GUYS! GUYS, IT'S WINTER BREAK! OMG, THAT MEANS I CAN ACTUALLY GET THE REQUIRED AMOUNT OF SLEEP FOR A GROWING CHILD. (bye-bye, 3-hour long nights)

I'm so, so, SO sorry for updating! It's called all-nighters, cramming, and procrastinating! Lol. I'm so mature, aren't I?

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Vocaloid. Can I please get one for Christmas? :3

Chapter 17

Miku's POV:

Overjoyed tears streamed down from my eyes as I sighed in relief. I almost couldn't believe what was happening. It was too good to be true. IA was fine. She was going to live. She was going to live!

"Thank you!" I cried. The nurse who had informed me of IA's recovery grinned broadly and patted me on the back. Then, she turned around and shuffled away, shoulders hunched with exhaustion. I also turned around and headed off, except I didn't walk. I flew.

Bursting into the dull, lonely room, I cried, "IA!" She was sitting in bed, and her whole face brightened when she saw me. Still breathless from sprinting down the hospital's long, bland-looking corridors, I hugged her tightly and laughed. "IA! Oh, I-I was so worried!"

IA grinned, blue eyes shining energetically. "Don't be! I'm okay now! I'll be out of the hospital in a few weeks."

"That's great! You have to recover as quickly as possible!"

"Yeah!"

"I promise that I'll come and visit you every day!"

"Thank you."

"And...I'll make leeks?"

"Um..."

"And, I-I'll...I'll ...I won't go anywhere else until you get better." I tried and failed-miserably, I might add- to stifle a huge yawn.

My best friend narrowed her eyes at me in her signature piercing glare. "Are you sure if you're okay?"

"What."

"I'm fine. I don't know about you, though. You didn't stay in the waiting room all night, did you? You should've gone home and get some rest. I mean seriously…one of these days, you're going to tire yourself out."

"Who, me?"

"Yes, you! When was the last time you went to sleep? When was the last time you ate? You should go home right now and get some rest! Yes, Miku, get some rest! Don't look at me like that! You're a growing child who needs proper nutrition and sleep. Come back after at least fifteen hours of sleep and relaxing! "

I stared blankly at the girl who was sitting in a hospital bed, covered in bandages and, by the way, one year younger than me.

"Or I'll refuse to see you!" IA added.

I pouted. "I did sleep. In the waiting room…"

Scoffing, IA crossed her arms. "That doesn't count. I mean, you have to have uninterrupted sleep in a warm, cozy bed. Also, you have to have at least two cooked meals in a row at home! Like I said, if you don't rest enough, I'll refuse to see you!"

I laughed lightly, patting her on the head and, temporarily, pausing her endless motherly rant. "Okay, I promise you that I'll sleep and eat. You shouldn't worry about me, though. It should be the other way around. I mean…I'm older than you, and you're the patient here."

IA rolled her eyes. "First of all, physical age doesn't count. It's the mental responsibility that matters."

"Well, excuse me…."

"Second, just because I'm sitting in a hospital bed, in hospital gown, in a hospital room in a hospital, doesn't mean that I shouldn't worry about you. Because you're just so reckless and childish!" IA reprimanded me, but her tone was gentle and affectionate.

"Alright," I stood up from my chair, rubbing my eyes. "I'll be off then. Thanks. I mean, really, thanks for everything."

"Wait, Miku," IA called. "One more thing. You're coming back tomorrow, right? And you're also visiting Len and Rin?"

I paused with my hand on the doorknob, and then walked back towards IA. "Yeah...so are Luka and Gackupo."

"Well...Can you please tell Len something for me?" IA said.

Len's POV:

Sitting alone in my room, I sighed with boredom, and then winced at the sharp pain in my stomach. The worst of it was over, at least. Now, I would have to wait in this room for two weeks until I could leave. I wondered what my friends were doing…

Bang.

"LEN-LEN!" Never mind, I wasn't actually bored.

Luka-nee attacked me with her overenthusiastic hugs and kisses, while Gackupo flopped down on the foot of my bed, laughing. They were only a year older than me, so why did they have to act like embarrassing parents?

Seating herself on the chair besides my bed, Luka started up her rant. "We brought food for you! It's delicious, isn't it? I bet you're starved! Oh, look at that little bird! The one outside the window, I mean. It's so cute, isn't it? Anyway, I kept on trying to ask the nurses how were you, but they were too busy! But guess what? Rinny's getting her cast tomorrow! I brought hundreds of sharpies so we can sign it! It'll look awesome! What do you think looks better, pink with orange or yellow with red?"

Shouldn't you ask the person whose cast you're drawing on, first? I thought.

" I'm so glad that I took art classes when I was little. So yeah, Rinny can come with us and visit you! And IA's getting better, too! They just told us that she's going to leave in six weeks! Miku's in her room right now! We were in the waiting room all night! IA's hair is very beautiful, isn't it? It's a mixture of pink, blonde, and silver, like this cat I used to have...I wonder how it'll look in a French braid?"

You're comparing a girl's hair to a cat that you used to have...emphasis on "used."

