Story cover for The Pretend Game || ONC2025 [Previously Fake A Smile] by Jedayo
The Pretend Game || ONC2025 [Previously Fake A Smile]
  • WpView
    Reads 775
  • WpVote
    Votes 49
  • WpPart
    Parts 20
  • WpHistory
    Time 2h 27m
  • WpView
    Reads 775
  • WpVote
    Votes 49
  • WpPart
    Parts 20
  • WpHistory
    Time 2h 27m
Complete, First published Feb 15
Genevieve Miller, an aspiring professional ballerina, is on the verge of achieving her dreams when a chance encounter with a charming photographer at a grocery store turns her world upside down. Chase Coleman needs a fake girlfriend to keep his clingy ex at bay. Genevieve needs to impress the prestigious ballet company where his mother holds influence. It's the perfect arrangement on paper.

But as their staged dates blur into stolen moments and unspoken feelings, Genevieve finds herself questioning everything-especially the undeniable pull between them.

With her ballet future hanging in the balance and a man she was never supposed to fall for, Genevieve must walk the fine line between pretense and reality. Because when love is just an act... falling might be inevitable.

•••

Prompt 22: When a renowned ballet dancer and an up-and-coming illustrator meet, their lives take an unexpected turn.

•••

FEATURED ON THE ONC2025 LONG LIST!
All Rights Reserved
Sign up to add The Pretend Game || ONC2025 [Previously Fake A Smile] to your library and receive updates
or
#429poc
Content Guidelines
You may also like
A Second Chance at Love (Millionaire Romance) by EmpressStar
41 parts Complete Mature
Nina who is a recent divorcee, gets a job working for a Millionaire as his daughter's nanny, all while trying her hardest not to fall in love with him. *** The last thing on Nina's mind is falling in love and getting back into a relationship. Nina is done with love after getting her heartbroken and divorcing her philandering husband. Now Nina is back at home with her grandmother with no job, but at least she has a place to stay. When a chance encounter with a millionaire happens at Walmart, with the hot Tristan, she finds herself working for him and keeping her walls built as she promised. But the closer they get to one another, the harder it becomes for Nina not to make those walls crumble down. Tristan knows falling in love is a trap. He doesn't have time for it, anyway. Taking care of his daughter and running a millionaire business is the only thing that's on his mind. That's what he tells himself until he meets Nina. He tries his best to keep things between them professional, but it proves to be hard when she always finds a way to kick in his protective instincts. Will these two be able to let their guards down and fall in love, or will they let their pride stand in the way? *** This is a revamped version of Nina's Second Chance at Romance. Character's names may be different or different characters altogether. The storyline will differ. Mature content 18+, please. Updates will be on either Wednesdays, Fridays, or Saturdays.
His FireLily - (His Fleurette's Secrets #2) by LosMarino
78 parts Complete Mature
Carissa Belfiore's mission was simple; hunt down the man terrorising her city and burn his syndicate's web of deceptions to the ground. The catch though? She must work together with the devil in disguise. 𐀔𐀔𐀔 Four months after the trail went dark, Cara and her team gain a second chance at retribution, at tracking down the man responsible for the mysterious chain of disappearances plaguing the streets of her town. Retribution, though, comes at a cost. Missing people and stolen identities unsolved, Cara's boss presents to her with a new ultimatum. She must pursue this mission with Asrea's top (infuriating) agent or lose the rights to the case. With no other choice, Cara must learn to thread the thin line of peace with the devil disguised as a federal agent, one who has little belief in patience and even less so for mistakes. Much like everything else though, it was easier said than done. As the two of them begin to dismantle the empire brick by brick, Cara finds herself pulling at loose strings tying the pieces of the missing puzzles connecting her past to her present. Strings, she soon realises, had been buried by the hands of someone desperately trying to keep her from finding out the truth. A truth that might just break her. No retrogrades, no reversals, and no unknowing the known. If only she could've done it alone, for even the devil must be paid his dues. The devil whose icy, blue eyes never fail to see through every shield and every shadow she'd built around her heart, the very shadows that seem to calm within his presence. The man whose icy rage threatens to thaw her blazing heart. 𐀔𐀔𐀔 First Draft Completed on 12/1/2025 Completed on 12/3/2025
The Lease Up by LJRae0328
30 parts Complete Mature
