The National Interest Magazine

Rhea Hale, a young art restorer at the old Elaria gallery, lives a life of near-perfect calm—canvases, colors, and classical symphonies that fill her every day. But when she touches a mysterious painting titled The Moon Painting, something inside her begins to shift. Strange visions, eyes watching from the fog, and wild emotions she can't explain slowly start to unravel her peaceful world. Across the city, Kaelan Viero—the national hockey team’s captain—carries the charm and composure of a champion. But beneath the arena lights and public spotlight, there's a side of him he never shows… until his eyes lock with a stranger’s in the stands. That brief moment sparks something long buried. And from then on, neither of their lives remains the same. "One glance started it all. And after that... there was no turning back."

I’m done with men! Not because I hate them, but because everyone I meet, and is just fine enough to pique my interest, I compare to him. And it ends right there and then. The ridiculous thing is that my love interest isn’t real. He is a figure that hunts my nights and brings pleasure into the few seconds that I’m captured by my sleep paralysis. I know that, and I am totally okay with it. Just as I start a new job, and my life seems to take a better turn, determined to forget the man from the shadows, I find my forbidden pleasure standing right in front of me. Suddenly my dream man wears a tailored suit and frowns at me. He is my boss. And he is very real.

Nanganganib na mawalan ng trabaho si Chrissa dahil sa papalugi na ang kompanyang kanyang pinapasukan. Isa siya sa mga nagsusulat para sa isang magazine na sa bawat labas ng bagong edition ay laging mababa ang benta. She doesn't want to lose her job. All she needs to do is to write something that would catch everyone's attention and urge them to buy their next magazine issue. She needs to find someone whom she can feature on her next article... someone like— Trace Dela Serna. Trace is a well-known businessman. Kilalang-kilala ito dahil sa yamang mayroon ang pamilya nito. Laman din ng mga balita noon ang lalaki dahil sa kinasangkutang kontrobersiya ilang taon na ang nakararaan. Namatay sa isang engkuwentro ang kasintahan nito at walang sino man ang nakaaalam kung ano ang dahilan ng barilang naganap. Naniniwala si Chrissa na gumamit ng koneksiyon at yaman ang mga Dela Serna upang hindi malaman ng media ang dahilan ng mga nangyari. Ni walang nagtagumpay na makuhanan ito ng panayam. At iyon ang gusto niyang magawa— si Trace ang nais niyang maging paksa sa sunod na article na kanyang isusulat. Kung sakaling maisiwalat niya ang dahilan ng pagkamatay ng kasintahan nito, baka sakaling tumaas ang kita nila. She thought it would be easy, pero hirap siyang makapanayam ang kampo ng binata. Dahilan iyon para mag-isip siya ng ibang paraan upang makalapit dito at makakuha ng mga impormasyon— Chrissa applied as Mat-Mat's nanny, ang limang taong gulang na anak ni Trace. Magagawa niya bang alamin ang sikretong nakabalot sa pagkatao ni Trace? Will she be able to make him agree for an interview? O sadyang siya ang mahihirapang makasama ang binata sa iisang bubong dahil sa pag-uugaling mayroon ito? Can she ever tame... his stone heart?

Fresh out of the National Research Institute, I loaded up on my wife's favorite snacks and ordered a vibrant bouquet of roses, eager to surprise her. I stashed the treats in her office, then stepped out to grab the flowers. But in those fleeting minutes, a stranger had ripped open every package and devoured everything. I glared at him. "Who gave you permission to touch those?" He shot me a look of pure disdain. "Buzz off, flower boy. Drop your crap and scram!" The secretary at the door snickered. "You heard the man. He's Ms. Bowman's husband. Better run before he leaves a bad review." I pulled out my phone and called my wife. "Who is this guy in your office?"

I was the top engineer at the National Deep-Sea Research Center, and the only person in the world with experience in deep-sea rescue. When my sister’s submarine malfunctioned and was stranded ten thousand meters below the surface, I hung up on her distress call. Then I calmly walked into a police station and turned myself in for leaking classified research. A few minutes later, my father called. His voice was frantic and furious. “Your sister is missing. Where the hell are you? I’m ordering you to get to the site immediately and save her, or you won’t see a cent of the family inheritance!” I calmly pulled the blanket over my head and said into the phone, “I don’t have time, and you’re interrupting my sleep.”

After joining the nation's top research lab as a sophomore, everyone assumes I've taken shortcuts to get there. Mom throws away the handmade gift I had spent days crafting and says with disdain, "I don't have a daughter who's this shameless." Andreas Fitzgerald, my fiance, doesn't hold back, either. He warns coldly, "Remember your place as Mrs. Fitzgerald." Later, when my younger sister, Elaine Wilde, destroys my left hand, they all pressure me to drop the matter. I wake up in the hospital, pain crawling up my arm, and I know exactly what I have to do. Without hesitation, I dial my mentor, George Landon's, number. "I'm ready to join the classified national rocket program."

My boyfriend cheated. So I made his father mine. I didn’t get into gaming for the fame. I did it to survive. Growing up in a cramped apartment with a worn-out mom and a string of violent men, League of Legends was the only escape I had. After she died, it became all I had left. Now I’m the star ADC at Blackwood University, playing for a national title and the future I clawed my way toward. I should’ve seen it coming—my captain boyfriend screwing my best friend. I didn’t cry. I plotted. And Marcus Cross, our ruthless coach and my ex’s father, is the perfect weapon. What starts as revenge turns into something else. Something darker breaking rules . Is it still revenge if it feels this good?

Elena Cortez is the daughter of a billionaire and the other twin who is not looked upon as the best because of her size. She finally finds love in the arms of Diego Perez and marries him. Diego sees Elena as a lucky ticket to getting his hands on her family’s business. Lorenzo Martinez is the best friend of Diego and the love interest of Eloisa, the twin of Elena, but he has feelings for his best friend’s wife and can’t get her out of his head. What happens when Elena spends one drunk, frustrated night with Lorenzo Martinez, her husband’s best friend and the love interest of her dear twin, Eloisa, and Lorenzo is unwilling to let go because he claims to have fallen in love with her.

I made a name for myself in my previous life, thanks to the National Robotics Competition. But after that event, someone accused me of stealing my sister's true love's work. My own sister defended her true love and showed the world the complete code for the program. The Internet went into a frenzy. They came after me, out for my blood. My own parents told me to kill myself. I came down with depression eventually, and my family sent me to a mental asylum. I died there, after suffering severe abuse. When my eyes snapped open again, I was taken back to the day before I joined the competition. I made a different decision this time. I told everyone I wasn't taking part in this competition, and it made everyone panic.

Tiffany Viaje del Cargador is a daughter of Don Arnulfo, the powerful Don of the Alpha Brotherhood. Being a sole child, she is bound to inherit her father's wealth and position in the brotherhood. And yet, everything comes with a price. At eighteen, she is sent to a public school in the province with only one mission: kill the notorious leader of the Dragon Brotherhood-Lucio Hernandez. He is hiding as one of the teachers in Libangon National High. Disguised as a Grade 11 student, she sets foot in that school, hoping to get the job done right away. She is willing to do anything to please her father and to be the first Female Alpha Don, but then there is Teacher Greg, a local public school teacher. And she finds herself falling in love with him, compromising her mission. Given the circumstances, will she still succeed according to plan?