I Saw My Cruel Stepmom Future And Changed It All Chapter 04

I Saw My Cruel Stepmom Future And Changed It All Chapter 04

Everything had been steadily improving, until the third week rolled around.

I arrived at Maplewood ELC to pick Jasper, only to find his classroom empty.

Ms. Thorne stumbled over her words when she spoke to me.

“Jasper got into another physical altercation today. He’s with the director in the main office.”

I rushed to the administrative suite at once.

Jasper sat on a hard wooden stool in the corner, his lower lip split open and bleeding, his ELC uniform coated head-to-toe in mud.

Across from him sat Mrs. Carrick, clutching her screaming son to her chest.

Mrs. Carrick erupted the second she laid eyes on me.

“You’re Jasper’s guardian? Look what your child did to my boy! He shoved him straight off the playground slide.”

I glanced at her son—only a faint scrape on his knee, wailing at the top of his lungs for show.

Then I looked back at Jasper.

Covered in mud, blood on his lip, not a single tear falling from his eyes.

“Jasper,” I knelt down to his eye level. “Tell me exactly what happened.”

He lifted his red-rimmed eyes to mine, his voice shaking violently.

“He said my birth mom left ‘cause she didn’t want me anymore. He said you’ll abandon me too, that everyone always leaves me eventually.”

Rage burned hot up my neck and cheeks.

Mrs. Carrick kept shouting over us.

“Kids exchange a few words and he resorts to violence? Where’s your sense of proper parenting?”

I stood up, all warmth draining from my expression.

“Your son told a grieving five-year-old his mother abandoned him on purpose—that’s the example of good parenting you set for your kid?”

Mrs. Carrick’s mouth clamped shut, stuck without a retort.

“I won’t excuse Jasper hitting someone, I’ll discipline him properly for it,” I told her firmly, lifting my phone to show the active recording app on screen.

“I’ve documented every instance of his harassment—teacher witness statements, staff incident logs, and written notes from other kids’ caregivers. If this harassment continues, I will submit all records to CPS and file an emergency protective order.”

“You are legally responsible for his actions, and you won’t be able to walk away from the consequences.”

Mrs. Carrick’s face drained bright red then pale white. She grabbed Toby and practically ran out of the room.

I turned back to Jasper, watching his small frame shake with suppressed sobs, his lips trembling as he fought to hold back tears.

I opened my arms wide.

“Come here.”

He hesitated for a moment, then crashed straight into my chest and broke down sobbing.

He clung tight to my shirt, crying loud enough to echo off the walls, repeating the same phrase over and over.

“Don’t leave me. You promised you’d come every day, don’t lie to me.”

I wrapped both arms tight around his small body.

“I’m not going anywhere, ever.”

The floating commentary flooded my sight, lines stacking one after another.

[I’m full-on sobbing right now.]

[trauma healing progress tracker: 50%]

[He’s finally letting all that hurt out, he carried every bad day alone up until now.]

That night, Jasper left his bedroom door unlocked for the very first time.

I brought the usual mug of warm milk over, and he sat cross-legged on his bed clutching his worn stuffed linen bunny.

“Can you stay and sit with me a little longer before you go?” he mumbled quietly.

I settled onto the edge of his mattress beside him.

We sat quiet for a stretch, until he spoke again.

“You really won’t leave me?”

“Never.”

“What if Dad asks me to leave?”

“We’ll go to family court together and fight for joint custody so we never have to be apart.”

Jasper’s eyes lit up instantly, bright as starlight.

He twisted his head away fast, burying his face deep in his bed covers.

Minutes ticked by, long enough I thought he’d drifted off to sleep.

A tiny, muffled voice spilled out from under the comforter.

“…Mom.”

I froze completely.

He pulled the blanket higher over his head, hiding his face.

“I only said that once. Don’t laugh at me.”

My eyes stung, my voice cracked mid-sentence.

“I won’t laugh. Mom’s right here.”

One small hand slipped out from the folds of fabric, hooking its tiny finger around my pinky and squeezing hard, skin cold against mine.

I stood to turn off his bedside lamp, and heavy footsteps echoed down the hallway outside his door.

Kaelen stood in the entryway shadow, no one knew how long he’d been listening.

He glanced at Jasper asleep beneath the covers, then shifted his gaze over to me.

His lips parted like he planned to say something, but he fell silent and turned to walk away in the end.

New commentary popped into view.

[The male lead’s finally starting to care about them both.]

[Don’t get distracted by the romance subplot yet—finish healing the little boy first.]

[Wait till you see the next chapter preview!]

The final line of commentary drifted across my vision before I left Jasper’s room.

[Jasper’s birth mother Seraphina’s coming back. She’s filing for full legal child custody, and Kaelen’s gonna agree to hand him over.]