CHAPTER 48: I MISS YOU EVEN WHEN YOU'RE RIGHT HERE;

DAY 1 – After The Kiss

Pete disappears.

No hospital. No texts. No calls.

Vanished.

And Mek?

He notices. Instantly.

He waits the first night, pretending he doesn't care.

But the silence?

It's louder than any argument.

> "Why do I feel cold without you here?"

---

DAY 2 – Mek's Guilt Creeps In

The sun shines, but Mek stays in his room.

Blanket wrapped tight.

Eyes unfocused.

The pendant Pete once gave him?

Still hidden under his pillow.

He pulls it out.

Touches the scratched back where Pete had carved his initials.

> P ♡ M

"Forever, even if the world says no."

Flashbacks hit like a freight train:

Pete running beside him as kids in the rain.

Pete holding his hand during his first art show.

Pete crying the night Mek first said "I love you."

Pete whispering, "You're my safest place."

Mek clutches the pendant to his chest and whispers:

> "Why does it still feel like you're mine?"

---

DAY 3 – A Visitor

A soft knock at the door.

Mek expects a nurse.

But it's Pete's mother.

She looks tired. A little older than Mek remembers. But her eyes—same softness as Pete's.

> "Can I come in?"

Mek hesitates… then nods.

She sits quietly. For a moment, she says nothing.

Then—

> "He hasn't come home."

> "What?"

> "After you pushed him away... he disappeared. He won't answer my calls. He's not in his apartment."

Mek freezes. Heart racing.

> "I… I didn't know."

> "He's hurting, Mek. So are you. But if you keep pretending, this pain won't stop."

> "I can't tell him."

> "Why not?"

> "Because your husband—" Mek bites his tongue. "—He said he'd destroy Pete's life if I didn't let go."

She sighs. Soft. Sad.

> "I know."

Mek's eyes widen.

> "What?"

> "I know what my husband did. And trust me, I've hated him for it every day since. But Pete… he deserves the truth. Don't protect him by hurting him."

Mek's throat closes up.

> "I'm scared."

> "Then be scared. But don't be silent."

She places a photo on the nightstand—

A childhood pic of Pete and Mek, messy hair, ice cream all over their faces, grinning wide.

> "He's always looked at you like that. Even when he thought no one saw."

---

NIGHT – Mek Alone

He grabs his journal. Hands shaking. Heart pounding.

> "I lied.

I remember everything.

The love.

The laughter.

The nights he held me when the world was cruel.

The way he kissed my forehead like a promise.

I remember.

I remember everything.

And I miss him…

Even when he's right in front of me.

Even now, when he's gone."

Tears drop onto the page.

Mek whispers into the night—

> "Come back to me, Pete…"