A Graduation Gift

A Maserati was driving fast on the road. In the driver's seat was Rufus, talking on the phone.
"Are you at your studio right now? I am coming with Cassandra. There is a small problem with her dress."
After these words, he hung up the call, turned his head to look at Cassandra and noticed the little woman was shell-shocked
from what had just happened at the party. With a blank look on her face, she said nothing.
Seeing her like this, Rufus couldn't help but furrow his eyebrows. He silently let out a sigh.
There was no doubt, Cassandra was good at her work, and was a nice person to get along with. The only problem was that she
was too trusting, almost naive and often let her guard down when around the people she shouldn't trust.
The night was warm, and the city was lit by bright streetlights. A cool breeze blew in the car through the rolled down window.
Something unreadable flashed through Cassandra's eyes. She gently bit down on her lower lip and finally opened up to talk.
"The lace strap of this dress couldn't have easily torn by itself. Someone must have cut it."
From her small but firm voice, Rufus knew she was thinking through. A hint of anger flashed through his eyes, the corners of his
mouth lifted. But he said nothing. He just hummed, letting her know that he understood what she was thinking.
It seemed that the little woman finally registered what had transpired. By now, she was calm enough to rationally think. Yes,
Cassandra might be trusting and naive, but it didn't mean that she was stupid. What had just happened wasn't accidental. It was
not that easy. Someone must have intentionally cut the lace strap of her dress to embarrass her. But who was it? Who would
have wanted to do this to her?
Closing her eyes, she racked the brain for who would have a motive and the chance. It couldn't be Michelle Ling, because when
the dress was delivered, Cassandra took enough time to confirm it was intact. There was no way Cassandra could have missed
any sign of damage then.
Besides, Michelle Ling was a name synonymous with quality, class, and professionalism. The dress couldn't be of low quality
that the strap would tear in the middle of the party. Who else could it be? Rufus? No, there was no way he would stoop that low
to embarrass a woman. Not especially a woman that he loved. There was no chance in hell when the same dress had cost him a
pretty penny. He wouldn't have a reason to pull such a lousy stunt. Then...
Cloris!

Cassandra couldn't help but shudder when her sister's name crossed her mind. Carefully, she thought back of the details when
Cloris was with her.
A terrible hunch began to eat at her heart. She didn't want to accuse her sister. But the more she remembered what had
happened when the two of them were together alone, the more she believed Cloris was culpable. Suddenly, without any good
reason, Cassandra's head started to hurt.
With her fingers she rubbed her temple, trying to relieve the pain. It didn't work. What was worse, she even wanted to throw up.
"Stop the car,"
She demanded, out of the blue. Startled, Rufus glanced at her and realized she wasn't kidding. Right now, she looked so beat,
that Rufus immediately pulled over to the side without a word.
As soon as the car stopped, Cassandra quickly opened that door and got out of the vehicle to stand by the roadside.
The cool breeze blowing on her face helped her feel less dizzy and nauseated. But at the same time, her heart grew cold. If
Cloris was here, Cassandra feared she might have committed a felony.
Cloris was her biological sister for God's sake! Why did she have to do that to her? Cassandra's head began to spin again. She
frantically tried to find a motive behind her sister's actions.
By that time Rufus had also gotten out of the car and walked to stand beside her. He reached out and steadied her wobbling
body, his eyes full of worry for her.
"What is wrong, Cassandra? Is it carsickness?"
asked a panicked Rufus in a gentle tone that pulled Cassandra out of her trance. They locked eyes as she lifted her head. That
was when she finally understood why her sister would ruin her evening.
The very first time Cloris saw Rufus, Cassandra knew that she liked him. So coming to the party, the naive girl must have
thought that he was going to pick her over Cassandra, for a dance. It hurt her to see the man she liked give all his attention to
Cassandra.
The now jilted girl must have come to the party fantasizing about Rufus, only to realize that she didn't feature anywhere in his
plans.

