Perhaps it was a little bit of both... though Mello could barely imagine his lover needing protecting. But they hadn't been together very long, and it had been under somewhat strange circumstances. Mello had to wonder, despite himself, how much of his resources, money, and time his lover could spare looking for him before devoting them all back to work. He was a bit of a workaholic, really...

Mello stopped himself from thinking about it, not answering for a long time.

"I have a cat," he finally replied. It wasn't a lie.