Alternate Ending

"And if you can't say yes, answer anyway. Because I'd rather live with the answer than die with the question."

But would you rather have the answer, knowing you may die when you hear it just the same?

~&~

If he had turned around like Orpheus, seeking for a reassurance, a sign from the faithful ghost of Eurydice; if he had chased after her like Apollo, chasing after Daphne even as she ran from him; then maybe Narcissus would still hear Echo repeating the same three words again and again, so long as he said them aloud; then maybe Helios would still catch a glimpse of Clytie's longing gaze following him through the sky.

If only, if only.