I froze where I stood.

Right in front of me, Andrew pulled Sheila into his arms, his eyes full of concern. He gently wiped away her tears and spoke in a soft, soothing voice.

"Don't be scared. I'm here. No one's going to hurt you."

Then, he looked up at me and snapped, "Rose, apologize to Sheila."

His gaze was calm, almost icy. It felt like an invisible hand had grabbed my heart and was squeezing the life out of it.

Sheila curled her lips into a faint smile, looking at me like she had just won.

I clenched my fists so hard my knuckles hurt. I stared at Andrew, unwilling to believe what I had just heard.

"What… What did you say?"

"I said, apologize to Sheila."

There was a trace of impatience in his voice.

"It's just a small experiment. Is it really worth making such a big deal over it? Sheila meant well. Is this how you repay her kindness?"

Each word felt like a blade sinking into my chest.

Andrew, of all people, knew exactly how much I had sacrificed for the experiment.

However, he stood there, watching someone destroy it, and still chose to defend Sheila, the one responsible for everything.

That was not the first time. He had previously sided with her at work. We had argued about it more than once.

Every time, he would explain it away, saying Sheila was young, that she reminded him of himself when he was just an intern and did not know anything. He said he just wanted to look out for her.

Even though I had always felt something was off about that explanation, I trusted him. We had years of history together.

However, at that moment, I finally understood how wrong I had been.

I could not hold it in anymore. I rushed forward and snatched my phone back.

"Why should a single 'accident' be enough to destroy everything I've worked for? This is my experiment, my paper, my future! I'm calling the police. She should be arrested!"

Perhaps my reaction was too intense, because even the senior staff started trying to calm me down.

"Rose, we know this experiment is important to you, but no matter how important it is, it's not more important than a person, right?"

"If this turns into a police case, how is Sheila supposed to face anyone in the future?"

"Look, we can give you more time. Just redo the experiment."

'Redo it?' I thought.

I almost laughed.

If success was that easy, lupus would not still have been one of the diseases that could not be cured. As I listened to them plead on her behalf, I finally understood.

Every single one of them was there to protect Sheila. The reason was simple.

They all knew who Andrew was. He was the lab's investor, as well as the heir to the Smith family.

If he wanted to protect someone, the entire institute would fall in line.

However, if Andrew knew that the person he was trying so hard to protect was the one who had destroyed his only chance at a cure, what would he do then?

The air grew tense.

The way everyone looked at me was full of judgment. Meanwhile, the satisfaction in Sheila's eyes was impossible to hide.

Andrew walked over to me slowly and patted my shoulder.

"Alright, Rose. This experiment was taking up too much of your time anyway. Maybe this is a good chance for you to get some rest.

"After we get married, you'll have more energy to take care of me."

Andrew and I were supposed to get married at the end of the year. That experiment was meant to be my wedding gift to him.

However, there was nothing left.

I let out an icy laugh and pushed his hand away.

"Mr. Smith, your wedding gift should go to someone else. I don't think I'm worthy of it."

I broke up with Andrew as fast as I could.

I returned every gift he had ever given me, packed my things, and moved out of the apartment we had shared. In the shortest time possible, I cut every tie between us.

However, to him, I was just being dramatic. He kept coming after me, complaining again and again.

"Over one experiment? You're really breaking up with me over that? I already bought the diamond ring. I was going to propose to you, and this is how you treat me?"

Listening to him, I almost laughed.

If Andrew ever found out that the antigen he dismissed so casually could have cured his illness, would he still think I was overreacting?

I stopped responding to him. My paper deadline was coming up fast. Without my experimental data, there was no way I could submit it in time. Without that, my chance to study abroad was gone too.

Just when I felt completely stuck, a top research lab in the country suddenly reached out to me. They said they were very interested in my work. If I joined them, they were willing to offer me three times what I was earning.

I was tempted.

After all, the main reason I had stayed in this lab in the first place was Andrew.

His family had invested in that place and brought in all those professors just to research his condition.

I wanted to help him, but it felt completely unnecessary.

I agreed to meet with them and went back to the lab to organize my previous data.

Before I even reached the door, I heard a familiar voice inside.

It was Sheila, soft and sugary as ever.

"Andrew, even though I accidentally ruined Rose's experiment, I guess I did a good thing in the end. I overheard her talking to a lab overseas. She said her experiment was successful and that she'd be going abroad soon.

"She's about to get married, yet she's still planning to leave. Andrew, it sounds like she's already tired of you being sick and wants to dump you."

Andrew's face darkened. He had clearly taken her words to heart.

Sheila continued, her voice sweet and coaxing.

"Now that the experiment is gone, she can't leave anymore, so why don't you ask the institute to give that study abroad spot to me instead?

"That way, Rose will stay and marry you like she's supposed to, and I can come back to visit you often… You know, help with your loneliness."

As she spoke, her slender fingers slowly traced upward between his legs, the meaning obvious.

Andrew let out a low sound. While enjoying it, he seemed to make up his mind.

Suddenly, he stood up, pinned Sheila down on the lab table, and lifted her skirt, his hand sliding underneath. His voice turned sharp, almost like he was venting something.

"Rose wants to leave me? Not happening. Be good to me, sweetheart. The study abroad spot will be yours."

What followed was the disgusting sound of them entangled together.

In that moment, everything finally clicked.

Andrew had a hand in destroying my experiment too.

He could not stand the idea of me achieving something greater, of me stepping onto a bigger stage. So, he chose the cruelest way possible to keep me.

However, what he never expected was that what he destroyed was not just my experiment.

It was his only chance at being cured.

I was going to tell him everything.