Miku rubbed her eyes, stretching in her chair. What time was it?
She sighed, and looked at Luka, lying there in the bed, not moving.
Miku was so happy she was going to be ok. She was so happy so much effort hasn't been thrown away. She was so happy the taller girl's sacrifice hadn't been in vain.
She searched for a clock, and possibly a calendar. It was five to four, apparently.
Miku realized she wasn't in her regular clothes. She was garbed in white clothes, not needing a hospital gown or whatever they were called. A simple, white T-shirt and long white pants. Feeling a weight in her pocket, Miku fished out whatever was in there.
Her cellphone. Battery empty, as expected, but the small keychain caught her eye.
The two butterflies hung on the small metal ring, pushing each other and swaying at the slight shifting gravity. Bright blue and bright pink. Had it been in her pocket the whole time? Miku could barely remember it. Has it really been with them through the entire ordeal?
With a smile, Miku detached the ring from her phone. This wasn't a mere decoration anymore, she felt. It was a representation of everything they had done together.
Their whole life these past months felt like the flight of those small butterflies. Never in a straight line, sometimes going up, sometimes doing down, sometimes slow or fast.
Miku's life had been flying slowly, closely over the grass, taunted by another butterfly, Luka. Then, Luka let Miku join her dance over the fields. Sometimes they flew together, sometimes they flew farther apart. And yet…they were always side-by-side, right from the start.
Twisting and turning, they both danced down the cliff, and they both flew through the woods. And now, here they were, resting in the hospital, only to leave and fly again.
Miku felt tears come to her eyes. They really were together, right from the very beginning.
A knock on the door interrupted Miku's thoughts. A nurse let two people in, and Miku felt her breath catch in her throat when she saw who they were.
Luka's parents.
Miku felt shy all of a sudden. These were the first people she spoke with that she really knew, and they had to be Luka's parents. They must hate her for having tossed their daughter over the edge of a cliff. Her shyness turned into fear. These people must really hate her now.
"Hello, Miku" spoke the mother. Miku felt the sound ring strangely in her ear again. Hearing another voice, after so long, it felt…bizarre, still.
In response, Miku nodded timidly, waiting for their sentence. Luka's father cleared his throat.
"We're not going to ask what exactly happened, but we want to know one thing" Miku nodded, willing to answer as best as she could to save her from death. "Do you know why our daughter risked her life for you? Do you know why she jumped after you?" Miku's mind froze.
Miku couldn't find an answer. She didn't have an answer.
With everything that had happened, Miku had never really thought about anything except survival. Now, she realized there were many things she wanted to know.
And this was one of those things.
Why did Luka really save her? At the moment, Miku would have sworn she hated her, but then… Miku honestly didn't know.
"I…don't know, really. I really have no idea" she said slowly, still trying to find a reason.
Luka had no good reason to risk her life for her. But Miku analyzed everything they did together.
Did Luka still feel guilty for pestering her? That could have been it. But, that didn't seem like her. Plus, she knew very well that she was forgiven.
Why would Luka do such a thing?
"We're happy you brought her back" Miku nearly jumped out of her thoughts at the sudden statement. "We understand it was not an easy feat" Miku admitted she couldn't be modest and say 'No, it was nothing!' because clearly, it wasn't nothing.
Miku felt uneasy, all of a sudden. So many questions filled her head in one moment. Why did she jump after her? What happened during their absence? Were they still going to sing?
She felt her gut clench at the last question. Dorian…
"To be honest, we hated you for quite some time. We saw you as the cause of our daughter's death. But now…" said the mother. Miku looked down.
"I did feel guilty, myself" the parents looked at her, puzzled. "When I woke up, I don't think I was able to see the gravity of the entire situation. Just saw everything on the surface. I saw Luka, lying there…" she took a deep breath "and couldn't see how precious she was to me. Then, the next day, I saw how bad we were. I had no idea if she was even alive…I was too scared to check. I felt guilty for doing this to her. I had, and have, no idea why she jumped, but I felt, and feel, that it is my fault. With that on my mind, I couldn't let her stay there. So, when she woke up, but couldn't even peep a sound…" she felt tears come to her eyes. "I felt worse. I had to get her out of there…" she clutched Luka's hand. "I was so scared…"
Miku didn't feel the comforting hands pat her back; she didn't hear the comforting words. She only re-experienced the entire ordeal, and felt every feeling she didn't at the time.
The dark leaves, the lonely nights, the animals, the hunger, the uncertainty if she was waiting for a corpse to wake up. The pain rushed through her limbs, remembering the stinging thorns and the cold nights. Roars echoed through her head, slashes with her spear, the fear.
The utter fear she was experiencing the entire time. The fear of not making it out alive, the fear of not being able to save the person she loved. The fear of having killed the person who had saved her.
