future husband.