A Graduation Gift

There was once an Emperor from the Tang Dynasty who asked his men to spur the flying horse at high speed to bring him
lychees from miles and miles away all because his favorite concubine was very fond of them. Now, in a similar fashion, Rufus
was willing to give Cassandra anything to make her happy.
"You bought this for me?"
Cassandra asked, bright-eyed and pleasantly surprised.
"Yes, and I have something very important to tell you. Actually, I bought this studio for you because I know that you don't want to
stay home as a housewife. Let's face it, you love working! That said, I think it would be better for you to start your own business.
That's better than working for other people. I got this for you to help you start,"
he replied as he looked at her with loving eyes.
Warmth filled Cassandra. What Rufus did was genuinely sincere and thoughtful.
On the other hand, she could not help but feel that she did not deserve such a wonderful gift.
"Okay, I know you don't want to accept it free, so how about you pay me rent? What do you think?" Rufus immediately
suggested.
He definitely knew her very well. The hesitation on her face had betrayed her and Rufus knew exactly how to respond even
before she could say anything.
Cassandra beamed with a smile as bright as sunshine.
"You are starting to know me very well," she remarked.
It touched her that Rufus seemed very accommodating to her personal sentiments and was willing to compromise.
"I'm very flattered. Anyway, all you have to do now is think of what you want to do with this place!" he replied with satisfaction.
The smile on her face was enough to put him at ease.
Cassandra's happiness made him feel invincible.
Cassandra cocked her head with thought. There were no ideas at the top of her head at the moment.

"You don't have to answer right now. Take your time! For now, let's find somewhere to eat," Rufus suggested.
Then, he took his coat and led Cassandra out with his arm around her shoulders. Cassandra, in turn, leaned against him as they
walked to a restaurant that served Western cuisine.
In its pleasant ambiance, Rufus and Cassandra found a table and took their seats.
Not long after they did, though, Arthur and Cloris walked in.
They immediately spotted Rufus and Cassandra as they entered. Likewise, the couple saw Arthur and Cloris as well.
Cloris rolled her eyes and turned towards the opposite side of the restaurant. She, apparently, had no plans of coming over and
saying hello.
With knitted eyebrows, Rufus examined Cassandra's reaction from the corner of his eyes.
"Your younger sister seems to have issues," Rufus whispered.
By now, he was used to Cloris acting as she wished without any consideration for other people. Still, the desolation on
Cassandra's eyes made him sorry for her. She still could not seem to let go of her sister.
"She's still too young to understand. I firmly believe that things will get better as she grows older,"
Cassandra said, more to herself than to Rufus. She tried hard to understand her sister, but deep down, she could not keep
herself from being hurt by her indifference.
No sister could breathe easily with a sibling who openly hated her at all times, and Cassandra was no exception. The only thing
she kept repeating to herself was that Cloris was still very young and that she would soon outgrow her irrational aversion
towards her.
But Cloris didn't set aside her own prejudice. Eventually, Cassandra found herself accustomed to her rudeness.
Still, she was determined to stay patient and persist. In time, she believed that Cloris would eventually accept her as a sister.
Meanwhile, at Ivy's house, Adrian passed her a flash disk that contained the document he stole for her. Beaming widely, he
remarked, "Here you go. Bingo!"
He glowed as if he were counting cash. Making money was one of Adrian's biggest pleasures.

"Is this really it? Are you serious?" Ivy asked in disbelief.
Knitting her eyebrows, she looked at Adrian with suspicion. It seemed impossible for her that he would manage to acquire it so
quickly.
"Hahaha...Believe it or not, my ex-girlfriend happens to be Lionel's secretary right now. Isn't that lucky? The knife was right inside
the butcher's mouth!"
Adrian explained with a smug expression on his face. He could still recall his own reaction when he found out about this. He
could not believe his fortune!
Immediately, he asked his ex-girlfriend out for a cup of coffee, and there, managed to steal her keys from her purse when she
excused herself to go to the lavatory. Before she could realize what had happened, he had them duplicated and returned.
He then found a way to shut off the whole building's security system and snuck into Lionel's office without anyone noticing. Just
as quickly as he got the keys, he copied the documents and slipped out inconspicuously.
Ivy listened incredulously as he told his tale. She knew that Adrian was many things but not a liar.
"Give me your bank account now," she demanded.
She then transferred the 400, 000 she had promised. Adrian looked at his bank statement with satisfaction. It felt so good to get
work done. Then, he turned his gaze to Ivy.
She was wearing a thin robe over her nightgown as her long, curly hair rested softly on her shoulders. Adrian felt an itch on his
heart that he could not somehow manage to scratch. Suddenly, he stepped forward, pulled Ivy towards him and put his lips on
her bare neck.
"I've been thinking about you since the last time we did it together. I just completed a very difficult task for you. How about a little
bonus reward, huh?"
Adrian murmured as he kissed her, his breath getting heavier and heavier.
Ivy struggled to escape his embrace. His kisses disgusted her.
"Leave me alone, Adrian! I've paid you! And we are even now!"
Ivy was focused on her new target now. Adrian was a distraction.

