Pathological Joking

My roommate branded herself as an influencer against beauty standards, vowing to free girls from appearance anxiety. Strangely, whenever she stayed up late partying and broke out in pimples, they would appear on my face instead. When she fooled around and caught an infection, the rashes spread across my body. The more radiant she became, the more monstrous I looked. People recoiled from me. Friends cut me off. My own boyfriend, before a crowd, told me I should just die. Then my roommate got pregnant, yet it was my stomach that swelled like I was eight months along, scarred with terrifying stretch marks. She, meanwhile, looked more flawless than ever, appearing barefaced on camera to encourage girls not to fear their looks. I knew something was not right. When I tried to dig for answers, my roommate and boyfriend trapped me in a basement. They tortured me until I died. Only then did I learn the truth. He owned a cursed amulet that shifted all her pain onto me. The moment I opened my eyes, I was back on our first day of college together. This time, the game is mine. I'll make sure they pay.

During lunch, an older female colleague asked me, "How old are you? Do you have a boyfriend? When are you planning to get married?" I shook my head. "Twenty-seven, no boyfriend, and no plans to get married." She was momentarily stunned. "What are you talking about? How can a woman not get married?" she asked. I smiled without responding. Realizing I wasn't joking, her expression darkened. "Did you work as a escort and get caught? Is that why no man wants you?"

The day my biological family comes to take me home, a car accident occurs. My parents and the fake son who had been living my life all die, but my sister, Kayla Bennett, survives. She despises me completely after that and blames the company's bankruptcy on me too. Desperate to make amends, I work over ten jobs a day, giving her every cent I earn so she can buy back the villa that has all our family memories. The day I finally save enough money, I discover my supposedly dead parents inside that same villa, celebrating Dylan Bennett's birthday. My usually cold sister is laughing warmly with them. As they bring out the cake, Mom mentions me. "Today's Nathan's birthday too. We've been punishing him for eight years now. Maybe we should bring him home?" Kayla cuts her off immediately. "We agreed on ten years to make sure he never suggests sending Dylan away again. Not one year less!" I clutch my medical report and laugh through my tears. But Kayla, I'm dying.

Natalie used to hate stuffed animals. Now she's head-over-heels for a cotton doll. She called it "honey" and told our daughter, Yara, it was her real dad. Cool. Guess that made me the family ghost. At Yara's parent-teacher conference, I finally snapped and handed Natalie the divorce papers. Cue the gasps. Suddenly, I'm the villain. She slapped me—full drama mode. "It's just a doll! Why are you being so extra?" Yara hugged it like it was about to save the world, giving me the death stare. I shrugged, smirking. "You're the one who said it's your dream husband and Yara's one and only dad. So, like... why am I still here?"

I die on my wedding night. When Zachary Gordon receives a call from the police asking him to identify my body, he snorts disdainfully. "Who cares whether she's dead? I'll be there for the funeral." "We're not joking, Mr. Gordon. You should come down here." He glances at the woman in his arms as a hint of impatience flickers in his eyes. "Fine."

Five years ago, when my boyfriend's small company was on the brink of bankruptcy I stepped in to save him, quietly supporting him from the shadows. Without revealing my identity, I became the company’s largest shareholder. Five years later, the night before his company was set to go public, he held me in his arms and said, "Emma, after the company goes public tomorrow, don’t leave. I have a surprise for you." At that moment, I was swept away by the idea of his "surprise," my mind racing with the hopeful thought that he might propose. I didn’t notice the cold glint of malice lurking in his eyes. The next day, as his company went public, he slapped me across the face and sneered, "Do you even see what kind of person you are? Did you really think someone like you could marry me?" He grabbed me by the hair and dragged both me and my best friend in front of a crowd of thugs and beggars he’d gathered. “These worthless cast-offs aren’t good enough for me anymore. Consider them my gift to you. Do whatever you like with them!”

