The Paint Milk Tea from My Childhood Friend

: The Last Straw

But that all changed when we started working at the same hospital—in the very same department. Nathan Nolan fell for Yuna Crestworth, another doctor there, and began to pursue her relentlessly.

And this Yuna Crestworth? She was my arch-rival throughout my five years of university.

Yuna Crestworth's family owned a medical device company, so she was something of a princess. She was arrogant and always sharp-tongued.

We'd had a dispute back in university over the publication of an undergraduate thesis, and we'd held a grudge ever since.

But I never imagined that Nathan Nolan, the man I had secretly loved for seven years, would fall for her within the first month of knowing her.

At first, Nathan Nolan only knew we had been classmates, so he kept urging me to help him pursue Yuna Crestworth.

I was just a secret admirer, too timid to even confess my feelings. So no matter how much it stung every time Nathan mentioned Yuna in front of me, all I could do was force a smile.

Later, when Nathan realized that Yuna and I didn't get along, he changed his strategy.

He started telling Yuna embarrassing stories about me, trying to win her smile by making fun of me. But Yuna never paid him any attention.

I knew there was nothing wrong with Nathan liking another girl instead of me. But sometimes I really wanted to ask him why, when he clearly knew how I felt about him, he would choose to hurt me in this way.

My continued tolerance only made him push the boundaries further and further.

But I never would have dreamed that he would actually hand me a cup of paint, trick me by saying it was milk, and coax me into drinking it.

The bright, cheerful Nathan Nolan who grew up alongside me suddenly seemed like a complete stranger.

Tears streamed from the corners of my eyes. Lying in the hospital bed, all I felt was a profound sense of helplessness.

Then came another knock at the door, and someone tiptoed in.

I hastily wiped away my tears, pretending nothing had happened.

It was Nurse Judy, a young nurse from my department.

Nurse Judy moved quietly, afraid of waking me, and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw I was awake.

"Dr. Sterling, you're awake! How are you feeling now? Still feeling unwell?"

Concerned, Nurse Judy rushed to my bedside.

Her words brought a little warmth to the heart that Nathan had chilled to the bone.

I smiled and shook my head, indicating that I was feeling much better.

Seeing that I was okay, Nurse Judy let out a sigh of relief, but her expression quickly turned to one of anger and resentment.

"Dr. Sterling, what Dr. Nolan did was just too much! You can't just keep putting up with it like you always do!

"Dr. Allen, the one who just pumped your stomach, was covered in sweat when he came out. He said it was a good thing you didn't drink much, or there could have been serious consequences!"

Nurse Judy's words made my heart sink all over again, as if I was right back to a few hours ago, helpless and despairing.

Nurse Judy placed the papers and the phone she had been holding onto my bed.

"Dr. Sterling, these are your recent test results, and I went to the Security Department to get the security footage. This all proves Nathan Nolan did it on purpose. You can press charges!"

I looked at the glaring medical records, then at the footage of Nathan unhesitatingly pouring the paint into the cup and carefully securing the lid. I looked up and smiled at Nurse Judy.

"Could you please send all of this to my email?"

Nathan's confidence had always stemmed from my affection for him. It made him feel untouchable, allowing him to test my limits again and again. But now, he had nearly gotten me killed.

I'm no saint; I can't just tolerate this again and again. And it seems he's forgotten that feelings, too, can be completely used up.

After two days in the hospital, I finally went home at The Director's repeated urging.

Since I hadn't reported it to the police or said anything, the hospital didn't take any disciplinary action, other than making Nathan Nolan cover all my shifts for the time being.

After returning home, I had the faint, unsettling feeling that someone had been moving my things.

But none of my bank cards, jewelry, or other valuables were missing, so I just chalked it up to being paranoid after my days in the hospital.

But on my second day back, after a good night's sleep left me feeling refreshed, I went to my study. I planned to pull out an unfinished paper to do some revisions, and that's when I finally realized what was wrong.

I'm not a very meticulous person, so I usually just leave the books I'm using and the files I've sorted spread carelessly across my desk.

But now, the stack of documents that had been tucked inside a book was perfectly neat, with even the corners of the pages aligned.