Since she was little, Arini felt different. Her parents, although kind and loving, always felt like strangers to her. She never felt like she was truly part of the family. And now, with the evidence of the DNA test results she found a few weeks ago, all her past questions were answered. She was not their biological child.
When a woman named Arini opened her eyes that morning, the white ceiling of the hospital room was her first sight. The distinctive smell of antiseptic stung her nose, making her head dizzy even more. She was still trying to understand the situation. In the corner of the room, a nurse was writing something down on her clipboard.
"Mrs. Arini, how are you feeling?" the nurse asked gently.
Arini just nodded slowly. Her body felt weak. She knew that everything was over. Everything she had ever believed in, everything she thought was true, had fallen apart.
Since she was little, Arini felt different. Her parents, although kind and loving, always felt like strangers to her. She never felt like she was truly part of the family. And now, with the evidence of the DNA test results she found a few weeks ago, all her past questions were answered. She was not their biological child.
Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes. Feelings of disappointment and hurt flooded her heart. She felt abandoned and unwanted. She thought hard, but there was no one she could ask for help. It all felt like an endless nightmare.
With the remaining strength, Arini lifted her body from the bed. The nurse quickly helped her stand.
"Thank you," Arini whispered softly.
The nurse smiled slightly, handing me a piece of paper with someone's address and phone number on it. "The doctor suggested you see a counselor. It might help."
Arini just stared at the paper expressionlessly. What could a counselor do? Restore a lost identity? Erase the pain of feeling unwanted?
After leaving the hospital, Arini decided to walk aimlessly. Her feet took her to a small park on the outskirts of town. A place she used to visit often when she felt chaotic. This place always gave her peace. There, under a large shady tree, she sat and looked into the distance.
Among the crowd of people passing by, Arini's gaze fell on a familiar figure. Her heart was beating fast. A man about 180 cm tall, wearing a white shirt and black pants. The man walked closer, and his firm face became clearer. His neatly arranged black hair, sharp eyes that radiated confidence, and a faint smile.
Arini gasped. It was Bimo, the man she had hurt in the past. A man whose relationship with Arini had ended so badly. They had both been involved in a small business together, but because of Arini's misunderstanding and selfishness, the business fell apart, and Bimo lost a lot. At that time, Bimo promised never to forgive her.
"How are you, Arini?" he greeted coldly.
Arini was silent. Various feelings were mixed in her heart-shock, fear, and maybe a little guilt.
"Bimo... I..." Arini tried to speak, but her voice was choked.
"You look different," Bimo said, squinting. "What's wrong? Why are you here?"
Arini swallowed. She wanted to get out of there immediately, but her legs felt heavy. "I... just want to be alone," she finally answered.
Bimo nodded. "Me too," he said as he sat down next to Arini, keeping his distance. They were both silent, lost in their own thoughts. Bimo stared ahead, at the trees swaying gently in the wind.
"I heard about your family," Bimo said finally, his voice low but firm.
Arini turned her head in surprise. "How did you know?"
Bimo shrugged. "News like that spreads fast, especially among people we know."
Arini felt her chest tighten. She didn't want to remember any of that. "I don't need sympathy from anyone, especially from you," she said defensively.
Bimo smiled thinly, a little cynically. "I'm not here to give you sympathy, Arini. I'm here for something else."
"What?" asked Arini in a suspicious tone.
"I need an assistant," Bimo answered briefly.
"Assistant?" Arini laughed wryly. "You're kidding, right? You think I'll work for you after everything that happened?"
Bimo stared at Arini with sharp eyes. "I'm not kidding. You need a job, and I need someone I can trust, even a little. And you're the best choice I have right now."
The atmosphere in the auction room was electric, thick with tension and anticipation. Spotlights illuminated the faces of the bidders, but all Isabella Blake could focus on was one man-Marcus Hale. She had been kidnapped and sold like a piece of property, and now, the highest bid echoed ominously in her ears. "Seventy million dollars!" shouted a man in a black suit, and Isabella felt a chill run down her spine at the staggering figure. She never imagined her life would end up like this, trapped in a brutal auction for her own freedom.
Aruna is a new secretary at a leading technology company in Jakarta, TechSage Corp. It was only a few weeks ago that she accepted this job, an opportunity that she believed would open many doors in her career. However, today felt different. There was anxiety that had been hanging over her since she woke up this morning, as if a bad feeling was waiting for her.
