Whistle Stop Menu

Bagi Rinjani, pernikahan kontrak dengan Elian Baskara hanyalah cara untuk bertahan hidup. Namun di balik kemewahan mansion Baskara, ia diperlakukan tak lebih dari sekadar "properti" yang diabaikan dan disakiti. Elian yang masih terjebak bayang-bayang masa lalu menganggap Rinjani sebagai beban yang bisa ia kendalikan dengan kekuasaan dan kata-kata tajam. ​Puncak kesabaran Rinjani runtuh saat hinaan menjadi menu hariannya. Di saat Elian mulai terbiasa dengan kehadiran Rinjani, gadis itu justru memilih untuk pergi. Elian baru menyadari arti kehadiran Rinjani justru saat ia telah kehilangan harga diri di mata istrinya sendiri. Dulu Elian yang berkuasa, kini Elian yang memohon. Kesempatan kedua pun hanya ada di tangan Rinjani sekarang.

On my boyfriend, Draco Leroyce's birthday, I take him to a newly-opened fancy restaurant of my own for his birthday meal. Thinking that we'll be having a birthday cake for dessert later, Draco and I decide to order a set meal that includes a pizza and a plate of pasta. With a smile, I hand the menu over to the waitress. She plasters a fake smile on her face as she grabs the menu. But she secretly calls us "broke ass bastards" in Virellian. I draw my brows into a deep frown instantly. "What did you just say?" The waitress is momentarily stunned. Then, she shoots me another fake smile. "I said I'll prepare your food right away." I just sneer back at the waitress before responding to her in fluent Virellian, "You were calling us broke ass bastards."

Violet, pembuat game VR Beast Dominion, masuk ke dalam game sebagai tester untuk uji coba terakhir sebelum peluncuran. Namun sebuah error fatal terjadi—menu logout menghilang, dan sistem justru menandainya sebagai unit langka: Living Pheromone. Di dunia beastmen, aroma manusia murni mampu menenangkan para jantan yang kehilangan kendali. Keberadaan Violet segera memicu ketegangan antar wilayah, hingga dibentuklah Dewan Perlindungan. Terdiri dari 4 jantan terkuat dari berbagai spesies yang semuanya resmi menjadi suaminya demi menjaga perdamaian. Terjebak dalam dunia yang seharusnya hanya permainan, Violet harus bertahan hidup di tengah insting liar empat suaminya. Akankah Violet berhasil keluar dari dunia game, atau ada rahasia lain di balik terjebaknya di dunia itu?

I check on family businesses in the countryside with my girlfriend, Mildred McClure, in tow. At noon, we stop by my uncle, Barron Cortez's, place for a simple lunch. Just as we are getting ready to leave, his new wife, whom he married just six months ago, Hilda Ross, rushes out and demands that we settle the bill. "Elden, you two just had the Supreme Farmhouse Set Meal, which is 1,888.80 dollars, and your girlfriend picked three organic, pesticide-free tomatoes in the garden. That's 199.80 dollars. "With an 80% service charge, your total comes to 3,800 dollars." Mildred is stunned. "Elden, do we have to pay to eat at your uncle's place?" I start to feel embarrassed, and my expression darkens as I look at Hilda, my supposed aunt, who's barely any older than me. "I've grown up eating at my uncle's place and never paid a single penny. Besides, your prices are downright outrageous!" Hilda calmly whips out a price menu and righteously declares, "That's all ancient history. Now, we're running a farmhouse business where all prices are clearly marked, so everyone pays the same rate. "Barron said you're some big boss in the city. Surely you're not going to stiff us over a little bill, are you?" She steps in front of the gate to block the exit with her body and shoots me a contemptuous look. "Even family settles their accounts. If you don't pay up today, don't even dream about stepping through this door!" While Mildred panics, I laugh in disbelief before taking out my phone and dialing Barron's number. "Uncle Barron, Hilda wants to settle accounts between family, so don't you think it's time we settled our accounts too?"

