Category: English

After the car accident, I was rushed to the ER. My boyfriend arrived late, with his personal assistant in tow. The rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor seemed to annoy Sophie. She turned to Gavin, pouting. “Gavin, baby, my phone died. Can you unplug this noisy machine so I can charge it?” Gavin looked at me, lying weak and pale on the hospital bed, and his voice was ice cold. “What a waste of a trip. I thought it was actually serious.” “Just unplug it. It’s not like she’s going to die in the next five minutes.” Without a second thought, Gavin yanked the plug of my heart monitor out of the wall and plugged in her charger. A chill ran through my bones that had nothing to do with the accident. I closed my eyes in resignation. The moment I was discharged, the first thing I did was cancel the wedding. 1 After the monitor was unplugged, the room fell into a dead silence. Sophie dragged a chair right next to my bed, sprawled out like she owned the place, and started scrolling through TikTok. Gavin paced over to the window and threw it open, completely ignoring the fact that I was shivering in a thin hospital gown. It was raining in Seattle—that bone-chilling, gray drizzle. A gust of wind blew in. I tucked the corner of the blanket tighter around myself and looked at him. “Close it, please. I’m cold.” Gavin turned slowly, meeting my hollow gaze. “Oh, so you can talk? I thought the crash turned you mute since you haven’t made a peep.” The scene I just witnessed was still tearing me apart. When Gavin arrived, he didn’t ask if I was okay. He didn’t check my injuries. He unplugged my life-monitoring equipment because Sophie wanted to scroll on Instagram. lying in the wreckage, all I could think about was, If I die here, will Gavin be devastated? Will he tear the world apart looking for me? Now I had my answer. He wouldn’t mourn. He’d probably be popping champagne with Sophie. I had loved him too much. “If I had been struck mute, you’d be happy, wouldn’t you?” I asked, my voice raspy. His face darkened. He walked over, a sneer forming on his lips. “I saw you were fine, so I made a joke. Do you have to take everything so seriously?” “I told you this morning. It was windy and raining. I told you to take an Uber. But no, you had to ride that stupid Vespa.” “Now look at you. Lying in a hospital bed. Happy now?” I looked away, staring at the scrapes covering my right hand and the thick cast encasing my broken left arm. Gavin could have driven me to work. But he left me behind to go pick up Sophie. The roads were slick. I skidded and was thrown ten feet. Even in that terrified state, I chose to trust him. I called him first. He never came. Not until long after the ambulance had brought me in, tests were run, and I was settled in a room. And even then, he brought her. “You knew the weather was bad, but you insisted on picking up Sophie. Is she really that much more important than me?” Gavin rolled his eyes, glancing at Sophie who was giggling at her phone. His eyes softened instantly. “Sophie isn’t like you, Chloe. She doesn’t know how to ride a scooter. If I didn’t pick her up, she would have had to walk.” “And you know her apartment is far from the office. Ubers add up.” Sophie finally deigned to look up from her screen. She gave me a pitiful, martyr-like smile. “It was just a ride, Chloe. Are you really jealous of that? If you hate me that much, I just won’t let Gavin pick me up anymore.” Gavin immediately jumped to her defense. “Sophie, don’t. Whether I pick you up isn’t her decision to make.” He glared at me. “Seriously, Chloe? There’s a limit to how jealous you can get…” His rant was cut short by a nurse storming into the room. 2 The nurse stood in the doorway, scanning the room with a look of absolute fury. “Do you people have zero common sense? The patient just stabilized! Who unplugged the monitor?” “What kind of family are you?” Gavin looked stunned. He froze, mouth opening to explain, but Sophie beat him to it. “She looks fine to me. It’s not like she needs saving,” Sophie scoffed. “We just needed an outlet. Do you have to yell?” ” careful, or I’ll complain to your supervisor. You’re just a nurse, get over yourself.” Sophie sat there, acting like royalty. The nurse looked like she wanted to scream, but she maintained her professionalism. She yanked Sophie’s charger out of the wall and plugged the heart monitor back in. Sophie stomped her foot like a toddler. She turned to Gavin, pouting. “It’s just a few scratches. She’s acting like she’s dying. Since I’m clearly not welcome here, I’m leaving.” She grabbed her bag and ran out the door. Gavin hesitated for a split second before deciding to chase after her. At the door, he turned back to me. “You’re fine anyway. I’m not staying here just to be yelled at. We’ll talk about the wedding when you get discharged.” The wedding. He actually remembered we were getting married. If not for the accident, tomorrow would have been the day we picked out my gown. Now, it was the day I’d cancel it. My physical wounds weren’t life-threatening, but my left arm was broken, making everything difficult. But Gavin’s attitude? That was the fatal blow. He was blind to the cast around my neck, blind to my pain. For the next three days, Gavin didn’t visit once. But I saw plenty of him on Sophie’s Instagram. To apologize to her, Gavin rented a private yacht. He covered the deck in rose petals. Sophie posted a photo leaning against the railing, capturing Gavin meticulously spreading the flowers. Her caption: “Let’s just pretend this is a proposal.” The comments were flooding in. “OMG, Gavin is so romantic!” “If I were the main character here, I’d die of happiness!” “You two look way more than just friends…” While I lay alone in a hospital bed, struggling to drink water with one hand, he was out drinking wine with his assistant. I realized then that my title of “fiancée” meant nothing against his “soulmate” assistant. It looked so perfect, I couldn’t help myself. I commented: “So, when do we get to drink at the wedding?” I put the phone down just as the nurse walked in with my discharge papers. “You need to rest. Don’t move around too much. Come back in two weeks to get the cast checked,” she said gently. I smiled and nodded. In three days, she was the only person who had shown me kindness. Leaving the hospital, I finally got a call from Gavin. Not to ask if I was okay. But to yell at me about the comment. “I’m being discharged today. If you have time, come get me. If not, forget it.” Gavin was silent, probably loading up his ammunition to scold me. So, I broke the silence first. 3 “What was with that passive-aggressive comment?” Gavin’s voice was low and annoyed. “I’ve told you a thousand times, Sophie and I are just friends.” I let out a cold laugh. “Friends don’t do things lovers do. Sophie called it a proposal. Are you assuming I’m blind?” “It was just a caption! Why are you so petty?” “Besides, we’re getting married in a few days. What is your problem? Are you seriously still mad I didn’t babysit you at the hospital?” He sounded so aggrieved, as if I were the villain in his story. He didn’t think leaving me alone in a hospital for three days was a big deal. I only wanted a ride home. I wasn’t asking for the stars like Sophie. “Yes, I am mad because you didn’t take care of me,” I said flatly. “So, are you going to rent a yacht for me to apologize? Like you did for Sophie?” Silence stretched on the line. Finally, Gavin spoke, his tone dripping with exhaustion. “Chloe, stop changing the subject. I called to ask why you would embarrass Sophie like that? She’s crying because of what you wrote.” “Oh? Is she? She really is fragile, isn’t she?” Gavin lost his patience. He muttered, “Unbelievable,” and hung up. The rainy season in Seattle usually made me feel like I was molding from the inside out, but today, the sun finally broke through. My suppressed emotions vanished with the clouds. The first thing I did after leaving the hospital was go to the bridal shop and cancel everything. The clerk looked at my cast with pity. “The photos are ready. We just needed to fit the dress. It’s a shame.” In the corner sat a massive framed canvas—Gavin and me, smiling like we were in love. My body was there, but my heart was already gone. A shell without a heart isn’t worth keeping. Before I left, I told the staff to trash everything. The large frames were too big for the bin, so I told them to smash them and dump the pieces. As luck would have it, just as the last frame shattered into the dumpster… Gavin and Sophie walked up. He looked surprised to see me standing there. “Chloe? Why are you here? Did you not go home?” I stayed silent, watching as he instinctively linked arms with Sophie. “What happened to your arm? You just fell, right? You’re making a huge deal out of nothing,” he said, his selective blindness kicking in again. “Nothing. Just a scratch.” He noticed my stare and quickly dropped Sophie’s arm, looking flustered. He walked up to me, looking me up and down. “We’re about to get married, stop acting like a child. The shop called me to pick up the photos. Did they call you too?” Sophie giggled. She peered into the dumpster. “Gavin… doesn’t that guy in the trash look exactly like you?” Gavin walked over and flipped a piece of the broken canvas. It was his face, shattered under a layer of glass shards. His face turned red with rage. He marched over to me, fists clenched. “Chloe, have you lost your mind?” “The wedding is next week! Why did you throw away the photos? Are we getting married or not?!” My cast was heavy, weighing down my neck. I rolled my shoulders and looked him in the eye. “Didn’t you propose to Sophie? Why would you marry me?” 4 Gavin’s chest heaved. He stepped closer, his breathing jagged. I knew that sound. He was truly angry. Smack. A heavy hand struck my face. My left cheek swelled instantly. He aimed for the left side, knowing I couldn’t block it with my broken arm. “Did the crash scramble your brain? Let me help you wake up.” He screamed the words, but I just smiled. I didn’t care anymore, but the tears fell anyway. My heart gave a dull throb of pain. I wiped the tear with my good hand and looked at him. “Let’s break up, Gavin. I’m tired.” “I had a lot of time to think in the hospital. We aren’t right for each other. Forcing it won’t make us happy.” … After that day, the tension between us seemed to thaw—superficially. He apologized, vaguely. But I knew it wasn’t sincere. I was just biding my time until my arm healed enough to leave. I treated him with icy indifference. No matter how many times he said sorry, it didn’t matter. His actions had already pushed me out the door. Gavin knew I was going to the hospital today to get the cast removed, so he skipped work. He watched me packing a bag in the living room and assumed I was just organizing. He didn’t know I was packing my life away. “When your arm is better, let’s retake the photos,” he chirped, holding my good hand. “You like boats, right? Let’s do a yacht shoot.” If he had done this days ago, maybe I wouldn’t have canceled the wedding. We drove out of the garage. I watched the rain streak against the glass. It was raining like this the day of the accident. Sophie called him three times during the drive. He pretended not to care, but I saw his eyes darting to the screen every time it lit up. At the hospital, he sat on the bench, distracted. When the cast came off, I felt reborn. I looked at my pale, shrunken arm and remembered the crash. We walked downstairs. Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore. “Chloe, take an Uber home. There’s an emergency at the office.” “I promise I’ll be home by six for dinner.” I knew it wasn’t the office. It was Sophie. I feigned concern. “Go. Hurry.” He jumped into the driver’s seat and sped off without looking back. I stood there watching him go. He had never driven that fast for me. I left the hospital, went to my company to finalize my resignation, and took a cab to Sea-Tac Airport. While waiting at the gate, I checked my feed. Sophie had posted a picture of a scraped knee. In the photo, Gavin was kneeling, carefully applying ointment with a Q-tip, his brow furrowed in deep concern. I did exactly what I did before. I commented: “Well, I wish you a lifetime of happiness. I won’t be attending the wedding.” Gavin saw it. He blew up my phone.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386191”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

