Card Room

After regaining my hearing, I happily march over to the room of my arch-rival, eager to flaunt in front of him—only to hear him moaning my name as he does what all guys do for pleasure.

Chloe, the maid I share a room with, is dead. I watched the head housekeeper and another maid pin her to the floor. I watched them as the housekeeper vomited up a slimy, black web of fungus and forced it down Chloe's throat. I should have screamed. I wanted to. But my selective mutism took over, trapping the sound in my throat. It probably saved my life. The next day, Chloe was alive again. She walked into the young miss’s room to brush her hair, just like always. I was so scared I dropped the water basin I was holding. As I stood there, frozen, the young miss leaned in close, her voice a whisper only I could hear. "You've noticed it too, haven't you? They're not themselves anymore."

My firefighter husband had fallen from a great height during a mission and was rushed into the emergency room, covered in blood. As the only person capable of saving him, I stood just outside the operating room, calm and composed. Reaching for my makeup bag, I began carefully applying my makeup. Another doctor, panic-stricken, rushed toward me and shouted, "Dr. Warhol! The patient's kidney has ruptured! You're the only surgeon in all of Switzerland who can perform this life-saving procedure! If you don’t act now, he’s going to die!" I continued shaping my eyebrows with steady precision, not even glancing in his direction. "Quiet," I said coolly. "If you keep yelling, my brows might end up crooked."

On Mother's Day, I was planning to give my mother-in-law a special gift, but to my surprise, I saw her enter a room with a Black man. When she came out half an hour later, her face was flushed…

Waking up in an unfamiliar place (Hotel), Meifeng found herself bare and cold, with pain scattered all over her body. Unable to recall how she got there, her mind filled with horrified thoughts, as a shiver ran through her spine. Just then the door of the bathroom attached to the room opened, revealing a man wearing black bathrobe. Her eyes widened, shock evident on her face as she pointed towards him, “Yo…You…” She stuttered. Instantly panicked about the girl, he ran towards the bed, trying to touch her face, only to see her flinch in fear and drill herself in duvet in the next second. Wrapping herself like a sushi, the girl only revealed her eyes, which darted towards the messy condition of the room with clothes scattered all over. “How am I here?”

At a company party, Taylor Kennedy plays a game of mouth-to-mouth cookie biting with his female assistant as everyone watches. I blend into the crowd and laugh along. The room instantly falls silent. The assistant bursts into tears and plays the victim. Taylor lets go of her, turns to me, and coldly scolds me in front of the entire company. He berates me for not knowing how to read the room and being a buzzkill. Then, without hesitation, he wraps his arm around the assistant and kisses her deeply as I watch. If this were before, I would've stormed over in a rage and ripped them apart. Then, I would've humiliated her in front of everyone, not caring whose pride I trampled. But now, I feel nothing. Not even as I watch them kiss. Not even though today marks my ten-year anniversary with Taylor.

On their fifth anniversary, Auliffe Albano's best friend sneaked into her fiance's room instead of her, but she was in the next room, spending the night with a stranger. Nine months later, she gave birth to a child, and the child's father, Hawk Valiente, came to the door the next day after she gave birth. Hawk was dressed in black slacks and a white long sleeve. Hawk persuaded Auliffe to marry him or give her custody of the child. But who can explain to her how the man she married for convenience is the CEO of a multinational group of companies and a billionaire? One night's blunder would entangle her life and career which result in much more than they could have imagined. Will the unexpected misstep lead to real love in the end, or will break them apart?

I was anonymously reported for fraudulent credit card use and arrested. The victim turned out to be my own husband. I pulled out my phone to show them our marriage certificate to prove my innocence, but the police officer frowned as he looked at me. "Ma'am, the Lucas Richardson on this certificate is not your husband. You're still unmarried." I could not believe it and asked the officer to check again immediately. He looked at me with sympathy, but quickly spoke again, "Our records show that Lucas Richardson's spouse is Vivian Clarke and that they have a three-year-old child together. Ma'am, if you cannot prove your relationship with him, you will face criminal detention." I felt like I had been struck by lightning. Six years ago, Lucas had a secretary named Vivian who was obsessively in love with him. On the day Lucas and I got married, she caused a scene and threatened suicide. In the end, he had to personally handle the situation for three days before coming home. It turned out that his solution was to marry Vivian instead.

For once, Gianna wants things to go smoothly in her life. After breaking the engagement with her cheater fiancé three years ago, she feels like she wasted enough time. Her bestfriend urges her to find a lover, especially that Marson seems desperate to fill in the role. Now that she finally allows herself to try love the second time, fate hands her down a card she can’t help but gamble. Caden Vitaro is famous band member of a pop-rock band. Now that the band decided to end their journey, a final tribute is on the way and Caden is given a challenge to compose one more song for the fans. The only problem is, he lost himself in guilt to what happened three years ago, and so is his passion. Coming back to his hometown in South Ganuala, he meets his first love, the first girl who put melody and rhythm in his life, his first fan girl. Maybe she will heal him and be his muse. Or maybe, the lost love between them will break him even more.

My wife, Sandra Wren, had suggested taking our daughter, Annie, to a childcare center, saying that it would be better for our daughter. I didn't think much of it and handed her a card. I went on a business trip for half a month. Watching the daily charges on my card, I felt nothing but satisfaction. Until my best friend suddenly sent me a video. The location tag was at the childcare center. "Dude. Why is your wife staying after class for 'extra lessons'? Is it more exciting in the classroom?" In the video, Sandra's lace underwear hung around her ankles. The floor was littered with used condoms. The tables in the childcare classroom creaked noisily. I immediately called her. On the phone, I could faintly hear her suppressed yet excited breathing. She said, slightly panting, "Honey, I'm flying a kite with Annie. Did you miss us?" I let out a cold laugh. "Yes. I missed you so much, I came back overnight. Which classroom are you in? I'll bring you condoms."