The 24-Month Pregnancy Prank

I'm pregnant. And it's yours.

To save my villain husband from his own tragic fate, I tracked him down before he could destroy himself.

His eyes went wide. Total system failure.

I kept my voice steady, ignoring the absurdity of it all. Yeah. That's right. It's from that time.

The effect was instant. He started handing over his allowance. He actually started studying. He was so busy trying to be a role model for the "baby" that he didn't have time to torment the male lead.

Until one night.

He shot up in bed, eyes wild in the dark.

"Wait."

"Holding hands doesn't get you pregnant!"

Chapter 1

My husband is the ultimate villain. By the time I married him in my last life, he was already locked in a death match with the hero.

That little rivalry meant I didn't survive two years of marriage before I kicked the bucket.

But I'm back.

I rejected my parents' plan to ship me off to study abroad. Instead, I transferred to Cole's school. I had one mission: stop him from ruining his life.

I arrived just in time to catch him cornering the male lead, Graham, in a dark alley.

Cole was weighing a brick in his hand, testing the heft. He looked ready to swing.

Rage clawed up my throat. He started his feud with Graham this early?

"Cole! Get your ass over here!"

The hand holding the brick twitched. He squinted, trying to make me out in the gloom.

I stared him down, ice in my veins.

He tossed the brick to a lackeyCody, probablyand stomped over, his face like thunder.

"Thought you left the country."

He looked annoyed. Like I was a nuisance.

If I didn't know better, I'd believe him. But in my past life, this man took eighteen stab wounds for me. He died protecting me. Even if I didn't make it either.

The memory softened the edge of my anger.

"Stop fighting," I said, my voice dropping. "Let Graham go."

He curled his lip, trying to look tough. The classic bad boy posturing.

"Stay out of it. This has nothing to do with you."

I squeezed my eyes shut. I almost forgot how frustratingly emotionally constipated he was. He loved me. He was obsessed with me. But he'd rather die than admit it, so he picked fights instead.

Childish.

But I saw the love in his eyes right before we died. I knew the truth.

Reasoning with him wouldn't work. I needed a nuclear option.

"I'm pregnant," I blurted out. "It's yours."

He froze. His brain seemed to stall. He pointed a shaking finger at his own chest. His eyes vibrated.

"M... Mine?"

"Yeah," I said, doubling down. "Exactly. From that time."

His expression went blank. His mind went blank. He just stared at me, then dropped his gaze to my flat stomach.

I knew his thick skull was struggling to process the logistics. I didn't give him time to think.

"It's your child, Cole. You need to take responsibility for us."

He nodded. It was a reflex.

"Our baby doesn't need a father who's a slacker and a thug," I lectured, pressing my advantage. "From now on, you need to be a good person. A role model. Fighting with bricks? Unacceptable. Go apologize to Graham. Get his forgiveness."

That snapped him out of it.

"No way," he snapped. "He messed with one of my boys. I have to get payback."

I let my face go cold.

"So you don't care about our child?" I asked, voice low and dangerous. "What if your bad karma hurts her? Are you trying to kill her before she's even born?"

Panic seized his face. The blood drained away.

"I didn't... I'm not..." he stammered.

"Then go apologize."

I couldn't push him too hard. I needed to mix the stick with a little carrot.

"Besides," I added, softening my tone again. "I'm sure your boys will understand. You're doing this for your child."

Chapter 2

Cole didnt understand. His brain was clearly throwing up 404 errors. But the brainwashing had taken hold.

He reached down and hauled the kneeling Graham to his feet.

"My bad, bro," Cole grunted, his voice stiff. He jammed a credit card into Grahams shirt pocket. "Total misunderstanding. Take this. A little token of apology."

That was Cole. He treated money like confetti. He threw cash at problems until they disappeared, attracting a swarm of leeches he was too blind to notice.

Right now, the feud between them was just a spark, not an inferno. The apologyand the payoutworked.

Graham stared at the card. The tension in his shoulders dropped. He wiped a smear of blood from the corner of his mouth and pocketed the bribe.

"Don't let it happen again," Graham said, his voice cool.

Cody stepped forward, bristling like an angry terrier. "Cole, what the hell? Why are you apologizing to him?"

Cole clapped a heavy hand on Codys shoulder, silencing him. "Let it slide. Do it for me."

Cody grunted, backing down, but the look he shot Graham was pure poison.

Two-faced snake.

To Coles face, Cody was the loyal sidekick. Behind his back, he was the one whispering toxic ideas, nudging Cole closer and closer to the edge of the cliff.

He has to go.

