/0/76321/coverbig.jpg?v=a26151f254aeb28515e0c97e119bc08f)
Lia Rivera is tired of being tongue-tied, blushing, and falling over herself every time Ethan Park walks by. So, she comes up with a brilliant (read: terrible) idea: humiliate herself enough in front of him until she's cured of her feelings. But as she dives headfirst into Operation Uncrush, things spiral - instead of pushing Ethan away, she accidentally becomes the weirdly endearing girl he can't stop thinking about. Now she's stuck between actually getting over him... or falling harder than ever.
If there were an Olympic sport for embarrassing yourself in front of your crush, I would've taken gold three years in a row.
My name is Lia Rivera. Sixteen. Junior. Certified drama queen, occasionally allergic to common sense. And as of this morning? Public enemy number one of my dignity.
Let me explain.
It started like any other weekday at Jefferson High - a melting pot of pastel lockers, underfunded vending machines, and enough teenage hormones to power a soap opera.
I was running late, again. Mostly because my afro refused to cooperate and decided to revolt like it had its own freedom movement.
"Lia!" My mom's voice echoed from downstairs as I wrestled with a scrunchie. "You're gonna miss your bus!"
"Tell the bus to wait!" I yelled back, yanking my curls into what I hoped resembled a bun and not a wild nest of secrets. Spoiler alert: it was the nest.
My mom, Rochelle Rivera - aka Queen of Sarcasm and Mom Jeans - popped her head into my room with a raised brow. "Girl, that bus waits for no one. Especially not for you and your full-on Beyoncé hair moment."
"Love you, bye!" I sprinted past her, grabbed a half-eaten granola bar, and slammed the front door behind me.
---
Ten minutes later, I made it to school just as the warning bell rang - heart racing, curls bouncing, and sneakers untied like some kind of tragic metaphor.
Jefferson High was buzzing. Posters for "Fall Spirit Week" were everywhere, reminding us that pajama day was coming, and so was a quiz in trig, which was not nearly as exciting.
I dodged a freshman with a trombone, barely missed slipping on someone's spilled iced coffee, and finally approached my locker with the grace of a penguin on roller skates.
That's when it happened.
The Locker Incident™.
One second I was spinning my lock (left-right-left-curse), and the next-BOOM. I slammed into a wall.
Except it wasn't a wall.
It was Ethan Park.
Six feet tall, lean build, perfect posture like his spine was sponsored by a yoga studio. Hair black as midnight and annoyingly perfect, even though we all knew he didn't even use product. His jawline? Sharp enough to file government secrets. And don't even get me started on his smile. It was soft. Like he knew how to laugh but didn't do it often. Like when he did, it meant something.
And right now, all of that was about two inches from my face.
"Oh my God-Ethan-I-" I scrambled back, nearly tripping over my own backpack.
He blinked. "Are you okay?"
"I-yes-I'm just-my locker betrayed me."
"...Your locker?"
"It moved. I swear. It lunged."
He stared at me, lips twitching.
Please don't laugh. Please don't-
He smiled.
Not just any smile. That smile. The one he gave teachers when he answered questions like he didn't know he was a genius. The one that made girls in Honors Bio develop asthma.
"I didn't know lockers had legs," he said, voice light, amused.
"I didn't know hallway crushes were fatal, but here we are!" I blurted out before my brain could catch up to my mouth.
Silence.
My soul ascended.
Ethan tilted his head, lips parted. And then-
He laughed.
Not a polite chuckle. A real, caught-off-guard, nose-wrinkling laugh.
I wanted to crawl into my locker and live there forever.
---
"LIA!" Maya screeched, grabbing my arm and yanking me away like the building was on fire.
"Wait, my dignity-!"
"It's gone, girl. Gone. Come on."
Maya Caldwell was my best friend and part-time life coach. Half-Trinidadian, half-sass, and built like a track star with the voice of someone who didn't believe in indoor volumes.
She dragged me around the corner and planted me against the wall. "You ran into him. Again. How many times is that?"
"Four," I muttered.
"Four! Girl. This is officially a pattern. You need help."
"I think I need therapy."
"You need exorcism. Why are you like this?"
"Because he has a face that makes my heart malfunction!"
Maya sighed dramatically. "You know what? It's time."
"For... what?"
