Chapter 494.


    <strong>Chapter 494. Rekindling Old mes before Parting Ways at the Break of Dawn. (2/3)</strong>


    <span style="font-weight:400">I knew exactly what he was thinking. He was thinking he could lie to his daughter and just tell her he’d met her mother and tried to get back together with her but she declined when he never met her at all.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Alright. Then let me write up the contract.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">When I turned away a devilish grin floated to my face. That was close. I’d been holding it back since the moment he agreed.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I retrieved a folded-up piece of paper from my pants pocket and wrote out the conditions while holding the paper up against the wall.


    <span style="font-weight:400">When I was done I handed it over to him.


    <span style="font-weight:400">He read through it carefully making sure he wasn’t somehow signing away his farm or house to me.


    <span style="font-weight:400">As soon as he signed it I could taste it. My body’s response confirmed the contract was a resounding sess.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I retrieved the contract from him and separated the sheets and handed the top sheet back to him.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Here’s the original. I’ll keep the carbon copy.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Okay.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Yes… I’d used carbon copy paper to create a second contract. It wasn’t a simple copy though. It was nearly identical but I’d written out terms in advance on the piece on the back effectively creating two separate contracts.


    <span style="font-weight:400">His soul was mine and he never realized a thing.


    <span style="font-weight:400">As for the taste of this contract, it was bittersweet. Neither particrly good nor bad for me.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The reason for that was that I gave him the same revocable condition I gave Aurelia in hers. This way, that lost time, they could at least recover some of it.


    <span style="font-weight:400">If they wanted to have another child, they could do so without worry of anyplications arising due to their age. I’m sure Dawn would be happy if she had a younger sibling.


    <span style="font-weight:400">I wished their family the best.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ah… that reminds me... I have both of her parents'' souls but I still haven’t signed the contract to acquire Dawn’s. I should really get that done. Rosa should still have it. I hope she didn’t lose it.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Right when I was thinking that Dawn’s father spoke up, “Kid, looks like yer girlfriend’s back.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">When I focused on the dirt road a pickup truck was headed our way.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“You should start preparing.” I gave him a friendly warning.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Preparin for what?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“To get down on your hands and knees.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Huh? Why would I…” he froze when the pickup truck was close enough for him to see inside the passenger seat.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Well, good luck I guess. Looks like we won’t need to wait.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yuh tricked me yuh little bastard! Yuh already knew she was with them, didn’t yuh?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Of course. I only take bets I know I’m going to win after all.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I forgot I gotta check on the horses.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">When he turned to leave I stopped him, “Are you going to run away like a coward even when she’se all the way to see you?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Ugh. I dunno how to face er or what tuh say after all this time.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Are you an idiot? We already established this in advance. Get down on your hands and knees and just tell her ‘I love you, I want us to get back together.’”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“That’s too humiliating.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“So what? You''re a man, aren’t you? Suck it up and don’t be a little bitch. Is your stupid pride and dignity worth more to you than the woman you love?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“...” He fell into silence internally struggling between fleeing and staying.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“You may not get another chance. Are you going to miss it?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">He took in a deep breath before he slowly exhaled out, “Yuh’re… right… this could really be... myst chance.” His voice quivered emotionally. It looked like the memories he shared together with her were flooding in. He covered his eyes with his right hand as tears began to roll down his cheeks.


    <span style="font-weight:400">When they parked up, Rosa jumped out of the back and opened the passenger side door. She started lightly pping Aurelia’s cheeks to wake her up.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Wake up sleeping beauty. We’re here.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Rosa, she’s my Mom... can yuh… uh... be a bit more gentle?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“If I’m not forceful she’s going to keep pretending to be asleep. Seriously, how long do you n to pretend you’re still asleep? I know you woke up a while ago on the way here and you’ve been pretending to be asleep since.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">p. p. p.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I’m awake! I’m awake! Please stop pping me in front of my daughter, it’s embarrassing and just makes it harder for me to admit I’m awake.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Good. About time. You’re not as nervous anymore now though, right?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Well… you sort of pped the tension out of me I guess…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Then get out already and go see him.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Rosa… can you please read the mood?


