Emma Cole, a nerd in high school and untouched all throughout her life at a community college, was abandoned by her birth parents and grew up in foster care homes all around New York. Whenever her name was mentioned, the people who knew her laughed and called her foul names, since she looked like the female version of Steve Urkel and was easy to pick on and belittle. She had no sense of style. All she wore were big dresses that hid her tiny figure underneath and glasses which didn"t do her eyes any justice. She owned one bag-- a beat-up leather she received as a gift from a spelling bee contest her freshman year in high school. Though she went to school, she had no friends, no family, and no one to teach her about becoming a lady. Emma had done everything by herself since she was one year old-- the age she was dumped by her parents into the foster system. At age twenty three, she lived in a very small apartment by herself. She wasn"t able to land a high-paying job to afford a good house, as of yet. Every time she applied to a vacant position she may have seen in a newspaper in the cafe, they would turn her down when she went to the interviews and the interviewers took one look at her. Appearance was more than her qualifications if she wanted to land a job as a receptionist or personal assistant at one of the big firms in New York City. Emma decided to stop hoping for a better job and stuck with being a waitress at Carl"s Cafe. Her hell on earth. Carl was the manager and owner of the cafe. A grown man, forty-five years old, who had experienced all the things he had chosen to chase in his pathetic life. He was a terrible boss and treated his employees as his personal slaves with low wages. One of his nasty habits was hitting on his female employees while on the job, but he never hit on Emma. Although she was a female, she just wasn"t his type and was too unattractive to even be bothered with.
Emma Cole, a nerd in high school and untouched all throughout her life at a community college, was abandoned by her birth parents and grew up in foster care homes all around New York. Whenever her name was mentioned, the people who knew her laughed and called her foul names, since she looked like the female version of Steve Urkel and was easy to pick on and belittle. She had no sense of style. All she wore were big dresses that hid her tiny figure underneath and glasses which didn't do her eyes any justice.
She owned one bag-- a beat-up leather she received as a gift from a spelling bee contest her freshman year in high school.
Though she went to school, she had no friends, no family, and no one to teach her about becoming a lady. Emma had done everything by herself since she was one year old-- the age she was dumped by her parents into the foster system.
At age twenty three, she lived in a very small apartment by herself. She wasn't able to land a high-paying job to afford a good house, as of yet. Every time she applied to a vacant position she may have seen in a newspaper in the cafe, they would turn her down when she went to the interviews and the interviewers took one look at her. Appearance was more than her qualifications if she wanted to land a job as a receptionist or personal assistant at one of the big firms in New York City.
Emma decided to stop hoping for a better job and stuck with being a waitress at Carl's Cafe.
Her hell on earth.
Carl was the manager and owner of the cafe. A grown man, forty-five years old, who had experienced all the things he had chosen to chase in his pathetic life. He was a terrible boss and treated his employees as his personal slaves with low wages. One of his nasty habits was hitting on his female employees while on the job, but he never hit on Emma. Although she was a female, she just wasn't his type and was too unattractive to even be bothered with.
____________
It was Wednesday morning.
Emma had only just clocked-in. She placed her bag in her designated locker and began to take the orders of the customers, who were already in abundance for their morning coffee or pancakes and eggs or any breakfast meals of their choice from the menus provided.
She was about to deliver the orders to the kitchen when a pair of hands grabbed her by the arm.
'You have to work a double today. Tisha is sick. I need you to fill in.' And he was gone right after his command.
Emma continued to the kitchen to drop off the customers' orders. Since Tisha was sick, she would have to take her place at the cash register and coffee machines. She was about to have another terrible day in hell but, obeying Carl's command, she worked the double shift without complaint.
On Thursday, the same thing happened-- working a double without getting anything extra for filling in. And the same thing happened on Friday.
~~
Emma was drained, but it was finally Saturday, and it was her day off. She decided to visit a library and take several books to the park for a read. It was the beginning of summer, and she needed the fresh air.
She had just stepped out of her narrow bathroom when her cheap phone, which still had raised keys and couldn't connect to WiFi, rang.
