Maria only wanted one thing in life, a normal world with her parents. She made sure to get them the life they needed. She almost succeeded in getting that when she got admission to one of the top university in her town. But her life turned upside down by the bad boy Mike who she hit on the mall.
It was a chilly November night.
Like every other night, I woke up from the deadly noise of my dad coughing from the other room. I jumped from my bed. My bed can hardly be called a bed. It was in a terrible condition that could nearly hold me. My family was poor with hardly enough to fill up our stomachs. Our house was in a terrible condition that a minor storm was enough to eradicate it. If only I could find a job, I may be able to help my parents.
I was the only child of my parents. They were cobblers who work day and night to feed me and provide me with proper education. During some days they earn only a little that they even forget to fill their stomach. Dad used to earn very well a few years ago, but now he couldn't earn so much because of his poor health. He loved designing and making shoes for everyone. He always made me many lovely shoes when I was little. Little pink princess shoes, blue glitter ones, and red boots. But fate ruined us.
All my life I watched their miserable state. I never complained about my life, even to God, because I don't want to blame anyone.
My dad had health issues. He could not work for more hours because of his condition, so I used to help him whenever I get time from my studies. All our savings went to his medicines.
"Maria, fetch the water from the kitchen." My mother ordered.
I rushed to the kitchen and poured some water for my father.
I ran back to his room and gave the water to him. He was shaking from the cold. My mom helped him.
She was trying hard to control her tears. I rubbed the back of my dad so that he can control his breath. I know he was trying so hard.
Our little earning was not enough to buy him medicines. The doctor said that he needs better medication to get his health back, which reminds me I need to work harder besides my studies so that I may help him. I will be 18 next month. The first thing I needed to do is to find a part-time job that won't be a disturbance to my studies. I made a promise to my parents that whatever hardship I was facing I won't go back from my studies.
I looked to the ceiling and sighed " We need to find a new house. A small one will be better. That is the first thing on my bucket list."
I went to check on my parents.
"Oh, they fell asleep. I need to get back to my room. I am feeling tired." I took the old woolen blanket from the cupboard and covered their bodies.
I went back to my room. Hundreds of thoughts came to my mind, but I rolled on my bed to get better sleep.
The next day I got up from my bed early in the morning feeling half sleepy and tired. I went to the bathroom. After freshening myself, I went back to my room and put on my blue blouse and knee-length black skirt. I tied my hair in a messy bun and went to the kitchen to cook something.
I checked on my parents before going to the kitchen. They were sleeping soundly. So I went back to the kitchen to cook something for my parents. I made pancakes and coffee for my parents. I served everything on the table and went to call my parents for eating. Then I rushed to my room to get ready to go to my class. After I got myself ready, I went to eat breakfast with my parent.
I washed the utensils and cleaned the kitchen. After waving goodbye to my parents, I rushed to the bus stop. Yes, I needed to catch that stupid bus before it was too late.
My school was situated a few kilometers away from my home. My school was like a second home to me. The only place I enjoyed. The heaven on earth and the teachers there were really friendly, especially my language teacher Miss. Rachel Sunny. She was like a second mother to me, who always helped me during critical conditions.
My closest friend was Nancy. She was a sweet young, bubbly girl who was so close to me. She had been my best friend since we were six.
"Hey, Maria. Good morning. " Nancy rushed and hugged me as soon as I entered the classroom.
"Oh look at you glowing early in the morning. I am jealous " she made a face that looked so funny to me.
"Look at you cracking jokes early in the morning. I am jealous of how you are so enchanting and energetic early in the morning, " I copied her face.
"I wasn't joking. So are becoming beautiful day by day. You need to tell me your secret. " She said.
"So how is my bestie doing, " She added.
"Nothing new, dear. It's the same, sleepless nights and nightmares that won't give me peace to my life and mind, " I replied to her.
" I am so sorry, dear. I almost forget about your parents, " She added.
"It's okay Nancy "I smiled.
" Everything is going to be fine one day "She smiled and hugged me.
" All you have to do is get to that college miss Rachel told you about Maria " she added.
I smiled at her.
That night I dreamed about the fairy tale life that I always wished I had. In my dream, I saw a boy. He was handsome, tall. and well build. I saw him coming towards me. His feathery lips touched mine. His warm hands hugged me. I shivered from his touch.
But the stupid alarm woke me up. I tried to remember his face. But it was all blurred. I cursed the alarm clock. I never had a boyfriend before. I always wished I had one. So he comforts me from all these troubles I had in my life. I was interested in boys who were friendly and not cold ones.
"Ouch "
A loud thud along with an electric spark traveled my body.
