Short Stories & Novels

The whole school knew I was Derek Hardy's doormat—his loyal little puppy, always trailing behind him no matter what. But no matter how much he looked down on me, brushed me off, or treated me like I didn't matter, I never left his side. Until a basketball game, when Derek took a scratch to the face. I frowned, got to my feet, and muttered under my breath, "Took me forever to find a decent replacement. What a waste."

When we try to get our marriage registered for the 18th time, Derek Hubbard has forgotten to bring his ID again. The thing is, I reminded him to bring his ID three times last night. He told me, "Got it. This time, I'm definitely marrying you. There won't be a problem throughout the registration." But as soon as we arrive at the city hall, Derek searches through his pockets. In the end, he calls Lessie Davenport with a frown. "Lessie, did I leave my ID with you?" As I sit in the waiting area, I suddenly let out a soft chuckle. Half an hour later, Lessie arrives at the city hall. She hands the ID over to Derek with red-rimmed eyes. "My stomach hurts a lot, Derek…" Derek's expression changes drastically. He quickly supports her and steers her toward the exit. "Wait for me here, Celine. I'll be back soon." I nod in response while watching Derek walk away from me, just like how he did for the past 17 times. When Derek's silhouette disappears, I dig out my phone and send a text message to someone else. "Are you here yet?" Three minutes later, a man walks into the city hall. He hands both of our IDs through the hole in the counter. "Hi, we're here to register our marriage."

After marrying an ice-cold husband and giving birth to an equally ice-cold son, I finally got pregnant with a daughter of my own. At the dinner table, I tested the waters and asked my son whether he wanted a little sister. But he only shook his head. "I already have a little sister." I stared at him, certain he was joking. There wasn't even a stuffed doll in the house. Where would he have gotten a sister? The next second, my husband suddenly spoke. "I cheated. The girl is pregnant. "She had an amniocentesis yesterday. It's a girl." I froze where I stood. My husband only looked at me and went on in that slow, unhurried tone. "I'm keeping the child. The girl is young and healthy, and a child born from her will be smart, too." It felt as if a great hand had closed around my heart. The prenatal report hidden behind my back suddenly pressed down on me until I could hardly breathe.

It started with a sudden downpour. I turned around to buy an umbrella. By the time I got back, Winston Sterling had already draped his overcoat across Sera Thorne’s shoulders. He pulled me under the umbrella, his tone gentle, as if soothing a spoiled child. "Sera can't handle the cold. Just let her have it this once, Nat. Be a good girl. Don't make a fuss." I looked down at my own shoulder, which was already completely soaked through. I didn't say a word. We had been building our startup for five years. Everyone always said Winston and Sera were the dual heart and soul of Sterling Tech. One wrote the code, while the other pitched the product. Meanwhile, I was the one managing the budgets, chasing down clients, advancing money for our office rent, and pulling all-nighters to grind out business proposals. Yet, all I ever got from him was a single, offhand sentence. "Nat, you're always the reasonable one." But I finally understood. It was always the reasonable one who got pushed out into the rain, time and time again. When the car door opened, Winston practiced an all-too-familiar routine, adjusting the passenger seat cushion for Sera. That was a lumbar support cushion I had bought for myself after injuring my waist. I threw the newly purchased umbrella straight into the trash can. Then, I pulled up my phone and clicked send on the equity exit agreement I had prepared long ago. Three minutes later, his reply came back as a brief, three-word text. "Don't be silly." What he didn't know was that at that exact same moment, I had also opened another email.

