The Case Study Of Vanitas

My husband only married me for a family alliance, but his heart was always with his first love. To please her, he even threw her a grand wedding. He forced me to play the wedding march at their ceremony. When I hit a single wrong note, he stood by as she drove steel needles through my fingers. “Weren’t you so proud of being a pianist? Then I’ll take that away from you.” “This is my revenge for forcing me into this marriage!” Later, I got pregnant. However, Yaron Hayes, my husband, left for an extravagant trip abroad with Ellie Jensen. When he finally returned and saw my swollen belly, he immediately assumed I had cheated. He locked me in a closet, forcing me to endure a brutal childbirth alone—one that cost me my life. Yet when I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day the Hayes family arranged our marriage. This time, I let go of my foolish devotion. I booked a flight to study abroad in half a month. “The sky is vast, and birds are meant to be free. It's time for me to follow my own path.”

The news that Angelo Rizzo was becoming the new Don of Brucklin District had spread throughout the entire family. Everyone knew except me, Lila Bennett, his fiancee. He had always thought I was childish, like an irritating tail he couldn't shake off, sticking to him wherever he went. "I've only managed to bag Brucklin District all thanks to Cyrus." The study door was ajar as the scent of cigar smoke drifted out along with his voice. "Lila? Why bring her up? She's annoying. Like a piece of gum stuck to your hair." I crouched on the hallway carpet, lost in thought. Before, it was always Angelo leaving first and me realizing it too late. This time, I wanted to surprise him by going to Brucklin ahead of him. When he saw me there first, he'd realize that I was smart. But the next day, at the bus station, when the driver asked where I was going, I mixed Brucklin and Mannattan up. The driver grew impatient. Afraid he'd call me an idiot like Angelo would, I hurriedly shove the money at him. "To Mannattan! I'm going to Mannattan District!"

Vivi Fenrir had always been drawn to the wild. As a dedicated wildlife biologist, she believed the remote forests of Wyoming would be her sanctuary—a place where she could escape the pain of her past and immerse herself in the study of the wolves she loves. But when a routine field expedition turns deadly, Vivi finds herself at the mercy of ruthless poachers. Just as her life hangs in the balance, salvation arrives in the form of four impossibly strong men. Xander Wilde, the formidable Alpha of the Wilde pack, and his brothers—Dax, Kane, and Vale—are more than just men. They are powerful wolf shifters, bound by blood and an unbreakable bond. When they rescue Vivi, they are stunned to realize she is their fated mate, the woman destined to complete their lives and their pack. But Vivi's arrival in their world is only the beginning. As she is drawn deeper into their secretive and dangerous lives, she must confront the truth about who she is and the power she never knew she possessed. With poachers closing in and a shadowy enemy threatening the pack, Vivi and her mates must stand together or risk losing everything. In a world where passion is tested and danger collide, can Vivi embrace her destiny and the fierce love of four men who would die to protect her?

As the college entrance exams approached, I paid the top student in our class to tutor me. But the day she came over, she brought along her childhood sweetheart and insisted that he join our study sessions. I declined her request politely, and she did not press the matter further. The boy left my house in defeat and was struck by a car, suffering injuries so severe that they left him crippled. He could no longer continue his education and was forced to drop out, taking on grueling manual labor to survive. The girl continued tutoring me nonetheless. We both gained admission to the same university, grew close over time, fell in love, got married, and started a family. But on the night of our wedding anniversary, Sharon slipped poison into my soup and watched impassively as I began to convulse and vomit blood, the crimson stain spreading slowly across the floor. "This is what you owe Harry," she said with cold venom. "Taste what it's like to lose all hope." It turned out that she had harbored resentment toward me for all those years. When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day she first came to my house with her friend.

Keisha Peterson has her senior year all planned out, she is going to study to get good grades for college, do everything in her power to make her crush notice her and also have a fun-filled year. But all her plans is crushed when he walks back into her life unexpectedly. Jake Hawkins, her best friend who had disappeared without a word years ago. The boy she once had a huge crush on but now hates with every fiber of her being. When he returns, he has become ten times hotter, taller, and annoyingly charming. Somehow, he is everywhere she turns. Just when Keisha starts to have a chance with her new crush, fate throws her into a whirlwind of confusion, secrets, and unexpected painful truths. Why is Jake suddenly acting like he never broke her? Why does her heart still race when he's near? And why does it seem like the more she was trying to hate him, the more she became attracted to him? Will she be able to accept the truth when she finds out? Will she be able to keep hating him or finally give in to her true feelings?

