Her words echoed through his mind all night long. Shauna had elbowed him impatiently as he tossed and turned all night. He could not figure out what her message had meant. She had been talking about Kevin, but it just didn't seem to make any sense. But what if she had a reason for saying it? There would be nothing in it for her…and she had been so worried…

The more her words resonated in his mind, the more he became aware of subtle changes that had been happening over the past weeks. He had stopped calling as much… They were very close to each other, and they often called very frequently to catch up on things during their down time. He took up smoking… That was unusual, he had been so devoted to keeping his body healthy. He constantly looked like he was checking behind his shoulder… Brian noticed, how last week when they had met in an outdoor café, Kevin had seemed nervous and agitated as he kept looking around as if he were being watched. That had been the last time that he had left his home with Brian.

A confrontation ensued in Brian's mind. As he began to see some sort of credibility behind her statement, he kept trying to brush it off as just the ramblings of a deranged woman. As fact after fact was slowly dusted off from the depths of his memory, he struggled to hold strong to his belief that she was just being crazy.

And her eyes…There was something at stake for her. He wasn't sure what, but he could see it in her eyes. It was an abstract form of holding one's breath. It was life or death to her whether he chose to believe her or not - that was what those eerie, haunting eyes had whispered to him.

When his gut feeling finally won out over logic, he vowed to call his cousin in the morning and find out what was happening, and maybe to pass on the clerk's cryptic warning.

* * * *

"I'm perfectly fine, Brian. Since when do you start listening to strange women on the street?" the voice over the phone cracked. Not fooled at all by the adamant denial, Brian was aware of the underlying desperate note that he could hear in his voice. Oh, there was something wrong all right. And Kevin was desperate for Brian to unearth it.

"I don't buy it. Tell me what it is. Stop fighting it alone, man," Brian urged, vaguely aware that if he pushed too hard, he'd never find out.

"Look, I know I've been off for a few weeks, but I have my reasons. So just back off of it, okay?" he spat out his words.

"I'm coming over tonight, and I'll beat it out of you if I have to," Brian said, resorting to idle threats.

"Fine, I'll see you then…" Kevin trailed off then sighed. "There's nothing you can do about it anyway. It won't stop."

"I'll be there after dinner at Shauna's parents…Have I mentioned they hate me?" Brian asked, trying to cheer up the despondent sounding Kevin. He had finally broken down and admitted the truth, that there was something.

"Only a thousand times," Kevin laughed.

* * * *

Walking slowly home, Beth sighed for the hundredth time that day. She could not get the image of him out of her mind. Not that she had ever truly seen him. He was just always there, always a part of the connections. She saw through his eyes, and the possibility that he had been in that picture she had gazed at for so long while it was in her possession fascinated her.

She was daydreaming. Hardly one of her normal pass times, Beth was a little shocked with herself, but she enjoyed it nonetheless. He was the only thing in her life worth daydreaming about, anyway. She thought about which one he was. The blonde-haired, blue-eyed tall one with the spiky hair would be a nice possibility, but she ruled it out. His eye level was not that high up. Then the brown-eyed, wild-haired man intrigued her. He was a definite oddity. But she doubted that it was him. That left the one other man, with the longer hair and the kind eyes. He was the most likely.

Lost in her frivolous thoughts, she didn't notice when she came to the alley that led to her apartment. Lost in the centre of the ghetto region of the city, it was really dangerous for her to walking through there alone at night. Not due to the danger of being attacked, it was the contact with the homeless people that was dangerous. The mere smell of them had her mind reeling, reaching out to connect with some terrible fate. But on this day, her cushion of happiness while thinking about him seemed to protect her.

Until, just as she was reaching for the ladder of the fire escape up to her apartment, she became dizzy. She heard a crack in distance, and realised it was the force of the connection into her brain that was making the noise. Helplessly, she fell to the ground, and was forced away from herself.

Where the hell is he? I told him I'd be here. Walking around. Pacing. Very impatient. That man would never let me be late. Hypocrite. Forcing open the door. Finding it unlock. Shoes squeak on the polished floor. Call his name. Where are you?

Walking to the desk. Rifling through the drawers. I'll leave him a note, if I can find paper. An envelope. Many envelopes, identical. Folded many times. Dangerous envelopes. Finger ready to open when they stopped.

A shot! That was a gunshot! Panic. Worry. That was upstairs! Oh my God, Kevin! Running. Faster. Must move faster! Falling, stumbling. Must get there. Must save him. Throwing open the door.

Red. Lady in Red. Gun. Terrified. Terror filled the room, and seeped out of it as door was opened. Kevin! Screaming, shouting, searching. Lady in Red. With a gun. Another shot. Running, diving.

Pain. Red, red everywhere. So much blood. Lady in Red screaming, running. Gun. Pain. Blood. Fear. Green eyes, searching. Watching as the blood flowed. Through the source of pain. Lots of pain.

I'm so sorry, the green eyes spoke. It should have been me, they chanted solemnly as they watched. Green eyes. The pain, the fear was a stench that was suffocating. Cutting off the breath. Waves of pain. Floating away. Heart beating faster. Faster and faster. Blood. Pain. Gasping for breath. Heart. Stopped.

And the pain was gone.

Gasping and sobbing as she came back into her own mind, Beth grabbed the sides of her head and pressed in, trying to blot out what she had seen. She had felt his heart stop. Screaming with despair as the realisation of what she caused, she sobbed. He was going to die. And it was all her fault.