Ex-wife, Please Come Back

Chapter 249 The First Time

Jacob gently leaned on Sara's shoulder. His eyes were sad and full of emotion. James stood on the side, a serious look on his face. What happened today was bound to happen sooner or later. However, he didn't expect that it would happen so fast.

Birth, aging, illness, and death were all inevitable. They were things that couldn't be changed in life. James was well aware of this, but he was still sad.

He had witnessed all sorts of highs and lows, but he still couldn't accept the way things were. After all, it was extremely difficult to come to terms with getting separated from someone forever— especially if it was someone you loved.

Soon, a doctor came out, clutching a piece of paper in his hand. It looked like a form of sorts.

"Excuse me, who is the patient's family?" Although the doctor was speaking clearly, Jacob couldn't seem to hear his words. He had zoned out, and he felt like he was turning deaf. If only he could really turn deaf and never find out what had really happened. However, he needed to face this.

"I am." Jacob looked up and stared at the doctor with his red eyes, afraid and worried. For the first time, he was afraid he was going to be faced with something he couldn't handle.

He knew this moment was inevitable, but he wished he could have had more time. He felt his heart beat wildly in his chest.

"Here's the thing. We need you sign the form before we proceed with the operation. This is an extremely high-risk procedure, so we will need you to sign off your consent. It has to be done by a direct relative," the doctor said, expressionless.

He had been used to both life and death, to sadness and joy. His professionalism commanded him to be as placid as possible, offering no special treatment to the man before him. What he needed to do

was to do his best to save the man during the operation.

"What will happen if I don't sign it?" Jacob asked, trying to restrain his emotions. He knew that he needed to be strong at that moment, but he could feel his voice begin to tremble.

He couldn't express his emotions. Although he was a powerful businessman, there was nothing he could do to change his situation at that moment.

"If you don't sign it, we can't proceed with the operation. The patient may never wake up," the doctor replied calmly. He tried to make his voice as gentle as possible. This was a difficult decision for Jacob to make. However, he didn't say that even if Jacob did sign it, the patient still might not wake up.

He had hoped that the patient's family would remain hopeful about the outcome. He needed Jacob to sign the form, so that the hospital wouldn't be liable in case the outcome was terrible. He couldn't be so cruel as to tell the patient's family the cold, hard truth, but it was his job to make them aware of all the possibilities.

"I'll sign it." Jacob looked at the doctor and gestured for him to hand over the form. God only knew how difficult it was for him to say those words. With just those three words, he had made a decision about his father's life. He would be partially responsible for any outcome after the operation.

"I have to remind you again that the operation will be a high-risk procedure. After the operation, the patient would still need to go through a long period of chemotherapy. He will be at risk all the while. I hope you are prepared for that."

The doctor thought of every time he had to witness as the operation failed or the patient's condition got worse. He could do nothing but apologize to their families and assure them that he tried his best.

He felt terrible whenever such things happened. Therefore, the doctor deeply wished for the operation to be a success.

If the operation failed, all of their other efforts would have been in vain. Sometimes, failure even came during the eleventh hour. They would be so close to succeeding, only to lose the patient in the end. That was the most frustrating for doctors.

"I'm aware of that. Thanks for reminding us, doctor." Jacob lowered his head. He was still in shock by what he had done, and his mind felt like it was blank. It was said that extreme joy precedes deep sorrow.

The day that they all knew was going to come eventually had finally arrived, but Jacob still wasn't prepared. Even though he already had a premonition, he didn't know what to do if that premonition came true.

The doctor left to prepare, leaving the three of them in the waiting room. Nobody spoke, and the air felt heavy. Perhaps they were all reeling from the news and none of them knew how to handle such a thing. Life would present people with a lot of things that they had to face, whether they could withstand it or not.

Sara held Jacob's hand tightly, desperately wanting to comfort him. She tried to speak several times, but no words came out of her mouth.

Perhaps the best support she could offer was to just be with him at such a trying time. She didn't need to speak. Thinking of this, Sara squeezed his hand even tighter, trying to reassure him.

We are always losing things and people. Sometimes, we lose them because of our own carelessness, but sometimes, we are destined to lose them. However, loss of any kind is always painful for us.

With growth comes loss. That is the price people pay for their own development. They would lose their youth, their dream, their passion, and even their family. The process of loss would stay throughout all of one's life stages. Through adulthood to the later years of life, loss is constant.

Life is a story that inevitably ends with death. Jacob knew this well. As he stood at the door of the emergency room, he seemed to grow ten years older at once.

No one knew how he felt. It was impossible for anyone else to feel just how soul-crushing it was to go through something like this, and Jacob wished no one else would ever have to feel the same way that he was feeling in those moments.

He had been waiting, and it was as if time had suddenly frozen. It was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Suddenly, the doctor opened the door of the emergency room. He took off his mask and began to speak. This text is property of Nô/velD/rama.Org.

"The patient is out of danger for the time being. We just need to wait as he recovers. However, I want you all to prepare yourselves mentally. The patient will be facing many sessions of chemotherapy, and the whole process will be very painful."

The doctor smiled apologetically. They had done their best during the operation, but the patient and his family were not out of the woods yet.

The coming months would be difficult because they would be seeing someone they loved decay before their very eyes, and they couldn't do anything to stop it. The process would drain the life out of anyone. Even the most joyful person was bound to lose their mirth.

For the patient, chemotherapy would be a battle. He would need to fight every step of the way, but he risked losing to his disease. He also needed to be emotionally ready. There was no way out.

The patient had no choice but to face it. Although the operation had been successful, the doctor was still somber. He knew what lay ahead would be a difficult time.

Jacob squinted his eyes. Smoking was prohibited in the hospital, but he wanted nothing more than to take a deep drag from a cigarette. Whatever his mood was, he always felt like having a smoke.

Now, he couldn't even figure out what he was feeling. All his emotions were muddled up. His father had always been a constant in his life. Most of what he had done had been for his father. How he wished he could take away his father's pain and suffering. However, he could do nothing but watch as his father fought his cancer.

Jacob felt helpless. It was as if the air had left his lungs, and he had no power to pull through.

For the first time, he felt like he had lost control over his own life. For the first time, he felt that there was no cure to the sadness he was feeling. It welled up in his heart, like a flood threatening to break through a dam. It was also the first time for him to face death. He needed to come to terms with forever being separated from his father.

When he was a child, he had lost his mother. However, he was still too young to fully grasp what was happening to him. He still didn't understand what death truly meant. But as he grew older, he began to get more familiar with death and know how it can affect a person.

That's precisely why he had a hard time dealing with it at that time. He was confused, sad, and regretful, all at the same time. Nothing seemed to make sense anymore. Naturally, when someone loses someone dear to them, they wouldn't know how to cope at first.

Jacob stood up and looked at his father, who was lying in the ICU with his eyes closed. His mind was instantly flooded with all the moments they had shared together. He remembered his younger years.

He was one of the students who would always get into trouble. His father frequently visited the teachers' office. In order to help him feel better, his father would personally speak to each and every one of his teachers.

Jacob would never forget this. Jacob had once overheard a conversation his father had with one of his teachers.

The teacher told his father that if Jacob couldn't be controlled and taught well, he would not succeed in the future. However, Michael disagreed, saying, "I believe that my son has the capacity to live a wonderful life, and whatever he chooses to do will be great."