Chapter 5

Ethan and Vivian said nothing, tacitly confirming it.

Ethan cleared his throat, steering the conversation back. He asked Vivian, "What competition?"

Vivian stuck out her tongue. "A night cycling race around the lake. I signed you up. You're not mad, are you?"

Ethan fell silent again, his gaze shifting to Pearl.

Pearl shrugged. "You two go ahead. I need to get back to school to work on my thesis anyway."

Joy, unable to read the dynamics between them, extended a friendly invitation to Pearl. "You should come along too!"

"Pearl probably wouldn't enjoy something as tomboyish as cycling." Before Pearl could respond, Vivian had already declined for her.

Ethan chimed in, "Right. Pearl's kind of timid and not really athletic."

Pearl did not argue. She thought about how she had been captain of the kickboxing club for three years and was unbeatable in her entire department. If her junior club members heard what Ethan just said, they would probably be furious enough to clock him on the spot.

She did not want to waste more time arguing. She pulled out the bracelet she had removed earlier and handed it to Ethan. "This..."

She wanted to remind Ethan to keep it safe, but Joy saw the bracelet and immediately snatched it up with gleaming eyes. "Oh my God! What a flawless piece of emerald!"

She looked at Vivian enviously. "You mentioned a few days ago that you wanted to find a quality bracelet, and your Mr. Sterling got you this! Why don't I have such thoughtful old classmates..."

Vivian lowered her head somewhat shyly.

Joy continued to egg them on, saying, "Vivian, put it on and let's see! I've never seen an emerald of this quality before! It must be worth at least several hundred thousand dollars..."

Under Vivian's expectant gaze, Ethan hesitantly took the bracelet and handed it to Vivian. However, he kept watching Pearl's expression the entire time.

When Pearl saw Vivian slip on the bracelet, she breathed a long sigh of relief. This Sterling family heirloom had been a hot potato in her hands.

It would end up with Vivian sooner or later anyway. It was better to hand it over now and be done with it.

"You guys have fun. I'm getting a cab." Pearl walked into the elevator without looking back.

Behind her, Ethan, who had always been the one she watched, found himself watching her retreating figure for the first time. Ethan stared as the elevator doors slowly closed. Seeing Pearl leave so decisively stirred an indescribable feeling in his chest.

Afterward, Pearl went to see the musical alone. The tragic story made her cry through most of it.

On the cab ride back to school, she saw Vivian's latest social media post.

The bracelet was on Vivian's wrist, and her caption read, "Wearing emerald while cycling around the lake. Living my best life!"

In the photo, Ethan's shadow clung closely to hers. Pearl then quietly opened Vivian's profile, unfollowed her, and muted her posts.

When Vivian first burst into her life, Pearl had combed through every post on her feed. Now, however, she no longer cared.

For the past few years, she had merely been a spectator in Ethan's life. She had laughed and cried, but now, the show was over. It was time to extract herself from this tragedy.

As the departure date for the Arcanum project drew closer, several of Pearl's close classmates took leave to go home, saying they wanted to spend a few more days with their families.

Pearl, who stayed at school, took on all the team's logistics work. She ran around preparing supplies and stayed busy for several more days.

Ten days before departure, she needed to stock up on medicine from the pharmacy. When she saw pregnancy tests on the shelf, she grabbed one on impulse. She had been nauseous and vomiting every day lately, and her period was late.

What she feared most came true. When she saw the two lines on the pregnancy test, Pearl nearly cursed out loud.

She forced herself to calm down. Pregnancy tests could give false positives. She immediately made an appointment online and went straight to the obstetrics department for a blood test first thing the next morning.

An hour later, she was clutching a report that read 'two months pregnant'. She stood in the hospital lobby, feeling her head buzz.

Two months. That would be right before Vivian returned to the country, the last time she and Ethan had slept together.

What terrible timing!

In just a few days, she would have her divorce certificate and be on her way to Arcanum. Pearl could not help but pull up Ethan's number.

No matter how strong she was, she was still just a 24-year-old graduate student. After hesitating for a moment, she tapped the dial button.

The next second, a phone rang not far from where she stood.

Pearl followed the sound. Ethan, in his trench coat, stood with Vivian, who had perfect, smooth skin and red lips. They looked like the perfect match.

Hearing the ringtone, Ethan frowned and pulled out his phone. Pearl quickly ended the call before it was answered and ducked into the shadows.