Aurora's POV
The laboratory was the only place where the world felt logical. I arrived early, and the hum of the ventilation system acted like a balm for my frayed nerves.
I was calibrating the spectrometer when Mr. Ethan walked in. He looked uncharacteristically troubled, his usual sharp eyes softened by a touch of hesitation.
"Good morning, Mr. Ethan."
"Good morning, Aurora," he started, adjusting his glasses. "The board has approved an additional junior researcher to join the project. We need to accelerate the clinical trials for the stabilizer."
I nodded, not looking up from my screen. "That's fine. We could use the extra hands for the different experiment series. Who is it?"
"It's... Morgana."
The pipette in my hand paused. I slowly turned to face him. The air i