Rescued from a blind date from hell, a career woman's one night stand with her would be savior has unforeseen consequences. **** Up and coming New York apartment manager, Vanessa Torres' life is going perfectly according to her five year plan. Well, everything except in the love department, but that will come later. On cloud nine from her recent promotion, she agrees to go on a blind date arranged by her friend. Little does she know her squeaky clean life is about to turn upside down, following a one night stand with a handsome stranger, who saves her from the disastrous set-up. Reputable, lease up closer, Gabriel Tate, loves to live life by the game of chance, with no long term plans in mind. Blessed with Adonis-like looks and a charming personality he's used to getting what he wants when he wants until one flip of a coin changes his life forever. Their lives become entangled in a heated competition to fulfill rental contracts for their respective employers, not to mention running in the same social circles within the apartment industry. They soon realize change and compromise are necessary not only within their careers but also life and neither expected to find love during the chaotic and dysfunctional rivalry. Open Novella Contest 2023 Prompts: #5 Flip a coin and make a life choice with it. Two choices, one coin, and no turning back. Do you dare? #25 "If he smiled at you, he'll break your heart. If she winked at you, she'll rip you apart. #39 On a blind date with a complete mismatch, you're increasingly uncomfortable , but too polite to leave. Then an attractive stranger comes over and gives you an out. © 2023 LJRae
Shade Of Love by Faithskyyx96
59 parts Complete Mature
**** COMPLETE **** VERY RAUNCHY **** This novel centers around Faith, a young black woman in her early 20s that's given up on the thought of love. That is until she finds someone who makes her think of reconsidering it. After her abusive ex & the toxic relationship she had with him, who knew that being inlove again was even possible? She meets a dreamy guy named Omar who seems too good to be true. She at first struggles with the thought of opening up & loving again, but realizes he's everything she's ever wanted. Will he win her over? Will they last? What demons will they encounter on their journey? Does true love really conquer everything? Tune in & find out! Disclaimer ⚠️ * There are certain parts of this story that are going to be rated 18+ only. I'm very sexual myself & wanted to make sure my readers felt that in my characters when reading this story. The mature content will have a warning in the beginning of the chapter, this is EXTREMELY explicit content.* ⚠️ * There is also violence/crime in this book. If that triggers or makes you uncomfortable please don't read it, there are entirely too many chapters where that is mentioned or emphasized on. It's a piece of my work. * Cover by @emmel_concepts 📸 Rankings & Progress • #1 #BlackRomance ~ 6/20/21 • #1 #LoveScene ~ 7/2/21 • #1 #Romance ~ 5/19/22 • #1 #Melanin ~ 4/9/23 • Began publishing on 5/30/21 I own all copyrights to my writing. I however do not own any of the images in this novel. 🖤
Mind the Gap | ✔️ by EvelynHail
37 parts Complete
| 𝟭𝟲𝘅 𝗙𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘𝗗 · [EDITORS' CHOICE -- NOVEMBER 2020] [ONC 2020 Winner] Two strangers on separate trains, divided by uncaring glass. A bond forms between them. But will it hold when their trains are bound for different destinations? Evan's heart has been bleeding since his little family was torn apart by divorce, and his nose runs with a cold. Trying to pick up the pieces of his life, he has changed cities, and he's about to change jobs. And he has run out of tissues. A woman's blue hair catches his eye at a train station. And her smile, fortified by braces, catches his heart. Sitting in her train, Iris revels in her future perfect. Her work is finally getting published and she has found Mr. Right. Nothing could go wrong now. Gazing out of the window, she sees the stranger. He looks miserable and sneezes, but her hands want to tousle his bed hair. A random encounter at a subway station. But both of them are caught in their tracks and when their trains pull apart, they don't expect to meet again. ⭐⭐⭐ This is a slow-burn, peculiar romance; an expanded Open Novella Contest Entry based on Prompt #61 in the Romance section: "After being jilted, you move to the city to hide your embarrassment, lick your wounds, and start afresh." Cover illustrations by @EvelynHail. "Mind the Gap" is ONLY available on Wattpad. If you are reading this anywhere else, it is a plagiarized version that may contain malware. ⭐⭐⭐ 16x featured! 🏆 ONC 2020 Winner! 📘 Featured on: "Editors' Choice" ➡ @WattpadExplorer "Satisfy Your Cravings" ➡ @WattpadExplorer "Purity-Realistic Fiction" ➡ @AvantPop "Love Yourself"➡ @WattpadSpiritual "Head over Heels" ➡ @Romance "Accept Yourself" ➡ @LY "A Little Bit of Everything" ➡ @NARomance "Finding Love" ➡ @generalfiction "Melting Hearts" ➡ @adultfiction "Consequences" ➡ @ChickLit ...
The Men Next Door by wildfirehoney
47 parts Complete Mature