Miku felt tears flood down her cheeks. The absolute fear of having lost everything flashed over and over. She bit her lip. How could she sum this up?
Miku choked back a sob, and clutched Luka's hand tighter. If Luka hadn't been there, she would have lost it. She would have lost it completely. If Luka hadn't been there, Miku wouldn't have had a reason to keep her sanity. She wouldn't have had a reason to keep her own life.
Luka's parents looked at the girl cry.
It was surprising. Miku seemed so intact on the outside, but when she remembered what had happened, she seemed terrified.
Was it really so bad? Did the girl really go that far for Luka, their only daughter? Did she survive the fall only to bring her back alive?
Miku continued, to sob, and the mother's gaze drifted off to their linked hands. Miku's hand was grabbing Luka's hand tightly, while Luka's remained…immobile.
Miku must be in great pain, seeing what she had done to her friend, even if it wasn't intentional.
Luka's father regretted feeling hate for this girl. At the moment, it seemed almost reasonable, but now, inexcusable. It was almost as if they were searching somebody to blame for their daughter's sure death. But now, they have a person to thank.
"Come, come, it will all be ok, Luka's going to be fine" whispered his wife. Biting his lip, he surely hoped her words were right.
00oo00
Miku sighed deeply. Luka's parents were really, really nice people. Luka was lucky to have such great parents, such good people to turn to when she had problems.
Miku gently stroked the back of her friend's hand. It was so soft, despite everything they had been through… Miku looked at her own hands. They were scratched, bandaged, scarred probably for life.
Yet, Miku felt a little proud of these scars. They represented her efforts in keeping Luka alive. They meant a whole lot.
Miku laughed at how little things have suddenly become important. Those small wounds, the butterflies…what next?
Yawning, she decided to take a little nap.
00oo00
Days passed, and Miku was always sitting next to Luka's bed. She ate from her lap, and never moved from her spot. Luka's parents came every now and then, but nobody else. Though, that didn't disappoint Miku. She felt happy enough with her sleeping friend.
Luka was gradually getting better. The doctors were seeing positive results, and announced that they could operate on her in a few days.
At the news, Miku suddenly felt scared.
She wasn't going to be able to be with Luka during the operation, right? She was going to have to wait. And Luka…
Luka wouldn't know. She would be scared, and strapped back onto the bed. She could make the operation fail.
Miku chewed the inside of her cheek while Luka slept, unknowing and unaware.
Miku didn't want to wait. She had been waiting for the last few months, but for some reason, waiting for an operation to finish seemed different.
It was because all the other times, she could protect Luka while she rested. She knew what was happening. But now, Luka was going to be put into a room, and Miku was going to wait outside. Miku wouldn't be able to do anything; she wouldn't be able to see what was happening. If anything happened, she wouldn't be there to protect her love.
Miku woke up, rubbing her eyes. Another good night's rest. No school, no alarm, no homework, no worries. Only Luka.
Her most important stretching was interrupted when the doctor entered the room.
"Good morning, Miku. Can I check your wounds?" she nodded, and pushed herself away from the bed a slight bit. She had gotten used to hearing voices again. Now she could listen to a discussion without wincing whenever the tone sounded off.
The man removed the bandages from her face, seeing that the wounds have closed well, leaving no scars. Her arm was still healing, so he put a new wrap around it. When he started unwrapping her feet, he asked.
"Have you tried walking these past days, Miku?" she shook her head. "Good. Please, for the next days, try not to stand. We don't want those wound to open again. And later, you will have to take some exercises to revive the muscles"
"Ok" Miku looked down on her feet.
Blisters, blisters everywhere. Gosh, what has she done to herself? She could barely count her toes anymore.
"Do they hurt?"
"No" he gently touch the top of her foot.
"Now?"
"No" he touched the bottom, and she winced. That…that stung, badly. He gently tested every toe, and she winced every time.
"Well, at least you can still feel them, but it's going to take some more time to heal" he declared, wrapping them back up.
Packing in his little doctor's suitcase, he wrote his notes on a piece of paper.
"So… depending on how fast your feet heal and how fast Luka recovers from her surgery, it can take from two weeks to a month to get out of here" he said. Miku didn't really care how long she stayed, as long as Luka would finish on her own two feet.
Flipping through the pages clipped on the clipboard, he bit his lip.
"Ok, now time to give Luka an x-ray" she nodded, and the man pushed a button. Immediately the speakers announced that personnel was required to bring Luka to the x-ray room number fifteen.
Miku followed as the nurses pushed the bed, rolling on her wheelchair. She could transfer from her comfortable chair to this mobile one, but this one was noticeably less comfortable.
In the room, Miku put on her protection against the rays, and then followed Luka to the machine. She had to hold Luka no matter what, or else the picture could end up as the worst x-ray in history.
