Part 2My Wife Sent Me to Be Her First Love's Guinea Pig

That night, Naomi didn't come back.

After midnight, I silently wished myself a happy birthday. I remembered the days before I ended up in the mental hospital when Naomi still accompanied me to my check-up.

The doctor had said my stomach cancer surgery was healing well, and she had been so excited.

"Your recovery will coincide with your birthday. We'll have a big celebration that day!"

But time had passed, and she had set off fireworks all over the city for Robert just to celebrate a nomination that wasn't even real.

The next morning, as the first light of dawn broke, Ian brought me a small cake about the size of a palm.

"I remember you said today's your birthday, but... your leg..."

Ian hesitated, unsure of what to say, but still lit the candle for me.

Through all these inhuman days, I was grateful for his care.

I closed my eyes, made a wish, and was about to blow out the candle when someone appeared at the door.

Naomi stood in the doorway, her brow furrowing as if suddenly remembering something.

"Oh, today's your birthday," she said.

Flustered, she rummaged through the pocket of her coat as if she could pull something out to give me as a gift.

But to my surprise, what she pulled out was half-used rubber products.

She awkwardly stuffed it back into her pocket, stammering, "Maybe... maybe someone was messing with me.

"I'll get you a proper gift later."

I blew out the candle with a sharp exhale, responding without thinking.

"No need."

As soon as I spoke, Naomi's face darkened, and she impatiently shoved her hands into her pockets.

"Are you really making a big deal over a gift?

"I'm the one who paid for your father's treatment when he was seriously ill. And now you're throwing a tantrum just because of a stupid birthday? Don't you think that's unreasonable?"

I just bit my lip and quietly listened as she finished speaking.

Because she wasn't wrong, she was the one who saved my family.

I felt like I could never repay her, not in a lifetime.

Ian, who had been sitting beside the bed, couldn't take it anymore. As he stood up and walked out, he accidentally bumped into Naomi's shoulder.

Naomi stumbled, her expression growing even uglier.

She shot me a resentful glance, then turned to leave but bumped into Robert, who was entering the room in his lab coat.

Underneath his white coat, there were faint red marks on his neck.

Naomi's anger seemed to disappear for no reason, and she hurried over, speaking gently.

"I told you to rest at home. Why did you come back?"

Robert sneezed and waved it off, saying, "Yesterday, you took your clothes off to warm me up. I'm much better now."

He quickly realized there were others in the room and looked away. He flashed me a smile.

"I'm here today for an important experiment. I need Lincoln's help again."

My heart skipped a beat. I looked at Naomi desperately, shaking my head, silently pleading with her not to agree.

But she gave Robert a bright, gracious smile and said lightly, "It's fine. He's been doing nothing anyway."

At that moment, the weight that had been hanging over me finally fell.

Robert smiled back at her and then turned to me, adding, "This one might hurt a bit more, but if you can handle it, it'll be fine. Lincoln's helped so many times before, I'm sure he'll manage."

A sense of dread crept into my chest.