His face flushed red. “You think you win because of a piece of paper?” he shouted. “You’re smiling again—see? Guilty people smile!”
“I’m not smiling,” I said. “I’m breathing.”
Dr. Patel’s voice cut sharply through the chaos.
“Security!”
The officer stationed at the door moved instantly, stepping between Ethan and me. Another guard appeared moments later, his radio crackling as the situation escalated. The room filled with tense but controlled urgency.
Ethan pointed at me as though I were the criminal. “She set this up! She—”
“Sir,” the officer said firmly, “step back.”
Ethan jerked away but quickly turned toward Dr. Patel. “Tell them! Tell them she cheated!”
Dr. Patel didn’t react. “The results show you are the father,” she repeated. “And there is an additional matter.”
Ethan froze. “What matter?”
Nina opened a second, thinner folder—printed documents neatly organized.
“Yesterday,” Nina said steadily, “you attempted to enter the lab corridor without authorization. We also reviewed security footage after you raised concerns about ‘tampering.’”
Ethan’s eyes widened.