Melodramatic Parallel World Short Stories & Novels

On the day of their wedding, Caleb Graham unexpectedly finds himself on a call with Danielle Sutton—six years into the future. His eyes gleam with undisguised longing as he asks, "Danielle, do you remember? Today is our wedding day." Suddenly, a child's voice rings out from the other end of the line. "Mommy." Caleb is instantly overwhelmed with joy. He can hardly believe how much their child has grown. Tears well up in his eyes, and his voice trembles with anticipation. "Danielle, we have a happy future together, don't we?" All he can think about is the beautiful life they enjoy together as a family of three. It seems that all his hard work is finally paying off. After all, he is the one who has discovered Danielle in the slums all those years ago, secured projects for her, and invested substantial resources in cultivating her into one of the most influential rising stars among Kingsford City's elite. Yet, in the very next second, a man's voice cuts sharply into his ears. "Ellie, who are you talking to?" Ellie? Caleb's smile vanishes in an instant. Despite spending so many years together, he has never once called Danielle by that nickname. The familiar voice, paired with that uniquely intimate nickname, points to only one person—Yale Lawson, Danielle's longtime best friend!

There are only ten minutes left before the college application portal closes. I'm about to go to bed when my phone suddenly rings. The number is strange and untraceable. I answer. "Hello?" A hoarse male voice comes through the phone. "Adrian, your parents changed your college application!" I freeze, my heart skipping a beat. "Who are you?" I ask, my voice trembling. "I'm you, ten years from now." There is a crushing sense of despair in his voice. I don't believe him. "That's impossible!" He lets out a sigh. "Your brother bombed his exams, didn't he? Your parents changed your application to the same community college he applied to, all because they wanted to make him feel better. If you don't believe me, log in and check for yourself." I immediately sign into the application portal. And there it is. The prestigious university I applied to has been replaced with a community college. I stare at the screen in disbelief. I have always known my parents favored Julian. I just never imagined they could take it this far, to the point that they would gamble with my entire future just to keep him happy.

Just before I left for college, I stumbled across a livestream showing me three years in the future. I wore a wedding dress, and my eyes were red from crying. "I'm marrying Craig today." I smiled, assuming they were happy tears. Craig Eaton and I grew up together, and I wanted to marry him ever since I was six. "But I don't want to," she continued. "Craig was supposed to drive me to Halcyon University. Instead, he took me to the apartment I'd be sharing with Gwen. "He and Mom canceled my enrollment without telling me. They decided I'd take a gap year to help her study for the SAT and apply to colleges again." I froze, then angrily typed, [You're lying! Why would they do that to me?] She recognized my profile picture and smiled bitterly. "Because Craig fell for someone else, and Gwen is the daughter of Mom's first love." Then she stepped onto the ledge of the roof. "That first year, you shared an apartment with Gwen and spent your days cooking, doing her laundry, and organizing her study notes. She didn't get into any of the colleges she applied to, but you got into a top school. "Mom begged you to put college off for one more year to help Gwen. She said you owed her for raising you and promised she'd never ask for anything else. "The second year, you both got into other schools, but Gwen still wanted Halcyon. Craig said you'd stay another year if you really loved him, and he promised to marry you if you did. "The third year, Gwen finally got into Halcyon. By then, you spent so much time taking care of her that you missed your own application deadlines. She left for college, and you had nowhere to go." She looked into the camera one last time, as if she could see me. "That's how they ruined your life." Then she jumped, and the livestream went dark. My hands shook as I called the university's admissions office. They confirmed it. "That's right. Our records show we received a request to cancel your enrollment." Right then, I saw Craig and my mom walking toward me. "Diane, why haven't you started packing? We're taking you to college the day after tomorrow."

The day I discovered that Esther Mabry was having an affair, my severe depression drove me to the rooftop. It was my older brother, Adam Abernathy, who stabbed her and dragged her back to me so she could atone. Under Adam's watch, Esther truly changed. She deleted every man from her contacts and came home on time every day. Even when she stepped outside to take out the trash, she told me beforehand. I believed our battered marriage had finally been given a fresh start, right up until the day I received a call from myself, 10 years in the future. Looking at the haggard man on the screen, I asked carefully, "Ten years later, and I'm still sick?" He said nothing. He forced a smile that looked more painful than tears, then turned the camera around. On the screen, Esther had Adam pinned against the storage-room wall. Her eyes were filled with anguish she had held back for far too long. "We've lived under the same roof for 10 years, and you won't even let me touch you. How long are you going to keep punishing me?" Adam kept his eyes shut as tears ran down his face. "We did something unforgivable to Hugo. Staying apart is the only way we can atone." I froze, cold to the bone. The man I had searched every corner of Seacliff for and never found had been the brother I loved most all along. Esther had hidden him so well that he lived right under my nose for 10 years, and I never noticed. The camera turned back. The older version of me leaned close to the screen and laughed like a madman. "You heard that? As long as you're still alive, everyone suffers. The moment you die, we're all set free."