On the flight home, the plane starts shaking violently. Certain I'm about to die, I call my husband, Rhys Callahan, to say my last words. He hangs up on me, and his auto-reply flashes on the screen. "Driving. On my way to pick up Daphne." I've taken 86 flights in our five years of marriage. Every time I'm about to land, I ask him to come get me, and every time, the answer is the same. "Daphne's getting in too. I have to pick her up." He picks up Daphne Langston all 86 times. The lowest point comes during a rainstorm. I drag my suitcase through the downpour outside the terminal for two hours, unable to get a ride. When I call him, Daphne's voice comes through, laughing. "Oh, Rhys is helping me with my luggage right now. He can't come to the phone." Now the cabin fills with screaming and sobbing. The plane spirals out of control at cruising altitude, the left wing shearing away as flames light up the windows. My phone buzzes with a message from him. "Just picked Daphne up. What time do you land? I'll come get you." I stare at the screen and let out a bitter laugh. After five years, he's finally offering to pick me up. But fire swallows the plane as it plunges toward the ground. He doesn't know I'm no longer coming home.

My girlfriend, Selena Jenkins, and I are committed to a strict 50-50 relationship. We are three years into our relationship, and we split everything down to a single bottle of water. Then, out of nowhere, I get a call from a kidnapper. "We have your girlfriend. Have 150 thousand dollars ready, or she dies!" I calmly launch our app, SplitMate. According to the algorithm, this unexpected incident falls under "shared risk", meaning she is responsible for 50% of the cost. However, after factoring in the personal insurance policy I took out on her behalf, she only needs to pay 35,550 dollars. I send the calculation results to the kidnapper. "This is her share. Please contact her family for the payment. I'm only responsible for my own portion." The line goes silent. A few minutes later, I receive a livestream link. The livestream shows Selena tied to a chair, smiling at her phone. The live chat in front of her is blowing up. "Holy shit! This guy's a monster. This is the craziest livestream I've seen all year!" Later on, she follows the 50-50 rule to a T, but I'm no longer on board with it.

My wife, Kate Barker, who has insisted on maintaining a sexless marriage, is pregnant. She prints out a thousand copies of her pregnancy reports and proudly announces to everyone that she's pregnant with someone else's child. Apparently, Kate has made a bet with her best friends to see if I'll cause a huge ruckus over the announcement. "Back when Neil wanted to marry you, he sank down to his knees in front of your mom. He even paused to kneel with every step he took from one end of the street to the other! Everyone was watching him, too! "If he finds out that you're pregnant, he'll definitely go ballistic!" Kate just frowns in disgust. "I don't even have a proper marriage certificate with him, so there's no way we're husband and wife! All he does is wag his tail and act pitiful in front of my mom! If it wasn't for him, I'd have regained my freedom a long time ago!" She's worried that I might get revenge on her unborn baby's biological father, so she orders her bodyguards to break one of my legs and lock me up in the basement for one week straight. By the time I get released, Kate has already married another man overseas. This time, I no longer cling to this relationship. Instead, I inform my mother-in-law, Margaret Gibbs, calmly, "I've lost the five-year bet, Margaret. I will honor my end of the bargain and vanish from everyone's lives forever."

My sense of direction has always been terrible since young. Getting lost is a norm for me. When I was eight years old, I had to face the worst consequences of getting lost. That time, I almost got kidnapped by human traffickers. So, my older sister, Aubrey Cochran, gifts me a GPS watch and repeatedly teaches me how to use it. "As long as you follow the GPS, you can find your way home. Have you remembered it yet?" I nod heavily. Since then, the watch stays strapped onto my wrist. But later on, my adoptive mom has found her actual son. That's when the entire family's attitude toward me begins shifting. They no longer panic even when I don't return for the day. This year's Thanksgiving holidays are coming soon. Aubrey decides to take me on a trip out of the blue. Our trip lasts for more than a dozen days. Our last stop is a remote village. There, Aubrey takes my watch from me and fiddles with it for a long time. At the start of the next day, I can't get in touch with her no matter how hard I try. As I stare at the unfamiliar GPS coordinates on my watch, I feel realization dawning on me immediately. When I'm about to leave, a villager looks at me in confusion. "You're leaving too, eh? Where are you headed to?" I smile at her. "I'm going home." Since Aubrey doesn't want me anymore, I shall grant her wish.

