✷Chapter Thirty-Three✷

Jacob's POV

Jacob pressed the bell again, while he waited for a response. But none came, the silence eating him up completely that it made him more nervous than before.

Would she give him a chance? Will she forgive him? Will she throw him out and still turn her back at him? 

Or was she too broken for him to see? Was she going to lock herself from him?

Those questions kept disturbing him as he stood there waiting for a response. Fear gripping him that the thought of her ignoring him. He could feel the sweat crawling down his forehead, and underneath his clothes.

Nervously he pressed the doorbell again, waiting for the door to open, but no one came to him. He frowned at the white door, before pulling his phone from the back of his pocket, calling Elena Teresa's mother.

She picked up at the fourth ring. "Jacob?"

"Good evening Elena," He greeted, still keeping his gaze on the door. "I'm at Teresa's apartment floor, can you please come open up for me?" He asked almost in a pleading voice.

"Oh dear. I'm sorry no one is around. Teresa decided to go see Gideon and I followed her to the hospital." Elena said sympathetically.

Teresa was visiting Gideon?

What changed her mind in doing so after not doing so for a week?

He couldn't deny how happy he was that she decided on doing so. And how sad he was for her when she came to see the state Gideon was in. Gideon was completely disfigured, and damaged beyond what the eyes can see.

"Okay. I'll be on my way back there. Please keep her there till I reach there. I'll be quick." He ordered, almost going on his knee to beg. When Elena agreed, he quickly cut the line and headed back to the garage where his car was parked and drove straight to the hospital. His eyes shifted from time to time to the bouquet of flowers he had bought for Teresa by the passenger's seat.

On reaching the hospital, he dashed to the room where Gideon was admitted to. He met his parents and Teresa's parents outside of the room discussing quietly. He nodded a greeting to them, not giving them a chance to talk him out of meeting her and walked inside the room. The familiar hospital scent meeting his nose.

That was when his eyes connected on the figure of Teresa sitting beside Gideon's bed, her back facing him. 

He walked slowly towards her, but stopped when she heard her speak. "-I'm so sorry for everything once again. I didn't mean everything I said to you back then. You're far too important in my life. You're my friend, and you matter a lot to me-" Her voice cracked, making her pause for a while before continuing. "-come back to me. I don't want to lose someone else again." This time she couldn't stop the son from coming from her lips.

Jacob felt his heart squeeze at the painful sight opposite him. The two people who meant a lot to him were in pain, and there was nothing he could do about it, but watch.

He gave her time to cry out whatever feelings she had deep in her. He stood silently as he watched and heard her talk until she was tired, before calling out her name. "Teresa." 

Jacob saw her shoulders stiffen as the sound of his voice. She slowly turned her head around gazing behind her, as her beautiful brown eyes locked with his.

She looked miserable. Her eyes were red from probably crying, her nose running down with snots, her face red, and at the same time pale. She looked skinny, like she hadn't had a single meal for a week. Her hair looked like it wasn't combed. It was dry and dark. Different from how brown and glittering it once was.

But nevertheless she was still very beautiful in his eyes, and nothing was going to change that.

Teresa carefully helped herself up from the chair, and slowly walked towards him, before doing the unexpected.

She hugged him, taking him by surprise for a moment before he returned her hug, pulling her tight in his embrace, his face resting on her neck to inhale the familiar lavender scent he loves.

He missed her so much. He felt complete as they hugged each other.

The guilt of lying and hiding the truth from her that had been eating him up for days, slowly evaporated. He felt content and complete in her arms.

"I'm sorry." She spoke out, silently crying on his chest, her body shaking his arms. "Please forgive me." She murmured, her mouth on his chest almost muffling her words.

Jacob pulled out from their embrace, grabbing her head in his hands to look at him. Completely forgetting the flowers dropping on the ground. "I'm the one who should be sorry. I'm sorry for everything, for lying and deceiving you. But I swore with everything I have, every moment I spent with you was truly genuine and from the heart. I love you Teresa."

She cried again at his confession. She was an ugly crier he knew that, but he was careless on such thought as he leaned in to kiss her trembling lips.

"I want you to be strong for not only me, but for your family, for Alexa and also for Gideon. Can you do so?" He asked after removing his lips from her cold ones.

She casted her gaze down, checking her head. "I don't think I'm strong enough to do so. I'm weak Jacob. Everything hurts." She whispered almost whimpering in pain.

"Do you know how the weak behave?" He questioned, watching as her brown eyes still dull from its sparkle captured his green eyes. "They choose the easy way out to numb the pain. Death. But here you are still alive, having the strength to see Gideon even though you knew how heartbreaking he might look. You're one of the strongest people I've ever met. That's one of the reasons I fell for you." After saying that he bent down picking the bouquet of flowers up to her.

Her eyes shifted to the flowers, then at him. Before smiling for the first time since the day she confronted him. "Thank you." She whispered, slowly touching the top of the flowers. "What does the flower mean?" She asked in curiosity after seeing it was a different color of tulip flowers. A white tulip.

"It means forgiveness." He answered, smiling back at her. "Let's start over again. A new start, a new memory after all this?" 

"I'd love that." She whispered in response, before standing at the tip of her toe to kiss his lips. "And thanks for the flowers. It's beautiful." He saw the sparkle in her eyes show only a little, the sadness still there.

Both their lives were about to change. Hers in the sense that she lost her best friend and roommate, and his in the sense that he needs to put others first before him. Not to be selfish any longer.

"I lov-" she was about to say something but was cut off by a voice coming from behind her, and opposite him.

"Teresa? Jacob?" A weak and quiet voice that could easily not be heard called out. 

Jacob and Teresa quickly whirled their gaze on the bed Gideon lay on, the oxygen still covering his mouth and nose, and his eyes fluttering open.

"Gideon?" Jacob whispered in happiness, before quickly pressing the emergency button on the wall by the side of the bed, while Teresa rushed to Gideon's side while crying out in joy.

Gideon has woken up.

He was going to live. And Jacob knew his brother's life was going to be challenging and troubled.

**********

Thank you for reading Jacob's Game!!!!

This is the last chapter of this book. An epilogue will be posted the next day, along with a new prologue on Accidental Mrs, there will be a major change in the book.

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xxinloves.