In times like these, who wouldn't want to take a risk and see what happens?
"Honestly, I was the one who told Jackson he wasn't good enough for Pandora. That's what made him decide to go out and prove himself," Daniel said, dropping yet another truth bomb.
Pandora could barely contain herself. Right now, she just wanted to strangle the old
man.
"Daniel, since you know you're sick, why won't you go along with the treatment?" Claire asked, her voice full of confusion. "With how advanced medicine is today, there's always a chance, no matter the illness. You have the money, so why not try to live a few more years?"
She couldn't wrap her head around it. But Pandora answered before long.
"He's probably trying to make up for what he did,” Pandora said quietly.
She understood most of what Daniel was thinking. Deep down, he really did blame himself for her and Jackson breaking up. But back then, Daniel couldn't just leave for Eldoria. He had a wife, and she was pregnant with their second child. If he'd abandoned her, he would have failed as a husband and a father. Still, when it came to Pandora, guilt had eaten away at him for years. There had been a chance for him to go looking for Jackson, but he'd chosen to stay behind.
"If Grandma forgave you, would you accept treatment?" Claire finally asked. Suddenly, everything Jennifer had done to get Pandora and Daniel in the same room made sense. They must've known what was weighing on Daniel's heart. He'd probably told them not to disturb Pandora's peace, which is why no one ever dared to go looking for her in the countryside. But now Pandora had shown up herself. Maybe it really was fate. Maybe even the universe wanted them to have this reunion, so Daniel could finally hear forgiveness straight from Pandora.
Daniel gave a sad little smile. “Claire, I don't think your grandmother is willing to forgive me."
Pandora let out a sigh. "Daniel,
you're making this harder on
yourself. Even if it hadn't been you? someone else would have pushed him maybe I given him money
for the journey. Back then, staying behind meant suffering. Leaving was the smart thing to do. I wanted to protect The James Village, but I never tried to stop him from chasing his dreams. In a way, I let him go. Did you know that?"
Pandora, proud as ever in her younger days, had always thought that no matter what, Jackson was still hers. Even if he flew far away, She believed he would always find his way back to her. Who could have guessed he'd vanish without a trace for so many years?
"If you really need to hear it from me, then I'll say it now," she said, her voice soft but steady. “Daniel, I forgave you for that a long time ago."
Daniel finally smiled, but almost instantly, his smile broke into a harsh, wracking cough.
"Father!" Chrystal cried out, quickly wheeling Daniel back a little and pressing a handkerchief into his hand. Daniel held tight to it, coughing so hard he couldn't catch his breath.
Claire's eyes darted to the handkerchief and saw a stark, bright red stain.
"We need to get him to the hospital right now!" Claire shouted, already jumping up to look for her bag. She'd left it by the door when she came in, and her acupuncture needles were inside.
Chrystal called for the driver right away, while Jennifer, thinking fast, grabbed Claire's bag and handed it over.
"Claire, are you about to do
acupuncture for my dad?" Jennifer
asked hope flickering
She'd see her eyes.
save someone
before with her needles. She could only pray it would work for her father too. sŵnovels
QUMS