A Graduation Gift

Cassandra stared fixedly at Lionel. She read his every expression, and did not miss the slightest movement he made.
Lionel started to fidget under her scrutiny. He had let it slip in his panic and was now unable to think of anything to cover it up. He
knew that Cassandra would definitely investigate into it since her suspicions had been aroused. Cold sweat began to crawl on
his skin as he thought of the possible repercussions.
"Sorry, but I have to go now!"
Upon being cornered by his own devices, Lionel opted to escape. He sprang up and walked out the door quickly without even
looking back.
Cassandra made no move to follow him, but Lionel knew he was being watched. It was as if her gaze burned upon his back.
Once inside his car, he fumbled for his keys and started the engine, out of breath. He clutched the steering wheel as if his life
depended on it and sped away. It was only when he was far enough away that he allowed himself to let go of a long-held breath.
He took deep lungfuls of air and slumped in his seat, perspiration glittering on his forehead.
He was not one to cower in the presence of a mere woman—not a single one of them had managed to shake his composure, but
this time was very different. He had been careless, his own guilt had driven him up a wall.
There was much effort put into the whole thing. He had approached the action director in Lyndsy's crew and won him over with
bribery. What happened after was all too easy. Upon his request, the director tampered with her safety wires, which staged the
perfect accident and led to the closing of her studio. Once that happened, Cassandra lost her job.
Everything he did was to get her to go back to the Tang Group, even if it was through underhanded means.
But even after all of that, she still refused him firmly—something that was completely beyond his expectations. In the end, he got
more kicks than halfpence. He felt like she had played him for a fool.
At this thought, he boiled with anger. He smashed his fist on the steering wheel in frustration. 'You are such a hard nut to crack,
Cassandra, ' he thought, grinding his teeth.
Meanwhile, Cassandra remained where she was inside the coffee shop, lost in her own thoughts. Her coffee had all but gone
cold by now, and her head was in tangles.

She thought back to Lionel's earlier actions. It was almost as if he was fleeing from her with the way he abruptly left. Could it be
true that Lyndsy's accident was all his doing?
If that was the case, then that would mean that her own words had put Lyndsy in danger. She had told Lionel that she would not
return to the Tang Group unless Lyndsy's studio shut down. It seemed that he had taken her words at face value and went on to
do the unthinkable.
The puzzle pieces had arranged themselves in her mind. The final click sent sinister shivers down her spine despite the warmth
of the room.
At present, there was no sign of Lyndsy, as if she had disappeared.
Cassandra suddenly felt her skin crawl with anxiousness. She had lost contact with Lyndsy. She had tried all possible ways of
contacting, but heard nothing back. There was no news from her.
"Do you know any other way to contact Lyndsy, Stella?"
she asked her own closest friend for help, fearing that she would miss a message from Lyndsy.
"No, not that I know of," Stella replied. "Why? You haven't talked to her? Have you tried asking her parents?" she inquired.
Indeed, the onlookers see the most clearly. Stella had pointed out such a simple solution, and it was one that had never occurred
to Cassandra. She slapped a hand to her forehead in embarrassment.
"How stupid of me! I had not thought of that!"
Cassandra cried out in disbelief at her own foolishness. Stella was torn between laughing and crying on the other side of the
phone.
"You'd better get some rest. All that stress is turning your memory to an old woman's. You're still too young for that!"
Stella teased, unable to help herself from chuckling. Cassandra exchanged a few more words with her before hanging up the
phone and dialing Lyndsy's mother's number. Her pulse quickened as she waited with bated breath through the dial tone.
After what seemed to be an eternity, someone picked up. "Hello, this is Cassandra," she began. "I'd like to ask if there is any
other way to reach Lyndsy? I have tried to call her multiple times, but I haven't heard back from her yet."

Cassandra gripped the phone tightly in her hands, trying to keep her voice steady. The last thing she wanted was to worry
Lyndsy's mother.
There was only silence for a moment from the other end of the line. Cassandra was about to check if the call had been cut off,
but Lyndsy's mother spoke and stopped her.
"Well...Cassandra..." she replied, sounding very hesitant. "Here is the thing. She had told us before she left that we should not
inform you how to contact her, or her whereabouts. She said that she had other plans,"
the mother explained slowly, choosing her words with caution.
"But...why? Did she say anything else?"
Cassandra stammered. A sinking feeling was setting on her chest, like an premonition of coming danger. Horror spread through
her as the feeling crept all over her skin and penetrated deep into her bones.
"You will know...soon, maybe. She is my daughter, and I will respect her decision,"
the mother sighed as if offering an apology. Her answer only served to deepen Cassandra's worries.
The telltale click of the receiver ended the phone call. The phone slid from Cassandra's hands as she slumped in her office chair,
overwhelmed by everything she had just heard.
A boxful of documents lay in front of her, the papers inside devoid of any meaning. It was the only thing left of what used to be
Lyndsy's. Removed them and this office would be Lyndsy's no more.
A ring broke through her rueful contemplation. Cassandra almost jumped up from surprise as she was jolted back to reality at the
sound. She picked up the phone hurriedly. Stella's voice sounded from the other side.
"Cassandra, where are you now?" she spoke in quick words. "Go and check the news on the internet. Do it now! It's Lyndsy.
She...err, she has posted a video declaring that she would be quitting the entertainment industry!"
Stella's words came out in an almost indistinguishable flurry of sounds, but it was as if a bomb dropped on Cassandra. Her blood
froze, unable to believe what she had just heard.
Doing her best to collect herself, she hastily took her cell phone even as her head throbbed with confusion and disbelief. The
device trembled in her hands, and it took her several attempts to even unlock it. Just as Stella had instructed, she browsed the

news and found that Lyndsy's self-made video had made the headlines of the entertainment news.
Lyndsy was wearing light make-up in the video, with only three quarters of her face visible. She was deliberately hiding her
wounds. Cassandra proceeded to play the video and Lyndsy's voice reached her ears.