Only holding her hand as Luka was scanned, Miku tried to appear in the picture the least possible.
The doctors were amazed by Miku's ability. Whenever she let go, Luka would start a panic, and almost give herself death. So they adapted everything so that Luka could receive her treatment always holding Miku's hand.
They studied the picture as Miku and her protégé were led back to their room.
Miku sat down carefully in her comfy chair. Before being able to do anything else, the doctor re-entered the room.
"Well, she has healed nicely, probably thanks to you. She will be ready for operation tomorrow"
Miku winced. Tomorrow? He saw her reaction, and kneeled by her chair.
"The operation might last a few hours. And unfortunately, it cannot happen with you in the room. We fear the operation might fail if Luka throws a tantrum. Could you tell us what helps her stay calm? Then, maybe we could…" he didn't finish, seeing that Miku already knew what he meant.
"A promise. Before she fell unconscious, I promised her that as long as I hold her hand, we would be ok, that we would live. And, unfortunately, nothing can replace a promise" he looked down to the ground.
"Well, try to prepare her for tomorrow. I will try to schedule it in the morning, so that you could spend the rest of the day with her. I'll give you the official time later" and with that he got up and left the room.
Miku felt fear start no nibble on her conscience.
What was she supposed to do? This could go terribly wrong…
Miku knew she couldn't, under any circumstances, enter that room. Even if she could, she wouldn't. She couldn't stand those trays with knives, tweezers, scissors…those men with those masks in special clothing…it terrified her too much.
Miku looked at Luka's sleeping figure. Without really thinking it through, she leaned towards her ear.
"Luka, how are you?" no reaction, as expected. "Luka, tomorrow…tomorrow they're going to cure you. But I'm going to have to let go. I can't be there with you" Miku nearly jumped when the monitor started beeping faster. Luka really could hear her. Miku didn't know if she should feel relieved or terrified. Calming down her racing heart, she continued whispering. "Don't worry, Luka. Please don't worry. Nothing is going to happen. The doctors are going to do their best; they won't allow themselves to do anything bad. Please Luka, please don't be scared. If you are, then things could go wrong. No, I won't hide it. If you feel scared, then things might go bad. Please know that I'll be with you once I can. I will be right next to you as soon as possible. Please trust me, and don't feel scared" Miku heard her voice crack, and tears roll down her cheeks. "I don't want you to die, after all I did" with a sob, she sat back, fear overcoming her. Biting her nails, she waited for morning.
00oo00
Miku rolled in her chair with Luka towards the room. She hadn't slept a wink, all the possible things that could possibly happen flashing through her mind.
The atmosphere was heavy, and everybody was uncertain. Everybody knew what might happen when Miku let go of her hand.
Miku felt tears come back when the nurses stopped in front of the room. Miku could see doctors inside disinfecting their tools. It gave her shivers imagining those sharp steel objects cutting open Luka's skin.
Miku leaned over.
"Luka, please be strong, don't be afraid. I'll be right by you as soon as possible, ok?" Miku studied her for a reaction. Not one.
Shivering, Miku let go of her palm. Everybody waited for Luka's reaction.
Miku held her breath. Two minutes passed, and Luka still hadn't moved. With a sigh, she spoke into her ear again, relief barely visible through all she fear she was experiencing.
"Good job, Luka. I'll be with you in a few hours. Please stand still for that time. Please" Miku felt like begging, but backed away, and let the nurses bring her friend into the brightly lit room. A tear finally managed to roll down her cheek when the double doors closed with a bang.
Miku spotted a small spot next to the door, and rolled her chair in that direction. She would wait here, no matter what anybody would say.
A minute later, the nurses came back out, and put up the indication that an operation was happening in that room. A blonde woman spotted the girl sitting there, and walked in her direction.
"Hello, Miku" the girl looked up to her, tears in her eyes. "The bond you have with your friend is amazing, you know that?" Miku looked down.
"I don't care if anything is amazing or not" the woman sighed.
"You're scared, aren't you?" the smaller girl nodded. "Don't worry. Think positive. That had saved many patients here multiple times" and with that the nurse left.
Miku chewed on whatever she could get her hand on, even her hands themselves.
Hours ticked by, seconds seeming like years. With every faint noise Miku heard, she imagined a scene in the room that would give her nightmares for life.
She felt alone, truly alone, for the first time in ages.
She didn't know it hurt that much. Nobody here really knew her, her friend were at school, Luka's parents at work, and her best friend, the person she loved with all her heart, was in the risk of dying on the opposite side of the wall she was leaning against.
It hurt.
Tears were streaming down her cheeks constantly, never ceasing. Her nails were almost gone, her hands were covered in red marks, and her hair was getting split edges.
Every hour, she checked the clock to see that only a minute has passed.
It hurt.
The memories of their time they had spent together flooded back. Her smiles, her cries, those sneering eyes that had started it all.
