Sunday came quickly, and Lucy found herself in the university’s library.
She sat quietly, her mind racing. Her thoughts drifted to Friday, to what had happened then, and she blew out a breath.
She was unable to forget about it.
Flashback
Lucy rose onto her toes, stretching for the thick pharmacology textbook perched on the highest shelf.
"Just... a little..." She groaned.
Her fingertips grazed the spine, but that wasn’t enough. She frowned, rising even higher.
And suddenly, the book shifted.
"So close—"
The heavy textbook slid free almost immediately.
Lucy’s eyes widened.
"Oh!"
Instinctively, she reached for it, forgetting that she was already off balance.
The next second, the world tilted as she stumbled backwards.
Before she could hit the floor, a firm arm circled her waist.
Her breath caught in her throat.
The sudden force pulled her backward while her body lurched forward.
And... their faces collided.
It was soft and inexplicably warm.
For one impossible heartbeat... their lips met, causing neither of them to move.
Then Kane’s hand immediately loosened around her waist as though he’d been burned.
Lucy’s eyes were impossibly wide as she took a few steps backwards, putting space between them.
Kane looked just as startled.
"Are you hurt?" He asked carefully.
Lucy could only shake her head as she stepped back once again she almost tripped.
"I..."
No words came. Heat rushed to her face.
Without another word, she snatched up the fallen textbook and hurried away.
Only after she’d disappeared around the corner did Kane raise a hand to his lips.
"..."
Lucy blinked, her cheeks warming at the memory. She groaned inwardly.
"Can I stop thinking about that already?" She mumbled.
Victor’s loud voice dragged Lucy back to the present.
"Lucyiscute!"
Victor’s voice boomed across the library.
Lucy buried her face in her hands.
"Must you announce my existence to the entire university?"
Victor grinned unapologetically as he dragged out a chair.
"Good afternoon to you too." He placed his hand on the table. "And just so you are aware, we are the only ones in the library right now."
Lucy raised her brows. "Is that so?"
Victor bopped his head a little eagerly. "You know, people have lives outside of school as well."
Lucy pretended to be offended as she placed a hand on her chest. "Victor! What’s that supposed to mean?"
Victor blinked. "What did I say?"
"You insulted me."
"How... ohhh!" He trailed off as he studied her face. "Do you have a social life, Lucy Bennett?"
Lucy cleared her throat awkwardly as she avoided his gaze.
"Oh my goodness!" Victor exclaimed. "Lucy, have you ever been to a party?"
Lucy swallowed. "I’ve been to a few."
"Define a few."
Lucy nibbled on her lower lip as she remained silent for a while.
"Come on, Lucy." Victor urged eagerly.
"Two to three?" She answered without meeting his gaze.
Victor’s lips parted as he blinked rapidly.
Silence settled between them.
Victor stared at her.
Lucy stared back.
Another second passed.
"You’re joking."
"I am not."
Victor blinked repeatedly... again.
Then—
"Lucy, you’re in your final year, right?"
She nodded.
"And you are telling me you’ve only attended two to three parties since you became a student here."
Incredulity was laced in his tone.
Lucy shrugged her shoulders in return.
"Hell no!" Victor shook his head. "This has to change."
"But—"
"No buts, Lucy." He raised his hand to interrupt her. "You are allowed to have fun, you know that right?"
Lucy exhaled, leaning back into her seat. She knew that. But somewhere along the line, she forgot how to have fun.
Lucy wet her lips. "I—"
"Hi!" Maya’s voice cut off whatever Lucy was about to say.
A forced smile tugged at Lucy’s lips as the two girls exchanged greetings.
"My my. Maya really knows the right time to show up. Just when Lucy was about to show a side not everybody is privileged to see."
Maya gave him a pointed look before she turned to Lucy. "What does he mean?"
"Ignore him."
Victor clutched his chest, groaning dramatically. "You hurt my feelings."
Before Lucy could answer, another voice echoed through the library.
"I’m telling you, that paper contradicts the previous one."
"It doesn’t," another voice replied calmly. "You just skipped the discussion section."
"I did not skip it."
"You absolutely did."
Two familiar figures rounded the bookshelf.
Sasha was walking ahead with a laptop tucked beneath one arm, glaring over her shoulder.
Daniel followed behind at a leisurely pace, holding three printed journals.
"The discussion literally explains why the results differed," he continued.
Sasha scoffed. "Then the authors should’ve written it better."
Daniel sighed. "Or... hear me out... you could’ve read it better."
Victor burst into laughter.
"I knew it!" he announced. "You two started arguing before the meeting even began."
"We’re not arguing," Sasha replied immediately.
"We’re discussing."
Daniel looked at Victor, before glancing at Sasha with a side eye. "We’re arguing."