Once the alley cleared, silence fell.

Cole stood six feet away, staring at me with a complicated expression. Specifically, he was laser-focused on my stomach.

I didnt hide. I owned it. I relaxed my abs, pushing my stomach out until it formed a convincing, rounded little bump.

I gave it two solid pats. Thump. Thump.

A warning.

"You can't tell a soul I'm pregnant," I commanded.

His eyes snapped to mine, panic flickering. "Why?"

"Success depends on secrecy," I whispered, leaning in. "I'm afraid someone might try to hurt me."

He swallowed hard. He believed it. He nodded.

Chapter 3

Cole was the textbook definition of a villain. A trust fund nightmare. Zero ambition, zero skills, and a temper that could burn down a city.

In my past life, I despised him. We grew up together, but we weren't friends. We were enemies. Every time we met, it was war.

I left the country to get away from him. But when my familys fortune collapsed, everyone abandoned us. Everyone except Cole. He took over the mess my father left behind.

He wasn't book-smart, but he had the devil's own luck. Under him, the Shen empire didn't just survive; it thrived.

After we got married, the shouting matches didn't stop. We fought like cats and dogs. But... it was peaceful, in a twisted way.

He had a fuse shorter than a matchstick, but he treated me like gold. And I wasn't impossible to live with, either. Somewhere between the arguments and the chaos, I fell in love with him.

But fate is cruel. We didn't get enough time. We both ended up in early graves.

The real tragedy? I actually was pregnant back then. I never got the chance to tell him. That baby died with us.

Not this time.

I was rewriting the script.

In our last life, Cole was manipulated and destroyed because he was uneducated. He was easy prey.

So, I transferred to his class. I made sure I sat right next to him.

I stayed up all night drafting a brutal study plan. I was going to force some culture into him if it killed me.

I rapped my knuckles on his desk.

"From today on, you study."

He looked like Id just asked him to eat glass. His face twisted in disgust.

Before he could argue, I placed a hand gently on my stomach.

He shut his mouth. Reluctantly, he picked up a pen.

The results were... catastrophic.

Coles academic foundation wasn't just weak; it was non-existent.

I gave him a math practice test. Out of a hundred points, he got one multiple-choice question right. And Im pretty sure he guessed.

I started to hyperventilate. I knew he was bad, but I didn't think he was functionally illiterate.

Cole panicked. He started rubbing my back, his eyes wide with terror.

"Don't be mad! Breathe! It's bad for you... and bad for the baby!"

Okay. Plan B.

I dug up some middle school study materials. Basic stuff.

He still stared at the pages like they were written in alien hieroglyphics.

I hit him with the Death Glare.

He stopped breathing.

"Maybe... maybe we just forget it?" he whispered, voice trembling. "I'm not built for this stuff. The kid will understand, right? I mean... I think I did okay?"

I didn't say a word. I just kept staring.

One step at a time, Ainsley. One painful step at a time.

Chapter 4

Fourth period. Physics. The favorite skip hour for the rich kids' club.

Cole's usual crew appeared at the back door, clutching a basketball.

"Cole! Screw physics. Let's ball!"

Coles eyes lit up. He shifted in his seat, muscles twitching with the urge to bolt. But he froze. He didn't dare move without clearance. He looked at me, pleading silent, desperate code.

I shut it down.

"He's not going."

His boys looked at each other, confused.

Cole slumped. "You guys go. I'm staying."

Id been riding him hard for days, forcing knowledge into his brain with a hydraulic press. He finally cracked.

"I need air," he groaned. "Just let me go play for a bit."

Habits don't die overnight. If I pulled the leash too tight, he'd snap. Plus, I felt off. Queasy. Heavy. I didn't have the energy to fight him.

"Fine," I muttered. "Go."

He bolted.

The second he left, the dull ache in my gut turned into a jagged knife.

My lower abdomen seized. A twisting, grinding cramp that stole my breath. I collapsed onto the desk, knuckles white against the wood.

Right. My period.

In my last life, Cole had forced me to drink nasty herbal teas for years to help with my cramps. Id forgotten how violent the pain used to be. It felt like my insides were being shredded.

The classroom spun. Black spots danced across my vision.

My consciousness slipped. The last thing I saw was the door flying open and Cole sprinting toward me, pure terror contorting his face.

---

I woke up to a crushing pressure on my hand.

Cole sat by the bed, gripping my fingers like a lifeline. I twitched. He jolted upright.

He looked wrecked. His eyes were bloodshot maps of red veins. Dark, heavy shadows hung under his lashes.

