“Kris.”

Kris blinks out of his stupor and shifts his attention to the woman in front of him. The green eyes behind the black-rimmed glasses stares at him inquisitively.

“You know I don’t get paid to watch you daydream,” her thick English accent fills the room as she raises her eyebrow at him expectantly. “What happened, Kris? It has been three months since you last saw me and now, you’re acting like that first time you started seeing me.”

“Sorry, Jack.” He shifts uneasily, looking everywhere else but her.

This woman, Jacqueline Reed, is his mum’s friend, his Psychologist and his godmother. He was initially wary of seeing her given their close relationship, but his father’s coaxing back then was successful in persuading him to see her in a professional doctor-client relationship. Up until this moment, the only ones who know about him and Lay are his deceased father and Jack. Jack has kept his confessions under wrap from his mum and the rest of his family, and doesn’t even mention his therapy sessions outside her practice.

“Did dinner turn out bad? The guy wasn’t decent enough for Sydney?” Jack prods further genially.

Her voice is so soothing that Kris thinks it could help him to momentarily forget everything. Kris doesn’t instantly reply, and Jack doesn’t say anything further, waiting patiently.

“I-it was him,” Kris stutters. He lets out a heavy sigh. “It was Yi Xing.”

Saying his name again out loud brings all sorts of mixed feelings to Kris. It has been a long time since he calls that name out loud. The racing in his chest—out of exhilaration or dread, he doesn’t know—is all but too familiar. He would think all of these feelings are those you feel in the early stage of love, but for some reason or other, Yi Xing always gives them to him at the mere mention of his name, the smile on his lips, the sound of his laughter…

Jack’s eyes widen at his confession. “You mean, Se Hun’s friend, who he wanted to introduce to Sydney, is that Yi Xing from seven years ago?”

Kris nods affirmatively. There is a moment of silence where Jack processes everything. Kris lets her as he massages his forehead and falls back onto the sofa. He stares outside at the darkening sky and sighs again. Fate is definitely playing with him. His wedding is just six months away, for God’s sake. He can’t ruin it right now.

“How do you feel about that?” Jack has found her voice again, this time speaking in a professional manner.

“I don’t know,” Kris replies, still staring outside the window. His mind replays back their meeting on the weekend and his heart makes that familiar clenching feeling. “He looks… he was shocked to see me, but he handled it better than I did. He told everyone that I was his mentor from work experience in high school.”

“So no one was suspicious?”

“Maybe Se Hun was. And Lu Han. I don’t know how much she knows, but Yi Xing called my Chinese name under his breath, but I don’t know. He denied it and Se Hun didn’t talk about it again for the rest of the night.” And how they asked him about what he thinks of Yi Xing.

“Se Hun is always perceptive, but he is also very laid-back. If he doesn’t think it’s worth it to prod around, he wouldn’t do anything about it.”

Silence fills the gap between them, allowing Kris a moment to reflect. It shouldn’t matter anymore. Seven years have passed. So why is he being ridiculous? He is happily engaged and everyone is happy he is engaged.

“Do you think you’re still in love with him?”

Seeing how quick he has turned his head, Jack wonders how he doesn’t get a whiplash.

“What?” he gasps in shock. “Nonsense! I love Phoebe! We are getting married in six months! I just feel bad about what happened in the past!”

“I don’t know whether you notice, but you always see me when you miss him,” she gives him a look when he is about to argue and that shuts him up, “You see me on your anniversary with him, his birthday, and the day you broke up with him after the first year you started seeing me. Doesn’t it tell you something?”

This time, Kris scowls, “Like I said, I feel guilty for hurting him and with those days passing every year, I can’t help but think about how I shouldn’t have started anything. I don’t even know how or whether I even should tell Phoebe. I don’t want to ruin anything, although I already did. And with that past, I don’t know how to be okay with the idea of them two together. Wouldn’t it be weird? He was with me, and then my sister?”

He looks at her, demanding for an agreement, and she complies with a nod. “It is weird, but if they are happy together, wouldn’t you give them your blessing?”

“I don’t know! It’s still weird.”

“Are you jealous?”

“No!”

And suddenly, he doesn’t feel like discussing this anymore. He always feels like his emotions are stripped bare by Jack after their sessions, but most of the time, he would feel lighter when he walks out of the room. This time, he is not so sure and for the first time in a long time, he feels afraid if it doesn’t happen.

Jack stares at him with this look that makes him uncomfortable. “Do you think…” she begins again, “fate is playing with you… or giving you a second chance to make everything right?”

It manages to strike Kris into pondering for a long time. As he glances at the ticking clock coming close to the end of the session, he answers, “What’s right is what makes everyone happy. Hurting him wasn’t right, but what I decided was definitely right.”

“Hey, Kris?”

Kris heard Joanne, the Ultrasonographer, calling his name and instantly stepped out of the office just in time for the woman to return with someone in tow.

“This is Lay. He is the high school student I told you about. He has work experience here for a month,” she stepped out in the middle of the sentence to reveal a slim Asian boy who only reached Kris’ shoulder at most.

He had short black hair and fair skin. He looked like he was in a trance standing there. The first things Kris noticed were those vibrant eyes. They were light brown, with a grayish tinge, under the bright light of the room. They were almond-shaped and uniquely beautiful. Kris wondered whether he had some Caucasian genes, given those eyes and the defined nose. Those eyes didn’t look legit for a full-blooded Asian, unless his parents had some Caucasian genes, of course. The boy’s chubby cheeks gave away his youth and a somewhat innocent aura.

But when they locked eyes, Kris saw it then. Behind the beauty and innocence, there was something cold and calculating that Kris could not quite put his finger on.

Kris heard Joanne speaking, “This is Kris. He is a Biomedical Engineering student on placement here. He has been here for a week now, but he knows his way around enough. You’ll be