Tragic Love Short Stories & Poor Student Face Slapping Novels

Before my wedding to Sophie Bennett, the impoverished student I've been sponsoring for ten years posts a photo on social media. "Successfully moved into the new apartment. Soph prepared such a big, soft bed for me!" In the photo, Zachary Wells lies sprawled on the wedding bed I bought for Sophie and my new home, taking a smug selfie with his hand waving at the camera. He's even wearing my wedding ring on his ring finger. Zachary also comments on his own post, "Just thinking about how I'm the first man to lie on this bed fills me with overwhelming happiness!" I reply with a question mark under his comment. The next second, Sophie's call comes through. "I'm just letting Zach experience the warmth of home. Why are you being so passive-aggressive?" In the background, I hear Zachary softly trying to calm her down. "Soph, he's not worth getting angry over." Hearing that, Sophie laughs and banters with him, then abruptly hangs up on me. The two of us have been together for ten years, from ages 18 to 28, and we've finally made it to our wedding day. But now, I no longer intend to go through with it.

Ten years after someone supposedly pushed her down a flight of stairs and left her in a vegetative state, Margaret Whitmore, mother of Mason Whitmore, the golden boy of the capital's elite, finally woke up. Practically everyone who mattered in the capital came to visit, each eager to praise Mason for his devotion to his mother. For ten years, he had made the person responsible for Margaret's condition pay for what she'd done. Even though the culprit was his high school girlfriend, he'd shown her no mercy. Margaret listened in silence for a long time. When everyone had finished speaking, she looked around in confusion. "What culprit? Nobody pushed me. I fell down the stairs myself." The paring knife slipped from Mason's hand and clattered to the floor. He stared at Margaret in disbelief. "Mom, what did you just say?" Lily Yates hadn't been responsible for his mother's condition? Panic swept through him. He'd spent every one of those ten years taking revenge on Lily, believing she was the reason his mother lay unconscious. Now he was being told she'd been innocent all along? "Speaking of which, where's Lily?" Margaret asked anxiously. "I didn't want you dating her back then because she came from a single-parent family. I never imagined she'd risk her own life to save me when I fell down. Are you two still together? Have you gotten married? Do you have children?" Each question struck Mason like a sledgehammer. His mouth went dry, and for a long time, he couldn't bring himself to speak. How could he tell his mother that after Lily got out of prison, he'd forced her to be with a blind beggar, and she'd been living that way for the past three years?

My son just had surgery. I'm sitting by his bedside in the hospital when I come across a post online. "What's the worst thing you've ever done?" One anonymous comment stands out. "I used the upperclassman who funded me as a stepping stone. My sponsor was rich but clueless. After she paid for my entire college, I slept with her husband and got pregnant. "The craziest part? My son and her son were born on the same day, but my husband swapped the babies. Now, she treats my son like he's her whole world, working day and night to give him a better life. "But her own son lives with me, wearing hand-me-downs and eating leftovers. Today, my son had surgery. I was worried sick, so I slapped her son hard a few times. "Oh, and her family just got a three-million-dollar payout for relocation. My husband is going to the hospital later. He's going to use the excuse of buying a house near the schools to get the money. "Once we have the money, I'm buying a villa. Then I'll get my son back and kick her out!" The post includes a blurry photo of a boy begging on his knees. My breath catches because the charm on his wrist is the same lucky charm I gave my son the day he was born. Just then, my husband pushes open the door to the ward and walks in. "Honey, Sean's starting elementary school soon. Let's use that relocation money your mom received to buy a house near the schools."