Those sneering eyes that laughed at her misery. Those sneering eyes that had gained a joyous sparkle whenever a tear managed to enter their view. Those sneering eyes that made her life hell.
How she loved them with all her heart.
It hurt.
00oo00
One hour, finally. One hour. Why does it feel like a day?
Miku looked at the people passing. She looked at the sun through the window. Nothing was moving fast enough, time wasn't moving fast enough.
Miku has nothing else to chew on. So she scratched the armrests of her chair, eating the insides of her cheeks. The blood in her mouth had no taste, and the aching of her fingers against the shiny leather wasn't felt. She felt nothing but the numb fear in her mind and the feelings of those countless memories.
It still hurt.
She looked at the door, for probably the hundredth time. Closed, as always. No sound coming past the wooden planks that separated her from her friend.
Thinking about Luka, Miku wondered how she was feeling right now. Lost? Scared? And Miku was still chewing her left cheek about what would happen when she would talk to her.
Miku had admitted to her that she liked her. Did Luka only accept to be with her because she knew she couldn't stand a chance alone? When she would step out of this hospital, would she say that she didn't want to see her again?
The thought had joined her other nightmares about ten minutes ago. She couldn't imagine Luka leaving her.
And, even if she was disgusted by her, then would she still leave after all the things Miku had done? Or would that fuel her disgust even more?
All these feelings were creating a whirlpool in her head. Bad things, one after the other, flashed in front of her eyes. Not one second of rest or peace. An absolute nightmare.
Another glance at the door. Why won't they open?
00oo00
Fear.
Was she going to be ok? Was all this really good?
She couldn't feel a thing, yet she knew she was being prodded with sharp things.
Was Miku really going to come back? Where was she, anyway? Not in the forest, Miku mentioned doctors. At a hospital, then?
Fear.
She hates hospitals. For some reason, they were scary, and way too clean.
All those men behind masks could kill you and leave the building easily. And behind every door was somebody with something bad. The whole place reeked of accidents.
Fear.
Miku said that she would come back soon. And yet, why would she? She had been a burden for the smaller girl for far too long. Why would she look at her? She couldn't do anything anymore, so why hang out with her? What kind of friend would she be?
She would be alone.
Fear.
She was utterly scared.
Where was Miku? How long has it been? How long is it still going to last? Was she really going to come back? Was everything going to be ok?
She didn't know. She really didn't know.
All she was aware of was the heavy fear that was devouring her conscience, numbed slightly by this sweet air she was constantly breathing in.
00oo00
Miku couldn't feel her cheeks anymore. How long has it been?
Three hours. So long…so long. She could barely remember coming here. It seemed lifetimes ago.
Her feet were numb from sitting in this chair for so long. Her butt ached, and her back was crooked. She was very uncomfortable, but she didn't care.
She was staying here till the very end.
A doctor had come up to her to tell her that she needed to go back to her room. She refused, and spat the man away, making it clear that she wasn't leaving.
Nobody understood the endless painful feelings she was swimming in.
Her torment had increased by the minute. What seemed like hell two hours before was paradise now.
A real nightmare. No, that was an underestimation. A nightmare for a nightmare, a feeling of knowing it's the end of all life. Utter, terrible pain and fear.
She could only imagine what Luka was going through.
A doctor emerged from those wretched doors, writing something on a clipboard. Miku rolled up to him. Impatient and desperate.
"And?" she asked quickly, barely understandable. She was sitting at the edge of her chair, gripping the armrests with her numb fingers.
The man smiled.
"She's fine. She'll be perfectly ok in a few weeks. She'll be out here in a few minutes" Miku couldn't have felt better.
She was fine. She was ok; she was going to be perfectly ok.
Miku felt as if she had been freed from a lifetime of prison, sitting years on end on rotting stone.
Miku sat in front of the door, anxiously waiting for her beloved to emerge.
When the bed was pushed past those wooden planks, Miku grabbed for Luka's hand.
It felt unusually cold, or Miku was just that warm from relief. All the doctors smiled at the reunion. Minor as it was, it seemed ten times more precious than it seemed.
"Hey, Luka. I told you I would be back. You don't know how long I have been waiting, how relieved I am. You're going to be ok, Luka. You are going to walk again, move again. I'm so happy that you're going to be fine" Miku kept talking in cracked sentences, tears of shear happiness running down her face. She kept saying how happy she was, how relieved she felt. The doctors only watched with smiles on their faces.
00oo00
Miku woke from her nap. That wait had taken a toll on her well-being. Apparently she had a small fever, but she couldn't care less.
Luka was finally completely well.
Even if she hadn't moved or spoken yet, she was fine. Now, she was resting, and was going to wake up in a few days, said the doctors.
