“Clarissa, here you are, come on in!”
At first, the women greeted her. After a while, the men followed in excitement when they recovered from their initial amazement, especially the unmarried male classmates—they were the most excited out of them all.
Some were pulling out chairs, inviting her to sit. Finally, Clarissa chose to sit next to Tianna, whose husband was there too. He looked like a decent man.
There was a reason why Clarissa had not contacted her classmates for so many years. It was not because she was cold or unfriendly.
Because of her beauty and intelligence, Clarissa was rejected and tormented by female classmates while male classmates harassed her and looked at her in a different way. She could never forget this kind of bullying.
However, every year, she would still visit the teachers who cared about her. These teachers did not publicize her visits.
Just as before, Clarissa was not overly enthusiastic about meeting these eager classmates, some of whom still thought of her as a curiosity.
Today was just an interlude.
“Oh dear, beautiful Ms. Quigley, you are still so attractive! Take a look around this room. All the men are bewitched by you. I am sure your husband would be worried about letting you out of his sight.”
Just look! They may be half-joking, but that doesn’t hide the evil intent in their hearts.
“You shouldn’t say that. Our Beauty is the type who puts family and husband first.”
It was Tianna who spoke fairly. Besides, the men did not like hearing those spiteful remarks, so they changed the subject.
“Clarissa, when did you get married? Why weren’t we informed… I heard that your son is already two years old. Why isn’t your husband here with you?”
“That’s right. A beautiful girl such as you definitely married well, didn’t you?”
“Where does your husband work? Perhaps we know him… After all, for the past few years, we had a lot of business dealings, and we do know quite a lot of people.”
“Yes, yes, our President Clark is the big boss. President Clark, those days, did you fantasize about beautiful Ms. Quigley? Now that she is married, are you disappointed? You’re still single, yes? Do you have any plans?”
Johnny was obviously the most prominent figure at the gathering.
The man was seated at the main seat. Before the arrival of the teachers, everyone’s attention was on him.
Meanwhile, he did not try to conceal his eager gaze upon Clarissa.
When others in the group chided him, he just smiled and shook his head. “Oh, stop kidding around.”
There was no serious denial, indicating that he was hopeful.
Clarissa did not accept their bait, instead, she ignored their remarks and maintained a cold expression whilst turning around and looked at Tianna.
“President Clark, why aren’t they here yet? Should you give them a call and ask?”
“Oh… they should be here any minute now…”
As Clarissa seemed to ignore their remarks, they felt a little awkward.
“Our beautiful Ms. Quigley is as aloof as ever!”
Still, Clarissa did not reply.
Those who are mature enough would usually not be jealous, but women are jealous by nature.
Jolene Marcus, the girl who always had a crush on Johnny since they were schoolmates, sat next to him the moment she came in, and she acted as if they were lovers. However, the moment Clarissa walked in, Johnny totally ignored Jolene. In Clarissa’s presence, Jolene did feel rather inferior. However, she could not stand the fact that Clarissa was ignoring the classmates’ attempts to start a conversation.
With a sneer, she snorted. “Clarissa, are you ignoring us because you have been unsuccessful in life? Do you have a guilty conscience? Those days you acted so haughty and got accepted by a prestigious university, but now, you may not be doing well compared to most of us. Where is your husband? Are you ashamed of introducing him to us? Or have you married that scum boyfriend of yours from those days?”
Scum boyfriend from those days?
At Jolene’s words, everyone was stunned and uncomfortable, while some were even embarrassed
Pleased with the effect of her words, she gloated, hoping to see Clarissa guilty, afraid, or even panicky…
However, Clarissa showed no change in her expression. At the same time, three grey-haired teachers walked into the private lounge. Clarissa arose immediately, and the others followed suit to welcome the teachers.
Craig Anderson was their class teacher through their high school years one to three. They used to call him “Boss.” Now, his hair had turned grey, and he was slim, unlike those days when he was still energetic and had that imposing aura. Now, he was just a kind old man.
The other two were their language and mathematics teachers, both very important educationists in their growing up years.
When Craig saw Clarissa, he said softly, “Clarissa, I never thought you would really come.”
This was the first time Clarissa smiled tonight, and it was at the teachers.
“Boss, after coming back, I didn’t have time to visit you. I heard you were unwell. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It was nothing, really nothing. Just something common and not life-threatening. Are you spending New Years here?”
Clarissa was a bit embarrassed. “I’ll tell you later. Don’t worry. It’s okay.”
Craig was the only person who knew about the problem she was facing with Matthew. This was not a good place to talk, and so, he didn’t ask much.
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