A Graduation Gift

Cassandra woke up to the pitter-patter of rain falling outside. It drummed softly on the leaves and blanketed the morning in a
rhythmic white noise of nature.
Her eyes were still hazy with sleep, until she came to the sudden realization that she was in Lionel's room. Wide-eyed, and her
mind sounding alarms, she sprang up to check her own body.
She was under the cover of the blanket, and her clothes were exactly as they were when she fell asleep. She ran her hands over
her limbs, as if in search for a phantom touch that could possibly linger. Convinced that nothing was different, she heaved a sigh
of relief. It seemed that Lionel didn't touch her.
The thought of him made her turn her head and scan the room. He was nowhere to be found.
She stood up from the bed and opened the door, treading softly on the carpeted floor. It was still early, and she did not want to
make noise and attract anyone's attention. She crossed the hall and went, as quickly as her quiet steps would allow her, to the
guest room where she was living in. Then she locked the door, and took a shower. When she finished, she came out with her
body wrapped in a bath towel. To her surprise, there was a man standing in the middle of the room, his eyes fixed on her.
Reflexively, she tightened the towel around herself to find any semblance of modesty it could give her, then she stormed to the
intruder.
"Rufus! When did you come in!" she confronted him.
Rufus remained his standing position, unaffected by her anger. The dim light of the autumn morning silhouetted his face, hiding
parts of it in shadows. Despite the absence of light, one could feel a heavy aura coming from him.
He replied to her in a low voice, "I have been here. You didn't come back last night. So I was here the entire night."
Cassandra felt herself warm with his words as a slew of thoughts crowded her head. 'Was he sleeping on the my bed? Did he
use my blanket?
Was the bed clean enough? Was my hair on it? Was it comfortable enough for him?' The questions went on and on until she
realized the insignificance of the things she was agonizing over.
'Wait a second...' she thought, shaking her head and collecting her wits.
There was a more important question that had to be answered.

"Why did you sleep in my room last night?" she questioned. Her voice was firm but the blush on her face betrayed her emotions
at the moment.
A playful smile crept up Rufus' face.
"I wanted to be close to you. Your bed smells like you. It was really...nice," Rufus continued, his voice dropping at the last words.
Cassandra knew all too well that he was teasing her, and yet, she found herself curling up like a cat to his words. Was she...
enjoying this?
'Cassandra, how can you stoop so low? How dare you entertain flirtation with your brother-in-law!' she castigated herself. 'You
are the wife of Lionel. You are supposed to behave like a married woman. It is unacceptable to keep pursuing an ambiguous
relationship with Rufus, ' she went on reminding herself.
Gripping the voice of reason, she spoke in the coldest tone she could muster, "Well, you can go out now. I need to change."
Undeterred, Rufus' eyes roamed all over her body as if he was devouring her with his eyes. His eyes glinted with mischief as he
asked, "Why? Are you bothered with me looking at your naked body?"
Cassandra knew the game he was playing. She also knew he wouldn't go out so easily.
Abandoning any further effort to drive him away, Cassandra took her clothes and went into the bathroom, locking the door after
her. She dressed herself and came out.
As she expected, Rufus was still in her room. Without so much as a glance, she walked pass him and out of the guest room, and
suddenly was surprised to find Cloris standing at the door holding a tray.
She was here to bring Rufus breakfast.
Rufus was sleeping in the guest room since he forgot to close the window of his own room the night he went to the hospital. His
bed was drenched from the heavy rain, so he moved to the guest room instead.
Cloris was about to knock on the door, but before she could do so, the door opened, revealing Cassandra.
For a moment, the sisters stood face to face, gaping at each other in an awkward silence.
They looked at each other wordlessly in confusion.

Rufus broke the silence between them when he casually took the tray from Cloris's hands.
"Thank you, Cloris. I was just getting hungry," he said simply.
His words pulled Cloris back to her senses, but questions lingered at the back of her mind. She pushed her way inside the
bedroom, inspecting every detail as anxiety clawed at her. Her eyes were pulled to a familiar alarm clock by the bed. It was a gift
from their mother to Cassandra. She always had it with her.
Once again, it was Rufus who provided an explanation to her unspoken questions.
"Yesterday, I just randomly chose a guest room. I only found out that this was your sister's room this morning when she came in
to pick up her things."
It didn't take much to see Cloris's puzzlement at the situation, and so Rufus took it upon himself to diffuse the tense atmosphere
before anything else surfaced. It was the logical move. His words, however, made Cassandra uneasy. She could not put her
finger at the strange feeling that slowly crept inside her chest.
"Rufus, you must have been very tired. You even entered the wrong room," Cloris responded.
Relief washed over Cassandra when Cloris didn't press the matter any further. She quietly left the room as Cloris continued to
make small conversations with Rufus.
Downstairs, Horace was having his breakfast, giving Cassandra a smile as she descended from the stairs.
Just earlier, Lionel came down for his breakfast. Before taking his leave, he asked his father not to wake Cassandra up so that
she could sleep longer.
Horace mulled over his words happily, thinking to himself that Cassandra must be tired from spending time with her husband.
Little did he know Lionel's request was to avoid the awkward atmosphere if they were to have breakfast together which would
certainly raise his suspicion.
Seeing that Lionel was nowhere to be found, Cassandra felt much more relaxed.
"Have you already thought of any ideas about the design for the branch of the hospital? Don't forget to discuss it with Rufus. It
would be better if he can give you ideas about the aesthetics that they want. Ask Uncle Jenks for his advice as well," Horace
reminded her.