Miku felt really lazy. All she did these past days was talk to Luka and sleep, and eat of course. Sitting around all day, her only worry was her friend's well-being.
Yet, she felt curious. What had the world seen during their absence? Not knowing exactly what she was doing, she called the nurse.
"What would you like, Miku?" asked the woman. Miku slowly answered.
"Do you have any newspapers? Maybe a few from when Luka and I fell, if possible" the woman nodded.
Five minutes later, Miku was handed a whole compilation of newspapers. An entire pile.
"The oldest, the ones from the day you fell, are on top. Today's news is on bottom" said the woman. Miku thanked her, and took the first paper.
The front page was smothered with a picture of them, and huge words were printed all over.
The famous Miku and Megurine Luka take a fatal fall!
Surprising events occurred at the city's cliffs around three thirty in the afternoon yesterday. Apparently, the world-famous singer had been going to school as a regular girl under the name of Hatsune, and had been uncovered on the site. Not a minute after the revelation, both stars had fallen through the railing to their deaths. More details on page 2.
Miku flipped to the page. Pictures of her and a few of Luka, being rarer, smothered the double page, a lot of text between each photo.
Miku, or now known as Hatsune Miku, and the brand-new star Megurine Luka have lost their lives at the bottom of the city cliffs. The events are numerous and confused. Nobody knows what exactly why or even less how everything happened. Apparently a regular student from the public high school, by the only name of Hatsune, was pestered day by day by our star, Luka. She was not particularly tall, had a deep voice and muddy brown hair, with surprisingly bright teal eyes. After a chase, Luka and this mysterious Hatsune character had become friends, about the same time Luka had won the contest. At said event, the winner and star seemed oddly yet uncomfortably familiar. After publishing their duet, the two stars suddenly seemed distant, if only for a day. The class was said to have headed towards the cliffs for a trip. Classmates said that Luka had seemed down, and Hatsune confused. Then, with the arrival of Miku's body guard, the two plummet after a series of confused happenings. Meiko, an old friend of Luka's, was able to sum up the scene despite her confusion and shock. "The scene already seemed odd from the start, almost…gosh, by holy fire trucks… Hatsune-err...Miku seemed confused, and Luka was really down. Then, this huge King Kong of a dude come up in this van and walks towards Miku. We were confused, and when he made her swallow something, Luka suddenly seemed to wake. Miku seemed to be scared out of her wits, as well… They fought a moment, and Miku's voice suddenly sounded like Miku, and her hair was un-painted, almost. The brown just washed away…and then humongous dude just pushes them both over the edge…" All classmates approve of these happenings, except there is another variation, later confirmed by the first. Apparently, Luka was pushed, then shoving Miku, breaking the railing. Luka then jumped after the star. All these happenings are extremely mysterious. We do not know what provoked all this. This is one big mystery.
Miku put down the paper, and looked through the pile.
All the following papers talked about roughly the same, and as the days flew by, they slowly disappeared from the pages. Then, one from a few weeks ago, caught her eye.
They Live!
The two stars seen plunging down the cliff exactly two months ago have reappeared at the memorial dedicated to them. As Miku's manager, Dorian, was speaking his words towards their memory at about noon, the duo have been seen walking out of the forest behind him. No photos have been taken, but witnesses say that they seemed destroyed. Luka was in Miku's arms, not moving, while the latter was all scratched, bruised, and had a surprisingly empty gaze. They walked through the crowd for a good ten minutes, and when Dorian tried to talk to the smaller star, she vividly protested in a wild way, reminding many of a lion protecting its cub. Then, the duo walked towards Meiko, an old friend of Luka's. After exchanging two words, the stars collapsed in front of their friends. Doctors say that they are in a surprisingly well state seeing everything they might have gone through. Both were famished and dehydrated, Luka paralyzed and Miku bearing multiple cuts, and her feet were worn to the point of bleeding profusely. Experts and doctors are at loss for an explanation. They assume Luka must have broken the fall, causing her state, and Miku must have taken them home. But they refuse the fact that they are alive. The cliff, five hundred feet deep, would have killed anything. Even if Luka would have broken the fall, they both should have died in less than a second. They say that they shouldn't, or even couldn't live right now. More on page 5.
Miku put down the paper.
That question was interesting, actually. How did they survive? It was truly impossible.
She quickly ignored the question. The important was that they were both well right now. She didn't care about what should have happened.
She took today's paper from the pile.
Megurine Luka to be operated today!
The two stars have been in the hospital for two weeks, now. Both were resting, Luka surviving thanks to Miku's magical touch.
Miku scoffed. Guess she skipped a chapter. But magical touch? Seriously? It was just a promise!
Shrugging off the idiocy of certain news reporters or whatever they were called, she continued reading.
Luka's paralysis is to be cured today. However, doctors worry about the operation. They say that whenever Miku separates from Luka, the latter starts a panic attack, risking to put the operation in danger. More info on page 6.
