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All Chapters of Decisions I made : Chapter 131 - Chapter 140

337 Chapters

The Truth Comes Out

For several seconds, no one spoke.The only sound was the wind moving through the oak trees in Frank and Pamela's front yard.Ron looked older than Lela remembered.His neatly pressed shirts were gone, replaced by a wrinkled polo and jeans. His eyes were bloodshot, and there was a heaviness in his face that hadn't been there just a week ago.Lela folded her arms across her chest."You said you owed me an explanation.""I do.""Then explain."Ron glanced at Jack before looking back at Lela."I'd rather speak to you alone."Jack immediately started to step back.Before he could, Lela reached for his hand."No."Both men looked at her."Anything you have to say can be said in front of Jack."Jack looked at her, surprised by the certainty in her voice.She squeezed his hand."I'm done keeping things from him."Ron nodded slowly."I understand."He took a deep breath."The first thing I need to say is..."He looked directly into Lela's eyes."I'm sorry."She didn't respond."I should've an

Homecoming

Lela and Jack remained in the driveway for several minutes after Ron's car disappeared around the corner.Neither of them felt the need to speak.The folder in Lela's arms suddenly felt lighter than it had moments before.Not because she'd gotten her job back.She hadn't.But because someone had finally answered the questions that had been keeping her awake at night.Jack looked down at her."How are you feeling?"She let out a long breath."Relieved.""Really?"She nodded."I was so convinced I'd done something wrong.""I kept replaying every conversation I'd had over the last year.""Every project.""Every mistake.""I thought maybe I'd missed something."Jack gently brushed a tear from her cheek."You heard him.""I know.""You didn't fail.""They failed you."She smiled softly."I'm starting to believe that."He leaned down and kissed her forehead."Good."They spent the rest of the afternoon doing something Lela hadn't expected.Absolutely nothing.Jack ordered lunch from the lit

Welcome Home

Sunday morning arrived with a gentle rain.The kind that tapped softly against the windows without ever becoming a storm.Lela woke before Jack.She lay quietly for a few minutes, listening to the steady rhythm of the rain.It had been one week.Just one week.Seven days earlier they had been wandering through the gardens at Hershey.Jack had proposed.She had told him "not yet."Now, somehow, they had survived one of the hardest weeks either of them could remember.She rolled over.Jack was still asleep, one arm tucked beneath his head.For the first time in days, he looked peaceful.She smiled."I love you," she whispered quietly.His eyes opened."I was wondering how long you'd stare at me."She laughed."I thought you were asleep.""I was."He smiled."Until someone started whispering."She buried her face in the pillow."You weren't supposed to hear that.""I'm glad I did."By midmorning, the rain had stopped.The two of them spent the morning getting Frank and Pamela's house rea

Misunderstood

The following week settled into a new routine.Lela spent her mornings updating her résumé and making a list of companies she wanted to contact.Jack threw himself back into work.At first, things seemed to be getting back to normal.Then everything at Jack's office started falling apart.Monday morning.Jack walked into the office to find half the conference room already full.The owner stood at the front.No smile.No small talk."Our largest client is terminating their contract."The room fell silent.It was nearly thirty percent of their annual revenue.By lunchtime, people were whispering in the hallways.Budgets were frozen.Projects were being reassigned.Managers were expected to absorb additional responsibilities.Jack's phone barely stopped ringing.He worked through lunch.Skipped dinner.Stayed late.When he finally got home that night, he barely had enough energy to shower before falling asleep on the couch.Tuesday wasn't much better.Neither was Wednesday.Lela noticed

The Silence Between Them

Sunday morning was painfully quiet.Lela woke up three different times during the night, each time instinctively reaching for her phone.Nothing.No text.No missed call.No "I'm sorry."She knew Jack was stubborn.She also knew he was hurting.Unfortunately...So was she.She finally climbed out of bed around eight and walked downstairs.Pamela was already making breakfast.She looked up with a warm smile that faded the moment she saw Lela's face."You didn't sleep."Lela forced a small smile."I slept."Pamela raised an eyebrow."You rested.""I don't think you actually slept."Lela sat at the kitchen island and wrapped both hands around a mug of coffee."I don't even know why we're fighting."Pamela placed a plate of toast in front of her."Sometimes people aren't fighting about one thing.""What do you mean?""They're fighting about everything they've been carrying."Lela stared into her coffee."I know he's under a lot of pressure.""But I feel like I'm losing him."Pamela reache

