Islander Slippers

Hindi makatarungan ang pagaaruga ng kanilang mga magulang sa kanilang magkapatid. Mas pinapaburan ng mga ito ang kanyang kakambal. Nang dahil lamang sa isang kasunduan, itinakda ang kanyang kapatid sa isang lalaki. Sa araw ng kasal ay nakiusap si Bella sa kanya na siya ang humalili rito upang itali sa lalaking kailanman ay hindi niya pa nakikita ang mukha. Nabuhay siyang malungkot at nag-iisa sa loob ng mga taong siya ay may asawa na. Taliwas ito sa kanyang nakasanayang pamumuhay bilang isang suwail na anak. Nakukuha lamang nitong suportahan siya sa kaniyang mga pinansyal na pangangailangan. Dahil rito parang nabuhay ulit ang dating siya. Hindi siya makakapayag na maging sunod-sunuran sa lalaking kailanman ay hindi niya pa nakikilala. Parang nakikisama sa kanya ang pagkakataon at nakadaupang-palad niya ang kanyang kababata na binigyan niya noon ng kanyang babasaging tsinelas at sa hindi inaasahang pagkakataon ay hindi niya mapigilan ang tawag ng laman ng kanyang pumipintig na pagkababae. Handa na ba makipagsapalaran si Hyacinth Herrera sa init na kaniyang pinasok? Mananaig kaya ang sensasyong hatid ng kababatang si Thaddeus Siriad Vanesteri o ng asawang si Dairis Vaughn Conor?

After I refused for the eighth time to give my daughter a monthly allowance of $80, she went live online to denounce me. During the broadcast, she shared screenshots of our messages, showing how she had repeatedly and desperately asked me for money after the new school term began. "Mom, I just got my period. I do not have money to buy sanitary pads. Could you send me this month's allowance?" I replied calmly, "No." "Mom, I have not eaten in three days. I am really hungry." I responded with sarcasm. "What does that have to do with me?" The screen quickly filled with comments calling me suffocatingly cruel and heartless. Looking straight into the camera, she sobbed uncontrollably. "Mom, I am not asking for much. I only need $80 a month for living expenses. "Do you really have to push me to death before you feel satisfied?" Within a short time, I became the target of widespread online abuse. A well-known education influencer reached out to me. "It is only $80. It is not something you cannot afford. Why are you treating your own daughter so harshly?" I looked at her calmly. "Try livestreaming seven days of life with me and my daughter. "If you can do that, you'll understand."

By six, Amelia had whipped up a six-dish dinner with soup—Chad Felton's favorites, of course. By seven, she'd prepped his bath, complete with rose petals and candles. By eight, his slippers were perfectly lined up by the door. At nine, Chad finally strolled in. Amelia stepped up, taking his suit jacket. "Eat first or bathe?" she asked, setting the slippers in front of him and hanging the jacket. "Bathe," he muttered, eyes glued to his phone.

At six in the evening, Allen Bennett prepared a perfect dinner, with each dish carefully chosen to match Sarah Foster's preferences. By seven, he had run her bath, adding lavender essential oils and rose petals to the warm water, filling the bathroom with a calming fragrance. By eight, he placed her comfortable slippers by the entrance, awaiting her return. At nine, the front door finally opened. Sarah walked in, and Allen immediately went to greet her. With practiced grace, he helped her out of her coat and placed her slippers before her feet, then hung the coat in the entryway closet. Turning to her with a gentle smile, he asked, "Would you prefer to have your bath first or would you like to eat?"