Elise Stanton has one dream: to study medicine. When she earns a coveted spot in medical school, her future seems bright—until her parents present her with an ultimatum. The only way they’ll pay her tuition is if she marries Alejandro Mendoza, the disabled heir to a powerful family. “Marry a stranger for money? Is that the price of my freedom?” Elise protests, her voice trembling with frustration. “Clara gets her luxuries handed to her, but I have to sell my life to pursue my dream?” In her family’s eyes, she is always second-best, a shadow to her younger sister, Clara. Left with no other choice, Elise agrees to her parents’ condition. Then she meets Alejandro Mendoza. Confined to a wheelchair, Alejandro is bitter and guarded, his piercing gaze a wall against the world. But when Elise examines his condition, her sharp medical instincts kick in. “The doctors had a wrong diagnosis,” she insists. “Your condition is reversible.” Alejandro narrows his eyes. “Why are you doing this? What do you want?” Her answer is simple: “I’ll help you recover, and when you can walk again, this marriage ends.”

When I was reborn, returning back to the day of filling out the mate registration form, I decided to write my sister Sophia Harrington's name on the form. I would help her achieve her dreams with Adrian Northgate in this lifetime. Without waiting for Adrian to ask, I gave the wedding dress to my sister ahead of time and placed the ring that symbolized our mate bond into her hands. I did not argue or make a fuss. Instead, I facilitated every opportunity for them to spend time together. When he took my sister to fight in the southern territories, I quietly packed everything up and went to university in the northern grasslands. This was because, in my previous life, I devoted myself to caring for our family. Yet, after Adrian was promoted to the pack's first warrior, he and our son knelt before me, begging me to dissolve our mate bond so that he could fulfill his love for Sophia. Living this life again, I decided not to become mates with Adrian. I wanted to pursue my dreams — to study at the Northern Grassland Werewolf University, become a medical doctor, and live the free life I had always desired!

Mikael Williams, a ruthless mafia who rules in Italy, is forced to marry Claire Thompson to replace his twin brother, who died in a car accident caused by his business rival. Feeling guilty for Michael, Mikael hides Michael’s death from everyone and takes his place. Claire Thompson is the adopted daughter of the William family, who is funded to study at a foreign boarding school. As far as she knew, the Williams family only had one son, Michael William. However, in reality the Williams family has two sons. The first is Mikael Williams, a ruthless mobster who lives in a dark shadow, and the second is Michael Williams, a sweet man with the heart of an angel. When lie after lie is revealed, what will Claire do when she realizes that she is currently pregnant with Mikael’s child? Will Claire be able to forgive Mikael and continue with her marriage? Or did she choose to leave Mikael and everything related to their past? Meanwhile, will Mikael let Claire go a second time? Let her go from his dark life? Or will he defend her in any way he can? Trying to protect her from anything that could put her life in danger?

He was a Kung Fu head trainer, who was framed by his two trainees in a rape and murder case of Clushia, a female trainee, who was obsessed with him. He was convicted and brought to the maximum penal institution called the 'Hellhole', for no prisoner got out of it alive. In one of the prisoners’ riots, he was forced to fight to defend himself but ended up killing another prisoner. He was put to an oubliette. Unknown to him, that oubliette is the door to an underground city, with an arena for the so-called “Game of Fangs and Death” by the Alpha Pharoah. The game is for five nights. If he wins, he will be given a free pass leading to a secret passage, away from the 'Hellhole'. Could there be an escape for him from the 'Hellhole'? Could his heart find an escape from the Alpha Pharoah's daughter, who has a lot of similarities to Clushia? It was like, Clushia had been born again through her. Would suddenly his never known powerful blood and lineage eventually help him escape from his death?

On the day I miscarried and suffered from haemorrhage, my husband posted a photo of a newborn’s tiny feet on his Instagram Story. The caption read: “Welcome, little angel. Daddy will always protect you.” With trembling hands, I called him. “The baby’s gone. Can you come to the hospital?” On the other end, I heard a baby crying, followed by the man’s impatient voice. “In that case, take good care of yourself. Louise just gave birth and needs someone to care for her. I can’t leave. “Besides, the dead shouldn’t compete with the living for affection. Got it?” He hung up right after. I broke down alone on the hospital bed, and when I finally wiped away my tears, I dialed the number of his sworn enemy, Levi Snow. “Marry me, and the entire Wright Corporation will be my dowry. All I want is for you to bring Finn Yeaton down. Do we have a deal?”