    <span style="font-weight:400">I couldn’t help but notice Dawn’s father’s lips twitching a bit as his shoulders trembled.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Was it from being moved from hearing the voice of the woman he loved? Or was it because he wanted tough? It was hard to tell.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Aurelia’s eyesnded on me beside Dawn’s father before they shifted to him. When she saw him with his hand over his eyes and the current state he was in her eyes rippled emotionally as she hesitated.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Rosa didn’t miss a beat and forcefully pulled her out of the vehicle and pushed her along from behind.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Jeez, what are you hesitating for? Stop being some.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Aurelia seemed helpless against Rosa’s pushiness.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I can walk by myself, so stop pushing me already!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">With one final push from Rosa, Aurelia came to a stop in front of her ex-husband.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“...”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“...”


    <span style="font-weight:400">An awkward silence.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I- uh- …” Aurelia opened her mouth to try and say something to break the silence but she couldn’t find the words.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Dawn’s father’s head sank down. He fell down onto his left knee and opened his mouth but not a single sound came out. His left hand was nted t to the ground powerless devoid of strength as his right hand covered his eyes. The tears wouldn’t stop falling.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Aurelia clutched at her heart with her right hand and extended her left hand out wanting to touch him but she couldn’t. She was teary-eyed and looked like her heart was breaking.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“A-Aur… elia…” he somehow squeezed her name out, his voice trembling. His head tilted back as he sniffed up his runny nose.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I’ve… miss… ed yuh… so much… I… love yuh… and have… always wanned... ta get back... togethuh… Can... we? Is it… toote fer us?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I… c-can’t… you deserve... better.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yuh’re… the only one… for me. Please! I love yuh so much it hurts!”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“But… after everything... you suffered… because of me…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Dawn’s father’s hand shot up from the ground and grabbed her left hand.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Aurelia, will yuh... marry me? One more time.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Aurellia’s lips parted slightly, but she quickly bit her lower lip and covered her mouth with her right hand.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“...” She couldn’t say it. I could see it in the fluctuating color of her soul. She felt guilty that she wanted to say yes, that she was being forgiven for running away and so easily given another chance to be together with the man she loved. Another chance to be happy. To be a family, living together with her husband and daughter. It was like a dream that was crushing her.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Aurelia…” Dawn’s father slowly lowered his right hand covering his eyes down to his side onto the ground


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Will yuh marry me?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Aurelia’s eyes shut tight, she couldn’t voice it, but she nodded her head.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Is that… a yes?” Dawn’s father asked with tears flowing down his aged face.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yes.” She was finally able to say it.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Aurelia copsed to the ground and wrapped her arms around his neck resting her chin on top of his right shoulder.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“You’re still as big a crybaby as ever...” Aurelia whispered quietly as Dawn’s father wrapped his arms around her back and embraced her tightly, lowering his head and taking a deep breath in.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Speak for yourself. Yuh’re cryin too.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I used to never cry… but recently... it seems I’ve been crying a lot… I missed both of you so much.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“We missed yuh more.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“No way. You had each other so you wouldn’t be lonely. I missed the two of you way more.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I should have chased after yuh… when yuh left.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“But you couldn’t… because of him… right?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yuh knew?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I… only found out the truth yesterday… and he... went and died.” Aurelia’s voice grew weaker and weaker until her words were almost inaudible by the time she uttered the final word.


    <span style="font-weight:400">He hadn’t yet been informed of the target’s death yet. The contract he had with Wisteria was consideredplete when Wisteria provided the alternative solution of having the target rot away suffering behind bars for life in a jail cell for the shady dealings he was involved with. But something unexpected happened and he was assassinated by the “dangerous people” he worked closely with in broad daylight for knowing too much, afraid he’d spill the beans to the cops.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Right now, just what was he feeling after hearing about the untimely demise of his former friend turned greatest enemy?


    <span style="font-weight:400">The color of his soul revealed everything.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Was it happiness?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Satisfaction?


    <span style="font-weight:400">Joy?


    <span style="font-weight:400">No, his soul had transitioned from a happy yellow when Aurelia said yes to marrying him to a deep shade of blue.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Sadness. A sense of mncholy as grief overcame him.


    <span style="font-weight:400">His feelings on the matter were mixed andplicated. I didn’t know anything about their times together so there was no way for me to say anything on the subject.


    <span style="font-weight:400">In the end, he was once a good friend. Even if betrayed by him, hearing about his death wasn’t something that made him happy. It gave him no joy, only buyer’s remorse.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“How… did he... die?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“We can talk about thatter. It’s a long story.”