They called me worthless, now the beg.

Chapter 2: The Truth on My Deathbed

By the time Ethan Carter reached home, his legs were trembling, and his chest hurt with every breath. He pushed the door open slowly, hoping to find his wife, Vanessa, waiting for him, but the sight that greeted him made him stop in the doorway.

Vanessa sat on the sofa, dressed neatly, with three documents arranged on the coffee table in front of her. Their three sons, Noah, Liam, and Mason, sat nearby, watching him without getting up to greet him.

Ethan closed the door behind him and leaned against it for support. The warmth inside did little to ease the chill in his body, and the pain in his chest had grown so severe that he needed a moment before he could speak.

"Vanessa, you said we needed to talk. What's going on?" he asked, looking from her face to the documents on the table.

She did not answer immediately. Instead, she picked up the papers and placed them in a neat pile, her expression cold and unreadable.

"Sit down, Ethan. There's something you need to know," Vanessa said.

He lowered himself into the nearest chair, careful not to make any sudden movement that might worsen the pain. His eyes remained fixed on her as she slid the documents across the table toward him.

"These are the paternity test results for Noah, Liam, and Mason," she explained. "You should read them yourself."

Ethan frowned and reached for the papers. His fingers trembled so badly that the pages rustled in his hands, but he forced himself to look at the first result.

The words blurred before his eyes, and he blinked several times, struggling to make sense of what he was reading. When the meaning finally sank in, his stomach tightened, and he quickly picked up the second report, hoping the first had been a mistake.

It wasn't.

He checked the third document, his heart pounding harder with every line. All three results showed the same thing: none of the boys was biologically related to him.

Ethan slowly lowered the papers, staring at Vanessa as though he no longer recognized the woman sitting across from him. For years, he had worked himself to exhaustion to provide for her and their children, sacrificing his own comfort to make sure they never went without anything.

Now, the documents in his hands told him that the three boys he had raised as his sons were not his by blood.

"What is this?" he asked, his voice barely audible. "Vanessa, tell me these results are wrong. Tell me someone made a mistake."

Vanessa leaned back against the sofa, showing no sign of concern at the distress on his face.

"They're not wrong," she replied. "None of them is your biological son."

Ethan's fingers tightened around the papers until their edges bent. He looked toward Noah, Liam, and Mason, waiting for one of them to speak, to question their mother's words, or to show even a little concern for the man who had raised them.

Instead, Noah looked away, Liam remained silent, and Mason shifted impatiently in his seat.

"Why?" Ethan asked, turning back to Vanessa. "I gave you everything I had. I worked hard to provide for this family, and I never questioned you. How could you do this to me?"

Vanessa let out a dismissive breath and folded her arms.

"You were always busy working, Ethan. You thought providing money was enough to make you a good husband, but you never understood what I wanted. I got tired of living that way, and I found other men who could give me what I needed."

Her answer left Ethan staring at her in disbelief. Even with his heart failing and his body growing weaker by the day, he had never imagined that the woman he loved would admit to betraying him so casually.

"And the boys?" he asked, his throat tightening. "Did you ever intend to tell me the truth?"

Vanessa glanced at the three documents on the table before looking back at him.

"Why would I? You took care of them, paid for their education, and gave them a comfortable life. They had everything they needed, and you were happy being their father. What difference would the truth have made?"

Ethan struggled to draw a full breath. The room seemed to close in around him, and he pressed a hand against his chest as another wave of pain struck. He had believed that his sacrifices meant something to his wife and children, but Vanessa was speaking as though his love and years of hard work had been nothing more than a convenient arrangement.

He turned toward the boys, his eyes searching their faces.

"Noah, Liam, Mason, is this what you think of me too?" he asked. "After everything I've done for you, do you have nothing to say?"

Noah finally looked at him, but there was no warmth in his expression.

"Mom has already explained everything," Noah said. "You raised us, but that doesn't change the results. You can't force us to see things differently just because you're upset."

Liam nodded, while Mason remained silent, his attention fixed on his phone. None of them moved closer to Ethan, and none asked whether he was all right.

Ethan's lips parted, but no words came out. He had paid their school fees, bought their clothes, stayed awake when they were sick, and put their needs before his own, believing that the love he gave them would one day be returned. Now, as he sat before them with his life slipping away, they could barely look him in the eye.

Vanessa stood and walked toward the door, picking up her handbag from a nearby chair.

"You should leave, Ethan," she said. "I don't want to keep pretending anymore, and the boys don't need this drama in their lives. You can go wherever you want, but don't expect us to take care of you."

Ethan stared at her, struggling to understand how she could throw him out when she knew he was seriously ill.

"This is my home too," he said weakly. "I've spent years working to support all of you. You can't send me away like this when I'm barely able to stand."

"Then you should have thought about that before expecting everyone to live according to your wishes," Vanessa replied coldly. "I'm done with this marriage, and my decision won't change."

She opened the door and gestured for him to leave. Noah rose from the sofa, while Liam and Mason followed, their faces impatient rather than troubled.

Ethan tried to stand, but his knees nearly gave way beneath him. He gripped the edge of the table until the worst of the dizziness passed, then forced himself toward the doorway, carrying the paternity test results in his shaking hands.

No one offered to help him.

When he stepped outside, the cold struck his face, and the door shut behind him with a finality that left him standing motionless on the doorstep. He had lost his health, his money, and now the family he had spent his life protecting, all within a single day.

With nowhere to go, Ethan walked aimlessly through the snow. His chest burned, his legs felt heavy, and the bitter wind cut through his coat, but he kept moving because he could not bear to stand outside the house that had once been his home.

The streets were nearly empty as midnight approached. Most people were indoors, celebrating with their loved ones, while Ethan struggled to remain upright beneath the falling snow. He had no money for a hospital, no relative willing to help him, and no home where he could rest.

As he approached a narrow road beside an icy pond, his vision began to blur. He stopped near the water, gripping a tree for support, but his weakened legs could no longer hold him.

His foot slipped on the frozen ground, and he plunged into the pond.

The icy water closed over him, stealing his breath and sending a violent shock through his already weakened body. Ethan struggled to reach the surface, but his arms felt too heavy to lift, and the pain in his chest became unbearable.

For one desperate moment, he tried to call for help, but only water entered his mouth. His movements grew weaker as the cold dragged him down, and the lights along the distant road faded into a blur.

As his strength disappeared, memories of his life passed through his mind: the money he had lent his relatives, the years he had spent providing for Vanessa and the boys, and all the times he had swallowed his anger because he wanted to keep the peace.

He had spent his entire life putting other people first, believing that his sacrifices would earn him their love and loyalty. Yet when he needed them most, they had left him to die alone.

A bitter ache settled in his chest, mingling with the pain of his failing heart. If he had another chance at life, he would never make the same mistake again. He would protect what belonged to him, live for himself, and stop allowing others to take advantage of his kindness.

With that final thought, Ethan's consciousness faded beneath the icy water.

He never saw the new year arrive, and he never knew that fate would give him another chance to change everything.