Andrew, Seraphina, and I—we grew up together, as inseparable as three sides of a triangle. But those two were like oil and water, arguing the second they were in the same room. For over a decade, I was their designated peacemaker. Everyone around us would laugh and say they were rivals, and I was the prize. A week before my wedding to Andrew, a post popped up on my feed. It was a photo from a church wedding, the couple’s backs to the camera, but their silhouettes were painfully familiar. The caption read: [I wore this dress before she did. I had you before she did.] [After all these years, I’ve finally beaten her. Just once.] 1 “Miss Ashworth, our sincerest apologies. The wedding gown will need another day for final adjustments. It will be ready for pickup tomorrow.” Reading the message from the bridal studio, I clicked back to the photo from the post. I zoomed in. The specific constellation of diamonds scattered across the train—that was my design. An hour ago, Andrew had texted me: [Elara, honey, I’m so sorry. Something came up at work. I can’t make it to pick up the dress with you today.] And Seraphina: [Elara, I’m so, so sorry! Something unexpected just came up and I can’t come help you try it on. Forgive me!] Why was everyone so full of apologies this morning? I shook my head, trying to banish the ridiculous thoughts spiraling in my mind. A pinned comment sat at the top of the post: [Even from the back, you can tell they’re soulmates! You grew up together, you’re obviously in love—girl, you have to fight for him! Steal him back!] I tapped out a reply: [If they’re in love, why does he need to be stolen? Genuinely curious. Here for the story.] That evening, Andrew and Seraphina showed up at my door together, bickering as usual. “Some fiancé you are,” Sera started, jabbing a finger at Andrew. “You promised you’d go with Elara to get her dress. What could possibly be more important than that?” “And you?” Andrew shot back. “You said you’d be there to give her a second opinion. You were nowhere to be found either!” I looked at them—the two people I’d known my entire life. My fiancé. My best friend. That post… it had to be a coincidence. Right? “Alright, you two,” I said, feigning a headache. “You start fighting the second you see each other. Don’t you ever get tired?” They exchanged a look, and the corners of their mouths lifted in a tiny, shared smile. A cold dread pooled in my stomach. “It’s fine,” I added quickly. “The studio said it won’t be ready until tomorrow anyway. No big deal.” “Still, we broke our promise,” Seraphina insisted. “Let’s go out for dinner. To make it up to you, my treat.” “Your treat? Don’t steal my line,” Andrew scoffed, rolling his eyes at her. “If anyone’s making amends, it’s me.” He stepped closer to her and playfully swatted the back of her neck. I saw him freeze. A faint blush crept up Seraphina’s cheeks. “Sera? Are you okay?” I asked, a knot of worry tightening in my chest. “Your face is so red. Are you feeling sick?” “Oh! No, no, I’m fine! Let’s just go.” At the restaurant, Andrew and I sat on one side of the booth, with Seraphina across from me. When she came back from the restroom, however, she slid in on the other side, directly across from Andrew. Andrew, who had been in the middle of placing a piece of grilled salmon on my plate, paused. I saw a subtle shift in his posture, a slight movement in his lower body. Seraphina’s expression was pure satisfaction. She had a little wine and got progressively louder, insisting she spend the night at my place. When we got back to my apartment, Andrew looked at her, now slurring her words, and frowned. “Elara, I should probably just take her home. Look at the state of her. I don’t want her keeping you up all night.” I nodded. “Okay. Drive safe.” After my shower, I saw a reply to my comment on the post. [The three of us grew up together. He and I were always closer, the classic pair of bickering sweethearts. But she liked him too. And he felt he owed her his life, so he promised himself to her. I had no choice but to smile and wish them well. He couldn’t bear to see me hurt, so he took the dress she designed and let me wear it first. He gave me a secret wedding, just for the two of us, one the world could never accept. I’m so content. And tonight… tonight is our wedding night.] Attached was a new photo: four bare legs tangled in bedsheets. The nail polish on her toes… it was the exact shade I had helped her pick out last week. 2 The comments section was exploding with shippers, all of them offering her advice. [Girl, you can’t just let a love like that go! You have to fight for your happiness. It doesn’t matter if they’re engaged—even if they were married, you could still get him!] [A life debt isn’t the same as love! You need to be brave and make him see the truth!] [OMG, you should totally crash the wedding and steal him at the altar! We’ll be watching!] [+1!] The poster replied: [Oh no, I couldn’t! She’s my best friend, too. I could never betray my best friend for a man. To be honest, she’s more important to me than he is! As long as she’s happy, that’s all that matters~] [My heart breaks for you. It’s always the quiet ones, the ones who don’t cry, who get nothing. This is so unfair T_T] … I remembered playing house in our neighborhood courtyard as kids. Andrew announced that I would be his bride. Seraphina immediately burst into tears. “No, no! I want to be your bride!” “Okay,” Andrew had said, ever the diplomat. “Then you can both be my brides.” The memory, once sweet, now tasted like ash. All the adults who had laughed at our childhood game… what would they think now? I tried video-calling Andrew. He declined it instantly. An hour later, a text came through: [Elara, she was having a drunken meltdown. Threw up everywhere. I just finished cleaning up.] Soon after, the anonymous post was updated again with a gushing account of their “wedding night.” [After tonight, I have no regrets. I will stand on that stage with you, as her maid of honor. And I will wish you—both of you—a lifetime of happiness!] The words and pictures made my stomach churn with nausea, but the comment section was a sea of sympathy. [Ugh, I can’t even imagine how painful that is. Watching the man you love marry your best friend, and you have to stand there smiling and congratulating them.] [I think the guy needs to grow a spine, call off the other engagement, and marry the poster.] [Maybe the other woman is a real piece of work. Maybe the poster and the guy are scared of what she’d do.] [I hate people who force things. You can’t force love. And the poster puts her first, but all she cares about is herself.] Without knowing a single fact, they had judged and sentenced me, casting me as the story’s villain. But why? When Seraphina’s father was implicated in a major political scandal, it was my dad who pulled every string he had, who worked tirelessly to find evidence and clear his name. That was the darkest period of her life. I brought her into our home, shared my bed with her, comforted her, and relayed every piece of good news from my father the second I heard it. Andrew even complained that I was ignoring him for her. “Can you get your priorities straight? Do you see what’s happening right now?” I’d snapped at him, sending him away. Afterwards, she had clung to me, sobbing. “Elara… you’re too good to me. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you. If Andrew ever dares to treat you badly, I’ll be the first one to make him pay.” Twenty years of friendship. Two completely different faces. Her words were all blessings and surrender, but her actions were a knife in my back. My heart turned to ice. The next day, I went to the bridal studio. “Why are there two diamonds missing here?” I asked, running my finger over the train. The staff exchanged nervous glances. Finally, a young assistant stepped forward. “Mr. Thorne said… he said the design looked better this way,” she stammered. I called Andrew on the spot and told him to come down. When he arrived, he looked at the dress, and I saw a flicker of panic in his eyes. “Elara? Why did you come by yourself?” “There are two diamonds missing. They said it was your idea.” My voice was flat, devoid of emotion. “Oh, right. Yes. I thought it looked cleaner this way. A little more minimalist. Too many stones felt cluttered.” “And you didn’t think to mention this to me?” “It was Sera—” He caught himself, cutting the name short. 3 “Elara, are you angry?” I shook my head. “No. I just think it’s a bad omen. Doesn’t this count as… damaged?” “Of course not!” he said, his voice a little too loud, before softening it again. “Elara, don’t overthink it. The wedding is just around the corner. We’re about to be husband and wife, for real. Aren’t you happy?” I stroked the silk of the gown, not answering him. It didn’t matter how much love I had poured into this dress. It was used. Tainted. I could never wear it now. As the wedding date drew closer, Seraphina’s secret account became more active, posting a series called “Wedding Countdown.” Countdown: 5 Days. [He made me my favorite breakfast sandwich today. She’s never even had one he’s made. If I can’t be his only one, at least I can be his first.] The accompanying photo was of Andrew in our kitchen, wearing an apron, his back to the camera. I’d asked him to cook for me once. He’d refused, laughing. “Your delicate palate can’t be subjected to my culinary disasters.” Countdown: 4 Days. [He gave her the title, but he gave me the forever promise ring—the one you can only ever buy for one person. With this token, you’ll find me in our next life.] The photo was a close-up of Andrew kissing a diamond ring on her ring finger. Even with his face blurred, the tenderness was unmistakable. [I can’t take this anymore. Just get together, please! We’ll start a petition begging the other girl to let you go!] [Sign me up!] [Me too!] Her reply: [She loves him so much too. I can’t bear to hurt her, not after all our years of friendship.] [But she’s hurting you, sweetie! The one who benefits from the situation and stays silent is part of the problem! She’s not innocent!] [Exactly! If she won’t back down, we’ll crowdfund to… take care of her. Ugh, don’t judge me for being vicious, I just can’t stand seeing such a wonderful girl be so unhappy.] (Author liked this comment) [I’m with you on that one.] Reading the comments, I felt like I was plunging into an icy abyss. If they were truly in love, they could have just told me. It would have hurt, yes, but I would have understood. I would have stepped aside with grace. But they chose this. This cheap, vicious, backstabbing performance. Calmly, I saved everything. Scrolling further back, I realized Andrew had been with her three years ago, during her supposed solo trip around the world. Her photos often featured the blurred edge of a man’s shoulder, or his reflection in her sunglasses. There were videos shot from a “boyfriend’s perspective.” At the time, she’d told me love wasn’t important to her; she craved freedom. Those men were just fellow travelers she’d met along the way. During that same period, Andrew was on assignment at his company’s Northern European branch. I had been so blind. Three years, and I never suspected a thing. If it weren’t for the algorithm pushing her secret account onto my feed… Countdown: 3 Days. We were at the event planner’s office, finalizing the last details. Andrew glanced at his phone, a sly smirk playing on his lips. “Elara, I’m going to have to leave you to handle this.” “I need to run back to the office for something urgent.” Before I could respond, he was already walking away, a spring in his step. “Andrew!” He turned back, a look of mild confusion on his face. “It’s three days away. There are details you need to know. I can’t do this all by myself.” He smiled and gave me a thumbs-up. “You got this. Just sync me up later.” Perhaps Andrew had forgotten. Years ago, when his family was transitioning from politics to business, they made enemies. One night, sensing danger, he grabbed my hand and we ran, sprinting through the endless dark. A gut feeling made me glance back. I saw a man raising a gun. In that split second, without thinking, I threw myself in front of Andrew. Luckily, the man was a poor shot. The bullet only hit my shoulder blade. But the pain, a searing, bone-deep agony, is something I will never forget. 4 Through a haze of pain, I saw Andrew’s face, twisted in a mask of primal terror and rage. Later, in the hospital room, in front of both our parents, he knelt by my bed and swore an oath. He would marry no one but me. “Elara,” he’d whispered, his voice trembling, “you have no idea how scared I was. If I had lost you… I don’t think I could have lived.” For months after, he woke up from nightmares, screaming, dreaming of me lying lifeless in a pool of blood. Even after the best care, the wound left a scar and lingering nerve damage. On rainy days, it still aches with a phantom, needle-like pain. It was a permanent reminder that I had once thrown myself in front of death for a man named Andrew Thorne. I thought seeing them for who they truly were would numb me to the pain. But as the memories flooded back, I found myself shaking with sobs under my covers, the old wound in my shoulder throbbing in sympathy. Seraphina’s countdown continued. Day 3. [I know they’re going over wedding details right now. The thought of what will happen in three days is killing me. But I never imagined… I said one word and he dropped everything to come be with me.] The attached image was a screenshot of her chat with him. [I have a new present for you. Want to come see it now? 