Little Gaming

as soon as I stepped out of the villa, it felt like I’d walked straight into a nightmare. Hector, the man I’d missed so much, was surrounded by soldiers, passionately kissing some woman I’d never seen before. The cheers and whistles around them felt like knives stabbing into my heart. I froze, my happiness turning into icy disappointment and rage. I forced myself to walk closer, even though every step felt like I was wading through quicksand. As more people noticed me, the noise died down, like someone had hit the mute button. Hector and his mystery woman were still in their own world until they finally sensed the eerie silence and pulled apart. When Hector’s eyes met mine, panic flashed across his face, but he quickly masked it. Holding the woman’s hand, he approached me. “Elena, this is Vanessa, she’s—” Before he could finish, Vanessa flashed a confident smile and offered her hand to me. “Hi, I’m Vanessa, Hector’s partner. We fell in love on the battlefield.”

It was Christmas Eve. Once again, my parents left me alone at home, chasing triple pay at work. However, after twenty years of the same lonely holiday, I couldn’t take it anymore. I didn’t want to sit in the quiet house by myself again, so I packed up some sandwiches and went to them. What I didn’t expect was to see them stepping out of a luxury car, arms linked with a boy who looked about my age, laughing like they didn’t have a care in the world, heading straight into a five-star hotel. “Mom, Dad, is it okay to leave Suzie all alone at home like that?” My mom waved it off and said, “It’s fine. She’s used to it.” My dad just brushed it off with a chuckle. “She’s nothing like you. You're our real treasure.” Upon hearing that, I turned and walked away. They'd been pretending to be broke all these years, lying to me about working overtime, about scraping by. Well, fine. If they don’t want me, I’m done wanting them, too.

As I lay limp in the man’s arms, my face flushed red. I could not help but let his oil-covered hands move over my body. “No… That tickles…” I whined and shuddered because the oil felt hot on my skin. His hands tightened around my thighs as he leaned in and whispered in my ears, “Be good, Claudia. Repeater students face a lot of pressure. Spread your legs. I’ll help you relieve your stress.”

Lucy Everhart's bitch of a sister lures her into a trap, but it turns out the man she's forced to spend a night with is actually a bigwig in the business world! They have a shotgun marriage after signing a marriage contract. After marriage, Lucy's secret identities are revealed one after another. Tobias Ripley learns something new about her daily and dotes on her like crazy. He says, "Let's have another child, honey." Lucy doesn't want that. "You have countless mistresses and lovers, don't you? Go to them if you want a child!" Tobias protests, "Nonsense! I have no idea what you're talking about, honey! You've always been my one and only!"

Kate terjebak dalam hubungan transaksional, hampir setiap minggu dia berhubungan badan dengan Matt. Sampai suatu ketika, Matt yang tidak tahan lagi, menjamah Kate dalam posisi tidak memakai pengaman. Kate kemudian hamil, tapi Matt tidak pernah sudi memiliki seorang anak dari Katt. Saat Matt memaksanya menggugurkan kandungan, Kate memilih melawan, mempertaruhkan segalanya demi buah hati yang belum lahir. Kate kemudian berjuang seorang diri hingg akhirnya lahir dua bayi kembar yang lucu, Angela dan Angelo. Tiga tahun berlalu, Kate menjalani kehidupan sederhana penuh perjuangan. Bersama adiknya, Alan, ia mengasuh kedua anaknya di flat tua, berhemat sekuat tenaga, sambil berusaha mencari pekerjaan yang lebih layak. Harapan muncul ketika ia diterima sebagai sekretaris sementara di sebuah perusahaan, sampai takdir mempertemukannya kembali dengan Matthew dalam sebuah rapat bisnis. Matt ternyata seorang CEO kaya raya dan melihat Kate, dia ingin bertanggung jawab. Sayang, harapan Matt dipatahkan ketika melihat Kate bersama Alan. Dia mengira, adik kandung Kate itu adalah ayah sang bayi. Kesalahpahaman terjadi sampai akhirnya rahasia itu terbuka; Matt tahu bahwa anak kembar Kate itu anaknya.

My husband's first love had been trapped in a car for an hour. After they pulled her out, his rage shifted onto me. “It’s your fault she got hurt,” he spat, his eyes blazing as he grabbed me. Before I could make sense of what was happening, he forced me into a wooden box, slamming the lid down with a deafening crack. “You’re going to feel every ounce of the pain she went through,” he hissed, nailing it shut. I pounded on the walls, my screams tearing through the air. “Please, I didn’t do anything! Let me out!” My throat burned with the effort, my fists aching, but nothing stopped him. “Stay in there until you’ve figured out how to act like a decent human being,” he said, his voice cold, dripping with contempt. Hours passed. My body twisted unnaturally in the tight space, bones throbbing as blood smeared the wood beneath me. I whispered into the dark, the pain unbearable. "Please… just let me out…" But he didn’t care. A week later, he returned, his laughter echoing with hers as they entered the house, carefree from their trip. He finally opened the box. But by then, I was already gone. The woman he locked away was no longer breathing, no longer pleading. Just a cold, silent corpse.

I find cigarette ashes on the passenger seat of my wife's car. She brushes me off, saying, "My new assistant left it there. He's not the most sensible." When I ask for a divorce, she stares at me in disbelief. "Just because of that?" "Yeah. Just because of that!"

My movie star husband's girlfriend suspected I was the other woman. She confronted me in public, beat me until I lost my child, and even left my face scarred beyond recognition. "You shameless homewrecker! How dare you seduce someone else's man—and even get pregnant?" she screamed in rage. "I'll send you and that child of yours straight to hell today!" And as for my husband, he didn't even spare me a glance. All he cared to say was, "Why did you bother hitting her yourself? Did your hand hurt?" But when he finally discovered that the woman his girlfriend had scarred and caused to miscarry was me, he lost his mind.

Shortly after my boyfriend dies, I prepare to join him in the underworld. However, I'm saved by a rich man who passes by. He's worried that I'll do something rash again, so he stays by my side for three years and helps me move past my trauma. Before Benjamin Zoller's birthday, I receive a call from the hospital and learn that he's been diagnosed with cancer. I head to his company to look for him when I hear his smug voice. "I've always suspected that Cherilyn is still hung up on her ex, so I made up something about being sick to test her. I'll believe that she loves me if she's willing to take her life for my sake." I play along and fake my death before him. He loses his mind after witnessing everything.

Kita ingin menyembunyikan kebenaran, kita ingin melindungi orang-orang yang kita sayangi dari kenyataan yang sesungguhnya menyakitkan. Tapi dunia lebih luas dari jangkauan tangan-tangan yang kita ketahui. Ada alasan mengapa kita datang, ada alasan mengapa kita sampai. Di sebuah negeri bernama Levitasi. -Shelin