Familiar Zero 소설 & 이야기

"You didn't just make mistakes, Annabelle. You left me. You didn't look back. And now you think you can just show up and fix it?" A runaway past. A desperate return. And a secret that will change everything. Annabelle Bliss built her life on a lie. For five years, she has found peace in the quiet comfort of her books and her son, Henry, safely tucked away from the small town of Pittstown and the painful memories she fled. When Annabelle receives a final, devastating letter from the second mother who gave her everything, she is forced to return to the one place she swore to never see again. Now, every step on Pittstown's familiar streets brings her closer to the man she left behind: Patrick, the intense, unforgettable boy who grew into the man whose heart she shattered. Patrick doesn't know the truth about her departure. He doesn't know that the little boy who accompanies Annabelle is his son. When Annabelle and Patrick finally collide, the secret she kept to protect them threatens to destroy the only thing more powerful than their six years of separation: the fierce, undeniable love that started it all. Can a love that was fought for survive a truth that promises to break them forever?

Our daughter, Luna Woods, developed a high fever. Her body was burning hot. I immediately dialed 911 for help. The dispatcher on the other end kept repeating his questions. He spoke slowly, as if deliberately stalling for time. By the time I finally heard the ambulance siren, Luna was already turning cold in my arms. In less than a year, my wife and I separated. We were consumed by endless grief and blamed for each other. Afterward, I merely existed for the sake of it. I was a hollow shell of a man. Then, one day, I received a wedding invitation from my ex-wife. The moment I played the audio invitation, a chill ran down my spine. The groom’s voice was identical to that of the slow, dawdling dispatcher from that year! I rushed out, utterly distraught, only to be hit by a roaring train. When I opened my eyes again, I heard Luna crying in the next room. Her forehead was burning hot. My wife hurriedly handed me the phone. “Quick, call 911! I’ll get a wet towel.” My hands trembled as I took the phone. When it was answered, I heard a familiar male voice through the receiver. “911, what’s your emergency?”

It had been seven years since I broke the mate bond with Dark Wood Pack's Alpha, Shane Lewis. I ran a floral boutique in the Neutral Zone. On an ordinary day, a little girl stood at the door and was staring at me in a daze. She looked about six or seven years old. She was very pretty. Something about the curve of her eyes and brows felt strangely familiar, especially those amber eyes. Our gazes met. In an instant, memories flooded my mind like a movie reel. They were memories that had once caused me unbearable pain. I quickly called out to her. "Hey there, kid. Do you want to try this candy? "It's made from primrose. It's very sweet." She accepted the candy and listened as I talked casually. I told her that I used to be the Luna of Silver Moon Pack. I once had a primrose estate. Unfortunately, someone took it from me. I told her I once had a daughter too. She should be about the same age as the girl now. The girl looked curious. "Do you hate the bad people who took your things?" she asked. I looked at her for a long time and smiled. "Not anymore," I said.

Born into a blended family, Chantelle grew up on the sidelines, raised with love by her grandmother after her mother's death. Shut out by her father Gérard, dominated by his new wife Rhonda, and relegated to the background behind her pretentious stepsister Mégane, she learned to survive in silence. When her grandmother is diagnosed with a terminal illness, Chantelle's world crumbles. With no family support and overwhelmed by medical bills, she accepts a desperate proposition: one hundred nights for one million euros, with a wealthy man whose identity she will never know. The rules are simple. A blindfold over her eyes, a stranger's touch, and silence. He never speaks. She never sees. He leaves her with anonymous bank transfers... and the haunting scent of his perfume as her only memory. Twelve nights pass. Then, forced by her father to attend a family dinner, Chantelle comes face to face with Mégane's fiancé: Collen Wilkerson—the cold, unapproachable CEO of the powerful corporation where she works as a simple employee. He is a man she knows only from a distance. Arrogant. Untouchable. But when he steps closer, a familiar scent wraps around her, and the world stops. It's his perfume. The same as the masked man. She has already spent twelve nights in his arms. And there are still eighty-eight to go.

The moment my best friend dashes into the lottery shop ahead of me and rattles off that familiar string of numbers, I know instantly that she has been reborn, too. In my past life, my best friend and I were shortlisted for an interview at a Global 500 company just before graduation. However, there was only one opening available. On the day of the interview, I had a sudden urge to buy a lottery ticket, but as a result, I missed the interview, and my best friend got the job. As it turned out, I won the jackpot, totaling 50 million dollars. After graduation, I lived a carefree life, lounging at home and living off the interest. Meanwhile, after entering the company, my best friend was paid little and got bullied every single day. Eventually, she vented her anger on me and shoved me off a rooftop. I died from the fall instantly. After my death, my boyfriend covered for her, twisting the story to claim that I'd gone mad from idling too long and jumped on my own. The two of them fed on my misfortune, becoming influencers with millions of fans and raking in fortune. When I open my eyes again, I am reborn to the very day I bought that lottery ticket.

