Jonas tried, but his trip to the monastery opened his eyes. He loved Cecile; he clung to the woman and held her hostage with possessive love.

In the end, he lost her to death, and now he loved Sierra, he wished her happiness. Jonas preferred to lose her to life and see her with someone else than imposing on the woman something she didn't want.

As Karma said, Jonas fulfilled his mission. It was time to go, May was around the corner but did Jonas need to leave at that exact time?

The Gauthiers were quiet for the moment, and if anything happened, the lawyers had instruction to contact him, not Sierra. She was safe, and so was Leone. All was well, and Jonas no longer had a reason to stay. Sierra had Vincent, and she made her choice clear. Jonas still could not digest finding Vincent in Sierra's kitchen upon his return from Normandy.

Patience.

Jonas meditated; he tried to keep negative thoughts away and made abstraction of his desires. Instead of repressing his inner conflicts, he accepted their existence and hoped time would do its duty.

Sierra left for work as usual and told Jonas she would pick up Leone. As soon as he dropped Leone off at daycare, he returned to the apartment to finish packing. He had already cleared everything in the basement. Jonas proceeded to unplugging his computer material and packing the rest. Once done, he went to the basement and brought up Sierra's chair, which he left in Leone's room.

The man hated farewells, and he did not want Sierra to reunite her brother, friends, and a few other people for a last-minute get-together. Neither did he wish to watch Vincent's live proposal to Sierra. The thought alone was the death of him.

At 1 PM, the same lorry that brought Jonas from Sweden arrived. The men proceeded to get Jonas's belongings out of the apartment. Strangely enough, it took less time to load the vehicle than to unload it. An hour later, Jonas was ready to leave.

Jacob arrived just in time to see the man off, "Jonas."

"Jacob, you made it," Jonas said with a smile. Though he hated goodbyes, he was glad to see Jacob took his time to see him.

Used to seeing Jonas in his confessional booth, the man's call came as a shock to Sierra's brother. It was a first but also a last as Jonas announced his departure.

Of all the scenarios, this one was the least probable for Jacob, who knew how much Jonas loved Sierra and his son. All seemed surreal. It was unthinkable, even for Jacob, who remained neutral in all circumstances.

The brother overtook the man of God as he tried to sway Jonas's resolve, "Jonas, are you sure about this? I mean, you still haven't expressed your feelings to my sister, perhaps."

"Jacob, I'm good. I came here for a reason. I did what I had to do. Now I have to go."

"But you love her."

Jonas handed the last bag of clay to the lorry driver, who staked it with the rest at the back of the truck. He then returned his focus to Jacob, "yes, I do, and that's why I'm leaving."

Jacob shook his head and followed Jonas to the front of the lorry, "Jonas, I'm sorry, but I don't understand. No, seriously, Sierra will be devastated, and Leone. This departure is too abrupt. You can't just leave them like this. Why flee?"

Jonas opened the door to the passenger seat and turned to face Jacob, "I'm not fleeing. I'm ready to face any reality or trial with your sister. I'm ready to go all the way, but Sierra doesn't want me. She doesn't see me as a man. I'm just Leone's father for her and not a potential match. I'm sorry, Jacob, staying and going through the whole farewell process will be too much for me."

Jacob knew what he asked was selfish. Jonas had been through a lot. Apart from his unrequited slash requited slash unrequited love situation with Sierra, he had to put up with the intruding Vincent.

How much could the man take?

Still, Jacob couldn't prevent himself from thinking of Sierra. He was sure his sister would be more affected than what they all estimated.

"beredd?" Asked the driver.

"Yes, I'm ready. Sorry Jacob, thank you for everything you did for me. You were my first friend here. If it wasn't for you, I don't know if I would have ever broken the ice with your sister."

"It's nothing Jonas, am here if you need me. You can call anytime."

Jonas slipped his hand in his jean pocket and took out two visit cards, "here's my card, and this one is my lawyer's, Mr. Alstrøm. If anything happens, don't hesitate to contact him or me. Oh, here are Sierra's keys." Jonas stretched his hand. Jacob shook it and grasped him in a hug, "take care, Jonas."

