Chapter 2

Elara POV

I had been in love with Adrian Reed for seven whole years before I finally went from being his assistant to his fiancée.

But with only a month left until the wedding, I decided I didn't want him anymore.

"Mr. Thompson, please add me to the overseas medical team list for this mission."

I placed the signed application form on his desk, my voice calm.

Behind the computer, Mr. Thompson looked up, his face full of surprise.

"Dr. Jenkins, I thought you and Adrian were getting married next month. If you go to Africa now, what about your wedding?"

I swallowed the dryness in my throat and forced a small smile. "I'm not marrying him anymore."

"What?" Mr. Thompson was utterly astonished.

But I didn't explain further. "Please add me to the list."

"Years ago, you gave up a chance at a top research lab abroad for Adrian and stayed here. You're about to become his wife." Mr. Thompson's tone was kind. "You should think carefully. It'll be too late to regret it later."

"I won't regret it."

Mr. Thompson sighed. "If that's your decision, I'll submit your name. But you're part of Adrian's team. Remember to inform him before you leave."

I acknowledged him and left the Dean's office. As I walked towards the elevator, I heard a few colleagues excitedly chatting together.

"Look! Professor Reed and Chloe Davis are on an academic journal cover again!"

"They look so good together. I heard Professor Reed personally mentored her on that paper."

"Professor Reed is usually so serious, but he actually guides her hand-in-hand? He's really different with Chloe."

"I think the famous 'Ice King' professor has finally been melted by Chloe, his little ray of sunshine."

The snippets of conversation drifted over. I didn't stop walking, but my fingertips curled into my palms, and I gave a self-mocking smile.

The entire department was buzzing about how well Professor Reed and his student matched.

And I, his fiancée, was like a ghost.

Few people knew how much I'd sacrificed for Adrian.

I graduated among the top three students in my program, and a medical paper I wrote caused a stir in the field, earning me an invitation from a prestigious pharmaceutical research lab in Switzerland.

But I turned down that dream opportunity, staying at the medical school to become an obscure assistant in Adrian's team.

Adrian was the youngest professor at the medical school, academically rigorous, and naturally aloof and reserved, often seeming cold because he rarely smiled.

It took me seven years to make him accustomed to my presence.

I organized his documents, reminded him to eat on time, brought him warm oat milk when he had stomach pains, and packed all his travel essentials for him.

I managed his work schedule and daily life with meticulous care.

Initially, I thought an insurmountable chasm separated us, and I would forever be relegated to admiring him as a subordinate, a colleague.

Then the lab accident happened six months ago. A chemical spill occurred.

Only I rushed in to push Adrian out of the way, and I inhaled a large amount of toxic gas trying to save his research findings.

I spent five days in the ICU with severe lung burns, nearly not waking up.

When I finally regained consciousness, Adrian was unusually sitting by my bedside.

His eyes were shadowed with exhaustion, and his voice was low as he asked, "Why did you risk your life to save those research findings?"

Lying in the hospital bed, I gave a half-truthful answer. "I just didn't want your hard work to go to waste."

"Elara, I want the truth."

He gazed at me with deep eyes, and that's when I finally mustered the courage to voice the love buried deep in my heart.

"Those were truths, but more importantly, it's because... I love you, Adrian."

When my words fell, he watched me for a long time, then finally said, "When you're better, I'll take you to meet my parents."

At that moment, I thought he, this towering figure, had finally responded to me. My seven-year-long unrequited love finally had a result, and my heart soared with happiness.

We became official and quickly set a wedding date.

After we got together, Adrian treated me uniquely enough.

He, who never celebrated any holidays, remembered only my birthday; he, who never gave gifts to anyone, would send me flowers; he, who detested dealing with people, would patiently entertain my difficult family.

However, he still wasn't comfortable with people getting too close.

So, between us, even common displays of affection like holding hands or hugging were rare.

I thought it was due to his naturally reserved personality.

If it weren't for Chloe's appearance, I might have continued to believe I truly held a place in his heart.

I returned to the research building and saw the lab lights still on from a distance.

As I reached the lab door, my hand on the doorknob, voices drifted out.

"Adrian, everyone in the department is talking about you and Chloe right now," Dr. Sarah Miller, a colleague from our team, said. "Everyone saw that academic journal cover; they're saying you two look really good together."

I paused outside the door.

"They don't know that you and Elara are engaged. I think you should find a time to explain things to Elara, so she doesn't misunderstand anything."

"No need," Adrian's steady voice replied. "Chloe is my student. It's perfectly normal for me to mentor her on papers and appear on journals together. Elara will understand."

His tone was so matter-of-fact, as if "understanding" was my obligation.

Dr. Miller couldn't help but sound curious. "All these years, countless women have confessed their feelings for you, but no one ever made your heart race. Yet, six months ago, you suddenly got together with Elara. Be honest, is it because you like her, or for some other reason?"

Adrian was silent for a moment, then spoke in a complicated tone, "Six months ago, during that lab accident, she rushed in to save me, and she nearly died trying to salvage my research findings. I didn't know how to repay her."

"So you decided to marry Elara... as a way to repay a debt?"