(The story begins in the morgue where Stephano, Roman, Marlena, and John are infromed by the medical examiner that Kristen's death was a suicide. The room has been silent for about five minutes while everyone's thoughts are running wild. Most effected by this announcement are John and Stephano. John suddenly remembers his last conversation with Kristen in which she threatened to kill herself and he said that she didn't have the guts. He is suddenly struck with an overwhelming feeling of guilt. Stephano on the other hand, is filled with rage.)
"There's no way that Kristen would've killed herself!!! That's impossible." Stephano shouted at the medical examiner. "My daughter wasn't stupid enough to do something like that."
"Calm down Stephano!!" Marlena insisted watching the man who had been the master manipulator for so long fall apart before her eyes. "There is no need to start ranting and raving in here like this."
"I know my Kristen and she did not kill herself!!!" Stephano shouted at the group.
"Well, from all of the alcohol and drugs in her system, that is the only thing that I could come up with." The medical examiner explained fearing Stephano's anger. "I'm sorry Mr. Dimera......"
"That can't be true." Stephano replied in anger. "There is no way that....."
"She did kill herself Stephano." John replied breaking his silence.
"What did you say?" Stephano asked turning to face John.
"She did kill herself." John replied automatically feeling his body tense up as all eyes focused upon him. "Stephano, the medical examiner is right."
"That's not possible John." Stephano insisted turning to his long time enemy. "You loved Kristen once John. You of all people know that she was too strong of a person to kill herself."
"She did it Dimera." John replied unable to look at anyone in the room. "She told me that she was going to do it."
"What?" Marlena gasped confused by his declaration. "What are you talking about John?"
"She told me that her life wasn't worth living anymore and that she may as well kill herself." John explained briefly locking his gaze with Marlena as guilty tears streamed down his face. "I told her that she didn't have the guts."
"Why you..." Stephano began in a rage charging at John. "You did this to her. She needed someone and you let her die!!"
"Stephano!!!" Roman shouted as he and one of the guards from the hall tried to hold Stephano back.
"You killed her John!!!" Stephano shouted at him as he watched Marlena rush to John's side. "Damn you John!!!"
"John," Marlena called out touching his arm, "are you alright?"
"No Doc." he began stepping back from her.
"John?" she questioned confused by his reaction to her.
"I...I....." he trailed off as his eyes shifted from Kristen's corpse to Marlena's worried face. "I just have to get out of here."
"John...wait!!!!!!" Marlena shouted as he ran out of the morgue.
"Let him go Doc." Roman insisted grabbing ahold of her.
"No!!" she yelled back at him. "John needs me right now and I have to make sure that he's alright."
"Doc, you aren't going anywhere." Roman insisted as Stephano began to sob uncontrollably. "I think that you're needed right here."
"I have to go to him Roman." Marlena pleaded with him. "There's no telling what he can do at a time like this."
"Fine." Roman reluctantly agreed releasing her.
"Thank you Roman." she said smiling weakly as she rushed out of the morgue after John.
"You better come back to me Doc." Roman muttered under his breath as he turned to deal with Stephano.
John made his way out into the winter night as he gasped for air. He looked at the dark world around him and things began to suddenly take on new monsterous forms. He reached inside of his pocket for his car keys as he made his way towards his car.
"Oh God, what have I done?" John wondered out loud as tears escaped from his eyes. "I didn't like Kristen very much lately, but I didn't want her to kill herself. Now she's dead and it's because I was too blind to see that she was crying out for help."
Images flashed back to John's last conversation with Kristen. He remembered how angry he had been with her about everything that she had done to keep him apart from Marlena. He thought of how she had tried to steal Susan's baby in an attempt to win back his love. He realized that all of the evil Kristen had done was a twisted attempt to keep him by her side.
"Oh God, this is all my fault." John realized as he opened his car door. "If Kristen hadn't fallen in love with me in the first place, then she would be alive right now and there wouldn't be any of this pain."
"Oh God John." Marlena whispered to herself as she made her way to the hospital parking lot. "What is running through your mind right now?"
Marlena dashed out into the darkness as she imagined how the news of Kristen's suicide must be tearing apart John's loving heart. She knew him well enough to know that he hated the thought of ever causing pain for anyone. She knew that if he believed that he was responsible in any way for Kristen's demise that he would sink into a deep depression. She knew that she needed to find him before he did something drastic.
"John," Marlena called out rushing towards his car. "Wait!!!!"
Marlena's pace quickened as she rushed towards John's car. She started waving her arms in the air as an attempt to get his attention, but she was too late. John's tires squealed as he frantically drove out of the parking lot leaving her there worried sick about him.
"John no..." Marlena began to cry as she stood there unable to reach out to her precious John.
"Doc," Roman called out running to her side in the parking lot. He noticed that she was crying. "What's wrong Doc?"
"I was too late." she explained trying to wipe her tears away. "He's gone."
"It's okay Doc." Roman sighed wrapping his arms around her.
"It's not okay Roman." she sobbed into his chest.
"Doc, John's a big boy and he knows how to take care of himself." Roman explained as she continued to cry.
"He needs me Roman." Marlena explained looking up at him. "He needs to know that he's not alone right now."
"Doc, he just needs to think things through." Roman explained hugging her once more as he began to realize that Marlena's feelings for John were stronger than he had anticipated.
"I need to be with him Roman." Marlena explained backing away from him.
"Doc, I don't think that....." Roman began as the medical examiner came rushing out of the hospital.
"Dr. Evans, I'm having a problem." the medical examiner explained anxiously. "Mr. Dimera started grabbing his chest and the next thing I knew, he passed out in the morgue. They think that he may have had a heart attack."
"Oh no." Marlena gasped as Roman took ahold of her hand.
"We have to go see what happened Doc." Roman insisted leading her inside in the hopes of distracting her thoughts from John.