😉 ] The comments section remained a baffling chorus of support. [Ooooh, what’s the present? I’m dying to know!] [She is so selfless. She gives every beautiful part of herself to the man she loves.] [I get it. As the wedding gets closer, she’s in agony. But her sense of loyalty and morality keeps her from acting. All she can do is pour her love into him, to make his body remember her forever—remember the girl who gave him everything so selflessly.] The comment was pinned to the top. Just then, my phone rang. It was Andrew. “Elara… I have to go out of town for the next two days, to the next city over. I’m so sorry, but you’ll have to handle the final wedding prep.” He sounded slightly out of breath. “Don’t worry, I promise I’ll be back the day before the ceremony.” My voice was a dead calm. “Is it that important? More important than our wedding?” I heard him let out a soft grunt. “I’m sorry, Elara. If I could get out of it, I would… I wouldn’t be telling you this at the last minute.” The line went dead. I sat perfectly still, waiting. The post updated. [He called her while we were in the middle of it~] [From now on, every time he talks to her on the phone, I want him to remember me. Right now.] As always, the post was met with a wave of sympathy and misplaced admiration. For the next two days, they had their final, frantic farewell in the Hamptons, calling each other husband and wife. Once I had organized all the evidence, I showed my parents everything. My father’s face was grim. “Go, Elara. Take a trip. Clear your head. Leave the rest to me.” The wedding day arrived. As guests began to file in, I was boarding a flight. Andrew and Seraphina arrived separately, but close together. A smudge of bright red lipstick was clearly visible on the corner of Andrew’s mouth. His mother, Amelia, laughed. “There you are! I was wondering where you’d gone. Couldn’t wait, could you? Had to go bother Elara right before the ceremony. Go on, wipe your face before you embarrass us.” Andrew finally registered that he hadn’t seen Elara in what felt like forever. She must be in the bridal suite, waiting for her grand entrance. The thought brought a genuine smile to his face. The guests were all seated. The officiant began his opening remarks. Andrew’s eyelid began to twitch. Something felt wrong. He exchanged a nervous glance with an equally guilty-looking Seraphina. Seeing my parents, stoic and composed in the front row, calmed him slightly. The officiant repeated his cue for the bride three times. She never appeared. The large screen behind the altar, which had been cycling through a slideshow of Andrew and Elara’s happiest moments, suddenly went black. When it flickered back to life, it wasn’t a photo. It was a PowerPoint presentation. It showed screenshots of Seraphina’s posts, her comment interactions, the pixelated photos with Andrew, the suggestive pictures from their “wedding night,” the secret church ceremony… The final slide was the comment about crowdfunding to have me “taken care of,” the one she had personally “liked.” It was blown up to fill the entire screen.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386207”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

But at the very last minute, I discovered the truth: I was never the beloved daughter. I was a decoy, adopted solely to shield the real heiress from danger. This wedding? It’s just a stepping stone, a game designed to pave the way for her by trampling over me. In a moment of desperation, I texted the contact in my phone saved as “6’4, 22, Dead Broke”: “Coming to crash the wedding tomorrow?” He replied instantly: “I’m not that desperate.” My phone died right after, so I didn’t reply. The next morning, a video went viral online: a Shanghai billionaire, decked out in a groom’s tuxedo, sprinting down the highway in the dead of night with a look of pure fury on his face. 1 The night before the wedding, I realized the dress was wrong. Not only was the size off, but the style was completely different from the one I had chosen. I confronted the staff, but they insisted there was no mistake. They said Mr. Vance had personally given the instructions. Two dresses. One delivered to the penthouse on the 68th floor, one to the 67th. Since both brides had the last name “Ji,” they had double and triple-checked. There was no error. Ethan wasn’t answering his phone. I decided to go upstairs and ask him myself. But when I saw the scene inside the room, I froze. The wedding dress that was supposed to be mine was currently being worn by another woman. My mother was hugging her, cooing over her as she pouted playfully. My father and Ethan sat nearby, their eyes soft, practically dripping with affection. I stood in the doorway, stunned. I don’t know how long I stood there before Ethan’s phone rang. He picked it up, and the smile vanished from his face. He didn’t even have the patience to listen, cutting the caller off with a curt, “Ignore her.” When he hung up, my father asked, “Is Ji Shu causing trouble again?” Ethan nodded, annoyed. “Just the imposter. She actually thinks I’m going to marry her. So much drama.” The woman in the wedding dress started to ask a question, but they quickly made up an excuse to send her away. Watching her leave, the smile on my mother’s face disappeared, replaced by a chilling coldness. She shot Ethan a reassuring look. “Just bear with it a little longer. After tomorrow, the decoy won’t be of any use to us.” The “decoy” they were talking about was me. I gripped the doorframe, knuckles white. I was about to turn and leave when a soft voice called out to me. “Do you need something?” It was the woman. As soon as they saw me, the blood drained from my parents’ and fiancé’s faces. 2 Ethan dragged me back to my room. He towered over me, looking down with cold eyes. “I planned to tell you after the wedding, but since you couldn’t wait, you might as well know now.” Ethan pulled up a photo on his phone. An old family portrait. It showed my parents holding a baby. His gaze softened as he looked at the photo. “The Ji family business wasn’t always clean. They made enemies. Their only daughter was kidnapped constantly. One time, it almost cost her her life.” “So, they hid their real daughter in a different city and adopted another girl to raise as the ‘Ji Heiress’ in the public eye.” I wanted to laugh. But as soon as my lips twitched, hot tears rolled down my cheeks. No wonder. No wonder my childhood was filled with car accidents and kidnapping attempts. Every time I was in danger, Mom and Dad would show up with a gift, take one look at me, and then rush off to “another city for business.” No wonder they were always traveling. If I cried and begged to go with them, they would slap me across the face, call me selfish, and have the nanny lock me in a dark room to “reflect.” Ask once, get locked up once. No food, no water. If I cried too hard, the nanny would “discipline” me for them. When they returned from their “business trips” and heard I hadn’t reflected properly, I’d get beaten again. They said ungrateful children deserved it. They said they were running around the world to give me a luxurious life, yet I was rotten to the core. Traveling became my biggest trigger. I didn’t dare bring it up. Even that specific city became a nightmare for me. In high school, when a field trip was announced to that city, I had a panic attack on the spot. I curled up under my desk, hyperventilating, screaming that I wouldn’t go. Word got back to my parents. They sponsored the trip and forced the school to change the location. But the new location was terrible, and the trip wasn’t fun. My classmates started resenting me. They called me a princess, a psycho. Those labels stuck to me all through high school, suffocating me. Ethan continued, articulating every word. “From start to finish, the only person I ever intended to marry was Ya-Chun.” “Marrying you is just a PR move. We need a transition to let Ya-Chun integrate into this circle smoothly.” The real Ji daughter returns. Everyone will know I’m the fake. Many of our high school classmates are in this social circle. They’ll bring up the old “psycho” rumors. Compared to me, the beautiful, gentle, and cultured Ya-Chun will be instantly accepted. And I will carry the label forever. Seeing the blood drain from my face, Ethan softened his tone slightly. “As long as you cooperate, for the sake of our years together, I won’t treat you poorly.” Years together? What years? Wasn’t the affection, the family dinners—wasn’t it all just a performance for the kidnappers? I wiped my tears aggressively and forced a grin. “Sure. I’ll cooperate. I’ll tell everyone how you used a child as bait to protect Ya-Chun. How shameless you—” Before I could finish, Ethan grabbed me by the throat. Before he could speak, Ya-Chun rushed in from the hallway. “Ethan! Let her go!” she screamed. Ethan acted like he didn’t hear her. He shifted his grip to my jaw, forcing me to look at Ya-Chun. He smiled reassuringly at her, then looked back at me with dead eyes. “Look at yourself. In what world do you compare to Ya-Chun? In what world do you deserve to marry me?” “If it wasn’t to protect her, I wouldn’t have spent a single second with you.” Ya-Chun pried at his fingers, begging him to stop. Ethan shoved me away violently. He ordered the bodyguards to watch me, then grabbed Ya-Chun’s hand and dragged her out. Moments later, I heard a heated argument erupting in the hallway. 3 I curled up in the corner, running through every possible escape route in my head. Suddenly, the quiet click of the door lock echoed in the room. I walked over. It was my phone. There was a sticky note on the back, three words written in large, hurried letters: I AM SORRY. I glanced at it, too drained to care who sent it. I unlocked the phone and scrolled through my contacts until my finger hovered over: “6’4, 22, Dead Broke.” I bit my lip and hit dial. He picked up instantly. But there was silence on the other end. Just the faint sound of breathing. I steadied my voice. “Leo… can you come steal the bride tomorrow?” There was a loud crash on the other end, like something heavy falling. A long silence followed before Leo let out a cold laugh. “Ji Shu, I’m not that desperate.” I bit my lip so hard it tasted like iron. A sob escaped before I could stop it. Before he could speak again, I choked out, “Sorry to bother you,” and hung up. Less than a minute later, he called back. My vision was blurred with tears. My hand shook as I tried to accept the call. The second it connected, my battery hit 0%. The screen went black. 4 At 5:00 AM, the makeup team barged in. I was groggily pushed into the chair in front of the mirror. The assistant set up her tools and left her phone propped up on the counter. It was playing a video on loop. The makeup artist glanced at it and laughed. “Look at this. ‘Shanghai Billionaire in a Tux Sprinting Down the Highway at 2 AM.’ Rich people are so dramatic.” She shook her head. “Another ‘she runs, he chases’ soap opera.” The assistant giggled, grabbing the phone. “It’s like a Wattpad novel come to life.” She stared at the screen and sighed. “But imagine not wanting to marry Leo Kai. With a face like that? I don’t care if he’s a tycoon, I’d say yes.” Hearing the name, my brow twitched. “Who?” The assistant repeated it. “Leo Kai.” She had a heavy accent and a stuffy nose from a cold. The way she said it… it didn’t sound exactly like my Leo. I stared at the blurry back of the man in the video, lost in thought. Just a similar name. The Leo I knew couldn’t afford dinner, let alone a bespoke tuxedo. There was no way he was a billionaire. I let out a bitter laugh. If he really was that powerful, maybe he wouldn’t have suffered so much because of me.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386223”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

The scorching heat of the apocalypse had arrived, and with it came the Beastman System. Your survival depended on your National Aptitude Test score. High scores meant priority access to S-Tier Beastmen. In my past life, my younger sister, backed by our parents, forced me to give up the Ice Python. I had to use every last one of my points to exchange for a Fire Fox instead. The heatwave was short-lived. The Eternal Freeze followed immediately after. My parents and sister didn’t survive the cold; they turned into ice sculptures. As for the Fire Fox? He had always lusted after my sister. After she died, he set me up and got me killed. Now, I’ve been reborn. And my sister, carrying the memories of her past life, is desperate to snatch the Fire Fox from me. Perfect. That’s exactly what I want. Chapter 1 When I opened my eyes, I was sitting at my desk, staring at the computer screen, waiting for my test results. In my last life, two days before the scores were released, the Heat Apocalypse began. Global temperatures skyrocketed. People were dropping like flies. Simultaneously, the “System” descended, offering the survivors a glimmer of hope. The Beastman System. Everyone could bind with a creature. Your options depended on your test score. High score? You get first pick of the elite bloodlines. Low score? You get the scraps. I didn’t even bother checking my score this time. I already knew it. I had always been the smart one. My sister, Bella, was the opposite. Her grades were trash. We were the only two kids, but Mom and Dad played favorites like it was an Olympic sport. Bella was the golden child. I never wasted energy arguing. I poured everything into my studies, consistently ranking at the top. Bella, spoiled rotten, barely scraped by but always knew how to sweet-talk our parents. In my previous life, she threw a tantrum and, with our parents’ help, stole the Ice Python I had selected. I knew exactly what was coming. Right on cue, the door burst open. Bella marched in, flanked by Mom and Dad. “Chloe, did you check your score?” No knocking, no manners. Bella cut straight to the chase. “I did. State Rank One.” Hatred and jealousy flashed in Bella’s eyes. Seeing her like this gave me a twisted sense of satisfaction. She looked down on me for being a nerd, yet here she was, about to beg for the very privilege my hard work had earned. Mom and Dad lit up. “Really? I knew our Chloe was a genius! Top of the state!” “This is huge! The Jiang family name is finally going to mean something!” Their praise annoyed Bella. She scoffed, rolling her eyes. “It’s the apocalypse, Mom. Grades don’t mean anything anymore. Survival is the only thing that matters.” I watched her try to rain on my