Second Chance With My Mafia Professor

LYNN

When I open my eyes, I am standing in the middle of a stadium, a limited-edition watch in my hands.

The sound of a ball hitting the ground echoes across the field. A few students have gathered around the sidelines to watch Kai's team practice, while several girls stand near the entrance, whispering and giggling as they watch the players.

Some of them are holding drinks, while others have their phones out, hoping to capture their favorite players.

And then I see him.

Kai.

The bastard who made my life a living hell.

For a moment, I simply stare at him, my mind struggling to accept what my eyes are seeing.

Then I look down at the watch in my hands.

No.

It can't be.

Today is the day I proposed to Kai in public.

“Is Lynn really proposing to him?” someone asks.

“Can you believe it? She's actually giving him a watch!”

“She's so shameless. How can a girl throw herself at a man like that?”

Their words bring back memories I wish I could forget.

In my last life, I gave Kai this watch using the money I received every month from my late mother's savings. I thought it would make him happy. I thought if I loved him enough, he would eventually love me back.

How foolish I was.

My husband of nine years cheated on me with my stepsister. My father chose another woman over his daughter, and the people I trusted most became the reason I ended up dying in a psychiatric hospital.

I begged them to love me.

I begged them to see my worth.

And what did I get in return?

Betrayal.

My fingers tighten around the watch.

Not this time.

I am back, and I will make every single person who hurt me pay for what they did.

“Is that for me?”

Kai's voice interrupts my thoughts.

I raise my head just in time to see him pointing at the watch.

Before I can respond, he snatches it from my hands.

“Hey!”

I reach for it, but he has already stepped back.

“Give that back, Kai!”

He barely acknowledges my demand. Instead, he examines the watch with a satisfied smile before slipping it onto his wrist.

“I must say, Lynn, you took your sweet time. I've been waiting for almost a month for this watch.”

He looks ridiculously pleased with himself.

I stare at him in disbelief.

Has this bastard always been this shameless, or did I simply refuse to see it?

“That watch isn't for you, Kai,” I tell him through clenched teeth.

His smile falters.

“If it's not mine, then whose is it?”

He raises his wrist and admires the watch.

“It fits me perfectly.”

“I said the watch isn't yours. Give it back.”

For a moment, Kai looks surprised. Then his expression softens, and he steps closer.

“Thanks for the watch, Lynn.”

He gently touches my cheek.

“I promise I'll think about being your boyfriend, okay?”

I stare at him.

Is this dude deaf, or does he genuinely believe every woman on earth is desperate to have him?

In my previous life, those words would have been enough to make my heart race. I would have smiled, thanked him, and waited patiently for the day he finally decided to love me.

But that Lynn is dead.

I pull away from his touch.

“Kai, you bastard, do you honestly think I'd be interested in someone like you?”

His smile disappears.

“This watch isn't for you, and I'm not here to ask you to be my boyfriend. I've got better things to do than pick up trash like you.”

The stadium falls silent.

A few students exchange shocked looks, while others openly stare at me as though I've suddenly grown two heads.

Kai's face darkens.

“What did you just say?”

I don't bother answering him.

Because, at that moment, I see someone standing near the stadium entrance.

A tall figure leans against the wall, his arms loosely folded across his chest.

Professor Valerian.

My breath catches in my throat.

His light-brown eyes are fixed on the field, and his expression is as unreadable as ever.

For a moment, I forget where I am.

I forget the students watching us.

I forget Kai.

All I can see is Valerian.

In my previous life, he was one of the few people who visited me when I was locked away in that psychiatric hospital. I never understood why he kept coming, even when I gave him nothing but cold shoulders and bitter words.

I was too busy begging Kai to love me to notice the man who had been there all along.

And then, one day, Valerian stopped coming.

I never got the chance to tell him how sorry I was.

I never got the chance to thank him.

And I never got the chance to see him again.

Because I died.

Now he's standing right in front of me.

Alive.

My eyes burn.

“Professor…”

The word escapes my lips before I can stop it.

Valerian turns his head slightly, and our eyes meet.

For one brief second, he looks at me.

Then he straightens and turns toward the exit.

No!

He's leaving!

Without thinking, I take a step forward.

But before I can move any farther, Kai grabs my wrist.

“Where do you think you're going?”

I look down at his hand. Then I look at Valerian's retreating figure.

“Let go of me.”

Kai frowns.

“What is wrong with you today? First, you were proposing,then, you insult me in front of everyone, and now you're running after another man?”

