Chapter 45 Hannah Gets Owned
She fought back the panic rising in her chest, her eyes darting nervously as she bit her lip in frustration. "Sophia, I'm telling you the truth. These formulas need to be done by real pros. Even the tiniest mistake could mess up the whole experiment."
Hannah saw Sophia just standing there, not even trying to defend herself, and felt a rush of satisfaction. She pressed on, "Sophia, I'm not trying to single you out. I just feel bad for Steven. He busted his butt on these formulas..."
She bit her lip again, glancing over at Steven.
Normally, Steven would've blown up by now.
Everyone in the lab knew Steven was a workaholic. He was obsessed with his research and couldn't stand anyone messing with his formulas.
So, seeing his hard work trashed like this should've made him furious, right?
Hannah waited, her heart pounding with a mix of excitement and anticipation.
Alaric was hers; no one could take him from her.
She and Alaric were perfect together.
Only she could always be by Alaric's side, sharing his highs and lows.
But as time dragged on, Steven didn't show any signs of anger.
When she looked up, she saw everyone gathered around the blackboard, staring at the formulas, especially Steven.
He looked like he was about to climb onto the blackboard to examine every detail.
Even Aurora, who had been quiet behind her, had moved to the front.
Hannah was left standing alone, feeling awkward and talking to herself.
A wave of shame and anger washed over her, and she wished she could just disappear.
Suddenly, Steven shouted, his face lighting up with excitement, "I get it! I get it!"
"Sophia! How did you do it? Honestly, I always felt something was off with these numbers, but I couldn't figure it out. I can't believe you spotted the issue right away."
And even wrote the correct formula.
Steven was ecstatic, not knowing how to contain his excitement.
Sophia, embarrassed by the praise, scratched her head shyly. "No, I just noticed a small mistake in the formula. You guys are the real experts!"
Steven smiled, feeling a bit sheepish at the compliment.
Now that the misunderstanding was cleared up, Steven wasn't one to hold a grudge.
He quickly apologized to Sophia in a low voice, "Sophia, I'm sorry about earlier. I hope you can forgive me."
He hadn't expected Sophia to be so amazing, catching the error in his formula at a glance.
When he first met Sophia, he thought she was just a spoiled rich girl.
But it turned out, Sophia was indeed as talented in medicine as Alaric had said.
Aurora nodded in agreement, "Sophia, I apologize for my earlier judgment. I didn't expect you to be so impressive!"
Alaric smiled, his handsome face beaming with pride.
Of course, Sophia was Robert's final and most important disciple! How could she not be amazing?
Thinking of Sophia as his brother's wife, Alaric felt a renewed sense of pride.
No wonder his usually distant brother treated Sophia differently.
Because she deserved it.
Listening to everyone's praise for Sophia, Hannah was floored.
She looked at Aurora and Steven in disbelief, unable to process what was happening.
Sophia had messed with Steven's formula, so why wasn't he mad? Why was he apologizing to her?
And Aurora—wasn't she the one who hated people messing with experiments the most?
Why was this happening?
As Hannah stood there in shock and confusion, Sophia turned her head, looking all innocent and pitiful. "It's my fault. I shouldn't have touched your stuff without asking."
Steven quickly responded, "No, it's not your fault. You helped me out; how could I blame you? This was all just a misunderstanding!"
Aurora glanced at Hannah and shook her head, then turned to Sophia. "Don't let Hannah's words get to you. The fact that you spotted the problem in the formula right away means you're more qualified than anyone to be here."
Hannah's face turned bright red, and she clenched her fists in anger.
She couldn't believe Sophia was that good. They had spent an entire week trying to figure out the problem, and Sophia saw it in a second.
She didn't buy it.
She stepped forward and carefully examined the corrected part of the blackboard.
The more she looked, the more shocked she became.
Eventually, her anger and doubt turned into astonishment and realization.
Finally, Hannah opened her mouth but couldn't say a word.
Sophia raised an eyebrow and said, "Hannah, it seems you have some misunderstandings about me. Alaric, maybe I should leave…"
She could do that too!
Sophia's eyes narrowed slightly, a cunning light flashing in her pupils.
"Don't say that! As long as I'm here, no one will bully you!" Alaric quickly glared at Hannah after hearing Sophia's words.
Sophia was someone he had worked hard to bring on board.
Without her help, his brother's condition could flare up at any moment.
Alaric stared at Hannah, his eyes cold. "Hannah, apologize to Sophia. You went too far."
Hannah was stunned, feeling a suffocating frustration in her chest.
Why was this happening?
She thought Sophia was just a useless woman who liked to cling to Alaric, but she had proven her abilities and shifted everyone's attention to herself.
Hannah bit her lip, quickly trying to think of a way out.
Just then, Sophia's pitiful voice chimed in again, "It's okay, Hannah was just looking out for the lab. Even if I'm misunderstood, I understand."
Hearing this, Alaric and Steven felt a pang of sympathy.
Alaric's face darkened, and he said in a low voice, "Hannah, apologize to Sophia. I invited her here to help with our research, not to be bullied. If you have a problem with that, then you'll have to leave."
Hannah was stunned.
For Sophia, Alaric was asking her to leave?
She had been in this lab for three years. Did those three years mean nothing compared to Sophia, who had just shown up?
Looking at Alaric's cold expression, Hannah's face was full of grievance.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked at the unfeeling Alaric with a look of sorrow.