Plot Twists Short Stories & Novels

Ever since Mom has gotten remarried, my stepdad, Winston Cox, becomes the only person who matters to her. She saves every luxury meal and delicacy for him, while I am left to sip on his leftover soup. His designer suits fill three closets until they overflow, yet I am forced to wear my cousin's old hand-me-downs. She spends 20 thousand dollars on virtual gaming gear for him, but when I ask for a ten-dollar study guide, she says, "Just memorizing the textbook is more than enough!" One night, the noise Mom and Winston make in the bathroom disrupts my studying. When I ask that they keep it down, Mom throws me out of the house and onto the street. Years later, I turn into a multibillion-dollar entrepreneur. That's when Mom crawls back to me, begging, "Winston and his mistress teamed up and drained all my assets. Could you please take me in?"

Granny Agnes Forrest, an old traveling spiritual medium, said the sister we'd finally found after ten years missing had been so badly frightened that her soul had slipped loose from her body. She needed my memories to burn as lamp oil. Forty-nine days, start to finish, before Harper Ellison's spirit would finally settle. The first time they drained a memory from me, I forgot I was allergic to shellfish. I ate the shrimp my brother Grayson Ellison put on my plate and went into shock, straight into the ICU. Mom and Dad sat in the next room over, watching cartoons with Harper. They said the sound of my monitors was too loud, so they shut the door. After the twentieth draining, I forgot how to act sweet and needy around my own parents. After the fortieth, I forgot how to stay up waiting for my brother to come home from work at night. Today was day forty-nine. The last one. For the first time I could remember, Grayson walked into the basement himself, carrying a bowl of hot soup. "Once we finish draining the last of it today, we'll call it even. You'll have paid off the ten years you took from her. After this, we'll treat you like our real sister too." I looked up and watched him quietly, without a word.

I arrived at yet another family gathering to see Declan Mercer's assistant sitting in my seat. I turned to him. "She's sitting in the hostess's seat. Do you really have nothing to say?" He looked at me like I was wasting his time. "You showed up late, so don't blame her for taking your spot. There's an empty seat right there. You can sit there, or you can get out." I was about to respond when Declan's inner voice flooded my head. "Come on, babe. Get mad already. "Tell me you need me. Tell me you want to sit next to me. "Prove to me that you love me. That's the only way I'll feel secure." This time, I did not give his inner voice what it wanted. I simply looked down and slid the ring off my finger. "If there isn't a place for me at this table, then I suppose I'm not needed here anymore. "Let's get a divorce."

At sixteen, I found Owen Hughes in the slums. He was covered in blood—but he stepped in front of me anyway. I thought he was a gift from fate. So I begged my father to keep him close. He became my bodyguard. My classmate. My husband. Ten years later, I learned the truth: it was all a trap. He was undercover. His mission—to take down my father, the mafia don. I walked away. Swore I'd never see him again. Six years passed. Then we met again. His eyes were wet. "Aubrey... is there still a chance for us?"

My dad's company has gone bankrupt. Because of that, the debt collectors keep turning up on our doorstep for money. They claim that they will break one of Dad's legs if he doesn't cough up the payment in three days. I sink down to my knees and beg my ultra-rich boyfriend, Julian Luther, to lend me 500 thousand dollars for the time being just to resolve Dad's crisis. This is my first time asking for money from Julian. Julian's brows are drawn together in a frown, but in the end, he still agrees to my request. He tells me that the finance department will transfer me the money in the afternoon. My attention is glued to my phone the whole day. I keep refreshing my bank account's balance on my banking app. Just like that, I wait from morning till nightfall. But that's when Julian suddenly goes out of contact. He doesn't pick up any of my calls nor respond to any of my text messages. Anxiety floods my senses the whole time. I keep telling myself that maybe Julian has something urgent to deal with. But my need to save Dad's leg triumphs over everything else. Left without a choice, I can only take the jewelry my deceased mom has left for me to the auction house to get them auctioned away. Unexpectedly, I bump into Julian and his childhood friend, Rachel Bailey, at the auction house. Julian is quick to dump a huge sum of money just to bid for a painting Rachel wants. Ironically, the final bidding price of that painting is 500 thousand dollars. It turns out that he has never forgotten about my plight. It's just that my plight is nothing compared to his crush's love for a painting.