But Cloris overreacted in throwing such a childish tantrum. A rather foolish move, taking that kind of shameful revenge against
her own sister and best of friends. Did she feel better now, after embarrassing her kith and kin?
In disappointment, Cassandra closed her eyes. Silent tears rolled down her cheeks. Never in a million years would she expect
her sister to deal her a cruel blow like this. Also, she blamed herself for hurting Cloris. For all that her younger sister knew,
Cassandra was married to Lionel. No matter what challenges the marriage had, Cloris did not expect that her elder sister to have
an affair with Rufus.
'Cassandra! What the hell are you doing right now? You know that Cloris likes Rufus, but still, you can't learn to keep your
distance from him. Don't you think this embarrassment serves you right?' she silently cursed at herself.
The gentleness of Rufus's hand on her waist was heartwarming, but no matter how long he kept it there and stroked her, it failed
to cheer up her cold heart. She was in a bad place right now.
Then Cassandra broke away from his touch and walked ahead without saying a word.
Rufus froze for a short second, but he quickly realized what was happening to Cassandra and walked up to her. Grabbing her
hand, he firmly pulled her close.
But it wasn't that easy. Much to his surprise, the little woman struggled hard against him.
Her body was tense, and she tried to break free from him again. The look on her face was cold and desperate. She was nothing
like the gentle girl she had always been.
"What exactly is wrong with you, Cassandra?"
Rufus couldn't help but shout in frustration. To be honest, Cassandra frightened him. He had no idea what she was thinking right
now. And to make things worse, she refused to talk. Only a short time ago, he thought they were on good terms.
"Let go of me. You are my brother-in-law, for heaven's sake. Be respectful."
Cassandra's tone was stone cold, and there wasn't the slightest hint of emotion on her face.
Brother-in-law? Did she just call him brother-in-law? Why would she want to do that? Rufus couldn't believe his ears.
That form of address made him angry all of a sudden. It surprised him that she wasn't even grateful for how he had saved the
day by whisking her away from humiliation at the party.

Besides, he had passed up the chance to give a speech at the party, just to save her! As if that was not enough, he was taking
her straight to Michelle's studio for another dress at a tidy sum of money. But what was she doing as a reward for all his
kindness? By calling him brother-in-law, she must have intended to snub him.
"Cassandra, don't make me mad at you,"
with darkened eyes, he warned. From the look on his face, one could tell he was trying very hard to contain his anger.
The corners of Cassandra's lips lifted into a bitter smile. There was no need to fight here. If anything, she was worn out right now,
she just wanted to get home as quickly as possible and forget about the drama today.
"I am not joking. You are, my brother-in law. Just drive me back to home, please."
At once, Rufus clenched his hands into tight fists. In a fit of rage, he punched the lamp post beside them so hard the metal
reverberated. His hand must hurt, but he said nothing and felt nothing.
The impulsive reaction made Cassandra's heart throb.
It was hard to watch Rufus so angry at her, but she had no other choice.
Compunction gnawing at her heart, Cassandra bit down harshly at her lower lip and bowed her head to avoid meeting his gaze.
She tried hard to contain her emotions.
"Well, if you don't want to drive me back, then I will get back on my own."
With these words, she lifted her dress and turned to walk away.
Ignoring her, Rufus silently watched her walk away. In defiance, she held her head up high and sauntered off as if there was
nothing to worry about. The arrogance of her body language incensed Rufus more. She was testing the limits of his patience.
But what Rufus didn't know was that her heart was bleeding. She was trying hard to hold back her tears.
Rufus...Rufus... As she walked away, his name kept playing in her mind, all the while her heart getting colder and colder by the
minute.
'How could I be so stupid? I should have known there was no chance for him and me. It's such a waste of time, ' she thought to
herself as she walked alone.

To save herself unnecessary trouble, she hoped that Rufus would stop being so kind to her and giving her false hope. It scared
her to imagine falling in love with him only to set herself up for more drama and worse disappointment. Accepting him now would
also be a bad idea, given the infatuations of Cloris and Lionel's jealousy?
'Apparently, you and I don't belong together, Rufus. We'd better go our separate ways before we get too emotionally attached.
Right now, it's not yet too late for me to face my faults and make amends. Let's call it quits and move on.'
These were the words that Cassandra wanted to say to him but she just couldn't.
Meeting Rufus was a mistake, and sleeping with him was much worse. But it was all Cassandra's fault. She let her guard down.
And now she'd have to clean her mess.
Ever since she met Rufus, she had become overdependent on him. Inch by inch, she let him into her space, forgetting it was a
complicated relationship from the word go. From now on, she decided she'd stay away. Hopefully, her heart would not
overwhelm her sensibility, because she loved him, for real.
To claim back her sanity, she reminded herself that she was Lionel's wife, regardless of their problems during the four years of
their marriage. Moreover, she was the Qin family's lifeline at the moment. There was no way she was going to gamble with the
lives of her parents and her sister, even though they caused her problems.
As the little woman slowly walked away, Rufus's heart bled. An urge came over him to run after her, grabbing her and bringing
her back. But his pride wouldn't let him do that. So he angrily kicked and punched the lamp post, again and again, to vent out his
frustrations.
His hands began to bleed again. But the only pain he felt was at heart. It hurt so bad to see the woman he loved walk off, leaving
him a broken man on the road, in the cold of the night.
It seemed that something had grabbed his heart tightly such that he couldn't breathe. It was a terrible, miserable feeling, the kind
that for the life of him he would never wish on his worst enemy.
Not that Rufus was a greenhorn. He had been in relationships with women. If anything, he was a ladies man.
But, Cassandra was different. Among his many women, she was matchless in beauty, character and work ethic. No matter how
hard he tried, he couldn't get her off his mind. How on earth could he let her go?

