A teenager at a bonfire party was shot dead while trying to break up a fight in the Virginia woods just after midnight on Sunday, and his girlfriend learned the tragic news in a two-word text from his father. 

Christian Archen Whalen, 19, was with “a large group” that had gathered and were “trespassing” on property owned by Spotsylvania County when the fight broke out, police said in a press release Monday.

When Whalen tried to break up the fight, another teenager shot him “in the lower extremity,” police said. 

Deputies responded around 1 a.m. to reports of a shooting, and Whalen was taken to a hospital, where he died. 

“I see a notification from his dad saying, ‘Christian died,’” Lacy Milling said. “Literally, those two words.” (Christian Whalen/Facebook)

Milling said the last words she received from Whalen were “I’m sorry that I’m not the best person, but I love you.”

“His poor family now has to live on without their precious son because of these selfish people that don’t deserve to carry guns,” she wrote. 

Police said they are still investigating, and detectives are relying on witnesses who may have been at the party who left before police arrived. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Spotsylvania Sheriff’s Office.