Man Returns to His Late Parents’ Abandoned Home and Finds Dishes That Had Been Recently Washed — Story of the Day

Jacob cut ties with his parents after they fought over his future. Years later, he heard they died in a car accident. When he went to visit their abandoned home, he noticed it was suspiciously clean, and there were recently washed dishes in the sink, so he stayed back to catch whoever was sneaking into the house.

As Jacob stood outside his childhood home, he couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of regret. Maybe his relationship with his parents could’ve been fixed at some point. It was too late now, though.

A month ago, one of his co-workers at the Hartford Police Department got word of a severe car accident with two casualties. His friend heard the victims’ last name, Williams, and knew immediately that they were his parents.

The news was a big shock to the 23-year-old. He had not spoken to his parents in five years when he left their house abruptly, leaving only a note to say goodbye. The only material possession he took was the clothes on his back and the necklace his mother gave him years ago.

Jacob’s parents belonged to the Hartford, Connecticut high society. His father, Peter, was a prominent hedge fund founder, and his mother, Juliette, was the chair of several charities and one of the most admired women in the area. Naturally, they wanted Jacob to follow his father’s footsteps into the financial world.

But their son had different dreams. Jacob wanted to become a policeman. He wanted to be a regular person and escape from the obligations and the pressure his parents placed on him. When they heard of his plans, they were incensed, mainly because he had been accepted into Yale University, his father’s alma mater.

They fought for many days until Jacob decided to leave. While he was never ready to cut ties with them, they stopped calling him and didn’t reach out. He sent them an invitation to his police academy graduation a year ago, but they never received it. That was how he learned that Peter and Juliette were no longer living at his childhood home. They had spent a year abroad and had only been back a few days when they got into that accident.

They were gone, and as Jacob stood at their house, he sighed deeply at the overgrown garden and the boarded-up windows. He had not been able to visit right after the funeral. It took a few weeks before he mustered the courage to come.

He was surprised to see its current condition and the sign on the door that read: Do Not Enter. But he still had his old key, and he...