Miku sighed and put the papers down. Everybody saw them as a miracle, it seemed.
But now Miku started to worry. She still had to take care of her 'dear Manager'. He was going to be fired for sure. In any case, she was going to fire him, finally.
A doctor entered the room.
"Well, it seems as if you are getting your information up to date. So, what do you think of your own incredible feats?" Miku laughed.
"All I did was survive, and rescue Luka. Nothing incredible!" the man smirked.
"Well, some are starting to say that you two are goddesses. The percent rate of your survival was less than one! It was practically impossible!" Miku shook her head.
"I don't care about what should have happened. I care about what has happened. And what did happen, was that I saved my friend, all the while keeping my skin" he nodded, still smiling.
"Well, I got a call from your manager, he says he wants to talk to you" the atmosphere froze over. It was so noticeable that even a nurse who was passing in front to the room looked through the glass to see what had happened.
Miku absolutely did not want to speak to that man. As long as she's glued to this chair, she's not seeing him for the world.
"I'm not talking to that man" the doctor chuckled nervously as he heard her poison-soaked voice.
"Well, I wouldn't let him, anyway. I don't want you to think about work until you both are perfectly fine. Let's see, another week for your feet, at least, then you can take some walking exercises, then you can leave. So about two weeks for you. For Luka, whenever she feels up to it. She will have to go around in a wheelchair, though. She will take small exercises at home. And slowly rise to her feet. So, you two can leave when you feel like it, minimum two weeks" Miku nodded, letting her anger for her manager dissipate.
"Good. Now, get some rest, you will have plenty of visitors this afternoon"
Miku nodded. As the man left the room, Miku fell asleep, not wanting to think about anything anymore.
00oo00
Meiko was trembling in excitement. The whole class was going to visit Miku and Luka in the hospital. The doctors have confirmed that the two were both strong enough to take that much agitation, both only needing a little time to cure. This would be the first time any of them could ever speak to the two stars in weeks.
Already in the newspapers, they were considered wonders. The surviving duo, the miraculous survivors, the ones who lived, were a few of the many names given to them. But Miku held a few of her own because of her 'magical touch'. Some were saying that because they lived through such an ordeal, they weren't even human anymore, so gained the ability to cure by touch. But of course, that was ridiculous.
But still, for them to live through that…
Now the whole class was silently walking through the halls, as not to disturb the patients.
"I hate hospitals, they give me the creeps" whined Gakupo.
The tall boy had been overjoyed when he knew that they were ok. He was so happy, he even threw a party at his house, and everybody was invited. Of course, the house was a catastrophe in the morning.
"You know, I don't really care right now" replied Meiko.
Everybody was carrying wide smiles at the idea of being able to talk to the two again. They had been greatly missed, and the students were very curious.
"Here they are. Even if we said that you could talk to them, remember; only Miku can speak, and Luka is still unconscious. Miku herself is traumatized by the happenings in the forest, so please; try not to remind her of what she did. We have noted that whenever Miku feels distressed, Luka also carries similar symptoms. So, try to be quiet, and try not to be nosy" said the doctor before opening the door.
The room was big, big enough for the whole class to enter. To the left side of the room lay the bed, with a few instruments next to it. In the bed, and next to the bed, slept the two superstars.
For the first few minutes, everybody observed the duo as they slept.
Miku wore much less bandages then when Meiko first visited. The only ones who remained were on her arm and feet. Luka seemed like she was sleeping, save for the few needles and the beeping monitor next to her.
But what grabbed everybody's attention were their linked hands. So, what the news said was true; not once did Miku every let go of her friend.
Miku moved a bit in her sleep, eyebrow twitching a little. She was sitting in a comfortable chair, her feet from the ground. Meiko felt the craving to sit in that chair; it looked so comfy.
"Were does she sleep?" asked Teto. The teacher answered in a whisper.
"Doctors say that she refuses to leave this spot. She sleeps, eats, and stays here"
Slowly, everybody digested the details. Miku really never left, then.
"Does anybody want to wake her up?" asked Gakupo. Meiko nearly smacked him upside the head.
"Can't you see that they're sleeping? They probably need it, too!" the purple-haired boy huffed. "Look, I know you want to know what happened, but we aren't allowed to ask, anyway. Miku is traumatized, remember?"
Miku groaned when Meiko hissed the words, and started rubbing her eyes. Everybody held their breaths as she sat straight.
"Miku?"
Miku slowly turned in her seat, still rubbing her eyes. She seemed a little confused, but then a small smile cracked in her face.
"M-Meiko?" the brunette grinned. Miku looked at the two boys. "And Kaito…and purple-noodle brain" she slowly mumbled, earning a glare from the insulted friend. "What are you doing here?" she asked slowly.
