Laney and Peter sat in the hospital room with Hiro, worrying as he laid there sleeping. Laney stared at what she thought was a stranger with amazement. "I've seen him before."
"You have?"
"Yeah, a month before I sucked up all the gravity in the room and squashed my boyfriend under the bed." She walked closer to Hiro and looked over to Peter. "He told me something was going to happen. I guess that was what he meant. He told me to come back here and then, poof. He was gone."
Peter stared at her as the same concern crossed her face that had whenever she spoke of her grandmother and then at Hiro, knowing why Hiro had appeared to Laney.
Hiro's eyes fluttered opened as he began to look around the room and at the two people before stopping on Peter, who flashed him a smile.
"How you feeling, Hiro?" Peter said reaching for Hiro's glasses and handing them to him, "You collapsed in my apartment last night, you remember?"
Hiro put his glasses on and returned his gaze to Peter, "And you brought me to the hospital?"
"I spoke to the doctors, Hiro you're very sick."
"Yes, I know. Brain tumor, I'm dying. I guess I didn't want to believe I would end up in a hospital bed so soon, but here I am."
Peter stood up and leaned over the railing of the bed, "Look, I know about dying. I've helped a lot of people through this transition. I'm gonna help you with whatever you need. Maybe that's why you came to me."
Hiro's eyes traveled to Laney and a weak smile crossed his face, "Maybe, but maybe not. Destiny has been sending me to different places, different times, to right many wrongs before I die. Maybe destiny has brought me to you, Peter, to fix a problem in your life."
Peter glanced back at Laney and smiled, "No my, my life is fine. I really don't need any fixing. What if you didn't come here to fix me? What if you came here so that I could fix you?"
"I've seen the best doctors in Japan, there's nothing that can be done."
"Maybe not by doctors, the faster I can go. The faster I can get back." Peter said straightening himself and absorbing Hiro's power.
"Go-go where?"
"Just sit tight, okay? I'll be right back."
"Okay."
He turned and hugged Laney. "You stay here with Hiro, I'll be back as soon as I can." Laney hugged him back her eyes never leaving Hiro as she nodded in agreement.
"Hi, Hiro." Laney said taking a seat back in the chair that was opposite Peter's.
"Hello Laney. Do you remember me?"
"Yes, yes I do. At first it was a shock seeing you again and I didn't remember but now you are clearly the guy that came to me a few months ago, warning me and telling me to come back here."
"I did it for Peter. He has wanted you back here for sometime now."
Laney sat up in her chair listening closer to Hiro, "How did you know that?"
"He told me. He has spoke of you quite often, worrying and wondering."
Laney blushed a bit and smiled at Hiro, "Hiro, I think you did it for more than just Peter. You saved me, by telling me to come here didn't you?"
"You and many others, your abilities are needed to help save the world."
"I can barely control my abilities how will they help?"
"You will see, Laney." Hiro smiled and went back to reading his comic book, as Laney sat back in her chair and thought about what Hiro had said. Laney dozed off in her seat with the thoughts of what Hiro said in her head. Laney woke up seeing Hiro gone and headed to Emma's office finding Hiro there staring at a talent show flyer.
"Hiro? What are you doing in here? You should be in bed?"
"I'm trying to help, Emma, she has an ability too." Hiro said standing up and hanging his head.
Laney sighed and put a hand on Hiro's shoulder, "Well, let's help her and then you get back to bed, alright?"
Hiro nodded and got to work making a flyer of his own and placing it on Emma's computer screen. He grabbed Laney's hand and headed towards where Laney had found Peter and Emma playing the piano together.
"Ta-Da!" Hiro said performing a magic trick for a room for of sick children as Laney sat in the back watching as well. "And now to assist Hiro the Magnificent, please welcome to the stage Emma the, also magnificent!" The room bursted into applause as Emma made her way up to Hiro's side, exchanging a few words, Emma's of course being harder to make out then Hiro's.
"Oh, and we are going to need much applause for the next feat of 'magicalness.' I will make Emma, DISSAPPEAR!"
Hiro began his magic trick as the crowd once again burst into applause, bringing a sheet in front of Emma the next minute Hiro dropped the sheet revealing Emma not there anymore. The room filled with amazement as Hiro began looking for Emma, who stepped out from the curtain in the back of the room once again causing the children to applaud once more.
The nurses, Emma, Hiro, and Laney all made their way back to Hiro's room forcing Hiro to get back into his bed. The nurse tucked him back into his bed agitated at Hiro's actions as Emma and Laney watched her. "I don't know what to do with him, a leash, a cage, maybe a cattle prod. Now you keep your Japanese tush in this bed!" the nurse said before leaving the room causing a small giggle to escape Laney.
"I am not a pet."
"She's right Hiro, you're sick." Emma said taking a seat beside his bed, "you need to stop using your power before it kills you."
"My power isn't killing me, it keeps me alive. When I was stuck in my cubicle everyday, wasting my life, that's when I was dying."
"How can you be so focussed helping others knowing what it might cost?" Emma asked raising curiosity in Laney as well.
"I had a friend once, she knew she was dying but that didn't push her off her path. She told me to keep joy and dignity alive even in the face of death. Her name was Charlie. Oh my god, I can't believe I left her off the list."
"What? What are you doing?"
"Paper and pen, Stat! I had a list, a list of all the wrongs I have to right before I die. I can't believe I forgot her." Hiro said writing on the piece of paper Emma had just handed him.
"Hiro, promise me you won't leave until Peter returns."
"Yeah, Hiro. You can't leave before Peter gets back." Laney interjected taking a step forward and smiling as he nodded in agreement. She stepped out with Emma and followed her to her office.
"Peter and Hiro told me you also have an ability?"
"You have one?"
"Well two or three, I was scared of my ability at first as well. Peter helped me, he has always helped me. Hiro did too he sent me to Peter. They are both really great guys and they know what their talking about."
"Yes, they do. Laney, you are lucky, to have a friend like Peter." Emma said sitting down at her desk.
"He's your friend too, Emma. Just as Hiro and I are your friends as well." Laney replied with a smile, "I'll leave you alone, so you can work." She walked back in the direction of Hiro's room stopping at the vending machines to grab a snack. She stopped seeing Emma at the piano once again and decided to listen to the tune she was playing as she nibbled on the candy bar she had gotten and applauded with Hiro once Emma finished.
"Get back to bed." Emma said to him but only witnessing Hiro disappearing.
"Hiro?"
"Oh, no."
"Peter!" Laney and Emma noticed Peter walking towards Hiro's room.
"Emma, Laney." He said turning around to greet them and then quickly returning to his pace towards Hiro's room. "I'm sorry it took so long. How is he?"
"Hiro's gone."
"What?"
"He disappeared, just disappeared."
Peter stood over Hiro's bed ashamed at how long it took him then noticing the piece of paper that laid on the table. "Save Charlie."