Zevanya tak tahan lagi! Ketika suaminya kecelakaan dia malah menemukan bukti perselingkuhan Morgan. . Naasnya, Morgan mengalami kelumpuhan sehingga saat dia meminta cerai, malah Nyonya Soraya yang menjawab lantang dengan penuh amarah, "Cerai? Setelah putraku kau buat lumpuh kau minta cerai? Jangan harap!!" . Mampukah Zevanya melepaskan diri dari beban yang bukanlah tanggung jawabnya? . Di saat yang bersamaan, satu-satunya orang yang selalu memperhatikan anak-anaknya yang tak bersalah itu malah seseorang dari masa lalu yang begitu ingin dia hapus dari ingatannya tapi hatinya malah menyimpan erat semua kenangan mereka. . Haruskah Zevanya tetap menutup erat pintu hatinya bagi Jarreth yang mengejar kesempatan kedua darinya? Atau menu memberikan Jarreth kesempatan kedua? . 'Aku membawa rasa bersalah ini setiap detik dalam hidupku. Penyesalan ini kusimpan rapat-rapat dalam relung hatiku. Tapi sekarang, setelah aku menemukanmu lagi, aku ingin menebus semuanya. Beri aku kesempatan kedua, Ze. Aku sudah merasakan hidup tanpamu dan aku tidak ingin merasakan kehampaan itu lagi!"

Dia bukan anak kandungku, wajahnya saja berbeda...Brandon pun terhenyak, tak pernah sekalipun dalam mimpi kalau Bahar yang selama ini ia anggap ayahnya bukan bapak kandungnya! Pencarian pun Brandon lakukan, tak dia duga ayah aslinya bukan orang sembarangan dan selama bertahun-tahun mencarinya. Tapi dendam keluarga membuat hidup Brandon penuh dengan bahaya, harta warisan yang dia terima mengubah hidupnya. Bukannya hidup enak, tapi justru berhadapan dengan pembunuh-pembunuh bayaran yang kejam dan Brandon pun hanya punya dua pilihan, membunuh atau di bunuh. Brandon tak tinggal diam, diapun rela melepas harta warisan triliunan, untuk mencari siapa dalang pembunuh ayah kandung dan berambisi merebut harta milik ayahnya. Brandon rela menjadi Ketua Geng/Preman yang kerjanya menggunakan otot dan kekerasan, di mana nyawa bak tiada harganya. Karena senjata dan kepalan tanganlah yang bicara dan menjadi menu sehar-hari di dunia hitam ini. Brandon juga harus berhadapan dengan kisah asmaranya yang pelik. Cinta satu malamnya dengan seorang sekretaris CEO nya di kantor tak pernah Brandon duga berbuah. Petualangan nya dengan beberapa wanita membuat si Sekretaris itu menolak terbuka dinikahi Brandon. Apalagi Brandon di kelilingi musuh-musuh yang kejam dan selalu mengincar nyawanya. Brandon sudah melangkah terlalu jauh, dia tak mungkin mundur.

My father-in-law said he wanted to experience "how the young folks have fun these days," so I took him to my wife's newly opened upscale cocktail bar for a quiet drink. I’d just finished ordering him a custom cocktail when a man from a booth across the room swaggered over, glass in hand. His eyes scanned the drink menu on our table, and a condescending smirk twisted his lips. "Only ordering the cheapest well drinks?" he sneered. "Brought the old man here to enjoy the free air conditioning? Trash like you belongs in a dive bar. Who even let you in here?" Anger burned in my chest. I stood up, my jaw clenched. "We're paying customers. What's it to you?" But before I could say another word, his face darkened with pure rage. He snatched the half-finished beer bottle from our table and smashed it on my head. "My girl owns this place!" he snarled. "Even if I crack your skull open, I can afford the payout! You filthy pauper—either get on your knees and lick my shoes dry, or get the hell out of my sight. You're an eyesore." The beer dripped down my face. My hands trembled with fury as I wiped it away. Then, a cold calm settled over me. I opened my phone, switched to the camera, and went live. "Alright, everyone," I said into the screen. "You won't want to miss this. We're going live to catch my cheating wife and see the double life she's been leading."