✅ Complete ✅ When Campbell Kramer accepted a job offer in Manhattan, she never could've imagined what the city had in store for her. Namely, two handsome men who live on either side of her new apartment. One is older, one is younger. One is introverted, one is extroverted. One is serious, one is playful. Both of them want her attention. What could go wrong? ☲☲☲☲☲ ☆Brooks☆ My neighbor was the one to close the distance between us. She did it quickly--like she was scared the moment would pass away forever if she let another millisecond go by--and I rested my hand on the side of her face to steady her. Something about my touch must have given her courage. ♡Campbell♡ The men finally greeted each other while I snipped the green, woody stems and plopped them into the tallest mug I owned. Their sentences were short and awkward, and as I rearranged the blooms for the umpteenth time, the realization that they'd told each other what happened hit me like a south-bound train. I don't know why I didn't expect that. They were best friends, after all. I was just the girl next door. They had no loyalty to me, no reason to keep our time together a secret. ☆Luca☆ Her lips met mine slowly, softly, hesitantly--like she wasn't so sure kissing her neighbor was the best idea--and I responded just as delicately. But when her hand made its way into the back of my hair, our bodies melded together like a lust-struck alloy. And the only hope of separating us was to add more heat. ☲☲☲☲☲ Featured by: 📙 @Wattpad • Love Triangles 💘😈 (July 2025) • Spicy Summer Reads (July 2024) • Endless Reading Mode 🧡 (Jan 2024) • Summer in the City 🥵 (June 2023) 📕 @Romance • Love Triangle (April 2025) • New Adult (June 2024) 📘 @Ambassadors • Hot Encounters (Dec 2024) 📗 @ChickLit • Rom-Com (Oct 2025) • Ambassador's Picks (Jul 2025) Awards: 🥈 Romance runner-up (The Prime Awards 2023)
Heirs And Hunters by crazypoodle
57 parts Complete Mature
"Every step you take away from me only drives you closer to the brink of my madness. You belong to me, Winter. Any alternative reality or illusion you hope for- I will destroy them until your very existence is entwined with mine." -𝐈𝐯𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐞 Eighteen-year-old Winter has always been a quiet shadow, a shy spy avoiding the perils of the spotlight. But when she's tasked with stalking five powerful Heirs, her carefully crafted invisibility shatters. Her mission is clear: erase their scandals, track their every move, and never draw attention. Yet, when she crosses paths with Ivan Arcane-the ruthless heir to one of the world's most powerful empires-everything changes. At first, Ivan saw her as dull and dependent, an insignificant watcher in the crowd. A beautiful doll to be kept locked and safe somewhere- an innocence belonging nowhere near him or his world. But when she makes one fatal mistake, he uncovers the sharp, wild mind she's concealed beneath fragile masks of pink and purples. Now, Ivan is obsessed, determined to dismantle her defenses and claim her as his own. And In a world where power rules, Winter is no longer the Hunter in the game -she's Ivan's fixation, a prey to a predator and he'll stop at nothing to change the very narrative of the fairy tale so the villain gets the girl in the end. REVIEWS This book is so consuming. My heart is unsteady since i read this chapter. I read it trice and i am stil recovering -neilavni_love I am blown away. WTF just happend? -meladeeee I think i seriously need to go for a check up. Why does my heart race so fast reading every fucking chapter? -amara_sullivan IVAN FUCKING ARCANE I love you so much baby -googleydodley So hot for what? -kookieshopes •CHECK LIST OF TRIGGER WARNINGS INSIDE• •4 YEAR AGE GAP• •DUAL POV•
Connections | ✔️ by CxTannir
54 parts Complete Mature
[COMPLETE] Sorry this may be cringe, it was written very long ago A seemingly ordinary, working college girl meets a cool, undeniably sexy boy with millions of followers at his feet. How will their completely different lives allow, or prevent them from getting what they want? Expect some drama, flirty lines, steamy scenes, funny best friends, and perhaps, an overall epic love connection. ~ Carter came around the corner as his eyes darkened with a predatory gaze. Oh no. He took a step forward, minimalizing the distance with every dominating stride, as I froze in my spot. My breath hitched as his arms finally encircled my waist and his eyes locked with mine. In one swift motion, he flipped my body so my back was pressed against his chest and hands gripped the curve of my hips. "What game are you trying to play at Valerie?" he spoke in a husky voice. Goosebumps danced along my skin as his hot breath fanned against the shell of my ear and his fingertips lit a trail of blazing heat along the length of my arm. Mentally shaking myself from the trance of that which is Carter Bryson, I tilted my head towards him and whispered; "One where you'll lose." Quickly escaping his hold on me before the tension became unbearable, I spun on my heel to face him and slowly backed away towards the exit. "Good luck though." I added mischievously. With a smirk and a devilish glint in his eyes that could even give hell a run for its money, he replied; "I'm not a player though, baby. I'm the gamemaker." ~ ❗️Mature content. Reader discretion advised. Started 29/09/18. Finished 16/12/18. This book is not to be copied or reproduced in any way.
