Reborn as a Baby, I Rewrote the Switching Script

Delivery room, 1:15 AM.

Ive just been born.

In a little while, a nurse named Brenda Wallace will come in, steal me, and swap me with another familys baby.

Last time, she succeeded.

I spent twenty years suffering in a cramped apartment. After I discovered the truth and came back to reclaim my family, the impostor served me a cup of poisoned tea and sent me right back to the Underworld.

This time is different.

I worked in the Underworld for ten years, saving up enough merit points to buy this one chance to do it all over again.

I stared at the clock on the wall, calculating silently.

One hour and forty-five minutes until Brenda makes her move.

In one hour and forty-five minutes, Nurse Brenda Wallace will push open this door.

Shell say shes taking the baby for a newborn screening.

My mother, exhausted from labor, wont suspect a thing.

Brenda will then carry me to the supply closet at the end of the hall. Her cousin, Megan Fischer, will be waiting there, holding another newborn baby girl.

Two wristbands, a quick swap. Three minutes.

Sophie Summer becomes Sophie Fischer.

Jessica Fischer becomes Jessica Summer.

Thats how they stole twenty years of my life.

But right now, Im just a newborn. I cant talk, cant roll over, cant even hold up my own head.

There are only three things I can do: cry, grab, and stay awake.

But thats enough.

Ten years in the Underworld taught me one thing very clearly: a mothers intuition about her child is the most sensitive alarm system in the world.

I just need to activate it.

My mother held me for a while, her eyelids drooping.

My father whispered beside her, Honey, you sleep first. Ill watch her.

No.

Last time, my father couldnt stay awake and went to lie on the sofa for a bit. Thats when Brenda found her opportunity.

I dont need my father to watch me.

I need my mother to hold me, pressed tightly against her, so no one can separate us.

Just as my mother was about to put me back in the bassinet

Waaaahhh!

I let out an ear-splitting scream. Not a normal cry, but a gut-wrenching shriek.

My mother flinched and quickly pulled me back into her arms. Whats wrong? Whats wrong? Dont cry, dont cry

The moment she held me close, I went silent. My big eyes were filled with tears, and one tiny hand was clenched tightly around the collar of her hospital gown.

My mother paused. Look how tight shes holding on. Its like shes afraid Ill put her down.

My father reached out to take me.

WAAAAAHHH!

Louder this time, and sharper.

He snatched his hand back, startled.

I snuggled back into my mothers arms, instantly quiet, still clutching her gown.

My father didnt know whether to laugh or cry. Shes only two hours old and already a mamas girl?

Tears welled in my mothers eyes. Its like she only wants me.

She tightened her arms, holding me firmly against her chest.

Then I wont put her down. Ill sleep with her in my arms tonight.

The minutes ticked by.

At 2:00 AM, my father was snoring on the sofa.

My mother was getting drowsy too, but I made sure to let out a little whimper every ten minutes, just enough to keep her in a state of half-sleep.

2:30 AM.

2:40 AM.

2:50 AM.

My heart started to beat faster.

2:55 AM.

Faint footsteps echoed from the end of the hall. The rubber-soled nurses shoes made almost no sound on the linoleum.

But I heard them.

The footsteps stopped outside our door. The doorknob turned slowly.

A woman in a white coat pushed the door open. She was in her mid-thirties, with an average build and a standard professional smile. She was pushing a baby transport cart.

Brenda Wallace.

Ive waited ten years for you.

She lowered her voice. Mrs. Summer, sorry to disturb you. Its time for the babys newborn metabolic screening. We just need to draw a little blood from her heel. Well have her back in a minute.

My mother opened her eyes blearily. A screening? Now?

Its usually done between two and four hours after birth. Its easier while the baby is calm.

Her words were smooth, her tone gentle and professional. Thats how she had fooled my mother last time.

My mothers grip started to loosen.

Now.

WAAAAAHHHHH!

My explosive cry ripped through the quiet room. I cried, kicked, shook my head, my whole body trembling. I curled into a tight ball, clinging to my mothers chest. All ten of my tiny fingers dug into the fabric of her gown, as if they were welded there.

My mother was startled and instinctively pulled me closer. What is it, sweetheart?

My father shot up from the sofa. Whats going on?

Brendas smile faltered for a second before she regained her composure. Mr. Summer, its just a routine screening. The baby was probably just startled by our voices.

My father looked at me, wailing my heart out, then back at Brenda.

Does this screening have to be done right now?

Its hospital policy

My daughter doesnt seem well. Can we do it tomorrow during the day?

Brendas mouth twitched.

And, my father added, walking to the door and glancing down the hall, I dont think youre the nurse on duty for this floor tonight.

The air froze for two seconds.

I Im covering for a colleague. She had an emergency.

My father said nothing, but his expression hardened.

Then please have the head nurse arrange it for tomorrow. Tonight is not convenient.