I cleared my throat and picked up the menu, pretending to study it. “So,” I said after a moment, “before we start pretending this is something serious, you should know… I’m not exactly the settling-down type.” He arched his brow but said nothing. “I do hookups,” I continued, keeping my tone casual. “That night at the hotel? I was supposed to meet someone else. I went into the wrong room. You were literally a mistake.” He didn’t flinch. Didn’t even blink. Just smirked faintly and reached for his glass of whisky, taking a slow sip. My fake confidence wavered. “Did you hear what I said?” “Every word,” he said quietly. “And?” “And I’m still here.” I stared at him with disbelief. “Wow. You’re not even mad? You’re supposed to call off the wedding and storm out or something.” He chuckled in a low tone, resting his elbow on the table. “You’re really trying hard to get rid of me, aren’t you?” ******* I caught my fiancé cheating with the woman he called his “sister.” Broken, drunk, and reckless, I stumbled into the wrong hotel room, and into the arms of a stranger. By morning, he was gone, leaving only a note: Wrong room, but you taste good. I wanted to forget him. Weeks later, my best friend begged me to meet the man her father had arranged for her to marry and make him call off the wedding. I went there in her place, only to discover he was the same man from that night. He called off the wedding with her. Then he asked me to marry him, but I refused. But refusing a billionaire with an obsession is never that simple… especially when he shows up as my new boss.

She married him through a contract—no love, no promises, no expectations. To him, she was nothing more than an arrangement, a quiet wife meant to keep appearances intact while his heart belonged to another woman. Tired of being invisible, she decides to stop waiting, stop hoping, and stop loving. But when she finally walks away emotionally, the cold CEO begins to realize the truth— He may have lost the only woman who ever truly belonged to him.

Di malam peringatan sembilan tahun pernikahan kami, suamiku yang bernama Felix Tosa, pria yang di siang hari menguasai keluarga mafia dan di malam hari menguasai hatiku, tidak memberiku setangkai mawar pun. Dia malah memberikannya pada Celine, asisten pribadinya. Di bawah lampu gantung tempat kami pernah berdansa saat baru menikah, dia menoleh padaku dengan pesona dingin yang dulu pernah membisikkan kata cinta di telingaku. “Dia hamil,” katanya, seolah itu sudah cukup sebagai penjelasan. “Dan dia sangat pilih-pilih soal makanan. Mulai sekarang, kamu yang harus menyiapkan makanan tiga kali sehari untuknya, nggak boleh ada menu yang berulang.” “Dia juga sensitif, nggak suka tidur sendirian. Jadi, kamu harus pindah ke kamar tamu.” Ruangan itu sunyi senyap. Aku tidak berteriak, tidak juga menangis. Aku hanya mengambil koper yang sudah kubereskan, lalu berjalan menuju pintu. Kepala pelayan mencoba menahanku, tapi Felix bahkan tak berkedip sedikit pun. “Dia pasti balik lagi,” katanya malas, sambil menggoyangkan gelas anggur. “Dalam waktu tiga hari, dia akan menangis dan memohon padaku.” Tamu-tamu pun tertawa terbahak-bahak. Mereka bertaruh satu juta dolar di depan mataku. Bertaruh bahwa aku bahkan tak akan sanggup melewati malam ini dan akan kembali memohon seperti anjing jalanan yang kehilangan harga diri, memohon agar Felix membiarkanku masuk ke rumah. Namun, mereka tidak tahu bahwa aku sudah menerima lambang keluarga dari ayah kandungku yang sebenarnya dan tiket pesawat pun sudah kupesan. Kali ini, aku benar-benar akan pergi.