The next morning, Ramona woke up to find Michael had already left. In his place was a note. She picked it up and read it while rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

I couldn't bare to wake you. You looked so peaceful for once. I went on to New York. I wish I could bring you with me. Don't forget you are supposed to sign in at the hospital's front desk by 5. I will be there as soon as I can. I love you, babygirl. Forever and always. Love, Mike.

Ramona couldn't help but sigh. Her brief window of little to no pain obviously wasn't going to last. Her mind had been completely distracted last night, thanks to Michael. She ran a hand through her hair and blushed a little at the memory. This wasn't so bad. If she could keep her mind busy and filled with Michael or dancing, she could work through the anxiety on her own, right? That was her theory.

She snorted at herself. "I'm a big girl. I can handle this myself."

She climbed out of bed and took a long shower and joined Marie downstairs for some breakfast. Afterward, she decided to go out and play with the tigers as long as she possibly could. Anything to keep her distracted from what was to come. She knew once she was admitted into the hospital, there would be no escaping the anxiety. There was medication for that though, wasn't there? She could do this.

A few hours later, she found herself in the Giving Tree. She continued to work on her story about Michael, smiling as she wrote. She felt unstoppable. That was until she heard Derek calling out for her.

"Ray! Where you at, girl? It's time to go pack your bags! Ray?" he called. She stiffened and set her notebook aside and decided to climb higher up into the branches and hide herself in the limbs. "Ray, come on, this isn't funny! Where are you?"

Ramona sighed and decided there was no fighting it. She gave in and slowly climbed down. "Chill out. I'm right here," she grumbled as she jumped the rest of the way down the tree.

"Thank God, I thought you ran out on me. Mike would have my head if I let anything happen to you," he sighed. "Let's head to your place and pack your bags."

Ramona sighed. "Is it that time already?"

"Yeah, but don't you worry. You aren't alone in this, remember? We got you, girl," he winked and she sighed heavily and nodded.

"Thanks Derek."

She slumped her shoulders and allowed him to take the lead back to her house. She leaned against the doorframe of her room while Derek packed most of her things for her. Once he finished her main bags, he moved to her smaller bag for her toiletries.

"So I was thinking, you should teach me a few of your moves once you're back up on your feet," Derek said over his shoulder.

"You want to dance?" she asked surprised.

"Absolutely. I know I will never be anything like you or Mike, but it does look like fun. Come on, what do you say?" he turned to her now and tried to give her the puppy dog eyes.

Ramona laughed as she realized Derek's sad pout had no effect on her. "You realize it will be a few weeks before I can even dance on my own again, don't you?"

Derek straightened and turned back to her bag. "More like a couple months, but yeah I can wait. I've waited this long, right?"

He had mumbled that first part, hoping Ramona wouldn't have caught it. Her eyes widened and her face paled a little. Oh she caught it, alright. "Excuse me?"

"I said I've waited this long…"

"You said a couple of months. A couple…? As in two? No! No no no no…" her head began spinning and she pulled at the ends of her hair while she paced around the room.

"Hey hey, calm down…" he stood up and held his hands up.

"Don't tell me to calm down!" she snapped. Derek jumped back and recoiled his hands. "You have no idea how hard that will be for me not to dance for two…" she choked. "Two…" she tried again and tears sprang from her eyes. She shook her head and her shoulders slumped. "I can't even say it."

"You're freaking out over nothing! Come on, you can get through this," Derek tried to comfort her, but she wasn't listening.

Ramona was looking everywhere except at him. He didn't like the look she had in her eyes. The light that once lit up her gorgeous eyes was now faded and her cheeks became more and more pale each passing moment.

"Ray? Talk to me girl. What are you thinking?" he asked nervously.

Ramona began to back up through the doorway and kept her eyes downcast. "I…" she said quietly, looking for the right words. She couldn't describe how she felt. Two months? How in the world was she expected not to dance for two months? She was only supposed to spend 2 weeks in the hospital, wasn't she? Why couldn't she dance after she left the hospital? "I can't…" she tried again as she continued to back up.

"Ray…" Derek took a step closer with his arm outstretched.

"I can't do this," she whispered. Before Derek could comprehend what she had just said, she turned and bolted out the door. Derek's eyes widened and he chased after her.

