Great Thing

After I join a new company, I keep running into problems—not from people, but from the company's equipment. The fingerprint scanner fails to recognize me every single time, and I have to submit a manual attendance appeal almost daily. When I ask the admin to change the device, they respond with thinly veiled sarcasm. "Everyone else clocks in just fine. Why are you the only one with so many issues?" The air vent above my desk blasts cold air directly at me. My hands and feet are freezing every day. I ask to switch seats. My manager looks at me like I am making things up. "Everyone else sits there without a problem. How come the AC only blows cold air when you sit there?" One strange incident after another makes it impossible for me to function at work. When I get home, I complain to my boyfriend and say I want to quit. He shuts down the thought immediately. "You're making almost 60 thousand dollars a year before benefits, with weekends off and paid leave. Where are you going to find a job like that?" I think about it and realize he isn't wrong. Just as I decide to stick it out, the company elevator malfunctions. I fall from the 33rd floor and die. In my final moments, I can't understand it—why does every piece of equipment in the company seem to target me alone? All the devices are newly installed. All my coworkers are people I have just met. I have no grudges with anyone. There's no reason for someone to sabotage me from behind the scenes. When I open my eyes again, I am back at the company. It's my very first day on the job.

Growing up, Martheliwa Carmeli Ismael never had the chance to meet his father. Kahit na ganoon, hindi niya naramdaman na may kulang sakaniya dahil nariyan ang kaniyang ina na sobra ang pagmamahal. Their life was very simple yet full of love. Despite of having only her mother by her side, Marwa was genuinely happy and contented. But when her mother died, that was when her entire life completely had changed specially when her father decided to look for her. Ngunit mula nang makilala niya ang ama, ang tahimik niyang buhay noon ay naging masalimuot. And with the presence of Hayes Verulendez, a man who’s definitely and certainly out of her league, she never thought that having a connection with him would turn her world upside down.

"You think you have a choice?" Vittorio squeezed my nipples with his hand and my sanity with the other. “ You were never going to be anyone else's from the moment I set eyes on you”. His voice a deadly whisper His words cut through me making my chest tighten with fear "You’re Ours, kitten," he continued, his gaze locking onto mine and stealing the breath from my lungs. "You will be claimed, used, and Fucked however I see fit. Do you understand?" "I... I understand," I whispered, feeling my resistance crumble under his dark, green eyes. "You will lay before me, Katarina," he commanded his voice a low growl. "Spread your swollen pussy wide, and show me how desperate you are for me to fuck you." Katarina Delgado was supposed to belong to another man. Sold like property to Mafia Don Giordano, her virginity was payment for a debt her father couldn't afford. But when her brother Mateo tries to save her and fails, she ends up in the hands of a deadlier monster: Vittorio De Luca, the brutal mafia king who cages her, collars her, and whispers filth like love. Now, locked in a war between cartels, Katarina is the prize. But not just for Vittorio. Valentino De Luca, his missing twin, has returned. Sharper. Slower. Unhinged. And he doesn’t want to steal her. He wants to share her. Together. In a world of cages, kings, and betrayal, the only thing more dangerous than being wanted… is being wanted by both of them.

Jojo's boss is a pain in the . He's as arrogant and driving as they come but just as deliciously gorgeous. An eye candy that she can never dream to taste. So what is it about him that keeps reminding her of a different Jordan, her childhood best friend and teenage crush? With a sick mum and a ten year old little sister, she has more than enough on her plate to add 'the man in black' whose failed attempt to kill her mother is a promise for worse. Under her boss' roof and protection, she has to unravel the reason behind the killers attempt and the truth her mother have hidden for ten years now while trying to pretend her boss, the Jordan McGrath, doesn't affect her in anyway- Not with his flirting or his touch that keep her wanting more!!

