Waking Up In The Reapers Bed

I had never liked my boyfriends older brother.

From the very first moment we met, he made no effort to hide his disdain, mocking my pedestrian background with a razor-sharp tongue. I swallowed my pride and endured his coldness, purely for the sake of the man I loved.

I never expected a freak accident to hurl me ten years into the future.

When I opened my eyes, a small boyno older than fiveapproached me with a shy, tentative look in his eyes. He asked if I would come to his kindergartens "Family Field Day" tomorrow. Looking at that tiny face, which was a spitting image of my boyfriend, my heart melted instantly. I nodded before I could even think.

Excited, he grabbed my hand and led me toward the hallway to "find Daddy."

As we rounded the corner, we collided with a familiar, towering figure: Everett, my boyfriend's brother.

Before I could stammer out an apology, the boys voice rang out with pure joy: "Daddy! Mommy finally said yes!"

I froze. My mind went completely blank.

Everett reached out to steady me, his hand lingering on my arm for a fraction of a second before he pulled back.

He looked down at the boy with a cool, measured expression. "Charlie, its past your bedtime."

Charlie let go of my hand reluctantly, his eyes filled with a mix of lingering excitement and hesitation. But under Everetts habitually commanding gaze, he had no choice but to retreat. He trudged obediently back toward his bedroom.

I watched the whole scene, my brain still stuck in a massive system failure.

Daddy? He called Everett Daddy?

And Im the Mommy?

I was a sunny, carefree twenty-year-old college student when I went to sleep. How did I wake up as a married woman with a child? And how, in Gods name, was the husband Everett?

This made zero sense.

He was my boyfriends brother. How did the next ten years involve me ending up in some twisted, forbidden romance with my own brother-in-law? And where the hell was my actual boyfriend?

Everett watched Charlie disappear into his room before turning his gaze toward me. He studied me for a few beats, his eyes unreadable. "Are you not going to sleep? Its late."

My ability to think had flatlined. I just followed his lead, my voice cracking slightly. "Sleep. Right. Going now. Immediately."

I looked up at him, and for a moment, I felt a strange sense of vertigo. The Everett standing before me was vastly different from the man I remembered. By my count, he should only be thirty-five now. So why was his hair so heavily streaked with silver?

I felt a prickle of dark humor in my chest. I guess corporate life really does a number on you.

Still, my old instincts kicked in. I couldn't stand the weight of his stare, so I turned and hurried back into the bedroom I had just come from. I could feel his eyes on my back the entire waya heavy, intense physical presence.

God help me. Someone needs to explain why ten-year-older me married Everett and produced a five-year-old son.

Before I could spiral further, Everett appeared in the doorway. He held out a small white pill.

"Vitamins," he said, his voice flat and concise.

Suspicion flared in my gut. Vitamins? Then why not just give me the bottle?

We stood in a tense standoff for what felt like an eternity. Finally, Everett let out a sigh so faint I almost missed it. He looked down, pulling the pill back. His movements were practiced, wearylike a man who was intimately familiar with being rejected.

"If you won't take it, just leave it be."

He didn't push. He just told me to get some rest and walked away.

After he left, I felt more lost than ever. Was our marriage this strained? Did we even sleep in the same room?

But then a thought hit me: if I actually had to share a bed with Everett, Id probably have nightmares for the rest of my life.

That wasn't hyperbole. Everett had genuinely traumatized me in the past.

The first time we met was at Beckettsmy boyfriendsbirthday gala. As Becketts girlfriend, I was at the top of my game: charming, well-dressed, and perfectly capable of handling a room.

But the moment Everett saw me, he winced as if hed smelled something foul.

"Which backwater bargain bin did you crawl out of?" hed asked.

I was stunned. Ugly? Low-class?

To be fair, I was neither. I was a deans list student with a scholarship and a face that could stop traffic. Everett had to be legally blind to say that with a straight face.

If it had been anyone else, I would have torn him apart. But Everett was the head of the family empire, the eldest son, and a man known in the business world as a "cold-blooded reaper."

I gritted my teeth and forced a smile. "Hello, Everett. Im Becketts girlfriend."

