When Jacob arrived, Barbara stood on the rooftop where they had once watched fireworks, her face flushed with drunkenness.

She looked at him with a wounded expression. "Weren't we supposed to avoid each other for a while?"

Barbara's lip quivered, and she squatted down, sobbing.

"I can't. Every time I close my eyes, I see those horrifying scenes. I'm scared!"

Suddenly, she stood and threw herself into Jacob's arms.

"Hold me, please?"

Jacob stood there, maintaining a gentlemanly distance.

"Don't. I have a fiancée."

"But you hate her, don't you? You wish she were dead.

Why can't you admit your feelings? Adolescent love doesn't last forever."

Barbara's eyes sparkled like stars as she looked at Jacob.

Seeing Jacob's slightly moved expression, Barbara pressed further into his heart.

"Perhaps she's out there with someone else right now. Why don't we just drink the night away?" She raised the bottle, sharing it with Jacob in a free and uninhibited manner, like a hero from a martial arts novel.

Jacob hesitated for two seconds before taking the bottle and downing its contents.

Barbara continued to provoke him, "Childhood friends can't compare to fateful encounters. The fact that you saved me and came looking for me proves it."

"Childhood friends can't compare to fateful encounters"—the most nauseating phrase I'd ever heard.

Jacob and I grew up together.

In elementary school, he carried my backpack.

In middle school, he gave me rides on his bicycle every day.

In high school, he defended me from bullies.

My childhood friend was omnipotent.

When Jacob, who was a head taller than me at eighteen, finished his college entrance exams, the first thing he did was confess his love for me in front of the media.

That was the most romantic thing the usually reserved Jacob had ever done.

We applied to different universities in the same city.

He attended the best medical school, while I, following in the footsteps of my parents who had died in the line of duty, chose to attend the police academy.

On weekends, we would meet up to eat, drink, and have fun, inseparable.

In our second year of college, he introduced me to his friends, and that’s when I met Barbara.

She wore a pure white dress and sat in the farthest corner, exuding the scent of jasmine.

She stood out in the most unobtrusive place.

"This is Barbara Getty, my junior in the club. She's very smart," Jacob introduced her, his eyebrows raised.

And his evaluation of me?

"Hahaha, Gwynne here is the strongest. She's like a tomboy, always bullying me and fighting for justice. She's a natural-born cop."

When Barbara looked at me, her gaze was subtle.

She was aloof, rarely speaking to anyone, but when she passed by Jacob, she would naturally help him straighten his collar.

"Your collar is flipped."

Jacob, uncomfortable, withdrew slightly but still thanked her.

Barbara initiated the conversation, her smile revealing dimples.

"Among everyone, only Jacob and I are medical students. I can't connect with the others."

I raised my glass with a cold smile.

"What's the hurry? You can talk to me. I know a bit about medicine too."

She detected the hostility in my tone and retreated to her seat, drinking by herself.

After dinner, we each returned to our rooms.

As everything was about to proceed naturally, there was a loud cry for help from the hotel pool.

Jacob pulled back the curtain, and Barbara was struggling in the pool, water splashing around her as she began to sink.

Jacob ran out without even putting on his shoes and dove into the pool.

By the time Barbara was brought ashore, she had no spontaneous breathing

. I pressed on her chest and leaned down to perform CPR.

Jacob, panting heavily, pushed me aside and took over.

"You're not trained. You'll waste precious time."

With synchronized breathing, Barbara finally coughed up the water in her lungs.

Once conscious, she clung to Jacob like a lifeline, shivering and crying that she was cold.

I started packing to return to school.

Jacob, dripping wet, followed me, trying to explain.

"I'm going to be a doctor. To me, all patients are equal."

I turned and glared at him.

"Jacob, I hope in life-and-death moments, you will also stand up for me like you did for Barbara, not hide like a coward."

He hugged me tightly from behind.

"How could I not save you if you’re in danger? How could I be so terrible?"

Having seen how much he loved me, how could I not notice the difference?

When I needed help the most, he ignored my desperate calls to be with his love. I learned to console myself, thinking doctors naturally have more to talk about.

It didn't matter if they appeared in each other's social circles or stood together on podiums holding trophies.

In so many crucial moments, Barbara was by Jacob's side.She was so exceptional that I began to think she was more suitable for him than I was. Jacob started to resent my jealousy and insecurity.

Jacob began to complain about my constant suspicion and pettiness.

Our arguments finally ended when Barbara left the country.

Jacob took me and a group of friends to the airport to see her off.

Despite having two eyes, people can only focus on one thing.

Barbara's eyes were filled with reluctance towards Jacob, and his gaze at her was anything but pure.