Chapter 9

Brianna was standing by Tiffany's bed, holding the scarf Vincent had gifted her. "Tiff?" Brianna exclaimed upon seeing Tiffany return. She hurriedly stuffed the scarf back into the bag and walked over to Tiffany. She took Tiffany's hand and asked. "Tiff, when did you move back into the dorm? Why didn't you tell me?" Tiffany withdrew her hand and walked right past Brianna. "Didn't you move out?" "Yeah, I came back to get some stuff." Brianna followed her and pointed at the designer bag on the rack. "Tiff, is that scarf yours?" "It's mine." Tiffany glanced at her coldly. "Is there a problem?" "No." Brianna's smile seemed forced. "That's the limited Louis Vuitton scarf that was just released last month. It's expensive and hard to get. I've had my eye on it, so I was just wondering how you'd managed to buy one." Tiffany glanced at the bag, which indeed bore the luxury brand's logo. Vincent had given it to her, but she had no intention of keeping it. So, she hadn't paid much attention to it enough to realize its value. "A friend gave it to me," Tiffany said vaguely. "I don't know much about it." "Which friend?" Brianna pressed, her disbelief evident. She had been Tiffany's best friend for years, so naturally, she knew how limited Tiffany's circle of friends was. In fact, besides Brianna and William, Tiffany didn't have any other friends. "You don't know them," Tiffany answered flatly. Brianna was about to ask more questions when her phone rang. She took the call in front of Tiffany. "Hello, William... Yeah, I'm in the dorm. I was thinking of having Friane cuisine for lunch... Yes, that place we went to last time... Okay. I'll come find you later." After hanging up, Brianna said, "Tiff, you should get some rest. I have to get going now." Tiffany didn't bother with niceties. She simply sat on the bed and opened her laptop. When Brianna saw that, her lips curled. Then, she left the dormitory. ... At the Friane restaurant, Brianna ordered several dishes. Then, she handed the menu to William. William glanced at it and removed a few items. "Are you sure you can finish all of this?" he asked. "It's okay if we can't finish it all. I just want to taste them," Brianna said casually, adding the expensive foie gras to the order. William looked at her. "I never noticed you were so wasteful before." When he had dated Tiffany, they had taken Brianna out with them sometimes. Back then, Brianna had always seemed reserved, more so than Tiffany. Later, William had discovered that it was because Brianna was self-conscious about her family being poor. He still vividly remembered this one time when the three of them had gone out for a meal. After they had left, Brianna had gone back and asked the waiter to pack the leftovers. The Brianna from back then seemed so different from the one sitting before him right now, indulging in the fancy Friane meal. Noticing his eyes on her, Brianna closed the menu. "Did I order too much? Are you upset?" "No," William replied. He was well-off, with parents who were university professors. He didn't care much about money. When he had started dating Brianna, he had often taken her to upscale places, but it had never struck him as odd before. But it seemed like running into Tiffany had made him realize how much he and Brianna had changed. Tiffany, on the other hand, was still the same as before. "William? What's wrong?" Brianna waved before his eyes. "Something on your mind? You've been distracted all evening." William snapped out of his thoughts. "Nothing." Brianna cut the foie gras, feigning nonchalance. "Tiffany moved back to the dorms." William paused, his fork still in mid-air. "Is that so?" "I saw her when I went back to the dorm this afternoon. She had a bag with the Louis Vuitton logo; it turned out that the scarf I've been wanting was inside. "Tiffany said a friend gave it to her, but she only gave me vague answers when I asked who it was." Brianna looked at William. William frowned slightly. "I see." Brianna rested her chin in her hand innocently. "For a second, I thought maybe you'd bought it for her secretly." "Me?" William shook his head. "It wasn't me." "I know it wasn't you. Even if it was you, I wouldn't be upset. It's the least we could do after what we did to her. If the scarf could dissipate Tiffany's resentment, I'd be willing to give it to her. "But... Tiffany doesn't have any other friends besides us. And even regular friends wouldn't give each other something so expensive, right? I wonder if Tiffany has a new boyfriend." William put down his cutlery. "I need to go to the restroom." Brianna's words had made him uneasy. In the restroom, William smoked a cigarette to calm down. As he finished his cigarette, he patted his pocket, only to realize that he had left his phone on the table. Back at the table, Brianna immediately grabbed William's phone and unlocked it. She then browsed through several online shopping apps. Honestly, she still couldn't believe anyone besides William would give Tiffany such an expensive gift. But after searching, all she found was William's previous order for the scarf. As she checked the details, her expression changed. She'd had her eyes on that scarf ever since it was launched. She had wanted it so badly that she had nagged William to buy it for her. She had been looking forward to showing it off, but William had told her that he hadn't been able to get it. Yet, now she finally realized that it wasn't that he had been unable to get the scarf. Instead, he had cancelled the order. But why would he do that? The answer was simple—William didn't want to give it to her! Two minutes later, William returned. He glanced at his phone, which looked as if it had remained untouched while he was gone. Brianna handed him the sliced foie gras with a flattering expression. "William, I cut some for you. Try it." "Thanks." … The next morning, Tiffany took the subway to Lewis Tower. Since it was still early, most of her colleagues from the executive department hadn't come to the office yet. She took the chance to quietly slip into the CEO's office with the Louis Vuitton bag in hand. With the curtains drawn, the office was dimly lit and quiet. Tiffany headed straight for Vincent's desk. She didn't notice someone on the couch to her left. Once she set the bag down, ready to leave, she turned and met the person's gaze. "Mr. Lewis!" Shame washed over Tiffany when she realized she had been caught red-handed. Vincent leaned back on the black couch. His shirt's collar was unbuttoned, and his long legs were crossed. He looked utterly worn out. Yet, his eyes crinkled in amusement as he watched Tiffany. "I was wondering how a thief had snuck in despite our tight security. But it turns out that it's just you, Tiffany."