481-483

Chapter 481: Hurry and Get Muscular Adam 

Observation Operating Room  

When a spherical tumor was removed from Mr. Herman’s body, everyone in the room gasped in awe.  

“What a shame we can’t display it in a glass jar,” someone sighed.  

“Yeah, it’s so fascinating,” another chimed in.  

“If only he hadn’t insisted against it,” someone else added with a hint of regret.  

Adam couldn’t help but chuckle.  

Normally, whatever gets cut out during surgery is left to the hospital to deal with—patients don’t usually care. But there are exceptions.  

Take that dangerous, middle-aged “fake lolita” Adam once encountered. After her adoptive mother had a miscarriage, she went full artsy-hipster mode, cremating the fetus and using the ashes as fertilizer for a potted flower. She’d stare at the flower like it was a person.  

Pointless, though.  

The grief didn’t go away. In the end, they adopted a girl to fill the void—only for it to spiral into a family-wrecking disaster.  

And then there’s this case.  

Mr. Herman had genuinely seen the teratoma in his belly as a “baby” at first, pouring some emotion into it. That’s why he was dead-set against the doctors turning it into some exhibit after the surgery.  

It’s way more normal than growing a flower from ashes, at least.  

The doctors weren’t thrilled, but they had to respect his wishes. It’s not like this was Einstein’s brain—nothing worth risking their licenses or jail time to steal, dissect, or study.  

The afternoon flew by in a flash.  

As night fell, word came that Barney had been “kissed” on the butt by a golden eyelash rattlesnake. Matthew and Lily swung by to check in.  

“What’s going on now?” Lily blurted out, half-laughing. “Barney, you again?!”  

“Don’t blame me!” Barney groaned, lying on his side. “Blame this hospital! Blame Adam!”  

“Blaming the hospital makes sense, but why Adam?” Lily shot back, annoyed.  

“He’s the first one to blame!” Barney wailed. “Think about it—ever since I met him, how many times have I ended up in a mess?!”  

“…”  

Matthew and Lily paused, exchanging a look. Huh. He’s got a point.  

“Is Adam, like, Barney’s kryptonite or something?” Matthew mused.  

“Even if he is, it’s not Adam’s fault,” Lily countered. “Barney, you’re always the one stirring the pot first. Then Adam bets you, teaches you a lesson, and you—knowing full well what he’s up to—jump in headfirst anyway. Who’s to blame here? Only you!”  

“Exactly,” Matthew grinned. “Barney, you brought this on yourself, man.”  

“What are you guys chatting about? Sounds like a good time!”  

Adam popped in, having heard Matthew and Lily were around. He figured he’d say hi.  

His life for the next few years would revolve around the hospital—friend hangouts were rare, and even seeing them was tough. So, whenever there was a chance to catch up at work, he made the most of it. Even a quick hello was worth it.  

“Oh, nothing much—just how Barney totally deserves this,” Lily brushed it off with a smirk. Then she hugged Matthew tighter, looking at Adam with a mix of nerves and excitement. “Hey, Adam, we need a favor.”  

“What’s up?” Adam asked.  

“There’s a monster in our apartment,” they said, clinging to each other, trembling slightly.  

“A what now?” Adam blinked.  

“We just got home from work…” Lily started.  

“Ahem,” Adam cut in fast. “I get that you two are all lovey-dovey—no need for the steamy details. Skip to the point.”  

Lily and Matthew were way too into each other. Coming home and getting handsy the second they walked in? Standard move. But no need to overshare—Adam’s a pure sunshine boy, not here for the rated-R stuff!  

“So, I looked up, and suddenly I spotted this thing,” Lily said, wide-eyed with panic. “I pointed it out to Matthew, and he freaked out too…”  

Adam glanced at Matthew.  

“It’s true, man. Total freakout,” Matthew admitted, sheepishly covering himself a bit. “We bolted out of the apartment, then remembered Barney’s latest drama and came here. Figured we’d ask our strongest, most jacked friend—you—to handle it. This monster’s got your name on it, Adam.”  

“Wait, so you came to get Adam to fight some monster and just happened to check on me?” Barney grumbled, his face sour.  

“That’s not the point,” Lily waved him off. “The point is, this thing is terrifying!”  