parade and sighed internally. “Actually, since my score is high, I get priority selection on a Guardian Beast. That pretty much guarantees my survival,” I said, yawning and leaning back in my chair. Bella’s face twisted. She remembered why she was here. Her expression shifted through three different emotions before settling on a fake smile. “Sis, you haven’t picked your beast yet, right?” “Not yet. Just saw the score.” “What are you gonna pick?” “None of your business. Any S-Tier beast is enough to keep me alive.” Bella’s expression darkened with malice. “Open the interface. Let me see what the top-tier beasts look like.” With her garbage score, she wouldn’t even have access to view the S-Class catalog. My parents, suddenly remembering their precious baby’s predicament, chimed in. “Yes, Chloe, show us.” “You know Bella didn’t do well. Just let her take a peek.” I could practically hear the abacus clicking in their heads. I opened the selection interface. Two holographic projections materialized in the center of the room. One was a massive, snow-white Python, coiled peacefully on a glacier. The other was a Fire Fox, sitting proudly on a burning rock, flames dancing around its tails. The moment she saw the Fire Fox, Bella’s eyes lit up with greed. My eyes, however, filled with hate. Chapter 2 In the previous timeline, during the scorching heat, Bella had set her sights on the Python. The logic was simple: it was hot, and the snake was cold. They coerced, guilt-tripped, and threatened me until I handed the Python over. I was left with the Fire Fox, which cost me every single point I had, leaving me with zero currency to buy survival items. Bella got the top-tier Python for free and refused to lend me a single point to stay alive. “Chloe, can you let me have the Fire Fox?” Hearing her make the opposite choice confirmed it: Bella was reborn, too. Unless she knew the heat was temporary and the Eternal Freeze was coming, she would never pick a fire-attribute beast in this weather. I smirked. “Why should I? I earned the priority pick. Why should I give it to you?” “Chloe! Bella is your little sister! Be the bigger person!” Mom snapped. “Exactly,” Dad added. “You only have one sister. She’s younger than you. It won’t kill you to protect her.” Here we go again. “Since we were kids, I’ve had to yield everything to her. She’s younger, sure, but I’m getting older too! Why doesn’t she ever yield to me? My beast is the reward for my hard work. Why should I give it up?” I used to think that if I showed them success, they might love me. I see now that was a waste of time. Bella bit her lip, looking aggrieved. “Are you trying to kill me, Chloe? You know my score is bad. It’s a million degrees outside. I’m not asking for the snake, I’m leaving the cooling one for you! Can’t you just help me?” If I hadn’t seen her vicious face in our past life, I might have believed her logic. Last time, she neglected the Python. She refused to spend points on him, so he never evolved. When the Freeze came, she froze to death along with the snake she’d starved. I, meanwhile, had to play deadly System Games to earn points to feed that ungrateful Fire Fox. And while I was fighting for my life, Bella had been secretly seducing the Fox. When she died, the Fox—now evolved and humanoid thanks to my blood and sweat—blamed me. He left me in the snow to be torn apart by feral beasts. Seeing Bella so desperate for the Fox, I decided to be a benevolent sister. I wanted to see how she’d handle that high-maintenance, gold-digging fox without my ability to earn points. I immediately tapped the [Bind] button under the Snow Python. The projection vanished. In the room, a slender white snake materialized, coiling around my arm. The temperature in the room instantly dropped twenty degrees. It was blissfully cool. Seeing I didn’t take the Fox, Bella let out a breath she’d been holding. “Sis… I don’t have enough points for the Fox. Can you… can you use your points to redeem him for me?” “No way. If I buy him, I’ll have zero points. How will I survive?” I poked the little snake’s head. He looked at me with beady eyes and flicked a fork tongue against my cheek. “I can share my points with you, Sis!” Bella lied through her teeth. “It’s a win-win. Our family will have two S-Tier beasts. We’ll be invincible.” Yeah, right. I choked on that lie in my last life. “Tell you what, Bella. You transfer all your points to me first. Whatever you’re short, ask Mom and Dad to cover it. My points will be the family reserve fund. Deal?” “No!” Bella rejected it instantly. My parents blindly backed her up. “How can you be so selfish? Using her points is fine, but using yours is a problem? Do you want your sister to have nothing?” I was done with their hypocrisy. I feigned impatience, moving my finger toward the ‘Cancel’ button on the trade interface. “Cut the crap. Use your own points or I’m closing the window. Let someone else grab the Fox.” Bella panicked. She hated parting with her currency, but she wanted the Fox more. Just as I was about to close it, she gritted her teeth and agreed. She transferred her points—and Mom and Dad’s points—to my account. I completed the transaction for the Fox. Then, ignoring their hateful glares, I kicked all three of them out of my room. Bella hugged the Fire Fox, ecstatic. She had no idea what it cost to feed that thing. Chapter 3 I opened the System Shop and spent points like water. Nutrient serums, Evolution Pills, Elemental Cores—anything that was good for the Snow Python, I bought it. In just a few days, the little snake grew from a garden hose into a proper python. He used to wrap around my neck. Now, he was heavy enough to give me scoliosis. “You’re getting heavy,” I muttered, poking his head. It was the size of my fist now. He tilted his head, looking confused, then licked my face again. Kind of cute. I kissed the top of his smooth, white head. The scales on his head turned a faint pink. Cute and shy. I stopped teasing him. I needed to prepare for the Eternal Freeze. I had points from the trade, but I couldn’t just sit on them. Luckily, I retained my combat experience from the previous life’s games. When I went to the living room for dinner, Bella was hugging her precious Fox. “Aren’t you hot?” I asked. I rolled a can of soda down the Python’s body. It frosted over instantly. In this heat, he was better than an AC unit. “Tch. You don’t know anything,” Bella sneered. “Just wait. You’ll see.” “Is that so?” She stared at my snake. “How did he get so big in just a few days?” My python was now waist-high when he reared up. In her past life, she starved him until he died the size of a worm. “I fed him,” I said, pointing at the red fox. “Don’t tell me… you haven’t fed yours anything? He’s gonna stay a runt if you don’t.” The Fire Fox’s eyes glinted with malice when he heard that. “What?!” Bella shrieked, making sure our parents heard. “You spent all your points feeding that stupid snake?” My parents rushed out. “You ungrateful wretch! Those points were for the family! How dare you spend them all!” “How are we supposed to live now?” Bella smirked. She loved using them as a weapon. “Let’s get one thing straight,” I said calmly. “Your points went into buying that fox. My points are mine. I’ll spend them how I like.” “This is our house!” Bella yelled. “Aren’t you afraid we’ll kick you out to die?” I patted the massive snake head beside me. “With him, I’ll survive anywhere. But you guys? The AC is barely holding up. And your fox is a literal heater. Are you sure you want to kick out the only source of cold air in the house?” “Just you wait,” Bella hissed. “This heat won’t last. You’re going to freeze to death soon enough.” She just laid her cards on the table. “If you don’t start feeding that fox properly,” I replied, “do you really think he’ll have the strength to protect you when the frost hits?” I went back to my room, leaving her looking anxious. Chapter 4 Bella took the bait. The fox was getting restless, so she started entering the System Games. But Bella was incompetent. She barely scraped by, coming back with injuries and meager points. It wasn’t nearly enough to satisfy the fox’s gluttony. One day, while Bella was in a game, the fox came knocking on my door. I let him in. He hopped onto my keyboard and skillfully typed out a message. “Chloe. Why did you pick that useless snake? You know the Freeze is coming. I am the only one who can keep you alive.” My python, Frost, narrowed his beady eyes. His tail slammed against the floorboards—thud, thud—in irritation. I stroked his scales to calm him down. “Stupid fox. You’re reborn too, aren’t you? Then you know there’s bad blood between us. I’m not dumb enough to raise a beast that stabs me in the back again.” The keyboard clattered rapidly. “I was tricked by Bella last time. I regretted it. That’s why I self-destructed after you died.” He looked at me with puppy-dog eyes, feigning remorse. I felt nothing. “It’s fine. I found a beast that suits me. I gave you and Bella your happy ending. Now go be with her.” Before he could type another word, a white tail swept him out of the room and slammed the door shut. I turned to comfort Frost, but a pair of arms wrapped around me from behind. Cold breath tickled my ear. “Did you choose him in your past life? So I wasn’t your first choice? You only picked me because you had no other option?” The voice was deep, aggrieved, and silky smooth. I froze. He transformed! He died before he could take human form last time. “Of course not! Bella stole you first! I had no choice but to pick the stinky fox!” I tried to turn around to look at him. Holy… The fox was handsome, sure. But Frost? He was ethereal. Silver-white hair, piercing silver eyes looking at me with deep devotion. His upper body was sculpted muscle, tight abs leading down to… A snake tail. He noticed me staring lower and blushed. Still shy! “What are you looking at?! Don’t look!” He covered my eyes with his hand. I laughed. “I heard snakes have two…” “Mmph!” He clamped his hand over my mouth. His whole body turned pink. “Okay, okay. Do you have a name?” “Frost.” While Frost thrived under my care, the fox continued to pressure Bella, complaining about his slow growth.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386239”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

Every night after my livestream, I slowly peel off my silk stockings in front of the mirror. I know there’s a camera hidden behind the glass. But the man watching doesn’t know my secret: this delicate, alluring cam-girl is actually a man. 1 “Thanks for hanging out, fam! See you next time!” I blew a kiss to the camera and ended the stream. Standing up from my gaming chair, I stretched, my back popping satisfyingly. To cater to my audience’s tastes, I was wearing a pleated schoolgirl skirt and black silk stockings. The cropped top rode up with every movement, exposing a stretch of pale skin. I sat on the sofa, facing the mirror, admiring my own long legs as I slowly peeled off the stockings. Why the sofa? Because it’s the perfect triangulation point between the mirror, the computer, and the smoke detector on the wall. All three contain hidden pinhole cameras. I’ve known about them for a while. I also know they were planted by three different men. Every night, I deliberately undress here to tease them. But I never take off too much. Because if I reveal too much, they’ll discover my secret: I’m a man. 2 I was born with fair skin and a soft voice. Add in my slender frame and small bone structure, and when I dress as a woman, I’m a knockout. Men lose their minds over me. Since moving into this apartment complex, three men have targeted me. The camera in the mirror was installed by my landlord. He’s in his forties, chubby, with a perpetually friendly face. You’d never guess he was a voyeur. My computer has remote control software installed. It can turn my machine on and off and access the webcam. Even when I shut down the stream, the person on the other end can turn the camera back on. The culprit is the guy next door. He’s a freelancer with thick black-rimmed glasses, very quiet and polite. One day, my computer got a “virus” (which he planted), and he “fixed” it for me, installing the spyware in the process. The last camera is hidden inside the smoke detector. I bought it from the guy who delivers my bottled water. The first time he delivered, he wouldn’t shut up about fire safety. I played the concerned girl and let him install the detector. These three cameras monitor every inch of my living room and my daily life. Why haven’t I called the police? Because I planned this. These three men are essential pieces in my game. 3 I tossed the stockings onto the sofa and slowly unbuttoned my top. Underneath, I wore a loose camisole. I knew that behind those three lenses were three pairs of hungry eyes and three flushed faces. A smirk played on my lips as I walked into the bathroom. Watching but not touching must be torture. How long can they hold out? After all, they’ve had copies of my house key for a long time. 4 The landlord had the first key. He claimed he didn’t keep spares, but I knew he was lying. He has a history of letting himself into female tenants’ apartments. But with me, he’s still observing, biding his time. When I go out, I leave a spare key under the doormat. My neighbor and the water delivery guy didn’t miss the opportunity; they took it, copied it, and put it back. But none of them have dared to enter while I’m home. Looks like I need to add some fuel to the fire. I picked up my phone and spoke