The journey was a long and tiring one. Jacob and Sara were already worn out. However, by the time
Jacob parked at the gate of the villa, the tiredness was replaced with the joy of arriving their
destination. Both of them heaved a sigh of relief. Jacob turned and looked at Sara. He saw that she
was also delighted that they were finally home.
After getting out of the car, Jacob opened the door for her. And they walked into the magnificent villa.
The villa still smelled like a new house. Jacob couldn't fathom the reason. But the air was smelling like
a mixture of paint and wood. It was as if no one was living there yet.
He frowned and pushed open the entrance door. "I think we would have to come here occasionally. The
house smells like no one has lived here before. It feels really strange. Let's make it a habit of visiting
here from time to time."
Sara nodded and leaned against him. Then they both entered the living room.
They both sat on the sofa and stretched their legs. Just then, Jacob's phone rang. When he looked at
the caller, it was James. He arched his eyebrows as he stared at the buzzing phone.
For a few seconds, the phone kept ringing out loud. This made Sara confused and she stared at him
with wide eyes. 'Why is Jacob not answering his phone? Did anything happen again?' she thought.
After hesitating for a few more seconds, Jacob reluctantly pressed the receive button. To be honest,
Sara was shocked by his action. She had never seen him do that before. This made several thoughts
flash through her mind.
As she stared at him, she noticed that Jacob's eyebrows were furrowed. And he slightly bent his lips
downwards. He had a displeased look on his face. At the same time, his expression was complicated.
Jacob looked as if he was enveloped in some kind of sadness. His eyes were not as bright as before.
Sara swallowed uneasily. The atmosphere suddenly felt tense. But she remained mute as he spoke on
the phone.
Then it dawned on her that Jacob might be keeping something away from her. Unfortunately, Sara
couldn't pinpoint what exactly it was. Even though she racked her brain, all she thought of was vague.
Jacob said calmly, "Uncle, what is the matter?"
Meanwhile, James sat on a bench at the noisy airport. He stared at the faces of the travelers as he
tried to relax his nerves.
"Jacob, didn't I tell you that I would embark on a trip? Well, I am leaving today. I'm already at the airport
and my flight leaves soon."
Hearing this, Jacob felt as if his heart was about to explode. 'No! How can things end this way?
He didn't even wait for me to show him love. I haven't even shown him filial piety. Even though I can't
call him Dad, he deserves my respect and more. Why is he leaving now?' Jacob thought to himself.
Although James said that it was just a short trip, he still felt uneasy. Jacob's mind told him that he would
be gone for a long time. It felt as if James would never return.
Jacob had a strong feeling. His instincts were never wrong. 'There was no tangible reason why he
should leave now. Was there?
Except he doesn't intend to come back. I don't feel so good about this.
More so, he didn't even have the courage to say goodbye to me physically. I think he's afraid that he
wouldn't have the courage to leave in my presence, ' Jacob continued to ponder.
"Uncle, why is this trip so sudden? I had no idea you were leaving today. I'm not even ready," Jacob
said with a frown on his face. But he didn't say a word to persuade James to stay back. He didn't know
how to express true feelings. Still, the news made him feel a pang of pain in his heart.
"Jacob, let's not drag this. I've told you this before. Since I would have to leave in the end, there's no
point postponing my departure. I should leave now." James pretended to be calm. But he felt great pain
in his heart. He didn't want to leave Jacob. All those years, he suffered watching his son call another
person father. Now, he was going to say goodbye even though the truth was already known.
Sadly, Jacob hadn't accepted him as his father. So, James thought it was best to leave. He didn't want
to force his love. As far as he was concerned, this was a closed case.
If James stayed back, then he would have to worry about it all the time. He also didn't want Jacob to
feel uncomfortable with his presence. He was aware that the young man was going through a lot of
problems lately.
Although James had desired that Jacob called him father, he later accepted his fate. But Jacob had no
idea that he had already given up.
Now that it dawned on Jacob, he felt sad about it. He blamed himself for James' departure. Deep down
in his heart, he regretted not showing his love sooner. Because James knew that Jacob might not
accept him soon, he decided to leave and not bother him. Besides, he was tired of living a pitiful life. All
these years, he had been living in self-condemnation. He had tried to make amends with his service to
people. James was done with all that now.
"I know, Uncle. I'm sorry. This is all my fault. I didn't intend to cause you pain. Wait for me. I'm on my
way there. I want to see you before your flight leaves," Jacob said as he picked up his car keys. He
immediately made his way to the door.
As Sara stood aside and listened to the conversation, she was able to deduce that James was leaving.
From the expression on Jacob's face, she knew that this trip was more like a farewell. She perfectly
understood what this meant. It meant that James wouldn't be in Jacob's life anymore. They wouldn't
see each other again.
Sara hurriedly followed him outside. For a matter like this, she had to be by his side. She knew that
saying goodbye to James would be hard for him. Jacob might act like he would handle it well. But he
was more emotional than he seemed.
As a couple, they had always shared happiness. Now, it was time for them to share sadness.
Even if Sara couldn't do anything to salvage the situation, her presence would go a long way. At least,
her shoulder was available for Jacob to lean on.
James looked at the crowd in a daze. The only reason why he chose to leave now was because he
didn't want to say goodbye to Jacob. He wasn't sure if he could handle it. His heart was too fragile for
such aches.
"There is no need, Jacob. The plane is about to take off. They have already announced it. It's already
too late. I would have gone before you get to the airport," James said in a low voice. He was trying so
hard not to cry. But a tear had already appeared at the corner of his eye.
It was at that moment that it dawned on him that he had nothing in this life. There was nothing he could
call his own. How could James not cry when he was about to lose the only thing that he thought he
had? Life had dealt with him mercilessly.