"And then Gackupo went to the cafeteria and brought eggplants for us to eat. I saw this one little slice of eggplant that looked like a face! It looked like you, Lenny, all the way down to that grumpy scowl! And then we made him go buy tuna fish and leeks! I mean Gackupo, not the eggplant. It was so delicious! Food is so awesome, isn't it?"

Luka finally paused for breath and dug a water bottle from her purse. I supposed that her throat must have been burning with thirst after ranting on and on for-I looked at the gleaming watch on Gackupo's wrist- thirty minutes straight.

Ignoring the fact that Luka just compared my face to an eggplant, I took the opportunity to ask Gackupo, "By the way, when are you going back to school again?" He tried to say something, but Luka immediately took control of the conversation again.

"We're starting next week! They wanted to give us more time because they thought we would be in shock because of our traumatic experiences, but anyway! Ah, there are so many things for Crypton Club that we have to catch up on! And, the homework! Ugh! It's kind of hard adjusting back to normal life after all that happened, you know..."

Again, Luka started to chatter. I watched the minute hand of Gakupo's watch move for another thirty minutes. My eyes started to glaze over, but I perked up when I heard Luka say:

"Oh, I have something interesting to tell you! Have you heard of what happened to Meito?"

I leaned forward, interested in knowing the fate of Miku's criminal stepfather. "Yeah? Did they arrest him?"

"No! He-"

Miku suddenly entered my room. "Hi," she said breathlessly.

"Um…yeah. Looks like we should give you some time alone. Luka and I'll just-"

Blinking, Luka replied, "Hi. Bye. We're leaving now. See ya!" She pulled Gackupo by the collar and headed out the door, slamming it hard. I was worried that it would break.

"…"

"…"

Cautiously looking at my expression, Miku took Luka's chair and cleared her throat awkwardly. "How are you feeling, Len?"

"Oh, I'm fine. Thanks."

"Are you sure?"

"Yup."

"Are you really sure?"

"Yeah."

"Are you truly, genuinely, legitimately sure?"

"I am absolutely assured of my own well-being in physical, mental, and emotion state, thank you very much."

Miku raised her eyebrows. "So…what were you guys talking about?" Wow, way to be direct, Miku…

I smiled nervously. "Um…not about Meito. Not at all!"

She bent down so that we were face level. "It's okay, you don't need to hide the fact that you heard about my stepfather's disappearance."

"Okay."

"Yeah."

"Wait…what? He what?!"

She rolled her eyes teasingly, something which she rarely did. "It looks you're starting to become old-fashioned, Len-len. And seriously, what were you guys talking about for an hour, then?"

"Gackupo and I weren't talking. We were just listening to Luka rant." I rolled my eyes back, and smirked.

Miku 's expression turned serious again. "Meito is gone. After we came to the hospital, he was immediately arrested and put on questioning. But when he was brought to court two days later, he managed to escape. The guards are completely beyond themselves. I-I don't know how he did it, but he's disappeared off the face of the planet."

"He...He's on the loose right now?"

"Yes, he is. The man who tried to kill all of us is somewhere on the streets as we speak, waiting for revenge and-"

"This is not a thriller movie." I cut in.

Miku's lips twitched upward in a slight smile. Her eyes remained tired and worried, however. "IA said that I have to tell you this message. I have no idea what's it about, but she said that you would understand. When she was…um…in the operating room…"

I frowned. Why was Miku mentioning that again? It had caused all of us a lot of pain. "What happened?"

Fidgeting nervously, the teal-haired girl said, "She said that, when she was unconscious, she had a dream. It-it had Neru in it. I don't think that they've met, though."

My eyes widened in shock. "What?!"

"What I think, is that IA had a brief vision of...well, she almost died. It's...it's almost impossible. All scientific evidence would point to a hallucination or something like that. But..."

"But...it might be real." I finished for her.

There was a moment of silence, in which we stared at each other blankly, amazed at what could've possibly happened. Then, I smiled. "That sounds like the kind of thing Neru would do…"

Miku returned the smile, relieved that I wasn't upset. "You and Rin went through something similar, too, didn't you?"

I shook my head in wonder. "Yes…and Rin saw her mother, Lily. Do you believe that it was her ghost?"

"Before, I didn't believe in ghosts, or anything like that. But now…I'm not so sure."

Sighing, I pondered aloud, "Ghosts are usually what people would connect to horror stories. If you ask Rin, I'm sure she would tell you about hundreds of horror novels she read, when she was five. But, I don't see why…why are ghosts supposed to be scary? I think that they're just…trying to protect what's dear to them."

"Exactly…ghosts aren't monsters, unlike what most people think. They're just peoples' memories and wishes. Wishes that are so strong, they come true. That's what a miracle is."

There was this really good movie that I based the last scene off of, where Miku and Len talk about scary ghosts. It's called Heaven is for Real.

Anyway, c ya. Don't worry, I'll try to update a few more times in the next two weeks. Winger break FTW! :D

Please review, everyone, and stay tuned for Chapter 18! Thank you!

~Rikasa