My Rebel Seatmate Is My Daughter Chapter 1

The year I was thrown back to my eighteenth birthday, I found myself sitting at a high school desk, assigned to be the burnout’s lab partner all over again.

She still hated school.

She slept through lectures, ditched class to smoke behind the bleachers, and spent every free second huddled in the dark neon glow of the local arcade.

But this time, I didn't chase after her. I didn't lecture her or try to manage every second of her life like I had in my past life.

Until one afternoon, my eyes caught the parent signature scrawled across the top of her failed history exam.

Two sharp, aggressive words—

Roxanne Blake.

I froze, the air knocked from my lungs.

So... the daughter Roxanne and I had... she’s already this old?

Staring at that signature, a cold numbness spread through my veins.

The defiant, leather-jacket-wearing girl sitting next to me wasn't Roxanne.

It was Roxanne’s daughter.

* * *

I finally understood what The System meant when it told me I had to "go back and correct the timeline."

Years ago, I was pulled into this world with one mission: to drag a delinquent out of the gutter and push her to the pinnacle of success.

That delinquent was Roxanne.

After I left, I heard she lived a brilliant life. She built an empire, achieving massive wealth and fame at a shockingly young age.

I thought my mission was a perfect success. I went back to my original world in peace.

Who could have guessed that nearly two decades later, her daughter would inherit her teenage rebellion, taking up the mantle of the local burnout?

In fact, she’d surpassed her mother. She was the undisputed queen of the bad crowd.

I let out a slow, heavy breath.

Now, I had to straighten out this wild sapling.

Keep her from growing crooked. Keep her from tearing her own world apart.

When I left this timeline back then, it was sudden. Tragic.

The System never told me the baby had survived.

Time moves differently in my reality. By my count, I had only been gone for three years.

But here, my child was almost grown.

Before the weight of it could fully crush me, a flash of fire-engine red burst through the classroom door.

Silhouetted against the hallway light, she was slender but stood with a rigid, defensive posture. Her jawline was sharp, her skin porcelain-pale. Her glaringly bright red hair was pulled into a high, messy ponytail, and a heavy black stud pierced her upper cartilage.

She wore her signature scowl like armor.

She marched toward me, her voice dropping to a freezing register. "Move."

I looked up, colliding with her dark, heavy eyes.

I lost my breath for a second.

She looked exactly like Roxanne.

But taller.

Colder.

And far more untamable.

I stood up quietly and let her into the seat.

Ruby slid her long legs under the desk, crossed her arms, and immediately buried her face to sleep.

I just sat there, studying her profile.

This was the first time I’d seen her since I had been dropped back into this world.

For two weeks, she hadn't shown her face at school. I’d heard rumors she was either haunting the arcade or running with a bad crowd downtown.

But Roxanne had too much money. A massive donation to the school board ensured her daughter’s name stayed on the roster.

I sighed inwardly.

A stubborn mother. A hardheaded daughter.

This was going to be a nightmare.

Ruby slept through the entirety of AP Calculus.

When the bell rang, she suddenly sat up, clutching her stomach. All the color drained from her face.

I frowned, leaning in instinctively, my voice dropping low. "What’s wrong? Are you sick?"

The girl cut her eyes at me, her voice dripping with venom. "Back off."

So rude.

How the hell had her mother raised her?

My hand moved faster than my brain.

Before I realized what I was doing, my palm landed squarely on her upper back in a firm, disciplinary pat.

Smack.

The entire classroom went dead silent.

Every pair of eyes in the room locked onto us.

My hand hovered in mid-air. I couldn't pull it back, but I couldn't leave it there either.

I forced myself to lie through my teeth. "Your hair, Ruby. It’s too bright. It's distracting me from my notes."

Ruby’s knuckles turned white as she gripped the edge of the desk. Her jaw clenched so tight I thought it might shatter, and her eyes burned with absolute fury.

She was half a second away from exploding, but the warning bell for the next period rang.

The homeroom teacher walked in, catching the tail end of the tension. "Ruby? Are you trying to get me to call your mother in for another chat?"

That stopped her.

She swallowed the rage, her shoulders tense, and dropped her head back down onto her arms, simmering in silence.

The kid behind me tapped my shoulder, his glasses reflecting the fluorescent lights with sheer awe. "Dude, you've got a death wish. Nobody makes Ruby back down."

I offered a dry, tight smile.

Ruby wasn't the type to just take a hit.

Before she had lowered her head, she muttered a vicious promise under her breath: "After school. You're dead."

Fine. I’ll wait.

But when the final bell rang, Ruby bolted.

She left in such a rush she didn't even grab her denim jacket.

I waited. And waited. The classroom emptied out, the hallways fell silent, and the janitors started their rounds.

I finally slung my backpack over my shoulder to leave.

Just as I turned, her jacket on the desk began to vibrate.

She’d left her phone.

This reckless kid. What was she in such a hurry for?

I pulled the phone from the pocket.

The screen lit up with a caller ID that made my heart stop.

Roxanne.

I didn't want to answer it.

But the phone rang. And rang. Relentlessly.

In the final seconds before it went to voicemail, I swiped the screen.