In fact, she would have preferred to never see him again, as if they did not know each other. It would be safer too, in case
anyone went snooping. When push came to shove, she definitely would not let Adrian ruin her plan.
"Oh, come on, baby. Don't be shy. I know you want it. Don't you remember how you threw yourself at me last time?" he said in
between gasps.
Ivy's scent intoxicated him. His heartbeat was so fast that it felt as if it were going to jump out of his chest. Overwhelmed with
desire, he could barely control himself.
"Fuck off! Adrian, don't force me to be rude!" Ivy shouted.
She tried to push him away at full strength but to no avail. Adrian was just too strong for her.
"Oh no, darling, be rude to me. Beat me. Curse me. Do whatever you want. I like that. Show me what you've got," he answered.
"Son of a bitch! Adrian, please, show some respect! I'm your friend's sister!" she exclaimed desperately.
Ivy lifted her legs to kick him but he managed to dodge them swiftly. He then pushed her to the ground and went on top of her.
"Respect? I'm not just going to respect you. I will worship you as a man does to a woman. I will give you my all and you can
count on that,"
he said as he let out a loud, savage laugh.
Suddenly, the door opened and a figure appeared and froze at the sight of them.
"What the hell are you doing, Adrian?" the man shouted with rage.
It was Joel. He immediately rushed towards them and pushed Adrian aside. Ivy hurriedly got up, wrapped her robe around her
and ran to her bedroom.
Adrian was left still seated on the ground. Joel's arrival was something he did not expect. The interruption annoyed him.
"Have you lost your mind? She's my sister! How dare you!" Joel shouted in turmoil.
He was at his wit's end and he gnashed his teeth with anger.

Adrian, on the other hand, barely looked at him. He calmly got to his feet and replied with indifference, "Your sister asked me to
come over. That's the truth."
The reality was that Adrian did not care much for his friend now. With the money he just received, he did not need him anymore.
He was not worth more than a piece of shit to him now.
"You! Is this how you treat a good friend?" Joel shouted.
He pointed a finger right at Adrian's face. He was exploding. Adrian, on the other hand, shoved him aside impatiently.
"How do good friends treat each other? Unfortunately, you will never really know, Joel. Besides, this isn't the first time your sister
and I slept together. It's really no big deal. And, it's none of your business who your sister shares her bed with," he replied.
It was clear that Adrian did not care much if Joel ended their friendship. He mocked him unsparingly.
"I'll kill you! You asshole!" Joel exclaimed.
Adrian's impish expression infuriated him. Although he was aware of Adrian's appetite for sex and women, he never would have
expected him to lay a hand on his sister, his only family.
If this was to be tolerated, then what would not? Where would the limits stand? Joel jumped at him and tackled.
Soon, both of them were on the ground. Joel managed to poke Adrian's eye while the latter kicked him on his knees. Noise
echoed throughout the living room as the two men wrestled.
Inside her room, Ivy hurriedly changed into her clothes and went out.
"Stop it! Stop it!" she shouted to break them loose.
Hearing her, Joel and Adrian stopped fighting.
"How dare you fight under my roof! If you want to continue, get out of my house!"
she yelled as she pulled their hands away from each other.
"Adrian, you'd better get out of here! There is my home!" she shot at him.
And Adrian turned pale.

"Fine! I'm leaving! You'd better not ask me for help when you're in trouble again!" Adrian shouted.
Now, he was furious. This was already more than what he bargained for. He was not only insulted by Ivy, but also beaten up by
Joel.
With bruises on his face, he stormed out the door as he cursed under his breath. It would take days for those to go away.
On a second thought, realizing how much money he had on his bank account reminded him that it was not such a bad day, after
all.
After Adrian left, Joel turned to his sister and gave her an unblinking stare. Ivy shifted uncomfortably under her brother's
disbelieving gaze. She started to sweat.
"What? Don't look at me like that, Joel," she murmured.
Filled with guilt, she could not get herself to look him in the eye.
"Why did Adrian come here? Did you ask him to come here? Don't you know that he can't be trusted?" Joel asked incredulously.
Never could he have expected that his sister would have anything to do with Adrian. He knew what she wanted. It was her
dream to marry into a rich family.
"Do you seriously believe his bullshit? Anyway, now that you've seen how much of an asshole he is, I hope you'll know better by
staying away from him!" she shot back.
Seeing Joel do dangerous acts made her feel uneasy, more so now than before. She wished that he would find better people to
be around with. This would make her feel better. After all, he was her only family.
"What? We were born into this life. Why do we have to pretend to be good guys? Stop talking nonsense, Ivy, sheesh," Joel
replied dismissively.