Chapter 52 High School Classmate Returns
According to Melissa, Andrew ultimately refused Sabrina's request. That didn't surprise me one bit.
Seeing I showed zero shock, Melissa looked at me curiously. "Cate, do you know something else?"
I smiled. "You actually know about this too."
Melissa looked even more confused, her brow furrowing as she thought hard but couldn't figure out what I meant.
I smirked. "The recording from the study last time. Remember?"
The second I reminded her, it clicked. "Oh! Right! You mean Andrew knows those meds have serious side effects, so there's no way he'd let Sabrina take them?"
I nodded. "Exactly. Plus, after that whole drug tester scandal, the Rosewood family took a major hit. Andrew literally doesn't have spare cash to fund Sabrina's medication."
Melissa caught on immediately, and we started piecing together more details. She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Come to think of it, when Sabrina stole Michael's paintings and Jason's photos later, I actually helped make that happen!"
There was a hint of pride in her voice. I met her eyes and smiled without saying anything. Of course—we'd promised to help Sabrina, hadn't we? How could we forget?
When Sabrina made her move, Melissa had specifically cleared the area for her. She'd gotten to the security office first to preserve evidence, then watched Sabrina foolishly delete the surveillance footage herself. Combined with Michael's paintings being stolen earlier and innocent household staff losing a month's wages over it, everyone at the Rosewood house was pissed and half-assing their jobs anyway.
After sharing all our intel, both Melissa and I were in great moods. Though for different reasons—I was happy because revenge looked promising, while Melissa just loved watching drama unfold. Either way, I'd always be grateful she was willing to help me.
"Cate, do you think Sabrina will say yes to that rich guy?"
Melissa's mind was already racing ahead. I thought for a moment before answering. "Sabrina will probably agree."
Under her curious gaze, I explained with a smile. "Sabrina's never experienced hardship in her life. When her illness flares up, she's in absolute agony. Before, I tested the medications first, so when she had episodes, all Sabrina had to do was follow James's instructions—take her pills and go through treatment. Now they don't dare use medication carelessly, and the domestic treatments can only keep her alive without actually relieving the pain."
That's why the surveillance footage Melissa had sent me initially was all from Sabrina's bedroom. Sabrina had been having an episode. Without medication, she'd just had to power through it. But once the episode passed, she could briefly return to normal.
Basically, Sabrina's condition was intermittent. In my past life, when Sabrina wasn't having episodes—that's when I suffered most. James would coax me into participating in clinical trials to ensure Sabrina's next episode could be quickly relieved. He never cared whether I was in pain or not.
Seeing me zone out, Melissa called my name. I gave her an apologetic smile. "Just remembering some unpleasant stuff from the past."
She quickly comforted me. I brushed it off and kept analyzing. "Sabrina desperately needs those specialty meds right now. The Rosewood family can't provide them. That rich guy is basically her best option at this point."
Even if it was just keeping up appearances, that would be enough to satisfy Sabrina's greed for now.
Melissa nodded thoughtfully. "Lisa, please keep an eye on things at the Rosewood family for me. And if you ever need my help with anything, just say the word."
Thinking about everyone in the Rosewood family made me feel helpless. All I could do was rely on her.
Melissa smiled and agreed. "Don't worry. If that day ever comes, I definitely won't hold back."
---
After Nicholas and I parted ways that day, the atmosphere between us grew noticeably colder. Aside from necessary exchanges, neither of us said an extra word.
Back at the Rosewood family, scenes like this had played out almost daily. I'd long since gotten used to reading everyone's expressions. Which was exactly why I no longer had the courage to break the ice first. I'd embarrassed myself enough times already, trying to warm up to people who stayed cold.
Nicholas seemed like he wanted to say something several times but held back. I was always rushing to work and didn't ask about it. Gradually, he stopped trying. We maintained a delicate balance between us.
One day, after finishing my work tasks, I was about to refine my competition design submission when my phone lit up. I glanced over—a new message?
When I opened it, I froze in place. It really was a new message, but from someone from my past.
Opening the chat with Samuel, I saw his message on screen.
[Catherine, I'm back in the country.]
I quickly searched my brain for information about him. After all, I'd been reborn with memories from my past life, but memory storage was limited. When your brain was full, you'd forget people you hadn't contacted in too long. Only specific triggers could restore those memories.
I kept rewinding through time in my mind, finally finding fragments about him in the river of memories.
Samuel Brown, my high school classmate. What I remembered most clearly was his exceptional physics grades. Calling him a genius wouldn't be an exaggeration at all.
Along with those memories came another scene—what happened after high school graduation. Before I could think deeper, Samuel sent another message.
[Do you still remember me?]
[I'd like to take you to dinner. When are you free?]
I gathered my thoughts, my fingers tapping on the keyboard, typing and deleting before sending.
Before Samuel went abroad, he'd confessed to me. At the time, I'd been completely focused on finishing college and improving my relationship with my brothers. I had zero mental bandwidth for romance. So I'd turned him down.
After Samuel left the country, our contact went from frequent at first to basically forgotten now.
I tried recalling my past life memories. In that life, after graduating college, I'd immediately become Sabrina's lab rat at my brothers' insistence. As for when Samuel came back to the country, or whether he'd contacted me—I had no idea.
Only in this moment did I start believing I'd truly changed my life's trajectory. After all, in my past life, Samuel never appeared in any of my later memories.
I couldn't help feeling elated and quickly replied.
[Of course I remember you, genius.]
[I'm free this afternoon. What about you?]
Samuel responded just as fast.
[Where are you? I can come pick you up?]
I told him I was at work and casually sent him my company's location. Samuel got it and said he'd wait for me to get off work.
After agreeing, I went back to refining my design. When quitting time finally rolled around, I'd barely stepped out of the office building when I heard someone call my name.
"Catherine!"