After everyone else had left, Naomi Shaw said to Mrs. Somrs and Julian Donovan, "I want to go see my father first!"
Mrs. Somrs’s eyes reddened. "Yes, of course. It’s ti to go see him. Sigh..."
Julian Donovan said nothing, simply getting into the car to act as the driver. Mrs. Somrs and Naomi Shaw each led one of the children into the car. After the long journey and flight from their ho country, Joy was already exhausted and had fallen fast asleep in her mother’s arms. Dylan, however, had more stamina; knowing they were going to see his grandpa, he was trying his best to stay awake.
When they arrived at the cetery, Naomi Shaw woke Joy up. The little girl, still groggy with sleep, was reluctant but obediently let Julian Donovan carry her out of the car. Naomi knelt before Ian Shaw’s grave, her hand stroking his kind smile on the headstone as tears stread down her face. "Dad, I’m so sorry. Your daughter is here to see you. I’ve been so unfilial..."
"Grandpa, Dylan is here to see you too!"
Dylan, understanding who Ian Shaw was, spoke maturely from the side. Naomi Shaw pulled Joy closer and said to her father’s grave through her tears, "Dad, this is Joy, my daughter. See? I have a son and a daughter now, my life is complete. You don’t have to worry about anymore. Co on, Joy, say hi to Grandpa."
Joy looked timidly at the kind old man on the headstone, snuggling into her mother’s arms and whispering, "Grandpa..."
Julian Donovan also stepped forward and bowed deeply. "Godfather, I’m sorry."
Mrs. Somrs ca forward and helped Naomi Shaw, who was a sobbing ss, to her feet. "Alright, Naomi, don’t keep kneeling. Get up now."
Naomi Shaw wiped the tears from her face, stood up, and said to Mrs. Somrs, "Mrs. Somrs, could you take Dylan and Joy back to the car first? I’d like to stay with my father alone for a little longer."
Mrs. Somrs nodded and left with the two children. Naomi then looked at Julian Donovan, her eyes still red. "You should go, too."
He opened his mouth as if to say sothing, but stopped. In the end, he only said, "I’ll stay with you."
She shook her head, refusing. "You really don’t have to. I want to be alone with my father..."
She looked so fragile right now, it was deeply worrying. Not only were her eyes red and swollen from crying, but she also seed emotionally drained. But since she insisted, he could only turn and walk away.
After Julian Donovan left, Naomi Shaw sat down on the ground in front of Ian Shaw’s headstone. She drew her knees to her chest, rested her chin on them, and gazed at her father’s kind face. Then she began to talk about her life over the past three years. She spoke without any real order, saying whatever ca to mind, just like when she was a little girl. Whenever sothing was bothering her, she would sit on the floor just like this and pour her heart out to him. He would always gently guide her, preventing her from getting stuck on obsessive thoughts. Now, there was no one left to offer her that guidance.
She sat there, quietly asking Ian Shaw, "Dad, they all say I should give him a chance. What should I do?"
Even though she knew Ian Shaw couldn’t answer, she asked anyway. It seed that just voicing her thoughts made her feel a little better.
After a long mont, she shook her head and gave a small smile. "Dad, I know what you’d say even if you don’t answer. If you were still here, you would definitely tell to give him a chance. After all, you helped marry him even when he treated so poorly back then, let alone now that he’s had a change of heart."
She glanced down at the ring on her finger and whispered, "When I get back, I’ll return the ring to Sean Donovan... and give him another chance."
Julian Donovan hadn’t gone far. He stood a short distance away, quietly watching her. He saw her sitting there, sotis smiling, sotis crying as she spoke to Ian Shaw. Although he couldn’t hear what she was saying, he could tell from her expressions that it had to be about him.
After a while, he saw her press a hand to the ground as if to stand up, and he hurried over. anwhile, Naomi Shaw, who had been sitting on the ground for a long ti, was feeling the effects. The prolonged sitting had restricted her circulation, and that, combined with her intense crying spell, had left her light-headed from a lack of oxygen. As she stood, the world spun around her. Thankfully, a pair of strong arms caught her just in ti.
Julian Donovan simply scooped her up into his arms and strode toward the cetery exit. Her body felt as light as a feather. Once the dizziness in Naomi Shaw’s head faded, she said, embarrassed, "You can put down. I can walk by myself."
"Stop trying to be strong, Naomi Shaw. Even if you don’t plan on taking back, there’s no sha in depending on at a ti like this."
He tossed the words at her irritably, and she fell silent.
Reviews
All reviews (0)