Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed

Roseanne knew how much Madeleine cared about her situation. "Don't worry. I won't let you down."

...

After she arrived home, Roseanne started reviewing the materials she brought back. Compared to the grad exam textbooks, these papers were tougher to get through because they zeroed in on specific operations and research results, demanding quite a bit of hands-on experience.

She lost track of time diving into the documents until nearly midnight. Rubbing her tired eyes, Roseanne decided it was time to sleep. As she settled down, she heard a frantic knocking at her door. "Roseanne, open up! I know you're in there!" Even through the living room and bedroom doors, Murray's voice pierced through to her ears.

Bang, bang, bang! The knocking grew louder.

When remembering the last time at the study where Murray almost forced himself on her, Roseanne's lips turned pale, gripping her blanket tighter. Murray kept shouting at the door.

"Roseanne..."

"Open up!"

"Anne..."

Roseanne covered her ears, hoping Murray would give up and leave without a response.

But five minutes passed, and Murray was still hammering away at the door, determined to keep going unless she opened up.

The old apartment building had poor soundproofing, and complaints were inevitable with his commotion in the dead of night. "Who's that, making a racket at this hour? What the hell is wrong with him?"

"What kind of mad dog is barking in the middle of the night?"

"I swear, if you don't buzz off, I'm calling the cops!"

With no choice left, Roseanne reluctantly got out of bed, slipped into her slippers, and approached the door.

"Murray, have you lost your mind?" she hissed through clenched teeth.

"I knew you were there."

"So what?"

"Open the door. Let me in."

"And why should I? Who do you think you are, thinking you can just waltz in whenever you feel like it?"

Murray cracked a smile. "Fine, then I'll keep knocking."

"You..."

"I'm knocking."

Left with no other option, Roseanne begrudgingly opened the door.

Murray seized the moment to push through, fearing she might change her mind and shut the door on him Reeking of alcohol, his cheeks flushed unnaturally, and he swayed as if he might collapse at any second.

Roseanne frowned and took three steps back to keep her distance. "What do you want, exactly?"

Murray, his eyes gloomy and glazed from drinking, fixed his gaze on her without saying a word.

After a long while, he finally spoke softly, "Anne, come back..."

Roseanne shook her head, wrapping her coat tighter. "You know it's impossible."

"Hasn't it been long enough after six months?"

"Murray, this isn't a game. Do you understand?"

"I don't get it. What do you want? An apology? Amends? Or should I kneel to beg for your forgiveness?"

That was the furthest Murray could go in bending his pride, the utmost he could lower himself. Despite their countless arguments before, he had never shown such vulnerability. Yet, Roseanne still shook her head.Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

"Enough! Don't push it too far!"

Murray roared, panting heavily. "Letting me into the house means there's still a chance for us, right? Tell me, what are your conditions? Just say it!"

Murray clenched his teeth. He had backed down to this extent. What more did she want?

"Letting you in was only to avoid

disturbing others, nothing more," Roseanne said. "You've said it yourself. Once it's over, it's over. We should be clear-cut and move on. So what are you doing now?"

Murray took two steps forward, attempting to reach for her shoulder.

But Roseanne recoiled in fear, her eyes filled with terror. "Don't touch me!"