She crossed her arms. "We're gonna get you over Ethan Park."
"Wait-what-no, you can't just decide that."
"Yes I can. It's the Uncrush Plan."
"The what now?"
"Operation: Uncrush Your Crush. New life goal: humiliate yourself in front of him so badly, your heart will give up and move on."
"...That is the stupidest idea I've ever heard."
"I know. Which is why it's perfect."
Later, in the cafeteria - aka the Thunderdome of drama and expired chicken nuggets - I nursed my water bottle and stared at Ethan across the room.
He was sitting with his usual crew - Lucas, his best friend and meme dealer; Jenny, the class president; and Olivia, who might've been his ex-girlfriend or current something. Rumors were conflicting.
"So," Maya said, plopping next to me, "what do we embarrass you with first?"
"Can we not?"
"Nope. You already fell into him once this week. What's left? Crying in front of him while reciting Shakespeare?"
I groaned. "Why can't I just like a normal person?"
"You? Normal? Girl, the last time you tried flirting, you offered a boy half your lunch and asked if he liked cats."
"Cats are a valid topic!"
"You said, 'Wanna see my cat's Instagram.'"
"...Okay, I admit that was a low point."
Maya smirked. "So. Operation Uncrush. You in?"
I sipped my water dramatically. "Fine. But if I die, put 'She Tried Her Best' on my tombstone."
---
That night at dinner, my little brother Zion flicked a green bean at my face and said, "You gonna tell Mom you ran into your boyfriend again?"
"Ethan is not my boyfriend," I snapped, wiping my cheek. "He's just a guy who accidentally saw my soul leave my body."
My mom raised an eyebrow. "Are we talking about the tall boy again?"
"He's not tall, he's just... normal tall. And no. We're talking about... algebra."
Zion snorted. "Algebra doesn't make you blush, dummy."
"Okay, first of all, yes it does," I said. "Second of all, mind your business."
My mom grinned. "I'm just saying. Maybe if you stop crashing into him, he'll stop thinking you're a walking disaster."
"...Thanks, Mom. That's very helpful."
"You're welcome, baby."
---
At 1AM, I lay in bed staring at the ceiling, questioning every life choice that led me here. Was this what teenhood was supposed to be? Hormones, heartbreak, and hallway collisions?
Probably.
I rolled over and checked my phone. Maya had texted me:
Maya: Step one tomorrow. Be ready. You're gonna trip in front of him. On purpose.
Me: YOU WANT ME TO WHAT?!
Maya: Trust the plan.
Me: I trust literally nothing about this plan.
Maya: Then I guess you're still gonna be in love with him at graduation.
I groaned. Ethan Park, you better be worth the bruises.
Shen Yue, an actress who just won the best actress award in the real world, wakes up in a popular entertainment novel as Shen Yue, a notorious villainess actress who bears the same name as her. In the novel, Shen Yue was the arrogant second female lead-a beauty who bullied the protagonist, stole roles, and used underhanded tricks. She was eventually blacklisted, slandered, and ruined, leaving the industry in disgrace. But Shen Yue refuses to follow the script. Instead of playing the villainess, she becomes a force to be reckoned with-using her acting talent and Wits. Face slapping the White Lotuses who stood on her way. However, the powerful man watching said,"My wife's Face slapping skills are awesome" Shen Yue:Who is Your wife?
Betrayed. Humiliated. Left with nothing but a shattered reputation. When Serena Lancaster, once the darling of high society, is publicly cast aside by her ex-fiancé, she swears never to let another man have power over her. Desperate to rebuild her life, she takes a job at Weston Sinclair's empire-the one man who has every reason to despise her ex. Cold. Ruthless. Untouchable. Weston built his billion-dollar legacy on control, and falling for his reckless nephew's ex is the last thing he should do. But from the moment Serena steps into his world, she becomes his obsession-one he refuses to deny. He should keep his distance. He should let her go. But when Serena's past threatens to destroy her, Weston makes a choice. She's his now. And he'll never let her go.
My boyfriend called, "Baby!" as he jumped out of bed and scrambled to pull his pants off the ground. "Please, I can explain my love." Shutting my eyes, I inhaled deeply and tried not to cry when I realized that my dream of the man not being my boyfriend had been dashed. "What?" I asked, "What do you want to explain?" How did you lie about having a business meeting while you were in bed enjoying yourself with my best friend, even though I told you I was in serious pain, is that it?" I stood there, my heart pounding, and tears streaming down my face...
