Ten Years Later, I Woke Up as the Wife of the Mafia Heir I Once Hated Chapter 04

Ten Years Later, I Woke Up as the Wife of the Mafia Heir I Once Hated Chapter 04

On the way to the school, I stared out the window while Nick chattered happily beside me the whole drive.

So this was what the world looked like ten years later…

Honestly? It wasn’t that different. Technology hadn’t advanced nearly as much as I’d expected. I was quietly taking mental notes, but for some reason, the streets and buildings outside felt weirdly familiar.

Before I could figure out why, the car pulled up in front of the school.

Nick was bouncing off the walls with excitement. The second he got out, he grabbed my hand and dragged me through the gates. Every time he ran into a kid he knew, he’d stop and proudly introduce me. Like I was some kind of prize he’d won.

Then he spotted one of his classmates and immediately wrapped both arms around my leg.

“This is my mommy!”

“I told you she’s beautiful!”

I couldn’t help laughing.

But then a strange feeling crept up on me.

Was this… the first time I’d ever come to Nick’s school?

Because why else would he look so thrilled introducing his mom to everyone, like it was some huge occasion?

I glanced at Alex beside me, only to find him already looking at me. I opened my mouth to ask, but before I could get a word out, he turned away. Like he already knew exactly what I was going to say.

Me:

“…”

Of course. Ten years ago or ten years later, Alex was still the same infuriating person.

The school had set up a bunch of activities, but the moment I spotted the sports events, my smile froze.

Oh no.

I was wearing a dress.

How was I supposed to do anything in this?

I’d been so focused on looking pretty that I completely forgot about practicality. Classic twenty-year-old move.

Alex glanced at the activity area, then said flatly, “You should sit in the audience. I’ll handle Nick.”

Nick immediately nodded and patted my arm like a tiny grown-up. “It’s okay, Mommy. I’m definitely going to win a medal and show it to you!”

I gave him a weak smile and made my way to the bleachers.

By ten in the morning, the sun was getting warm. I squinted at the two figures in the distance. The golden light softened Alex’s usual cold, sharp edges. For a moment, he didn’t look like the man running the Charleston empire. He just looked like a dad at his kid’s school event.

Standing there with Nick, they looked surprisingly… right together.

I had to admit, Charleston genes were strong. Alex and Nick looked so much alike.

But for some reason, I always felt like Nick carried more of Seb’s features.

And thinking about Seb made something click.

Where had he gone?

Why did Sebastian Charleston seem to have completely disappeared from my life ten years later?

Also… why hadn’t I seen my phone since waking up last night?

Had technology advanced so much that people implanted devices into their bodies now?

The questions just kept piling up in my head.

Then a gentle voice came from beside me.

“You must be Nicholas Charleston’s mother?”

The woman who approached turned out to be the kindergarten principal. She settled into the empty seat next to me and started chatting like we were old acquaintances.

After a few minutes of small talk, I learned that the school’s biggest sponsor was the Charleston Foundation. Which made sense—the Charleston family had always cared about keeping up their public image. Every year, they poured money into education, healthcare, and community programs.

I tried to channel my own mom from when I was a kid, mimicking the way she used to chat with teachers. Nodding politely, asking the right questions, keeping it warm but professional.

But as the conversation went on, something started to feel off.

What did she mean when she said I was always too busy with work?

What did she mean when she said I should participate in more parent-child activities?

And what did she mean when she said—as Nick’s mother—I needed to spend more time with him?

I was completely thrown.

What exactly had future-me been doing with her life? Because it sounded like I’d been an absentee mother for a long time.

I forced myself to keep it together, smiled, and saw the principal off. Then my eyes drifted back to the field.

Alex was guiding Nick through the competition. Watching their backs, this strange feeling settled in my chest.

Right.

From the moment I woke up last night, everything had been off.

Why did Nick look so nervous when he called me Mommy for the first time?

Why didn’t I have a phone? No social media. No work records. Not even a single trace of my daily life.

And also…

Why wasn’t there a single wedding photo of Alex and me anywhere in the Charleston estate?

One question after another. Like scattered puzzle pieces. And slowly, they started forming a picture that made me deeply uneasy.

Cheers kept echoing across the field. Kids were laughing everywhere. But I felt like I was standing in a world that wasn’t mine. A world I didn’t belong to.

Then Nick’s voice cut through the noise.

“Mommy, was I awesome?”

I snapped back to reality and gave him a distracted nod.

For the rest of the event, I couldn’t focus at all. Alex must have noticed something was wrong, because he wrapped things up early and drove Nick and me back to the estate.

Nick didn’t complain about leaving early. He just stayed quietly by my side, his little eyes sneaking glances at me every few seconds. That worried look on his face—he couldn’t hide it if he tried.

When we got back to the room, Alex followed me inside. But I stopped at the doorway and blocked his path.

“I want to rest by myself for a while.”

Alex was quiet for a few seconds. His eyes studied my face—the distraction, the distance.

Finally, he said softly, “Okay.”