Victor slapped the table triumphantly. "I knew it!"
Sasha harrumphed before she chose a seat beside Maya.
"What are you both arguing about?" Lucy asked.
Sasha and Daniel exchanged a glance.
Or rather... they glared at each other.
Daniel was the first to answer. "I think the missing functional group was designed to improve penetration through the bacterial outer membrane."
"It wasn’t," Sasha cut in immediately.
Daniel pinched the bridge of his nose. "Can you let me finish one sentence?"
"No."
Victor snorted.
Sasha folded her arms. "If the target is carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae, membrane penetration alone isn’t enough."
She placed her laptop on the table and pulled up the structure. "The missing group has to contribute something more specific."
"Like what?" Maya asked.
"Stability."
Daniel nodded slowly. "That’s possible."
Sasha blinked. "Did you just agree with me?"
"I agreed with one word."
Victor looked between them. "I feel like I’m watching divorced parents discuss custody."
Maya burst into laughter.
Even Lucy couldn’t stop herself from smiling.
Daniel ignored Victor completely.
"What I’m saying," he continued, pointing at the incomplete structure, "is that whatever we’re missing has to solve a problem the existing scaffold can’t."
Lucy leaned forward. "So..."
"It either helps the compound reach its target..."
Sasha finished his sentence without looking at him. "...or it protects the compound long enough for it to work."
Silence settled around the table.
For the first time that afternoon, nobody had a joke.
Everyone looked down at the incomplete structure lying between them.
Victor scratched the back of his neck. "I suddenly miss making fun of Lucy."
That earned him four identical stares.
"What?" he muttered defensively.
Lucy ignored him. Her gaze remained fixed on the incomplete structure.
Her brows slowly knitted together.
Something wasn’t right.
She had been staring at the same missing portion for days, but this time... something felt different.
"Wait."
The single word made everyone look up.
Lucy reached for one of Daniel’s journals, flipping through several pages before stopping.
"What if we’ve been asking the wrong question?"
Sasha frowned. "What do you mean?"
Lucy tapped the incomplete structure with the tip of her pen. "We’ve been trying to identify the missing functional group."
She paused. "But maybe we should first define what that group has to accomplish."
Daniel slowly leaned forward. "Go on."
Lucy glanced between the papers scattered across the table.
"We know the target is carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae."
Everyone nodded.
"We also know the existing scaffold wasn’t enough."
"So whoever designed this compound intentionally removed—or intended to replace—this portion."
She pointed to the missing section again.
"That means whatever belongs here has a specific purpose."
Sasha’s eyes lit up. "It has to compensate for the resistance mechanism."
"And not just improve activity." Daniel immediately picked up the thought. "It has to do something the original scaffold couldn’t."
Maya quickly opened another paper.
"Hold on..."
Her fingers flew across the keyboard before she turned the screen towards them. "This review discusses experimental antibiotics against carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae."
Everyone leaned closer.
"It says successful modifications often improve more than one property at the same time."
Daniel’s eyes widened. "So the missing group probably isn’t there just for stability."
Sasha nodded slowly. "Or just membrane penetration."
Lucy felt excitement bubble inside her.
"It has to overcome the resistance while still allowing the compound to reach—and bind to—its target."
Victor blinked. "So we’re looking for a functional group that gives the molecule multiple advantages?"
Daniel snapped his fingers. "Exactly."
Sasha was already typing.
"If our prediction is correct, then the missing functional group most likely contributes to increased stability against resistance mechanisms while maintaining antibacterial activity against carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae."
Lucy reread the sentence. Then she smiled.
"That fits everything we’ve found."
For the next hour, nobody joked.
They challenged every assumption, cross-checked every reference, reworded every conclusion and deleted entire paragraphs.
Then rewrote them again.
Finally... Daniel leaned back in his chair with a long sigh.
"I think..." He looked around the table. "...we’re done."
A heavy silence settled over the group as everyone stared at the completed report.
Days of frustration.
Dozens of research papers.
Countless arguments.
All condensed into one final document.
Victor was the first to break the silence.
"So..." He slowly pushed his chair back. "...does this mean I can finally stop reading microbiology papers?"
Soft laughter erupted around the table.
Even Sasha smiled.
"Yes," she admitted.."You’ve earned that much."
Victor shot both fists into the air. "Freedom!"
"Shhh!" The librarian’s sharp whisper echoed across the library.
Victor immediately lowered himself back into his chair.
"Worth it," he whispered.
Lucy laughed quietly as she closed her laptop.
"So..." Victor wiggled his brows. "...does that mean I can invite you out for a party?"
Lucy blinked.
"I’m not taking no for an answer."
Lucy sighed. "I’ll... think about it."