Melodramatic Romance の短編小説 & Fake Death 小説

The day my husband, Cameron Gray, died unexpectedly, I swallowed an entire bottle of sleeping pills. His best friend and my sworn enemy, Alfie Crawford, kicked the door open with bloodshot eyes and dragged me back from the brink of death. "You have to live, even if it's for Cameron's sake!" For the next three years, Alfie reins in his temper completely. Even when I step outside just to take out the trash, he insists on coming with me. I thought I'd finally moved past the pain. Somewhere along the way, I even fell for him. In the second year of our relationship, I hold a positive pregnancy test, ready to surprise Alfie, only to find something buried at the very back of his drawer. It's a printed marriage certificate, registered in Koaland five years ago. The groom is Cameron, the man whose death I've thought was an accident. The bride is my best friend, Tessa Stone, who swears she would never get married. The date is the very day I tried to end my life. Beside the marriage certificate lies a phone. On it is a message from Tessa, sent just yesterday. "Thank you for keeping her under control for the past five years and making sure she never found out. Cameron and I are very happy together now." I clutch the pregnancy test. At that moment, it feels like I've fallen into a frozen abyss. As it turns out, the man I thought had saved me has actually been colluding with them and deceiving me all these years.

When I woke up from a three-year coma following a car accident, everyone around me started treating me like I was made of glass. Terrified that something might happen to me again, they micromanaged every hour of my day, making sure I was never left alone. My brother took the morning shift, accompanying me on walks and workouts as I slowly rebuilt my strength. In the afternoon, my best friend kept me company, taking me shopping or to the movies so I would have something to do. In the evening, my parents would take me out for big, hearty meals, insisting that I needed to eat well to get my strength back. Then my boyfriend would come pick me up and take me home. Nestled in his arms before falling asleep one night, I gave a soft chuckle. "You guys don't have to walk on eggshells around me. I'm a grown woman. I'm not going to let anything happen to me again." Donovan O'Brien shook his head, his expression grave. "Violet, you mean the world to all of us. None of us could survive going through that agony a second time." My heart swelled with warmth and happiness, almost to the point of suffocation. That feeling lasted until I accidentally stumbled across a group chat on my best friend's phone, one that included everyone except me. The group was called "Protect Donovan's True Love", and the latest message was from my best friend. Thea Leblanc: [Violet and I just sat down in the theater. You're clear to bring Cheryl home now.] I scrolled upward and found a message from my brother. Neil Sanford: [I'm walking Violet in the park by her building. Donovan, don't bring Cheryl over here for breakfast today.] Further up were messages from my parents: [Violet just finished dinner. Drop Cheryl off and come pick her up.] I tapped on the profile picture for the woman they were talking about. The moment I saw her face, I froze. An icy chill ran straight down my spine. The very woman who had put me in a coma for three years was now with my husband. And the people I had believed loved and protected me had been covering for them the entire time.

On the eve of our engagement party, my fiancé, Andrew Graham, dies. According to the police, his car crashed through the guardrail and plunged into the river. The only thing they managed to find was a bloodstained watch. The Graham family pins all the blame on me. "If Andrew hadn't gone out to buy you a ring, would he have gotten into this accident?" "You're nothing but a jinx! As if it weren't bad enough that you cursed your parents to death, but now, you've even cursed your fiancé!" Andrew's best female friend, Katherine Yangley, has tears spilling down her cheeks as she plays the last voice recording he made. "Don't end your life for me. Live on well." I kneel before his coffin, hugging his watch, for three whole days. On the fourth morning, I drink some industrial herbicide, put on his favorite white dress, and head to the river alone. "Andrew, I'm coming to you." I have barely started to climb over the guardrail when cheers abruptly come from beneath the bridge. Katherine rushes over to me while clapping her hands gleefully. She is laughing so hard that tears roll down her face. "I won! I knew that she would come! Andrew, she actually believed it! She was genuinely going to jump into the river to end her life so that she could be reunited with you!" The crowd parts to reveal Andrew, who walks over with a bouquet of roses. His white shirt is so pristine that it's almost blinding to look at. He focuses his attention on Katherine first, saying in an indulgent tone, "Are you finally satisfied? No more kicking up a fuss in the future, okay?" Latching onto his arm, Katherine asks smugly, "Well, I contributed a lot by helping you test her true feelings for you, didn't I?" "Yes, you did," Andrew answers with a smile. "You like that wedding ring I picked out, right? Then as a reward, you can wear it for one week." Only then does he hand me the bouquet of roses. "Are you surprised? Kathy was just feeling rather upset that you snatched me away from her, so I decided to go along with her this once and let her have her fun. You don't mind, do you? Now that it's been proven that you truly love me, we can get married." Realization dawns on me. The car accident, the voice recording—all of that is fake. It's all simply part of a terrible prank Katherine thought up to satisfy her vindictiveness. As for Andrew, he did nothing but stand by while she put my life on the line. Agonizing pain shoots through me from my stomach. I shake my head. "Forget it. I can't go back anymore."

