Chapter 2

I was the one who stuck by her through the toughest years in the lab. I had always believed we were in this together, but as it turned out, we weren't; I was just the person who had to stay hidden in the shadows.

"Who are you going to spend tonight with?" I asked, keeping my voice low.

Brittany's lips parted, but before she could speak, her phone rang. Tyler O'Niel's name was flashing on the screen.

She answered almost instantly. "What's wrong?"

I couldn't hear what was said on the other end, but her expression shifted dramatically, and she turned to grab her coat.

"Something came up with Tyler. I need to head over there." At the doorway, she looked back at me and added, "Don't overthink this. When I get back, we'll talk."

After the door closed, the house felt dead silent. Standing there alone, I suddenly felt exhausted.

This had happened so many times before. When I had a high fever, she told me she had an important meeting and that I should take some over-the-counter medicine. When I waited for her in the lab until midnight, she said a last-minute business dinner came up and told me to head home first.

Every time she told me to wait, I thought that if I were just a bit more understanding, everything would be fine. Yet in the end, being understanding only meant being left behind.

I walked back to the table and picked up my pen, intending to sign the job offer letter, when the doorbell rang again. Thinking it was Brittany returning, I opened the door, only to find Tyler standing outside. He was impeccably dressed and had a smirk on his face, as if he had deliberately chosen that exact moment to come by.

He stepped inside, his eyes scanning the room before settling on my face.

"To be honest, Harry, I've known about you and Brittany all along," he said.

My fingers clenched.

His smile faded a little. "So, care to guess why she ended up choosing me anyway?"

I hadn't expected him to be so blunt or show zero remorse. It was as if the thoughts he had hidden for years could finally be laid bare in front of me.

Tyler and I had known each other for years. When we first joined the lab, we stayed up late revising data together, and we used to sprint to the cafeteria right before closing to buy the cheapest meals.

When he had an upset stomach, I brought him medication. The night he went through a breakup, he drank so much that he leaned against me with bloodshot eyes and said he was so lucky to have met me.

Looking back now, I was probably the only idiot who took those words to heart.

I stared at him, my voice turning ice-cold. "If you knew all along, how could you pretend nothing happened?"

He laughed. "Why couldn't I?"

He took two steps forward and stopped directly in front of me.

"Harry, do you think everyone else should step aside for you because you've always gotten everything? You're Professor Reed's favorite student, so the best opportunities went to you first; even Brittany's attention was on you from the start. How is that fair?"

I froze for a moment, suddenly realizing the truth. He didn't just turn into this overnight; he had simply been suppressing it for far too long.

"So you called me your best friend while stabbing me in the back to steal my girlfriend?" I asked.

His face stiffened for a second, but he quickly smiled again. "Steal? If she was so sure about you, what could possibly sway her?"

Those words cut deep, but the pain didn't come from how harsh his words were; it came from the fact that he was right. If Brittany were sure about her feelings for me, things would never have gotten to this point.

I forced myself to stay calm. "Does Brittany know you came here to say all this?"

"Of course she does," he said, looking at me. "Why else do you think I'm the one who gets to stand beside her tomorrow?"

As he spoke, his gaze drifted down to the job offer letter on the table.

"You're leaving?" he asked, reaching out to grab it.

Instinctively, I pressed my hand firmly onto the paper. "Don't touch it."

Instead of letting go, he leaned down to glance at the document, his smile growing wider.

"An overseas research institute. Harry, are you preparing a backup plan for yourself?"

"Tyler." I locked eyes with him. "Let go."

In the scuffle, a trophy on the desk was knocked off and shattered on the floor. As he yanked his arm back, the back of his hand scraped against a sharp fragment, instantly leaving a bloody cut.

Right at that moment, the door opened. Brittany rushed in, and the first thing she saw was Tyler holding his bleeding hand in front of the mess, while I remained standing by the table.

Without hesitation, she shielded Tyler behind her.

"Harry, what are you doing?"

In that instant, I didn't even feel like explaining anymore, not because she shielded him, but because she didn't even bother to ask about what had actually happened.

Standing behind her, Tyler said in a low voice, "Brittany, don't blame him. It was my fault for accidentally touching his offer letter. He just panicked."

Just like that, he pinned all the blame squarely on me.

Brittany looked down at the offer letter in my hand, her eyes gradually darkening. "When did you receive this?"

I found it ridiculous. "Does that even matter?"

"Of course it matters." She stared directly into my eyes. "Harry, were you planning to leave all along? Why didn't you tell me?"

I almost laughed out loud. I wonder which one of us was the first to take things so far.

Before I could say anything, her phone vibrated again. It was a message from the faculty group chat, asking whether she and Tyler would be attending tomorrow's media interview together.

Tyler tilted his head toward her, his voice soft. "Brittany, since things have come to this, shouldn't you give me an answer?"

I looked at her too.