I Lost My Son Five Years Ago—But Last Month, A Kid In Angry Birds Pajamas Changed Everything (6 of 11)

I froze. “Why do you ask?”

“Because I feel like I found someone. But maybe that means someone else is missing them.”

I wanted to tell him everything, but I didn’t. Not yet.

Instead, I asked Goran more about Arvid’s family. He told me the boy’s mom, Elma, worked long shifts at the hospital. His dad had been a mechanic, died in a road accident when Arvid was three.

“He doesn’t remember him much,” Goran said. “I’ve tried to be there, but I’m not good with kids.”

I could tell Goran cared, though. He wasn’t cold—just awkward.

Weeks passed. Arvid started calling me “Uncle” without being told to. I didn’t correct him.

He came over once to help me paint my fence, wearing those pajamas again. I couldn’t take my eyes off them.

That evening, while he was washing up, I checked the pants.

There it was.