Do People Eat Hippo

My sister and I married into wealthy families at the same time and became glamorous society wives. She had been childhood sweethearts with her husband, a CEO who was admired and respected by all. On the surface, their marriage was harmonious and respectful. But three years after the wedding, she got drunk one night and tearfully confessed to me. "Carrie… he's seeing someone else. He even has a love child now. They've been together longer than we've been married. He's been lying to me all this time. I'm just a joke to him." My eyes burned, brimming with unshed tears. "Actually… Kai's cheating too. He even bought his mistress a luxury car." We cried together all night. Gradually, our sorrow slowly turned into cold, clear resolve. "I don't want that bastard anymore, Carrie." "It's okay, Rachel. If you're walking away, I am too. I don't want my scumbag husband either." After a long talk, we made our final decision: Since this life wasn't working, we'd disappear. We'd leave it all behind and vanish without a trace.

Akala ko mababaon ko na sa limot ang nakaraan. Eighteen years ago, I walked away from the man I loved, clutching the tiny life growing inside me, shattering my own heart to protect my child. Binuo ko ang mundo ko mula sa simula, pinalaki si Gian nang may lakas at pagmamahal, at hinubog ang reputasyon ko bilang Queen Verdict, hindi matatalo at matatag sa korte. Para sa akin, ang Maynila, ang lungsod ng pagkakanulo, ay mundo na isinara ko na magpakailanman. But life has a way of dragging you back into the fire. Nang mapilitan akong humarap sa imperyo ng Aragon sa korte, I’m not prepared for the ghosts of my past especially Nathan, now standing across the courtroom from me, representing the family that once tore us apart. Ang tensyon ay matindi, personal, at imposibleng balewalain. At si Laura, na parang anino ng dilim, na may bulong ng tukso at kaguluhan, nagpapakita kay Nathan ng dahilan para makalimot sa akin. I thought I could protect Gian from Nathan’s world, from their tangled history, but fate has other plans. Nang dumating ang panganib, napagtanto kong ang pag-ibig, katapatan, at tiwala ay laban sa sarili rin. Ang obsesyon ni Nathan, ang walang tigil niyang pagsunod, ang matinding proteksyon niya ay nakakaakit, nakakatakot, at nakalilito lahat ng sabay. I have a choice: let him back into our lives or keep the walls I’ve built, shielding my son from heartbreak again. Ngunit sa larong ito ng kapangyarihan, paghihiganti, at pagnanasa, natutunan ko ang isang bagay: a Queen rises, scars and all, to claim her throne. At gagawin ko ang lahat para protektahan ang pamilya ko, kahit harapin ang lalaking minahal ko noon ,kahit pa harapin ang aking mga kahihinatnan and the consequences I never imagined.

Rivergate's most elite social circle had always shared an unspoken rule. Men were free to play the field as they pleased, drifting from one woman to the next. Women, on the other hand, were only allowed a single, discreet indulgence on the day they came of age—a privately hired "life assistant" meant to take care of their physical needs. … On my coming-of-age day, I picked Elliot at first glance from a hundred applicants who came in for interviews. He wore gold-rimmed glasses, looked composed and restrained, and carried himself with a calm maturity that set him apart. He was steady, meticulous, and obsessively clean. The only condition he agreed to was that there would be no bodily contact—hands only. And after every encounter, he would scrub his hands with disinfectant alcohol a hundred times. Over five years, the empty bottles alone were enough to circle the villa seven times. I used to think that one day, I'd help him overcome his barriers and truly make him mine. That illusion shattered the night I got drunk and accidentally wandered into Elliot's room. Hidden beneath his pillow was a DV camera, and inside were several videos of him pleasuring himself. On the screen, the same man who had always been calm and rational with me was staring at the lingerie of the adopted sister who had caused my mother's death, his Adam's apple bobbing as he moaned her name, "Chloe… I love you…" Only then did I realize that every step he had taken toward me had never been about me at all. It had always been a carefully concealed, long-nurtured love for her. So, it was very odd that he cried when I took my adopted sister's place in marrying someone else.