His expression didn't shift an inch. He didn't even give me a second glance. Instead, he looked at Beckett with a mocking tilt of his head. "Beckett, since when did your standards for 'company' drop this low?"

Beckett looked mortified, trying to smooth things over. "Everett, come on. Isla is great. Once you get to know her..."

"No need," Everett cut him off, his gaze already drifting away. "Ive delivered the gift. Enjoy your party."

He didn't even stay to wish his brother a happy birthday. He just walked out, treating his own brother like a piece of insignificant furniture.

Later, I learned that his initial greeting was just the appetizer. Everetts tongue was a weapon designed to make people question their entire existence.

Because of that, every time I crossed paths with him back then, Id break into a cold sweat. I spent years worrying about whether he would approve of me if Beckett and I ever got engaged.

I never imagined Id skip the engagement, skip the wedding, and wake up married to the Reaper himself.

I tossed and turned, my mind a frantic loop of these memories until I finally drifted into a fitful sleep.

Somewhere in the haze between dreams and reality, I felt a presence. Someone was sitting on the edge of the bed, watching me for a long, long time. Then, a hand touched my hair. It was a stroke so light, so impossibly tender, it felt like a ghost.

Who...?

I woke up to the feeling of someone staring at me.

Sunlight was streaming through the curtains. Charlie was standing there, his little yellow duck backpack already on, his eyes wide and blinking.

"Mommy! Its time to go!"

Go where?

It took me three seconds to remember the Family Field Day. Right.

I scrambled out of bed to get ready. Charlie followed me like a little shadow. Everywhere I went, he was there, his eyes glued to me as if he were terrified I might vanish if he blinked.

I couldn't help it. I leaned down and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

Charlie froze like a tiny, confused penguin. A deep crimson flush crept up his chubby cheeks instantly. He nearly jumped. "You... you kissed me!"

I frowned, a knot forming in my stomach. What did that mean? Had the "ten-year-older me" been so cold that I didn't even kiss my own son? That seemed impossibly cruel.

Before I could dwell on it, Everett walked in. He was already dressed. I stared at him for a second.

Seeing him out of his tailored power suits was jarring. In his athletic gear, he looked... younger. Almost approachable.

Then my eyes caught the streaks of white in his hair again, and the thought vanished. No. Still old. Still Everett.

Everett glanced at usat the way Charlie was hovering near meand his eyes softened for a fleeting second. "The event starts at nine-thirty."

I immediately let go of Charlie and hurried to get myself together. I might not have experience being a mom, but I knew how to look the part. I wanted Charlie to be proud of me.

I picked out an outfit that felt like "me"or at least, the twenty-year-old version of me.

When I stepped out of the dressing room, Charlie started cheering, turning into a one-man hype machine. Everett, however, just stood there. He looked me up and down, his body stiff.

Beyond the shock in his eyes, there was something else. A flicker of... nostalgia?

On the drive to the school, I stared out the window. Charlie was chirping away in the back seat.

Is this what ten years later looks like? Everything felt remarkably the same. Technology hadn't made some giant leap into the future. Even the scenery felt strangely familiar.

Before I could process it, we arrived.

Charlie was vibrating with excitement, dragging me inside. Whenever we passed one of his little friends, he would wrap his arms around my leg. "This is my mommy! See? I told you she was the prettiest!"

I laughed, but then a cold realization hit me. Was this the first time 'I' had ever shown up at his school? Why else would he say something like that?

I looked toward Everett, who was walking on my left. Our eyes met.

I wanted to ask him somethinganythingbut he immediately looked away.

Classic.

Whether it was ten years ago or ten years from now, Everett was still the most frustrating man on the planet.

The kindergarten field day was packed with activities. But when I saw the equipment, my smile faltered.

Crap. I was wearing a skirt. I had prioritized "looking pretty" over "being functional."

Everett spoke up, his voice level. "You stay in the stands and rest. Ill handle the events."

Charlie was equally supportive. "Yeah, Mommy! Don't worry, Im gonna win a medal for you!"

I gave them a weak smile and headed for the bleachers. By ten o'clock, the sun was starting to bite. I squinted, watching the father-son duo in the distance.

