Ribbons Unbound: My Fiancé's Lingering Regret novel Chapter 45

I hadn't yet written about what happened afterward, so he didn't know.

I replied coldly,

"He's not okay.

"He died three years ago."

The phone slipped from Jackson's hands, crashing to the floor.

It took a moment for the screen to shake and return to life.

He was almost in a state of collapse.

"He died??

"Why didn't I know?

"Why didn't you tell me??!"

"How do you think I feel?" I retorted.

"After all these years, has anyone in your family ever cared about him?"

Jackson trembled violently, too guilty to meet my gaze.

The first time I met Jackson's parents, I tentatively asked if he had any siblings.

They dismissed it with a wave, saying, "No."

Jackson himself said, "There used to be one, but you can just consider him dead."

When I asked what he meant, he suddenly slammed a bowl, warning me,

"This family doesn't speak of him."

"We're begging you, please make him come back! We've already lost one son, we can't lose another!"

I couldn't take it anymore. I threw my phone down.

"Get out!" I shouted. "You don't deserve to be parents!"

Feeling utterly miserable, I aimlessly wandered back to that same forest. I found a large tree to sit under, watching the dappled sunlight on the ground, hugging my knees tightly.

Although Congo (Kinshasa) had only given me one chance, I could imagine how repressed he must have been in that household. The emergency contact Joseph listed in the Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) organization was originally his partner, but later, it became me. He never wanted his family to know about the hardships he was facing. Despite coming from such a broken family, he grew into such a kind, gentle, and selfless person.

Thinking about it, a wave of sorrow filled my heart.

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew through, and a hard object fell from the tree, hitting me on the forehead. I picked it up and found it was a dog tag. Many people working in war zones carry dog tags to be identified in case of an accident. I thought it must have been left behind by some soldier, but when I turned it over, I saw the name "Joseph" engraved on it.

My heart skipped a beat. I kept running my fingers over the name in disbelief. How could it be? Why would Joseph's dog tag be here?