“Okay, what kind of monster are we talking about?” Adam teased. “Don’t tell me it’s just a cockroach-rat or something.”  

“A cockroach-rat?”  

Matthew and Lily froze, then blurted out their takes.  

“It’s the most insane, disgusting rat ever!” Matthew said.  

“No, it’s a super-sized mega-cockroach!” Lily argued.  

“It’s a rat—it’s got whiskers!”  

“It’s a cockroach—it’s got antennae!”  

“…”  

They started bickering.  

“Hold up, hold up!” Adam interrupted. “Sounds like you’re describing some mutant cockroach-rat hybrid.”  

“A mutant cockroach-rat hybrid?”  

They glanced at each other, compromising on Adam’s name for it, then gasped, “Adam, you’ve seen one?!”  

“Nope,” Adam deadpanned. “But I’ve got two friends who ran into the same magical creature—and reacted exactly like you two.”  

“For real?” Matthew and Lily weren’t buying it.  

“Dead serious,” Adam said, straight-faced. “Like, identical vibes.”  

“No way, that’s wild! Who are they?” They were hooked, curious about these mystery friends.  

“One’s named Guangu, the other’s Meijia,” Adam grinned. “Foreigners—you wouldn’t know ‘em.”  

“Whoa!” Lily yelped. “So, cockroach-rats are a global thing? Why haven’t we heard about them before?”  

“The world’s full of mysteries,” Matthew jumped in, getting excited. “Like Bigfoot, Yeti, the Loch Ness Monster—Earth’s huge, and we’ve barely scratched the surface!”  

“Alright, I’ll head over with you guys later to check out this legendary cockroach-rat,” Adam laughed. “I’ve got a hunch it’s the first of its kind.”  

“Why’s that?” Lily tilted her head. “What about the one your friends saw?”  

“Theirs was probably a descendant,” Adam quipped. “Don’t ask me how—I’m just going with my gut! Oh, and heads-up: cockroach-rats can fly.”  

“WHAT?!” Matthew and Lily shouted in unison. “It flies? Roaches and rats don’t fly!”  

“It’s a mutant monster,” Adam shrugged with a grin. “Totally tracks.”  

“But what caused it to mutate?” Matthew frowned. “This is New York, not some irradiated island.”  

“Yeah, isn’t radiation the big mutation trigger?” Lily added.  

“Radiation’s the main culprit, sure,” Adam nodded. “But it’s not the only one. And it’s not just islands that’ve been nuked—tons of places have had nuclear tests.”  

He stopped there.  

Anything more wasn’t fit for casual chit-chat.  

From his past-life memories, Adam knew the U.S. had run way more nuclear tests on its own soil than that island nation ever saw. Ruthless stuff—sometimes they didn’t even spare their own people. In sparsely populated states, secret tests left wide radiation zones, all hushed up from the affected residents. Cancer rates spiked in those areas later, way higher than elsewhere, and it blew up into class-action lawsuits when the truth came out.  

If a cockroach-rat was a radiation-spawned freak, it’d more likely pop up in the U.S. than anywhere else. East Country? That’d be a stretch—pure comedy. 

Chapter 482: Perspective Really Matters 

Matthew’s Apartment  

Adam drove them over, ready to get this done quick.  

“Once we grab it, we can send it to Columbia’s Bio Center. Who knows? Could be a huge biological breakthrough!” Adam said with a grin.

“No way!” Lily piped up, horrified. She’s got the softest heart of the crew. “They’ll experiment on it—that’s way too cruel!”  

“So?” Adam shot her a sideways glance.  

“So, can’t we just whack it with a stick and be done?” Lily suggested earnestly, still somehow the kindest one in the room.  

“Fair point,” Adam nodded seriously. “But no one knows what this thing even is. What if it’s carrying some nasty bug? One whack, blood splatters everywhere, and boom—contamination city. Not ideal.”  

“Okay, fine, catch it alive then,” Lily backtracked instantly.  

“Adam! Long time no see,” came a voice as the door swung open. Ted was there too, pacing around like a nervous wreck.  

“Ted, you’ve seen it too, right?” Lily asked, her eyes darting around in panic.  

“Seen what?” Ted blinked, totally lost.  

“The cockroach-rat!” Matthew chimed in. “Why else would you be so worked up?”  