"You too, Jacob."

Jonas climbed in the lorry, and Jacob watched until the truck disappeared.

Jacob knew there was no use informing Sierra, who at that moment analyzed gross sales.

The woman's day went on as usual. After work, she picked up Leone as planned and hurried home. Sierra felt guilty. Since Jonas's return from Normandy, Sierra attempted to make amends for her behavior during the last few weeks. There was no change in the man's attitude, but his expression troubled Sierra.

Every time Sierra looked at Jonas's eyes, she read profound sadness. Jonas's stare haunted her, and that day, more than ever, the man's eyes didn't leave her. He was going soon, and somehow the woman found herself wanting to be with him.

Sierra posed her keys on the tray at the entrance and took Leone out of his buggy. Unlike Jonas, Sierra could no longer carry the almost one-year-old boy. She hung her trench and advanced in the corridor. Something was off in the room. It took Sierra a few seconds to realize it was the space itself that changed.

The living room was bigger because something was missing. Sierra's blood began to rush, "Jonas."

"Dona."

"Jonas."

"Dona," Leone repeated as he too called after his father.

Sierra grabbed her phone, "hello, Jacob, something is wrong. I think someone burgled me. All of Jonas's high-tech material is missing."

"No, Sierra. You haven't been robbed, Jonas is ㅡ."

Sierra hung up and let her phone drop to the floor.

Denial, Sierra majored in the discipline. She refused to hear what Jacob planned to announce.

Jonas was somewhere, suddenly it became clear.

With Leone in her arms, she left the apartment and went down to the basement. The woman didn't even realize she was barefoot until she felt the cold gravel. She rushed to her spot. There was nothing there; everything seemed to have vanished into thin air. The kick pedal, Jonas's clay pots, everything was gone.

At this stage, she heaved. Sierra returned to her apartment and began to check the rooms only to stop in front of Leone's, where a new piece of furniture sat in the corner. Sierra approached; the rocking chair was beautiful and far better than the one she was willing to buy. What captured her intention was the inscription engraved on the rocking chair's head, Sierra&Leone. Her eyes shifted to the seat where a large white envelop laid with a yellow post-it that Sierra read.

All you need to do is sign.

Sierra opened the envelope and took out the document. Everything was a blur; the woman let herself fall to the floor.

Leone began to pat her while Sierra sat hopelessly.

Jacob arrived shortly after, and he found his sister at the same spot in Leone's room, "Sierra?"

Sierra looked up, "Jacob, I don't understand. I have these adoption papers, and the house is empty, andㅡ."

Jacob knelt next to his sister, "I'm sorry Sierra Jonas is gone."

"Gone? Gone where?"

"Sierra, he's gone back to Sweden."

"No, Jacob, he can't. We're not even in May," the woman said naively, forgetting it was just an approximative detail.

"Sierra, he's gone."

Loss.

Sierra never knew how to handle it. Her father, Cecile, the woman, lost it at their deaths. Jonas was still alive, but the impact was just as prominent as guilt and regret mingled with the emotion. Also, the feeling she pushed back shook the lock of its prison and pleaded to break free. Even then, Sierra disagreed with her feelings.

"NO," she yelled and tapped on the floor next to her like a spoilt child.

Tears, Sierra thought she was all cried out, but she discovered she still had resources as she wallowed her heart out in her brother's arms. In the meantime, Leone looked about the bedroom, hoping for his father to pop out.

"Dona," the boy yelled one more time.

What was he doing?

Where was he?

The little boy already prepared to scold the man who made his mother cry.

Hi,

Please don't kill me.

Those who follow me know I'm currently publishing multiple stories. There are stories where I have all the drafts and others that I draft daily since I'm in lockdown. I should be going back to work from May, so my updating pace might slow down a little.

I just wanted to keep you all informed.

Also, I wished to express my gratitude and thank you for reading this story which I almost gave up writing.

I hope you'll carry on this journey with our protagonists.

Take care