"Where am I?" She whispered desperately " If I am reborn...I won't have mercy on those evil scums" Then a flash of bright light......
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.
"Mr. Evans, please maintain some dignity. Don't forget I'm your brother's wife!" Having caught her husband and best friend together in the bed, Elena wanted nothing more than to exact revenge on the people she once called family. She refused to be a pitiful divorcee and vowed to make everyone who had once looked down on her beg for forgiveness. And to start with her newfound freedom, Elena indulges in a one-night stand with a stranger. However, what was meant to be a fleeting escape turns into a nightmare when she learns that the stranger is none other than her husband's older brother! Would Elena be free from the shackles of her marriage? Or would the mysterious stranger make her life a living hell since he seemed to have a personal vendetta against his family? [The story is 18+ and involves mature content.]
"Lucien, let's get a divorce," I said in a peremptory tone that was long overdue, the most decisive farewell to this absurd marriage. We had been married for exactly three years-three years that, for me, were filled with nothing but endless loneliness and torment. For three years, the husband who should have stood by my side through every storm, Lucien Sullivan, had completely disappeared from my life as if he had never existed. He vanished without a trace, leaving me alone to endure this empty, desolate marriage. Today, I finally received his message: "I'm back. Come pick me up at the airport." When I read his words, my heart leapt with joy, and I raced to the airport, thinking that he finally understood my love and was coming back to me. But his cruelty was far worse than I could have ever imagined-he was accompanied by a pregnant woman, and that woman was Carla, my closest and most trusted friend. In that moment, all of my previous excitement, all my hope, and all of our shared laughter and tears turned into the sharpest of daggers, stabbing into my heart and leaving me gasping for air. Now, all I want is to escape from this place that has left me so broken-to lick my wounds in solitude. Even if these wounds will remain with me for the rest of my life, I refuse to have anything to do with him ever again. He should know that it was his own hand that trampled our love underfoot, that his coldness and betrayal created this irreparable situation. But when he heard those words, he desperately clung to this broken, crumbling marriage, unwilling to let it end-almost as though doing so could rewind time and return everything to how it used to be. "Aurora, come back. I regret everything!" Regret? Those simple words stirred no emotion in me-only endless sadness and fury. My heart let out a frantic, desperate scream: It's too late for any of this!
After two years of marriage, Kristian dropped a bombshell. "She's back. Let's get divorced. Name your price." Freya didn't argue. She just smiled and made her demands. "I want your most expensive supercar." "Okay." "The villa on the outskirts." "Sure." "And half of the billions we made together." Kristian froze. "Come again?" He thought she was ordinary—but Freya was the genius behind their fortune. And now that she'd gone, he'd do anything to win her back.
After three secretive years of marriage, Eliana never met her enigmatic husband until she was served with divorce papers and learned of his extravagant pursuit of another. She snapped back to reality and secured a divorce. Thereafter, Eliana unveiled her various personas: an esteemed doctor, legendary secret agent, master hacker, celebrated designer, adept race car driver, and distinguished scientist. As her diverse talents became known, her ex-husband was consumed by remorse. Desperately, he pleaded, "Eliana, give me another chance! All my properties, even my life, are yours."
"Listen, Gadreel Ødegaar," she looked at him, not hesitating this time. "It's my anniversary present for you. Let's divorce." *** Ivory Remington had sacrificed five years to look after her husband Gadreel who was in a vegetative state after an accident and a few months ago, he finally awakened like a miracle. She thought it was the start of their happy life but Gadreel still had no heart for her. On their anniversary and her birthday, she received a cheating video of her dear husband and her stepsister. Heartbroken, Ivory chose to quit this stupid game. She decided to set him free but the reason she left on the divorce agreement pierced Gadreel's noble pride. *** "Impotent? Are you serious?" He gripped her wrist and a dangerous glint flashed in his eyes. "I'm a woman, Gadreel. I'm tired of being in a sexless marriage. Let's end it once and for all." "Sexless, huh?" he chuckled lowly and without warning grabbed her chin in between his hands, pulling her face closer. "Turns out my wife was so eager to get a man between her legs? "