loudly, pretending to be on a call. “Yeah, this place isn’t working out.” “I’ll probably move soon.” “When? Not sure yet, maybe next week…” I put the phone down, smiling. The bait is set; now I just wait for the fish to bite. Time ticked by. At 4:00 AM, I heard a soft click at the door. Who would it be? The lock turned, and the door pushed open silently. Light footsteps approached the bedroom. The door creaked open, and I saw his face in the dim light. It was the neighbor, the freelancer. He stood by my bed, his glasses reflecting a predatory gleam. His hand reached out, trembling, hovering inches from my face before pulling back. Instead of touching me, he pulled out a camera and started taking pictures from every angle. I imagine my photos will soon be added to his wall of trophies. Among his collection, I’m sure I’m the crown jewel. He took photos for a full thirty minutes. He stared at my exposed arm for a long time before finally leaving. Once he was gone, I finally let myself sleep. I slept until noon. After washing up, I went out for lunch. While eating, I pulled up the live feed of my apartment on my phone. Hehe. They don’t know that I have way more cameras hidden in my house than they do. The landlord appeared on the screen. He seemed impatient. He’d entered shortly after I left. He marched into the bathroom, grabbed my underwear, and… relieved himself. I watched with interest, my lunch forgotten. Soon, he groaned and closed his eyes in ecstasy. When he was done, he put the underwear back and left. I finished my meal and strolled back. On the stairs, I ran into Julian. Julian lives upstairs. He’s a writer. He always wears turtlenecks and silver-rimmed glasses—very clean-cut and handsome. I know Julian likes me. Every time he sees me, he gets this shy smile. If I hold eye contact too long, he blushes. He knows my schedule and manufactures “chance encounters.” He knows I’m a streamer; he’s my top moderator, “SimpleJay,” always tipping and chatting. He even brings me homemade red date soup, claiming he “made too much.” Honestly, I kinda like him too. Unlike the three creeps with their cameras, Julian looks at me with pure affection, no lust. In this society, a pure boy like him is rare. So, I flirt back. I nurture the relationship. After all, killing him will be so much more satisfying when he’s deeply in love with me. 5 We chatted on the stairs. I bit my lip and leaned in close. Just as my body was about to brush against his, he stammered an excuse and ran away, face burning red. I smirked and went inside. I started my stream. Fans flooded in. “Goddess is online!” “I would trade ten years of my life for a girlfriend like you.” “Check DMs, please!” I basked in the praise and digital gifts. Suddenly, my phone buzzed. An anonymous text. “I know who you are.” My pupils contracted. Cold sweat trickled down my spine. I apologized to the chat and cut the feed. Sitting in my bedroom, my face went dark. Looks like I have to accelerate the plan.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386096”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

During a white-water rafting trip, my husband lied about my father’s condition to get the rescue team to save my best friend first. My father drowned. When I confronted him, he turned on me. “What did you want? For them to waste time and let them both die?” It wasn’t until I walked in on my husband and my best friend locked in a passionate kiss in a swimming pool that I understood. He had let my father die to save his mistress. When they realized I knew, they had me committed to a psychiatric hospital. They tortured me to death with an electric baton and took over my family’s company. When I opened my eyes again, I was back at the exact moment my father fell into the water. 1 “There’s no hope for Anna’s dad! Save Lily first!” I never thought the cruelest joke of my life would play out right before my eyes. The words were a bullet, piercing my newly revived heart. I scrambled to my feet, grabbing the hem of Patrick’s shirt. He shoved me so hard I fell. “You were unconscious for five minutes, Anna. Do you know what that means?” “Your dad was swept further downstream, but Lily is still right there, struggling!” “If you want to blame someone, blame your father! The boat wouldn’t have capsized if he hadn’t insisted on coming!” Patrick stood there, his posture rigid, his expression so earnest and certain it made me want to vomit. In my last life, I had trusted him completely. And what did it get me? My father’s tragic death. While I lay in a hospital bed fighting for my life after nearly drowning myself, he was out all night buying flowers for my best friend, Lily. Not this time. I would not let it happen again. I swore it. “Please, save my father!” I screamed. “The other person in the water is my best friend. She’s a strong swimmer!” Patrick’s face tightened. He slapped me, hard. The force sent me sprawling. “Anna, this is not the time for your tantrums! Don’t question my judgment!” “Are you going to make them waste precious time and let both of them drown? Who’s going to take responsibility for that? Go! Go save Lily! Save her first!” My ears were ringing. I cut through his tirade, shouting with every ounce of strength I had. “If you don’t go after my father right now, I will kill myself right here in front of all of you!” Finally, two of the rescue divers swam towards Lily, but the rest turned to search for my father. Patrick shot me a look of pure ice before hurrying toward Lily’s position. Watching his retreating back, the last flicker of hope in my heart burned to ash. By the time I saw my father again, he was unconscious from the water he’d inhaled. Just like last time, he was deathly pale on the stretcher while the rescue captain performed CPR. My heart hammered against my ribs. I frantically dialed for an ambulance over and over until I heard a voice crackle over the captain’s walkie-talkie. “Is the ambulance here yet?” “Only one. The second one is stuck in traffic, it’s going to be delayed…” Before I could ask anything, Patrick’s voice, a mixture of shock and fury, cut through the air. “Lily, you’re hurt!” He knelt, gently blowing on a scrape on her ankle, his eyes filled with a tenderness I had never seen him show me. They gazed at each other with an intimacy so thick you could cut it with a knife. How had I been so blind before? This time, I didn’t miss the triumphant smirk Lily shot me from behind his back. A chilling realization washed over me. In my last life, Patrick had let my father die over a few scrapes and bruises. The piercing wail of a siren grew closer. The ambulance was here. As a paramedic and I started to lift my father’s stretcher, Patrick blocked our path. “Anna, let Dad wait. The second ambulance will be here soon.” “Lily’s leg is hurt badly. She needs to get to a hospital right away.” He stood firmly in front of the ambulance, trying to hide what was happening. “It’s fine! Your dad has always been strong. He’s just unconscious!” “But Lily is so fragile, and look! Her ankle is bleeding!” “Get. Out. Of. The. Way!” My voice was a low growl, a stark contrast to my usual calm demeanor. In the moment Patrick hesitated, Lily limped over. “Anna, we’ve been friends for so long. How could you do this to me?” “It’s not like we’re not going to save your dad. It’s just a short wait. Why is that so hard for you?” Tears streamed down her face, her voice choked with manufactured grief. Patrick instinctively raised a hand to comfort her, but then remembered I was there and froze. My childhood best friend and the man I’d loved since we were teenagers, performing a heart-wrenching drama of forbidden love right in front of me. The double betrayal was a physical ache in my chest. “Lily? What are you doing here?” A round-faced nurse hurried over from the ambulance, her eyes lighting up in recognition. My heart leaped into my throat. It was one of Lily’s colleagues from the hospital. “Jenna, my leg is injured. You need to get me into the ambulance first,” Lily said urgently. “I can’t do that. Hospital policy is to prioritize critical patients,” the nurse replied firmly. I breathed a sigh of relief as we loaded my father into the ambulance. Just before the doors closed, I saw Patrick talking to the nurse, trying to take off his watch. The nurse pushed his hand away. My focus was on my father. I didn’t think much of it and urged the driver to go. The next second, the doors were flung open again. Against the blinding sunlight, I heard the nurse’s voice, sharp with contempt. “If you don’t have money, why did you call an ambulance? The fee for a long-distance mountain call is expensive! Get him out!” My father’s stretcher was being pulled from the vehicle. “I have money! Let my dad stay, I can pay!” I screamed. “Then prove you can pay,” the nurse said, her brow furrowed. My phone was at the bottom of the river. I had no cash on me. Without thinking, I slipped the Patek Philippe watch from my wrist and held it out to her. “Take this as collateral. It’s more than enough to cover the fee. Please, let my dad stay!” The nurse scoffed. “Another Patek? Your husband just tried to pass off a fake one. Now you’re trying the same trick?” A cold dread washed over me. Now I understood what Patrick had been doing. Lily’s voice dripped with mock pity. “So pretentious, acting rich when you have nothing.” Patrick grabbed my hand, playing along. “We didn’t mean to deceive you. Please, have a heart. Take my father-in-law to the hospital.” I wrenched my hand away. “He’s lying! My watch is real! Give me your phone, I can log into my bank account and show you!” The nurse’s face hardened. “You have money for a hospital but not to take care of your own father?” “Just take him home. Don’t waste our time.” They continued to unload the stretcher. In the end, I was left standing there, watching the ambulance drive away with Lily inside. I grabbed Patrick’s sleeve. “Why did you lie? I don’t care that you’re cheating on me with Lily! But my father needs a doctor!” “If anything happens to him, I will make you pay!” The rescue team was still there, watching the drama unfold. Patrick’s face flushed with anger. “Stop being unreasonable! There’s nothing between me and Lily, so stop spreading lies!” “Her leg injury couldn’t wait! There’s another ambulance coming, what’s the big deal with your dad waiting a little longer?” Disappointment settled in my chest like a thick sludge, making it hard to breathe. “We’ve been married for seven years. Have you ever once thought of my father as your own?” It was a question that had haunted me for years. Patrick’s lips tightened, his face a mask of discomfort. … Patrick and I were each other’s first love. I gave up everything to marry him. In the early years, when we had nothing, I ate expired food with him, slept in a storage unit, and got covered in ant bites. He once walked for four hours in a downpour just to get me medicine. As he applied the ointment, he swore with tears in his eyes. “I swear before God, I, Patrick Croft, will make Anna happy for the rest of her life. If I break this vow, may I suffer a terrible death!” Later, when his business started to take off, my family finally relented. We walked hand in hand in the snow, believing we would grow old together. First love is sweet. So sweet, I thought it would last a lifetime. That illusion shattered after we got married, when the media dug up the fact that my father had been an early investor in his company. Suddenly, headlines were screaming that the proud young CEO was nothing but a kept man who had married into money. He never said anything, and was as considerate as ever, but something between us had changed. He smoked more, his silence filled with a simmering rage. One night, drunk and unguarded, he confessed. “You know what I hate more than anything? Charity.” “Anna,” he’d slurred, “I wish I had never met you.” My thoughts snapped back to the present. I looked at Patrick’s tense face. “That’s not important,” he said dismissively. The whole time, his feet were pointed in the direction Lily had gone. The irony was bitter. A perfect picture of a divided heart. By the time the second ambulance arrived, my father’s pulse was faint and weak. Once we were inside, I ignored Patrick completely, my eyes glued to the heart monitor. Not long after we started moving, my father’s heart rate began to drop, at one point slowing to just over 30 beats per minute. “Dad, please, wake up…” I sobbed. Patrick finished a phone call and stood up. “Can you drive any faster? And don’t take the long way to the city, go to the nearest town hospital!” A few minutes later, my father’s heart rate miraculously stabilized. I was so relieved I could have cried. For a moment, even Patrick’s presence felt less suffocating. The driver made the ninety-minute journey in less than thirty minutes. We rushed him through the emergency entrance. The CT scan results were bad. A significant thalamic hemorrhage. The doctor informed me that the local hospital wasn’t equipped to handle it. He needed to be transferred to a more specialized facility. “Patrick, thank you for getting the ambulance to bring him here,” Lily said, pouting as she tugged on his arm. “I thought they would have the right equipment. I didn’t realize Uncle was so seriously injured…” The world tilted on its axis. I stared at Patrick in disbelief. He pushed Lily away and took a step towards me, his eyes full of feigned apology. “Anna, let me explain…” I turned my back on him and followed the orderlies as they loaded my father back into the