She was waiting for him at the coffee shop when he walked in. Mike had to once again shake off the feeling that he was dreaming. Lucy was curled up in an armchair by the window, one leg tucked under her, sipping something hot from a mug. Mike slid into the seat across from her and waited, nearly shaking from nerves.

Lucy took a deep breath. "I guess you want to know what happened to me, where I've been, why I left."

Mike flinched at the word "left." Maybe she really did run away. It was time to find out. He nodded.

Lucy reached out and lightly touched Mike's knee then met his eyes. "I can't tell you."

"Why--"

"Not that I don't want to, it's just..." Lucy took a deeper breath. "I disappeared because I entered into Witness Protection."

Mike stared at her blankly for a moment before his mind wrapped around her words. "Witness protection? But how--why? What happened?"

Lucy looked away quickly. "I can't say."

"I just don't understand what you could have witnessed, it's not like--" Mike stopped when he saw Lucy's face.

Her eyes were swimming with deep sorrow and regret. She was gazing, unfocused, somewhere past him, at something he couldn't see, something he wasn't sure he wanted to see. Lucy squeezed her eyes shut for a moment, and when she opened them they were back to their bright hazel.

"Back in high school, I...did things. Things I didn't tell you about. Dangerous things, Mike. With dangerous people."

Mike softly took her hand. "You could have told me, I would have helped you."

She laughed. "That's why I couldn't tell you. I didn't want you to get involved. I didn't want to ruin your chances of college with my dumb mistakes."

"Oh, Lucy." Mike felt a twinge of something he hadn't felt in a long time. "I still don't understand what happened that you had to leave."

"I saw something I shouldn't have, I didn't think anyone knew, but the lawyers still found me. I agreed to testify against someone very powerful and very ruthless. It was a lot safer to hide, and they told me I couldn't tell anyone what happened or where I was going." Lucy squeezed Mike's hand. "I wanted to tell you, god I wanted to tell you more than anything. But it happened so fast and everything was so terrifying that I listened. And I walked away from my old life with no contact with anyone from before."

"Including me," Mike said, closing his eyes.

"Including you."

Lucy watched the people on the street and sipped her coffee while Mike processed. He fought off waves of anger and guilt and grief for several minutes, finally settling on simple happiness and relief that Lucy was alive and in front of him.

Mike opened his eyes. "You know I looked for you for thirteen years. Relentlessly. It wasn't until I met Julia that I was able to move on and start living again."

"I'm so sorry." Lucy bit the inside of her lip. "I thought I was protecting the people I loved. Maybe in the end I was just protecting myself."

"Don't beat yourself up about it, you did what you had to do, just like I did." Mike smiled. "I'm just so happy to see you again, to talk like old times. Maybe next time I could bring Julia, I'm sure you'd like her."

Lucy's smile faltered. "Mike, I--the trial is coming up. The trial I've waited fifteen years to testify at. After today, they're relocating me. I don't know when or if I'll see you again."

Mike didn't move. Couldn't move.

"Mike, are you okay?"

"It took me thirteen years to say goodbye to you the first time, how am I supposed to say goodbye again?"

Lucy smiled a sad smile. "After the trial is over, I'll find you, okay? Then we don't have to say goodbye."

Mike nodded.

Lucy stood. "I'll see you soon, Mike."

"See you soon."

By the time Mike made it home, Julia was already in bed. He made a mental note to make eggs in the morning as an apology and climbed into bed next to her. Sleep came quickly and Mike was thankful. As soon as he left the coffee shop, his mind had flooded with swirling thoughts of Lucy, only Lucy.

The next morning, Mike awoke to an empty bed. Stretching, he wandered into the kitchen to find Julia sitting at the kitchen table, her hand pressed against her lips, her eyes dashing rapidly across something from her phone. His presence startled her, but her eyes softened.

"Mike." She said it like she was saying I'm sorry.

He blinked. "What?"

"The morning news."

In a daze, Mike pulled out his phone and checked his notifications. He read the first headline. He sank to the floor.

-Lucy Johnson, Key Witness in Upcoming Mob Trial, Shot in Drive-by and Pronounced Dead-

He couldn't even read the rest of the article past the tears now quickly welling. Mike was vaguely aware of Julia joining him on the kitchen floor, wrapping her arms around his shaking form.

It couldn't be true, not like this. Not after all this time.

Mike couldn't get her voice out of his head, see you soon. Mike couldn't get her face out of his mind. He couldn't stop seeing her eyes. Those hazel eyes full of such sadness, such sorrow.

He felt his own eyes grow dark to match.

Lucy, his Lucy, was finally, truly gone.