Warnings: Implications of school shooting and major character death.

She didn't return all that often anymore.

Though Lima had been her home since she was born, it held good memories, but bad ones as well.

But the one memory she never could get out of her head was truly traumatizing.

For eight years after, she'd spent money on not only the normal stuff, like her education, clothes, food, rent and going out, but on a therapist as well.

Mercedes had been there. It had happened right in front of her and even today, at the age of twenty-six, she still had problems with what had happened when she was only sixteen years old.

Now she was a singer, just like she'd always dreamed to be, and on top of that she was dating an amazing man as well, yet she couldn't help but feel that there was one person that should have been there for many of the beautiful moments she had for his own.

The halls of McKinley were empty and silent, save for her own footsteps.

She stopped.

Looking through the window of the door to the choir room, she shivered involuntarily.

Because she remembered exactly what had happened right on the other side of that door and to this day, it still made her stomach squirm and her eyes water.

It had been a sunny day and she and Kurt had been walking towards the choir room, chatting about how glad they were that it was almost summer vacation. Mercedes was going to visit her cousin in Florida, while Kurt was planning on going to New York with Blaine to start decorating what would be their tiny apartment together only a year later.

But for Kurt, it had never gotten to that point.

They'd only just entered the choir room when the school shooting began.

Later on, it had been all over the newspapers.

'13 people died in McKinley Shooting.'

Mercedes had read that article many times, over and over again, trying to get herself to realize that it had actually happened, that there was no turning back anymore. But she ended up not being able to bear the coldness of the article towards the subject.

It was as if they could have told about a glass of water falling to the floor and that'd have made them care even more. The article that had been written only contained dry facts and the names and ages of the people who hadn't survived.

'Kurt Hummel, seventeen.'

Every time she read that single sentence, those single three words, it was like she could feel a shot through her heart again.

But what no one ever told in those articles was how it was to see your best friend get shot in the head as he was trying to protect you. Shot by a lunatic that turned out could have been locked up a long time ago, had the police done their job and listened to all of the warnings, all of the complaints of both the guy's neighbours and his own family and friends had given them.

Then Mercedes' best friend would still be alive. She never seemed to be able to separate from that bitterness towards the idiotic way of handling the police had decided was best.

'Are you alright?' A friendly, male voice came from behind her, causing her to jump since she hadn't expected anyone.

Turning to look at the person, she was met with a pair of familiar, hazel eyes.

Blaine hadn't changed much from how he looked right after the love of his life died. He still had that air of sadness and exhaustion over him.

Under his eyes, there were dark circles and his scruffy beard made him look much older than he truly was. And even now, though he knew that Mercedes had been through Kurt's death as well, Blaine still faked a smile, pretending he was alright when he was not.

He hadn't been since he was seventeen.

Blaine had been on a few dates after Kurt, all of which had been literally forced upon him by his friends, who worried about his health, though none of those dates had ever led anywhere.

If Mercedes was very honest with herself, she could easily say that she truly did think that Blaine and Kurt had been meant to be together, as much as everyone else kept insisting that Blaine just needed to move on.

There was no moving on from Kurt for him. He was fine with knowing that he could always come to Mercedes in case he needed help or he needed to talk, as she told him every time they spoke. He was fine with being the choir director of the New Directions, instead of being a star like Mercedes, like he'd always wanted to be when he was younger.

And above all, Mercedes had realized that the will to date someone just wasn't there anymore. Not for Blaine.

He was fine with being single.

'Yeah, I'm fine. How are you doing?'

He smiled at her, unlocking the door and letting her in.

It had become a habit of theirs, that one proper conversation they had every time they met up.

They were the one thing they had in common with Kurt.

It's so sad :(