Stares Blankly

The Heart Beneath the Thorn — A Modern Beauty and the Beast Retelling 💔 In a glittering city of fortunes and façades, The Heart Beneath the Thorn reimagines Beauty and the Beast through the broken glass of betrayal, redemption, and forbidden love. Emilia Grace, a fierce yet quietly bruised soul, is just trying to survive. Between juggling hospital shifts, family debts, and the ghosts of her past, she’s never had the luxury of dreaming. But fate has a cruel sense of humor when she’s assigned to care for Max Carter—the cold-hearted billionaire who once made her school years a waking nightmare. Max was the golden boy with the cruel smirk—the privileged heir with everything, except peace. Years later, a tragic accident leaves him scarred, not just physically but emotionally. Isolated and emotionally exiled, Max is now a man haunted by his past choices and a legacy wrapped in barbed wire. When Emilia walks back into his life, she's no longer the girl he mocked—she's the woman who might just be his undoing. Forced into each other’s orbit, what begins as a war of words slowly melts into lingering stares, late-night confessions, and an unraveling of everything they thought they knew. Max, the beast of her memories, begins to reveal the tender man beneath the mask—a man who collects poetry he never shares, who builds gardens no one sees, and who might have always loved the girl he couldn’t protect. But trust doesn’t bloom easily in thorn-covered soil. And when old enemies, buried secrets, and a scandalous inheritance come to light, Emilia must decide: can she love the man who once broke her, now that he’s the only one trying to piece her back together? A tale of enemies-to-lovers, second chances.

"That's too bad," he mumbles and I loudly gasp as I am thrown against the bed. He pins my arms down while he stands over me. "Unfortunately, I don't think that." He leans even closer and licks the side of my neck.  "I want to mark you," he says directly into my ear and I visibly shiver. "I want everyone to know you're mine." I gasp as I feel his teeth on the side of my neck. "You can imagine how angry I was when I saw someone touching what's mine. I wanted to rip his head off, I still want to." He pulls away from my neck and stares at my face. His eyes scan it, lingering for a few seconds on my lips before he returns his gaze to my eyes. "You see why I can't act like things are back to normal because I don't want them to be. You know exactly what I want and unfortunately, I can't settle for anything less." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Years after her parents' deaths and things are finally looking up for Ashton. Her brother is the Alpha of the pack and her mate is the Head beta. Her brother's untimely death turns everything apart, she is rejected and chased from the pack. This leads her to Caspian who saves her from thugs who are trying to force her to join their pack. In a state of desperation, she joins his Rogue pack but a lot of things don't add up and even as she tries to keep a low profile, troubles won't stop seeking her out. Betrayed by her first love will she learn to trust and love again?

The seer foretells that I will mate with an Alpha and give birth to the strongest heir. Because of this, I am arranged to be mates with the Alpha heir, Chad Gibson, since I was a child. And from then on, I am groomed to become a Luna. I devote my entire youth to bleeding, fighting, and enduring it all. Every smile, every step, and every breath is for the sole purpose of becoming the perfect Luna. And yet, what do I receive in the end? On the day of the marking ceremony, Chad carries in an expecting Rogue with Omega bloodline, Yelena Lockhart. He then publicly declares that during a hunt, he accidentally consumed a lustbane and bred with Yelena. Thus, he must take responsibility and make her his future Luna. Seeing the unshakable resolve on his face, I ask in a trembling voice, "What about me? What am I supposed to do?" Without a moment's hesitation, he replies, "Tessa, because of that false prophecy, you have stolen the future Luna's place and enjoyed privileges that were never yours for long enough. Now, you must step aside. "But don't worry, I won't cast you out. As long as you keep serving Yelena as her maid in atonement, you may still stay by my side." The world falls into dead silence, and the stares of the pack weigh on me like a mountain. I neither scream nor beg. Instead, I simply remove my veil and return the ring that symbolizes the future Luna. Later, when Yelena gives birth, the pup turns out to be of Omega bloodline. Only then does Chad realize the prophecy is true, that I alone can bear the Alpha heir destined to lead. But when Chad finally regrets everything and begs me to come back, it is already too late. I have already accepted the Alpha King's proposal and no longer belong to Chad.