'Emma, I need you to come in right now. Be here in less than twenty minutes!'
Before she could object he had hung up. She had really hoped for some free time to herself, and apart from that, she was exhausted, but she had to comply. How would she afford her crap apartment if she was jobless?
She took her precious time getting ready and arrived an hour later than Carl demanded she be there. He was furious with her and yelled at her as soon as she clocked in.
'I told your malnourished ass to be here in less than twenty minutes!'
Indeed Emma Cole appeared very skinny due to all the over-sized clothes she wore. Without even giving him a glance, she went to the customers to take their orders.
When she was making coffee for an angry, beer belly guy at the front of the line, who was yelling at her and calling her names, she lost her temper and threw the entire cup of coffee in his face. He had called her an incapable, handicapped, low-budget paying maid, who wouldn't even get extra if she shook it at a strip club because she looked like the hobbit in Lord of the Rings.
She had never been so humiliated. Yes, she had it rough in high school but it had gotten a little better at college because everyone there seemed much more mature than the bullies at high school. Now, this grown man was yelling at her because his coffee was ten minutes late. It wasn't even her fault. She was supposed to be off today. Had he kept his mouth shut, she wouldn't have splashed the coffee all over his chubby, beard-covered face.
Carl appeared just as the man was about to throw a table back at Emma. 'Hey hey hey, what's going on here?'
'That incompetent waitress of yours just threw a damn cup of hot coffee in my face, man!'
'Sir, please calm down and put the table down. I'll handle this,' Carl instructed. 'Emma! You're fired!'
'What, you don't even want to hear what I have to say? He embarrassed me and...'
Carl cut her off, 'Get your things and get out. I can't have you throwing coffee in people's faces and still have you working here. GET OUT, EMMA!!'
Emma threw her apron to the ground, took her bag out of the locker and walked out. 'I hated it here anyway,' she said as she passed Carl and the impatient customers on the way out.
When Cassandra's mother is diagnosed of a brain injury with no relative to turn to and no help forthcoming, Cassandra is forced to do the unthinkable which gets her tangled in a web of three men. And the result? Unwanted pregnancy. Amsey has never had a fatherly love and on finding Cassandra stranded and alone, he takes her in, offering to be the father of her child. But things aren't always as they seem as betrayal sets in, secrets get revealed, mysteries; unravelled, or if you'd like, puzzles; solved. Who will the father of the child be? The hypocritical Reverend, The deceitful John or the grumpy Employer? Oh! And not to forget; the foster father who is back after his betrayal? "The Child's Father" is a beautiful Nigerian tale which will keep you at the edge of your seats.
The ancients said: Happiness can't be bought with money! But ancient things aside, by the 23rd century, everything in the world has become private property, and people without money can't even breathe. This is an era when even oxygen has to be sold in supermarkets! "That's right, that is to say-money is omnipotent! Although money may not buy happiness, it can buy magic! As long as you use the latest mobile phone developed by our Miracle Group, it will..." Walking in the spacious street, Su Yue glanced at the advertisement played on the huge display screen of the skyscraper. She didn't know how many times she had listened to this line these days, and her ears were going to cocoon. "Really, Xiaoyueyue, wait for me." Behind the sound almost to let her get goose bumps of affectionate cry, Su Yue helplessly back, see is a drag two huge suitcase difficult in the crowd through the woman. "Qin Hailan, I repeat, don't call me with that strange scale." Very not easy to drag two huge suitcases to the front of Su Yue, then the woman was able to catch her breath, but I don't know why Su Yue always feel she is installed. "Who told Xiaoyueyue that you are so cruel to let people take two suitcases? This is very heavy..."