The Call

Jack stared at his phone.Lela CallingFor one brief second, he wondered if he was imagining it.He answered before the second ring."Hello?"There was silence.Then a soft voice."Hi."He closed his eyes."Hi."Neither of them spoke.The silence wasn't awkward.It was simply two people trying to figure out how to begin again.Finally Jack laughed quietly."I was just about to call you."Lela smiled despite herself."I know.""You know?""I had this strange feeling."He chuckled."I've been standing in my driveway for five minutes trying to work up the courage.""I've been sitting on my bed for twenty."That earned the first genuine laugh either of them had shared in days.Jack leaned against his truck."I missed you."Lela's eyes immediately filled with tears."I missed you too."Another pause.Jack spoke first."I'm sorry.""No..."She interrupted gently."Let me say something first."He nodded even though she couldn't see him."Okay.""I've spent the last two days thinking about Sa

A New Opportunity

The next morning, Lela woke before her alarm.For the first time in over a week, she didn't feel the knot in her stomach that had greeted her every morning since opening the termination letter.Instead, she felt... hopeful.Not because she suddenly had all the answers.She didn't.But because she knew she wasn't facing the unknown alone.She smiled as she looked at the silver compass necklace resting on her nightstand.Her father's words echoed in her mind."Whenever you feel lost... remember you'll always find your way home."She slipped the necklace around her neck before heading downstairs.The smell of coffee greeted her in the kitchen.Frank was already sitting at the table reading the newspaper while Pamela packed away leftovers from the night before.Frank lowered the paper."Morning, kiddo.""Morning."Pamela immediately noticed the necklace."You put it on."Lela smiled."I think it's going to stay there."Frank grinned proudly."It looks better on you than it did in the disp

The Interview

Lela barely slept.Not because she was worried.Because she was excited.It had been a long time since she'd felt excited about anything involving work.At 5:48 a.m., she opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling.Her interview wasn't until ten.There was absolutely no reason to be awake.Yet here she was.She reached over to the nightstand and picked up the folded note Jack had given her the day before.She read it for what was probably the tenth time.Be yourself.Don't apologize for your experience.Remember they're interviewing you because they already liked what they saw.She smiled."Easy for you to say."By seven-thirty she was downstairs dressed in a navy pantsuit Pamela had convinced her to buy months earlier.Her hair was neatly styled.Her makeup was simple.The silver compass necklace rested just above the collar of her blouse.Pamela walked into the kitchen carrying a cup of coffee.She stopped."Oh...""What?""You look beautiful."Lela laughed."I'm going to an intervie

The Call That Changed Everything

Thursday felt longer than any day Lela could remember.She had been told she would hear something "by tomorrow afternoon."Unfortunately, afternoon seemed impossibly far away.By 7:00 a.m., she had already checked her phone four times to make sure it wasn't accidentally on silent.It wasn't.By 8:30, she'd reorganized her résumé folder.Again.By 9:15, she'd watered every flower around the house, even though Pamela had watered them the evening before.At 9:40, Frank looked out the kitchen window and chuckled."Lela."She looked up from trimming a rose bush that didn't need trimming."Yeah?""You've been outside fifteen times this morning.""I have not."Frank looked at Pamela."She's keeping count now."Pamela smiled over the rim of her coffee cup."She's nervous.""I'm not nervous."Frank raised an eyebrow."You just pruned the same bush twice."Lela looked down at the rose bush."I did?""You sure did."She sighed dramatically and walked back toward the porch."Okay...""Maybe I'm a

Not Yet... Again

Summer slowly gave way to the first hints of autumn.Life settled into something wonderfully ordinary.Lela loved her new job.Every morning she walked into an office where people smiled when they saw her.Her ideas were welcomed.Her experience was valued.Instead of dreading Mondays...She actually looked forward to them.Jack loved seeing that change in her.He'd catch her humming while making dinner.Or smiling at her laptop while planning a new community event.Sometimes she'd stop in the middle of telling him about her day and say,"I still can't believe I get paid to do this."Jack would simply smile."I can."Things, however, weren't improving at his office.If anything...They were getting worse.Another client left.Two longtime employees resigned.The owner had become increasingly demanding.Every meeting seemed to end with another impossible deadline.One afternoon, John walked into Jack's office carrying two coffees."You look terrible."Jack rubbed his eyes."I've slept.

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