Nelly is a girl whose biggest dream is to marry the man she loves and they will live together in a beautiful mansion with many cute kids surrounding them. She is twenty years old, beautiful and very curvy. She is the daughter of Roddy Willows a rich business man and owner of Willows enterprise. She felt her world crumbling when her father told her that she will get married Bill Kent the youngest billionaire in New York a person she has not met before, she only heard about he on the news and from what she has heard about him, he is very rude, arrogant and proud. she hoped her father was joking when he told her she will be getting married to a person she doesn't know, but no he was very serious. She begged her father not to put her through everlasting unhappiness by forcing her to get married to a person she does not love but there was nothing he could do because a deal has already been made, her father made a deal with Bill's father that they will get their children married when they came of age. He would pay dearly if he should back out of the deal. Bill of the other hand would have non of it, he already had a girlfriend, a person he loves so much and would love to get married to only to be told by his father that he will be getting married to a person he has never met before. He initially refused to accept the marriage but his father threatened to disown him and take away his inheritance. He had no choice but to comply but he swore to make the marriage hell for whoever the unlucky lady is.

-Who are you?" Finally, he stopped the silence. His words were strong, angry, and loud. "-What?" I felt so confused still couldn’t let my eyes from his new look. And his actions of killing without any emotions made my voice trembling. "-I...TOLD...YOU...WHO... THE FUCK... ARE... YOU...?" With stiff teeth he seemed to lose his patience, slowly and frighteningly, he asked, no, ordered to me, without lifting his eyes from me, with every word he took a step closer to me until I could smell the sweat, dirt smell of his ammunition from him. His hard chest-like rock was so close that it barely touched my body. I was shivering he was so scary and I still wanted him badly. "-Are you joking with me? How to understand, who am I?" I whispered... I stopped our deep gaze, even though it wasn't easy. -"What's happening here? Where are we? Why are you...." I couldn't finish one of my hundreds of questions when my husband turned his eyes away from me to his men. -"Take that strange ‘pause from his lips, his eyes traveled from the top of my head to my legs" bitch, to the cell, that little mouth soon will be open for me. And she will talk as well too."

..."forgive me but i'm calling off the engagement." Isabella who was smiling as she listened to his speech suddenly widened her eyes in horror. "What do you mean by you're calling off the engagement! You're joking right?" She burst into laughter thinking that it was a prank. "I'm not joking Ella, I'm in love with someone else." He held her hands apologetically trying to calm her down as she was losing her cool. "Who is she?" She barked angrily as she couldn't stay calm any longer. ... She had always been treated poorly by her parents and younger sister but treated it like some kind of training. It got worst to a point that people began calling her 'Cinderella.' She always longed for a prince charming who would wipe away her tears and love her dearly. She did find her 'prince charming.' He promised to marry her but then he called off their engagement on the engagement party. She was shocked to find out that her fiancee and younger sister had an affair behind her back. She wanted to end it all but then the real 'Prince Charming' came along. ..."Marry me. I would take revenge on everyone that had hurt you."

BOOK TWO OF THE CARTER BROTHERS SERIES “I want to get married to you Claire, just for a few years and we would go our separate ways.” Nathaniel Carter proposed before swiping through his documents like it was a casual thing. “What!!!!! Are.. are you joking sir?” Claire asked hoping her boss was joking but his serious expression was saying otherwise. _________ Nathaniel Carter, the oldest of the carter brothers is wife hunting after his brother got married and his grandfather is threatening to disinherit him. He has put in too much hard work to let the company go away to any of his stepbrothers. He had an idea, a messy one at that. His secretary Claire was the kind of woman that would steal the heart of his grandfather and stepmother and he would play that card till they got off his back for being too lonely. Claire Wordsworth had so many views about her boss but nothing compared to the crazy look on his face when he proposed to get into an arranged marriage with him. She thought he was kidding but the firm set off his jaw told her otherwise. Life could really change in a matter of seconds. She had too many to gain and of course, it would give her career a good boost if she was married to the great Nathaniel Carter. Maybe getting into this marriage would really be a good decision or her nemesis.