The new month was approaching quickly, and Gemma's time was running out.

There was still so much she needed to do, and she refused to waste her precious remaining days confined to her room.

So, the once-proud young woman lowered her head. She approached Murphy, biting her lip as she apologized, "Uncle Murphy, I've thought it through. It was all my fault. I'm sorry."

However, Murphy's expression remained cold. The tender indulgence he once held for her was gone. "I'm not the one you should apologize to—it's Eva."

Her lip bled as she bit down harder, and the metallic taste filled her mouth. In that bitter moment, she realized the warmth and affection he used to reserve for her had long since been given to another woman.

"Fine, I'll apologize to her!" she said, her voice trembling as her entire body shook with emotion.

She turned to Evangeline and choked out, "I'm sorry, Aunt Eva."

The term "Aunt Eva" made Murphy freeze for a moment.

His dark eyes flickered briefly, as though he could not believe what he had just heard.

"Is that enough now, Uncle Murphy?" Gemma asked with a self-deprecating smile. But as she forced herself to smile, tears welled up in her eyes. "Are you satisfied?"

Murphy should have felt content, but for some reason, hearing his cherished rose apologize and call Evangeline "Aunt Eva" left a bitter taste in his mouth.

He responded with cold detachment while avoiding her gaze. "From now on, you'll move downstairs."

Gemma was momentarily stunned but quickly understood his reasoning—he believed Evangeline's accusations.

She thought to herself, 'Uncle Murphy, do you really think I'm the kind of person who would stand outside your bedroom door to eavesdrop on you and another woman? Is that how you see me?'

A wave of cold swept over Gemma again. Her vision spun, and she nearly collapsed, but she steadied herself against the wall. She bit her lip to keep from falling. "Fine," she said quietly.

If Murphy wanted her to move downstairs, she would. After all, she only had a few days left to live.

…

Later that evening, Gemma drove to the cryogenic experiment lab. She needed to discuss where her cryo-casket would be stored after the procedure.

"I read in the materials that you have cryo-casket storage facilities under the sea. Is that true?" Gemma asked.

"Of course," Andrea replied. "In fact, most of our cryo-casket storage facilities are underwater. Maintaining the sub-zero temperatures necessary for long-term storage requires enormous energy on land. But under the sea, the naturally low temperatures significantly reduce energy consumption."

"That's perfect," Gemma said with a smile. "I want my cryo-casket stored at the bottom of the sea."

"May I ask why?"

Still smiling, Gemma replied, "Because the stars can't find me there."

Murphy had gifted her a star. He once told her that no matter where she went, the star would follow her, always watching over her in his place. Yet now, Murphy did not care for her anymore.

Plus, she was about to die. It was too sad to let the star guard an unloved corpse. So, she decided to give the star its freedom—by sinking to a place where it could not see her. She would quietly disappear without burdening anyone or anything.

To avoid seeing Evangeline, Gemma deliberately stayed out late, only returning home when she thought everyone would be asleep.

However, when she arrived, the villa was brightly lit. Murphy sat in the living room, his face full of anger as he waited for her.

"Uncle Murphy, what's wrong?" Gemma asked, feigning confusion. She had no idea what she had done this time. She had spent the entire day away from the house.

Murphy threw a stack of documents onto the floor in front of her, barely containing his fury as he demanded, "Gemma, explain to me what this is!"

Gemma looked down, and among the scattered papers, she saw her cancer diagnosis.

"Why'd you go through my things?" Gemma panicked as she avoided Murphy's question entirely. "I'm 18 now. You can't just barge into my room and rummage through my stuff!"

Murphy's expression darkened as he slammed the ashtray on the table. "Is that the main point here?!"

The ashtray hit the floor with a dull thud, and Gemma flinched in fear.

"Gemma, you've misunderstood your uncle." At the height of the tension, Evangeline stepped in with a false air of concern. "He didn't go into your room. It's my fault. I didn't have any clean clothes, and the ones I wore yesterday… Well, they got ruined by your Uncle Murphy…"

She blushed, feigning shyness as she paused for effect before continuing, "I had nothing to wear, so I went into your room to borrow an old outfit of yours. But while looking, I accidentally came across this cancer diagnosis on your desk."

She was lying. Gemma had locked the cancer diagnosis away on the very first day she received it.

Yet in Evangeline's story, it sounded as if Gemma had deliberately left the diagnosis in plain sight, waiting for them to find it.

"Gemma, you're so young. How could you possibly have cancer?" Evangeline clutched her chest, her expression a delicate mix of sorrow and beauty. "Be honest with me. Is this diagnosis real, or is it some cruel prank?"

Gemma turned to Murphy, realizing for the first time that his gaze held more anger than concern.

Clearly, Evangeline had whispered enough poison in his ear before she got home. Murphy did not believe she was sick; he thought she was pretending to have cancer just to get his attention.

Gemma thought maybe it was better this way. At least her secret would remain hidden.