“You forgot—I’ve got my appointment at the Singleton Terminator soon,” Ted said, wringing his hands. “Now that it’s crunch time, I’m not sure this is the right move.”  

“If you’re not sure, why even go?” Adam asked, chuckling.  

“I don’t have a choice—it’s science,” Ted said, rubbing his hands together. “I can’t just not believe in science, right?”  

“Heh,” Adam smirked. “Tell me more.”  

This isn’t some anti-intellectual era in the U.S.—not yet, anyway. Ted’s a top-notch architect, young and already heading up the prep for a 78-story skyscraper project. He’s solid middle-class, upper-middle even.  

Even in the future, a guy like Ted would still put his faith in science over conspiracy nonsense. It’s all about where you sit, right? Your perspective shapes your headspace.  

The anti-science crowd? Mostly lower-middle-class folks. Are they dumb? Nah. It’s just that all those shiny scientific breakthroughs don’t trickle down to them. Take medicine, for example: billion-dollar wonder drugs get developed, but they can’t afford ‘em. Health insurance costs keep climbing, coverage keeps shrinking. The poor get poorer, the rich get richer.  

Tech keeps marching on—so what? Doesn’t help the little guy. If you’re screwed either way, why not bet on God instead of science? The more the elite preach “trust the data,” the more the underdogs push back. It’s a quiet, helpless kind of rebellion.  

“Last night, I went to apologize to that coworker who quit,” Ted explained. “We got to talking, and it turned to stuff about being single and lonely…”  

“Ohhh~” Adam grinned, raising an eyebrow. “You felt so bad about her quitting—did you, uh, make it up to her for the emotional damage?”  

“Heh heh heh,” Matthew and Lily, who’d been scouring the place for the cockroach-rat, perked up and smirked knowingly.  

“What are you guys thinking?” Ted groaned. “It wasn’t like that at all!”  

“Sure, you weren’t in the mood,” Adam teased. “But I’d bet if you’d offered, she wouldn’t have said no to that kind of ‘apology.’ Honestly, it’d be the sincere thing to do.”  

Ted’s a catch—think leading man in a hit TV show. Handsome? Obviously. Plus, he’s got this romantic vibe that hits women like a ton of bricks. Even the chubby girl he hurt wouldn’t stand a chance against that kind of charm.  

“…Anyway!” Ted dodged the topic with an eye roll. “We got onto the subject, and she mentioned she’d joined the Singleton Terminator recently. But they still haven’t matched her with anyone decent. Then, with what I accidentally said, she got fed up and quit. So it’s not all my fault.”  

“And then?” Adam leaned in, curious. “How’d you end up signing up too?”  

“I didn’t buy into this Singleton Terminator stuff at first,” Ted admitted with a wry smile. “But she made it sound wild—like they use some math formula to sift through all of New York and narrow it down to your perfect match. It’s such a tiny pool that, unless you want to fish blind in the ocean, you’re better off going there. The owner, Ellen Paschel, is supposedly the best matchmaker in the city—total pro, 100% success rate pairing people up!”  

“So you’re ditching that girl you were waiting for?” Adam laughed. “What about your slutty pumpkin? Halloween’s just a few weeks away!”  

“Yeah…” Ted gave an awkward grin. “I’m still waiting for her, of course. This is just a test run. Maybe I won’t even need you to give me her number in six months—I’ll snag it from the Singleton Terminator myself!  

Think about it: if I find her that way, wouldn’t it prove we’re meant to be? As for the slutty pumpkin, she’s just a memory. I only want to see her one more time—no ulterior motives.” He put on his most sincere face.  

Adam shook his head with a sigh. Damn romanticism.  

Years back, Ted met a girl in a pumpkin costume at a rooftop Halloween party. Why “slutty”? Picture a skimpy pumpkin outfit—use your imagination. Ted was dressed as a hanging chad that night, rocking an election sign around his neck. They hit it off, and she gave him her number… only for it to end up in a candy stash that some kid swiped.  

Losing his shot at a “pumpkin fling” crushed Ted. That built-in romantic streak had him dressing up in the same costume every Halloween since, waiting on that rooftop all night for a girl who’d probably never show. He’s kept it up for years—and looks like he’ll keep going.  