Prequel Because of a woman, the magic wolf clan suffered the disaster of genocide, and finally there were only three people left: the king, the heaven sacrifice, and the ghost pity-inscription Eight dwarf long-haired white horses, carrying a flaming soft sedan chair, marched at a very slow speed on the white Yuan Ye under the escort of thousands of white knights. The sedan chair is covered with furry snow mink, and there are several soft couches. There are ink, paper and inkstones and various books on the cases, which are like a study. The four corners of the soft sedan chair are equipped with heaters, which are as warm as spring, and seem to be in another world on the cold snow field. Xiao Bingjun knelt on the soft pear mat and was painting at his desk. The bright red skirt is scattered around the body, and the long black hair is draped on it, which makes her as delicate and charming as the hibiscus blossoms in bud. Compared with her twin sister, she always seems to be happy when she turns sixteen. Even if she knew that she was going to marry a man who didn't even know his appearance and temperament, she didn't think it was a serious matter. Since she married the king of Moram two years ago, she woke up lonely every night. But love son said not to let others know that she will wake up at night, she had to go to love son's pear garden every time, and love son's favorite pear tree chat. "Young master, who are you drawing?" Qingyin, one of the little maids kneeling beside her, asked curiously. The other three ladies-in-waiting gathered together, saw the completed portrait of the teenager, and chirped about it. "Silver hair." "Where in the world can there be such a beautiful person?" "It seems... where have you heard of such a person... hey, even your eyes are silver?" The teenager in the picture is wearing an elegant white robe, with long silver hair that grows to the waist hanging on his back. His handsome face is not like a mortal with a gentle smile, which makes the looking figure warm by the warm spring day. Xiao Bingjun bent his eyebrow eye, and two beautiful smiling vortices appeared on his lips. "I don't know, it's a dream person." Since falling into a lethargy at the age of eight, she has often seen things she had never seen before. Beautiful prairie, endless sea and forest, prosperous city than ice city, and people of all colors... When she was ten years old, she saw him, and from then on, "she" always followed him, so long as she looked at him, she would feel extremely happy. She did not know what was wrong with her, but she knew very well that everything she had seen in her dream was true, and so was the young man. After her son left, she even often went to visit her in Moran. It's just that love is always unhappy, which makes her unable to be happy. Now she finally wants to live the same life as Lian Er, and finally wants to know why Lian Er is unhappy. The maid almost lost her manners and opened her mouth. Fortunately, she was well trained on weekdays and controlled it in time, but no one questioned the silver-haired boy again. Ever since young master awoke suddenly in the spring when the pears blossomed, her strange lethargy for nearly eight years has become a taboo topic in the palace and the whole ice city, and no one dares to express any opinion on this issue at this time. Xiao Bingjun didn't feel anything about the sudden silence of the maids. He looked at the teenager in the painting gently and murmured, "I really hope I can really meet him..." I'm just afraid I won't have a chance in the future. Since she awoke, she could no longer go wherever she wanted, and could only stay in the palace every day, let alone look at him or his son again. I heard that the rules of Heiyu Temple are strict. Maybe I can only live there all my life, and I can't go anywhere. Thinking of Heiyu Temple, she can't help but think of the Lord of Heiyu Temple, whom she is about to entrust for life. I don't know what kind of person he will be. When she was in the palace, she overheard the old ladies-in-waiting talking, as if to say that he was very old and had heard of him when they were young. So how big is it? Will it be a white-haired grandfather? But it's amazing. It can make Heiyu Hall stand tall at the border between the Central Plains and the desert without being influenced by various forces. Any race and country should be afraid of him. There is nothing wrong with marrying such a person. Why should Mammy sigh and the attendants look at her with pity? Xiao Bing Jun puzzled and tilted his head, still laughing innocently. The teenager in the portrait in front of her seems to be responding to her thoughts, and her smile looks more dazzling than the sun. The maids looked at the girl's innocent expression, and they couldn't help sighing quietly in their hearts. Clearly, it is exactly the same face. Why is young master, the ice king, not as intelligent and governor as young master without love? It is really worrying. Go back?
It had been heard that Gu Qingrong, a handsome short track speed skater in University A, was a cold man of bad temper. It turned out that he was witnessed helping a cute girl to carry belongings on the day of freshman registration. People laughed and asked him to introduce that cute girl. He said in an aloof tone, "Zeng Ranran, my girlfriend." Born a family full of doctors, Zeng Ranran accidentally knew the secret of Gu Qingrong, a prince of University A. So she wanted to help him achieve his dream to be a member of the national team and take part in the Olympic Winter Games. One day, he stood in front of her, face aloof and voice hoarse, "Zeng Ranran, I don't want my secret revealed again. So there is a solution to it now.""What?""How about being my girlfriend?"
