"Is it possible she isn't a student at our university? I know almost everyone in the medical department, but someone who could pull that off with just a piece of silverware..."
Right at that moment, Claire and Skylar walked past holding their lunch trays.
Felix had sharp eyes and spotted Claire instantly. "Miss, do you remember me?"
It was the first time Sloane had ever been interrupted while speaking, and a flash of irritation sparked in her chest.
She followed Felix's gaze to see who had caught his attention.
The second Sloane locked eyes on Claire, she recognized her as the girl from the video.
Perhaps it was a woman's intuition, but Claire's presence immediately set off alarm bells in her head.
"Are you the guy from yesterday?" Skylar recognized him first.
Claire had recognized him immediately too, but she hadn't wanted to acknowledge him in such a public setting.
Especially with that intensely unfriendly glare burning into her from the side. Claire's internal radar for avoiding drama was already screaming.
"Yes, it's me." Felix beamed. "I can't believe I ran into you on campus. What a coincidence."
"I didn't get your contact info yesterday, and I really wanted to properly thank you both."
"Especially you." Felix turned his attention entirely to Claire.
It would have been incredibly rude if Claire stayed silent now.
"I told you yesterday, it was nothing. The people who actually saved your mother were you guys. If you hadn't made the right decisions, nothing I did would have mattered."
"Besides, I only managed her pain. The doctors are the ones who saved her life."
Claire refused to take the credit. She hadn't wanted it then, and she certainly didn't want it now.
"But you stopped the pain first. Knowing how delicate my mother is, I'm not sure she would have made it to the hospital without you."
Felix was speaking the complete truth.
"Let's exchange numbers. I... I'm a freshman, so I have boot camp coming up. But once Camp Blackwood is over, I'd love to treat you and your friend to dinner."
Originally, Mrs. Ingram had wanted to buy Claire some expensive gifts as a token of gratitude.
But seeing Claire's demeanor, Felix figured she would politely reject them. He decided a meal was a better icebreaker. He could bring the gifts then.
Felix was a Cabinda native through
and through. If he brought his mother along to the dinner, Claire would have a much harder time turning down a genuine gesture from an elder.
"I'm Claire, a clinical medicine major."
Wearing down under Felix's persistence, Claire finally gave her name and exchanged numbers.
After all, if she didn't, Felix clearly wasn't going to let them leave.
Standing nearby, Sloane frowned sharply when she heard the introduction. "If my memory serves me right, we don't have a single student named Claire in the clinical medicine major."
"I wasn't finished." Claire threw a cool glance at Sloane. "I'm a freshman this year."
"A freshman?" Sloane looked genuinely stunned. "How is that possible?"
How could a freshman possess that level of skill?
Wait a second!
Sloane suddenly remembered something her father had mentioned a few days ago. The recent Math Olympiad champion had completely bathematics...
abandoned the
department to study medicine.
The math professors had been glaring daggers at the medical faculty ever since.
That girl... her name was exactly that.
Levi, ever the obedient follower, suddenly connected the dots as well. "So you're Claire. Wow, you really are gorgeous!"
Sloane whipped her head around and glared at him.
Realizing he had slipped up, Levi quickly backpedaled. "Though still a step behind our Sloane, of course."
Claire remained utterly deadpan. "You flatter me."
"I heard you were the top scholar in the country. If your grades were really that
flawless, why would you throw it all away to study medicine?"
Levi couldn't help but add his unnecessary commentary.