Jacob stared at the piece of paper, his hands trembling and face void of emotion. After signing his
name, his lifeless eyes looked around the room as he tried to recall how the doctor left. He could not
even barely remember the doctor expressing his sympathies.
It was as if all the emotions bottled up inside him were fighting their way out. He wanted to curse and
shout, yet he knew that it wasn't the right place to vent out his anger.
Although he knew that he had made the decision himself, it somehow felt like there was an invisible
force that tried to manipulate him. He felt shackled in chains that were too strong to break free from. He
couldn't explain what or who was responsible, but it seemed like he didn't have any control over his life.
What kind of language does one have to use to explain this miserable life? How on earth should he
express his feelings? Moreover, what kind of decision should he make when facing something
inevitable?
Jacob was at a loss. He honestly didn't know how to answer those questions himself. As he tried to
even out his breathing, he wondered what other people would have done if they were in his position.
Would they have chosen better than him?
Deep inside, he knew that making such a decision all by himself was a selfish thing to do. His eyes
darted towards the door. The two people standing at the other side had absolutely no idea what he had
just done.
He slightly furrowed his brows as he felt his chest tighten. Would they blame him for making such a
decision? After taking deep breaths, he closed his eyes momentarily. Everything was happening too
fast. He wished that all of this were just a bad dream and that he would eventually wake up sooner or
later. If this were a dream, he still at least had a chance to wake up and see his father alive and well.
Jacob knew that he wasn't in the right state to think properly. He walked out of the ICU and burst into
tears the moment his eyes landed on Sara.
James, who was waiting for his turn to bid farewell to his brother, was a bit surprised when he saw the
man crying his heart out.
Thinking that something might have already happened, he quickly bolted towards the ICU. At the sight
of his brother lying in the hospital bed and almost dying, he couldn't help but burst into tears as well.
"What's wrong with you? Don't scare me like that! What's wrong with dad?" Sara asked. Her eyes were
filled with concern as she tried to console her sobbing husband. Never in her life had she seen Jacob
look so broken. Despite Jacob's wails echoing throughout the corridor, the hospital staff around the
area seemed to not mind. In fact, some doctors who had been passing by didn't even bother to spare a
glance at them.
Everyone acted like people grieving in the area happened on a normal basis. Of course, they knew that
something awful must have obviously happened. However, they didn't really care about what it was.
Sara felt her heart beating suddenly loud and fast while she tried to figure out the reason behind
Jacob's unusual behavior.
Although she was clueless, one thing she knew for sure was that there was definitely some grave
news. Jacob had a strong personality. A man as tough as him did not cry like a helpless child so
casually.
Sara's eyes softened and she couldn't help but feel pity. The only thing she could do at the moment
was to try her best at comforting him.
She gently placed a hand on top of Jacob's head and slowly stroked his hair with her fingers. She
turned her head and looked over to the ICU where she could get a glimpse of what was happening
inside Michael's room. The old man was still alive, yet she couldn't help but wonder what had
happened.
The heavy atmosphere inside the room was enough for her to know that the situation was serious. She
could see how Michael struggled to speak. The pain in his expression was evident. It was as if it took
all of his remaining strength to be able to just open his mouth.
As her eyes moved towards her surroundings, it felt as if everything around her was slowly
disappearing. Time had seemed to slow down, and even the slightest sound of movement could be
hard not to notice.
Although Sara couldn't fully describe the strange buzzing in her ears, she could still make out that two
people were arguing with each other.
Perhaps it was because of the exhaustion that she wasn't able to think very clear at the moment. She
could feel herself slowly becoming empty inside as well.
The whole hospital could be described as a huge vacuum cleaner for her now. All the oxygen had been
sucked away, yet the people still remained. Sara only silently stood there in the corridor in despair.
When Jacob finally stopped crying, he wiped the remaining tears off his face and sniffed. He had
momentarily lost control of himself and he hoped that no one would tell other people about it. That was
however only a trivial matter at the moment.
Given his father's situation, he knew that it was necessary to let Sara know about his decision. As for
James, he would leave it to his father to personally tell his uncle.
For some reason though, something inside him told him that James had already known about it from
the beginning. As the thought of that possibility sunk in, Jacob's eyes had slightly widened. It must
have taken a very huge amount of willpower for James to be able to stay strong and pretend as if
nothing had happened.
His red and swollen eyes stared at the girl in his arms. He must have frightened her for suddenly
bursting out like that.
"What happened? Are you okay?" Sara asked once again. Her grape-like eyes were big and wide open
as they looked at Jacob with pity. She was expecting the news to be very grave, or else Jacob wouldn't
have lost his composure like that.
For so many years that they had been together, she had never seen the man lose his cool like that.
However, she found herself struggling to ask him about it.
"My father has already made his decision," Jacob said. Although his voice wavered for a bit, he still
tried his best to sound calm. He couldn't help it. After all, he was the one who had signed the
agreement form.
"What was his decision?" As her temples started to throb, fear swept through her eyes as she waited
for Jacob to give her an answer. She had no idea what she would be hearing next, but she was already
bracing herself for the worst possible news.
The man sat on the chair by the door, never releasing his hold from Sara. He could feel his feet
becoming already numb from standing so long. But maybe, that wasn't the case. Maybe he just lacked
the courage to tell Sara the truth.
"It's okay, you can tell me. Go ahead." Sara's voice was now laced with worry. 'What kind of decision
did Michael make for Jacob to break down like this?'
There was no use if she would cry. It wouldn't solve anything. No matter how difficult the situation was,
she was ready to stand by Jacob's side and face the music.
"I'm sorry, Sara. I made a very selfish decision. I just followed what my father wished. Will you be able
to understand me?" He looked at Sara with bloodshot eyes, making him appear miserable.
"According to my father, living like this was so painful that he would prefer to see my mother already.
He asked me to respect his decision and hoped that we can take care of ourselves." Jacob tried to
keep it simple and brief, yet the tears still threatened to fall from his eyes as he started to speak.
"What? What do you mean?" Sara couldn't believe what she was hearing. 'Wasn't the operation
successful? Why was Michael suddenly giving up on living?'
"My father wanted to leave this world in peace. I've already signed the agreement form. I respected his
choice, just as what I have always done in the past. This was my last chance to follow his wishes."
His eyes, which looked like it had been drained from life, darted towards the door of the ICU. His
father's last words still lingered in his ears. Even though he didn't want to accept his father's decision,
he had no choice.
A person who wasn't afraid of death had no reason to fear anything else. Since Michael had made
such a decision, Jacob felt that he should respect his father.
Everyone should have the right to choose how to live their lives. Of course, everyone should also have
the right to choose how to die. He didn't doubt his father's decision. He didn't want to see his father
blame him if he left the world painfully.
Jacob was afraid of losing his father, but he was more afraid of disappointing him. The best thing that
he was able to do in his life was not to disappoint his father. He wouldn't dare to betray Michael during
the last few moments of his life.
The stunned expression on Sara's face still hadn't worn off. It was impossible to put into words how she
felt at the moment. Hearing what Jacob had to go through was probably the cruelest thing to
experience.
Michael's decision might be a form of relief for him, but for Jacob it felt like a cruel punishment. She
couldn't describe the twist of pain that she felt in her chest. It was like a mixture of shock, pity and
sadness.
Just as she thought that everything was going to be fine, another disaster came crashing in.
Misfortunes always happen, and it always ends up making people feel helpless.
Sara stood up and held Jacob tightly in her arms. Apart from this, she didn't know what else she could
do at the moment. She had always heard a lot of shocking and incomprehensible decisions made by
different people, but she never expected that such a thing would happen so close to
her.
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