A Graduation Gift

A faint, shadowy smile passed through Clark's lips. 'You foolish woman, ' he thought to himself darkly. 'To think that you would
stoop this low to take revenge on Rufus. How pathetic.'
"Whatever you want. I will send the invitation to Rufus myself. He will see with his own eyes how happy you are on our wedding
day,"
he promised readily in front of Charlie even as his heart was filled with contempt for Amanda.
When Clark left, Charlie turned to Amanda and urged her to return to her bedroom.
"It's late. You should go and rest. You should take care of yourself, especially now that you're pregnant." Standing up, he
continued, "I'm going back to the headquarters to prepare for your wedding. Clark's hands are too full to attend to the matters of
the group. I have to do whatever I can to help him."
Now that Clark was going to be his son-in-law, Charlie had begun to look out for him more. After all, he would be part of the
family in just a short time now.
It was something that went exactly as Clark had planned. Charlie would be a useful piece in this little game he was playing. If he
won him over to his side, Rufus would be left with no allies. And when the perfect timing came, he would strike, and Rufus would
be left helpless. He was brimming with excitement at the thought of Rufus's downfall, but for now, he had to be patient.
Charlie hurriedly left after only a short stay. Amanda silently followed her father's receding figure with her eyes, biting her tongue
against the words that wanted to come out.
Charlie arrived in anger, but now watching his light steps, Amanda knew that he was feeling none of his earlier animosity, all due
to her decision.
A tugging feeling crept through Amanda's chest. Was it the right decision?
She began to shiver despite the heat in the room.
The coldness seeped to her bones, racking her frame with shivers. She wrapped her arms tightly around herself. She felt more
isolated than ever. No one knew that she was forcing herself to do something she didn't want to. She was all alone.
"The walls should be painted with vibrant colors. Green and yellow would work the best."
"I want a relaxing feel to the room, and the furnishings should be both modern and practical."

...
Cassandra described her design concept in detail to Rufus, taking down notes and sketching initial plans from time to time.
Rufus listened to her attentively, delighting in the way her eyes gleamed as she spoke animatedly and explained her ideas. Like
this, he could watch her all day.
Cassandra's hands were steady as she drew her vision for the new studio. She wanted everything to be perfect.
Just then, the doorbell rang, halting Cassandra's words. Rufus smiled at her and said, "We have a guest. I'll go see who it is."
He stood up and went out of the study to check the monitor.
His mood instantly soured at the face on the screen. Clark was standing outside the door, waiting for his hosts.
After a short moment, the man seemed to have sensed Rufus's gaze from the other side. He smiled at the monitor, but his eyes
darkened with coldness.
Rufus watched him with an equally cold stare and pressed a button to let him in.
"Rufus, who's that?"
Cassandra's warm voice called out from the study, thawing the atmosphere momentarily.
"Clark."
She was on her way to where Rufus was, but at the mention of Clark's name, her feet had involuntarily stopped.
Clark? Why was he here?
"Do you have an appointment with him?" Cassandra asked, keeping her voice steady.
It was the only reason she could think of for Clark's sudden appearance.
"No. But I'll go see what he wants," Rufus said.
With this, Rufus walked to the main door and opened it. Clark was standing at the door, still smiling. For a moment, neither of
them spoke, ice meeting with frost wordlessly as the two men leveled each other with their gazes.

It was a windy, snowy night, and the chill only seemed to be magnified by the two men's silent encounter. Cassandra shivered as
the door opened, but it was not entirely from the wind.
Seeing this, Rufus immediately stepped out and closed the door halfway, so as to prevent the chill from coming in the room.
Just then, Clark's chuckle broke the silence between them. "I can't believe you've forgotten common courtesy, Rufus. Do you
usually let your guests freeze at your very doorstep?"
Clark jibed, tongue in cheek. The false smile never left his face as his eyes gleamed with malice.
"Cut the crap. What do you want?"
Rufus responded icily. He was in no mood for Clark's games.
Clutching a hand to his chest and taking a step back, Clark made a show of being hurt. "How you wound me. We have known
each other for years."
He played the part perfectly. Had Rufus not known who he really was, he might have believed his show of sincerity. But knowing
what he had done, his little performance only made Rufus feel sick to his stomach.
"What are you doing here?"
Rufus asked again, wanting to get straight to the point.
Clark grinned slyly as he took out a red envelope from his jacket and handed it to Rufus.
"This is an invitation to my wedding with Amanda," he said slowly, drawing out the words and watching Rufus's face closely. "I
hope you and Cassandra will be able to come."
He gave the envelop to Rufus, who subconsciously took it. Rufus was taken off guard by his words, but he kept his exterior calm.
"Okay. We'll be there,"
he replied nonchalantly, saying nothing more. He knew Clark came to see how he would react, and there was no way he was
giving him what he wanted.
Rufus felt Clark's eyes watch him, undoubtedly looking for any semblance of change in his expression. Then, after a moment,
Clark withdrew with a quick goodbye and left.