If he actually finds her someday, that sappy story alone would seal the deal. A playboy like Ted pulling that off? It’s a woman’s worst nightmare—whoever falls for it is toast!  

“One key question,” Adam said, snapping out of the slutty pumpkin tangent and holding up a finger. “You really think a girl that great would need to join some Singleton Terminator?”  

“Uh…” Ted froze.  

“Go for it,” Adam said with a grin. “If she does pop up in their database, then yeah, maybe you two are destined.  

“And if she’s not?” Ted couldn’t help asking.  

“Then you’re not,” Adam shrugged. “Let’s see what this ‘best matchmaker in New York’ and her fancy science formula pick out as your dream girl.”  

“Alright!” Ted mulled it over, then psyched himself up. “If a rat and a cockroach can find true love in New York, then so can I!”  

“Wait, what?” Matthew yelped. “You think this cockroach-rat is some lovechild of a rat and a roach?”  

“Eww!” Lily gagged. “It’s so ugly and gross—how could that be a lovechild?”  

“Why not?” Ted countered, slipping into his romantic lens.  

“Nope,” Adam shut it down cold. “Ever heard of reproductive isolation?”  

“It’s just a metaphor!” Ted grumbled, shooting Adam a look. He grabbed his coat and headed for the door. These friends couldn’t keep up with his romantic wavelength. Right then, he missed Barney—sure, Barney wasn’t romantic, but he was wild enough to at least vibe on the same frequency.  

“Kidding! You’ve got this,” Adam called after Ted’s retreating figure with a smirk. “Good luck finding your lady rat!”  

Ted: “…”  

Chapter 483: "You Believe Me, Right?" 

Matthew’s Apartment 

After Ted left…  

Lily and Matthew’s search finally paid off.  

“Adam! Over here!”  

Their terrified shouts echoed through the room.  

Adam hurried over, following their wide-eyed stares.  

“Eww, gross!”  

Yup, it was mutant-level disgusting. Even Adam, who’d seen it all, couldn’t help but grimace out loud.  

“It’s coming this way!”  

Lily and Matthew stumbled back in unison.  

“Leave it to me.”  

Adam geared up—mask, goggles, gloves, the whole deal. Fully armored, he crouched down toward the cockroach-rat hybrid, locking eyes with it for a few tense seconds. Then, in a flash, he snatched it up.  

He plopped it straight into a glass container he’d prepped earlier and slammed the lid shut.  

It wasn’t that Adam’s speed had suddenly outpaced animal reflexes or anything. Nah, this cockroach-rat just wasn’t scared of people.  

Adam had zero doubt that once Columbia University’s bio lab dissected this thing, they’d find its胆子—uh, guts, or maybe courage?—were way bigger than your average rat or roach, pound for pound.  

“C’mere, you two.”  

Adam held up the glass jar, inspecting it casually while waving over Matthew and Lily, who were still cowering at a safe distance. Seeing them hesitate, he chuckled.  

“Matthew, I get Lily being freaked out, but you? A 6’4” giant? Really?”  

“It’s not fear!”  

Matthew puffed out his chest, trying to play it cool.  

“Oh, yeah?”  

Adam shoved the jar right in his face.  

“Ahh!”  

Matthew yelped and leaped back.  

“If that’s not fear, then what is it?” Adam teased.  

“It’s… awe! Yeah, awe at mysterious things!” Matthew clutched his chest, desperately clinging to his dignity.  

“Heh.”  

Adam cracked up.  

Matthew hailed from Minnesota, where his whole family was a lineup of giants. His dad and two older brothers? All over 6’6”. At 6’4”, Matthew could only flex his height over the women in the family—and even then, it wasn’t a total win. One of his sisters-in-law was taller than him.  

Their meals? Supersized. When it came to making food, most folks scooped mayo with a spoon. The Erickson clan? They measured it in cups—16 full cups, to be exact. Their salads? Seven layers deep!  

As for games, regular ol’ violent football wasn’t enough for these “titans.” They’d cooked up their own mashup: blue ice ball, a chaotic mix of basketball and hockey. Rules? What rules? It was pure, brutal chaos—smacking each other with hockey sticks was fair game. You either toughed it out or tapped out.  