I'm the only younger sister of Andrei Moretti, the most powerful Don in Sicity. Andrei worries that I'll marry the wrong man, so he calls me back from abroad and arranges a marriage alliance between me and the rising Valdi famiglia. My fiance, Cassian Valdi, is calm, restrained, and exceptionally capable. Rumor has it that he has never had a woman in his life. I'm not a fan of arranged marriages, but since I can't turn this one down, I'm willing to give this marriage a fair chance. So long as he respects me and remains faithful to our marriage, I'll do my best to make our relationship work. Thus, I personally head to Sicity's most renowned cliffside oceanfront estate, Bay of Eternity, to pick out our wedding venue. The estate owner, Matteo Rossi, confirms that the last available slot is still open. He accepts my deposit and is about to have me sign the contract when an arrogant female voice suddenly rings out behind me. "Who does this country bumpkin think she is, attempting to snatch the estate from me? Get the hell out of my face!" Before I can part my lips, Matteo snatches the contract away and eagerly approaches the woman in the haute couture gown. "Congratulations, Signorina Montes! The last available slot at Bay of Eternity is yours." My expression darkens. "You've already accepted my deposit, and I was the one who reserved the slot first." Vera Montes sizes me up, drinking in my activewear before letting out a contemptuous chuckle. "So what? Even though we are not bound by blood, I am still Cassian's godsister, the woman he dotes on most. I'm the law in Sicity!" What a coincidence. Cassian's my fiance. Yet, none of the information I received ever mentioned that he has a sister. Looks like I need to find out what's going on between them before I commit to this marriage. I dial Cassian's number right in front of Vera's face. "A woman who claims to be your sister just stole our wedding venue. How do you intend to handle this?"

I'd been with Daniel Bonanno for five years. On our anniversary, I was the one who processed his marriage license application— but the bride wasn't me. It was Emma Miller. He told me it was just a merger. A fake arrangement between families. Once he became the Don, he'd marry me for real. I'd heard that line so many times I'd lost count. But I watched him grow closer to that woman. Day by day. Even when I was kidnapped, he was in bed with her. And finally, it hit me. Five years of loving him, and it was all just a joke. So I faked my death. I made sure everyone thought I jumped off that cliff. But after that, Daniel started haunting the base of that cliff. Two years, pacing back and forth, murmuring under his breath: "I was wrong. Please. Just come back."

During the holidays, Ellie Harper, my wife who's a hospital director, tells me once again that she has taken on a few operations at the last minute, so she can't go home with me to spend time with my parents. But soon, I see her assistant, Jaiden Roth's social media feed. Apparently, Ellie is slaughtering pigs at Jaiden's village in preparation for a holiday party. The caption writes, "Dad says having a daughter-in-law who works as a doctor is amazing. To think that she's this skilled in slaughtering pigs as well!" With a cold smirk curling on my lips, I leave a like on the post. I also comment, "That's her major, after all." My colleagues keep gossiping among themselves in various group chats. They all think I'll definitely get into a huge fight with Ellie this time. Ellie wastes no time in calling me. I can already imagine the impatient look on her face and the way her brows are drawn into a tight frown. "Jaiden's village is hosting a huge party for the holidays, so I'm there to lend them a helping hand! What's with that passive-aggressive tone of yours, huh? "There isn't anyone who can help out in his household, you know! Do you know how badly it'll reflect on his family if no one from his side helps out at all? I was just helping him out as a friend! What's there to kick up a fuss over? "Hurry up and remove the like and the damn comment! Don't make life difficult for Jaiden at the hospital, you hear me? "Once I get back from the village, I'll pick a good date to go back to your hometown with you, okay?" Another empty promise from Ellie, it seems. All she does is making empty promises that she can never keep nowadays. I'm completely stuffed with those promises, and I can't afford to wait for her anymore. Once the holidays are over, I'll receive the divorce certificate marking the end of our seven-year marriage once and for all.

