Though her heart ached, she knew she needed to remain strong for her son Rob who was still very young and devastated by the loss of his dad.
Months passed by, and the grief only grew stronger, but then, Tom’s brother, Mike, became part of Julia’s and Rob’s life. Julia knew that Mike felt something for her since childhood, but she chose Tom and never looked back.
However, Mike’s presence in their life started feeling good so Julia made a decision to marry him and give her son a father figure.
Mike and Rob seemed to grew fond of one another. Well, at the end of the day, Mike was Rob’s uncle, and he was now also his mother’s husband.
Julia worked a lot, and whenever she would return home, Mike would tell her how he and Rob had a fantastic day going hiking, visiting the park, or doing other fun stuff together.
However, one day, upon arriving home, Julia stumbled upon unusual silence. She wondered if everything was okay when Mike approached her, hugged her, and told her Rob was gone leaving a letter.
In the letter, then 15-year-old Rob wrote:
Dear Mom and Dad,
I’ve decided to leave because I thought it would be better for everyone if I wasn’t around to bring up more bad memories and sorrow. Please understand that this isn’t because of anything you did, but a decision I felt I needed to make for the sake of peace at home. I promise to take care of myself and hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive me someday. Remember that I love you both, and this is the hardest choice I’ve ever had to make.
Take care,
Rob
Julia and Mike considered various options for starting anew, and then they purchased a colonial property two states away from their old home, which they left to Julia’s sister Schuyler. The thought of someone outside the family owning the house was something Julia couldn’t imagine. With the move, she gradually distanced herself from her side of the family. But one day, a familiar face appeared at her door.
It was her sister, Schuyler. She was visibly nervous and said the two needed to talk. At the time, Julia was ironing Mike’s shirts for his upcoming business trip, but Schuyler insisted she stopped whatever she was doing and urged her to check on Mike’s glasses case.
Julia opened the case, and found a phone. Her sister explained to her that it was a burner phone that Mike used to call Rob every month just to make sure he wasn’t returning home.
It turned out that Mike convinced Rob that his mom would be better off without him and sent him to live with an aunt from his father’s side.
Schuyler learned this when she received a wedding invitation addressed to Julia. Rob was getting married and despite Mike convinced him his mom didn’t want him to be part of her life, he still wanted her to be part of his wedding day.
Schuyler managed to contact him through the sender’s address on the wedding invitation and that’s when she learned that Mike contacted Rob without Julia being aware of it for over ten years.
“Look how much mom has to work to feed you,” Mike would tell Rob. “Wouldn’t it be nice if she spent that money on herself? Wouldn’t you like to release her of the burden that you are?” He suggested Rob leave the house and the poor kid complied, thinking his mom had no room for him in her life.
Julia used the burner phone to contact her son. She explained to him that she had no idea what Mike had done and that she never stopped looking for him.
Julia eventually divorced Mike, sold the property they purchased together, and bought a house next to Rob’s. She attended his wedding and is now a grandma of a beautiful boy.