At 10:00 pm sharp, a food deliveryman wearing a cap knocks on the door of Unit 502. "Excuse me, are you the one who ordered delivery?" Unit 502 is an apartment that's rented out to multiple people. There are three rooms here altogether. The one opening the door is my roommate, William Yates. He has his headphones on and is currently immersed in a game. So, he waves a hand impatiently. "It wasn't me." The deliveryman wastes no time in pulling out a machete. Immediately, he slashes William's throat in one fluid motion. Next, the deliveryman opens the door leading to another bedroom while holding the takeout. "Did you order delivery?" That room belongs to a gym trainer named Leon Holton. He's obviously taken aback by the deliveryman's presence. "Nope. Who are—" The deliveryman doesn't give Leon a chance to finish his question. He reacts by plunging the machete into Leon's heart. When I'm done with my shower, I open the bathroom door to see large puddles of blood on the floor as well as the deliveryman, who's wielding a machete. "They weren't the ones who ordered delivery. Did you do it?" Scared out of my wits, I subconsciously shake my head. "It's not me! I don't know anything—" Before I can finish speaking, the deliveryman hacks me to death. When I open my eyes again, I've gone back five minutes in time before I get murdered in cold blood. Almost immediately, I rush out of the bathroom, only to see the alarmed expressions plastered all over William's and Leon's faces. That's when I'm certain that everyone has gotten reborn. Suddenly, the doorbell rings loudly. A suppressed masculine voice echoes afterward. "Excuse me, are you the one who ordered delivery?"

I was at the grocery store stocking up on holiday supplies when my phone suddenly pinged with a friend request. The profile picture was a scenic shot I'd casually snapped years ago, and I knew right away who it was. But we hadn't spoken in five years—total radio silence. I had no idea why Marcello Golden was popping up now, so I typed into the verification field: [What's going on?] His reply flashed up almost instantly: [I'm back. Can we meet? I have something important to tell you in person.] Something important? As I stared at those words, I found the situation both absurd and amusing. What could be so important between us after all this time? I pushed the thought aside, pulled out my phone to scan the payment code for the cashier, and once the transaction was complete, my first action was to block his contact permanently.

"Sign it, and you'll get the protection you need. But remember, to the world, we are strangers." In her past life, Liora was the neglected daughter who died in a staged accident, orchestrated by her stepmother and the man she thought she loved. Reborn on the night of her tragedy, she realizes that the only person who can help her crush her enemies is the 'Devil of the City' Mavric Thorne. A cold-blooded billionaire who is rumored to hate women. It was supposed to be a business deal. A marriage of convenience hidden behind closed doors. But why does the man who 'hates women' keep pinning her against the wall, whispering that he’ll never let her go? When the world mocks Liora for being a "poor, abandoned orphan," they have no idea that the most powerful man in the country is currently at home, kneeling to put her slippers on.

Nathan is an engaged worldwide boxer, he is arrogant and aggressive but with a twisted secret causing his manager Sophie a lot of chaos every day, and one day she finds out about his secret but she definitely shouldn't have. Is the secret as dark as it sounds or is like it a blessing in disguise? "Goodnight Mr. Kim. You're gonna be fine, just give it a couple of days," I smiled as he kicked the slippers off and quickly hid under the covers. "Hm? How'd you know? You don't know about me," he teased, still a bit of slur in his voice as I shifted him a little to the side to sit beside him. I chuckled softly and shrugged. "Trust me, Mr. Kim, I might not know about you but I know about heartbreak. Someone will come along you know, to mend these pieces of your heart," he chuckled sadly and shook his head. "It's not my heart that I'm worried about Sophie." Typical but atypical.

Yvonne Larson, my housekeeper, has always been punctual, but she ends up being late today. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Carter. Dinner's not ready yet. I hope you won't mind. I had no choice. I waited for over half an hour, but no one got the door for me. I even called Mrs. Carter a few times, but she didn't take my calls. That's why I ended up running late." Halfway through changing into my house slippers, I pause and frown. "Yvonne, didn't Susanna give you the access card to the apartment?" Yvonne looks confused. "The access card? Mrs. Carter never gave me any card." "Never?" "That's right," Yvonne confirms timidly while wiping the sweat off her brow. "For the past month, I've always had to call Mrs. Carter and ask her to open the door for me. She wasn't picking up her phone today, so I had to wait outside…" That's strange. I've checked the logs before. The access card has been used multiple times throughout the past month.