ambulance. On the long drive, a part of my heart crumbled to dust. I knew, with a certainty that chilled me to the bone, that we could never go back. At the next hospital, the accompanying nurse quickly briefed the on-call doctor. After a call to the surgical department, the doctor looked at me with pity in his eyes. “Our only neurosurgeon is on leave today…” A roaring filled my ears. I was enveloped in a suffocating wave of despair. The nearest city hospital was at least six hours away. Without a surgeon, who would save my father? The rain was relentless, splashing against the pavement and soaking the cuffs of my pants. A figure appeared in front of me, a hand extended. “Anna, let’s take him home. Let’s be with him for his final moments.” It was Patrick. I recoiled in disgust, my mind racing, desperately trying to find a solution. Suddenly, I saw Lily arguing with a strange man in the hospital courtyard. “What is she doing here?” A strange feeling washed over me. I started walking towards them. Patrick caught up to me. “That’s Lily’s ex-boyfriend. He’s from a poor family. He’s been harassing her for money since they broke up.” He added, annoyed, “Lily has a boyfriend, Anna. You need to stop being so suspicious…” The man arguing with Lily was shabbily dressed, with holes in his worn-out slippers. He fit Patrick’s description perfectly. I stopped, turning back. My father was dying. I couldn’t waste time on idle curiosity. As I passed Patrick, a raindrop hit my forehead, and suddenly, everything became crystal clear. Wait. Those weren’t just any old slippers. They were surgical clogs. Ignoring Patrick’s shocked expression, I ran out into the rain. “Doctor, my name is Anna! My father has a brain hemorrhage, he needs surgery…” I grabbed the stranger’s arm. “Are you with them?” the man, Dr. Liang, asked, his brow furrowed. “This woman just told me she has decided not to sign the consent for surgery.” Patrick stormed over. “Anna, what are you doing, clinging to another man like this?” He grabbed my arm, trying to pull me away. CRACK. I slapped him across the face without a moment’s hesitation.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386112”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

I’m an NPC in the game Desire City. By day, I sell fresh, warm artisan bread. By night, I slaughter men for sport. It was pouring rain the night I was closing up the bakery. A man walked in, nothing but a black raincoat over his naked body and a hunting knife in his hand. I took a bite of my toast, bowed politely to welcome him, and then—right as his eyes widened in terror—I hoisted the chainsaw I’d been hiding behind my back. Vroom-chug-chug. Ten minutes later, his head exploded inside my industrial oven. Blood and gore everywhere. I beamed with joy. “Welcome to Desire City, player. Enjoy your game!” 1 Junior year of college, I took a gig singing at a dive bar. During the break, I downed a glass of lemonade. The next thing I knew, the lights went out. I woke up stark naked, locked in a basement. My white tee and jeans were gone. A heavy iron chain was cinched around my neck, and whips lined the concrete walls. Out of the darkness, a man in a tailored suit appeared, swirling a tumbler of scotch. Seeing me curled up in the corner, shivering, he looked disappointed. “You were singing in a dive bar, sweetheart. Why act like some innocent virgin now?” he sneered. “A girl of your… caliber? You’d make fifty grand letting a man play with you for one night. You hit the jackpot.” He balled up a wad of hundred-dollar bills and shoved them into my mouth, choking me. His polished oxford shoe ground into my bare shoulder. Liquor dripped from his glass, running down my hair and onto my chest. “Please… don’t…” I mumbled through the cash. In the dim corner, I suppressed my trembling and tightened my grip on a jagged, rusty piece of iron I’d found on the floor. Hearing me beg, the man dropped his guard. Just as expected. The moment he leaned in, I slashed the iron shard straight across his jugular. Slash. A massive ribbon of hot, bright red blood unfurled before my eyes like silk. “Gurgle… hkk…” Weird, wet noises bubbled from his lips as he flopped onto the floor like a dying fish. One stab. Two. Three… Ninety-nine. I slumped in the corner, gasping for air, my chest heaving. The man was unrecognizable—skin flayed, white bone exposed. He finally stopped twitching. But before the horror could set in, the mangled corpse vanished into thin air. [SYSTEM: Congratulations. Ability Unlocked: Infinite Wealth] [ROLE: ‘ The Sadist’ has logged off] A pale blue holographic panel floated in mid-air, looking straight out of a sci-fi movie. [Dear Player, welcome to Desire City. This metropolis is a paradise of violence, lust, money, and crime. Countless women await your hunt. Please, unleash your desires. Enjoy the game.] [Player: Ivy] [Role: Midnight Butcher. Nighttime Lethality +40% (Generated from First Kill Experience)] [Abilities: Loot, Infinite Wealth (Stackable)] [Kill Count: 1] A soft white light illuminated the basement. A black credit card lay quietly where the corpse had been. I dropped the bloody iron shard, dazed. My eyes drifted to the hidden corner where I’d found it. There was a tiny stain of dried blood and a few strands of long hair stuck to the scalp. The last woman locked down here had hidden it. Looks like she never got the chance to use it. Was she prey, too? The thick, metallic stench of blood hung in the air, but deep in my gut, a secret excitement began to bubble up. From today on, I am the Butcher. 2 Once I realized I couldn’t leave the city, I decided to lay low. The black card had no limit, so I opened a small bakery on a street corner. “Local billionaire Liam Banks, owner of the Highland Park Estate, went missing on the night of December 5th. His whereabouts remain unknown…” 11:00 PM. The last batch of bread was out of the oven. I brewed a cup of Earl Grey, nibbled on some toast, and quietly admired the familiar face on the TV news. Oh, so his name was Liam. Remembering how his face looked when I turned it into ground beef, I let out a muffled, happy giggle. “Welcome!” It was pouring outside. Just as I was about to flip the sign to ‘Closed,’ a tall, gaunt man in a black raincoat walked in. He took off his hood. His face was craggy and ugly. “Sir, we’re out of bread for the day,” I said from behind the counter, smiling sweetly and bowing. The man’s eyes raked over my clean face, lingering. He let out a dirty chuckle. Suddenly, he ripped the raincoat open. He was naked, fully aroused, and holding a gleaming silver knife. “Don’t scream. Strip.” He thrust his hips, waving the knife as he stepped closer. “If I have a good time, I’ll make your death quick.” Seeing me stand perfectly still, reaching my hand behind my back, a glint of lust flashed in his eyes. He rushed forward, impatient. I smiled and pulled out the chainsaw. Snap. The bakery became a slaughterhouse. A torso, severed in two, lay on the floor. I admired my masterpiece, finishing the last bite of toast on my plate. Best twenty grand I ever spent on the black market. This new tech cuts through bone like butter. Pop! The oven in the back kitchen heated up. The nauseating smell of cooking meat wafted out. Then came the sound of flesh expanding and exploding. I beamed. I pulled out my phone and ordered a new oven on Amazon. Once the remains vanished, the game prompt popped up again. [Congratulations. Ability Unlocked: Hacking] [ROLE: ‘The Flasher’ has logged off] [Player Ivy: Kill Count 2] The rain stopped deep in the night. I mopped up the residual blood, threw on my trench coat, and stepped out. There was a surveillance camera across the street pointed right at my shop. It was dark, the recording light off. He must have used a hacking ability to loop the footage before entering, ensuring no evidence was left behind. A perfect ability for crime. It meant that from today on, I was invisible in this city. On the way home, I stopped at a 24-hour 7-Eleven and bought some nachos and a Slurpee. The cheese was fake and gooey, the jalapeños spicy. I whistled a tune as I ate. In a few days, I’d probably learn the flasher’s name from the missing persons report. To me, these men don’t deserve names. Not until they appear in an obituary. 3 When I got back to my apartment, I heard faint sobbing from the next room. I bought this flat for myself, but I ended up taking in Faye, who had nowhere else to go. “What’s wrong?” I asked. She was shaking uncontrollably. I had to dissolve two Xanax in her hot milk just to calm her down. “Someone followed me on the way home… he… he touched me…” “Where?” “Downstairs, near the dumpsters…” Faye wrapped herself in the duvet, shivering with residual terror. I listened quietly. Once she fell asleep, I grabbed the trash bag by the door and headed downstairs. I also grabbed a claw hammer. On the third-floor landing, under the flickering hallway light, I saw a man kneeling on the ground. He looked haggard, snot and tears running down his face, slapping himself hard. “Honey, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to hit you, I was just drunk…” “I swear I’ll never do it again! If I do, may I die a dog’s death! Baby, please, just give me one more chance!” Hah. Barking like a dog. I gripped the trash bag, lowered my gaze, and kept walking. 4 This neighborhood isn’t exactly upscale. The streetlights in the alleyways had been broken for weeks, and the city never sent a crew to fix them. Under the moonlight, I reached the mouth of the alley and heard a girl screaming in the distance. I dropped the trash and followed the sound. A massive man wrapped in a thick coat was dragging a young girl deeper into the shadows. I recognized him. The local homeless guy. He’d been reported multiple times for stalking women, but the cops always cut him loose for “lack of evidence.” “Please let me go! My grandma is waiting for her insulin…” Lily struggled desperately, her young face gray with despair. The man didn’t hear a thing. He just obsessively clamped his large hand over her mouth. CRACK! A mist of blood sprayed into the air. The man went limp. His skull was caved in. White brain matter mixed with blood pooled around the girl’s feet. She looked up, saw the hammer in my hand dripping with skin and hair, and fainted on the spot. “Hello, 911? There’s a girl unconscious in the alley off 289th Street. I think her grandmother needs medical attention.” While I was on the phone, the corpse vanished. The alley fell silent. Peaceful. Even the splattered blood was gone. This is the setting of Desire City. Originally, it was designed to help men hunt without leaving traces. Now? It’s just convenient for me. [Congratulations. Ability Unlocked: Evidence Erasure] [ROLE: ‘The Stalker’ has logged off] [Player Ivy: Kill Count 3] [Role: Midnight Butcher. Nighttime Lethality +50% (Level Up)] The moment the new ability unlocked, the hammer in my hand disappeared. The call log to 911 on my phone deleted itself. Hearing the sirens approach, I grabbed a piece of cardboard from a recycling bin and covered the girl to keep her warm. Then, I walked away.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386128”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

As the New Year’s Eve countdown began, my husband suddenly said, “She waited for me for nine years. In the tenth year, I don’t want to disappoint her anymore…” I swallowed the sweet candy in my mouth. “She? You mean Chloe?” He didn’t answer. But he didn’t know I had already seen the diamond ring he hid. I picked up the phone and dialed. “Professor, I volunteer for the Time Regression Experiment. Send me back ten years.” The man on the other end was silent for a moment. “If it fails, you won’t survive.” If I don’t go, I won’t survive anyway… 1 Two days. Professor Chen said the preparation would take two days. Once the experiment started, I might cease to exist in this world. “If you need to, say goodbye to your loved ones,” he said. But it was New Year’s Eve. A day for family reunions. My phone was silent. Not even a generic “Happy New Year” mass text. I… ran out of loved ones a long time ago. In the dark, I let the phone ring for a long time. Finally, the other side picked up, complaining immediately: “It’s New Year’s Eve, why are you calling now?” My mom’s background noise was chaotic. Someone shouted, “Sis! Come quick, your daughter is here!” My mom answered cheerfully. She sounded so happy, but her tone dropped when she spoke to me. “Your sister is sensitive about you, you know that. You don’t need to call for New Year’s. If it’s nothing important, don’t call.” Click. My phone screen lit up. The call ended. Right. I forgot. After my mom remarried, she never wanted to hear from me again. In the living room, I heard the rustle of clothes. Julian put on his leather shoes and pushed open the bedroom door. He hesitated, then said, “I’m leaving.” I looked up. “Going to be with her?” Julian pressed his lips together. His gaze softened slightly, lowering his voice to persuade me. “Chloe stayed in the city just for me. I can’t let her spend New Year’s alone.” I didn’t know how to react. I just sat there, dazed. My eyes stung, but no tears came. Julian walked into the bedroom, reaching out as if to pat my head, but stopped halfway. He didn’t touch me. He said, “Stay home. I’ll… be back as soon as I can…” He turned and left. Slam. The door closed. The brightly lit apartment suddenly felt empty. Only his fresh footprints remained on the floor. 