“I'm not asking you twice, Kai. Let go.”

Instead, his grip tightens. "Kai, we all know how much Lynn loves you. just say yes" my step sister Hellen comments walks to us.

“Since Hellen wants me to be your boyfriend, fine. I'll agree to it. But don't expect anything from me.”

I turn to stare at him. Is this idiot serious?, Does he genuinely believe I would still want him after everything I've been through?

I laugh.

It's a short, humorless sound.

“Then you should be with Hellen. She has fewer expectations than I do.”

His expression twists with anger. The surrounding students begin whispering.

“Did Lynn just reject Kai?”

“What's gotten into her?”

“Wait, isn't that Professor Valerian over there?”

I don't mind what they think.

I don't mind what they say.

Snatching the watch,I yank my wrist free and run.

“Professor Valerian!”

My voice echoes across the stadium.

He stops.

I don't slow down.

I run past the students, past the girls standing near the entrance, and past the people who turn to stare at me.

I don't care if they think I've lost my mind.

I don't mind if Kai is watching.

For the first time in two lifetimes, I know exactly who I want to reach.

And I'm not letting him walk away.

“Professor!”

Valerian turns around just as I reach him.

His eyes widen.

Before he can say a word, I throw my arms around him.

I hug him tightly, burying my face against his chest.

For a moment, the entire world seems to stop.

I can feel the warmth of his body through his clothes. I can hear his heartbeat beneath my ear.

He's real.

He's alive.

And I'm holding him.

My tears threaten to spill, but I squeeze my eyes shut.

I would rather not let go.

Not yet.

Not when I've spent what feels like an eternity regretting all the things I never said to him.

Valerian, meanwhile, seems to have forgotten how to move.

His arms remain stiff at his sides.

I can practically feel his confusion.

“Lynn?”

His voice is low and uncertain.

I tighten my arms around him.

Just a little longer.

“Professor, please don't move.”

He goes completely still.

I can imagine the questions running through his mind.

Why is Lynn hugging him?

Why is the girl who has spent so much time chasing Kai suddenly clinging to her professor?

And why does she look as though she's afraid he'll disappear if she lets go?

Behind us, the stadium erupts into whispers.

“Did you see that?”

“She just ran straight into Professor Valerian's arms!”

“Wait, isn't she the girl who was proposing to Kai a minute ago?”

“What's going on between those two?”

I hear every word.

I simply don't care.

Let them talk.

Let them stare.

For once, I'm choosing what I want instead of worrying about what everyone else thinks.

And I want Valerian.

Slowly, I lift my head to look at him.

His light-brown eyes meet mine, wide with bewilderment.

“Hi, Professor,” I whisper.

He stares at me as though I've become an entirely different person.

“Lynn, what are you doing?”

I smile through the tears gathering in my eyes.

“I'm excited to see you.”

His expression shifts slightly, but he still doesn't know what to do with his hands.

After a few seconds, he carefully places them on my shoulders and eases me back just enough to look at my face.

“Are you all right?”

The concern in his voice nearly breaks me.

In my previous life, I had so many chances to hear those words from him.

I wasted each one.

I shake my head, then realize how that must sound.

“No. I mean, yes. I'm fine.”

He raises an eyebrow.

I almost laugh at myself.

I've returned from the dead, and somehow, standing in front of this man is making me more nervous than facing the people who ruined my life.

I take a small breath.

“Professor, can I take up two minutes of your time, please?”

He studies me for a moment before nodding.

I pull away completely, though every part of me wants to keep holding him.

Then I remember the watch.

The limited-edition watch I bought for someone who never deserved it.

I take it from my hand and hold it out to Valerian.

“I brought you a peace offering.”

His gaze drops to the watch.

Then he looks at me.

“You bought a watch for me?”

His expression remains unreadable, but there's something in his eyes I can't quite explain.

“Yes, sir.”

He hesitates before extending his hand.

“May I help you put it on?”

For a moment, I simply stare at him.

Then I nod eagerly.

He turns his wrist toward me, and I carefully fasten the surrounding watch.

My fingers brush against his skin.

It's such a small thing, but I can't help smiling.

“Fits perfectly.”

I look up at him, grinning like a twelve-year-old who has just received the best present in the world.

Valerian glances at the watch again.

Then he looks back at me.

I wonder what he's thinking.

Does he remember the girl who used to chase Kai around campus?

Does he remember how I ignored him whenever he tried to talk to me?

Does he wonder why I've suddenly decided to give him my attention?