My powerful, doting CEO husband had always treated me like I was the center of his world. But the moment he made a wish and blew out the candles on his birthday cake, something changed. When he opened his eyes again, he looked at me like I was a complete stranger. “Who are you?” Then his expression turned frantic. “Where’s Vivian? “If I’m ever getting married, Vivian is the only woman I’ll marry!” He shouted the words and bolted out of the house. I was still standing there in shock when lines of floating comments suddenly appeared in front of me. [Hahaha, look at the supporting female lead. She’s totally stunned! The male lead just switched souls with his eighteen-year-old self. Younger him is off to find his precious first love!] [She should be grateful she ever got to become Mrs. Pierce. If she didn’t look a little like Vivian, why would the male lead have married her in the first place?] [Too bad the soul swap only lasts thirty days. Come on, Young Male Lead! Hurry up and win Vivian back. When the older version comes back, give him one hell of a surprise!] My fingertips instantly went cold. Two weeks later, Adrian Pierce came home with a woman who looked almost exactly like me. He threw a divorce agreement down in front of me. “The house is mine. The money is mine. Everything is mine. “You’ve been living the life that should’ve belonged to Vivian for years. “So sign the papers and get out.”

On my eighth birthday, I begged my mom to video call my dad, who was supposedly working late. The moment the call connected, a version of him from ten years in the future appeared on the screen. My mom held me close and smiled, asking him, "Ten years from now… our Lily has grown up. Was her coming-of-age ceremony a big celebration?" Dad replied coldly, "She kept trying to one-up Sarah's kid, so I sent her abroad. Too bad her luck ran out—her plane went down." My mom's face went pale. On the other end, my dad let out an icy laugh. "Claire, back then, you lied to me. You said if your 'plan' didn't work out, you'd die. I believed you. I gave up Sarah and her child to marry you." My mom's body started trembling. I reached out toward the screen. "Daddy, when are you coming home to celebrate my birthday with me?" Dad sighed and looked at her calmly. "The truth is, I wasn't working late that night. I was celebrating Sarah's daughter's birthday. Now you know everything. What you do next is up to you." Suddenly, a cold robotic voice echoed in my ear: [Host, do you choose to abandon the original world and stay here forever?] I wiped the tears off my mom's face and, barely understanding what was happening, said, "Mommy, does that mean Daddy doesn't want us anymore? Then let's not want him either. Okay?"

The day I went to meet my online boyfriend, Liam Hayes, in person, two of them showed up. One walked past me with my best friend holding his arm. "Weren't you supposed to meet someone else today? Why did you come to spend time with me instead?" "No one important. I didn’t feel like going." The other kept sending messages to my phone: "I'm sorry I'm late. Are you upset? Where are you? I don't see you." My fingertips went cold. I snapped a photo of the man from behind and sent it. "Is this you?" A brief silence followed before he replied with a selfie. The man in the photo wore the white shirt we'd agreed on. His face was the same, but his jawline was a little more defined than that of the man who had just walked past. The same street stretched out behind him. A banner outside one of the shops read, "Celebrating Five Years—Thank You for Your Support!" But that shop had only opened for the first time that morning.

On 1st of June, I unexpectedly receive a phone call from my future daughter. With a smile on my face, I ask her, "Sweetheart, are Mommy and Daddy still happy and in love?" She proudly replies, "Of course! Mommy and Daddy have a great relationship. They never fight. He says she is the person he loves the most in his life!" My face flushes with embarrassment. I think to myself that Malcolm Gray really shouldn't be saying things like that in front of a child. Lost in happiness, I continue asking questions. "Then did you take my last name, Rosewood, or Daddy's last name, Gray?" She falls silent for two seconds, like she is confused. Then, she replies, "I have Daddy's last name, but my mommy's last name is Parker. Her name is Summer Parker." I freeze at those words. Summer Parker is the name of my best friend since childhood. Just yesterday, she and Malcolm end up in the hospital after getting into a physical fight because of an argument involving me.