Hello, Ex! I Finally Found My Worth! - Chapter 208

Chapter 208: Inevitable
Margaret exhaled, her shoulders dropping slightly as if a weight had been lifted off her. “At least… at least the killer was caught,” she murmured. “I’m glad she doesn’t get to walk away after everything she’s done.”

Emma reached over and placed a comforting hand over Margaret’s, squeezing gently. Claire, sitting beside Margaret, watched her with quiet concern, ready to offer any support she needed.

Margaret stayed silent for a moment before she looked at Alex again. “Can we go to Jake’s house first?” Her voice trembled slightly, but her determination was clear. “I just… I want to feel his presence again. I need to be there first before going to your house.”

Alex exchanged a brief glance with Emma before nodding. “Of course. We all need to feel his presence one last time.”

Without another word, he changed the direction of the car, heading toward Jake’s house.

As they stepped into Jake’s apartment, an overwhelming silence greeted them, thick with memories and grief. The air felt heavy, untouched, as if time itself had frozen the moment he left.

The scent of his cologne still faintly lingered, mixed with the faint traces of his presence—his jacket draped over a chair, the scattered papers on his desk, and the familiar arrangement of furniture he once moved around so often, claiming he needed “a fresh perspective.”

Margaret was the first to break. Her knees buckled slightly, and Claire reached out just in time to steady her. Her trembling hand covered her mouth as she looked around, her eyes brimming with unshed tears.

“He was just here… not long ago,” she whispered, her voice barely above a breath. “This was his home as of yesterday. How could he…” she let her words trail off as she sobbed.

While Margret was crying and imagining her son walking around in the house, Emma stood frozen in place as memories of her time there came rushing back at her.

She exhaled sharply when her gaze drifted to the couch where Jake used to sit, reading through documents late at night, completely oblivious to her presence.

Her eyes then landed on the dining table, and a sharp pang shot through her chest.

“Emma, I don’t have time to wait for you to prepare breakfast every morning,” his irritated voice echoed in her mind. “I have work to do. If you can’t keep up, then don’t bother.”

Her fingers curled into a fist as her mind replayed another memory—one she had tried so hard to forget over the past few months.

The moment she had told him she was pregnant. The way he had tossed the divorce papers in her face, his expression cold and unreadable. “Sign them, Emma.”

She had been bleeding. She had been crying, begging him to take her to the hospital. Yet he had stood there, unmoved, telling her to sign the paper before he could take her to the hospital.

She had thought she had forgotten all that pain but now, standing at the place it happened, something seemed to stir inside of her. She’d wanted to scream and yell, probably cuss at Jake and tell him she had gone into a strong woman that would never beg him the way she did that day but then, he was gone now and he had died saving her.

A lump formed in her throat, and a tear slid down her cheek. The pain she had held onto for so long suddenly felt like a hollow weight in her chest.

There was no more Jake to direct her anger at, no more Jake to blame. The fight between them had ended in the cruelest way possible—one where she was left alone with nothing but memories, unanswered questions, and pain. Though he had apologized to her before he was taken into the ICU, she hadn’t given him any answer. Now, she couldn’t get the closure she needed.

Margaret let out a soft sob, breaking Emma’s thoughts. She moved toward Jake’s desk, running her fingers over the wooden surface, her body trembling.

“He was my little boy,” she murmured. “No matter what he did… he was still my Jake and I was going to love him regardless,” she cried while Claire held her close, trying to comfort her.

Alex watched Emma closely, noticing the way her hands trembled at her sides, her shoulders stiff with the weight of memories pressing down on her. He could see the turmoil in her eyes, the silent war raging inside her as she stood in the very home where she had once lived as Jake’s wife.

His heart ached for her. He knew this place wasn’t just another apartment for Emma—it was a place filled with moments, both good and agonizingly painful. And now, being here, those ghosts were clawing at her, refusing to let her go.

He could see the pain in her eyes and how she seemed to be trying to fight off her tears not wanting any of them to see her so weak.

Without a second thought, Alex stepped toward her. He didn’t say anything at first. He just pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly as if he could shield her from the past trying to consume her. Emma didn’t resist. Instead, she gripped his shirt, her body trembling against his.

“It’s okay,” he murmured, his voice gentle yet firm. “Baby, he tried to redeem himself. You saw that. He gave his life to protect you. Though I’m not happy he hurt you the way he did, I think what he did outweighs every harm he caused you, babe.”

Her breath hitched, a fresh wave of emotions rushing through her and before she knew it, a tear dropped from her eyes.

“I know the past still haunts you,” Alex continued, pulling back slightly so he could look into her tear-filled eyes. “But don’t let it consume you. You forgave him, remember? You don’t have to carry this weight anymore.”

Emma swallowed hard, staring at him, searching for something—maybe reassurance, maybe an anchor. And she found it in his eyes, in the warmth of his embrace.

She had forgiven Jake. She had chosen to move forward and at some point had even urged Alex to do the same. But why did it still hurt so much?

Perhaps it hurt her because she had wanted Jake to live with the idea of knowing she was happy without him? Or was it because she had wanted him to always see her and remember what he lost?

How was she supposed to get closure now?

Margaret’s fingers hovered over Jake’s laptop keyboard, her touch hesitant yet desperate. She knew how much time Jake usually spent here, how often he had buried himself in work, how this very laptop had been a constant companion to him. She just wanted to feel close to him one more time.

The screen flickered to life, casting a soft glow in the dimly lit room. She let out a shaky breath, staring at the familiar desktop. But as she moved the cursor absentmindedly, a video file suddenly opened.

At first, it was just background noise—static, a faint rustle. No one paid much attention until a voice filled the room.

It was Jake’s voice and immediately everyone froze.

Margaret’s breath caught in her throat, her hand instinctively flying to her chest. Emma’s stomach twisted painfully, her pulse racing while Alex and Claire exchanged tense looks, since they knew what the video could do to Margaret.

Margaret sniffled, preparing herself to feel her son’s presence one more time by hearing his voice since she thought it was an old video. Probably some forgotten recording.

But then, Jake’s voice spoke again, and this time, the words shattered the air like glass.

“I hope this eventually gets to you, Em.”

Hearing that, Emma’s breath hitched as heart skipped several beats.

Her name. He had said her name. When had he made that video?

The weight of his voice, the rawness in his tone—it wasn’t just any recording. It was meant for her.

A chill ran down her spine as she stepped forward, her gaze locked onto the screen. The others followed, their eyes widening with disbelief.

Margaret’s fingers trembled and her eyes teared up again as she turned the laptop toward them.

The room was eerily silent as Jake’s face filled the laptop screen. His features looked worn, tired—older than his years. His usual arrogance was gone, replaced with something raw. Something painful.

Emma felt her chest tighten. She had spent so much time holding onto her resentment, but now, seeing him like this, she wasn’t sure she was ready for whatever he was about to say.

When had he even made the video and why did he start it with such sentence?

Jake inhaled deeply before letting out a slow, shaky breath. Then, his voice came through again, a little rough, but steady.

“I don’t even know where to begin. But if you’re watching this, if you ever see this, it means I’ve been long gone, forgotten even. So… I’m sorry. For everything.”

A lump formed in Emma’s throat as she realized he had made the video not quite long and it was truly for her.

But what did he mean by ‘long gone?’

Did he know he was going to die? This didn’t make sense. She thought as she focused her attention to the screen once again.