Brenda opened her mouth, as if to say more, but my father had already sat down next to my mother, one hand on her shoulder, the other patting my back.

The message was clear.

You can go.

Brendas eyes lingered on me for a few seconds. Through my tear-blurred vision, I saw the coldness in her gaze. Then she turned and pushed the empty cart out of the room.

I quieted down, snuggling into my mothers warm embrace. She gently patted me, humming a tuneless lullaby. My father didnt go back to the sofa. He stayed right there, sitting by the bed, watching us.

The next morning, sunlight streamed through the curtains.

I had slept in my mothers arms, though I hadnt really closed my eyes all night. I acted like a perfectly well-behaved, angelic baby.

The first thing my mother did when she woke up was look down at me. She found me looking right back at her.

Honey, look! Shes been watching me, she said, delighted.

My father leaned in, about to touch me.

I immediately scrunched up my face, my lip quivering, my eyes turning red.

His hand froze mid-air, and he sheepishly pulled it back. Okay, okay, Daddy wont touch. Daddys just looking.

My mother couldnt help but laugh. This little girl is my shadow. She wont let anyone else near.

Exactly.

I needed everyone to know: this baby only wants her mother.

No one was taking me from her arms.

During the morning rounds, the attending physician came in with a team. They gave me a full check-up and confirmed all my vitals were healthy. The newborn screening was also scheduled. It was done during the day, by the book, with the head nurse performing the procedure herself. My father watched the entire time, never leaving my side.

I noticed his expression was different from the night before. Last night, it was instinctual caution. Today, it was conscious observation.

After the doctors left, he said he was going to get breakfast and made a call in the hallway. His voice was low, but nestled in my mothers arms, I could hear every word.

I need you to look into someone for me. Brenda Wallace, a nurse at this hospital. And pull the security footage from the third-floor maternity ward hallway from last night.

Good.

My father wasnt a fool. The founder of a security tech company, he had a natural sense for these things. He was already on it.

At two in the afternoon, we had an unexpected visitor.

A woman in her early thirties, wearing a simple floral-print hospital gown, with a round, friendly face. She peeked her head in and knocked softly on the doorframe.

Hi, Mrs. Summer. Im Megan, from room 206 next door. I just had a baby girl yesterday too. She smiled warmly. Born on the same day, it must be fate. I thought Id pop in and say hello.

My mother, still weak from childbirth, was happy for the company. Please, come in!

Megan Fischer. Brenda Wallaces cousin. The biological mother of the impostor, Jessica Fischer. Last time, she was the one who slipped her daughter into the Summer family and stole my life.

Now, she walked in, her eyes scanning the room and landing on me with a flicker of something I couldnt quite place.

Oh, your daughter is so beautiful and well-behaved. Can I hold her?

She reached out her hands.

The hair on my arms stood on end. I let out a piercing cry, my face turning red, my limbs flailing wildly.

My mother quickly pulled me back. Oh, Im so sorry. Shes very shy around strangers. She cries if anyone but me holds her.

Megan awkwardly withdrew her hands. Oh, its okay, its okay. Thats normal for babies.

She didnt insist, and instead started chatting with my mother about parenting. They talked about formula, diapers, and postpartum meals. As she talked, she subtly inched closer to my mother.

Every time she got within three feet of the bassinet, I would start to whimper. When she backed away, Id go quiet.

After the third time, my mother noticed too. She didnt say anything, but she unconsciously held me a little tighter.

Megan stayed for about half an hour. As she was leaving, she said, If you ever get tired, just call me. I can watch the baby for a bit. Im right next door.

My mother politely agreed. But after the door closed, she looked down at me thoughtfully.

Sweetheart, do you not like that lady?

I nuzzled her hand and blinked quietly.

My mother smiled, but there was a new seriousness in her eyes. Okay, Mommy hears you. Well keep her away from you from now on.

That evening, my father returned. His expression was grim. He closed the door tightly and spoke to my mother in a low voice.

I had someone look into that nurse from last night, Brenda Wallace. She was only hired three months ago. Her resume, her education, her work experienceall fake.

My mothers eyes widened. What does that mean?

And the security footage from the hallway last nightthe cameras were malfunctioning during that exact time. Nothing was recorded.

Ive been in the security business for twenty years. Ive never seen a malfunction that convenient.

The color drained from my mothers face. She instinctively clutched me tighter, her voice trembling. Are you saying that person last night wasnt here to do a screening?

My father didnt answer directly. He sat on the edge of the bed, taking my mothers hand in one of his and gently stroking my head with the other.

Dont be afraid. Ive already had my assistant file a police report and have the hospital upgrade its security.

From now on, when Im not here, no oneand I mean no oneis to touch Sophie.

My mother nodded vigorously.

I closed my eyes and pressed my face against her chest.

My father was already in motion.

Twenty years earlier than last time.

And all I had to do was continue being the perfect, mamas-girl angel.