As soon as he turned round, Clark's face seethed in anger.
'Son of a bitch. Let's see how calm you would be at the wedding, ' he cursed silently, promising to make Rufus pay.
Rufus watched him with cold eyes as he walked away, and then closed the door.
The warmth of the room was a comforting change from the chill outside. As Rufus entered, Cassandra was quick to notice the
red envelope in his hands. She was holding a tray of refreshments that she had just made in the kitchen.
"What is it?"
she asked, setting the tray down.
"Clark and Amanda's wedding invitation,"
Rufus said indifferently as he threw the envelope on the table.
Cassandra's eyes widened in her surprise. Her gaze went to the invitation on the table, to Rufus, and then back to the envelope
again.
"What? Clark and Amanda's wedding?"
Cassandra was unable to say anything more from her shock. Why were they getting married?
"It's not that surprising. I ended the engagement with Amanda, so she found someone else to marry," he shrugged. "Although, I
don't know why she chose Clark. Maybe she really likes him."
Rufus seemed indifferent to the situation, but Cassandra felt strange. She bit her lip thoughtfully as she tried to take in the
situation.
She sank down on the sofa. Rufus turned on the TV and watched the news. Cassandra snuggled up to him in silence.
"Don't you think it's strange? I was with Clark for some time, and even then, I hadn't been able to completely understand him. He
says one thing, but does something else afterwards. It doesn't add up. What if he is just toying with Amanda?"
Cassandra muttered under her breath, her voice laced with concern.
"As they say, birds of the same feather flock together,"

Rufus responded coldly. He did not want to concern himself over the two of them. Being with Amanda for a long time had made
him realize that underneath the soft, innocent exterior was the viciousness and poison of a snake.
Both Clark and Amanda were hypocrites. The news of their marriage wasn't too much of astonishment.
"But I don't think Clark is someone who falls in love easily. He was only kind to me because he had other motives of his own. He
was using me to get to you. But now I have left him, is it possible that he will use Amanda instead?"
Cassandra continued to talk about her own thoughts. Clark was a dangerous man. Amanda might be in deep trouble. She felt
anxiousness creep slowly in her chest as she thought of what Clark might do to Amanda.
Rufus saw the worry cross over her features and shook his head helplessly.
"Have you forgotten who Amanda is? She won't let herself suffer. She can take care of herself. Don't worry about her."
Rufus had not the least bit of interest in whatever Clark was up to. It had nothing to do with him. Cassandra, on the other hand,
was visibly worried.
"She's still your first love," Cassandra pressed. "I hope my first love can marry a good woman. We didn't make it to marriage, but
we once loved each other dearly..."
Cassandra looked wistful as she spoke, as if remembering a tender memory.
Rufus abruptly turned to her. "Your first love? Who is he?"
It was as if even the sounds of the television was drowned out as he waited for Cassandra's answer.
Cassandra shifted under the intensity of his gaze.
"Tell me. Who was your first love?"
Rufus asked again. This was the first time he heard of it, and the thought of Cassandra loving another man, even if it was in the
past, put an unpleasant feeling in his chest.
Cassandra attempted to laugh off the rising tension in the atmosphere. "That had already ended a long time ago," she said.
In truth, she sensed Rufus's jealousy. It flustered her. She did not know what to say.

Her answer only seemed to rile him up even more. "Tell me who he is. When did you fall in love with each other? What's his
name? What is he like? Do you still keep in touch?"
Rufus threw question after question as an uncharacteristic panic threw his head in shambles.
In the midst of all this, the realization that he knew nothing about her past dawned on him. He was filled with the sudden need to
know everything.
He had investigated the Tang family, including her, when she became Lionel's wife, but all he knew about her were the photos in
her file.
She was quiet and reserved in her school days, which was much different from who she was now.
That night in Rome, he didn't expect that the woman he slept with was Cassandra.
A deep frown marred Rufus handsome features at the thought that Cassandra used to love someone else.
"You're being unreasonable. I haven't asked you about what happened between you and Amanda," Cassandra said, attempting
to escape his questions.
"I told you all of that even without you asking, but now you're just trying to avoid my questions."