Shu Ya had never doubted Zhuo Hao's love to her until she found a hickey on his shirt.
"Sir, I am sorry to say, I have not the slightest of affection towards you , BTW, the dinner is on me, and never see you again." I am proud with myself for the perfect ending dialogue for the annoying appointment , turn around and dart towards the entrance, when the weird man suddenly grabs my arm ferociously and throw me into his arm, ..... "Ouch", I close my eyes tightly and await the unwilling embrace of the man with a painful look. "Miss, are you alright."A masculine magnetic voice penetrates into my ear. Instead of falling the man's arm, I unexpectedly drop into the bosom of a strikingly dignified guy,whose face is planted with a dimple grin. My body is releasing the bonding hormone that creates the physical addiction I have to this man.
Darya spent three years loving Micah, worshipping the ground he walked on. Until his neglect and his family's abuse finally woke her up to the ugly truth-he doesn't love her. Never did, never will. To her, he is a hero, her knight in shining armour. To him, she is an opportunist, a gold digger who schemed her way into his life. Darya accepts the harsh reality, gathers the shattered pieces of her dignity, divorces him, takes back her real name, reclaims her title as the country's youngest billionaire heiress. Their paths cross again at a party. Micah watches his ex-wife sing like an angel, tear up the dance floor, then thwart a lecher with a roundhouse kick. He realises, belatedly, that she's exactly the kind of woman he'd want to marry, if only he had taken the trouble to get to know her. Micah acts promptly to win her back, but discovers she's now surrounded by eligible bachelors: high-powered CEO, genius biochemist, award-winning singer, reformed playboy. Worse, she makes it pretty clear that she's done with him. Micah gears up for an uphill battle. He must prove to her he's still worthy of her love before she falls for someone else. And time is running out.
Rumors said that Lucas married an unattractive woman with no background. In the three years they were together, he remained cold and distant to Belinda, who endured in silence. Her love for him forced her to sacrifice her self-worth and her dreams. When Lucas' true love reappeared, Belinda realized that their marriage was a sham from the start, a ploy to save another woman's life. She signed the divorce papers and left. Three years later, Belinda returned as a surgical prodigy and a maestro of the piano. Lost in regret, Lucas chased her in the rain and held her tightly. "You are mine, Belinda."
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!
For ten years, Daniela showered her ex-husband with unwavering devotion, only to discover she was just his biggest joke. Feeling humiliated yet determined, she finally divorced him. Three months later, Daniela returned in grand style. She was now the hidden CEO of a leading brand, a sought-after designer, and a wealthy mining mogul—her success unveiled at her triumphant comeback. Her ex-husband’s entire family rushed over, desperate to beg for forgiveness and plead for another chance. Yet Daniela, now cherished by the famed Mr. Phillips, regarded them with icy disdain. "I’m out of your league."
Corinne devoted three years of her life to her boyfriend, only for it to all go to waste. He saw her as nothing more than a country bumpkin and left her at the altar to be with his true love. After getting jilted, Corinne reclaimed her identity as the granddaughter of the town’s richest man, inherited a billion-dollar fortune, and ultimately rose to the top. But her success attracted the envy of others, and people constantly tried to bring her down. As she dealt with these troublemakers one by one, Mr. Hopkins, notorious for his ruthlessness, stood by and cheered her on. “Way to go, honey!”
Yelena discovered that she wasn't her parents' biological child. After seeing through their ploy to trade her as a pawn in a business deal, she was sent away to her barren birthplace. There, she stumbled upon her true origins—a lineage of historic opulence. Her real family showered her with love and adoration. In the face of her so-called sister's envy, Yelena conquered every adversity and took her revenge, all while showcasing her talents. She soon caught the attention of the city's most eligible bachelor. He cornered Yelena and pinned her against the wall. “It's time to reveal your true identity, darling.”