"Shit" I cursed.
Looks like my little toe gave a warm kiss to the wooden leg of my bed. Seems like my boyfriend will be one hell of a guy. Even my toes can't stop thinking about him.
Rena got into an entanglement with a big shot when she was drunk one night. She needed Waylen's help while he was drawn to her youthful beauty. As such, what was supposed to be a one-night stand progressed into something serious. All was well until Rena discovered that Waylen's heart belonged to another woman. When his first love returned, he stopped coming home, leaving Rena all alone for many nights. She put up with it until she received a check and farewell note one day. Contrary to how Waylen expected her to react, Rena had a smile on her face as she bid him farewell. "It was fun while it lasted, Waylen. May our paths never cross. Have a nice life." But as fate would have it, their paths crossed again. This time, Rena had another man by her side. Waylen's eyes burned with jealousy. He spat, "How the hell did you move on? I thought you loved only me!" "Keyword, loved!" Rena flipped her hair back and retorted, "There are plenty of fish in the sea, Waylen. Besides, you were the one who asked for a breakup. Now, if you want to date me, you have to wait in line." The next day, Rena received a credit alert of billions and a diamond ring. Waylen appeared again, got down on one knee, and uttered, "May I cut in line, Rena? I still want you."
Lindsey's fiancé was the devil's first son. Not only did he lie to her but he also slept with her stepmother, conspired to take away her family fortune, and then set her up to have sex with a total stranger. To get her lick back, Lindsey decided to find a man to disrupt her engagement party and humiliate the cheating bastard. Never did she imagine that she would bump into a strikingly handsome stranger who was all that she was currently looking for. At the engagement party, he boldly declared that she was his woman. Lindsey thought he was just a broke man who wanted to leech off her. But once they began their fake relationship, she realized that good luck kept coming her way. She thought they would part ways after the engagement party, but this man kept to her side. "We gotta stick together, Lindsey. Remember, I'm now your fiancé. " "Domenic, you're with me because of my money, aren't you?" Lindsey asked, narrowing her eyes at him. Domenic was taken aback by that accusation. How could he, the heir of the Walsh family and CEO of Vitality Group, be with her for money? He controlled more than half of the city's economy. Money wasn't a problem for him! The two got closer and closer. One day, Lindsey finally realized that Domenic was actually the stranger she had slept with months ago. Would this realization change things between them? For the better or worse?
There was only one man in Raegan's heart, and it was Mitchel. In the second year of her marriage to him, she got pregnant. Raegan's joy knew no bounds. But before she could break the news to her husband, he served her divorce papers because he wanted to marry his first love. After an accident, Raegan lay in the pool of her own blood and called out to Mitchel for help. Unfortunately, he left with his first love in his arms. Raegan escaped death by the whiskers. Afterward, she decided to get her life back on track. Her name was everywhere years later. Mitchel became very uncomfortable. For some reason, he began to miss her. His heart ached when he saw her all smiles with another man. He crashed her wedding and fell to his knees while she was at the altar. With bloodshot eyes, he queried, "I thought you said your love for me is unbreakable? How come you are getting married to someone else? Come back to me!"
After three years of loveless marriage, Kira was slapped with divorce papers. She has shown him her unrequited love throughout her entire marriage with him, but he decided to turn blind eyes all because of his lover. Distraught and heartbroken, Kira choose to sign the divorce papers with bitter heart. But then and there, she promised herself that when she's back, he will come crawling to her, but she will make him pay for hurting her. Join Kira as she transform to a wealthy heiress and soared as the CEO of a multi-billion-dollar empire, a remarkable healer and make her ex-husband pay!
She was a world-renowned divine doctor, the CEO of a publicly traded company, the most formidable female mercenary, and a top-tier tech genius. Marissa, a titan with a plethora of secret identities, had hidden her true stature to marry a seemingly impoverished young man. However, on the eve of their wedding, her fiance, who was actually the lost heir to a wealthy dynasty, called off the engagement and subjected her to degradation and mockery. Upon the revelation of her concealed identities, her ex-fiance was left stunned and desperately pleaded for her forgiveness. Standing protectively before Marissa, an incredibly influential and fearsome magnate declared, "This is my wife. Who would dare try to claim her?"
As a simple assistant, messaging the CEO in the dead of night to request shares of adult films was a bold move. Bethany, unsurprisingly, didn't receive any films. However, the CEO responded that, while he had no films to share, he could offer a live demonstration. After a night filled with passion, Bethany was certain she'd lose her job. But instead, her boss proposed, "Marry me. Please consider it." "Mr. Bates, you're kidding me, right?"