Nikki reached out and took the tray from her.
"I know you won't accept it, but I still want to say sorry. I can help you recut these that I accidentally broke."
"Huh?" Mariel thought she had heard the biggest joke in the world.
"Alright." Dane tugged at Mariel's arm. "Aren't you done yet?"
Mariel shook him off again. "Do you want to hear what you're saying? Or can you cut it for me? Do you know how difficult these slides are? You haven't experimented in years. Your skills must be rusty by now."
"Stop pretending to be something you're not. Otherwise, you'll end up crying and running to Professor Paul to complain that I bullied or belittled you when you can't do it."
Dane really couldn't stand it anymore. As for Nikki, she had always been an unspoken yet tacitly understood example in the laboratory for the past few years. Many people were curious about her past and admired her former abilities.
Especially when he occasionally saw that they couldn't do it well, even Gabe couldn't handle it, Professor Paul sighed and felt secretly sad. He would unconsciously blurt out, "If Nikki were still here."
The rest was left unsaid, and that was enough.
But everyone knew that Nikki was Professor Paul's most outstanding student and his pride. If Nikki were still here, the problem would definitely be solved easily, and even the most difficult things could be handled with her help.
However, this also caused many people to feel resentful and frustrated, feeling that Nikki had betrayed Professor Paul, betrayed the entire team, and betrayed and let down all her past efforts.
Dane didn't know what he was thinking, but he just stopped her, saying, "Mariel, don't go too far."
Mariel raised an eyebrow. "If she's really capable, she should recut all these slices. Otherwise, she should get out of the lab and stop getting in my way."
Nikki looked at Mariel's provocative gaze, then at the contaminated slices on the tray, and suddenly smiled. "Okay, I promise you."
Mariel was stunned, not expecting Nikki to actually agree.
"Okay, then take your time cutting."
Mariel sneered and was about to turn around, but in the instant she took a step, she added, "Don't forget, Professor Paul said that he wants to see the report on this batch of slides before he leaves work today."
"Oh, I see."
Nikki responded calmly, watching Mariel leave, but a strange fighting spirit welled up in her heart. She rolled up her sleeves, went to the sink, washed her hands carefully, then put on gloves and picked up the razor blade.
Dane looked at her with some concern. "Um, how about I help you? These slices are really difficult to cut. You might have trouble doing it alone."
"Thank you, but no need." Nikki smiled at him. "I'd like to give it a try."
Dane frowned, also wanting to take the opportunity to see Nikki's true level. Otherwise, why would Professor Paul be so fond of her?
"Okay," he said, then turned and went about his business.
The laboratory gradually quieted down, with only the sound of Nikki's razor blade gently sliding across the glass slide. At first, her movements were a bit clumsy, and the slices she made were either too thick or too thin, some even breaking into small pieces.
Nikki bit her lip, staring at the specimen under the microscope, feeling utterly defeated.
"You can't make it, can you?"
Mariel's voice broke in again, cold and accompanied by her usual mockery. "Then why are you still putting on a brave face? Just because Professor Paul didn't come back, you have nowhere to complain?"
Nikki ignored her harsh words and simply looked up to ask, "What is it?"
Mariel scoffed dismissively and tossed the keys to her. "It's time to go home. I have no obligation to keep you company while you work overtime. I've already spoken to Professor Paul about the slides; we can submit them tomorrow." She paused, then added irritably, "Of course, I'll do it tomorrow too. Do you really think I can rely on you? A full-time housewife who only knows how to take care of the kids and serve her husband. Besides cooking and feeding the children, what else can you do?"
"Someone like you, having to come back to do scientific research." Mariel narrowed her eyes without any attempt to hide her disgust. "You really are an insult to the word 'scientific research'."
Nikki's face darkened upon hearing this, but she refrained from saying anything and simply gripped the keys in her hand tightly. "If there's nothing else, you should go home now. I'll try my best to do it again."
Mariel snorted coldly. "What a show-off." She turned around and left.
Nikki was still busy working, and before long, the sky outside the window gradually darkened. The lab lights came on, and she glanced at the time. It was already eight o'clock in the evening. She felt neither hungry nor tired, and continued to focus intently on repeating the steps of sectioning, staining, and observing.
After an unknown amount of time, when she finally cut out a perfect slice, the entire building was deserted, and it was already pitch black outside the window. Nikki rubbed her sore shoulders and looked at the neatly arranged slices in front of her, feeling a long-lost sense of accomplishment.
She carefully organized the data, added her own optimization suggestions, and then carefully placed the slices into the freezer. Before leaving the lab, she habitually hid the key in a flowerpot next to the porch. This was a habit she had maintained for seven years, and surprisingly, it hadn't changed.
The next morning, Mariel arrived at the laboratory humming a song, only to find the door locked. She frowned and turned to look at Dane, who had just arrived. "Hey, do you have a key? Did Nikki lock the door and run away?"
Before Dane could answer, Gabe's voice came from behind. "What's wrong?"
"Senior Gabe, the door is locked, and I don't know where Nikki is. I can't get in." Mariel immediately put on a wronged expression.
Gabe smiled, walked to the flowerpot, and dug out the key. "It seems some people's habits haven't changed."
The moment the door opened, Mariel rushed inside and headed straight for the freezer. She was curious to see what kind of trouble Nikki had gotten into last night.
The moment she opened the freezer, she froze. The neatly arranged slices inside were extremely detailed, even mimicking her preferences by being arranged in numerical sequences. Each handwritten note also contained detailed analysis data for the slices.
Mariel's expression immediately fell when she came to her senses.
"Isn't it done?" Dane walked over and smiled. "Let me see."
As he spoke, he casually picked up a slide, turned around, and placed it under the microscope to observe it. "This."
"This data slicing is absolutely perfect. The data is so detailed, and there are even optimization suggestions."
Before he could finish his exclamation, Dane's eyes were already gleaming with shock and joy. It seems that Professor Paul's appreciation was not without reason.
Mariel stared at the slices, gritting her teeth but unable to utter a single word.