The day we were discharged, my father brought four bodyguards to pick us up. Two vans, a seamless transition. During the twenty-minute drive from the hospital to the Summer mansion, my mother held me without letting go for a second.

My father sat in the front passenger seat, making one call after another.

Upgrade the entire home security system. I want zero blind spots.

Install a smart alarm in the nursery. Real-time notifications to my phone anytime someone enters or leaves.

Yes, re-screen all the nannies. Full background checks, including relatives three generations back.

I nestled in my mothers arms, listening to his commands, feeling a deep sense of security.

Last time, I was stolen because the Summers, despite their wealth, were too complacent about security. The idea of a baby swap was something they had never even considered.

This time was different. My father was already in battle mode.

Arriving at the Summer mansion, I entered this home as its rightful heir for the first time. Last time, I was twenty when I first walked through these doors. I was wearing a cheap dress, clutching a crumpled DNA test, shaking from head to toe. The security guard at the gate stopped me three times. Who are you looking for? You dont belong here.

Now, the butler respectfully opened the car door. The nanny rolled out a red carpet. My grandfather stood at the entrance, his face a web of smiling wrinkles.

My granddaughter is home! Let Grandpa have a look!

He reached out to hold me. As usual, I scrunched up my face. But this time, I managed not to cry. After all, my grandfather had been very good to me last time. After I was reunited with the family, he was the first one who wanted to give me a share of his inheritance.

I just turned my head slightly and buried my face in my mothers neck.

My grandfather wasnt offended at all. He just chuckled. This little girl is just like her mother. Once shes set on someone, you cant pull her away. Good! Shes got character!

My grandmother stood behind him. She was wearing a dark red traditional dress, a polite smile on her face. But I noticed the way she looked at me was completely different from the way she looked at my grandfather.

When she looked at him, her eyes were filled with attentiveness and deference.

When she looked at me, there was only scrutiny.

Oh, shes such a lovely baby. Just like her mother, she said, reaching out to touch my cheek.

I started crying without hesitation. A soft, pitiful whimper.

Her hand froze.

My mother quickly soothed me. Its okay, sweetheart, dont be scared. Its just Grandma.

My grandfather smoothed things over. Haha, shes just shy. Shell get used to us in a couple of days.

My grandmother withdrew her hand, her smile unchanged, but a flicker of coldness crossed her eyes.

That expression. I knew it so well.

Last time, after I came back to the family, my grandmother had looked at me with that same expression. Polite, but with a deep-seated distance.

I later learned that she had been against my father marrying my mother from the start. She thought my mothers background wasnt good enough for the Summer family. She had always wanted my uncle, Robert Summer, and his family to take over. Because my uncles wife was her niece.

In other words, my uncles family were her people.

The days after moving into the Summer mansion were quiet on the surface. For the first month, I maintained my only-mommy persona. Wherever my mother went, I was quiet. The moment she was out of my sight, Id start to cry. This meant she barely left my side, and it also meant no onenot the nannies, not the butler, not even my grandmotherhad a chance to be alone with me.

My fathers investigation was also moving forward. He had someone pull Brenda Wallaces phone records. There was one number she contacted frequently. The calls were short but regular. It was an unregistered burner phone. But through cell tower triangulation, they found that 70% of the time, the phone was used near the Summer mansion.

My fathers face was grim as he spoke to his assistant in the study, his voice low. So the person who hired Brenda is inside the Summer family.

An inside job. I already knew.

But I couldnt speak yet. I couldnt tell my father who it was. All I could do was wait. Wait for him to find out himself. Or wait for the mole to slip up.

As it turned out, I didnt have to wait long.

Two days before my one-month celebration, at eleven at night.

My mother was fast asleep, and my father was in his study working. The nanny was off duty. I was alone in the nursery. It was quiet. Moonlight filtered through the curtains, casting pale patches of light on the ceiling.

I lay with my eyes open, counting my breaths. One, two, three.

Click.

The sound of the doorknob turning.

Someone pushed the nursery door open. The footsteps were light, deliberately so.

A dark figure approached my crib. I couldnt see her face, but I recognized the scent. It was Mrs. Davis, my grandmothers housekeeper of over twenty years.

She bent down and reached into the crib to pick me up.

The moment her hand touched my blanket

WAAAAAHHHHH!

I let out the loudest cry of my life.

At the same second, the nurserys smart alarm system was triggered. A piercing siren blared through the entire mansion. A notification popped up on my fathers phone.

Mrs. Daviss face, flickering in the red alarm light, was deathly pale.

Less than twenty seconds later, my father burst into the room, my mother right behind him.

Mrs. Davis? What are you doing?!

She was trembling, her hand still frozen in mid-air. I I heard the baby crying, so I came to check

My father pulled out his phone and played back the nurserys security footage. The video was clear: Mrs. Davis entering the room, walking straight to the crib, bending down, and reaching in.

It didnt look like she was just checking. It looked like she was taking.

The truth, my fathers voice was as sharp as a knife. Who sent you?