Luke paused in the doorway, staring at Mick sitting at the desk. There was something in Mick's expression that told him something was wrong. But it was Mick who stood first and approached him.

"Are you okay?" Mick asked gently.

In that moment, the softness in Mick's voice, the concern in his eyes, and the light touch of his fingers against Luke's arm tugged at Luke's heart. He hadn't even realised he was crying until Mick lifted his hand and brushed the tears from his face.

A deep sigh escaped Luke's mouth as he lowered his head against Mick's shoulder, releasing weeks of pent-up emotion all at once.

Unsure what to say, Mick simply wrapped an arm around him and gently rubbed his back until Luke slowly lifted his head again.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Mick asked.

Luke dropped his gaze, embarrassed by his sudden vulnerability. He glanced around the room and realised he was in Mick's bedroom. Mick moved toward the bed and sat down, gesturing for Luke to join him.

Luke sat beside him, his back stiff, his hands clenched tightly in his lap.

After another brief glance around the room, Luke's eyes finally met Mick's.

"My grandfather is in hospital," he said quietly. "He's unwell. No one knows what's wrong with him."

Mick noticed Luke's hands tightening and loosening repeatedly. Without thinking too much about it, he gently slid his hand between Luke's and laced their fingers together.

Luke stared at their joined hands. When he looked back at Mick and saw the reassurance in his expression, he gave a faint smile before closing his eyes and resting his head once more against Mick's shoulder.

They sat in silence, Mick's thumb brushing softly over Luke's knuckles.

"I'm sorry about your grandfather," Mick said after a moment.

"Thank you." Luke hesitated. "There's also a lot of family drama going on. They keep telling me not to worry..."

"But you do," Mick finished.

Luke nodded and slowly straightened, releasing Mick's hand. An awkwardness settled briefly between them.

Mick cleared his throat and held out his hand. "I'm Mick."

Luke almost laughed at that. He knew exactly who Mick was—but they had never formally introduced themselves.

"I'm Luke."

He took Mick's hand, and they shook. Their hands lingered a second too long before Mick finally pulled away.

"So... any explanations as to what's happening here?" Mick asked.

Luke gave a small shrug. "Time travel. Dimensional portal. Parallel universe."

"And why?" Mick didn't question the possibilities—only the reason.

Luke shrugged again. "I don't know. You?"

Mick shook his head. "No."

Silence fell between them as they both retreated into thought.

"What I do know," Mick continued carefully, "is that you're in my past. If you tell me more about yourself, I might be able to locate you in my time. That would prove this isn't a parallel universe."

Luke tilted his head slightly. "If it's not a parallel universe, don't you find it strange that I haven't come looking for you?"

Mick's eyes dropped to his hands.

Since hearing the rumour about a student death at the end of the previous school year, he had almost convinced himself it must have been Luke. It didn't matter most people said it hadn't happened. The fact Luke didn't exist in Mick's time—at least as far as anyone knew—made no sense.

"I do," Mick admitted quietly, looking back up at him. He hesitated, then decided to say it. "Actually... I heard a rumour a student here died at the end of the school year. No one knows who. Or what happened."

"Died?" Luke repeated.

Mick nodded. "I've been trying to find out more, but I'm not getting very far."

"Ah."

Luke looked around the room again, deep in thought. The worry on his face seemed even heavier than when he had first arrived.

"Hey." Mick gently patted Luke's leg. "It's okay. I'm sure there's a reason you're not in my time. Maybe that's what I need to figure out."

Luke nodded, though the idea unsettled him more than he let on.

Suddenly, his grandfather's illness resurfaced in his thoughts. If his grandfather were to die, that would give a clear reason for Luke leaving university. Even if his family promised he wouldn't be involved in the business, his grandfather's death would pull him in whether he wanted it or not.

Too many questions crowded his mind.

When he realised Mick was watching him, Luke said quietly, "I need to go back. But I promise, when we meet again, we'll talk more about this."

"You think you might have an answer?" Mick asked.

Luke shook his head slightly. "I don't know. But maybe I will next time."

"What if it's not for a long time?" The concern in Mick's voice was unmistakable.

Luke took Mick's hand again. "Like you said... maybe you need to find out what happened. Can you do that? Find out what happened?"

Mick nodded firmly. "I will."

Luke released his hand and stood, heading toward the bathroom.

At the sink, he stared at his reflection in the mirror. His face was flushed, his eyes swollen. Something was happening—of that he was certain. And somehow, Mick was at the centre of it.

There was no other explanation for their connection. Or for the strange timing of everything unfolding within his family.

