A Graduation Gift

Now it was clear as day why Clark was raging with hostility when it came to Rufus. They were rivals in business, but most of all,
Cassandra was caught dead in the middle of it all. She even had plans to stay close with Clark as an undercover agent for
Rufus. If everything Lyndsy said was true, it could mean that he was just using her to bring down Clark in their business
competition.
An innumerable number of weird ideas began to float in Cassandra's head, which was giving her a headache.
"Stella, let me bring Cassandra home first. I think we'll both agree that she's not in a condition to be enjoying hotspot right now."
Lyndsy was under so much distress, feeling sorry for Cassandra. When she noticed that Cassandra was completely out of it, she
came to the realization that she never should have told her anything about it for her own good.
But Lyndsy's remarks somehow helped Cassandra pull herself together. Resting one hand on the table, she faked out a smile.
"I... I'll be just fine. We shouldn't keep the hotpot waiting. Come on, let's eat."
Cassandra wasn't aware how strong she really was, at least not before being hit so hard.
The truth was that she wasn't in the mood to eat, but she knew she had to snap out of it.
Lyndsy and Stella had some fun light-hearted conversations as they ate the hotpot. They got along quite well after finding out
that they shared the same interests. Lyndsy was more than happy to invite Stella over to work in her studio.
Everything appeared to be going along quite well, however, it was actually far from the truth. Cassandra's thoughts had actually
drifted into a distant space. She put a spoonful of chopped green onion into her mouth, but it wasn't enough to faze her at all. In
fact, a long period of time had actually passed and she still didn't realize what she had done.
When they were done having dinner, Stella and Lyndsy brought Cassandra back to the Garden Villa. She chanced upon Clark
who had just come out of the entrance to the courtyard.
His height, well-built physique and handsome face wouldn't pale in comparison to Lyndsy's male actor friends.
"Thank you for accompanying Cassandra on her way back. I appreciate it."
Clark walked closer to them and gently wrapped his arm around Cassandra's shoulders.
In spite of that, Cassandra was still so down in the dumps, so she couldn't care less about whatever Clark did to her.

Lyndsy and Stella couldn't help but sigh as they silently watched Clark and Cassandra.
Clark was indeed a fine man, kind and understanding; sadly, Cassandra didn't have any feelings for him whatsoever. She only
had eyes for Rufus.
Waving Lyndsy and Stella goodbye, Clark slowly headed toward the courtyard, with his arm still wrapped around Cassandra's
shoulders.
"Cassandra, your mother mentioned how you've been getting yourself quite busy with work these past few days. Do you usually
come back at this hour every day?"
Clark tried striking up a conversation, with a worried expression sprawled onto his face.
"Not really. It's just that I went out for dinner with my friends after work today."
Cassandra wasn't really up for answering any questions. Her thoughts were scattered all over the place. From the moment she
found out about the cold hard truth during dinner, her stomach had been turning nonstop.
"Your mother is worried sick about you. As soon as I got back to the villa, she updated me on how things were going with you.
And right now, I can tell that there's something that's been bothering you."
Clark was informed by Edith how Cassandra had been shutting herself in her bedroom more often upon returning home from
work. Edith was afraid that if there was something eating away at Cassandra; it would be bad for her health if she didn't open up
about it to anyone.
That was what Clark heard. However, no one had any idea that Rufus had been climbing to her window so that he could meet
her in secret. That was actually the reason why she had been keeping her door locked.
"You're wrong. My mother is just being so paranoid."
Looking so worn out and feeling so down, Cassandra didn't have any strength left to argue with Clark.
"By the way, have you finished the jar of honey I brought you? You finally got your voice back."
A dubious smile crept onto Clark's face. Truth be told, he actually got a bit startled when he checked the kitchen and the jar of
honey was nowhere to be found.

Right now as they were talking, Cassandra's voice was as beautiful as it had been. So, Clark was apprehensive, scared that she
might've discovered something while he was gone.
"Yeah. I've already finished all of it. You still weren't back home yet when I used it all up. I got rid of my sore throat after about ten
days."
Cassandra tried her best to keep a straight face. There was no way she could ever let Clark notice that something was amiss.
"If it's alright with you, would it be okay if I ask for more? I actually get fond of its taste."
A soft smile wandered across Cassandra's lips and left just as soon as it came.
"Sure thing. That won't be a problem. I'll go ahead and ask my friend to bring you some more of that next time."
Clark's eyes lit up from what Cassandra just said. After all, it was actually the first time she had ever requested anything from
him.
Could this also mean that Cassandra was beginning to open up to him?
At the thought of that, Clark broke into a childish grin and asked her, "I already asked your mother to go to bed. I told her I'd just
be the one to wait for you to come home instead. What do you say we go for a walk in the garden to help ease the
digestion?"