A Graduation Gift

Moisture was gathering in her eyes, blurring out the image of Rufus's face.
Rufus let go of a breath he did not know he was holding, got down from her. Then, he gathered her into his arms.
"Cassandra, I love you. You will never know how much I love you," he whispered into her ears.
He had no logical way of explaining it, but it turned out that she had been connected with him all this time, as if this woman was
always meant to be his.
She had held him in her heart for a long time. Chance could be both a terrible and wonderful thing, and at this moment, Rufus
thought there was nothing greater that could happen to him.
"I love you too, Rufus. I've loved you for a long, long time, and no matter what happens, you will always be the most beautiful
thing that happened to me,"
Cassandra told him, holding his gaze with her steady eyes. Tears were falling from the corners of her eyelids and Rufus felt the
warm moisture seep into the fabric of his shirt.
It had been a long and tough road to be where she was, in the arms of the man she loved.
Cassandra had always felt that she was the luckiest woman in the world because life had brought Rufus to her again. And her
joy only doubled when they decided to spend their lives with each other.
They held each other, content with the warmth of silence. It was almost as if their feelings were reaching across their chest,
intertwining, like vines forming infinite loops around a tree trunk.
"I want to pay a visit to your family, Cassandra," Rufus said suddenly.
He felt her stiffen in his arms at his words.
"What made you want to visit them suddenly?" Cassandra asked. She was confused.
This was the first time Rufus offered to see her family. It could only mean one thing. Could it really be what she was thinking?
She tried to rein in her heartbeat as she waited with bated breath for his next words.
"You've met my family. It's only fair that I visit yours."

Rufus let out a laugh and tilted his head to kiss her forehead. He felt the quick pace of her heart and the way she took breaths in
an effort to even it out.
"Your family?"
Cassandra didn't understand him at first. She thought he was talking about Horace.
"My aunt, Michelle,"
he said, seeing her confusion. He himself had never regarded Horace, or anyone of the Tangs as his family.
Cassandra felt uneasy at the mention of Michelle's name. They did not have the most wonderful history. Michelle had asked her
to leave Rufus before and had an accident because of her. She imagined she would not have the best opinion of her.
"I don't know how Michelle would take it," she said, suddenly feeling worried at the thought of having to encounter her again.
It was something that had been bothering her for a long time. Cassandra hoped that they could be blessed by both his and her
family.
"Trust me. My aunt will never separate us," Rufus promised.
He was quite certain that his aunt would agree. It was his decision to marry Cassandra, and he was sure Michelle would
understand.
"She doesn't have the best impression of me, you know," Cassandra chuckled nervously, looking away from Rufus.
She had no idea how Michelle would react when she found out. What if she was still against it? She was Rufus's only family now.
The noise of her thoughts stopped when Rufus clasped her face between his hands. His eyes looked into her with tenderness
and Cassandra found her worries melting under his warm gaze.
"Don't worry. I'll talk to her later. I'm sure I can convince her..."
Rufus narrowed his eyes thinking about the accident from before. He was still unable to figure out what exactly happened back
then.
"She will give us her blessings when she sees how happy we are now. Put your heart at ease," he said comfortingly.

Rufus was relieved to feel Cassandra relaxing once again in his embrace.
"I just want to be accepted by your family, Rufus," she murmured.
She knew that there was a lot of things to work out with her and Michelle, but she was willing to do everything she could if it
meant she would give them her favor.
"Listen, Cassandra." Rufus could almost hear Cassandra thinking. He knew she was worrying herself about the whole situation
even if she was not saying a word. "You're the one I'm going to marry. If there are people having a problem with it, that's their
problem. We can't make everyone happy, but we can choose to be happy for ourselves.
I am sure of what I want. I see it very clearly," Rufus said meaningfully, still holding her face in his hands and looking straight into
her eyes.
It would be better if everyone was happy for them, but if not, then it did not matter that much, at least to him.
"Michelle is your family, and I do care about her opinion. She is the one closest to you,"
Cassandra let out a sigh.
"Stop worrying about it. We'll work everything out," he gave her a small smile and said. "For now, let's think about what I should
bring when we go to visit your parents. What do they like?"
Rufus sat up straight and pulled Cassandra up with him.
"Hmmm. For my mother, a set of skin care products would be good," she said.
Cassandra knew that her mother like a particular brand. She could give Rufus some suggestions.
"How about your sister?" Rufus continued to ask.
Cloris was a little troublesome, but he needed to get her a gift anyway. It was the first time he would formally visit Cassandra's
family as her boyfriend. It wouldn't hurt to try to win them over.
"A branded handbag. She would like that."
Cassandra knew exactly what Cloris would like. It wouldn't be hard to please her.

"Then..."Rufus hesitated for a moment before continuing, "how about your father?"
Rufus had saved the most difficult question for last. He had no idea what a father would like from his future son-in-law.
However, the little woman only smiled at him mysteriously.
"You've already got him a best gift. You are the best gift ever for him!" Cassandra chuckled without any hesitation.