In a darkness lit only by a flickering lamp, clattering glass echo behind a shadowy figure's back. The light bounced off the man's white robe and glasses but revealed his craving for mixing mysterious liquids. Holding his excitement like his need to take a piss, he gently shook the tube on his hand that swirled in fifty shades of green (at least).

Precious minutes of mixing and swirling eventually bore a concoction worth jumping for joy, for the man at least. He gave his excitement the go-ahead to celebrate another giant leap for science (as to the TYPE of science, it's anybody's guess). Gagged laughter turned into outright hysteria as he held the concoction in the air.

"Yes! YES! It's complete! It's finally complete!" he cried. "Restless nights resulted in this glorious day of achievement! No longer shall my colleagues mock me for my impossible ideas. With this, I'll pave the way for the next stage of human evolution! MWAHAHAHAHA!"

He relished in his so-called achievement at least until the long beep of the PA system decided to be an utter killjoy. "Dr. Nakano, you have a patient," spoke the gentle female behind the mike.

"Not now!" Dr. Nakano snapped. "Can't you see I'm celebrating my contribution to SCIENCE?!"

"That can wait, doctor. Ms. Minami can't."

The sheer mention of his patient's name urged him to pour his concoction in an empty vial. Among the vials of not-so-mysterious vaccines. In the dark. In a hurry. If this isn't a recipe for disaster, then the world's standards are too damn high.

A quick fix of his wrinkled robe and hair later, he came out of the darkness clean as he could be. And his timing couldn't be more impeccable with a timid Kotori entering the room shortly. "Um…hello, Dr. Nakano. Sorry to intrude."

"No worries, Ms. Minami," the (cough) good (cough) doctor took his seat. "Please, have a seat."

"Oh, thank you," Kotori sat next to the doctor's desk.

Filing the paperwork on his desk, the doctor departed from his demented persona in the darkness. Rough as his facial hair may be, his presence blew an eerie air that comforted even the most timid. Whether or not he was showing his true colors, the thought never stepped foot on Kotori's mind. If her shaky legs were any indication, she dreaded the conversation that would follow the silence.

"So, Ms. Minami," the doctor read through Kotori's record. "Shall we do it?"

Not exactly a good conversation starter, doc. "W-W-W-W-What?" Kotori lost her nerve on a whim. "I-I mean, uh…n-n-no, that's not…"

With a dull look, he put the record down just for the record. "I mean your vaccination, Ms. Minami."

"Oh, right…that. Ha, ha…"

Breaking the ice did little to change the fact that Kotori and needles don't mix (save for sewing ones, they're fair game). Even with the doctor's assurance, her legs returned to shaking its thigh bone out.

"I promise," the doctor smiled. "It won't take long and won't hurt."

The timid brunette looked up to him. "Can…can we put it off for now?"

"Absolutely not," the doctor said. "A more potent strain of influenza is on a rampage across Japan as we speak. You don't want to come down with the flu when a live show's just around the corner, do you?"

Kotori shrank at such a possibility. She couldn't bear what a supercharged cold could do to the idol group at a critical time, as in the day before a live show. She and the others learned this lesson the rock-hard way not long ago, which took them out of the running. Saying "yes," much less a simple nod, might just keep them alive and kicking in their prime.

Not that her answer would matter as Dr. Nakano began walking back to the back room again. "Stay here. I'll go get the vaccine."

Not a soul dared to know what lies behind the only back room in the hospital. The doctor's patients only had sounds of chaos to go along with their guesses. Kotori, for instance, was startled at sounds like falling books, clattering glassware, and spilling paperwork, which was somewhat normal. But throw in a cat that got stepped on its tail, a dog barking on said cat, and the doctor's tantrums, and it starts getting unwarranted attention.

"Hey! Get off the table!" the doctor struggled amidst the sounds of chaos. "You, stop chasing him! Argh, where did I put that flu vaccine? Wait-wait-wait! Don't touch that!"

The discord continued as the doctor came out, a fresh vial and syringe on one hand…and a broom on the other. Whatever he had to deal with using a broom involved a dinosaur's roar. "Back! Back to the Jurassic age, you! Wait till I've invented time travel!"

He shut the door and all the unknowns behind it. Kotori wasn't about to start asking as she was too busy preparing for the inevitable.

"Sorry about that," Dr. Nakano said. "I haven't gotten the chance to clean the back room. Now, let's get you immunized."

"Okay," Kotori took off her blazer and rolled up her sleeve.

"I trust you won't run away like last time."

"I won't."

In the interest of time, Kotori's flu shot went like creamy peanut butter. Her shoulder stiffened from standing firm against her fear, but now she wouldn't be counted out of any live shows even if the flu wanted her to. Some quick safety reminders and wishes of good fortune for the group later, Kotori excused herself—the last patient of the day.

"That's that, then," he said with confidence, about to pick up the spent vial and syringe. "Now, let's get this out of—"

A stark realization hit him with the force of a semi. The green fluid left on both the vial and syringe looked all too familiar to him. It was his turn to tremble, seeing that he just lost his groundbreaking impact on human evolution.

"Oh no."