The Nineties Novels & Stories

I looked into his eyes — those beautiful eyes — and asked one last time, "Do you still love me?" He laughed like I'd said something funny, came back over, patted my head, and answered without missing a beat. "Of course I do. Don't overthink it. I'll be back tomorrow. We'll celebrate our anniversary then — I already made a reservation." He sounded so sure of himself. I nodded. "Okay. I'll wait for you." For the first time in nine years, I lied to him. I turned and started walking back to my room. But Jason — who had been in such a hurry to leave — was still standing by the door. He hadn't moved.

It was no wonder he could not access her location, even as the Alpha. Rowena had once served as an Archivist. The lost northern continent was exactly the kind of destination favored by elite research teams. "Book me a flight north," Garrick said at once. "I am going to find her." - The journey north was perilous. Even research teams under military escort required more than a month to reach the Fallen Temple. Garrick traveled alone. Despite his status as the strongest Alpha of the Snowclaw Pack, he nearly lost his life more than once.

When I was little, Mom told me I'd damaged Gemma, my sister's hearing, so she and Dad gave Gemma ninety-nine "favor coupons"——every time she cashed one in, I had to give in. On my birthday, Gemma wanted mango cake. She used one of her coupons, and Mom replaced my birthday cake with mango cake, even though I was allergic to it. When Gemma got caught smoking at school, she used another coupon, and Mom made me take the blame for her. The whole school thought I was a troublemaker. For an entire year, no one would so much as talk to me. ... Between the ages of eight and eighteen, Gemma used ninety-six coupons. And ninety-six times, I was the one pushed aside. I thought that once she used th

My husband thought I would never leave him. He was wrong. Ethan Cole proposed to me ninety-nine times before I finally said yes on his hundredth try. So on our wedding night, I gave him ninety-nine make-up cards. Every time he broke a promise, chose someone else over me, or hurt me badly enough to need forgiveness, he could use one. As long as there was still a card left, I promised myself I would give our marriage one more chance. For three years, Ethan never needed them. Then Madeline Avery came back. His childhood best friend. The woman who always needed help. The woman who always needed protecting. And somehow, every time she needed something, I was the one expected to lose it

There was no place for me here anymore. I casually packed my clothes into an old suitcase and looked at the diary filled with 99 entries of hurt and disappointment. I didn't take it with me and left it in the corner of the room. When I was little, I wrote an entry every time I felt ignored. I had believed that if I were obedient enough, my parents and brother would one day notice me and love me a little more. But I was wrong. No matter how good I was, no matter how much I tried, I could never compete with Yvette's slightest frown.

55% na Si Jin...75%... 😑😑😑. ..si ako naman... 25% pa lang... Isali mo pa ang pressure na tinitignan ni Sir ang gawa. Oo, namanhid na ang mata ko sa kakatingin sa subject na yun. Sino naman kasi ang nag-isip no'n...tsss. Bigla akong nauhaw. May water station sa isang sulok... Umalis muna ako...

She carefully picked up each piece from the trash. She worked patiently to put them back together. There were exactly ninety-nine make-up cards. She remembered five years ago when she had looked at the cards with sincerity and said, “Yoel, don’t worry. I’ll never give you a chance to use them.” She also remembered all the times she had casually offered to use them over the years. The feelings she had worked so hard to save had been wasted in the two years with Connor until they were completely gone. Yvette, who had always been careful about numbers, seemed to lose all sense of the ninety-nine make-up cards whenever Connor was around.

She did not look like someone who was dying at all. She hid the phone behind her back and looked up with a soft smile. "Enzo, did you need something?" He stood in front of her and dropped the medical report on the coffee table. "Dr. Rossi has confessed. Your records were forged. There is nothing wrong with your heart. You were never dying." Chiara's smile froze. Her lips began to tremble. "Enzo, I just... I just wanted a little attention. I was missing for twenty years. I just wanted you all to care about me a little more. I..."

I nodded and agreed. On the last piece of paper, my handwriting was so messy that it was hardly legible. It was as if I'd used up the last of my strength to write it down. "The system told me I'd failed to win Quinn's heart. I have three days left, but that's fine. I can finally stop trying." Quinn's hands shook violently. The papers slipped from between his fingers and scattered all over the floor. It turned out I'd made 99 attempts. Every time, I started off filled with hope. And every time, he personally squashed out that hope.

“Who are you talking to? That cousin again, or someone I don’t know?” I had just finished confirming my flight. I locked the screen. “I was reading the news.” His face darkened even more. He snatched the phone from my hand and demanded the passcode. “Our anniversary,” I said. Nine years together. Six simple digits. He entered them once. Then again. Then a third time. The phone stayed locked in his hand. By the time we returned to Blackthorn House, neither of us had spoken another word. The car had barely stopped before he helped Lyra upstairs, one arm wrapped around her waist as if she might break.