At the end of the year, I went to the spa and discovered a stranger had been using my VIP card. When I logged into my personal profile, the last three treatment records were not under my name. The preference section listed specific details about someone else. She was allergic to rose essential oil, preferred lavender, and her heating pad temperature could not exceed 108 degrees Fahrenheit. Her menstrual cycle fell around the 15th of each month, so no waist or abdomen treatments during that time. I stared at the screen, my palms turning cold. Only my husband, Zachary White, knew this password. At the time, he said he needed it to check the balance and renew my membership. I scrolled down and found a system note at the bottom: [Birthday treatment reserved for December 30, prepared according to Ms. Anderson's preferences.] Today was December 30. My phone vibrated. Zachary had sent a message: [Working late tonight. Won't be home.] Familiar laughter drifted from the hallway. Through the glass door, I watched Zachary walk into the adjacent room with his arm around a woman, the beautician hurrying forward to greet them. "Mr. White, we have Ms. Anderson's birthday treatment ready, just as you requested."

My superior loved tricking me into wearing tight-fitting pencil skirts to serve wine to sleazy clients while sticking close to them. Then, she would hint that I was single and a valid target while she excitedly waited for the clients to make a move on me. It was all in the name of checking the integrity of the clients and whether they were worthy business partners or not. The moment a client fell for it, she would rush over with righteous anger and throw wine in their faces. Then, she would lecture me with a voice heavy with anguish. “Do you lack money so much that you’d throw your dignity away just for better results?” She would trample all over my dignity to set up her image as a refined, noble woman. This time, she even prepared a gown with a super low neckline and pushed me to serve a client with a rich and powerful background. She threatened me by saying that if I did not go, she would deduct my bonus for three whole months of full attendance. But when I saw the familiar, cold man sitting in the seat of honor, it was my turn to laugh. If my brother saw me serving wine in this kind of dress, I did not doubt that by tomorrow, the company would be under my name.

“Lenny, I’m not telling you to hand over your engagement to Ava for nothing. I will make it up to you…” The familiar voice echoed in her ears, and the pain made Lena snap her eyes open. In a daze, she realized with a jolt that she had been sent back in time to exactly one month before her wedding to Henry. Her father, Chase Johnson’s earnest, pleading expression was identical to the one in her memories when he had forced her to give up her engagement. “Fine,” Lena said, her voice slightly hoarse as she abruptly cut him off. Chase could not hide the joy on his face. “Lenny, you’ve finally come to your senses!” A cold, detached look flickered in Lena’s eyes, and her lips curled into a faint, mocking smile. “I want one billion dollars–” “One billion? Have you lost your mind?” Before she could even finish her sentence, her father's face turned a deep, angry purple, the veins on his temples bulging out. Lena casually tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, taking her time to finish the rest of her sentence. “Plus, a legally binding document cutting all ties with you. We will no longer be father and daughter.”

"Dear wifey. I think we have unfinished business," Evan said, the moment he saw the gorgeous lady standing before him. "Sorry, Mr. Walton. Have we ever met before?" She chipped in with an impassive expression on her face. ....... One thing was to get married to the person she loved so much, another thing was to get him to love her back. Ava's life became miserable and fell to rock bottom, when she finally got married to the man of her dreams after her family went bankrupt. For that situation, every of her emotions were treated as insincere and she was regarded filth as well as treated with so much revulsion. Five years later after being mercilessly ousted from everyone's lives by divorce and family disownment, a new brand stepped out to take the spotlight from everyone. Ava Carson became powerful, wealthy, and also the best mum. "Mummy we want our daddy," her two adorable darlings clamoured the same words, ever since they saw their mother in a picture with a familiar man of similar resemblance. ***"**** "Dear wifey. I want you to love me again," Ethan knelt before her. "Ex-wife," she corrected him. (Ding! Chapters are updated daily!)

The proud and spirited Evelyn White relentlessly pursued the aloof and cold-hearted Julian Moore, eventually becoming Mrs. Moore as she had dreamed. For Julian, Evelyn, the once-proud princess, lowered her noble head. However, after their marriage, she discovered that he still kept his first love in his heart, an unforgettable shadow from his past. Evelyn became the subject of ridicule among the affluent socialites of Riverdale’s elite circles. One day, a heated argument escalated into a dramatic rooftop scene, captured by someone with ill intent and swiftly posted online, making Evelyn the target of public scorn across the city. When she regained consciousness, all memories of him were gone. Evelyn asked, “Sir, may I ask who you are?” Julian replied, “Eve, pretending to have amnesia is such a cliché. I won’t divorce you.” However, Evelyn really turned and walked away without looking back. Three years later. A little girl with delicate features accidentally fell into Julian’s arms. Seeing the familiar figure that haunted his dreams, Julian instinctively blurted out, “Eve, this is... our child?” Evelyn, holding the arm of a charming and elegant man beside her, smiled and said, “Mr. Moore, let me introduce you—this is the father of my child!”