"Do you think it was alright to leave Mira alone?" Luhan fretted for the umpteenth time that afternoon as he walked with Chen and Kai.

"She isn't alone. Lay offered to stay behind so that you wouldn't be worrying like this," Kai sighed in an effort to comfort their inconsolable friend.

"I'm just worried! What if he doesn't check on her? What if she does something?" Luhan bit his lip nervously and wrung his hands as he spoke.

"Look, she'll be fine. You've got to believe in her. Besides, she's still twenty-five. Didn't you say she idolized The 27 Club?" Kai patted his shoulder roughly, trying his hardest to be supportive.

"She idolizes dying young!" Luhan cried in exasperation.

"You really care for her, don't you?" Chen asked quietly.

"Of course I do," Luhan replied as if it were the most absurd thing ever that Chen would question his affections towards Mira.

"She told me you guys dated in high school." Chen added timidly.

"Yeah, what of it?" Luhan looked puzzled, but his friends were relieved to see that at least he wasn't on the verge of insanity worrying over Mira.

"Do you still love her?" Chen asked.

Luhan was quiet momentarily as if unsure of how to answer. Chen and Kai watched him intently as he chewed at his lip and seemed to search his mind for a correct answer.

"No, what's past is past." Luhan shook his head. "It was a long time ago."

"I get the feeling that you're telling yourself more than us," Kai noted, searching his friend's eyes that were softened with a light of sadness.

"What happened?" Chen urged.

"It's not really my story to tell..." Luhan trailed off as they reached a coffee shop and entered.

"It's about your life as well. We aren't going to force you to tell us, but we can help you if we know what's going on," Chen said carefully.

Luhan was silent as they waited in line to be served. There were eyes everywhere, watching the three of them closely. They each ordered, received their drinks, and sat down before Luhan spoke again. He was quiet, but they couldn't tell if it was to avoid outside ears hearing or because he was scared to speak.

"She left after high school without a word. We were still dating when she just disappeared. I knew that she struggled with her depression still and I was worried that she had..." Luhan's voice caught in his throat and he sipped at his drink before continuing. "It wasn't until three months after she left that she wrote me and explained why she left."

"And why was that?" Kai pressed, curious.

"She didn't want to drag me down. She promised that she would do whatever in her power to help me reach my dreams. Mira said that what we can't change, changes us. In all the time that we were together, she never was able to conquer her depression. Her reasoning was that if she couldn't change, she would end up changing me. She didn't want that to happen, so she left as soon as high school was done." Luhan kept his eyes fixed on the table as he spoke, his eyes reflecting the light from the sun and burning with memories.

"So, in her own way, she was looking out for you," Chen said.

"I guess. But it wasn't her place to do that. She shouldn't have decided on her own to leave me," Luhan said with a hint of spite in his voice.

"Isn't that what you're doing now? Is it really your place to decide to keep Mira here for three whole years?"  Kai asked.

"I...but this is a matter of life or death!" Luhan cried in protest.

"Yes, it's different, but you need to realize that Mira still doesn't know your intentions in keeping her here," Chen said. "You're going to have to explain it to her eventually and how do you think she'll react to it?"

"I don't know. When she wrote me, I just became so frenzied that I didn't think this through. I just needed to make sure that she lives." Luhan shook his head and looked up from the table to meet Chen's eyes. "What am I doing?"

"You need to decide that for yourself. It looks like you still have feelings for Mira, so maybe you should let her know." Chen suggested.

"It's been seven years since those times of romance. I can't bring up the past with Mira," Luhan said firmly, shaking his head once more.

"There's only one way to find that out, now isn't there?"