Right before my wedding, my fiancé, Benjamin Gray, holds another wedding at an old settlement with his true love, who has lung cancer. He holds Jennifer Robinson close and smiles tenderly at her underneath the starry sky. "According to the local customs here, the woman whose wedding is held first is considered a man's actual wife. I might have already registered my marriage with Samantha, but she's more like my mistress." Everyone cheers and blesses them as they toast each other and enter their room for the night. I witness all of this, but I don't cry or kick up a fuss. Instead, I make an appointment for an abortion. I've loved Benjamin for 15 years, but I still can't compare to Jennifer, who is my stepsister. If that's the case, I'll let him go. Later, I join a geological exploration and research team in the South Isles and am cut off from the world. All I leave behind is a divorce agreement and a divorce gift. Benjamin has never cared for me, so it's odd that he loses his mind overnight after my departure.

When I was eight years old, Kieran Blackwood, Alpha of the Ironwood Pack, saved me from a rogue wolf den. He adopted me and said he would protect me for life. When I was twelve, I met Beta Ryan Cross. He treated me as her own sister and also promised to protect me for life. But later, these two men who swore to guard me forever pushed me into the flames with their own hands. All to please their childhood sweetheart. But when I ran away from Ironwood Pack, the Alpha and Beta both went crazy.

On our wedding anniversary, I get shot by a rival family during a crossfire. When I'm brought to the hospital while drenched in my own blood, I come across Don Marco Lombardi, my husband, who's supposed to be negotiating a business deal in Asterra right now. Apparently, he's supporting his ex-girlfriend, Lucia Santoro, as they wait for her medical check-up. The moment we come across each other, I gaze at Marco calmly. "What a coincidence." Even though there's panic crossing his eyes, he makes no move to approach me. As I stumble out of the operation room while leaning against the wall for support, I hear Lucia telling Marco, "You should go check on the Donna. I think she's badly hurt." But Marco sounds extraordinarily confident. "It's fine. I'll accompany you through your check-up first. She loves me too much to ever leave me anyway." I let out a cold chuckle at his words. Is he that confident that I will never leave him, hmm?

My girlfriend, Megan Sutton, was a pragmatist. On our anniversary, I gave her a bouquet of flowers. She turned right around and returned it to the florist. "That was over thirty dollars. We could've had a whole steak dinner for that." Once the renovations on our marital home were finished, we went browsing at a furniture store and came across a really comfortable ergonomic chair. She glanced at the price tag and immediately pulled me up out of it. "It costs more than a computer. Your butt isn't made of gold." I knew all about her pragmatic principles, and I hadn't really meant to buy it anyway. I wandered around the store in a funk, and in the end, we went home empty-handed. But two days later, I saw that exact chair at the place next door, where our junior labmate, Jeff Baxter, lived. "Thank you, you two! Best seniors ever! You didn't even let yourselves buy one, and you got me such an expensive birthday present. "I'm about to cry. When you two get married, I'm writing you the biggest check of anyone." I thought about the package I'd received that afternoon. It was a chair Megan had bought me online. It was shoddily made and reeked of chemicals. I'd even cut my hand on the sheet metal while putting it together. Looking around Jeff's place, I suddenly remembered when we'd picked out our sofa. She'd said genuine leather was too expensive, so we'd settled on a dark gray performance fabric. Only a few days later, Jeff had swapped his for a new sofa. Seeing me frozen in place, Megan explained, "I just thought it'd match the style of Jeff's place. It's exactly his taste." She'd furnished our new home cheaply and halfheartedly, yet whenever she saw something nice, the first person she thought of was her junior. For me, it was all about practicality and value for money. For him, it was about style and taste. If that was how it was, I'd let them have their romance and bow out of this seven-year relationship.