2 That night, Julian didn’t come home. I sat alone in the living room. From dusk until dawn. Until my phone rang. It was a nurse from the hospital. Her voice was gentle. “Ms. Li, don’t worry. With active treatment, recovery is possible. You have a long life ahead of you…” I was surprised she had my number. The young nurse sounded a bit shy. “That day, you looked so down, so I secretly wrote it down. I wanted to tell you, you have a great life ahead. Don’t give up…” I didn’t interrupt her. I looked out the window just as a mediocre firework exploded in the sky. It seemed to burn my eyes. I said, “Thank you.” But the words “I won’t give up” stuck in my throat. I couldn’t say them. After hanging up, I saw a new post on Instagram. Julian posted it. [Having you by my side is my greatest pride.] The picture was of a hand. Wearing a dazzling diamond ring on the ring finger. Our mutual friends liked it. [Julian, showing off even after all these years?] [Bought the wifey another ring? So jealous.] Julian replied to everyone: [Not Leah.] This time, the comment section went silent. No one congratulated his happiness anymore. I stared at that photo for a long time. Screenshotted it. No comment. 3 New Year’s Day. No food delivery available. I found a pack of dry noodles and cooked them. The phone rang. Julian’s voice was apologetic. “Still busy. Eat something first, I’ll be back soon.” Next to him, a woman’s voice, full of joy. “Julian, let’s eat at that place.” Julian’s voice was helpless but indulgent: “Don’t rush, let me park first.” The woman whispered, “Forgot you were on the phone. Is it Leah?” Julian hummed a yes. And then. His voice was cut off, as if someone sealed his lips. A muffled groan. The breathing on the other end quickened. I was silent for a moment, then reminded him flatly: “If you’re going to hook up in the car, please hang up first.” A few seconds later, the sound of a car door closing. Julian spoke again. “Leah, don’t talk nonsense.” On the other end, Chloe’s cheerful voice: “Julian hurry up~” Shop staff yelled: “Happy New Year, welcome!” I didn’t speak. Silently hung up. I didn’t want to hear their happiness. At that moment, I smelled something burning in the living room. The pot of noodles had boiled dry and stuck to the bottom. I exhaled gently. Turned off the stove and called the Professor again. “Not ready yet?” The man on the phone sighed. “The technology isn’t perfect. Once it starts, I have zero guarantee I can bring you back. Leah, have you really decided?” “Yes.” I was incredibly serious. “I’ve decided.” 4 When I arrived at the lab, it was completely dark. Professor Chen was waiting for me at the door, looking conflicted. “They say you lived a happy life after marriage, husband rich and loving.” I smiled. “But what they say is useless.” The Professor fell silent. Before stepping into the lab, my phone rang. Julian sounded surprised: “Where are you? Why aren’t you home?” He knew me. He knew I had nowhere to go. Or maybe because I didn’t respond for a long time, Julian said in a low voice: “Don’t be emotional, Leah. You and Chloe don’t conflict.” “Do you know, Julian? There’s something I never told you.” “What?” “Trash like you makes me sick.” I hung up. I found the screenshot and posted it online. [Wishing my husband and Miss Chloe a hundred years of happiness!] Next moment, I turned off the phone completely. Professor Chen’s expression was complicated. “I thought that call would change your mind…” I closed my eyes. “Professor, goodbye.” Opening my eyes again, I glimpsed his red-rimmed eyes. “I’ll find a way to bring you back… Leah, don’t say goodbye to me…” 5 Turns out there’s no weightlessness in the time capsule. Opening my eyes again, I was on the most familiar street in my memory. Not far away, a girl was sitting on the steps, hugging her knees, crying silently. I walked over. Gently touched the top of her head. She jumped. Stared at me with teary eyes. Of course I knew her. This was my 21-year-old self. The Professor’s time regression had a deviation; it brought me back nine years. This was the first year I was with Julian. I wanted to tell her. I am you from nine years later. But I couldn’t hold back the pain in my chest and started coughing violently. Little Leah was so scared she forgot to cry. She hurriedly patted my back. She said, “Why does my heart hurt when I see you?” I wanted to tell her, I am you. But before I could speak, the taste of rust filled my mouth. I lost consciousness. I suddenly remembered the causal paradox the Professor mentioned. Unknown information source violates the law of conservation of information. So I couldn’t tell my past self: Don’t be with Julian…

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386144”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

1 Frank, the focus of my wife’s obsessive ambition, needed a guinea pig for his latest pharmaceutical study. So Eleanor, my wife, had me committed to a psychiatric facility. Right after I’d had major surgery. They subjected me to electroconvulsive therapy until I was a drooling, twitching wreck on the gurney. Through it all, she just covered Frank’s eyes, her voice dripping with disgust. “It’s filthy. Don’t look.” Frank’s experiment earned him a prestigious nomination. To celebrate, Eleanor set off a fireworks display that lit up the entire city. And on that brilliantly lit, bitterly cold winter night, my right leg, ravaged by necrosis from the excessive electrical shocks, was amputated. To cover his tracks, Frank arranged for me to be fitted with a prosthesis and threatened me, warning me never to tell Eleanor the truth. He told her my leg had just been “injured” during the experiment. Numbly, I packed my own severed right leg into a cryogenic container. In seven days, at Frank’s award ceremony, it would be delivered to Eleanor as a gift. … My eyes were red as I begged Alex, one of the orderlies, to do this for me. Since I’d been admitted, Alex was the only person who had shown me any kindness. He’d told me he had a brother who looked a lot like me. But he was no match for Frank’s influence; he couldn’t get me out of here. Seeing me clutch my prosthetic leg, my sobs tearing through my chest, he hesitated, then finally agreed. He had just taken the cryogenic box and turned to leave when he ran straight into Eleanor. The faint, coppery smell from the container made her wrinkle her nose. She watched the orderly disappear down the hall before lowering her hand. But it seemed nothing could dampen her spirits today. She radiated the triumph of a conquering hero. “Frank’s experiment was a resounding success,” she said, her voice bright, almost speaking to herself. “He’s finally achieved his dream.” She’d been staring out the window at the dazzling night sky ever since she walked in, not sparing me a single glance. It was only when she noticed my prolonged silence that her cool gaze finally swept over me. Her brow furrowed. “Leo, this is just a small favor Frank asked of you. You were just recovering at home with nothing to do anyway. Here, you can make some new friends and help him out immensely. There’s no need to look so miserable.” Let me think. The old woman who snuck into my room to harass me. The old man who tried to strangle me, accusing me of stealing his money. The man who kicked me to the ground, screaming that I’d stolen his woman. These were the “friends” Eleanor was talking about. Frank had been force-feeding me handfuls of experimental drugs, followed by round after round of electric shocks, which had caused the tissue in my right leg to die. The doctor who treated me said if I had gotten to a hospital sooner, amputation wouldn’t have been necessary. But I didn’t even have my freedom. How could I dare to hope for proper medical care? Seeing my red-rimmed eyes and my refusal to look at her, Eleanor stepped closer, ready to question me. “Leo—” She only got out half my name before her attention was completely captured by her phone lighting up. Moonlight streamed through the window, illuminating the blissful expression on her face. In the twenty-odd minutes Eleanor spent in my room, she never once noticed that my right leg wasn’t real. Exhausted from the surgery, I was about to drift off to sleep when one of Frank’s lab assistants brought me my daily dose of pills. The thought of my empty trouser leg, the hollowness where my limb used to be, sent a surge of rage through me. I swept the pills onto the floor. The woman by the window flinched, then strode to my bedside. Without hesitation, she picked the tablets from the dusty floor and held them to my lips. Her voice was merciless. “This is part of Frank’s experiment. If you don’t take them, how is he supposed to write his report?” Tears streamed down my face as I turned my head away, but she clamped her fingers around my jaw, forcing my mouth open and shoving the bitter pills down my throat. Eleanor was about to say more, but she glanced at her vibrating phone, then turned and rushed out of the room, leaving her coat behind. I knew exactly why she was in such a hurry. I opened my social media feed. The first thing I saw was a picture of Frank with tissues stuffed up his nose, looking goofy and adorable. His caption read: Watched fireworks all night and came back with a cold. P.S. Taking an extra cold pill won’t kill you, right? The comment section was filled with Eleanor’s frantic replies. You have a cold? Why didn’t you say anything? You silly goose. We won’t know if you’re okay until you get checked out. I’m on my way. Eleanor didn’t come back that night. After midnight, I silently wished myself a happy birthday. I remember before all this, before the asylum, Eleanor had taken me for a check-up. The doctor had said my recovery from the stomach cancer surgery was going remarkably well. She had looked so thrilled. “The day you’re fully recovered is your birthday,” she’d said. “We have to celebrate properly.” But times had changed. Now, she was setting off city-wide fireworks for Frank, all to celebrate a nomination he hadn’t even won yet. The next morning, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, Alex brought me a tiny, palm-sized cupcake. “I remember you said today was your birthday, but… your leg…” He trailed off, but he still lit the single candle for me. These inhuman days had been made bearable only by his kindness. I closed my eyes and made a wish. Just as I was about to blow out the candle, a figure appeared in the doorway. Eleanor took in the scene, her brow twitching as if she’d suddenly remembered something. “Oh, right. It’s your birthday.” She fumbled in her coat pockets, flustered, searching for something she could pass off as a gift. But what she pulled out was a half-used box of condoms. Mortified, she shoved it back into her pocket. “That must be… someone’s idea of a joke,” she stammered. “I’ll get you a proper gift later.” I blew out the candle with a sharp puff of air. “Don’t bother.” My blunt refusal made her face darken instantly. She shoved her hands in her pockets, her patience gone. “Are you really going to be like this over a gift?” “When your father was critically ill, I was the one who paid for his treatment. And now you’re giving me attitude over some stupid birthday? Don’t you think you’re being a little unreasonable?” I just bit my lip, listening quietly. She was right. She had saved my family. I owed her a debt I could probably never repay. Even Alex, sitting beside me, couldn’t stand it anymore. He stood up and bumped Eleanor’s shoulder on his way out. The woman stumbled, her expression turning even uglier. She shot me a reproachful look and was about to leave when she ran into Frank, who was just arriving in his lab coat. Peeking out from under the collar of his white coat was the faint trace of a hickey. Eleanor’s anger seemed to evaporate. She rushed to his side, her voice softening. “I told you to rest at home. Why did you come here?” Frank let out a theatrical sneeze. “You kept me warm with your body last night,” he said, then added with a wave of his hand, “I’m much better now.” He suddenly remembered I was in the room and quickly composed himself, flashing me a smile. “I came today because we have an important experiment to run. I’ll need your cooperation, Leo.” A tremor of fear went through me. I looked at Eleanor, pleading with my eyes, shaking my head, begging her not to agree. But she just gave Frank a magnanimous smile. “Of course. He’s not doing anything else anyway.” In that moment, the guillotine that had been hanging over my head finally fell. Frank’s lips curved into a smile. He looked at me and added, “This one might hurt a little more, but you just have to bear it. You’ve cooperated so many times before, Leo. I’m sure you’ll do great.” A dark premonition crept over me. Eleanor had poured a fortune into funding Frank’s lab, letting him test his concoctions on living human beings, even using barbaric electroshock therapies. Every time something went wrong, Eleanor was there to clean up the mess. She seemed to enjoy it. But I never, ever thought she would let Frank torture me like this. I didn’t fight back, because I owed her so much. But after this experiment, surely, my debt would be paid in full. Frank clapped his hands twice. A team of technicians filed into the room carrying various instruments. Once all the equipment was set up, Frank took Eleanor’s arm and whispered, “Eleanor, I’m a little worried. What if this experiment fails?” A flicker of emotion crossed her face. She squeezed his hand tenderly. “It won’t. Let’s step outside. We can have them bring us the data when they’re done.” Inside