Derek's POV
It took Tabitha a long time to fall asleep, and I was there soothing her the whole time.
Even though she seemed fine lately and showed no side effects, I still felt worried.
From the reports on the test subjects, everyone experienced some level of backlash, but Tabitha hadn't shown any signs.
That wasn't exactly good news; it just meant she hadn't hit that breaking point yet.
Once it kicked in, her side effects might be the most severe.
It felt like a ticking time bomb sitting heavy in my chest. I could never feel at ease for a single day.
After she fell asleep for a short while, she started screaming in my arms.
I shot awake and pulled her tight against me.
"Tabitha, what's wrong?"
She was drenched in cold sweat, her body trembling uncontrollably. "Blood. I dreamt of so much blood!"
"What else?"
"I heard someone telling me to run!"
She instinctively touched her face like she'd been splattered with blood and could still feel its warmth lingering there.
Noticing her fear, I quickly grabbed her hand to calm her down, saying, "It's okay. It's just a nightmare. Don't be afraid. I got you."
Yet, she just wouldn't stop shaking, her fingers clutching my shirt like it was a lifeline, making her look like a frightened little bunny.
'Perhaps this is one of her side effects,' I thought to myself with a sigh.
Although she had forgotten those terrible memories, her body would always remember the pain.
My heart bled for her as I held her tight, warming her with my body temperature. I knew these invisible scars might take a lifetime to heal.
"It must've been Lisa's news that freaked you out. Don't watch stuff like that anymore."
"Okay." Tabitha nodded, seemingly agreeing with what I said.
"They often say that what you think about during the day comes back at night. Guess it's what's happening to me. I was thinking about this matter before I went to sleep, so of course I'd dream about bloody scenes," she analyzed, her voice shaky.
"But even now, that dream felt way too real, so much so that I could almost feel the mix of rainwater and blood on my skin."
"Stop dwelling on it. Relax." I stroked her hair.
It took me a long time to put Tabitha to bed again. She became even more cautious than before, instinctively curling up her body and snuggling close against me even in her dreams like she needed to find comfort from my warmth.
Third person's POV
After a rough night came an even worse morning.
Since Derek told the PR Department not to make any moves, online chatter exploded into chaos overnight.
Lisa's agent leaked info claiming that Lisa had faced unfair treatment before getting killed for an unknown reason.
Although the agent didn't outright condemn Tabitha, every word she said was pointing fingers at her.
Caught up in public opinion pressure, the forensic doctor released the autopsy results in the middle of the night, confirming that Lisa had been strangled.
When Lisa died, only Rolf was present. Considering the conflict between them, everyone started to accuse Tabitha.
All of a sudden, all this negative buzz online came crashing down on Tabitha like snowballs.
But Tabitha herself wouldn't know any of this, for Derek had taken her phone away.
When Tabitha woke up the next morning, Derek was working at the desk, seemingly very focused, but in reality, he had been keeping an eye on her.
After yawning, Tabitha rubbed her eyes and asked groggily, "Derek, where is my phone?"
"It's dead, so I had someone to charge it," he casually replied.
Tabitha didn't seem convinced. Raising her eyebrow, she asked, "Did something happen?"