For the 101st time, Adrian Sinclair, heir to the city’s most powerful family, and ruthless tycoon Vincent Kane had abandoned us for the sake of a delicate socialite. My best friend, Lily Shaw, and I stood outside the courthouse in the pouring rain, laughing as we tore our marriage certificates to pieces. “System, cancel the mission.” I stared at the trending headline that had just appeared on my phone: [The heads of the Sinclair and Kane families chartered a private jet just to make Belle White smile] My gaze was empty and devoid of feeling. “Even if failing the mission means being erased, I’ve had enough of being a pathetic lapdog.” Lily was even more decisive. She wiped away the blood at the corner of her mouth. Vincent had caused the injury when he pushed her aside to reach Belle, making her hit the car door. “Erase me, then. That’s still better than living like a dog.” “We’re heiresses to billion-dollar families even without this mission. If the system wants to take our lives, let it try.” “Come on. Let’s go celebrate. We’ll book the most expensive suite in town, crack open some champagne, and party with a few handsome hunks!”

Before filling out our college preferences, Ethan Barron, our class president and son of the richest man in the country, suddenly claims that he can get everyone in our class into Meridian College. "My parents have donated several buildings to the college. It'll be a piece of cake to get all of you in." Even though most of my classmates have scores that fall well short of Meridian College's admission threshold, they fall for his promise, skip their official applications, and count on Ethan to pull strings and get them into college. In my previous life, I realize Ethan's words can't be trusted, so I immediately urge them to submit their college applications, just in case. I also make a point of calling their parents one by one to warn them. However, this infuriates Ethan. He mocks me for being a penniless nobody who knows nothing about the rules of high society and accuses me of ruining the lives of our classmates. My girlfriend, Sasha Corbin, also berates me for being consumed by jealousy. "You're just jealous that Ethan comes from a wealthy family and can get all of us into Meridian College. So what if your grades are good? You could work your ass off your entire life and still never catch up to what his family has amassed over three generations!" For the sake of our three years as classmates, I choose not to hold it against them. Yet, when I realize right before the deadline that they still haven't submitted their college preferences, I immediately call the cops and expose Ethan's fake identity. Ethan is vilified by everyone and, overwhelmed by despair, jumps into the river to end his life. My classmates claim he got what he deserved and thank me for saving their futures. However, at our class farewell dinner, Sasha poisons my drink. My classmates watch coldly as I writhe in agony. "We may have lost our chance to get into college, but Ethan has lost his life!" When I open my eyes again, I find myself back on the day Ethan claims he can get us into Meridian College through his family connections.

I, Julian Manning, am the top salesman at a car dealership, and I never refuse any customer's request. But today, I turn away a regular customer who comes in for a free maintenance service. My colleague is stunned. "Are you crazy? He's our biggest client who's about to buy the only 4-million-dollar top spec car in the store!" I nod and reply, "That's right. He's exactly the one I'm refusing." When the store manager sees the customer, Marvin Haas, angrily raise his phone to file a complaint, he rushes over to smooth things over. "Mr. Haas, please calm down. He's new and doesn't know better. Please come inside, I'll personally take care of everything..." I step to the side and block the entrance. "No. If you let him in, I'll resign right now." Marvin's face turns red with anger, and he points a trembling finger at. "I'm just here for a free maintenance. Is this really necessary?" I meet his gaze and say solemnly, word by word, "Yes, it is."

At Serena Vale’s succession ceremony, her four adoptive fathers ask her to let Lillian wear her late mother’s moon crown for ten minutes. Eighteen years ago, Serena’s mother, the greatest warrior of Moonridge Pack, died protecting their people. Before her death, she entrusted Serena to Alpha Darius, Beta Julian, Gamma Marcus, and Delta Ronan. The four men swore a father-daughter bond before the Moon Goddess, raised Serena as their own, and named her the pack’s future Alpha. They once stayed beside her through every fever, learned to braid her hair, treasured every drawing she made, and guarded her door during storms. Then Lillian arrived. Whenever the two girls wanted the same thing, Serena heard the same answer: Lillian had no family, while Serena had already enjoyed theirs for eighteen years. On the night Serena should inherit her mother’s crown and stand at the center of her first portrait as heir, her fathers gather around Lillian instead. Serena finally understands that a place given away whenever someone needs it more was never truly hers. That night, she renounces the Alpha title, leaves Moonridge Pack, and petitions to sever all four father-daughter bonds. Her fathers wanted a daughter who needed them more. Serena decides to give them exactly what they asked for.