"Ray! Come back!" he called. By the time he had gotten out the door, she was nowhere in sight. "Ramona? Please don't do this! Ray!" he called again and began his search for her. "Oh God, Mike is going to kill me."

Ramona had originally run out behind her house until she spotted Derek. Her mind had clouded over. Suddenly she wasn't thinking clearly. All she could think was she needed to get away where no one would find her. If they can't find her, she won't have to go to that hospital and she can continue to dance. She could work through the pain, right? She could live with getting the painful injections as needed as long as she could still dance. She hid behind her trash can in the side yard and watched Derek pace the front before he turned inside. She took that opportunity and bolted across the lawn toward Neverland. She didn't bother going through the gates. She scaled the privacy fence and hid among the trees. When she found a decent hiding place, she sat there to catch her breath until she heard more voices searching for her. The second someone came close to finding her, she ran to find another hiding place. Her adrenaline was at an all time high. She would continue to run until dawn if she had to.

Derek locked up her house and ran toward Neverland. Where else would she run to? He scaled the ranch briefly before setting out an alert to all staff to stop everything they were doing and join in the search. Neverland was a huge property and they had much to cover, after all.

Meanwhile…

"Thank you! I love you!" Michael yelled out over the crowd. He ran off stage and wiped his face with a towel and poured a bottle of water on his face.

"You were on fire tonight, Mike!" Frank patted his shoulder once he entered his dressing room.

"I felt like I was on fire. That crowd was intense! What energy!" he beamed as he changed clothes. "Are my bags ready to go?"

"Yes, Charlie loaded them up already and your plane is fueled and on the runway at the airport," he mumbled through his cigar with a smile.

"Thanks," he smiled and headed out the door. He grinned as he met up with thousands of his fans outside the arena. He took a few pictures and signed as many autographs as he could while he headed toward his ride. "Thank you! I love you!" He blew kisses to the crowd and threw out the peace sign as he climbed into the SUV. "That's one obstacle down," he breathed.

Charlie smiled at him through the rear view mirror as they headed on toward the airport. Once Michael finally landed back in LA, he called Derek.

"Hello?" he panted as he answered.

"Hey, Derek. Why are you so out of breath? Ramona keeping you that busy?" he chuckled.

"Yea, you could say that," he said nervously.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, suddenly serious.

"Um…kind of?" he said.

Michael groaned. "What do you mean, kind of? What happened?"

"Well, I…um…" he scratched the back of his neck nervously.

"You, um what?" Michael grumbled. "Spit it out. Where is she?"

"I don't know," he said.

"You don't know. You…don't…know? Are you serious, Derek? Damnit you were supposed to take care of her while I was gone! Now where is she?"

"Michael, I really don't know! I have the entire staff out scaling the property and I have been since 3:30 this afternoon!" he yelled in a panic.

"Meet me at the gate," he snapped before hanging up. The second they pulled into the ranch, Michael jumped out. He didn't bother waiting for Charlie to open the door for him. Derek ran up to him, still very nervous and covered in sweat. Michael's eyes softened a bit. "Tell me what happened."

Derek took a deep breath. "I was packing her bags for her and she watched on, telling me what she wanted to take and all, and while I was on her last bag, she kind of panicked."

"Why would she panic out of nowhere? What did you say to her?" Michael asked impatiently.

Derek thought for a moment. "I was trying to lighten her mood by asking her to teach me a few dance steps. Then she said I would have to be patient to let her heal for a few weeks, and then I said…oh…" he paused in realization.

"What?" Michael eyed him with his arms crossed.

"I might have mentioned she would be down longer than a few weeks," he said carefully.

"Might have mentioned? How much longer than a few weeks did you say?" he ground his teeth angrily.

"Um…" he cleared his throat nervously. "A couple months?"

"A couple…?!" Michael ran his hands through his hair angrily and pulled at the ends. He paced the lawn shaking his head and biting his lip.

