A/N and Disclaimer: The song "Why Don't You Kiss Her" belongs to Jesse McCartney.

He'd finally stopped running.

He sank to his knees, unaware of his surroundings. A shadow crept into his mind like a black cloud, spreading, pushing away light and hope, stripping away every thought but one: Stella.

He raised his eyes. All he could see was Stella working a scene and making a teasing face, a crooked half-smile, while he discreetly took her picture. It was the last smile he could remember, but just like the sunset it faded. Though he tried to hear her laugh again, or even say his name, only silence answered.

He rose from the ground, weak as an old man. He trudged forward, a wounded man, no longer alert or careful, in no hurry, stepping over a rock, pushing aside a leafy branch…

"Mac?" came a voice.

He quickly brushed away a tear.

The voice came nearer. " What are you doing out here? You should be at the hospital with your friends."

He kept walking. "Leave me alone."

"Hey, wait a minute," the voice called. "Where are you going?"

"It's over. I couldn't save her. Stella's dying, and I'm going home now."

"What!? No! Stop!" Someone suddenly appeared ahead of him, walking directly toward him with a purposeful tread. Jeans and a dark sweatshirt. It was hard to make out his face beneath the hood. "You can't just give up."

"You can't possibly understand. You have no idea what it's like to…" Mac shook his head. "You know what, forget it." He turned on his heels and started off in the opposite direction. "I don't even know why I'm talking to you."

"You know, I fell in love once…with my best friend."

Mac stopped walking. He was listening.

" She was different from any woman I'd ever met. She was strong and independent. She knew how to hold her own. She was special and I loved her for it. A lot of people look up to me as a sort of hero, but she…she was my hero."

"Your hero, huh?" Mac said, turning to face him. "So, what happened to her?"

The hooded stranger looked away toward the distant city skyline and Mac could almost feel the sadness in his voice. "Oh, she stopped being 'my' hero a long time ago. You see, I never actually told her how I felt. I was afraid. Afraid of…" He chuckled to himself. "I don't even remember what I was afraid of anymore.

"Anyway, one day, she was gone. She was taken away from me. Just like that. I'd waited too long. And my life has been filled with regrets ever since. Not a day that goes by that I don't think about what I could've had." He turned back to face Mac, who'd lowered his head, silent. "Don't make the same mistake I did. No one waits forever."

"But Stella…she—she's in really bad shape. The doctors don't think she…" Mac was trying to hold back his emotions. "I've already lost my wife. And now, I'm gonna lose her too."

"What we do in love is never lost."

Something in Mac's mind buzzed. The stranger's words were more profound than either of them could know in that moment. Their eyes met.

"Go to her, Mac. She needs you."

Mac nodded. "Thank you." He turned to leave, but there was still something he needed to know. "Who are you?"

The stranger chuckled, going his own way. "A friend."

Satisfied, Mac continued walking, but not without catching a glimpse of the stranger's face as he passed beneath a streetlamp. It was as if he'd looked into a mirror. The stranger's face was his own. A bit ragged, a few more wrinkles on his face, but identical in every other way to his own. And surprisingly enough, it didn't bother him. He'd known. Somehow, he'd always known.

He got back to the hospital about an hour later. It was pretty quiet then, what with most of the staff gone home. He hadn't realized how late it had gotten. He spotted a few nurses hanging out at the nurse's station when he walked by. They were chatting amongst themselves in hushed tones, sipping at cups of coffee every few seconds.

He continued down the hospital's maze of hallways toward her room. It looked like the rest of the team had gone home as well. There wasn't a person in sight. He pulled out his cell phone intending to call someone to let them know where he was. They'd probably been worried sick about him when he'd disappeared. Especially Peyton. He looked down at the buttons, trying to decide who to disturb at this hour and knocked on the door.

No answer.

He reached down and turned the knob, pushing the door open.

"Mac?"

He turned and found Don standing there.

"Where'd ya go, man? We've been lookin' everywhere for you."

"Why? What's wrong?" Don stared past his friend into the room with a look of infinite sadness.

Mac followed his gaze. The answer to his question assaulted him from across the room. His eyes widened. The room was empty. Completely empty. His heart lodged in his throat as he glanced at the bed. It had been made up with new clean sheets and all the machines were turned off. The room was pristine as if no one had ever been in there. The room's sole occupant was gone.

"Where—where is she?" he asked, his voice breathy and shaking.

"You don't know?" Don's said. His voice quavered though he tried to control it.

Mac shook his head, still in shock at the sight of the vacant room. He suddenly felt two strong hands on his shoulders and he closed his eyes.

"Mac…she died a few hours ago."

"No…no…" With the shock wrenching his insides, he fell back against the doorframe, sick and shaking. His head sank, his hands went limp, his cell phone clattered to the ground. It was too late.

"Before she—she…" Don took a deep breath, the painful memories still fresh in his mind. "Well, she was lookin' for you, Mac."

She had been looking for him and he hadn't been there. He had let her die feeling abandoned and alone.

"No…Stella…" he sobbed. "I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…"

"It's not too late…"

Mac awoke with a start and stared up at the ceiling, breathing hard. The nightmare had changed. He'd gone back, but only to find that he was too late. The fears that Stella had confided in him the previous day had become real…at least in his dreams. How could he have let that happen?

But there was something else, wasn't there? That voice telling him it wasn't too late. It was the same man from the park. He blinked. He was telling him he still had time. Time to make things right. Because in real life, Stella was still healthy and very much alive.

Don't make the same mistake I did.

But what about Peyton? He couldn't just leave her. He loved her. He loved them both. And that broke all the rules. He didn't want to have to choose. Because he would never be able to bring himself to break either of their hearts.

But how could he forget the first person he'd fallen in love with after his wife had died…

We're the best of friends
And we share our secrets
She knows everything that is on my mind
Lately something's changed
As I lie awake in my bed
A voice here inside my head
Softly says

Why don't you kiss her
Why don't you tell her
Why don't you let her see
The feelings that you hide
'Cause she'll never know
If you never show
The way you feel inside

Poor Mac…he's so confused. Want more? Review!