Aamiya had gone inside, and was sitting in the lounging areas when Asfand entered and took a seat beside her. His face was wiped off of any emotions. "Did you give your number to Ahmed?" Asfand inquired, not quite looking at her. "No, not yet." Aamiya replied, turning towards him. "But I like, like him a lot." She continued. When Asfand turned toward her, the hurt was evident in his dark eyes. "You can't." Asfand mumbled as he stood up. Aamiya also got up, behind him and stopped him from moving by holding his hand. "Why?" She asked. "Why can't I? What is it that I'm not aware of?" She shouted. Asfand turned and grabbed her by her shoulders. "Because you are my wife."...... If you want to know more about this story,keep reading!

On the day before the Christmas holidays start, my wife, Irene Owens, intends to promote me and give me a raise in order to celebrate my feat of closing a hundred-million-dollar deal. But her assistant, Cody Harrington, purposefully feeds her some cake. Irene, who's known to be a germaphobe, doesn't show any trace of disgust as she subconsciously accepts the spoon, which is tainted with Cody's saliva, into her mouth. The employees begin cheering for them on the spot. Some ask if they are about to get married. Not only does Irene not refute those questions, but she also promotes Cody to a department manager on the spot. When a colleague next to me realizes how silent I've been, he nudges me in the side. "Hey Seb, you're the veteran employee who's stuck by Ms. Owens' side for so long. Why aren't you reacting to the news?" I merely sneer as I toss my share transfer agreement to Cody. "A promotion isn't enough, is it? You can have these shares as your wedding gift."

Emilia Burke is a young and advanced college student with an eye for trouble. Ever since her last year in high school, when the only man she ever loved disappeared without a single glance, she has been an expert at evading heartbreak. And hasn't formed a meaningful connection since. Sure, she's young, funny, pretty, and too smart, but she has kept her love interests at a distance and kept everything simple. Fun. No feelings attached. But now, with as much ease as when he disappeared, Leon Maverick has returned to her life as a successful and sexy business tycoon. He's determined to win back the girl whom once had given her all for him, but there's a problem when she can't even stand the idea of him. If only she would give, but there's just something... Something about Leon. And maybe, he'll break through her barriers one last time.

My twin sister is glowing on her wedding day, marrying the man I've secretly loved for years. Esmeray "Ray" Morales stood at the altar and watched her sister marry the man she loved. She was the quiet twin. The overlooked one. The shadow. And when Noah Sparks chose Elena, Ray left. Three years later, Elena is dead. Ray returns to care for her sister's son. To help Noah survive the loss. To keep her own heart buried beneath the guilt. But slipping into Elena's life blurs the lines she swore she'd never cross. And feelings Ray thought she buried start clawing their way back. Because love this forbidden doesn't fade. It festers.

He locked me in his penthouse, a beautiful bird in a gilded cage. Caius Evans, the billionaire who ruined my father, thought he owned me. He wanted to break me, to possess my art and my silence. But as the days turned to nights, the lines between captor and confidant blurred. He started sharing his secrets, his scars, the ghost of a brother he loved and lost. Now, the man I should hate is the only one who sees the real me. And the key to my cage is also the key to his haunted heart. But is this love real, or just another one of his calculated games?

#Second place Winner hopwriter short storystorm " Don't say anymore word than you already have, don't..." I stuck a finger out at him, sauntering away on my heels when a hand wrapped itself around my arm. Breathlessly he whispered, "You know that I do love you and...fine, what exactly was I supposed to do?" "Protect me and stand up for me. That is what you do for someone who you claim you love!" ************ Out to spite her ex-boyfriend after he had broken up with her on her birthday, Daphne slept with a stranger who turned out to be his uncle while trying to rebuff his words that she was unwanted by others. Was she ready for the wild chase that followed when he found out years later that she had been pregnant with his heirs and that she had been hiding the truth all this while? Faced with the ruthless CEO, known as the beast, who wasn't ready to back down, Daphne does everything possible to make sure her kids wouldn't be taken from her, but what happens when love gets in the mix of it all? Would she be able to conquer these weird feelings and give in her all amidst her scars? And with how deadly he turned out to be? And faced with her ex who still wants her back, what choice is she going to make?