Dumping Him for His Uncle (Natasha and Zachary)

"You two finally made it! The ceremony doesn't start for a while, so I snagged us front-row seats," Owen said brightly, already waiting at the entrance.

He eagerly took Liana's bags and handed over bottled water like a personal assistant.

More than a few people nearby whispered and glanced over, but Owen didn't seem to care. His focus was entirely on Liana.

Natasha shook her head with a sigh. "You two go ahead and sit. I'm going to visit one of my former professors."

With that, she picked up the gift box and made her way toward the research building. Elvira shouldn't have class at this hour, but Natasha wasn't sure if her office was still in the same place.

The moment Natasha stepped inside the research building, nostalgia hit her like a wave. She had spent three years here.

She walked down the long hallway, heading toward the last room on the left-that used to be Elvira's office. Just as Natasha was about to step inside, a student came barreling down the hallway with a basketball in his hands, eyes glued to the floor and completely unaware of anyone in his path.

Natasha dodged just in time, barely avoiding a full-body collision.

Before she could even react, a loud crash of shattering glass echoed from the office.

She rushed in and found a middle-aged woman lying on the floor, shards of glass scattered around her.

"Are you alright?" Natasha asked, her voice calm as she rushed to the woman's side.

A heavy water glass had fallen, and a jagged piece had embedded itself right in her left eyelid. Blood trickled from the corner of her eye, and when she opened the other, it was already tinted red.

"Am I going blind?" the woman, Astrid Romero, asked, her voice shaking.

She tried to stay composed, but the wave of dizziness and the pressure on her eye were impossible to ignore.

"Don't move. I'm going to get the shard out. You're going to be okay," Natasha instructed, kneeling beside her.

She scanned the room and spotted a pack of alcohol swabs and a pair of tweezers on a nearby desk.

She couldn't tell if her eye had been pierced, but they would need to get her to a hospital right after.

Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes, not just from fear but from the overwhelming tension twisting in her chest. Her eyelids trembled uncontrollably, and even with her eyes shut tight, her pupils darted frantically beneath them.

Natasha said gently, "Listen to me. Take a deep breath. Try to relax. Close your eyes like you're going to sleep."

If she didn't stop trembling, Natasha could accidentally injure her.

Astrid took a breath and did her best to calm down.

With steady hands, Natasha angled the tweezers and carefully removed the shard. Blood immediately welled up and trickled down her cheek.

"Do you feel any pain in your eye itself?" she asked.

Astrid shook her head, and Natasha breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'll go to another room to get some gauze. Please wait a moment," Natasha said, turning to leave the office.

But before she could make it to the door, Owen pulled her roughly to the side. "What are you doing..."

He made a shushing gesture, and Natasha immediately understood. She looked down the hall and saw Nicole walking up from the bottom of the stairs.

Nicole moved cautiously, distracted by the sounds coming from the innermost room, which caused her to veer in that direction.noveldrama

Owen finally had a chance to pull Natasha away. "She's been tailing you since you arrived. She's definitely up to something!"

"Wait for me. I still need to..." Natasha hesitated, not forgetting Astrid, whom she had left behind. Though there wasn't much harm done, she still needed to see it through.

"Don't forget the reason you came back to campus. I just saw Tina!" Owen's voice was tinged with frustration as he scolded her for not prioritizing properly.

Natasha paused. "Has she returned to campus too?"