The years passed without any news from Armand, and Desiree grew tired of waiting for him. Her hair turned light brown and her eyes a stormy gray, evidence of the toll of what Armand had done to her. Their child, however, had grown into a beautiful boy, with dark hair, golden brown eyes, and rust-colored skin. Desiree said nothing about Armand to the child. Whenever the child asked her, she simply said with a fake smile on her face "he will call us when he is ready for us to return." Monsieur Valmonde, tired of seeing Desiree so sad, decided to get her a place of her own, so that she wouldn't get stuck on the plantation. He found them a small house in the woods, not far from the cotton fields, and near the large stone pillars where Desiree had been found many years before. The house was once used as a place for slaves to hide from their former master, but now since Monsieur ran the plantation; it was just an old, beat-up, dilapidated house. Monsieur told his field workers to come and fix it and told them to make it a home for the baby and Desiree. When Monsieur showed her the finished product, Desiree smiled a real smile, one she hadn't seen since the birth of her son. With nothing to do but take care of her son, Desiree and her son would get dressed and go into town to say hello to people every day. Desiree would dress in a long graying white dress and her son in a tan suit. After making their usual hello rounds, a strange young man approached them. He wore an expensive, velvety beige suit and was unlike any man Desiree had ever seen. She had light brown hair, pale skin, and emerald green eyes. The man said to Desiree's son with a twinkle in his green eyes: "Hi, I'm Gabriel... in the center of the paper... he announces it, and immediately takes a liking to Armand, and says: "I'm sorry Armand. I really am." She looks down and says "Desiree, I still love you and I want you to come back...both of you. I've had time to think about it and you shouldn't have left me. You can come back and no one will know we're together." Desiree smiles sadly and says "Oh, Armand, I still love you, but abandoning me and our child is something I could never forgive you. I also don't want us to be a secret, but I'm married now be mixed. He leaves returning at her home. A few days later Desiree received a letter saying that Armand had shot himself. Crying she went to her husband and he cradled her with open arms until he stopped. From that day Desiree promised herself not to speak never more than Armand, not even to his son.