Before the adopted son, Luther Anderson, jumped into the ocean to end his life, he sent a text message in the family group chat. [Oliver’s too good. I just can’t beat him. I’m done putting up a fight.] Everyone mourned for him. I was called a murderer. My entire family hated me for it. My older sister, Samantha Anderson, who had once gifted me a piano, smashed my bones with a bat. “Since your musical talents overwhelmed his, I’m going to ruin your hands.” My fiancee, Camila Reid, threw a knife at me. “He’s always been jealous of your handsome looks. He’s always been insecure about it. You should ruin your face to make it up to him.” My parents sent me to a mental asylum instead. “If Luther doesn’t come back home safe, you’ll spend the rest of your life here reflecting on your mistakes. “You’ll only be released once you learn how to treat your brother well.” After that, Luther suddenly showed up and claimed that he missed my parents. Hence, he made a grand appearance. I also learned from the incident. I ignored my parents’ favoritism. However, everyone started to panic. “Oliver, are you going to desert us?”

Whitney Sands was in a coma for three years because of an accident, and when she woke up from the coma, everyone said she had changed. She used to cling to Henry Jordan wherever he was, but now, she would only see him once every few days. When Henry ended up in the hospital because he was sick, all Whitney did was instruct the domestic help to make some food to be delivered to him. Whitney did not question him whenever he came home late, and when she heard rumors of him having another woman, she acted indifferent about it as well. This continued until one night, Whitney was watching male models dancing at a bar, and her best friend, Summer Thompson, showed her a photo of a grand hall. Henry was holding a woman's hand in the photo and carrying a baby while standing at the doors to greet guests. The electronic banner at the top of his head read, 'Congratulations on your newborn baby boy! Wishing your family a lifetime of happiness.' Summer asked curiously, "I didn't believe it when they said you didn't care about Henry anymore. Do you really feel nothing seeing him having a baby with another woman?" Whitney raised an eyebrow and pushed several bills down a male model's pants before standing up from the couch. "Who says I don't care about Henry anymore? He just had a baby, and as his wife, I should pay them a visit."

After I Took Three Bullets For Him, He Said He Was Just My Uncle I took three bullets for Don Lorenzo Moretti, the man I called my uncle. The last one nearly killed me. Only then did the family elders agree to name me Donna. But in the two weeks I lay unconscious, Lorenzo announced his engagement to Ava, the daughter of a family benefactor. The Rocci, my family, lost its power when I was ten. Ever since Lorenzo, a close friend of my father's, brought me to the Moretti estate, I was certain he would one day be my husband, despite our age gap. He always told me to find men my own age, but I just let it go. In my previous life, I crashed their engagement party, a decision that led to a miscarriage and my own violent death. But this is my second chance, and I have learned my lesson. I will reclaim the token of my love, accept my destiny as Donna, and offer myself in a marriage alliance far away in Sicily. Uncle, I finally understand. A young man is far more entertaining than an old one like you.

I ran my fingers over the bite mark on my neck, the one that still ached faintly. “Julian, let's sever the bond.” He pressed a hand down on my shoulder, the fire in his eyes almost spilling over. “Seraphina Hale, what are you throwing a fit about now? I only felt sorry for Daisy, so I kept her company for one night.” “That hurts.” His hand loosened on reflex, and I shook myself free of him. Ever since Daisy's engagement was broken off and she came back to the pack, Julian's heart hadn't belonged to me. One frown from Daisy and he'd be so anxious he could barely hold himself together. “Julian, you don't love me at all.” I looked at him, steady, but he only turned angry. “Seraphina Hale, you think you could even stay alive without me?” Three years together, and he had spent every one of them looking down at me from somewhere far above. All because I'd been struck by the wolfsbane curse, and every full moon I needed him to sink his teeth into my neck and hold me through the night. Otherwise the pain would drag me down until I blacked out. But I had never once said he was my only choice. I opened my contacts and tapped the name of the one person who reached out to me every single year without fail. [I'm willing to let you mark me.] The reply came back in a heartbeat. [I'm coming for you.] Julian's three years were already behind me.

