Chapter 27
It had been a week since Kassia was discharged from the hospital. She had returned home and, with determination, managed to resume her studies. Chicago was now awake, but the doctor had advised keeping her in the hospital a little longer for further observation.
Scouts from NYU, Columbia, and even Harvard University were starting to visit. The pressure was building, and Kassia had been feeling increasingly anxious. Since both she and Caleb had been discharged, the principal had decided to postpone their exams. They had now completed them.
While scrolling through her phone, Kassia noticed a call from Christy. She declined it—after all, they had just seen each other.
Christy had recently joined the planning committee for their graduation party. Kassia, on the other hand, had been selected to deliver the valedictorian speech.
"Hi babes," Christy called out as she approached. "There you are. I was wondering if you were still in class with Mrs. Cherrymon."
"No," Kassia replied. "She was just coaching me on how to answer the scouts' questions."
"Ohh…" Christy nodded, then looked at her closely. "You said you wanted to tell me something?"
Kassia hesitated. "You remember Mr. Cain Mysia, right?"
"Yeah," Christy replied. "Caleb's brother."
"He asked me to marry him," Kassia said quietly.
"What?!" Christy exclaimed, nearly shouting.
"Will you stop shouting? Jesus…" Kassia whimpered, startled by the reaction.
"Sorry," Christy said, still wide-eyed. "You just caught me by surprise."
"Yeah. I know. Shocking, right?" Kassia gave a nervous laugh. "He paid all our medical bills. Then he told me he didn't do it out of kindness—he did it because he wants me to marry him."
"When did this happen?" Christy asked, still trying to process it.
"About a week ago," Kassia murmured.
"Has he said anything else since then?"
"No… he hasn't."
"So what do you plan to do if he brings it up again?"
Kassia lowered her gaze. "I don't know. My mom already agreed on my behalf…"
"She what?" Christy's expression hardened. "She has no right to do that! What the—"
"Let's just finish decorating this place," Kassia interrupted, her tone weary. "We have twenty minutes before we need to gather in the hall to meet the scouts."
Trying to change the subject, Kassia asked, "Did you still apply to Oxford?"
"Of course I did," Christy said, smiling again. "I heard Williams is applying there too."
"Well, I better get an invite to your wedding," Kassia teased.
Christy simply grinned.
"Let's impress these scouts," Christy said with a smirk.
Later, as they gathered in the conference room to speak with the visiting representatives, nerves ran high. It was a long and intense hour, but eventually, it was over.
"Finally," Kassia muttered. "Now we can go home."
"Want to come over to my place?" she asked.
"Sure," Christy replied. "Williams will drop us off."
While Christy went off to find Williams, Kassia made her way to the parking garage to wait.
"Kassia," a voice called out.
She turned around, immediately recognizing it. "Caleb! How are you doing?"
"I'm good," he replied. "My mom wants to see you today."
"Really? I hope there's no problem?" Kassia asked, concerned.
"I don't think so. Come on, let's go."
"Okay, wait a sec. Let me just text Christy to tell her I'm heading home."
After sending the message, she nodded. "Alright, let's go."
A few minutes later, they arrived at the Mysia mansion. As they stepped inside, they were greeted warmly.
"Kassia, baby!" Mrs. Charity called out, arms open.
"Hi, Mama," Kassia responded, a bit nervous.
"Come sit down," Mrs. Charity said, patting the space beside her. "We have a lot to talk about."
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Author's note
I was suffering from writer's block here
Hope the next chapter will be better than this
Xoxo
CC