Two years ago, I was the Donna of the Costa family. When I was on my way to attend the family meeting, I was killed by my husband's childhood sweetheart, Isabella Rossi. She shattered my limbs and smashed my belly before throwing me into an abandoned mine pit. It was such a shame that I was pregnant with the heir Matteo Costa had been waiting for the past five years when I died. Not only did Isabella frame me for working with the enemy forces, but she also broke her own legs and claimed that she got hurt from stopping me. Matteo publicly announced that he decided to sever all ties with me. He also placed a bounty on my head. Just like that, I fell from my position as the Costa family's Donna to a traitor who was wanted by all. Two years later, the mine pit collapsed on itself. That was when the workers dug out my rotten corpse.

SIS (Social Issue Series) #2: StereotypingPiercing, Tattoo, Dyed Hair. Usual indications of a badass. Kapag babae ka at meron ka nito ay malamang fuck girl, adik, slut, o wala ka raw patutunguhan sa buhay.Lia Kennedy grew up doing whatever she likes. Wala siyang nakitang rason para pigilan ang sarili sa kung ano man ang mga nakapagpapasaya sa kaniya. Ngunit nang mamulat ay nagising siya sa mapait na katotohanang hindi mo magagawa lahat ng gusto mo sa mundo. Madali para sa iba ang manghusga base lang sa kung ano ang nakikita nila sayo.Ridge Terrence is no exception. A serious guy who had things plan ahead for his life. He's one of those who believe that what you see is what you get. He gives no time for bullshits.As Lia gets stuck between being herself and changing to be accepted, she faced several conflicts in her teenage years that brought their fate together.Will it be a good thing? Or a bad thing?

The school boxing match. My son Leo’s gloves were lined with broken glass. I carried him from the ring. Blood was everywhere, staining the canvas crimson. And Isabella, the monster behind it all, just stood there smirking. A snake's smile. She dragged her son over, then slapped me. Hard. Again and again. She tried to force me to my knees. "Some gutter trash like you… thinks he can challenge the Falcone heir? This is what happens. Believe me, I say the word, and you disappear. Poof." I just raised an eyebrow. The Falcone family has one heir this generation. My son, Leo. So when did a Falcone become gutter trash? I wiped the blood from my lip. I called the Don—the man my father made. "I hear the Falcone family has a new heir." Let's see who has the nerve to touch the old Don's grandson.

An existence that wished to cease… A being bordering between reality and fantasy… Asher E. Ildian is just your average, athletic student of Maplewood High School. His principles are easy; avoid troublesome people at all cost and befriend someone worthy of his time. Not until he met the nobody, Elaine Ozark, which not only change his life, but change his life… Repeatedly. Like a cycle of clockwork. Asher had to make choices to maintain Elaine’s life, and his own sanity to escape this endless loop of time.

When I'm on the verge of dying, the kidnapper who has kidnapped me calls my fiance, Connor Weston, who's also the youngest patrol officer in the pack. The call goes through, only for us to hear Connor's voice, which is filled with suppressed rage. "Sylvia Kline, I'll give you three seconds to stop bothering me. Vivian's initiation ceremony will take place at night three days later. If you dare pull off another one of your tricks again—" "Connor…" Blood gushes out of my mouth as soon as I open it. My voice is so hoarse that I don't sound like myself at all. "Save… me…" "Your acting's pretty good," Connor cuts me off, his tone filled with disdain. "Listen, if you dare skip out on the ceremony and embarrass me in front of the entire pack, you can forget about going home." After that, the line goes dead. In the end, I die from mutilation. It's fine, Connor. I can't go home for real this time.

Three years after Vivian and I married into the Domingo family, our husbands' childhood crush Niama Guido came back to the town. Vivian and I had a whole escape plan. But the night before we bailed, Vivian threw herself off a high-rise. I called her husband, Pedro Domingo. He laughed, his tone nasty and cold. "Reena, my brother asked, since she jumped today, are you going to drown yourself tomorrow?"

My fated mate, Dexter, became the Alpha King when his brother died. He inherited the crown, the power… and his brother’s widowed mate, Jenica. All because I, a half-breed, had failed for years to give him a pureblood heir. He told me he had to mark Jenica, and the pain nearly shattered me. But he held me close, kissed my tears, and swore that his wolf, his fate, had chosen only me. That I would always be his one and only Luna. I believed him. And yet, he still spent every night in her bed. Then, Jenica became pregnant. While the pack celebrated, Dexter forced me from the Luna’s suite, all so her pup could be born into the pack’s purest lunar aura. As I felt our bond unravel thread by painful thread, I sent a final, coded message to a friend in the human world. “In four days, get me out.” That night, I made a choice. My time as his mate was over.