THE ROAD TO YOUR HEART (Completed) ✔

34: An Unwanted Guest

"What in the world?" Jasmine yelled as she came up behind Jacqueline and saw that her runaway husband and the father of her children, had finally returned.

"What are you doing here and how did you find this place?" Jacqueline calmly asked.

"I see ya'll got a very nice place now." Jackson smiled. "My little princess finally grew up and made a good life for herself."

"You haven't answered my question!" Jacqueline said sternly. Her voice was calm but her eyes were on fire and her heart was racing.

Even though she felt herself ticking like time bomb, she wondered how she'd managed to keep her cool this long, while standing face to face with the person she hated more than the devil.

Her eyes sized him from up till down. He looked terrible! His hair was grey and unkempt. His beard was long and scruffy looking. He had lost a lot of weight since the time she last saw him. His denim jeans and jacket looked like they hadn't been washed in ages and his shoes looked like he had walked the world with them.

"Aren't you at least gonna invite your father in after all these years?"

"I do not have a father! If you're looking for someone, you better search elsewhere because whoever you're looking for isn't here! Goodbye!"

"Wait! Come on Jacqueline. Don't be so hostile towards me. I'm still your father. Man, you guys look great! Look at you Jasmine... It's like you aged backwards. I honestly didn't even think you'd still be alive till now but here you are all hale and hearty." He chuckled.

"Thank you. As you can see, I'm alive and perfectly well all thanks to my angel, Jacqueline. I wish I could say the same for you though. You look like something a cat wouldn't even drag in."

"My darling... I've been lost without you. Tragedy became my middle name the second I abandoned you. I have learnt my lesson and I'm here to apologize and ask if you would take me back."

Upon hearing this, Jasmine burst out laughing.

"Oh Jonah, I see you haven't changed a bit. Well I'm sorry but I believe deep in your heart, you already know the answer to that question. Now if you'd please excuse me!" Jasmine turned her back and went back inside.

"Jasmine please." He cried out and tried to sneak a peek inside.

"We've entertained you enough. Now get out!"

"No please, have a little mercy on me. I made a mistake and I've come to realize just how foolish I was." He begged.

"You realized you made a mistake or you just ran out of money? Whuch kne is it really?" Jacqueline smirked.

"I promise you it has nothing to do with money. I just want my family back." He cried.

"Oh, you want your family back? What if your betrayal and abandonment caused us our lives? Would there have been a family to come back to?" She asked sternly.

"No there, wouldn't have been one. But I knew you had it in you Jacqueline. You are just like me your father."

"Never in 1 million years will I ever be like you. I am nothing like you! I will never ever turn my back on my family the way you turned your back on us. You should be so ashamed to call yourself someone's father."

"You are hurting me with your words."

"There's nothing I'll say now that can measure up to the hurt and pain you caused us years ago. No one here wants you around here anymore. You were of no use to us then and you certainly wouldn't be of any now. We have learned to live like you never existed so please go back to whatever hole you crawled out from and remain there."

"Jacqueline please... Have some compassion on an old man." He begged.

"If I ever see you around this neighbourhood again, I'm going to call the cops and have you arrested. Got it?"

"Please don't do this my little princess, please."

Jacqueline paid deaf ears to his cries and slammed the door on his face.

"Ugh! I can't believe that man had the nerve to show his face around here after all these years. No shame!" She shook her head.

"He's still outside." Nolan said, standing by the side of the window where he'd been peeking out the whole time.

"I think I had better call the cops." She replied as she reached for her phone.

"No Baby, no! Don't worry, he'll leave soon." Jasmine said. "After all these years, let's give him a break. Who knows what he's been through."

"And we would have been through worse thanks to him, if God wasn't on our side. He deserves whatever he's getting!" She frowned.

"Jacqueline..." Her mom sat by her side and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Baby, I know exactly how you feel. But just remember that everything in life happens for a reason. If he hadn't walked out on us, you probably wouldn't have discovered how much potential you have in you."

"You're right Mom. All the same, I don't want to see him around here." She sighed.

"I'm sure he'll be gone soon. I'll go to the kitchen and make you guys a chocolate cake. I know it's you and Nolan's favourite."

"Yes, that'll be great Mom." Nolan said feeling excited.

Jasmine laughed and went tk the kitchen.

"Nolan, are you okay?" Jacqueline asked calmly.

"Yes, I am!"

"How do you feel about seeing Dad again?"

"Indifferent! I never felt like I had a father even when he was around. So I don't really care about his return." He shrugged.

"I'm so sorry things turned out the way it did while he was still in our lives. I want to you to know that Mom and I are so proud of the man you've become. I strongly believe that you'll not only be a wonderful husband to a lucky lady out there, but that you'll also be the best father any kid would wish to have."

"Aw, thanks Sis! You're the best." He smiled and hugged her.

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