Chapter 51

"It's not your fault. Everyone looks out for themselves first. It's human nature," I said sincerely, not blaming Demi.

Demi and I were close, but even between best friends, self-preservation comes first.

"Keira, I—" Demi grabbed my arm, trying to say something else.

I cut her off. "Mr. Johnston made it clear: if we don't fix the lighting issue, it's on us. We don't have time for anything else. Let's just get this done."

Demi's eyes went wide. "But it's not our fault. They're acting like we messed up."

"We're in charge of this project. Any problems are on us. No excuses. If we don't want to deal with the fallout, we need to fix it," I said, keeping my voice firm.

Demi nodded silently and turned away, muttering, "He's doing this out of spite."

I got it—Jace's actions were totally driven by his issues with me.

I sighed. I knew it all too well. But the more he pushed, the more determined I was to resolve the issue flawlessly, leaving him no room to complain.

Besides, this amusemen