Maybe it was the sunlight softening his harsh edges, but Everett didn't look so terrifying anymore. He looked... human. Watching him with Charlie was actually quite beautiful.

The genes were strong. They looked so much alike.

And yet, there was a nagging feeling in the back of my mind. Charlie reminded me of Beckett, too.

The thought of Beckett hit me like a physical blow. Where was he? Why was he gone? And why, since I woke up, had I not been able to find my phone? Had phones evolved into some kind of brain-link tech I didn't know about?

The cloud of suspicion in my mind began to grow.

Suddenly, a warm voice spoke beside me. "You must be Charlies mother."

It was the schools principal.

She sat down in the empty seat next to me and started chatting as if we were old friends. Apparently, the Blackwood GroupEveretts companywas the primary donor for the school.

I tried to mimic the way Id seen my own mother talk to teachers, nodding and smiling. But the more she talked, the more unsettled I became.

What did she mean by, "I know your work keeps you busy"?

Why was she saying I should "try to be more involved in the school community"?

And why was she gently suggesting that, as a mother, I needed to "spend more quality time" with my child?

I was reeling.

What the hell had I been doing for the last ten years? According to the principal, I sounded like an absentee parent.

I said a dazed goodbye to her and watched Everett and Charlie compete in the races.

Everything about this "time travel" was wrong.

Why was Charlie so surprised when I kissed him? Why did I have no phone, no social life, no job? Why weren't there any wedding photos on the walls of our house?

The points were starting to connect, forming a dark, jagged shape.

The cheers of the other parents felt distant, like they were happening behind a thick pane of glass. I didn't belong here.

When Charlie eventually ran up to me, beaming, I just nodded blankly. "Mommy, was I great?"

"Yes, baby. So great."

Everett ended our day early and drove us home. Charlie didn't seem upset by the early exit; in fact, he seemed used to it. He just kept watching me with an expression that broke my heartpure, unadulterated worry.

When we got back, I went straight to the bedroom. Everett followed me, but I blocked the door.

"I just need to rest. Alone."

Everett stayed silent for a moment, his eyes searching my pale face. Finally, he gave a heavy nod. "Fine."

The second the door was locked, I started tearing the room apart.

It was a huge suite. Searching just one corner took me thirty minutes, and I found nothing. No clues. No identity.

Frustrated, I went into the walk-in closet to change. My eyes were drawn to the very bottom drawer of the jewelry cabinet. It was tucked away, almost hidden.

Driven by a strange, magnetic pull, I knelt down and pulled it open.

Inside was a weathered, yellowing journal.

I recognized it instantly. It was the style of notebook Id been using since I was eighteen.

I felt like I was standing at the threshold of a dark secret. My hands shook as I opened it. The damage was extensive; it looked like someone had tried to rip it to shreds. Nearly every page was missing a corner or a chunk of text.

I read through the entries from when I was eighteen to twenty. It was full of the typical "girl in love" musings. I winced at my own younger selfGod, I was so dramatic.

I flipped faster. I wanted to see when things changed.

Apparently, Beckett and I had stayed together for a long time. I desperately wanted to know what caused the breakup.

But suddenly, the entries stopped.

The dates ended right around my twenty-first birthday. I felt a wave of disappointment. Why didn't I keep writing? Why was I so careless with this?

I prepared to close the book and give up.

But then, a scrap of papera torn corner from a later pageslipped out from the binding.

There were only a few words. But they were written in my handwriting, frantic and jagged.

[RUN!]

[GET AWAY FROM HIM!]

[HE IS A MONSTER!]

My scalp went numb.

Him? Did I mean Everett?

Did he force the breakup? Did he force me into this marriage?

It all started to click. The isolation. The lack of a phone. The silver hair. The "vitamins."

He had done something. He had taken my life and locked me in this golden cage. But ten years ago, he hated me. Why would he...?

I couldn't breathe. My head throbbed with a blinding pain. My hands were shaking so hard I could barely hold the notebook.

I stood up, clutching my chest, tears of sheer terror pricking my eyes.

I have to get out. I have to divorce him. I have to run.

As I turned to the door, a shadow blocked the light.

I froze.

Everetts voice drifted from the doorway, low and dangerous.

"Isla. What are you doing?"