My boyfriend, Simon Carver, was a man with very strong boundaries. For three years, he never let me go to his place. He said it was his private territory. He never let me touch his phone, not even to check the time. Even at gatherings with friends, he always seated me farthest away from him. I always thought he simply wasn't used to intimacy. Then, on the eve of our wedding, I received his shared location. I thought he had finally decided to let me get closer, so I followed the location and went to his home for the first time. The door wasn't locked. In the living room, a woman was wearing his oversized T-shirt like pajamas, her pale legs resting across his lap as she whined for him to massage her. When he saw me, surprise flashed through Simon's eyes. Then he returned to his usual indifference. "Why are you here? "That location was meant for Ives. I was in a rush and picked the wrong person. "Maren, you need to give me some private space too. Don't see one shared location and come rushing over like a dog that smelled a bone, desperate to check up on me." I found it funny. He was intimate with another woman, yet he turned around and asked his fiancee for private space. I didn't say anything else. I just lowered my head and accepted the out-of-state transfer notice from my boss. Since he thought I was standing too close, I would step farther away. Far enough that his world would never have me in it again.

Dad is struck by a sudden illness, causing him to die tragically in his office. At the funeral, my younger brother, Draco Lancaster, and my mom decide to swallow rat poison just to reunite with Dad out of sorrow. Everyone says that Dad didn't dote on Draco for nothing. But on the day after the funeral, Dad's superior comes knocking on the door. Apparently, Dad has misappropriated public property, so I am to be locked up in a stockpen serving as a holding cell in order to pay off the debt on his behalf. Later on, I finally clear the debt. But that's when I see my family, who should have been dead, laughing and chatting with each other in a car. It turns out that they've faked their deaths to flee from the consequences. Unable to accept the reality, I rush over to confront them. My family, who are terrified that the truth will get out, quickly run me over with the car as a result. When I open my eyes again, I've returned to the day my family is about to fake their deaths.

My mate Alpha Rowan's childhood friend got pregnant by a rogue. To save her from burning at the stake by the Elders, Rowan claimed the pup was his. I asked him in disbelief what would happen to me and our pup. Rowan just hugged me tight, his eyes full of pain. "They'll kill Tessa, Gwen! Pack law only lets an Alpha pardon his own blood. I'm doing this to save her! You're my only mate. Why can't you understand?" Rowan had no clue. My Omega body simply couldn't handle his powerful Alpha blood. The pup inside me was draining me dry, eating me alive. My wolf was dying. Without my mate's scent and soothing day and night, I wouldn't survive the pregnancy. And I had no one else in this pack. Later, my bloodline-obsessed mother-in-law sneered at me. She said my wolf was weak because I was carrying a rogue's bastard. And Rowan? He was still playing house with his childhood friend. Through my tears, the truth finally hit me. He chose her over me. He chose duty over his mate. So I went to the Head Healer. I lay on the cold operating table and let them remove the pup that was killing me. Since my Alpha couldn't give me the protection I needed to survive, I had to save myself. Even if it meant losing our flesh and blood. But when he finally arrived and saw the blood-soaked surgical tray, he completely lost his mind.

After I voluntarily gave up my position as the team's starting carry to my boyfriend's first love, he was pleased by how obedient I had been. As a reward, he moved our wedding date forward. But on the day of the ceremony, his precious first love, consumed by jealousy, pressed a dagger against herself and begged through tears, "Ethan, please don't marry her. Please." Ethan, who had always been cold and composed, instantly panicked. He pleaded with me over and over, begging me to save her life. Every guest at the wedding was waiting to see me make a fool of myself. Instead, I stayed calm and quietly handed over my place as the bride. Seeing how understanding I was, just as I had always been, Ethan's eyes reddened. "I promise this is the last time I'll let you suffer. As soon as the wedding is over, we'll get our marriage license and make it official." But he had forgotten something. This was the ninety-sixth time he had hurt me. And I had no intention of spending the rest of my life with him. I was only waiting for three more promises. Once I had repaid the debt I owed him for saving my grandmother's life all those years ago, I would walk away for good. From that day on, our paths would never cross again.