"I'm sorry," he rasped, his voice sounding like he'd swallowed glass. "I messed up. I shouldn't have gone. I knew you were carrying our child, and I left you alone. I'm trash."

My face felt numb. I was just exhausted from the pain and the nap, too drained to speak.

He misread the silence. His shoulders collapsed.

"We can have another one," he whispered, looking at the floor. "Just... please talk to me. I'll listen to you. No more fighting. I'll study. I swear. Just don't look at me like that."

My brain finally rebooted.

He thought I had a miscarriage. He thought his negligence killed the "baby."

Opportunity.

"The baby is still here," I said, my voice weak and raspy.

His head snapped up. Hope warred with disbelief.

"But," I added, locking eyes with him. "If you keep living like this... she won't be."

He aggressively wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, nodding furiously.

"I'll be a good dad," he vowed. "I'll make her proud."

Chapter 5

Husbands aren't born perfect. You have to train them. And I decided to mold Cole into the perfect partner while he was still dumb enough to listen.

That fainting scare gave him PTSD. He became a shadow. If I spent more than sixty seconds in the bathroom, I could hear him pacing outside, ready to kick the door down, convinced I was dying.

But there were perks.

He actually started studying. He ghosted his toxic friends.

His grades weren't winning awardshe was hovering right on the edge of getting into a four-year universitybut it was a hell of a lot better than his past life, where he flunked out and his dad had to buy him a degree overseas.

His temper cooled down, too. Even his classmates started roasting him.

"The power of love is wild, man. Even the school's biggest bad boy is hitting the books for his girl."

Cole would panic, shooting me a nervous look.

"It's for the baby," he'd insist, his voice tight. "Don't get the wrong idea."

"Mmhmm," I'd hum, barely looking up.

That always set him off. He'd get angry and rage-solve five years' worth of practice exams in one sitting.

I'd give him a look that said Good boy.

That made him even angrier.

Graduation came and went. The class threw a farewell party.

I found a quiet corner and sank into a booth.

I'd been playing the "pregnancy" card for a long time. I had him at my beck and call. It was muscle memory now.

The second I sat down, he was in motion.

He poured me a glass of juice. He grabbed a pillow and placed it gently behind my lower back. He raided the dessert station to bring me the best treats.

He was the ultimate devoted husband.

I watched him with satisfaction.

In my last life, I wasted away abroad. I was skin and bones. But this time? I ate well. If I didn't suck in my gut, I had a genuine, soft little pouch.

It looked real enough.

Cole believed in that "baby" with religious fervor. He waited on me hand and foot.

And I accepted every bit of it with zero guilt.

Chapter 6

Cole went to grab a bottle of water, but he didn't make it back. A wall of guys blocked his path.

It was Clark and the rest of the crew.

Clark winked, leaning in with a conspiratorial smirk.

"Cole, my man. You're the only one of us who actually managed to lock a girl down." He tapped his phone against Cole's chest. "I'm sending you a little tribute. Good stuff."

Cole raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

Clark exchanged a meaningful look with the other guys. "A few gigabytes of... educational material. Watch it when you get home. Take your time."

After dinner, someone suggested hitting a karaoke bar.

Cole shut it down immediately.

"No way," he said, wrapping an arm around me. "She's pregnant. She can't be pulling all-nighters."

I didn't argue. Honestly, I just wanted to go home and binge-read my romance novels until 3 AM.

Back at the apartment, Cole got bored.

Curiosity won. He opened the file Clark had sent him.

The video started. A teacher stood at a podium, lecturing a student.

Two years of grueling academic boot camp had rewired Cole's brain. It was pure instinct.

He instinctively sat up straighter. His focus sharpened. He was ready to take notes.

Then the scene shifted.

The "lesson" took a sharp left turn into biology.

Coles brain short-circuited. He finally realized what he was watching.

His hand flew to the phone, fingers trembling as he tried to kill the app. But in his panic, he missed the lock button.

He hit the volume rocker. Up.

A very specific, very loud moan blasted through the quiet bedroom.

It echoed for what felt like an eternity before he finally managed to shut it off.

He scrambled off the bed and downed two glasses of ice water, trying to drown the sudden, confusing heat in his blood.

He sat there for a long time, staring at the wall. Something about the video felt... off. It contradicted something fundamental, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

The logic wouldn't click.

Until the middle of the night.

Cole was deep asleep, dreaming of things he shouldn't be dreaming about.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped open. He jolted upright in bed, sweat beading on his forehead.

The realization hit him like a freight train.

"Wait."

"Holding hands doesn't get you pregnant!"

Chapter 7