the room. I lay on the cold gurney, staring blankly at the ceiling as they strapped down my arms and legs. The lights blurred. My consciousness began to fade. As they increased the voltage, my body grew numb, but my mind remained sporadically, terrifyingly clear. Through the haze, I heard panicked voices, the clatter of metal. “Shit, what are you doing? You can’t even control the voltage!” Then came the violent, full-body convulsions. I vaguely heard someone shout: “Get him to the emergency room, now! We might still have time!” I didn’t even struggle. It felt like I’d been bludgeoned into unconsciousness. When I opened my eyes again, I was in a new, unfamiliar room. Before I could speak, a man’s voice cut through the silence. “You really worked hard for this, Leo. Here’s a little something for your trouble.” Frank flashed me a mocking grin, pulled a single bill from his wallet, and placed it on my pillow. He turned just as Eleanor walked in. His sneer vanished, replaced by a look of contrition. He lowered his head. “It’s all my fault. I was being stupid, and I made Leo pass out. I’ve already apologized to him.” Eleanor glanced at me, then caressed Frank’s face with a doting expression. “It wasn’t your fault. You don’t need to apologize.” Then she paused, as if remembering something. She walked over to my bed. “The doctor said there was a problem with your leg. Why didn’t you tell me you were sick?” I remained silent. She had been too busy watching fireworks with Frank. I had sent her countless messages. She hadn’t replied to a single one. Alex, who was standing beside me, was about to speak, but Frank shot him a threatening glare, stopping him cold. Then he turned to Eleanor. “It was my fault. There was an unexpected complication with the experiment, and I got so busy dealing with it that I forgot to tell you about Leo’s leg injury.” “How could it be your fault?” she cooed. “He’s fine now, so it doesn’t matter.” I, the person in question, hadn’t said a word, but Eleanor had already forgiven them on my behalf. To make sure Alex didn’t say anything else, Frank steered him out of the room. Eleanor turned back to me, a hint of guilt in her eyes. “You’ve been cooped up for so long. I’ll take you out to a nice restaurant tonight. We’ll celebrate properly.” Without waiting for my answer, she dragged me to a boutique and bought me a suit. As I was changing, she saw the map of blue and purple bruises covering my back. The hand holding out the clothes paused for a fraction of a second. But in the end, she said nothing. She made an excuse and went outside to wait. Ha. She saw the state I was in, and she felt guilty? What a joke. Wasn’t this all her doing? At the restaurant, Eleanor’s eyes never left her phone. At one point, she excused herself to the restroom and was gone for over twenty minutes. When she came back, she finally remembered to ask the waiter for a menu. But she was completely distracted, randomly pointing at a line on the page. The waiter was baffled. She was pointing at the restaurant’s address. With a sigh, I took the menu and ordered for both of us. A little while later, just as the food arrived, Eleanor abruptly stood up and grabbed her coat. “Frank is being picked on at a party. I have to go, now.” She started to leave, then paused, her voice cold. “You should come too. It’ll be hard to get a cab at this hour.” In the car, Eleanor was completely absorbed in her phone, terrified of missing a message. We rushed to the location Frank had sent. The private room was anything but hostile; it was buzzing with laughter and music. The moment Frank saw me, the smile on his face vanished, but he quickly composed himself and looked down with a guilty expression. “I didn’t know you were with Eleanor, Leo. I only called her because I lost a game of truth or dare.” Eleanor, still catching her breath from rushing in, showed no sign of annoyance. “It’s not a big deal. We were just having dinner.” As she spoke, all eyes in the room turned to me. I dug my nails into my palms, wanting this farce to end. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going.” I turned to leave, but Frank called out. “Leo, my experiment isn’t finished yet. You can’t go home. You need to stay at the hospital a while longer.” A mocking voice piped up from the crowd. “So he’s Frank’s little lab rat. No wonder he’s covered in scars.” Someone else chimed in. “Scars are one thing, but a cripple in a suit that expensive? What a waste. It looks awful.” I kept my back to them, digging my thumbnail into the soft flesh of my hand, fighting down the bitter taste in my throat. Eleanor acted as if she hadn’t heard a thing. She just backed Frank up. “Frank’s right. You can’t give up now. You should go back to the hospital.” I clenched my jaw and endured it. But before I could even leave the room, my phone rang. It was the hospital. “Mr. Evans? Your father’s condition has taken a turn for the worse. If you can, you should come and see him one last time.” My world exploded. I tried to run, but two burly men who looked like bodyguards blocked my way. I struggled, but it was useless. I looked back at Eleanor, my eyes burning with desperation. Her face was a mask of displeasure. “Frank has worked so hard to get to this point. Do you really have to cause trouble at the last minute?” When I didn’t answer, she became resolute. “You are going back to the psychiatric facility tonight.” I couldn’t hold back any longer. “My father is dying!” I pleaded. “I have to see him!” For a moment, she seemed to soften, but then Frank tugged on her sleeve with a wounded expression. Her tone immediately hardened again. “There’s plenty of money in your father’s hospital account. What good would you do there?” she snapped. “Frank has been nominated. The awards ceremony is in a few days. Can’t you just be happy for him for once?” My throat closed up. The blood in my veins turned to ice. Her face was a canvas of impatience. She gave a slight nod. The bodyguards at the door seized me, dragged me outside, and unceremoniously threw me into the van that had been sent from the asylum. It was a long drive. I was locked back in that cold, dark room. It was there that I received the call from the hospital, the one that confirmed the worst. In that instant, my mind fractured. I was plunged into an abyss of ice. For the next few days, I was a walking corpse. I let Frank do whatever he wanted, no longer resisting. On the final day, Eleanor accompanied Frank to the awards ceremony, bathed in the flash of cameras. And I was finally free. I took the plane ticket Alex had bought for me, the heavy urn containing my father’s ashes, and my scarred, broken body, and I flew back to my hometown. As soon as I landed, my phone screen lit up with a long list of missed calls. All from Eleanor. After a moment’s thought, I sent a single text. Eleanor, I want a divorce. Then I blocked her number and disappeared into the bustling crowd. Back in my old, rundown neighborhood, I let out a long breath. I was home. I was halfway through unpacking when my phone rang. It was Alex. “The city’s news channels are going crazy…”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386160”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

I don’t know when it happened, but a weird group chat suddenly appeared on my phone. I think it popped up right after I moved into my new apartment complex a few weeks ago. The people in this group love role-playing as animals. They chat enthusiastically every single day. Watching them talk was entertaining, but I felt like an outsider, so I just lurked. Until one day, I found a rat in my apartment. Desperate, I asked the group, “Does anyone in the complex offer pest control services?” Someone replied instantly: [Two cans of tuna. Honest work, no haggling.] 1 Ever since I moved, this group chat has been sitting on my phone. The group name is “Oakwood Apartments Community Chat.” It sounded normal enough, so I assumed the property management added me and ignored it. Until one day, I accidentally glanced at the chat history. EvilFleece: [Damn it! Mom caught me stealing snacks and spanked my butt. I’m gonna chew up her slippers tonight.] BritishGent: [Pathetic! Letting the poop-scooper walk all over you.] [Image: I am the Emperor] GoldenChonk: [Question: Does anyone else feel like the water is spicy today?] BritishGent: [Idiot! The water dispenser is probably leaking electricity. Kick it over already.] SweetCheese: [Mom wants to clip my nails. Police! Someone call the paw-lice!] I read through the chat with relish, figuring it was just some imaginative kids in the building role-playing as animals. Honestly, their cute conversations were kind of healing. Suddenly, a new message popped up. LittleHusky: [I think a stranger came into my house.] [Sticker: Peeking from the shadows] His avatar was a small Husky puppy. Based on his previous messages, he seemed like a four or five-year-old kid. My heart tightened. Just as I was about to ask if he was home alone, the other group members started roasting his intelligence. Group: [Are you sure it’s a stranger?] Group: [Last time you said that, it was just your dad in a new jacket.] SweetCheese: [Paw-lice! I’ll call the paw-lice for you!] I hesitated, finger hovering over the property manager’s contact. The next second, LittleHusky replied: [Hehe, false alarm. It was just Dad wearing a mask. As a reward, I’m gonna pee in his room tonight.] Crisis averted. I chuckled, but a strange feeling lingered in the back of my mind. Something felt… off. 2 One evening, I came back late from a job interview. I flipped the light switch, and a dark shadow darted across the living room floor. My heart skipped a beat. I crouched down to check under the coffee table. Suddenly, a huge rat charged straight for my feet. I screamed and jumped onto the coffee table. Terrified, I typed a plea into the group chat: [There’s a rat in my apartment! Is there any reliable pest control nearby that can come immediately? Urgent!] Group: [Meow? A rat? What’s a rat?] Group: [A rat is a fast little toy that squeaks when you squeeze it. Dad won’t let me play with them.] Group: [Are you new? Never seen you before. Why is your avatar a human? What species is your household?] Wait, avatars can’t be humans? And what did they mean by “species”? I didn’t have time to think. The squeaking of the rat made my skin crawl. I opened an app to find a professional service, but suddenly, someone tagged me in the group. AAA Pest Control Orange Bro: [Two cans of tuna. No bargaining. Immediate service.] [I’m at your door. Open up, meow.] That fast? I opened the door. The hallway was empty. Just as I was about to close it, a meow caught my attention. An orange tabby cat was sitting politely at my doorstep, paws neatly together. Our eyes met, and an impossible thought crossed my mind. “Are you… AAA Pest Control Orange Bro?” The tabby meowed twice. My phone buzzed. Orange Bro: [It is cat.] Orange Bro: [Two cans. Start work immediately.] I laughed, reaching out to pet his head. He dodged. Orange Bro: [Meow meow meow. That’s extra. Pets cost half a sausage.] 3 I didn’t have pets, so naturally, I didn’t have cat food. I negotiated with Orange Bro to pay him with four sausages instead. He licked his paw and agreed. But he demanded installment payments. Deal. Master Orange was agile, tracking the rat from the living room to the kitchen. Aside from accidentally knocking over my water glass, the operation was a success. Orange Bro, considerate of my fear, left the dead rat outside the door. Orange Bro: [Human, cat accidentally broke your cup. Cat can take one less sausage.] I shook my head and typed: [A deal is a deal. Four sausages. But can I get a free pet?] Orange Bro let out a soft meow. He lowered his head and rubbed it against my palm. Before leaving, he told me I could summon him in the group anytime. Once the apartment was quiet, reality set in. It felt like a dream. The animals in the Oakwood Apartments Community Chat… were real. Those avatars were literally them. 4 No matter how magical last night was, when the sun rose, I still had to face reality: job hunting in a strange city. I lived on the 12th floor. When the elevator stopped at the 10th, a guy walked in with a Husky. The dog looked familiar. I stared at it. It sensed my gaze and stared back. The guy noticed our staring contest. “You two… know each other?” I waved my hands frantically. How could I explain that I suspected this was the Husky from the group chat? I couldn’t exactly ask, “Did he pee in your room yesterday?” Suddenly, my phone pinged. MyDadCallsMeSmarty: [Saw a sister in the elevator. Looks familiar. She smells nice. Want pets.] EvilFleece: [Stupid dog!] BritishGent: [Idiot!] I tentatively reached out a hand. The Husky immediately leaned in for a rub. The guy looked at me like, See? You definitely know each other. While petting the dog, I asked gently, “What’s your name?” “Ethan,” the guy replied. I squatted down and squeezed the dog’s paw. “Hi there, Ethan.” The guy: “…” “I’m Ethan!” I looked up, mortified. “Sorry, sorry! My brain isn’t working.” Ethan blushed slightly. “It’s okay. His name is… Ball.” Smarty: [Smarty! Sister, my name is Smarty! Stupid Dad got my name wrong again! Fight me!] Smarty immediately stood on his hind legs and started boxing Ethan in the elevator. Ethan cursed, “Stupid dog!” while trying to block the paws. I stood there laughing and trying to mediate.

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “386176”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel