The Happiness Monster
- Reads 1,103
- Votes 21
- Parts 24
He was born in a utopian society where everybody works together to ensure fair distribution of happiness for all the people. However, he is... different. His callousness, lack of empathy and troubling disregard for happiness of others makes him an outcast in his world.
She was born in a merchant's family and took off before her wedding to become a tech-hunter instead. A hundred scars later, she has realized that it was a mistake; and one that she cannot fix, not easily.
*
When I was a child, I was convinced that there is a limited amount of happiness in the world; that every time when I was unhappy somebody else was a little bit happier, and every time when I was happy somebody got a bit more miserable.
Flash forward to utilitarianism, to "Moral Tribes" by John Greene: "..for a utilitarian, the ideal world is one in which everyone is maximally happy, including the baddies. In fact, the ideal utilitarian punishment system is one in which punishments are convincingly faked rather than actually delivered. In an ideal utilitarian world, convicts would be sent to a happy place where they can't bother anyone, while the rest us believe that they're suffering, the better to keep us on our best behavior."
The idea was so outlandish and so perfectly SF-ish, in a "what could possibly go wrong?" way, that I thought of a prison planet Miasma almost immediately. And then added things, like bacterial enhancements that can change people's physiology just about in any way imaginable (and are not *that* far fetched). And then threw in intelligent alien life. That is kind of cute. And some weird sexual customs. And....
And then I ended up with a couple of notebooks full of NaNo-scribble, a realization that the story is sprawling in all directions, that it is this weird glob of "something" that is equal parts fun and unpredictable, and that I have always wanted to do serialized fiction.
All Rights Reserved
Join the largest storytelling communityGet personalized story recommendations, save your favourites to your library, and comment and vote to grow your community.
You may also like
Six Feet Under The Ground
True love exists... but timing is a shit. Just when he thought she's here to stay, she let him drown on his tears at the end of the day. She made him believe that his status will never interfere...until she made him realize how loud it could scream in their society. She has everything... He has nothing... She has to give him up... He demands an explanation why... Instead of providing him any, she resorted into something that will make everything easier than any option... and that's hurting him. Truth truly hurts, but lies are way worse. It wrecked her life but it ruined his soul. Just when she thought this nightmare belongs to the painful past, he returns... ...and he's back with vengeance.Complete
Bruised, Broken... Chosen
Her father thought he could cheat me. Borrow what wasn't his, disappear, and leave nothing but a trail of debt in his wake. Men like him never learn-there's always a cost, always someone left to bleed for their mistakes. He thought it would be him. Instead, it's her. His daughter. At first, she was nothing but a message. A way to make him suffer, even if he never came back to see it. I broke her down the way I break everything-piece by piece, scream by scream. I wanted her fear, her pain, the ruin in her eyes every time I came close. She hated me, and I fed on it. That's all I believed in: control, power, the reminder that I own what others abandon. But somewhere between her sobs and her defiance, she changed the rules. She fought me, and I should have killed her for it. Instead, I wanted more. She cried, and instead of silencing her, I listened. She looked at me, even in terror, and for the first time in my life I couldn't look away. I don't believe in love. I never have. Love is weakness, a lie people tell themselves before the knife comes out. But she... she's different. She's sharp where she should be soft. Brave when she should be broken. She makes me hunger in ways that no amount of blood or vengeance ever could. I meant to ruin her. To make her pay for the sins of her father. Now I want to claim her as mine. Not because of love-no, I don't use that word. I don't trust it. But because she drags something out of me I thought was dead. Something dangerous. She wasn't supposed to matter. But she does. And if I have to chain her, break her, and rebuild her until she finally sees me the way I see her, then so be it. She'll be my wife. My possession. My salvation. Even if I have to destroy her first.
FBI's Most Wanted
It started with hustling pool. He needed some sort of income. Living off the streets at twelve years old isn't easy in any respect, but it helps to have money. Then came the pickpocketing. It's amazing how much cash someone carries in their wallet at a time. Just a brief bump and he can easily slip a hand in a pocket. He'd have to use the credit cards quickly. He could match a signature well enough that a machine wouldn't care. It would only be a matter of time until the card was canceled, but he'd have it long enough to buy a new pair of shoes or a jacket in the winter. And the cash, he'd save that for a rainy day. Then came the shoplifting. He finds its easier to steal directly from the source. Hiding a twenty dollar shirt in a hoodie pocket was easier than finding the twenty dollars themselves, and showing up at the grocery store right when it opens and shoving an apple down his throat when no one was looking isn't as complicated as it sounds. It was never supposed to get violent. He was just trying to keep himself alive. He didn't expect them to be home. But then he made a game of it, and he never truly realized how high the stakes were - not until there were weapons involved. He did what he had to do. He snatched the knife, and what happened to the man, he'll never know. It was a nasty wound, though. If he did somehow survive it, he'll almost certainly never walk again. That day changed everything. It opened up a world of possibilities. He's been breaking the law for months, but it never occurred to him that he could just outright ignore it. He'll do what he has to do, and he'll do what he wants to do, and no law is going to stop him. And that's how this seventeen-year-old Gabriel Adams became the FBI's most wanted serial killer.Complete
You Can't Reject Me!
Her life wasn't perfect but she didn't think it could get worse. Infact she thought everything was getting better by the day. She would be accepted into the pack soon. She already had a few friends. All she needed was a mate to heal her scars from her tormented past. Instead he rejected her. She wanted to run away and never comeback like all the other rejected girls but she wouldn't. He was her mate and no matter how broken she was she wouldn't give up. But if she was broken how can she keep it all together?Complete
Professor Parks
Bellamy I was late to class. He made sure everyone knew it. Dr. Elijah Parks. My Microbiology professor. Brilliant. Distant. Impossible to crack. He barely looks at me. Barely acknowledges me. And when he does, it's to make some dry, cutting remark meant to put me in my place. But I see the way his jaw tightens when I push back. The way his hands clench when I tease. The way his cold, unreadable eyes darken when I step too close. I didn't expect him to get under my skin the way he does. I didn't expect to enjoy pushing his buttons, cracking that icy exterior until I saw the fire underneath. And I definitely didn't expect our late nights in the lab to start feeling less like work and more like a dangerous game-one we're both on the verge of losing. Elijah I don't like people. I tolerate them. I endure them when necessary. But I don't like them. Bellamy Rhodes is no exception. My late best friend's daughter. She's brilliant. Headstrong. Reckless. She gets under my skin in a way no one ever has. And the worst part? She knows it. I ignore her. I cut her down with sharp words and colder looks. I remind her, again and again, that I am not someone to be toyed with. And yet she keeps pushing, keeps testing, keeps smiling at me like she knows something I don't. She's temptation wrapped in chaos-bold, relentless, completely unaware of just how much she affects me. She pushes me too far. She tests every boundary I set. She teases me with that wicked little smirk, knowing damn well I'm close to snapping. She's forbidden fruit. And God help me, I've already taken a bite. *** Professor x Student Grumpy MMC that's secretly a softie Jealous/possessive MMCComplete
The unreachable mountain
"You're unbearable!" He kicks her with utter contempt. "Please tell me where I'm wrong, causing you discomfort was not my intention," she said crying, causing him to hit her against the ground again. "Do you think you can live with good intentions? Didn't you have all the time you wanted to change and learn? You still dare to ask for more!" He yells at her with hatred, he blamed her for being the one will cause a woman to be beaten; He didn't want to be that kind of man. However, what he lived with her caused him to bring out what he hated the most about himself from within. -Forget it love- said a woman who was next to her- it's not worth it- this dog was supposed to be her friend, she was supposed to support her just like she did; however he managed so that he and she hated each other and thus be able to steal it. The woman on the floor does not know how much she was framed and harmed by her naivety, nor did she know that this was the beginning of her misfortunes. Because of that woman she did not stop suffering, wherever she went she suffered verbal or physical abuse and everything was orchestrated by this woman; she didn't know until she was about to faint. "Why?" She asked this unarmed woman without knowing why she hated him so much. She never did anything to hurt him. She just laughed viciously without answering him, she didn't have to waste her time with an insect; leaving La to die imprisoned in the house where she was kidnapped. "Answer me!" She got up from her bed screaming "Eh? This looks like my room; Did I reincarnate myself in the past?" She ran to the bathroom just to see that her assumption was correct. She thanked the heavens for this second chance by promising that she wouldn't be fooled a second time.Complete
