Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed

"Check this out, did I nail it?"

Jen scrutinized the figures once more, nodding, "Looks like we're all set."

But it was Stoddard, with his seasoned eye, who caught the discrepancy: "These two spots, they don't match up."

"-The figures in line 7, both are off. It's not 50 and 71, it should be 50.2 and...70.88."

Roseanne, walking by, caught sight of the long string of data and immediately noticed the error at the seventh node, where two numbers were off.

Normally, these people kept their distance from Roseanne in the lab. It wasn't exactly standoffish, but it definitely wasn't friendly either.

Even with Jen's warmth and Stoddard's inclusiveness, the natural gap between them and Roseanne couldn't be bridged with more conversations or shared meals.

It was a gap formed by differences in education, status, age, and the time spent together.

dynamics with Sammy and Liz were certainly not the same as with

her, the four exchanged doubtful glances, skepticism evident in

Liz even scoffed dismissively.

the most experienced and quickest among them at calculations, had missed it.

seeking attention, offered her an out. "Roseanne, these sets of data have been Sammy's baby, and we've all double-checked the first draft. You're saying there's an issue with the original figures at this node... it's highly unlikely." Stoddard nodded, "Owen and I have

don't know, then don't speak. Just because you can talk doesn't mean you should, ridiculous!"

the same research topic. Biology and physics are worlds apart.

the lab for your biology project was already an exception. Now we're discussing physies, and you're butting in? Trying to show off how capable and

now an expert in those fields. Each subject has its specializations. Do you think you

Solving problems and conducting research are on completely different levels! You have to be accountable for every word you say in

tirade left no room for

soften the blow and save face for the newcomer, but she couldn't