I received a pornographic video. "Do you like this?" The man speaking in the video is my husband, Mark, whom I haven't seen for several months. He is naked, his shirt and pants scattered on the ground, thrusting forcefully on a woman whose face I can't see, her plump and round breasts bouncing vigorously. I can clearly hear the slapping sounds in the video, mixed with lustful moans and grunts. "Yes, yes, fuck me hard, baby," the woman screams ecstatically in response. "You naughty girl!" Mark stands up and flips her over, slapping her buttocks as he speaks. "Stick your ass up!" The woman giggles, turns around, sways her buttocks, and kneels on the bed. I feel like someone has poured a bucket of ice water on my head. It's bad enough that my husband is having an affair, but what's worse is that the other woman is my own sister, Bella. ************************************************************************************************************************ “I want to get a divorce, Mark,” I repeated myself in case he didn't hear me the first time—even though I knew he'd heard me clearly. He stared at me with a frown before answering coldly, "It's not up to you! I'm very busy, don't waste my time with such boring topics, or try to attract my attention!" The last thing I was going to do was argue or bicker with him. "I will have the lawyer send you the divorce agreement," was all I said, as calmly as I could muster. He didn't even say another word after that and just went through the door he'd been standing in front of, slamming it harshly behind him. My eyes lingered on the knob of the door a bit absentmindedly before I pulled the wedding ring off my finger and placed it on the table. I grabbed my suitcase, which I'd already had my things packed in and headed out of the house.
On her wedding day, Khloe’s sister connived with her groom, framing her for a crime she didn’t commit. She was sentenced to three years in prison, where she endured much suffering. When Khloe was finally released, her evil sister used their mother to coerce Khloe into an indecent liaison with an elderly man. As fate would have it, Khloe crossed paths with Henrik, the dashing yet ruthless mobster who sought to alter the course of her life. Despite Henrik’s cold exterior, he cherished Khloe like no other. He helped her take retribution from her tormentors and kept her from being bullied again.
"Sign the divorce papers and get out!" Leanna got married to pay a debt, but she was betrayed by her husband and shunned by her in-laws. Seeing that her efforts were in vain, she agreed to divorce and claimed her half of the properties. With her purse plump from the settlement, Leanna enjoyed her newfound freedom. The constant harassment from her ex's mistress never fazed her. She took back her identities as top hacker, champion racer, medical professor, and renowned jewelry designer. Then someone discovered her secret. Matthew smiled. "Will you have me as your next husband?"
Rosalynn's marriage to Brian wasn't what she envisioned it to be. Her husband, Brian, barely came home. He avoided her like a plague. Worse still, he was always in the news for dating numerous celebrities. Rosalynn persevered until she couldn't take it anymore. She upped and left after filing for a divorce. Everything changed days later. Brian took interest in a designer that worked for his company anonymously. From her profile, he could tell that she was brilliant and dazzling. He pulled the stops to find out her true identity. Little did he know that he was going to receive the greatest shocker of his life. Brian bit his finger with regret when he recalled his past actions and the woman he foolishly let go.
"It was just one night stand, and now I'm pregnant with triplets? Gosh!" Josephine Jade never thought that she would have to run away from her own family while pregnant. She was alone, without money, without connections, with three fetuses in her stomach. How can she survive? However, Josephine couldn't give up now, until she managed to reclaim her arbitrarily seized property and get back at everyone who tried to get rid of her. A sick child, a past crush that comes back, a mysterious eccentric man, and a family that hates her, will weave together the journey of Josephine Jade's new life. "You have no right to separate me from my children, you bastard! I will survive and you will submit to me. Just watch!"
Kallie, a mute who had been ignored by her husband for five years since their wedding, also suffered the loss of her pregnancy due to her cruel mother-in-law. After the divorce, she learned that her ex-husband had quickly gotten engaged to the woman he truly loved. Holding her slightly rounded belly, she realized that he had never really cared for her. Determined, she left him behind, treating him as a stranger. Yet, after she left, he scoured the globe in search of her. When their paths crossed once more, Kallie had already found new happiness. For the first time, he pleaded humbly, "Please don't leave me..."Â But Kallie's response was firm and dismissive, cutting through any lingering ties. "Get lost!"