"It's a prank," she admitted softly. "I was just messing around with my friends. I didn't expect you to find it and—"

Before she could finish, Murphy, who had been sitting silently on the couch with a grim expression, stood up abruptly. "We're going to the hospital right now for tests."

Whether it was a prank or not, the hospital would reveal the truth.

"Uncle Murphy…" Gemma protested weakly. She did not want to go.

Yet one cold, piercing look from Murphy crushed her resistance. She knew him well enough to understand there was no escaping this.

By the time they arrived at the hospital, it was midnight. Normally, no departments except the emergency room would take patients at this hour.

However, Murphy had called the hospital director beforehand. Unwilling to offend someone as powerful as Murphy, the director arranged for a team of doctors to conduct a full examination on Gemma.

Cancer tests would take at least two hours to yield results. For Gemma, every second of those two hours was sheer torment.

She could not help but wonder—if Murphy found out she was dying, would he feel sad for her?

Or was she merely a burden to him now? A jealous, twisted nuisance he could not wait to be rid of? She did not know how long she waited, but eventually, the doctor came out with the results.

"Mr. Townsend, the tests are complete. Ms. Kirk is in excellent health. She doesn't have cancer at all."

Gemma was stunned. After all that agonizing waiting, this was the result she received?

She turned sharply to look at Evangeline. She did not need to guess to know that this had to be one of her manipulative schemes.

"Oh, thank goodness." Evangeline exhaled a long breath, her tone one of exaggerated relief. "So, it was just a prank? Gemma's fine… Murphy and I can finally stop worrying."

Murphy said nothing. He looked at Gemma intently, his gaze lingering as if he was seeing something for the first time.

Gemma's face was deathly pale, completely devoid of color.

The cherished rose he had nurtured so carefully seemed to be wilting right before his eyes.

"Although there's no sign of cancer, Ms. Kirk is currently in poor health and severely malnourished," the doctor said, as if sensing Murphy's doubts.

He added calmly, "Has she been dieting to lose weight recently? It's normal for young women to want to look their best, but extreme dieting is harmful—especially for someone like Ms. Kirk. Her health is already seriously affected.

"Look at how pale her face is. No wonder you mistook it for something as serious as cancer."

Murphy's expression darkened immediately.

Gemma had not been eating properly recently, which was not surprising. She was sick, after all, and Murphy was cold and dismissive toward her. She felt unwanted. How could she be in the mood to eat well?

Yet in Murphy's eyes, this painted a very different picture.

"You've gone so far as to destroy your health just to fake an illness and deceive me?" His gaze turned icy, cold enough to freeze the heat of summer.

"What's your goal? To make me pity you and agree to be with you? Gemma, wake up!"

"That's not true…" Tears slipped uncontrollably down her cheeks. She knew he would not believe her, but she still tried to deny it, saying, "I really didn't do that."

Her denial, however, seemed feeble in the face of the evidence.

Murphy looked at her with deep disappointment. "How did I raise you to become like this?"

At that moment, Gemma felt as though her heart had been pierced by a thousand arrows.

Murphy left her alone at the hospital as he walked away with his arm around Evangeline.

For the next week, he did not speak a word to her. Gemma tried several times to mend their relationship, but each attempt ended in failure.

It was not until the day before Murphy and Evangeline's wedding that she spoke to him again.

"Uncle Murphy, you're getting married tomorrow. Are you still unwilling to talk to me?" Gemma's long lashes cast faint shadows under her sorrowful eyes, her expression filled with sadness.

Murphy's gaze remained cold. "Have you given up yet?"

Gemma's eyes reddened as she nodded. "Yes, I have. I swear I'm not lying this time."

This time, she truly was not lying—because she would soon be gone. Once she was gone, surely, her heart would give up too.

Murphy glanced at her tearful eyes, clearly skeptical of her words.

Nonetheless, he softened. After all, she was the rose he had nurtured. How could he truly ignore her forever?

"Come to the wedding tomorrow and sincerely give us your blessing. If you do that, I'll forgive you," Murphy said coldly. "Don't try any tricks. I'm marrying Eva no matter what you do, and nothing will change that!"

Gemma kept her gaze down. "I won't make a scene."

Her calm, submissive demeanor pricked at his heart. An inexplicable irritation swept over him, and he turned his gaze away, unable to look at her any longer.

At that moment, Gemma spoke up again, "Uncle Murphy, I'll attend your wedding, but could I ask for one thing after it's over?"

Murphy and Evangeline's wedding was a garden-style ceremony, with all events expected to conclude by noon.

"Tomorrow is my birthday. You've always spent my birthday with me. Could you celebrate it with me one last time?

"I know it's selfish to ask this on your wedding day, but I won't interfere with the ceremony. Just come by at 4:00 pm when everything's over and have a slice of cake with me. Just wish me a happy birthday—that's all I'm asking for."

Her request was so humble that Murphy could not bring himself to refuse. In a stiff tone, he gave a curt, "Fine."

Gemma barely slept that night. She lay awake until dawn, then got up, dressed carefully, and prepared to attend Murphy's wedding.