"Hey, I haven't seen you for weeks, and that's how you greet me?" Miku laughed, still half-asleep. This time, Meiko smacked him upside the head; hard.
"Sorry, not fully awake, yet…" she stretched, and yawned again, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.
"Ah, yes…it's four-thirty" suddenly, she realized. "OMG! How are you guys? How long has it been?" the class was puzzled at her sudden outburst. Was she awake yet? "Hey! I fall from a cliff, trek through a forest, barely survive, the whole time saving my best friend, and I'm not allowed to be a little slow every now and then?" she said with a smirk. Meiko laughed.
"I guess" Kaito rubbed the brunette's head.
"Heh, to answer your questions, we are all fine, and it has been almost three months" Miku smiled.
"Finally somebody reasonable!" Neru stepped forward, Len in tow. Miku blanched.
"You…" the blonde pushed the boy forward, and Miku sat as far back in her seat as possible.
Everybody looked at the monitor as the beeping suddenly accelerated. Wasn't the machine hooked onto Luka? If Miku was the one panicking, why was Luka doing the same?
Miku stared at the blonde boy with fear and anger.
This boy…had caused all this.
"You!" Len backed up a bit, and lowered his head.
"Look, I know this isn't the perfect place to talk about this, and I'm willing to talk about it later, with Luka too, seeing she's been brought into all this… for the moment, I just want to say I'm sorry" Miku relaxed a bit, but kept her angry scowl.
"And why should I believe you?" Neru stepped forward.
"He told me everything. Let me tell you, he has been feeling terribly guilty the first week after you fell. His apology is sincere"
The whole class was a bit appalled by this conversation. What did Len have to do with this?
"None of your business, folks!" said Neru in their direction after hearing the whispers. "But…I have a few questions, that we are all asking ourselves" Meiko knew what she was going to ask.
"Neru, no! You know-"
"I know that your survival was impossible. Five hundred feet, even with trees and water to break you fall, is certain death for any living being. You should have died there and then. But then, the whole story of going through the forest…impossible. You couldn't have survived that. You should have died" Miku looked at her, gaze growing empty. "Not that I wanted you to die or anything like that, it's just that it's exaggerated. It's impossible. It's a feat from a story, not an exploit in reality. How did you live?" Miku looked down.
"I have no answer. All I know was that, after the fall…everything went black. I fainted before I crashed in pure fear, I guess. Then, I woke up…all alone…and Luka was bleeding, not moving…" she started trembling, her eyes getting watery. "All those birds, they kept coming…and that bear…I was all alone" she started falling back into her chair. Everybody saw the memories flood back in front of her eyes. When the doctors said she was traumatized, they didn't exaggerate, apparently.
Neru seemed cold.
"A bear, seriously? You fought off a bear? Wounded, hungry, alone? I'm telling you, you should have died!" Miku looked up at her.
She slowly seemed to regain focus.
"Why don't you believe me?" Neru shook her head.
"Because it's impossible!" Miku looked down at her right arm, and undid the bandage.
A long gash went from her shoulder to her elbow. Even if it was almost healed, they could all tell it was deep. She looked up towards the blonde.
"I had a spear. But the bear managed to make a mark. And look at my hands" everybody focused on her hands.
Scratched, bruised, and visibly tired.
"And final proof" Miku leaned over and undid the bandages on her feet.
The entire class gasped, and the teacher fled the room, seeking a bathroom.
"I did this only by walking. You can say I was tired" said Miku, wrapping the bandages back. Neru scoffed.
"You shouldn't have those wounds. You should have died from the start" Miku grinned.
"Then having them is proof enough that I'm alive, right?" Neru didn't reply, and Miku leaned her head against the free hand.
"Besides, I don't give the smallest bit of care about what should have happened" she looked up into Neru's eyes. "I care about what happened" she knew she said it already, but she'll say it as much time necessary. "I care about the fact that we will both be perfectly fine, and will leave this hospital unscathed"
Suddenly, Miku seemed alert, attentive, almost shocked. She looked down at her hand.
Luka's fingers were slowly wrapping around Miku's.
The smaller girl felt tears come to her eyes, and the whole class stared in confusion.
"That's…the first thing she's done in…weeks" Miku bit her lip. Her first movement, the first sign of life.
Her efforts really, now surely, weren't in vain.
Miku remembered everything she had done. Now, she was absolutely sure that they were all for something. Everything had a reason now. Every drop of blood spilt now had a purpose.
The class watched as Miku cried in sheer joy and relief.
What has she gone through? What hell has she walked past?
"I nearly died" the entire class jumped when Miku threw that out. "I nearly died dozens of times. I don't know how I lived, but I'm sure I grazed death more than once" tears kept streaming down her cheeks, to land on her lap.
The whole class saw the remains of the previous tears, from the days before. Miku had cried dozens of times. How far had she gone, how scared had she been?