When my mother won a million dollars from a lottery ticket, she prepared an envelope for each of her three children. After we opened them, my younger brother and younger sister each found a bank card inside. But from my envelope, two 1-dollar coins clinked onto the floor. Seeing me freeze, a trace of unease flickered across Mother's face. "Cassian," she said hesitantly, "Logan and Sienna suffered a lot growing up because your father passed away so early. So I gave each of them 500 thousand dollars as compensation. "You're the eldest son—like a father to them. Don't fight with them over this, okay?" I glanced down at the faded down jacket I had worn for years, the fabric so worn that it had lost its color. Then, my eyes drifted to my younger brother's limited-edition sneakers and to the designer bag slung over my sister's shoulder. Mother seemed to have forgotten that when Father died, I had only been eight. I smiled faintly. "Alright. I won't fight them for it." Hearing this, Mother let out a long breath of relief. The next second, my voice turned cold. "Then I won't fight for the responsibility of supporting you in your old age either."

On my wedding day, my groom's sister, Nadia Lawson, wears an elaborate ball gown and comes on stage to snatch the emcee's microphone. Before all the guests, she arrogantly says to me, "Can't you see the princess is here? Why didn't you curtsy and greet me? You deserve to be punished! Get on your knees and prostrate yourself before me as an apology!" My expression sours at her insolence. I turn around only to see the indulgent expressions on her parents' faces. The groom, Bowen Lawson, says dotingly, "We spoiled Nad silly since she was a child. You are her sister-in-law now. Don't make things hard for her." I am so mad that I can't help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. The clown thinks she's a princess, asking me to kneel before her? Ridiculous.

On the eve of our ninth wedding, my fiance, Jasper Preston, develops a split personality after saving me in a car accident. One personality loves me down to his very bones. The other, however, is hopelessly in love with his junior, Wendy Upton. While I'm in a half-dreaming stupor, I hear the doctor sigh. "Mr. Preston's two personalities possess immense self-awareness. I'm afraid it'll be very difficult for them to merge. If Ms. Birch insists on marrying him, she must be willing to share her husband with another woman." Sighs ripple through the room, but I remain exceptionally resolute. After all, he had risked his life to save me in that accident. How could I possibly give up on the man I love so easily? However, the very next second, I hear another voice. "Jasper, you really outdid yourself this time. I can't believe you actually made up a split personality. Still, knowing Stella's temper, won't she drag you down to hell with her once she finds out the truth?" Jasper scoffs, "She loves me so much that she'd give her life for me; she'd never hurt me. I have to teach her a lesson because she fired Wen." My heart feels as though a blade has pierced straight through it. So, the disasters plaguing our weddings aren't coincidences. Everything—every single obstacle—has just been his twisted way of punishing me. Since he's willing to go this far for Wendy, I no longer want this forced marriage. Consequently, when I come to, and Jasper puts on his split-personality act, I simply look at his sworn rival, Mason Winslow, who is standing beside him. "Honey, who is he?" I ask calmly.

After the IVF procedure worked, I finally got pregnant and flew back from overseas, hoping to surprise my husband, Rob Balmer, with the news I'd been waiting so long for. A friend tipped me off that while I'd been abroad, Rob had taken on a new personal assistant — the clingy, temperamental type who always had to have her way. At first, I didn't think much of it. In the old days, all I had to do was frown, and Rob would have anyone who got on my nerves shown the door. But when I got home, I found out the code to the front gate had been changed. I tried our wedding anniversary date again — and that's when the door swung open. Some woman was leaning against the doorway in my silk pajamas, all drama and attitude, her brows arched like she owned the place. "Look what the cat dragged in — some beggar showing up at the Balmer estate! Scram! Or I'll set the dogs on you!" I was so furious I almost laughed. "Go get Rob. I want to ask him just what kind of stray he's been letting into this house." And I had one more question: Did he still want the heir — the Balmer family's only shot at continuing nine generations of single sons— the one I was carrying right now?