Cassandra replied with a firm nod of her head. Horace's advice was quite thoughtful. This was the biggest project that she had
been assigned to since she entered the Tang Group. She would certainly spare no effort to make sure it was successfully
accomplished.
She had her work cut out for her. There were plenty things that needed her attention - design, materials, function. A thousand
details had to be discussed and taken into consideration. Her expertise alone would not be enough, as the project entailed an
understanding of how the different sectors of the hospital would work together. She had not been around long enough to
decipher it herself.
It was definitely a challenging project, and Cassandra felt enthusiasm well up in her.
After she finished her breakfast, Rufus and Cloris came walking down the stairs together.
Cloris walked to her older sister and pulled her hand, grabbing her attention.
"Cassandra, Rufus is going to drive me to work. Are you coming with us?" she asked in an enthusiastic voice, even as her eyes
spoke to Cassandra differently.
Glancing at Rufus, she refused, "I still have something to do at the construction site. The two of you can go together."
Cloris was secretly elated at her refusal, and she took it to mean that Cassandra was giving her a hand to spend some time
alone with Rufus. She winked at her sister, then turned to Rufus and clung to his arm. Then she announced, her tone as bright
as the sound of tinkling bells, "Then we're off to work. Goodbye Uncle Horace! Goodbye Cassandra!"
Rufus stole a glance at Cassandra but said nothing. Without so much as a goodbye, he let himself be led away by Cloris to the
car. Only after Rufus had left, was Cassandra able to breathe normally.
She didn't want to stay with either Lionel or Rufus. Their presence loomed over her like clouds and confused her. She wanted to
stay away from the brothers, as further as possible.
Dusk fell with rain as people were getting ready to leave for the day. There were the telltale sounds of lockers being closed and
bags being zipped as employees prepared to clock out and go home.
Stella, being the good friend that she was, sent Cassandra a message, reading, "There's going to be a typhoon today according
to the forecast. Go home early and be safe!"

Cassandra was still sorting out the documents when her phone pinged to the message. She peeled her eyes away momentarily
to read Stella's message, then resumed work. Several sheets were spread over the table and Cassandra pored through them.
She was studying materials that would help her understand how the departments of the hospital worked, but not even halfway
done.
It was only when the thunder roared and the wind blew so fiercely that she finally considered her situation. Glancing outside the
window, she watched as trees almost bent with the force of the wind. 'The wind would totally blow me up to the sky!' she thought
to herself.
The street was deserted. The wind kept lashing out, blowing leaves harshly to all directions as the pavement was soaked in rain.
It was a terrible sight to look at.
Cassandra made quick calculations in her head. 'If I drive back home now, maybe I can still make it. It would only get worse if I
wait longer. It's better to act now than risk getting stranded in the office later, ' she decided.
Having made up her mind, she packed up her stuff and walked into the lift, ready to go down. When the doors of the elevator
opened, she was surprised to find a man standing inside. It was Rufus.
Cassandra felt her heart sink to her stomach. 'What is he doing here?'
Some time earlier, Rufus was about to go home and had gone to the underground parking lot. However, he noticed that
Cassandra's car was still there, so he went back to his office and turned on the surveillance video.
As he had expected, Cassandra was still working.
He silently watched her work through the screen until she eventually decided to leave. Before she could reach the lift, Rufus
rushed to it and waited for her inside.
By this time, he had already fixed his mind on a decision. There was nothing he wouldn't do to stay close to her. He knew that
she would resist - it was evident in the determinedly cold way she treated him. But he would insist upon telling her that it was
impossible to get rid of him.
Cassandra hesitated to go inside such a small, enclosed space with this dangerous man. She stood there, not making a move to
enter, when at last doors started to close. What happened next surprised her. Before the elevator closed completely, Rufus put
one leg forward to block the door, which made it automatically open once again.

Then Cassandra felt an arm grabbing her and forcing her in.
Her mind reeled at the all too familiar feeling of his arms around her.
"Let go of me! You..." she shouted, trying to break free from his embrace.
She kept on struggling and yelling, and without warning, her voice was sealed by his lips.
His hands gripped her wrists to stop her movements. He was strong, and it was almost impossible for her to break away.
She felt a sharp sensation digging into her skin as he grasped her hands, but instead of quieting her down, it was as if the pain
fueled her resistance even more.
There were security cameras in the lift. Anyone could chance upon it and it would be a big trouble. Feeling anxiety and anger
welling up inside her, Cassandra bit Rufus' lip.
At this, he abruptly pulled away, looking at her in utter disbelief. He raised a hand to his bruised lip and wiped at the blood.
This woman dared to bite him!
He reached out his hand to grab her face, but she slapped it away.
Red bloomed on the bandaged hand, and Cassandra's fury was replaced with worry when she saw the blood staining the white
cloth.
The wound must have reopened. Realizing this, the fierce look on her face suddenly vanished.