The teacher, who had recovered a few minutes before, ushered the whole class outside as Miku looked at their intertwined hands.
Miku was so happy. No, that was an understatement. She was so relieved. The whole world was bright and happy, completely to the contrary of how she was feeling hours before. Then, she shed tears of fear and despair, no it was tears of joy and relief.
Meiko watched from outside, from the other side of the glass window.
What has Miku been through? Bears, death even…what more? Now, she was starting questioning her humanity herself.
And yet, Miku was so happy, right now. The complete smile on Miku's face had brightened the mood immediately.
Everybody knew that the duo had gone through a lifetime of efforts in a few days. It was incredible.
The teacher told them that the bus was to come soon, so Meiko, with Kaito's arm around her shoulder, started off with the rest of the class.
Miku didn't know how long she had been sitting there, just watching Luka sleep, a smile plastered on her face, tears staining her clothes.
Whatever happened, she wasn't alone anymore. Luka was going to come back, they would be perfectly normal again. They would resume their lives, sing and laugh together. It would be as if the whole ordeal had never happened.
The beeping on the monitor increased slightly, but Miku didn't pay mind.
When Luka moved her head, her forehead creasing a little, Miku gasped.
With a small groan, Luka opened her eyes.
Miku stared in wonder. She was awake. After so long, those beautiful blue eyes opened.
Miku held her breath as Luka sat up, using her free arm. She was stunning, a sleeping beauty that had just awoken. Her eyes looked around the room, seeming slightly dazed and puzzled. She seemed to be wondering where she was, how long she had been there.
Miku couldn't breathe. She was as if under a spell, not moving, barely blinking.
Luka continued to look around, like a newborn animal familiarizing with its surroundings. She moved slowly, a little clumsily, but moved nonetheless. She was fully cured from the whole adventure.
Miku continued to watch as she gently touched the covers, and looked out the window. But she felt her heart twist when Luka's eyes met hers.
For the first time in months, Miku was looking directly into those deep blue eyes. They were the most beautiful jewels to have ever existed. If one day the ocean disappeared, Miku would find them in those eyes.
"Miku…"
Her voice rang clear like a bell. New, rejuvenated. Miku felt another tear roll down.
Her heart nearly seemed to shatter when Luka looked away, down towards their intertwined hands.
Miku suddenly remembered. She had admitted she liked the taller girl.
Her gut clenched. What was Luka going to say? What was going to happen?
Miku started drowning in a similar whirlpool of fear like the one from mere hours before.
Scared, Miku tried to take her hand away. She nearly winced when Luka took a firmer grip, keeping their fingers intertwined. The taller girl looked back at her savior.
"Miku"
Luka slowly raised their hands up to between their faces. It seemed almost agonizingly slow as she moved, slowly shifting as their hands broke the contact between their eyes.
Miku had no idea what to do. She seemed lost, afraid, happy, confused. She had no idea what to feel.
Luka twisted her arm, Miku letting her do so. The taller girl studied her own movements, seeming to take in the fact that she was actually moving on her own. And yet her eyes seemed a little empty.
Luka lowered their hands again, but not all the way, and looked back at Miku.
"Luka…?" Miku felt afraid. What was Luka going to say? Or do?
She got her answer straight after. Luka pulled slightly of her hand, and pressed her lips against hers.
Miku was in shock, an explosion erupting everywhere in her body. What did this mean? Did she…?
Miku couldn't move as Luka slowly kissed her. Her movements were slow and gentle, almost careful. As if she were scared of her reaction, yet certain that nothing bad was going to happen.
Miku was appalled. And yet she felt a warm feeling spread through her stomach, spreading through her limbs. She felt extremely happy all of a sudden.
She gently put her free hand on Luka's shoulder, still pretty much immobile, but feeling a numbing bliss.
"Miku…" Luka whispered, breaking the kiss. Miku looked deep in her eyes, and saw what she had always wanted to see.
Love. A gentle, yet passionate love glowed in Luka's sapphire eyes.
"I…" Luka didn't manage to finish her sentence. She seemed tired all of a sudden.
Miku understood. This was the first time moved in weeks, and she just had an operation. It was logic she was exhausted.
"Shhh, it's ok, lay down" Miku pushed gently on her shoulder, feeling like a mother treating her child. It felt nice and heartwarming.
Luka didn't refuse, and lay down on the bed, still looking slightly dazed.
"Miku?" the girl seemed to want answers, all of a sudden, as if she just woke up. Miku smiled.
"We're in a hospital, Luka, for a few weeks already. You have been operated, and now you are completely ok. Now, it's beginning June, almost the end of the school year" Luka didn't react. "Now sleep, I'll stay here"
With a sigh, Luka closed her eyes again, leaving Miku with a warm heart.
