It had been a week after the diagnosis was "found". 009 was still haunted by that dream every single night, but he dare not tell anyone. Sure, they got curious when they heard him shouting in his sleep, but when they came to check on him, he merely lied that he had simply stepped on something and it startled him, or this or that. Every single time, whoever came to check would always believe him.
Except for 002. He always had the urge to tell 009 that he was lying, but he always ended up going along with the rest of the group. So nobody knew about 009's secret… now.
The exact cause of 009's disease was that there was some sort of intestinal wall that was keeping him from absorbing the vitamin B12, so he had to take daily injections.
And boy had it helped. He felt so much better nowadays, hanging out with his comrades some more and exploring the many things Japan had to offer. And throughout all of the fun, those thoughts that had all started at the old church site still lingered in the back of his mind.
And they never left.
00000000000
Morning had well risen by 11:00. Oddly enough, 009 was still asleep by then, and he never slept in past 9:00. Never. And, since 004 was the type of person to take it upon himself to make sure everything is in check, he decided to try and wake up 009 from his little hibernation.
"Hey, 009! Wake up already!" 004 called from the other room.
009 winced as he heard 004's voice. Today was nothing less than a crappy morning. His head would not stop pounding like a giant bass drum. And no matter how hard he tried to clear his lungs, there would always be that urge and need to cough in the back of his throat.
"Ugh… what… time is it…?" He responded groggily.
"You've slept in 'till about 11:00. The latest you've ever slept it 9, so I just wanted to see if you're still alive."
"It's fine-" 009 tried to continue, but broke out in a massive coughing fit. He curled up amidst the tangle of sheets and comforters in his bed, recoiling with each cough. As it progressed, 009 just felt the loss of control of his body. He just couldn't stop. Every single harsh expel of air made it feel as though he was going to start gagging.
004 knew that something was wrong. He let himself into 009's room, only to see the cyborg curled up in his bed, coughing like he couldn't control it.
Thankfully, the awful fit of coughing subsided, but that didn't necessarily make 009 feel any better. Now his head felt like it weighed as much as an elephant, and said elephant was sitting on it. His nose felt as though somebody had deliberately shoved two blocks of led up his nostrils, just so he couldn't breathe. 009 had heard of some cold going around the place, so he assumed that he had simply caught it.
"My God… 009, are you okay?" 004 asked worriedly. 009 nodded.
"Yeah… I caught that cold that's been going around… it's just something I need to sweat out for a couple of days. No worries." 009 said tiredly. He yawned, and snuggled back into the pillows. "I'm just gonna get some rest…"
004 nodded, believing every word. "Well… just call if you need something." He said, and walked out of the door.
000000000000000
"Today's weather will probably storm-" Click. "In other news, the new park was established today-" Click. "Will and Grace will be right back after these messages." Click.
004 lied on the couch, channel surfing and finding nothing that really spiked his interest. Nothing but sitcoms and Christmas specials were what he could find. He turned the TV off, and set the remote on the coffee table. Nothing was on TV and it was rainy outside, so 004 decided to just crash on the couch.
He pulled a small throw pillow up under his head, and soon fell asleep.
-IN 004's DREAM-
Everything seemed so dark, like the inky black sky of midnight was surrounding the empty void that 004 stood in.
"Hello? Is anybody there?" He called out.
His voice didn't even echo. It was an empty void, with nobody there.
Then, a single light turned on to reveal a feminine silhouette. The woman stepped out, only to reveal the short hair and beautiful features of her face. It couldn't be…
"… Hilda? Is that you?" 004 asked.
The woman nodded, and smiled as she approached 004. "Yes, dear…" She said. "I have missed you so. But I have something crucial to tell you."
"W-wait… I thought you died… why are you here?" The German man inquired.
"Albert, love… I came from above. I did what I could; I transmitted a dream to your mind so I could communicate. Now… what I came to tell you…" Hilda hesitated; this wasn't going to be easy.
"Is it important?" 004 asked. If Hilda was coming from above to tell him something, then it must be crucially important.
"009's diagnosis was incorrect." Hilda said in a serious tone. "It isn't over yet."
004 was speechless. After everything before… 009 had gotten so much better… but it was wrong? The diagnosis, the findings, all of it? They were all lies?
"What…?" 004 stammered. "How… can that… be?"
Hilda hung her head in sadness. "I'm sorry… but I had seen it from heaven… and the last thing that I wanted is for you to have to go through any more pain than you've already had… because you've had more than plenty of suffering."
"Hilda, there is no need to apologize. I'm glad you came to me now, so I know that we can find a better treatment for him. But… do you know what the diagnosis is?" 004 asked desperately.
"It's unidentified." Hilda murmured sadly. "Nobody knows what it is… that's why the professor will have to study everything hard… and he may have to come up with a cure himself."
004 nodded in understanding. "It's good to know that we have somewhat of an answer." He said. "Hilda… thank you for telling me… I really miss you, you know…"
"I've missed you so much as well…" Hilda said sorrowfully. "But… at the night of my death… I just wanted to say that you did the right thing."
Hilda tried to continue to speak, but suddenly, there was a harsh, machine-like screech that blared through the area. Countless beams of light surrounded Hilda, and she began to disintegrate, right before 004's eyes.
"Hilda, wait! Isn't there any way that you can stay? Please!" He begged as Hilda continued to dissolve into nothingness. Hilda managed a smile before the last of her disappeared.
"Be strong… for there are many hardships to come… be strong for me, for your team, and 009… I love you, Albert." She said before she completely dissolved.
004 fell to his knees, trying to keep himself from breaking down.
"I love you too… Hilda…" He managed to choke out before everything collapsed around him, and it was all gone.
-END OF DREAM-
Something was shaking 004 as he tried to sleep.
"Hello… wake up, sleepy-head… hellooo… Earth to 004… any day now…" That droning, upbeat voice belonged to no other than 007.
"Mm… what happened?" 004 asked as he sat up and rubbed the weariness from his eyes. "What do you want?"
"I just wanted to tell you that me and a couple of the other guys are gonna go and hang out for a couple of hours. Do you wanna come?" 007 asked. 004 shook his head, no.
"I'm just gonna stay here and sleep." He replied lazily. "Go on out and have your fun."
008 sighed as they walked out. "Y'know, you could have just written a note or something, instead of having to wake him up like that."
The door shut, and 004 relaxed back on to the couch. It felt as though he had heard something very important before, but he couldn't remember…
"It'll come back to me." He said quietly to himself before falling into a dreamless sleep.