From the day she came into his life, she made him feel superhuman. Now in her absence, he was empty and helpless, as if she
had diminished his power with kryptonite.
Against the cold wind of the night, Cassandra's face hurt. Meanwhile, at the Tang family's stately home, another storm was
raging. Unknown to her, she was at the heart of the storm. As she headed back home, trouble awaited her.
In the study room, a furious Horace threw the inkstone at Lionel. Breathing hard, he growled, "You bastard! Aren't you ashamed
of what you have done? You've ruined the name of the whole family!"
Swift as an arrow, Lionel stepped aside to evade the inkstone. The ink splashed, some splattering on his suit. He didn't say
anything.
With a loud bang, the inkstone hit the wall, and made a mess on the wall paper.
The impulsive behavior of the old man shook Jill, who was standing aside. Were it not for Lionel's speed in dodging the inkstone,
he would have sustained pretty bad injuries. Also, she got worried that Horace's uncontrolled anger would trigger his asthma.
Walking up to Horace's side, she gently patted his back, and whispered something into his ear, to calm him down.
"Horace, it has already happened. There's no way you can go back in time and change things. On the grounds of your health,
you also need to be careful. Getting so carried away by anger will only hurt your health..."
But ignoring her, Horace threw her hands off his shoulder and got even angrier. He was also mad at her.
"Shut up. And you as well! All these years, I've worked hard to provide you two with everything you ever needed. But see, this is
the kind of brat you've raised! Both him and Rufus are my sons, but look at the big difference between them! Always, Rufus
works hard to excel at whatever he does, and forever steers clear of trouble. And your son? He only knows how to waste time
and money. Now, by his silly mistakes, he's put the family business in danger, yet he doesn't seem to care."
That comparison offended Jill to the bone. There were few things she hated, like anyone comparing her son to that bastard,
Rufus. But she couldn't say a word at the moment. Horace was just so angry; if she dared cross his line, he'd skin her alive. The
wise thing she could do as at now was to calm him down.
"Horace, Lionel already knows what he did is wrong. Snapping at him and throwing at him whatever you can get your hands on
won't change the fact. What we should do right now is to find the best way out of this problem,"

Jill said while secretly gesturing for her son to apologize to his father. In contrition, Lionel knelt down on the floor in front of his
father, his face genuinely apologetic.
"Father! I already realized my mistakes! But Ivy has been with me for so many years. It would be shameful to abandon her,
especially now that she is expectant with my baby. Also, I can't dictate to her nor can I divest her of her small wish. In fairness,
we shouldn't take that away from her. Besides, she has promised me that we can keep the child. As soon as the child is weaned,
she has promised to leave, go out of the country and never try to get in touch with us. Once she's gone, Cassandra and I can
bring the child up. Nobody will know about this!"
Horace's breath was still labored. Anger made his head so dizzy, he almost couldn't breathe.
Somehow, Lionel's words touched the old man.
He also wanted to keep his grandchild. This was his first grandchild after all.
The baby could not leave their family. Memories of how he missed milestones in Rufus's upbringing haunted Horace. Only
recently had Rufus come home, a grown man. The same would not happen to his first grandchild.
But there was one thing he didn't like. That was the mother, Ivy. For some reasons Horace just didn't like this girl.
"What's so good about that woman? For many things, I don't approve of her. Partly, I have issues with her family background.
But again, I don't understand why you are so bewitched with her, Lionel. You are just out of your mind! How could you abandon
Cassandra and get tangled with that low-life kind of woman?"