But before he saw Mick again, Luke needed to speak to his grandfather.

He needed the truth.

Mick couldn't be certain Luke had returned to his own world the moment he entered the bathroom—he hadn't heard the door shut.

Slowly rising, Mick walked to the bathroom and looked inside.

It was empty.

A wave of disappointment washed over him, immediately followed by relief. Luke was alive—at least at this point in their connection.

Determined to confirm whether the rumour was just that, Mick returned to his desk and made a short list of questions to ask Luke next time—details that might help uncover the truth.

It wasn't until Monday morning, on the way to class, that Paul said, "I'm sorry I didn't contact you over the weekend."

"That's okay," Mick replied. "I thought you might have been angry with me for snapping at you Friday afternoon."

"What? No. I wasn't angry with you. But I should have called to make sure you were okay."

Paul walked beside Mick with a heavy heart. It wasn't that he hadn't wanted to contact him—he simply hadn't thought about it. Ken had surprised him Saturday morning with a weekend away, turning up unexpectedly and convincing Paul to go with him.

Over the past two days, their relationship had intensified. Paul had been so focused on their time together that he had completely forgotten about Mick.

The guilt doubled at the thought. And he still hadn't told Mick about his growing connection with Ken.

"It's okay," Mick said. "I saw Luke again."

Paul stopped walking abruptly, grabbing Mick's arm. "You did? Finally? What happened? What did he say? Did you tell him about the death?"

Mick smiled faintly at his friend's enthusiasm and briefly summarised the conversation.

"Do you think maybe it was his grandfather who died—not him?" Paul asked. "That would make sense, given Ken said most people don't remember a death here."

"It's possible," Mick admitted. "But Luke said something interesting. If he was here... why hasn't he come to see me?"

Paul nodded slowly. "You're right. Something weird is definitely going on."

At that moment, several young women approached them.

"Hi! We're from the 'Cute Boys' page. Can we take your photo?"

Both Mick and Paul blinked in surprise. Embarrassed but politely, they agreed and stood side by side for the photo.

"Make sure you write that we're best friends," Paul joked. "No shipping."

The girls laughed. "We promise!"

After uploading the photo, one of them showed the post to Mick and Paul.

Suddenly, Paul frowned.

"Does the Cute Boys page have photos from last year's first-year students?" he asked.

The women nodded. One smiled coyly. "Is there someone you're interested in?"

"Was there a student named Luke?" Paul asked.

"Good thinking," Mick murmured, giving Paul an impressed look.

The girl who had posted their photo searched the page and immediately stopped scrolling.

"This one?" she asked, holding up her phone.

Mick and Paul leaned in.

Then they froze, slowly turning to look at each other before glancing back at the screen.

In the photo, two young men stood side by side, arms slung over each other's shoulders, smiling at the camera.

Luke.

And Ken.

"Ah... thanks," Mick said stiffly. "Enjoy the rest of your day."

He grabbed Paul's arm and pulled him away.

Once they were out of earshot, Paul rounded on him.

"What the hell was that? What is going on?" His voice shook with shock—and anger. "Ken knows Luke. What the hell!"

He yanked out his phone and called Ken.

No answer.

He called again.

"Why isn't he answering?" Paul demanded.

Mick could barely process it. The image of Luke and Ken smiling together replayed in his mind.

It made no sense.

"Come on," Paul snapped, grabbing Mick and dragging him across campus.

When they reached the dormitory, Paul was livid. He had never felt anger like this before—not toward anyone, and certainly not toward Ken.

Mick followed, still too stunned to resist.

Across the road, Ken stood watching as Paul stormed into the dormitory, Mick close behind.

It hurt to see Paul so upset.

But what else could he do?

He had ensured their weekend away strengthened their relationship enough to survive the coming weeks. It was the only thing within his control.

The timeline Luke had given him was fixed. No matter how many times Ken read and reread it, it never offered comfort.

He pulled out his phone and called Luke.

"What do you want me to do now?" Ken asked. They both knew exactly where they were in the timeline.

"Avoid them," Luke replied.

"Seriously?" The thought of not seeing Paul tightened something painfully in Ken's chest.

"It's not the right time. If you change the future, I don't know how that will affect the past."

Ken exhaled slowly. Luke was right.

"Okay," he said reluctantly. "I'll avoid them. But I'm not happy about it."

He ended the call and looked back toward the dormitory.

Until this was over, he would stay in the apartment Luke had provided.

But avoiding Paul—and Mick—on campus?

That was going to be far more difficult than either of them were prepared for.