Chapter 6: The Video Sean Left Behind

Three weeks had passed since Sean's death.

The Goodman family had changed completely.

Felix was awaiting trial.

My mother had been suspended from her position as hospital director.

My father rarely left the house.

But the questions surrounding my death still weren't over.

One evening, the investigator returned to the Goodman residence.

He carried a small evidence box.

"Mr. and Mrs. Goodman," he said.

"We found something during the digital investigation."

My mother looked up from the sofa.

"What is it?"

"A video file."

"It was stored on Sean's personal laptop."

My mother's fingers began to tremble.

"A video?"

"Yes."

"It was encrypted and scheduled to unlock automatically after a certain date."

My father stared at the laptop.

"Play it."

The investigator connected the computer to the television.

The screen went black.

Then my face appeared.

I was sitting at my desk.

Alive.

Smiling faintly.

My mother immediately covered her mouth.

"Hi, Mom," the recording began.

"If you're watching this... something probably happened to me."

My mother's eyes filled with tears.

"I don't know when you'll see this."

"Maybe years from now."

"Maybe tomorrow."

"Maybe after I've already left home."

I paused.

Then I smiled sadly.

"I've been thinking about making this video for a long time."

"Not because I expect anything bad to happen."

"But because sometimes I feel like nobody really knows me."

My father lowered his head.

"I know you love Felix."

"I've never blamed him for that."

"He's your son too."

"But sometimes... I wish you loved me a little more."

My mother's tears began falling.

I continued.

"I don't need expensive things."

"I don't need to be the favorite."

"I just want to know that if something happens to me, someone will care."

The room became completely silent.

My soul stood beside them.

I had never said those words aloud.

But I had felt them every day.

Then the recording changed.

"There's something else."

"Felix has been acting strangely lately."

My father's expression tightened.

"I've noticed money disappearing from Dad's business account."

"At first, I thought it was an accounting mistake."

"But the transfers seem connected to a private account Felix controls."

My mother stared at the screen in shock.

"I don't know exactly what he's doing."

"And I don't want to accuse my own brother without proof."

"But if something happens to me..."

"Please investigate."

I looked directly into the camera.

"And Mom..."

"Please don't blame yourself for everything."

My mother's breathing stopped.

"I know we've never been close."

"But you're still my mother."

"I used to hope that someday we'd understand each other."

"Maybe we will."

I paused for a long moment.

"I love you."

The recording ended.

The screen went black.

No one spoke.

My father slowly sat down.

My mother stared at the blank screen as if she could somehow make me return.

"He loved me," she whispered.

"Even after everything..."

The investigator remained silent.

"There is more," he said.

He opened another file.

A series of financial records appeared on the screen.

"We traced the transfers Sean mentioned."

"The money went through several accounts before reaching an offshore company."

My father leaned forward.

"Who owned it?"

"Felix's former business associate."

"And the account was opened only weeks before the accident."

My mother's face became pale.

"He was stealing from the company."

"Yes."

"And Sean discovered it."

"Exactly."

My father clenched his fists.

"That's why Felix needed him out of the way."

The investigator nodded.

"We believe so."

My mother's head dropped.

"I protected him."

"I protected the wrong son."

My father looked at her.

"We both did."

She shook her head.

"No."

"I was worse."

"I was the hospital director."

"I had the authority to save Sean."

"And I chose not to."

Her voice broke completely.

"I heard him begging."

"I knew he was injured."

"And I still walked away."

The investigator looked down.

"The medical board will review your actions."

"You may face criminal charges depending on their findings."

My mother nodded without resistance.

"I deserve it."

The next day, Sean's video was copied to the police evidence file.

It became one of the strongest pieces of evidence against Felix.

The public reaction was immediate.

People watched the recording and heard Sean's final hopes.

He hadn't wanted revenge.

He hadn't wanted his parents punished.

He had only wanted to be loved.

Thousands of strangers expressed their condolences.

Some visited the hospital where he died and left flowers.

"He deserved better," became the most repeated sentence online.

But the Goodman family didn't need strangers to tell them that.

They already knew.

That evening, my father entered my bedroom again.

He placed a small bouquet beside my photograph.

"You were always the better son," he whispered.

"I just didn't have the courage to admit it."

My mother stood in the doorway.

She couldn't move.

My father looked at her.

"Come in."

She shook her head.

"I don't deserve to."

"He would have wanted you to."

She finally stepped inside.

Her eyes fell on my photograph.

She walked toward it slowly.

Then she sank to her knees.

"Sean..."

"I'm sorry."

"I should have chosen you."

"I should have protected you."

"I should have believed you."

She pressed her forehead against the floor.

"Please forgive me."

My soul stood beside her.

For the first time...

I felt no anger.

Only sadness.

She was finally saying the words I had waited years to hear.

But she had waited until I was gone.

And some regrets arrive so late...

That forgiveness can never change the ending.