The sky was overcast, the heavy clouds casting a gray pall over the camp as Chen Xiang stood silently during roll call. The whistle's sharp blast signaled the start of another grueling day, but the usual rhythm of training was broken by the arrival of a messenger. He approached the drill sergeant, whispered something, and handed over a sealed envelope. The sergeant's face darkened as he glanced toward Chen Xiang.
"Chen Xiang!" The name rang out across the field like a thunderclap. Chen Xiang stepped forward, his heart pounding as all eyes turned toward him. The sergeant handed him the envelope without a word. The weight of it felt heavier than it should have.
He stepped back into formation, the letter burning in his hands as he waited for the session to end. When the drill sergeant finally dismissed them, he found a quiet spot near the edge of the training field and tore open the envelope. The words on the page blurred together at first, but one sentence leapt out at him:
"Your father, Chen He, has been diagnosed with terminal cancer."
The paper slipped from his hands, carried briefly by the wind before landing in the dirt. His chest tightened, and for a moment, the world seemed to tilt around him. He pressed his palms against his knees, trying to steady his breathing, but the words echoed relentlessly in his mind.
The strained relationship with his father came flooding back. The arguments. The disappointment. The silence that had grown between them in recent years. And now, with time slipping through their fingers, there was nothing he could do to fix it.
He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Zhang Wei standing behind him, his usual grin replaced with quiet concern. "You alright, man? You don't look so good."
Chen Xiang shook his head, unable to find the words. Zhang Wei sat down beside him, waiting patiently. Finally, Chen Xiang spoke, his voice low and unsteady. "My dad… he's dying."
Zhang Wei didn't offer empty words of comfort or try to downplay the news. Instead, he nodded, his expression serious. "That's rough. What are you going to do?"
"I don't know." Chen Xiang stared at the ground, his fists clenched. "I can't leave, and even if I could… I don't know what I'd say to him."
"Maybe it's not about what you say," Zhang Wei replied. "Maybe it's just about being there."
The conversation stayed with Chen Xiang throughout the day, though the routine of training offered little room for reflection. He moved through the drills mechanically, his mind elsewhere. By the time evening came, his exhaustion was more emotional than physical.
He made his way to the medical station, unsure why his feet had taken him there. When he walked in, Ruoxuan glanced up from her desk, her expression shifting immediately. "You look terrible," she said, standing. "What happened?"
Chen Xiang hesitated, then handed her the letter. She read it quickly, her lips pressing into a thin line. "Chen Xiang, I'm so sorry."
He sat down heavily on one of the examination tables, his head in his hands. "I don't know what to do," he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. "I've spent so much time being angry at him, blaming him for everything that went wrong. And now… there's no time left."
Ruoxuan pulled up a chair and sat across from him, her gaze steady. "It's not about the time you don't have," she said gently. "It's about what you do with the time you do have. Even if you can't fix everything, showing him you care might be enough."
He looked up at her, her words sinking in slowly. "But what if it's too late?"
"It's never too late to show someone you love them," she replied, her voice soft but firm. "Even if it's hard, even if it doesn't change anything, it's still worth doing."
For the first time that day, Chen Xiang felt the knot in his chest loosen just a little. He nodded, his hands relaxing at his sides. "Thanks," he said quietly. "I needed to hear that."
Ruoxuan smiled, the kind of smile that carried warmth even in the midst of sorrow. "You'll figure it out. And if you need someone to talk to, I'm here."
As he left the medical station, the cool night air brushing against his face, Chen Xiang stared up at the stars scattered across the dark sky. His father's illness was a harsh reminder of how fragile time could be. But if there was one thing he could control, it was how he chose to spend it.