"Mike, I…"

"I don't care, Derek! Find her! Now!" he yelled before storming off to search on his own. "I swear if I don't find her, I'm going to be sick," he mumbled to himself. He searched all areas he knew she loved about the ranch. He went through all rooms in the house, starting with the dance studio. He checked the study, the kitchen, the bedrooms, the theater, even his safe room in the back of his closet. She was nowhere to be found. "Where are you, babygirl?" he said quietly. He wiped away a few tears that gathered in the corners of his eyes as he searched. He ran outside and began climbing the Giving Tree. He wove his way through the branches, making sure not to miss a single branch. When he reached the top, he leaned on a branch and sighed as he scaled the entire ranch with his eyes.

He couldn't think straight. He began to blame himself. He should've been with her. He shouldn't have left her by herself. He knew how scared she was. Maybe he should have brought her with him to the concert. Surely, that would've taken her mind off of things for a while. He wiped away another tear and glanced toward the zoo. The tigers seemed to be pacing around the pen. Michael watched them for a few moments. Maybe they know something's wrong.

"So smart," he said to himself. He paused when he noticed Enrique walking near the pen in his own search for Ramona. Thriller and Sabu stopped in their tracks and growled at him, hackles rising on their backs. Michael raised a brow in confusion. They kept their positions in between Enrique and the inside of their den and neither moved a muscle until Enrique backed away. Michael jumped down and headed toward the pen. Enrique looked up at him as he neared. "Go near the pen again."

Enrique raised a brow but did as he was told. The tigers went from pacing to growling yet again. "I don't understand why they are behaving in such a way," Enrique whispered to Michael over his shoulder. He moved slowly down the fence and the tigers followed his every movement, still keeping themselves in between Enrique and the den. "That is so strange. Why would they act this way?"

"Because they're protecting something," Michael said suddenly as he realized their behavior. They had done this once before when they were still fairly new to the ranch. Michael was still learning just how much meat to give them each day and one day he had given them a chunk as big as they were. They worked on it for a while, but anytime someone would come near them, they began protecting it, placing themselves in between the meat and the intruder.

Michael pushed Enrique back and walked up to the fence. Thriller saw Michael and calmed instantly and Sabu trotted inside the den. Michael was the alpha of their pack. Their mother, so to speak. They knew Michael would never try to take something or cause harm to whatever it is they felt the need to protect. He slowly entered the pen and the Thriller greeted him as if it were any other day. He rubbed his ears and slowly made his way toward the den.

"What are you protecting, Thriller? Huh?" he spoke child-like to the animal and Thriller rubbed against him. "What's in there, Thriller?" he called. Thriller grumbled and walked toward the den, stopping to watch Michael. He was leading him inside. "Good boy," Michael smiled and followed. The second he entered the den, he found Ramona asleep. She was curled up on some straw where the tigers usually slept during the day. Sabu was lying next to her, clearly keeping her warm.

"Oh, babygirl…" he sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes furiously. The second he realized she was safe, his emotions took over. "Good boy, Sabu," he smiled and rubbed his ears. Sabu purred and stood up, stopping to rub against Michael, and then trotted back outside to join his brother. Michael rubbed Ramona's face lightly. "She's ok. Thank God, she's alright," he whispered. He pulled her body up against his and lifted her slowly. Her body was very cold. He didn't want her to get sick. He hurried out of the pen and took her inside. The second Derek spotted them, he called off the search, silently thanking God himself that she was safe.

Later that night, Ramona slowly began to rouse from her deep sleep. She noticed it was dark outside. The last thing she remembered was curling up next to Sabu in a pile of hay. She fell asleep shivering. She noticed she was no longer lying in an uncomfortable bed of straw. Now she was in a comfortable bed, tucked into some heavy blankets. She stretched her legs out a bit and slightly moved her body and froze when an arm tightened around her waist. She looked down and noticed Michael's hand on her stomach. She bit her lip. She knew she was in trouble with him, but he seemed to be asleep. She decided to sleep longer. Maybe she could wait it out and sneak out if Michael got up to use the bathroom or something.

When she awakened for the second time, the sun was shining through the window. She stretched out slowly and this time, she was alone. Good. Maybe she could sneak out and avoid a lecture. She slowly stood to her feet and winced when a jolt of pain shot through her shoulder. She fell to her knees in a gasp.

"Damn," she panted. She sat back against the bed and paced herself for more pain. 'There's just no escaping this. I have no choice but to do this stupid surgery.'

