Only after Victor and Alice were arrested and I was back in the hospital, this time in my own private ward, could I properly reflect on my current situation. I could now concentrate on the realization I had while speaking with that horrible cop earlier.

I was in a novel. I had possessed a character of a shitty romance novel. 

I did not want to believe it, but there was no other explanation for why I was being referred to as Emma, how I looked and sounded different, and why I could not recognize where I was. That realization was the only one that made sense, and it appeared there was no other to explain everything that was going on.

“Fuck, me.”

But it had little impact on my situation. At the very least, I knew where I was, but that did not lessen my concerns. It felt as if I had just gotten out of one problem and into another, potentially larger one.

But anyway, what was the name of that novel? 

‘What was it called?’

The name was not coming to mind. However, I could recall the key plot points because they were common, if not cliché, for the novel's subgenre.

It was too the first book I had ever read in that subgenre: bullied romance. 

‘All because I wanted to read something different.’ 

In bullied romance books, the male lead mistreats the main female protagonist. The male lead was also a bit of an ass to almost everyone, but more so to the heroine, until he "thawed out" towards her over the course of many chapters. And most of the time, the thawing out isn’t well explained. The male lead would occasionally be part of a gang or take part in a dangerous sport. You know, something that made him stand out, to show that he was 'not like the other kids.’ 

But, overall, it was like an intense enemies-to-lovers scenario, and everyone devoured such books. 

My teenage self was one of them.

They were also R-rated. Hence why I was a sucker for such books. There was something about heated exchanges and anger over certain characters' actions before s*x scenes that... well, if you get it, you get it. If you don’t, you don’t. It did leave me feeling conflicted, though.

And I later came to know there was also a thing about having a man pin you to the walls and force you to have pleasure against your will, basically doing anything to you without your consent that made me realize… there was something inherently wrong with me. 

Though that didn’t matter as much at first because it was fiction.

However, as I grew older and became more immersed in the dark romance genre - a sort of evolved bullied romance genre - while also becoming more aware of what was going on in the world, certain aspects of those novels began to irk me. It all started when I came across an angsty dark romance featuring kidnapping and domestic abuse. Much to my surprise, the female protagonist eventually ended up with her male lead abuser. And the novel received high ratings, which exacerbated my confusion.

I happened to realize that the female leads never gave as good as they got in such novels. Most heroines in such books are portrayed as naive and innocent, essentially becoming doormats for the male leads' bull crap. They were also quick to forgive the male leads for all the abuse they had inflicted on them, never attempting to make them grovel.

Because the female leads were just that nice. 

And even if they did, it was glossed over. And I later realized that many authors do not know how to give good grovel, which is why the forgiveness scenes were rushed. 

That was the most frustrating part for me. It typically went like this:

ML: “I’m sorry.”

FL: “It’s okay. I forgive you, even though you threatened to ruin my life/kill me multiple times. I love you.”

ML: “Love you too.”

They do not even speak about it. Like, girl, seriously?

Did you forget all those insults he called you before claiming it was because “he fell in love with you”? What about how you cut your wrists because of him and everyone else who mistreated you? What about the humiliation and despair he caused you? Did you even forget he drove you to the brink of sue of side? And how the hell did you somehow get your mental issues healed because of d*ck…

I digress.

Focusing on that won’t help with my current situation. Returning to what I was saying. I just realized I had gotten myself into a bullied romance novel. And as the female protagonist, at that. And the said novel contains almost everything I just mentioned. 

If I recall correctly, the plot revolved around the heroine being bullied and dealing with a lot of adversity in her life. The bullying was mostly mental, as in being gaslighted by everyone she thought she was close to, betrayals, and insults. There were also instances of dubious consent.

Which was for most of the s*x scenes in the book. 

The novel's name started with a C and ended with Maddox. But what was it? I felt it was somewhere in the back of my mind, but for some reason, I was having trouble figuring it out. 

Also, something told me that the word, and the entire title, were bordering on cliché. Cringe even.

‘Clucking? Cocking? Cooking? Cuckolding Maddox?’ it didn’t make sense. I shook my head at the last word because the novel was not a BDSM novel.

I pondered over it for a moment.

“C*mming on… Oh! Claiming Maddox!” I was glad when I remembered the dark romance novel’s title, moving to clap in relief, but then I cringed.

So anyway, the synopsis of Claiming Maddox. I do not remember exactly, but it went something like this: "Emma Kinsley is a girl who was accepted into her dream high school, Saint Lucas Academy. While there, she develops feelings for a mysterious boy. They start off on the wrong foot, but she is determined to win his heart.”

‘Kill me now. Send me back to my world. Or better yet, send me into a world full of dungeons and monsters. I’d rather be in Solo Lev—I mean, Lonely Upgrading. That would be a hundred times better than this.’

Furthermore, and obviously, the male lead of the book is Maddox. Maddox Grayson. The person the corrupt officer had mentioned earlier.

…

 ‘Breathe. Calm down. It is too early to start stressing about the characters of this world.’

What the hell was I going to do with all that information? In fact, what day was it? What season was it? Did I possess Emma’s character while schools were still open?

“Miss Kinsley?” someone knocked on the door to my ward, jolting me out of my deep reverie. The door slowly opened to reveal a nurse.

“Yes?”

Her presence was a welcome respite from my worries and thoughts.

“There’s someone here to see you.”

‘Come again?’

A boy then entered the room. He had brown wavy hair that appeared dark in the room’s lighting, light-tanned skin, and blue eyes. He also looked to be roughly my age. Or rather, Emma's age.

Aside from that, his casual clothing could have fooled me into thinking he was a brooding 25-year-old teenager. His clothes likewise appeared to be expensive. 

I didn’t know who he was. I was on guard, practically tense with apprehension as I looked at him. 

Especially because he was handsome.

“I’ll leave you two alone,” the attendant said, moving to exit the room.

‘Seriously, nurse? What if he's a killer or something?’

“Who are you?” I inquired after the door closed behind her.

The boy smirked.

“No one. Just… Your uncle.”