A Graduation Gift

Rufus's kiss was aggressive and eager. Cassandra found herself gasping for breath.
Unable to think, she clutched his collar like a drowning person's lifeline.
Everything stood still. The stars felt as if they shone for this sole purpose. The sea kept them company and the night sky
watched over them.
Rufus and Cassandra held each other as if they had the world.
They stayed like that for a long time. Then, Rufus sighed as he pulled the woman into his arms.
He lifted his head and looked at the stars. This winter didn't seem that bad.
When the design competition finally began, to Rufus's surprise, Victor reported to him that the foreign designer who claimed that
Cassandra plagiarized his work was also a contender.
Rufus asked someone to keep an eye on him. Surprisingly, that designer didn't even make it through the group stage.
This only made Rufus more suspicious of him and his capabilities. If he was really talented, why would he be eliminated so
early?
As for Cassandra, she eased to the final round smoothly.
The final round was open for public to see. More people could come and watch their designs.
Judges would set a theme and the designers would be given a few hours to come up with their respective entries. Then, they
would be made to present their work to the panel of judges.
As Rufus sat in the audience, his eyes locked on Cassandra. He was nervous but he still looked calm as always.
He was confident that Cassandra could win the competition. And even if she lost, he knew that it would still be a great
experience for her.
At last, Cassandra's work which was embellished with traditional Chinese architecture features, won the third prize. Although it
was just the third prize, it was quite substantial and enough to pay off Vernon's fines.

This was also the first time that a Chinese designer managed to reach the final stage, even bagging third prize. Cassandra's
talent was there for the world to see.
The awarding ceremony was grand and exciting. People clapped their hands for the winners and Rufus couldn't help smiling.
Suddenly, he noticed a familiar figure.
He found the man was Chinese and looked relatively young. He was staring at Cassandra with greed and desire in his eyes.
A name came to Rufus's mind but he did nothing. He needed a plan.
As long as he knew that this man was in New York, he would catch him. He would make the man pay for what he had done. But
now was not the time to do that.
The man was gone as soon as the ceremony ended. Smiling, Rufus greeted Cassandra when she climbed down the stage.
She had beads of sweat on the sides of her face. She looked very happy which turned Rufus on. He wanted to kiss her flushed
face.
"Shall we celebrate later?"
Rufus said with his husky voice, which Cassandra found very attractive.
"I want it to be a big celebration but I'm scared you'll get tired easily,"
she replied sticking her tongue out playfully. She was very happy, indeed.
As Rufus and Cassandra beamed at each other enjoying the moment, Cassandra's phone rang.
"Edith", the caller ID indicated. She answered it immediately.
It was Cloris who was speaking at the other end of the phone.
"Cassandra, where are you? Come home, please... Father...tried to kill himself in the detention center," she was choking up and
sobbing.
Cassandra was dumbstruck. She felt as if her whole world was spinning.
She joined the competition to help her father. Why would he do that? Why would he give up?

When she got back to G city, Cassandra was told that Vernon was out of danger.
Apparently, Vernon found a box cutter somehow and cut his wrist. Luckily, one of the staff found him in time. Otherwise, he would
have succeeded in his attempt.
Lying in bed, he looked pale as a bottle of IV fluid dripped steadily beside his bead.
Cassandra wasn't allowed to enter the ward so all she could do was watch him from the outside.
Seeing her father so weak and skinny stirred up a lot of feelings inside her.
Cloris and Edith soon arrived at the hospital too. Cassandra headed straight to the hospital the moment she got off the airplane.
When she saw her mother, Cassandra ran to her.
"Mother!"
Cassandra choked up. It was so painful seeing someone she loved in the hospital.
To her surprise, her mother greeted her with a slap.
It was a hard and painful blow.
The other people in the hospital were surprised, not knowing what was going on. They stared at Cassandra who felt dizzy and
confused.
"Get the hell out of here! You're not my daughter!"
Edith shouted at her. Cassandra looked at her mother with wide eyes as tears fell down her cheeks.
It was then that she started to feel the pain on her face. It was definitely swollen.
Rufus was at the other end of the corridor, asking a nurse about Vernon's situation. When he heard Edith, he immediately walked
to Cassandra and pulled her behind him.
"What happened? If there are problems, talk it over. It's not right to do that in public," he said, pertaining to the slap.
He gently pulled Cassandra's hand out of her face. When he saw her swollen cheek, Rufus felt a pang of pain, as if it were he
who was slapped.

"I'm sorry, Cassandra. I can't stand by you this time. A real estate agent went to check the house yesterday. They said you
wanted to sell it. Mother was very angry and kicked them out. Why don't you talk to us first before deciding to sell the house?
Where are we supposed to live?"
Cloris explained, indifferently.
Cassandra recalled her conversation with the agency. She did tell them that she might be going to sell the house, but she
remembered mentioning that she was still considering it. She did not expect them to do anything drastic while she was away.
Selling the house was an option just in case she failed to win any money in the competition. It was a last resort.
Since she won, though, it would no longer be necessary for her to sell the mansion.
Cassandra should have told Edith about this. It was a misunderstanding.
"Do you know what your sister has done for your father? I know she did not tell you anything, but that does not mean that she did
nothing,"
Rufus glared at Cloris. The intensity of his gaze made Cloris step slowly back to Edith.
Bearing the pain in her face, Cassandra walked towards her mother. Before she could open her mouth, tears fell down her face.
"Mother, I wasn't sure if we needed to sell our house to pay father's ransom. It was the last thing I wanted, but something I
considered in case we had no other option. But now I have enough money. We don't need to sell the house at all," she said in
between tears.
Seeing her mother weeping, Cassandra realized that despite her actions, she was also in pain.
Edith lifted her hands, trembling. She looked at Cassandra with her teary eyes.
She panicked. She was afraid that Vernon would leave her forever. How could she and their daughters move on if he passed
away? If their house were sold, where would they live?
She was very stressed and impulsively slapped Cassandra. She felt bad for what she did, but the idea of losing Vernon was just
too much for her to handle.

She had gotten accustomed to a wealthy life. If she lost the house and were to be forced to wander around, she would not make
it.
Standing next to Edith, Cloris murmured, "Now that father is hospitalized, I won't be able to study abroad."
Cassandra hugged her mother, trying to comfort her. It broke her heart to hear her mother cry.
She was always a responsible daughter. She loved her family very much. Even though she was not always around, she would
turn up and be the first there to help whenever there were problems. Yet, they did not seem to appreciate her. They showed no
compassion for her own struggles.
Rufus noticed that Cassandra had stopped crying and he felt sorry for her.
She was always this tough, being the backbone of her family. But could she really do that? Could she really support her family on
her own?
"Why would father try to kill himself? Mother, do you know why?"
Cassandra asked Edith. She was desperate to know the reason. She remembered telling Vernon she would get the money
before she left. Why couldn't he just wait a few more days? After all, the trial didn't begin until next month!
Edith looked at Cloris and then Rufus. She was hesitant. Rufus walked away, deciding to give them some space.
Now, it was just her family. Edith finally said, her voice trembling, "Someone asked your father to be the scapegoat."