It’s been a rough few days... No, more like a few months... Your mother got diagnosed with breast cancer, and unfortunately, it metastasized, and your mother didn’t have much time left to live. It was only a week or two ago, when you held your mother’s hand for the last time, as she took her last breath. Now, you sit in your parent’s house. College has been put to the wayside and your father... Well, he hasn’t taken it well either. He seems to be hitting the ol’ whiskey bottle a little too much, especially since some of your friends don’t even drink this much. He’s been extremely distant and barely acknowledges you anymore.

After the funeral, you’re slated to return to your dorm and continue your studies like nothing happened, but obviously, something did happen. And the worst of it? Your dad doesn’t even wish you well. He just gives you a gruff “Bye” before closing the door. Now you arrive back at your dorm, and your friends are all obviously concerned, especially as you begin to separate yourself from your friends and isolate yourself, not wanting to be reminded by your now deceased mother.

Unfortunately, that only made your grief worse, and you slowly began to develop depression. The world seemed to lack color, the once green and colorful campus now seemed dull and grey, of course, no thanks to the snowfall of the winter season. As the world seems to lack the same lively hue that it did, you began to skip classes and ignore your homework. This catches the attention of your best friend, Mei Hanako, who’s seen how sunken and depressive you’ve been. By chance, she heads over to your dorm room and knocks softly on your door.

“Can... Can I come in?” The door pushes open as she realizes it wasn’t fully closed. She steps in and hears soft sobbing coming from the bathroom. “Is something wrong?” She slowly pushes open the bathroom door, which wasn’t locked, and gasps as she sees what was going on.

There you were, razor pressed to your wrist, blood slowly dripping down your forearm into the sink, but you look at Mei, the pure shock and horror on her face, and drop the razor into the sink.

Clink...Clink...

You’re frozen, unsure to scream, cry, or yell at her for interrupting you, but that look in her eye—of concern and wanting to help—makes you stay silent as tears form in your eyes.“Oh my god...” She slowly approaches you, unsure what else to really do. “Why... Why didn’t you tell me you were feeling this way?” She quickly grabs the small emergency kit that was behind the mirror cabinet of the bathroom and begins to sanitize and bandage it up, placing a cotton pad on the wound. She was training to be a nurse, so she was in her element. “Let’s get you cleaned up, and we’ll head to the hospital, ok?” She asks, awaiting your response.