Meg clutched the book in her arms so tightly that her nails left marks on the cover, yet she didn''t even notice. She stood there, frozen, silent.


    Taylor, unaware of the tension between Meg and Mirabe, turned to Meg and said, "Professor Hammond asked us to keep an eye on Mirabe, the freshman. I''ve been too busy with my research to chat with her. Meg, since you''re in the same department as Mirabe, you two must get along pretty well, right?"


    Meg met Taylor''s gaze with a smile that was dangerously close to cracking. She pressed her lips together and replied, "We don''t really hang out much. We''re in different majors, so we don''t cross paths often."


    Taylor nodded in understanding. "Got it. By the way, have you checked the university forumtely?"


    Meg felt a pang of anxiety but tried to keep her voice steady as she answered quietly, "No, why?"


    Ever since the incident where she was publicly embarrassed for giarizing Mirabe''s idea, she''d buried herself in academic work, avoiding the forum to escape any reminders of the ordeal.


    "There''s a post about a biotechnology project being picked up by the Institute of Technology. You should take a look," Taylor mentioned.


    He wasn''t particrly invested in the project; his interest in Mirabe stemmed from other reasons.


    Seeing a hint of admiration in Taylor''s eyes made Meg feel uneasy. She nodded absently and said, "I''ll check it out. You should go mingle, I''ll skip it. I''ve got ab exam this afternoon and need to cram."


    She gave the book in her arms a reassuring pat.


    Taylor studied her for a moment, then nodded, "I''ll just say hi and be back."


    "Alright." Meg found a spot to sit down.


    Taylor nced toward Mirabe, his gaze lingering for a moment before he headed her way.


    Lisa was still scrolling on her phone when she noticed Taylor, one of the campus stars, walking over. She gripped her phone tighter and nudged Mirabe with her elbow.


    Caught off guard, Mirabe shot Lisa a look, then followed her gaze.


    By then, Taylor had reached them and sat down briefly in the row in front of Mirabe, offering her and Lisa a friendly smile before focusing on Mirabe. He nodded, "Mirabe."


    "Taylor." Mirabe nodded back, casually resting her arm on the book to cover most of its pages.


    Taylor didn''t pay much attention to her gesture. After a bit of chit-chat, he said, "I heard your department''s project got picked up by the Institute of Technology. That''s amazing."


    Mirabe gave a small smile, replying, "Lucky it caught someone''s eye, nothing more."


    Taylor chuckled. "You''re too modest. Your analytical skills are top-notch. Not many at the university can match you."


    He remembered Ben''s high praise of her, suggesting her cognitive abilities might be off the charts.


    Mirabe returned his smile with a polite one of her own.


    Realizing Mirabe wasn''t one for long chats, Taylor didn''t overstay. As he stood up, his eyes drifted to the book under Mirabe''s arm. Despite most of it being hidden, he could make out a few scientific terms.


    Curious, he asked, "Are you diving into some physics reading?"