Saying farewell in person would take a toll on both of them. It would be more painful if they met. James
made that excuse because he just wanted to leave quietly. And Jacob knew that. Even though Jacob
didn't know all that he was thinking, he could tell that James was trying to avoid him.
"Uncle, if you still treat me as family, don't board that plane. Wait for me. There's something I need to
tell you. And I want to tell you in person. So, just wait for me. I would be there soon," Jacob said in a
serious tone. His statement didn't sound like he was trying to persuade James. It sounded like a threat.
Jacob had great respect for James. He had never spoken harshly to him in the past. This was the first.
But today, if he didn't speak in a firm tone, James would leave without seeing him.
As Sara stared at him, she couldn't recognize him. He felt very strange unlike his usual self. This Jacob
had a serious look on his face. And he was quite vexed.
She had never seen Jacob get mad at James. But at that instance, it was clear that he was mad at him.
Even from the way he dashed out, one could tell that he was infuriated.
In addition to the anger he felt, Jacob's heart was filled with regrets. He was beating up himself about
something. Because Sara had spent many years with him, she knew him very well. In fact, she saw
through him. She could tell all the emotions that he was feeling presently.
"Hmm... Well, I'll wait for you. Just be quick. I don't want to miss my flight." Jacob was about to say
something, but he heard a beep sound. James had already hung up the phone.
After ending the call, James burst into tears. He couldn't hold it any longer. 'I just want to leave quietly. I
don't want to complicate matters by seeing Jacob. The pain would be too much to bear, ' he thought to
himself.
In his lifetime, James had one great regret. He was most apologetic for hurting his elder brother. And
the second person he felt apologetic towards was Jacob. He knew that he wronged both of them
because of his actions. At that moment, James regretted that the truth had come out. It was causing
both of them hurt. He didn't like that Jacob was suffering this pain with him. After all, Jacob wasn't there
from the onset.
But then, James had to face what he feared the most. He never expected that things would end up like
this. Sadly, things didn't go as he wished.
When Jacob heard the beep sound, his heart sank. But he just entered the car. Then he explained the
situation briefly to Sara. Hearing the gist, she became anxious. Her mind was clouded with several
thoughts.
'Why is Uncle James leaving now? And why is Jacob so angry with his departure? Did anything
happen without my knowledge?'
Even with Jacob's explanation, Sara was still very confused. He had just told her that James was at the
airport. He didn't tell her the reason for his departure.
'I don't understand what's going on. Jacob must be hiding something from me.' This thought made her
unhappy. Sara disliked when Jacob wasn't transparent with her. She hated secrecy.
'Jacob was keeping secrets from me. Is this right? We agreed that we wouldn't keep secrets from each
other, ' she continued to ponder.
Feeling distressed, Sara decided to keep quiet. She rested her head and allowed Jacob to drive. The
car was silent because Sara made no attempts to question him further.
Her heart skipped a bit as she thought of what might happen at the airport. Sara was nervous about the
fact that when they met James, she would know what exactly transpired. She knew James very well.
He was very cautious while speaking and when he did anything. The old man paid attention to details.
Most times, his statements and actions could be easily understood.
So today, something must have happened. He wasn't speaking like his usual self. Sara frowned tightly.
She was obviously displeased that she had to rack her brain just to figure out what was happening.
Although Sara was displeased, she was still concerned about Jacob. She felt that he was the one who
was feeling the most uncomfortable at that moment.
After all, Jacob had no other reliable relatives except James.
His other relatives were more like strangers. They weren't as close as James.
Jacob had nothing in common with them. It is often said that birds of the same feather flock together.
This was the case of Jacob and his other relatives. He didn't associate with them because they didn't
think alike.
When they arrived at the airport, Jacob immediately rushed into the waiting area. He then scanned
through the crowd for James.
Sara also trotted after him. As she looked at the faces of the travelers, a thought occurred to her. Most
of them had smiles on their faces. Whether they were departing or arriving, they seemed delighted.
This was probably because their families were with them. Or already waiting for them.
Thinking of this, Sara felt that James saw such a scene and he became depressed.
Yes, there was nothing in the type of life James had lived.
Indeed, life was cruel to him. And his fate was miserable. Although fate tortured everyone, James'
suffering was too harsh. But most of these things were beyond human comprehension. No one could
discover and properly describe why some people suffered such ill fates.
Standing in the crowd, Jacob felt that the noise was deafening. Everyone seemed to be talking at the
same time. As he continued to search the whole room, James was still nowhere to be found. 'Did Uncle
James deceive me? Has he left without saying a proper goodbye?'
Jacob immediately took out his phone and called James.
Although the line kept ringing, James didn't pick. The fact that the phone still rang meant that he hadn't
boarded the plane yet. Jacob continued to search frantically for him. He even asked some of the airport
staff.
But they all said they didn't see any man that fitted Jacob's description of James. They all answered
without doubts. Frustrated, Jacob sat on one of the chairs. He buried his head in his hands. And this
showed that he was downcast.
Sara sat next to him. But she didn't utter a word. She understood what Jacob was going through. The
pain must be too much for him.
Sara set aside the anger she had earlier felt. Now the most important thing was finding James. She
could always discuss the issue of secrecy with Jacob later. But there were many people in this world. If
a person wanted to walk out of their lives, how could others persuade them not to?
Jacob held his head weakly. The pain in his heart didn't subside. In fact, it became worse. And Jacob
felt a lump in his throat.
It was as if some kind of turbulent water was in his heart. Then there was silence everywhere. The pain
was so much that Jacob felt as if he was drowning.
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