Luna’s strategic retreat had swayed the professor and seniors, who still had lingering feelings for her. They were reluctant to let her go.
Meanwhile, Mia was filled with rage.
The plagiarism incident had been her trap to set tuna up, so though the latter might have apologized and admitted fault, deep down, she surely hated Mia to the core.
If Luna managed to gain the upper hand in the matter of whether she stayed or left the team, both the professor and seniors would likely forget about the accusations soon enough. Then, she’d regain everyone’s favor!
That was human nature. Someone who was being begged to stay would always be more cherished than someone who clung to the group themselves.
Mia gritted her teeth. She absolutely couldn’t let that happen. If Luna wanted to leave, Mia would make sure she was gone for good!
“What nonsense are you talking about?” Wyatt was stung by her words.
Mia was beautiful, and when she cried, she looked especially pitiful. Countless men would love to win her over.
But Mia had always kept her distance, focused on her studies, and never got involved with them. That was why she was always voted as the pure and elegant campus belle.
Her beauty and ambitious nature inspired goodwill, while her thoughtfulness completed the charming picture. They could never bear to see her upset.
“There’s no reason for you to leave. I’ll talk to Luna myself. If she’s set on leaving, then so be it!” Wyatt clenched his jaw and fumed.
“I’ll go,” Russell said as he got up. “We’ve been in the same team for years, and I don’t want her making a mistake.”
Kevin got up too. “I’ll come with you. It’s mostly due to my help that she passed the
professional course exam. I want to ask if she’s going to throw everything away after what I did for her.”
After the two left, no one was in the mood to keep eating.
As Mia watched everyone’s mood sink, she was livid.
That damn Luna! She wasn’t even here, and she’d already ruined the dinner. It seemed that Mia had underestimated her!
Mia turned to Wyatt with an innocent, wronged look “I’m sorry, Wyatt. You were kind enough to invite everyone out, but I ruined it. If I hadn’t clashed with Luna, you all wouldn’t be caught
Chapp
in the middle like this.”
“How is this your fault? If you ask me, this is still Luna’s fault. I used to think she was sensible, but what’s with her attitude lately?” Ethan angrily spoke up.
Travor gave a dry laugh. “You’re beautiful and capable, so why can’t she accept that? Does she expect the entire team to revolve around her?
“It’s not your fault, Mia. A woman’s jealousy can be terrifying. Am I right, Wyatt?”
Everyone in the team knew that Luna liked Wyatt, but he’d only ever treated her as a junior and nothing more.
There hadn’t been a problem before, but now, Mia had joined the tearn and was constantly by Wyatt’s side. Not to mention, especially after Wyatt had taken Mia’s side for the false accusation incident, Luna must hate her to death!
“That’s enough. Eat your food,” Wyatt snapped. Then, he turned to Mia and continued, Don’t listen to Trevor’s nonsense. You’re all my juniors, and I treat you all the same. I never imagined Luna would despise you over something like this. If that’s the case, I should apologize to you.”
Mia waved her hands. “No, this isn’t about you. If that’s why she dislikes me, I’ll explain to her that there’s nothing between us!”
Wyatt’s expression darkened. “No need to explain. Who I spend time with is none of her business. If she loses her composure over something like this, it only makes me dislike her more. Perhaps it’s best she leaves the team early so we can save the trouble.”
Mia was secretly elated. Wyatt was hers, and Luna would never stand a chance!
After a full night’s rest, Luna opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling.
It still felt a little surreal–she was alive again. She was no longer the pitiful creature locked in prison, battling depression, having countless nights of insomnia, and constantly fighting the urge to slam her head into the wall.
She was no longer the foolish Luna clinging to the fantasy that someone would get her out of jail, desperate for forgiveness from her seniors, and trying so hard to please Wilson.
“Awake?” A hand suddenly waved in front of her face.
Suzie’s smiling face peeked from the upper bunk “Where’s your phone? Let’s exchange numbers. I’ll send you today’s consultation notes in a bit.”
Luna got up, washed up, and picked up her phone
There were 21 missed calls–except Ethan, the rest of the seniors had called. Her WhatsApp was flooded with messages too, both in the seven–member group chat and private texts from
Russell and the others.
If it wer
in the past, she would’ve been overjoyed and replied to each one. But now, she merely glanced over them and tapped on her number to show it to Suzie.
Suzie yawned as she reminded her, saying, “Did you finish the task Professor Wilder gave us yesterday? She’ll randomly check during rounds. There might be a punishment if you don’t. Just a heads up.
“Oh, and you don’t have your silver needles, right? Tell Rhett to get you a custom set later. We all use our personalized needles,”
“Alright. Thank you, Suzie.” Luna sweetly nodded.
Suzie grinned and ruffled her hair. “You’re so sweet that it makes me want to squish you! Don’t worry about it. Our major has always been short on people, and I’ve been hoping for more juniors. I’m really happy you joined.”
“I’m glad too,” Luna replied with a smile.
“Wash up. We’re meeting the professor soon.”
After Suzie went to the bathroom, Luna scrolled through the texts again.
Everyone knew about her quitting the team, but no one believed it. They all thought she was throwing a tantrum and waiting for them to coax her back.
Luna let out a soft scoff and typed in the group chat, “I’m serious about the resignation, not joking.”
With that, she exited the group chat and put her phone on silent.
Erin’s consultation started at ten, and they arrived at the clinic before nine.
Suzie had warned her well. Before the consultation began, Erin held an impromptu exam. “Rhett, you go first. There’s a practice dummy over there. Bring it over and run through the needling techniques I taught yesterday,” she said, pointing at the dummy.
When Luna heard this, she relaxed a little. Erin hadn’t avoided them when she taught the techniques to Rhett. Luna had an excellent memory and had mentally recorded most of it in one go.
The practice dummy had all the acupoints labeled, so going through the technique once shouldn’t be hard. But when Rhett started needling, Luna realized how naive she’d been. As Wilson’s peer, Erin was not soft when testing her students.
By the time Rhett was done with the final needle, Luna realized that she hadn’t remembered any of the needling techniques.
Just 15 seconds to 21 acupoints and a precise front–to–back and left–to–right sequence wasn’t
just about memorization, it was a result of tireless practice.
Once Rhett stopped, Erin turned to Luna and asked, “Any thoughts?”
