Social Climbers

My roommates booked a New Year's Eve light show table—five hundred per person—and started urging me in the group chat to transfer the money. I quietly sent a screenshot of my account balance. "You guys go ahead," I wrote. "I haven't even scraped together my tuition yet." They replied with a string of mocking "haha"s. Our dorm leader, Giselle Murdoch, even posted on her social media with the caption: [The first step to crossing class boundaries is distancing yourself from people who kill the mood.] Just after midnight, they sent me a photo from the light show and said, "Too bad you're not here." I frowned, confused, when my counselor's call cut in—her voice tight with urgency. "Did you invite your roommates to the light show? The organizers said they never even checked in! They're missing!"

In our five years of marriage, my husband, Derrick Wickham, bails on me 99 times for his childhood sweetheart, Jessica Harson. This time, after he stands me up, I find two plane tickets to Frantines in his office. "I was planning to surprise you for our anniversary. Since you've already seen them, we'll just meet at the airport," he says icily. I eagerly pack and get myself ready, arriving early at the airport. I wait from the wee hours of dawn till the late hours of night, but Derrick fails to show up. Then, I see a post on Jessica's social media. "It's my birthday today. Though he doesn't have the time to go on a trip with me to Frantines, I forgive him because he brought me to the amusement park instead!" In the past, I'd have called him, crying and demanding answers. But this time, I'm truly done.

Winter, 2025. Seattle is shrouded in the cold mist of its endless rainy season. For the sake of a single recommendation letter to Stanford, Catherine Hale—a destitute but proud art student—knocks on the doors of the Highlands Manor to return a restored Song Dynasty porcelain. She intends to leave as quickly as she came, but instead stumbles into the world of William Sterling, the young, enigmatic patriarch of an old and powerful family. Cold, noble, and unfathomable, William draws her into a game of testing and maneuvering that plays out in the cracks between social class and self-esteem. From their first meeting on a rainy night to a silent rescue amidst the vanity fair of high society, Catherine fights to escape a glittering vortex she doesn't belong to, only to find herself falling step by step into William's gentle trap, lingering with the scent of cold cedar. In this rain-soaked city, a forbidden attraction blooms across the divide, unaware that fate has already secretly marked the price of its gifts.

During a typhoon alert, Joyce Lane calls me and tells me to pick her up from her company. On the way there, I receive a text from her. "You don't have to pick me up anymore. I'm going to stay over at Fin's place for a few days." I opt not to start anything with her. Instead, I calmly text back, "Okay." In the middle of the night, Finley Jones, Joyce's junior at work, uploads a social media post that's meant for my eyes only. Joyce can be seen huddling against Finley while feeding him some snacks in the photo. The window outside depicts a storm. The caption writes, "It's only befitting for me to tide out the worst weather with the woman I love the most." I leave a like on the photo calmly. Suddenly, Joyce calls me and demands what that like means. I reply coolly, "It means we're breaking up."

Johnson's family is one of the richest leading personalities, in the entire country. Terrence, an heir of more than twenty companies in the said family, is popular in the entertainment industry. His luxurious life attracts everyone, that men felt jealousy over him. No one knows his inner attitudes regardless of fans' expectations, until then, assistant Jirah comes along in his way. Jirah, who came from a middle-class race, also adores him deeply, changes the man's perceptions and lifestyles as well. They become partners in many aspects, a dog-cat relationship. Likewise, there are few instances that the two hated each other because of misunderstandings. Conflict happens when a video controversy spreads throughout social media that the celebrity's reputation is suddenly ruined. Jirah has a lot of insultments and rejections received from the guy but who knows, after all, Will Terrence's dumbness turns him to realize his admiration for Jirah? Do they have a happy ending? Destiny will decide for them all.

On my birthday, Hazel Mosley posts about preparing a surprise for me that night on social media. However, I see a photo of her taken that afternoon. She is riding a horse with her assistant, Cecil Wilcox. In the photo, her clothes are fluttering, revealing red finger marks on her waist. Cecil's caption read, "My first ever experience is thanks to her." The comments section is full of teasing remarks. "You've got bold intentions, young man." "That position is hard to maneuver." Unbelievably, Hazel likes that comment. My heart sinks to my stomach. I always think she's just more open with me, but I never expect that it could be anyone. I personally wash the horse to wipe away every trace of intimacy. Then, I transfer the entire ranch to her. "You can give the rest of the horses to whoever you want. Feel free to pick." Looking at how overjoyed she is, I agree to the marriage arranged by my family.

I transmigrated into the role of a gorgeous villainess, tasked with tormenting my childhood buddies. I forced Maddox, Mr. Tough Guy, into putting on a sexy dress, essentially killing his chances of a social life. I grabbed the bottom of the ever-aloof Zane and made him red in the face. I kicked Damian, the crybaby, into the ground, and all he could do was glare at me through his tearful eyes. My aggressive antics only fueled their resentment. “One of these days, I’ll get you.” I winked at them without a care. “I’ll be waiting.” The day they crossed paths with the female lead would be the day I left this world. Their revenge didn’t scare me one bit. Little did I know, the time would come when I would be proven wrong. While I scrambled to get away in tears, he said softly, “Save your strength. The night is still young.”

Mae's family faces the threat of losing their home and business, leading her to seek help from the only man that can help: the cold-hearted billionaire to whom her family owes a debt. But when she is face to face with the billionaire, she recognizes him as the stranger she had a brief, sizzling encounter with, a night of fun that left her with a bittertaste of rejection, after he had dismissed her as nothing more than a one night stand. Ethan Crowe has had his full of charlatans and social climbers. When he finds Mae in his office, he remembers her as one of them but her appearance presents an opportunity to fulfill his own agenda. With his grandfather's ultimatum of marriage looming, Ethan strikes a deal with Mae. Despite their mutual animosity, they agree to a marriage of convenience to meet their respective needs. As they navigate the charade of love, can they fool the world and Ethan's grandfather, while adhering to the terms of their arrangement?

After four years of marriage, James Lawson, who had never posted anything on social media, unexpectedly updated his status: "What an adorable little foodie!" The attached photo showed a young woman wearing pink cat ears, eating at a Korean BBQ restaurant. Her cheeks were flushed red from the spicy food as she stuck out her tongue. It was Sophie Jones, a new content creator at his company. Within a minute, our mutual friend commented: "Dude, you forgot to switch accounts!" Just like that, James's new post disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, only to show up moments later on Sophie's feed. Then James's name lit up my phone screen. In the past, I would have already taken screenshots and called him first to confront him. It would have inevitably ended in a heated argument. But this time, I calmly watched his call go to voicemail without answering.

My sister abruptly returns to the country on the day of my wedding. My parents, brother, and fiancé abandon me to pick her up at the airport. She shares a photo of them on her social media, bragging about how she's so loved. Meanwhile, all the calls I make are rejected. My fiancé is the only one who answers, but all he tells me is not to kick up a fuss. We can always have our wedding some other day. They turn me into a laughingstock on the day I've looked forward to all my life. Everyone points at me and laughs in my face. I calmly deal with everything before writing a new number in my journal—99. This is their 99th time disappointing me; I won't wish for them to love me anymore. I fill in a request to study abroad and pack my luggage. They think I've learned to be obedient, but I'm actually about to leave forever.