Liliana Patrick, a twenty three years old timid and clumsy lady who lost everything in a blink of an eye. Suffer was an understatement in her case, she had nothing, no shelter, no friends, no family. But when she steps her leg in to Kings Company, she was introduced to another world she never knew about. Nicholas King, an example of rude and arrogant, cold, dominant, commanding and heartless. The thirty years took over his late father's property after he passed away, he shows no mercy to his workers, he can fire you with just a little mistake. But when his eyes roam her body as she walks into his office, he claimed her as his. I took a seat in front of him. "Good morning Sir-" I greeted but he cuts me off. "Did I ask you to seat?" His voice, so raspy, so deep, so sensual, so husky and so......British? I never knew the Kings were British. But what took my attention were those words he said. "Uhh....." I stood up immediately. "I'm sorry" I apologize but he looks angry or something. "You came sixteen minutes late, left my door opened, sat on the chair like you own the place" he snarled at me..... okay, Mr rude. "I.....I said I was sorry" I look away from him, he shuffle and his cologne filled my nostrils, sandalwood and lavender oil. "You are not to talk back till I ask you to. Sit" he ordered and I did. He grabs what looks like my resumè, he looks at me in an instant. His blue orbs holds no emotions in his eyes as he stares at me, but what was so intriguing was the fact that he's intimidating me really bad.

Bella had spent her whole life feeling invisible. No matter how much she longed for love, it always slipped through her fingers. How could it not, when her twin sister, Ella, was the perfect one? The one everyone adored? The one who could do no wrong? And Bella? She was just there. A painful reminder of the sister they lost ,Isabella. The sister whose death was somehow Bella’s fault. The stares, whispers, anxiety, sleepless nights, sleepwalking that blurred the line between dreams and reality, but she had learned to live with it . But then, Ella’s wedding changed everything. Ella was supposed to marry ,scout Cromwell. Cold. Ruthless. A man people feared more than they admired. But the night before the wedding, she disappeared. No warning. No goodbye. Just gone. And Bella? They didn’t ask her. They made her take Ella’s place. From the moment she met Scout’s gaze , she knew she was trapped. Those dark, unreadable eyes held a silent promise,I own you now. No escape. Hatred turned into something else. Something dangerous. It crept in slowly, in stolen glances and quiet moments. In the way his touch, once ice-cold, started to linger. In the way he looked at her like she was finally worth seeing. For the first time in her life, Bella felt wanted. And just when she dared to believe it was real. Ella came back. Now, they all expect her to step aside. To diappear like she always does . But how can she, when ,for the first time ,someone is finally seeing her? When, for the first time, she’s the one being chosen? Is she really supposed to disappear again? Or will she finally fight for the love she never thought she’d have?

When Rocco Morelli, a mafia don, finds me, it's when I'm working as a stripper at an illegal bar, pleasing the men around me with sultry smiles and provocative dances. He throws his jacket over me and grabs me by the jaw, saying, "Come home with me." From that day onward, I fell in love with Rocco. After doting on me for five years, he proposes to me. Yet, in the month leading up to the wedding, he suddenly disappears. I launch a frenzied search for him before eventually seeing him in a jewelry boutique. With his arm wrapped around the dolled-up woman beside him, he picks out a 20-carat wedding ring. That woman is Emilia Leone, who is my father's illegitimate daughter. He stares at her, his eyes filled with affection. "I'll prepare the grandest wedding ceremony for you." "What about Cassandra?" Emilia asks with a coy smile. "You proposed to her, too." Snorting, Rocco replies scornfully, "Can't you tell? That's just my way of toying with her. Her older brother nearly took your life. Now that he's gone missing, it's only right for her to suffer the consequences in his place. "On our wedding day, I'll abandon her at the altar and marry you instead. She'll become the laughingstock in all of Langshore. Only you, the daughter of the Leone family, the largest mafia family, are worthy of me." The wedding day arrives, and I skip out on the ceremony as well. At Rocco and Emilia's wedding ceremony, I broadcast 99 photos of Emilia fooling around with other men. He panics and tearfully begs for me to return to him, but I take the gun my brother hands me and point it at his head, saying, "Actually, I'm the real daughter of the Leone family."

Annie read the contract file, again and again, to see every clause of it so that she doesn't regret anything later. Her eyes widened as she saw a particular clause and she grabbed the file and entered the cabin swiftly. "Smart, isn't it?" Annie asked with a small smile as Sandy turned to her side. "Why don't you add some more conditions in this contract from my side too?" She dared to ask him but Sandy didn't show his surprised look as he just nods to let her proceed. "It stated that I can't leave the job. Why don't you add that you too can't fire me without any reason?" She asked showing that she won't ever leave the job even if she had to go through hell. Sandy smiled realising how fun it would be to play with her. "Anything else?" Sandy asked without breaking his stares toward her. "I don't know why you want me to work under you. But the only thing matters to me is the salary package" she replied with a wide grin making him more curious about the girl in front of him. "Welcome to hell, Cinderella" he spoke handling the appointment letter. "I am not Cinderella" she snapped at him immediately. Why is so hard for him to call her Annie? Shoes can be a cupid to normal Cinderella tales. But here, it's not normal love story neither is she is Cinderella. She looks as innocent as Cinderella. She looks as beautiful as Fairy. But that is the problem. In reality, she is something whom no one can ever think to mess with. Sandy captured her to give her hell of time. But is it really him who have captured her or there is something more to her?