She took a deep breath and slowly stood once again. She knew she had to face Michael and force herself to get to the hospital. She hoped it wasn't too late. For now, all she wanted to do was slide out of his house and make it to hers without being noticed. At least at her house she could sort through her emotions a little better and try to decide how best to approach Michael.

"I know, Saph…What do you expect me to do?" Michael's irritated voice drifted through the house. Ramona snuck to the doorway and peaked down the hall. He was pacing in the living room with his phone pressed against his ear. His face was scrunched up in a scowl, dark circles under his eyes, his hair was a mess. Ramona's face fell instantly. Did she do this to him?

"Look, I know, okay? I've already contacted her doctor. The important thing is she's safe and sound. I will have to talk to her and see when we can reschedule the admittance date."

Ramona gulped and watched him turn toward the kitchen. This was her chance to skip out and get to her house. She slid against the walls until she hit the living room. Michael turned on his heel, still on the phone, and Ramona dove behind the couch. If she wasn't in trouble, this would be fun. She crawled on her hands and knees as Michael walked toward the hallway and turned once again toward the kitchen. Ramona stood again and headed for the door. She hesitated for a moment when she noticed Michael's pajama shirt was unbuttoned, the sun glistening off of his perfect porcelain skin.

"No, you guys don't need to come over. I will handle it and let you know what we decide. Yes…I promise I will. Alright, bye," he sighed as he hung up the phone and tossed it on the couch. He caught a glimpse of Ramona from his peripheral vision and spun on his heel.

Too bad she hesitated when she did. She grabbed the door handle and was immediately frozen in place by one word. "Freeze!"

She stiffened and slowly turned to him. He stood with his hands on his hips, tapping his foot. "Umm…" she mumbled. "Hi…?"

"Hi," he said impatiently. He pointed to the couch and she slumped her shoulders and slumped down into the couch. "How much trouble am I in?" she asked.

Michael felt guilty when she asked this. She sounded like a scared little child. He sighed and plopped down next to her, pulling her against his chest tightly. "Heeps," he began. She sighed and he pulled her away to look into her eyes. "Do you have any idea how worried I was? How freaked out Derek was along with the entire staff?"

She gulped. "The entire staff?"

"Yes. They turned the entire ranch upside down looking for you," he scolded her.

She swallowed hard and a few tears rolled down her pale cheeks. "I'm…I'm sorry…"

Michael immediately wiped the tears from her eyes and kissed her lightly on the lips. "I can see that you are, darling. But why did you run? I thought we already decided that this surgery was the best option."

"I know," she whispered. "But I agreed to this option only because I was under the impression I'd only be down a couple of weeks. Not a couple of months. How am I supposed to not dance for 2 months, Mike? That's…that's torture!" she cried.

Michael bit his lip. He understood exactly how she felt. If anyone ever told him he wasn't allowed to dance for a long period of time, he'd go crazy. Then his eyes caught a glimpse of his bible on the bookshelf across the room. "Who's to say it has to be that long?" he said.

Ramona sat up and looked at him with hope in her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"The bible tells us that so long as we speak against illness or pain, it cannot stay. If you say you'll be down for months, then it shall be. However, if we both believe you will be up and dancing in weeks, then…"

"It shall be," she finished for him. New light came to her eyes as Michael nodded at her. "You're right. All this time I was embracing the pain, I completely lost my way in my faith."

"Tisk tisk," he teased. "You should never lose your faith, no matter what."

"Yeah, I know," she pouted. "I guess we better start praying, huh?"

Michael smiled at her and kissed her head. "Yes, we will pray. But first, we need to reschedule with the hospital and finish packing your things."

"Oh…right," she slowly stood and then looked at Michael with a grin on her face. "Before that, I think we both need a long hot shower. You look horrible," she chuckled. He shrugged.

"Speak for yourself. You look like you spent the night in a barn."

Ramona frowned and threw a pillow at him. "Jerk."

Michael caught the pillow and raised a brow at her. "Now see…you really shouldn't have done that."

Ramona's eyes widened as he picked up a second pillow and began stalking her. She squealed and took off running through the house. Michael chased after her in a fit of giggles. Marie stood in the kitchen with a huge smile on her face. She laughed to herself when she heard Ramona yelp and laugh hysterically followed by Michael's triumphant "Gotcha!"