A Talk with the Grandma II

"Oh," Zachary said, looking at the wooden chest. "So, where is my father now?" He probed, shifting his gaze from the chest to his grandma's face and back.

"He already left this world," his grandma said in a plain voice, not projecting any emotion. "He has already passed on."

"Oh," Zachary said, letting the information sink in.

To his surprise, he didn't feel any grief after hearing the news. He was a bit disappointed, yes, but that was all. It wasn't as bad as the time he'd heard about the death of his grandma during his previous life.

"Then my mother?" Zachary asked in a hush after another few seconds of silence.

His grandma sighed audibly on hearing that. "I never got a chance to meet the woman that should be your mother," she said, sighing again and starting to open the wooden chest.