He stares into her eyes like a mirror. He tears his shirt and she bites down on her lip as his body seduces her. He puts an arm around her and draws her close to his body. Rachael’s heart pounds in her chest like a drum. She can feel his hot breath against her neck. “Rachael,” she hears a familiar and alluring voice. Rachael can hear Samuel’s voice but she cannot see him. “I want to hold your small hands and kiss them,”. She feels little kisses on her fingers. “I want to touch you,” his voice says and she closes her eyes. Rachael feels a soft hand press hard against her nipple and she lets out a moan. She raises her head to see Gabriel still looking at her. He bends and kisses her neck, he nibbles her neck and traces his way to her collar bone. Gabriel smiles as Rachael’s body grows weak against his. He says something but Rachael cannot hear his words. His mouth moves but he has no voice. “Rachael,” Samuel’s voice calls out to her, a voice without a body. Rachael is a girl trying to come to terms with her father’s death. Things seem normal until she meets the twin supernatural. Things change when the twins develop feelings towards her. Bonds are tested between them as they long for her all the while running from Dracula. Rachael learns about her family secrets. She endures pain and finds courage in her journey. The twins face Dracula in a grand finale and their love for Rachael will be tested with a heavy sacrifice. Secrets will be discovered. Bonds will be tested. Will Rachael survive her new chaotic world?

"No offense but you are always so grumpy, it's actually kind of cute." I bluntly say to him and watch him throw me a nasty glare, I just giggle at that. "I'm not." he defends himself in a calm yet stern voice keeping his face emotionless. "sure." I find myself saying sarcastically. I think I'm too drunk  because there is no way a sober River will have the courage to hold a conversation with a very grumpy Killian. I expect another scary glare to come towards me but instead I meet with a soft gaze that stares at me with an unreadable expression. "I'm not." This time he says softly, I see him biting back a small smile and , he smiles. I've never seen him smiling before, not this way. Standing on the edge of life, River breathes in and lets himself adjust into a new life, into a new family. After a horrifying past he finds his life wrapped around a shaggy orphanage and several foster homes which makes it hard to believe that he is actually being adopted. Having a family was always a desire of him but to his burnt luck, he doesn't feel like he belongs in his adoptive family. Everyone and everything around him make it clear that he wasn't born to be happy. River is waiting for another push, one last push to end it all and fall from the edge and that's when a grumpy looking Killian Price steps into his life. River can't decide if Killian is the saviour or the devil himself. River's life meets with unexpected secrets mixed with burning desire, adorning the melancholic attire. Soon, he finds out he isn't the only one standing on the edge of the cliff, or he realises he is far from the edge.

"He is the only true heir to my throne. I must take him back." That day, the Alpha King descended upon our remote little pack with his royal soldiers. He pointed at Jasper—the man I had saved a year ago in the wilderness, my fated mate—and with those words, he shattered my entire world. I remember feeling this tight knot in my chest, because I'd always known Jasper was different. When I'd saved him from falling off that cliff last winter, I could feel something about him. I guessed it was his Alpha blood, but I wasn't totally sure back then. Now, his secret was out in the open. And me? I was still scrubbing dishes in the corner, because that was an Omega's duty, while everyone else cheered and celebrated. But Jasper… he stayed calm. He looked the Alpha King dead in the eyes and said, “I’m taking my pup Liam and Amelia back to the Shadowfang pack.” Yes. Amelia. Not me. In my last life, only their favorite she-wolf, Amelia, also the Beta's daughter, got to leave with them. When I broke down and asked Jasper why, his answer was cold and simple: “Her status suits me better than yours.” And just like that, my mate and my pup abandoned me. But this time—when Jasper spoke those same words again—under the mocking stares around me, I took a deep breath, forced a smile, and whispered my blessing: “Oh, well. I wish you both a happy future. I still have work to do.” I had already made up my mind. I was gonna work hard, save enough money, and get out of here, start a fresh life somewhere else. But tell me this, if I was so unworthy, then why, after I finally walked away, did he come begging me to return as his Luna?