The day I was acknowledged as the real Sinclair heiress, Moon Sinclair, the fake heiress, stood before me with tears in her eyes and said she wanted to give the engagement back to me. I placed a hand over my stomach. I had only recently found out that I was pregnant. I said softly, “I don’t need it. I already have feelings for someone.” As soon as the words left my mouth, several lines of text suddenly appeared before my eyes. [This is hilarious. The so-called villain is turning down the engagement so confidently right now. Just wait until she sees the male lead. She’ll regret it immediately.] [But the male lead will still choose the heroine, the fake heiress. The villain will use her pregnancy to cling to him and refuse to let go.] [The heroine will eventually be driven to slash her wrists. Everyone in the family will despise the villain, and the male lead will hate her too. In the end, she and her baby will both die during childbirth.] I lowered my gaze. The whole thing felt absurd. How could I become obsessed with a man I had never even met? At that moment, I heard footsteps behind me. Moon wiped away her tears and hurried over. “Cameron, this is my sister. This engagement should have been hers from the beginning.” I turned around and met a pair of familiar eyes. He was the man who had supported me for the past five years. He was also the father of the baby in my womb.

The day I broke up with my boyfriend, I was sitting in my husband’s car when I watched him buy a box of bandages for his mistress. Gavin Hart had always said he didn’t believe in love. What he wanted was novelty. The rush of something new. I laughed when I heard that. Funny. I didn’t want love either. I wanted his money. His power. And the life that came with his name. Marriage is never just about two people. I thought my affair was the betrayal that would destroy everything. Later, I realized it was the least important secret in our marriage.

My billionaire parents, Gerald Voight and Diane Westwood, were afraid my sister, Claire Voight, and I would grow spoiled if we stayed in luxury, so they pulled us out of the city's best prep school and sent us to study in a remote mountain town. On the way there, locals knocked us unconscious and sold us into a brutal trafficking ring. I found a way to contact my parents and begged them to save us, but they said I was lying. "Being sent to the mountains means you were trafficked? You really were raised too soft. You can't handle even a little hardship." "Kids there get into college by fighting their way out. Learn to do the same. Stop depending on us for everything." They blocked my sister's number and mine before I could explain. To survive, my sister and I escaped after three days without food, but when we tried to buy tickets out of the county, the ticket clerk refused us. "Sorry, miss. We've received instructions from the Voight family. You're not allowed to leave the county by any method, unless it's for college." We couldn't get away. The traffickers dragged us back. Later, my sister died from the tortures in a filthy basement. I was luckier. At my last breath, undercover anti-trafficking officers found me. I held my sister's ashes and fled to the farthest city from home. Then our cousin, Jenna Reed, posted a photo from her overseas school. [Uncle Gerald and Aunt Diane are just like my real parents. They give me the best love.] She tagged me on purpose, the way she always did, hoping I'd be provoked into questioning her. This time, I only liked the post and replied: [If you're willing, they can be your real parents. You can be their only daughter.]

I had just finalized a three-million-dollar merger deal when I heard my wife, Connie Anderson, instruct the assistant, Greg Smith, outside of my office. “Change the person in charge of this merger to Pete during the announcement ceremony tomorrow.” My hand paused on the doorknob as I leaned against the door. Greg sounded a little hesitant as he said, “But Dave’s been working on this project for the last six months. Our client has also been working exclusively with him…” Connie did not even hesitate a little when she said righteously, “Pete has just graduated. He needs the network to solidify his status. Dave’s already part of the management team. Why would he need more accolades? “After this deal is signed off, I’ll buy him his favorite sports car to make it up to him.” During the announcement the next day, Connie held my hand and said, “The admin has made a mistake in the paperwork. I’ll make it up to you later.” I pulled my hand back and remained quiet for the rest of the ceremony. We had been married for seven years, but she had taken everything I had built through years of hard work and used it to elevate another man. I neither wanted a sports car nor did I want to be a part of the senior management team.