When Matthew was about to hit adulthood, his rite of passage for inheriting his brother’s car was… wild. He had to drive buck naked to grab coffee. To get the keys, he sucked it up and did it.  

But his two brothers? They got there first, bought out every coffee tray at the shop, and left him high and dry. Matthew, undeterred, loaded up the family’s coffee order cup by cup, planning to crawl home slow and steady.  

Cue his brothers popping out of nowhere, startling him. Coffee everywhere—scalding hot, all over him and probably them too.  

Oof! That sting! Only real siblings could pull off a prank that savage.  

So, growing up in that kind of chaos, Matthew being spooked by a little cockroach-rat? It honestly threw Adam for a loop. Then again, Matthew did have this weird reverence for Bigfoot, Yetis, the Loch Ness Monster—all that mysterious stuff. So maybe it tracked after all.  

“Hey, this needs to go to Columbia’s bio center. I’m swamped—Matthew, you up for it?” Adam asked, holding out the jar.  

“I…” Matthew swallowed hard, then forced out, “Yeah, I can do it. I’ve got a buddy in Columbia’s bio department—he’ll love this.”  

“Sweet.” Adam handed it over with a grin. “Who knows? Might just change his career trajectory.”  

Matthew hesitated, hands darting in and out, but finally took it.  

“Ugh, yuck.”  

Lily, now feeling like the situation was under control—glass jar, no escape—edged closer, peering at it. “So gross! This is all Ted’s fault! He totally ruined my perfect vision of love’s little miracles!”  

“Alright, you two have fun with that. I’ve gotta head back to the hospital,” Adam said with a laugh, brushing off Lily’s dramatic, shallow rant as he headed out.  

Tonight, he still had to dig into Alice Grey’s legendary experience pack.  

Medical Center 

Outside the building…  

The second Adam pulled up, he caught a soap-opera-worthy scene.  

“See ya, Derek~”  

“See ya, Meredith~”  

There, on an outdoor bench, Dr. Shepherd sat in his off-duty clothes. Meredith stood up, facing him with a loaded, double-meaning goodbye. He blinked, then matched her solemn vibe with his own reply.  

That “see ya” was both a casual “catch you later after work” and a deeper “we’re done, time to move on” vibe.  

Looked like Meredith was finally ready to let go.  

Adam’s lips quirked into a smirk.  

“What’s so funny?”  

Meredith, sharp as ever, spotted the curve of his mouth as she turned back toward the hospital.  

“Nothing,” Adam said, shaking his head.  

“Me and Derek? It’s over for good,” she said, clearly knowing what he was smirking about and jumping to explain.  

“Mm-hmm, I believe you,” Adam replied, mimicking her earlier “solemn” tone. He locked eyes with her for a good few seconds before nodding seriously.  

“…”  

Meredith’s whole vibe just deflated. She could feel the sarcasm dripping off him.  

“You don’t believe me?!”  

“Why’d you say that?” Adam grinned wider. “I’m giving you the exact same energy you just gave!”  

“You—!” Meredith huffed, fuming.  

“Wanna bet on it?” Adam said, trying to smooth things over. “How about a rare surgery? If you really manage to cut ties with Dr. Shepherd—no more lingering strings—I’ll hand you a rare surgery down the line. But if you can’t, you owe me one. Deal? It’s a freebie for you!”  

Meredith opened her mouth, ready to jump at it, but then she caught the glint in Adam’s eye. She pursed her lips, said nothing, and stormed off.  

“C’mon, it’s a no-lose deal! You believe me, right?” Adam called after her retreating back.  

Sigh. Young folks these days—no trust, no guts.  

Adam shook his head, chuckling to himself.  

Meredith could talk a big game about “goodbye,” but it was just a heat-of-the-moment thing. She thought she’d moved on.  

But exes? There’s a 0 or 1 difference—have you crossed that line or not? Why do people freak out about their partner’s old flames? Why do they try to block any contact? Because the risk of rekindling something with an ex is a million times higher than with some random stranger!  

Emotions flare, things happen, someone gets burned—it’s basic math.  

And Meredith? She knew it deep down.  

She wasn’t your average girl, either. Forget exes—she had a passive skill: 100% pants-dropping chance when drunk, even with a total stranger. No way she’d win Adam’s bet.  

So why would she take it? She’d have to be nuts.