Michael forced a smile, but only he knew how painful it felt. It hurt so much that he almost felt it
unbearable. However, his heart pained even more that he no longer felt it beating inside his body.
Michael's heart was torn apart, making him feel lifeless.
"Dad... I can understand," Sara said in a low voice as she forced a smile, but tears continued to flow
down her cheeks. But then, she immediately wiped them away and continued to smile at Michael.
She knew that she should not cry, for it would only stress Jacob out. Sara had no choice but to be
strong, not just for her sake, but also for Jacob. However, she could not stop her tears. 'How
determined does a person have to be to have made such a decision?'
If she had been asked to make such a decision, she would not have been able to do so as she still
cared too much and was not willing to leave the world yet. Although she could sense that Michael had
also felt just as reluctant, he had weighed the pros and cons of his decision before he chose death as
his solution.
With kindness in her eyes, Sara looked at Michael, her heart filled with respect and sadness. Looking
at him, she understood that death was rather simple, even though overcoming the fear of death was
impossible.
"You may leave now... I don't want... I don't want you guys to look at me. So please, leave." Saying
that, Michael closed his eyes, tears flowing down them. He felt fortunate that he was still in his senses.
Usually as people grew older, they would become more forgetful, and lose their consciousness.
However, Michael was not like that. It was probably the only thing that made him feel happy in his old
age. Although his heart warmed to see Sara and Jacob together again, sadness clouded his mind
every time he thought that it was the last time that he would ever be seeing them.
He thought that if there really was a heaven, where people went to after they died, then he would bless
them from heaven. Although he would not be with them, his blessings would always be there to help
them.
To Michael's surprise, Jacob was the first one to walk out of the hospital ward, followed by Sara and
James. The three of them walked out of the room in a very orderly fashion. Sara only hoped that the
day would never stay in her heart.
However, years later, she understood that she had just hoped to remember it in another way.
Jacob looked at the hospital's hallways, lost in thought. It was the place his father chose to die.
Thinking of that, he could not help but feel depressed.
He felt as though someone had caught hold of his heart and was squeezing it till he forgot how to
breathe. Death was such a cruel thing that took a toll on the living. Jacob had almost forgotten his
mother's death which happened when he was just a child, but looking at the hallway, that memory
flooded his mind.
He remembered that he had cried miserably back then. Life, death and loss of a loved one were
mysteries that no one could understand. And death was the ultimate mystery that concluded a person's
life.
Jacob hoped that death would not be an end, but a new beginning for his father. As he walked past his
father's room, he could not bear to look at the door as he could not bring himself to watch his father die.
Hence, he looked straight ahead at the hallway. It was like a huge, endless tunnel where countless
voices of people could be heard.
He felt as though even the walls around him had come to life and were mocking him.
"Aren't you invincible? Aren't you very capable?"
"Aren't you someone who looks down on everything?"
"Aren't you a powerful man?"
"What are you crying for? How can you even dare to be proud if you're crying like a child?"
"You are such a coward, a stupid little boy," the voice said.
Jacob kept thinking of those words. Regardless of how hard he tried to shake the thoughts away, he
could not.
He felt useless and powerless, just like a coward. But what could he do? Once he turned the corner of
the hallway, Michael would have died and he would never be able to see his father again.
Death was inevitable, but people always prayed that it would not happen to those close to them. One's
heart would always magnify the pain of the loss of a loved one, and that was the very reason people
found it hard to let go. Moreover, it was the reason people found it harder to accept the truth of reality.
Sara stood behind him as she wrapped her arms around him, as though she was telling him that she
would always be there for him.
She did not want Jacob to feel dispirited because of his father's death. She also did not want that day
to impact their lives negatively. She just wanted to live a long, happy life with Jacob.
However, those things still felt like a dream, because Sara was anxious that Jacob would get
depressed. After all, there was no one who could bear such a loss.
Moreover, Jacob was unusually calm, which was unnatural under the circumstances. And that worried
Sara the most.
If Jacob had cried out aloud, like she had, she would not have been so concerned.
Next morning, James got up early and was sitting in the living room of the villa. He looked a lot older
than he was from a distance. Jacob felt sorry for him. Thinking that he had only cared about his pain
and not about others, he felt guilty.
"Uncle James." Jacob's voice was barely a whisper. It seemed as though he wanted to say something
to him, but could not find the right words. He felt a knot in his throat and could not bring himself to say
another word.
He slowly walked to the table, and poured two cups of hot water. He then handed one cup to James,
who took it from him.
"Are you feeling better?" James asked softly. He knew better than anyone that Jacob's heart must be in
pain.
However, he had no idea of what words he could say to him to comfort him. Although it seemed
hypocritical, it was also pointless.
"Much better, Uncle James. How are you holding up?" Jacob asked as he sat down next to his uncle.
Apart from Sara, James was the only person that he could talk to.
He felt grateful that even though his life had become too painful and miserable, he had them to rely on.
"I'm fine. I couldn't sleep, but my heart feels lighter than it was yesterday." James' expression was
plain. He had been sad for too long that he just did not have any energy left in him to express the way
he felt.
"Our relatives are going to come one by one today. Are you ready for that?" James asked with concern.
They had no choice but to attend them, even though they had no intentions of doing so.
After all, their guests would only stand in a corner talking among themselves, not caring about the way
Jacob or James felt. Not one person was different from the other. And that scared James, because he
was worried that they might say something that would hurt or offend Jacob.
Moreover, it would be particularly hard to deal with their comments, under the circumstances.
James had already made up his mind to deal with whatever problems that came his way. However, he
was concerned about Jacob, because he knew that even one hurtful word would be enough to crush
him.
Although James was prepared, he knew that he had to tell Jacob to brace himself.
"I know what you're thinking, Uncle James. You don't have to worry about me. I am not like I used to
be." As he said those words, Jacob recalled the past.
When his father had been diagnosed with the disease, the doctor had advised that he need to undergo
surgery immediately. However, everyone had been so absorbed in who the next CEO of the company
was to be. Jacob had just graduated from university, so people had thought that he was inexperienced.
But then, that was just an excuse, because their real intention was to not let Jacob take over the
company. Jacob had already figured that out. In fact, he knew that both the company and his relatives
were split into two groups, one that supported him, and one that was against him.
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