What It Could Have Been
I've been waiting for this moment for over a year now. Hoping, dreaming, holding onto the picture in my mind what life could be like. I always thought this would never come. Thinking it's impossible for me to have a new start. Go to a new place, see new faces, meet new people. It always felt like walking through a desert with a map drawn in water. But even then, I never let go of my dream. I would close my eyes and imagine everything. How different I would feel waking up in the morning, how light my chest would feel, how more confident and comfortable I would feel. I was kind of writing my own little story in my head. And now, I'm just one zip of my suitcase away and my story will be coming to life. ------------------------------- Venus Jennings didn't just leave Harbor Ridge, she escaped it. Haunted by loss and chased by memories she can't outrun. Venus builds a quiet new life in a new town where no one knows her name or the pain she carries. She wants a fresh start in hopes to finding something she's never truly had: Peace, freedom, and maybe even love. Lucas Solace is the last person Venus thought she would ever cross paths with. He's kind, sincere, incredibly handsome and impossible to ignore. He's everything Venus believes she doesn't deserve. With his charm and persistence she slowly catches herself falling for him. She doesn't want to because trust and love doesn't come easy to her when the past she's running from still haunts her in ways she can't explain . But she wonders if letting him in might not be so dangerous after all. As Venus begins to open up to new possibilities, shadows of her past resurface forcing her to confront the reality she's been avoiding instead of just accepting to be free.Complete
When I was Little, I Promised to be Kind | Aubrey Griffin
She grew up in a house built on chaos-screaming behind locked doors, bloodstained towels, broken bottles. Her mother self-harmed in front of her. Her father drifted in and out, never staying long enough to protect her from anything. So, she made herself small. Gentle. Apologetic. She promised herself one thing: never become like them. Be kind. Be quiet. Be safe. Now at UConn, she keeps her head down. She volunteers at the library, wears soft cardigans, and flinches when voices get too loud. She rarely talks, never argues, and says sorry even when she's hurting. Most people think she's just shy. But Aubrey Griffin notices more-the tight way her jaw locks when someone mentions family, the way her hands tremble when she's overwhelmed, the mask of calm that slips when no one's watching. Their friendship is slow, warm, and full of soft moments. Aubrey becomes her safe place, the one who sees her without judgment. But as the bond grows, so does the fear-what if she loses this too? The girl keeps secrets: her mom's in and out of rehab, her dad still calls when he needs money, and sometimes she disappears just to scream where no one can hear. Aubrey knows something's off, but never pushes. Until jealousy creeps in. A teammate flirts with Aubrey, just enough to make the girl feel like she's in the way. Instead of speaking up, she shuts down-answering texts less, avoiding eye contact, pulling away because she doesn't know how to hold on to good things. It's the first time the girl cries in someone's arms and feels safe. Slowly, she lets herself be loved. Aubrey becomes not just her first love, but the first person to ever make her feel like she's allowed to take up space. And one day, when she finally introduces Aubrey to her little sister-the one she used to hide in closets while chaos raged around them-Aubrey brings flowers and holds her hand like a promise: you're not alone anymore.Complete
True love exists... but timing is a shit. Just when he thought she's here to stay, she let him drown on his tears at the end of the day. She made him believe that his status will never interfere...until she made him realize how loud it could scream in their society. She has everything... He has nothing... She has to give him up... He demands an explanation why... Instead of providing him any, she resorted into something that will make everything easier than any option... and that's hurting him. Truth truly hurts, but lies are way worse. It wrecked her life but it ruined his soul. Just when she thought this nightmare belongs to the painful past, he returns... ...and he's back with vengeance.
More detailsContent Guidelines