Alice's POV
Professor Schuman stood at the doorway, his face dark with anger.
Behind him trailed several faculty members from the project team, who must’ve heard the news already.
As such, the atmosphere in the lab instantly froze.
But Melvin reacted fast. In a heartbeat, his expression shifted to one of grief and helplessness, and he rushed to speak first.
“Professor! Thank God you’re here! Something terrible happened. The experimental sample… Alice accidentally knocked it over. It’s completely destroyed!”
Chloe jumped in right away, her shoulders shaking as she let out soft sobs.
Still, Professor Daniel Schuman said nothing.
His gaze swept over the ruined sample on the floor, then over the three of us, before finally landing on me with a complicated look.
Seeing that he hadn’t exploded immediately, Melvin thought he had a chance. He doubled down and put on the performance of his life.
“Professor, I know Alice didn’t mean it. She was probably just so focused on recording data that she didn’t notice what was next to her. But… that sample was priceless. Honestly, she was so shaken that she got emotional earlier and said a few irrational things.”
Chloe raised her tear-streaked face, voice trembling as she added fuel to the fire, “Professor, please don’t blame Alice. If anyone’s to blame, it should be me. I was the closest. I should’ve reacted faster. Maybe then I could’ve caught it. It’s my fault for being useless.”
I clenched my fists.
What a performance. Playing the victim while shifting the blame. Very classic.
Professor Schuman’s expression grew darker by the second. His eyes locked onto me, his tone unreadable. “Alice. You tell me. What happened?”
Immediately, Melvin and Chloe tensed up.
His eyes drilled into me with a silent warning, a clear threat.
But I just looked at their fake, pitiful faces, took a deep breath, and just as I opened my mouth, Melvin suddenly cut me off, as if he couldn’t hold back any longer. His voice rang out, full of passion and drama.
“Professor! Don’t push her! She just broke down earlier and started accusing me and Chloe of things we didn’t do. I think she’s just scared out of her mind! I’ll just take the blame! I might be just a poor student who could never pay back thirty million, but I’ll accept any punishment. Just please, don’t blame Alice. It was an accident!”
Right on cue, Chloe choked out between tears, “Sir, you can’t! You can’t take this on yourself! It was clearly Alice’s mistake. We can’t shoulder her burden.”
The two of them traded lines like seasoned actors, their performance so flawless it could win an Oscar. The sight made me sick.
At that moment, Professor Schuman’s brows were furrowed tightly. Again, his gaze landed squarely on me.
This time, Melvin was sure he’d won. He even smirked at me, the corner of his mouth curling in smug triumph.
The room fell silent.
I looked straight at him, my voice steady as I finally spoke, “Melvin, you keep insisting I knocked over the sample.”
“Then tell me, do you even know what exactly it was, that thing your precious Chloe just ‘accidentally’ destroyed with her own hands?”
I paused, letting every word sink in, then said slowly, word by word, “Do you even know what it was?”