Beautiful People | wlw by ccstarfield
39 parts Complete
Perpetual quitter Vera Kwan thinks she's got it made when her style blog catches the attention of narcissistic actor Carmen Juarez, but after egos ignite a gossip war, Vera has to learn to balance her flighty ambitions and her attraction to Carmen's prickly, gorgeous manager Sharise before her Hollywood dreams fall apart like a cheap polyester blouse. ***** It's not Vera Kwan's fault that she can't hold down a job. A fashion school dropout, she dreams of becoming a famous designer, but the life of a style influencer is more grind than glamour. She just needs one big break, one chance to prove her styles are red carpet worthy. When a snarky post about her celebrity crush Carmen Juarez catches the actor's attention, Vera wins her ticket to stardom. As Carmen's stylist, she sets out to prove that she's more than just pretty clothes and the right filters, and maybe even win the affections of Carmen's aloof manager, Sharise, who she quickly finds herself falling for. After a clever fashion stunt goes viral, Vera is suddenly the most sought-after stylist in Hollywood. She even gets a job offer from Carmen's rival. But her style success may not be getting her any closer to her designer dreams, and secrets are beginning to fray her sense of purpose. If Vera can't figure out what's important enough to see through to the end, even when it seems impossible, she risks losing both the professional relationship that made her and the romantic relationship that might be the one thing that matters to her as much as fashion. ***** Complete at 100k words. *featured on Wattpad's A Latte Love, #WrittenWithPride, From Our Stars, and In her words #IWD2020 reading lists* Cover by the incredible @AnnaofthePond
Disarming Dakota | ✓ by sumeyawrites
44 parts Complete
Why wasn't I moving anymore? I'd gone still, muddled as what I should do. My eyes swept up off my body and on to the boy, catching a breath in my throat when he smirked in my direction, flicking two fingers two in the air. "Hi," I read his lips. Helplessly, I become entangled in his soft spoken greeting, taking the first leap to the captivating boy in the corner. I decided he was beautiful enough to become my distraction. My own little addiction until I left the safety of the pretend world we were all playing make-believe in. --------- Right when Silvia Ellington is about to start her senior year, her mother decides to have her move in with her aloof father and his "perfect" family in California. She promises to be on her best behavior, and for the most part, she's able to keep her snappy attitude in check...until she ends up going to a party one chilly night. In the adolescent madness, she finds a tattooed boy named Dakota. He's ungodly tall and has crystal blue eyes that can sway any good girl to do bad things. When they first meet, he makes it his job to show that he doesn't like Silvia. And he's got reasons. All she has to do is disarm this bad boy and unlock the secrets he's keeping deep inside. Before they know it, Silvia and Dakota embark on an emotional roller-coaster of a relationship that is bound to ruin a few lives. But when Silvia's own secrets come knocking on her door, will it tear them apart or will love prevail? HIGHEST RANKING: #1 in Action #2 in Humor #2 in Teen Fiction #1 in Drama #8 in Romance
You may also like
Slide 1 of 19
Tinder, Love and Care cover
A Second Chance at Love (Millionaire Romance) cover
His FireLily - (His Fleurette's Secrets #2) cover
The Lease Up cover
Ink & Lust: Wattpad Version cover
Second Chance | EDITING cover
Don't Fall in Love with the Flirt cover
A Royal Internship | Complete cover
Shade Of Love cover
Mind the Gap | ✔️ cover
Be My Special One cover
The Men Next Door cover
Heirs And Hunters cover
Connections | ✔️ cover
Skye and the City (A Romantic Comedy) cover
Beautiful People | wlw cover
Open To Love cover
Disarming Dakota | ✓ cover
Sweet Tooth cover

Tinder, Love and Care

31 parts Complete Mature

Hyacinthe Claiborne is simple. She's an introvert, a foodie, and can't go a day without reading a good book. But between classes and daily naps, she's come to the conclusion that she's wasting her college experience. So, when a dare makes her create a Tinder profile, Hyacinthe isn't worried. After all, it's not like she'll fall in love. Justice Davis is complex. He's made it his mission to do everything that could possibly end up on a bucket list, including making a Tinder profile. He barely uses it anyway, but Hyacinthe is making an offer he can't refuse. ---- Best rankings: #2 in Contemporary #1 in Black Love The cover and the story are created by me, so please uphold the copyright (ALL RIGHTS RESERVED). Thanks for the support.