On the day of my wedding, I had just discovered I was pregnant when news of Gavin Holt's death reached me. I wept until my eyes were swollen, yet still clung to his portrait and insisted on completing the ceremony. The very next day, his twin brother Sebastian Holt, came with Charlotte Evans, to break off the marriage on behalf of his brother. "My brother said before he died that Charlotte was his one true love. If she cannot enter the Holt family, he'll never rest in peace!" Taking advantage of the fact I had no family to back me up, Sebastian shamelessly brought Charlotte into my bridal chamber and slept with her. Their moans and gasps filled the room. On the very first day of my marriage, I was humiliated by my own brother-in-law and turned into a laughingstock for the entire city. Then, by chance, I overheard their conversation. "Gavin, you lied to Emily, told her you were dead. What if she finds out?" "She's so foolish. Even now, she mourns my 'death' with blind devotion. Once she gives birth to the child, we'll drive her out of the Holt family." Only then did I learn the truth that the one who had died in that car accident wasn't Gavin at all, but his twin brother! Later, I chose to end the pregnancy and leave. Yet he went mad, begging me to return.

I wheel myself into the birthday celebration that Wales Price has thrown for me. The atmosphere is originally lively, but a brief silence descends when everyone sees me. The guests are there for different purposes, but celebrating my birthday is not one of them. "Is that Mr. Price's crippled fiancée, Joey Hertza?" "Yeah, but the one he really loves is Anna Giovanni. I saw them kissing in a corner earlier." They use their wine glasses to block their mouths as they speak loudly. They think I'm still the crippled deaf I used to be. They don't know that I regained my hearing last week. I can hear every mocking comment they make. Meanwhile, Wales stands there and allows it to happen. He doesn't stop the guests from talking about me. He seems to have forgotten that I only ended up like this while protecting him. I shoved him away when the accident happened and got trapped underneath the car myself. When I was rescued, Wales swore to stay with me and care for me for life. It's only been three short years since then, but he's already changed. I receive a message on my phone. "Ms. Hertza, the lifelike corpse that you've ordered is now complete. Reply to this message with your confirmation, and your death-faking service will be immediately effective. We will send the corpse to your and Mr. Price's wedding in five days." I don't even hesitate as I reply with my confirmation. Enjoy your wedding, Wales.

After the car accident, one of the Johnson sons was dead and the other gravely injured. When my devout, devoted husband woke up in the hospital, he called out, "Dorothy." He claimed that his body then held the soul of his brother, Elias Johnson. I went mad, calling doctors, priests, anyone I could, desperate to bring my husband back. It was not until that night that I overheard his conversation with our son: "Father, you've loved aunt for years. You even kept yourself chaste in your private prayer room, waiting. Now, finally, you can be with her openly." The man in the bed reached out to stroke our son's hair. "If it weren't to stop your mother from destroying her relationship, I wouldn't have married her." I hid in the shadows, still reeling from their words, when I saw what happened after our son left. The husband I had always known, icy, composed, and ascetic to maintain his devout faith for seven years, was then holding his sister-in-law close on that tiny hospital bed, sharing a warmth meant for lovers. The next day, I applied for Jim Johnson's death certificate and burned our marriage certificate. At his grand wedding, I climbed aboard the helicopter sent to fetch me. However, my once-cold husband went mad, chasing after us down several streets, desperate and unhinged.

Lucien Arden took the throne. He crowned Rosalind Hartwell empress. And Evelyn Hartwell—the principal wife who had fought at his side all the way from embattled prince to emperor—was given only the rank of Imperial Consort. The day the decree came down, Silverleaf Palace was completely silent. Every servant kept their head lowered and hardly dared to breathe, afraid that Evelyn would weep, or throw things, or come apart the way any consort does when the emperor's favor leaves her. Evelyn simply accepted the decree, calmly. “I thank His Majesty for his generosity.” There was no movement in her voice and nothing in her face. Even her beautiful eyes held not the slightest trace of grief. She turned, went back into the inner rooms, and picked up her book where she had left it. As though the decree that had just stripped her of her place as his principal wife had nothing whatever to do with her.

The day before my wedding, my daughter and I got into a car accident. My daughter died instantly, and I was left with broken legs, condemned to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair. When Spencer Ford found out, he rushed us to the hospital, his actions frantic, almost out of control. In the midst of my pain, I overheard a conversation between Spencer and his assistant. "The car's been disposed of. Lorelei will never find out that we tampered with it. But I'm compelled to ask… Rowena was your own daughter. Was it really worth it, losing her for Melanie? "When Rowena was dying, she was calling for you to save her… I could hardly bring myself to do it." Spencer remained silent for a long time, the tension in the air thick. Then he slowly exhaled a plume of smoke. "Melanie's pregnant. I won't let anyone compete with her child for the inheritance. And all of this is Lorelei's fault. She brought it on herself."

Eight years after my boyfriend’s mom made us break up, that strong-willed, wealthy woman suddenly showed up again. “After you left, Nigel’s hair turned white overnight. He’s been in and out of mental hospitals so many times… “Please, come back. If you don’t, he might die!” I touched the scar on my forehead and gave a bitter smile. “But I’m no longer young or pretty.” She got on her knees and begged, “If you come back, I’ll give you ten million to help pay for your mom’s treatment, no matter what happens.” For my sick mom, I decided to return to Nigel Jefferson. “But now that I’m no longer pretty… would he still love me?”