Weeks passed, and Chiao's self-flagellating remarks somewhat let up. Milk continued to listen to her vent but hated the way it tightened the vice-grip on her heart. Hearing her friend belittle herself made Milk clench her jaw. Sometimes she wanted to smack Chiao upside the head. She repeated over and over that her friend wasn't unintelligent but rather, thought she was in love. It made her overlook things about Louise that almost everyone else could see.

By now, the girls' close-knit circle of friends all knew about the breakup. Though everyone was supportive, nobody was as patient as Milk when it came to letting Chiao bend her ear.

Over dinnertime chat with Jin one night, Milk decided to disclose her own "problem". She confided in the group's leader because she trusted her to not gossip with the others. As usual, she listened without judgment and offered sound advice. Unfortunately in this case, Milk couldn't fathom taking the advice she was getting.

"So you're saying I should just shut her out?" Milk asked.

Jin replied, "No, no -  but she can't keep unloading on you like that. You're not her shrink, la. I know she's upset but 1 - this has been going on for weeks, and 2 - she only does this with YOU."

Milk's eyebrows were squeezed together and it was giving her a headache. She pinched the bridge of her nose to release the tension, and said, "What do you mean she only does this with me?"

Jin offered, "I mean...did you notice she doesn't whine and complain to any of us? She's pretty close to Chris but they rarely talk in such detail about the Louise stuff. Why do you think she does it with you?" Jin paused to bring her point home and then continued, "Because you LET her."

Milk had omitted the parts about exactly how much it really bothered her. Jin wasn't aware that the situation didn't just irritate Milk and drain her energy, but moreso made her chest ache. No one had guessed that Milk was losing sleep over this. No one realized that for two years, she'd had secret feelings for Chiao. This just wasn't something to own up to. In a tomboy world with tomboy friends, you just don't announce that you prefer a boyish girl over the assembly-line of feminine, pretty girls who keep offering themselves up to you.

But sometimes close friends develop feelings for each other regardless of their sense of fashion, their haircut, their grooming choices, etc. Chiao was an awesome girl and they'd always had a blast together.  It was kind of a no-brainer. Milk felt that if she had fallen for her, it was almost unavoidable. Choice personality, cute as a button, and she made Milk smile without even trying. They shared a lot of laughs. Actually, it had been a while...

Milk realized the strain of "The Louise" had recently kept much laughter out of Milk and Chiao's relationship. This brought Jin's advice into perspective. Stop letting her unload on you. Milk started living with this mantra echoing through her head until she was able to set it into motion. Why was it such a drawn-out process? Milk started to think maybe she was just a masochist.