~hehehe, here I am again. When you feel like that crazy, creepy stalker fangirl ^-^. It's a wonderful feeling...Sorry this took so long to write...I got writer's block xd~
Kaneki's point of view.
I woke up, drenched in a cold sweat. God, I didn't know how many times I had that same nightmare...The one where Yamori kept on cutting off my fingers and toes. And the centipede in my ear...Dear God I needed to stop thinking about it so much. I clutched the side of the blanket until my breathing went back to normal. Wide-eyed, I stared at the window. It was still dark out. I slowly slid my gaze to the alarm clock, it was only 3:24 AM, but I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep anymore.
I needed to calm my nerves. Maybe reading would help with that. I took out my book and started to read, soon getting absorbed into what Touka called my own, "little world."
Around 5:30 AM, I looked up from my reading as a realization dawned on me. It was Valentines Day. I put my bookmark in my book, my nightmare the last thing on my mind. Should I get Hide something? Was that even appropriate? I didn't even know if I could consider this a date, let alone consider Hide my boyfriend.
Calm down. One step at a time, I told myself. Do I think Hide is my boyfriend? No, I went over it in my head. But I want him to be...I blushed slightly even though it was in my head. I concluded, it wouldn't be right to get Hide something, but, maybe say a small, "Happy Valentines day."
Now it was 8:16 AM, and Hinami was up. Apparently, word had spread about Hide through the apartment. She raced to my room and threw open the door, without even bothering to knock. "Ooh! Onii-Chan, why didn't you tell me you had a date! And on Valentines Day as well!" she giggled and glomped (- hehehe #NoRegrets) me.
I chuckled a little. "You could have knocked," I sighed and ruffled her hair, just to make her annoyed. "And this is why I didn't tell you."
"Don't do that! I'm not little anymore," she huffed.
I laughed a little, but it was a sad laugh. Hinami didn't take any notice of it. "Are you going to get him something for Valentines Day!?" asked Hinami.
I blushed. "No...I don't think we're even going on an actual date," I admitted. Hinami only nodded and got off me.
I had been waiting nervously almost all day for this time to come. It was 5:37 PM, almost six. It would take me around fifteen minutes to walk to the bookstore, so I think I planned my time well. I was about to open the door when Touka walked up to me.
"Hey, don't do anything stupid, okay?" She teased. "Anyways, hope things go well," she gave me a small punch on the shoulder.
I blushed and nodded. "I'll try not to, anyways..." I always found one way or another to mess things up...
She rolled her eyes. "Well, you better get going..."
"Yeah," I agreed and opened the door, taking one last look at Touka's encouraging face before closing it.
Touka's point of view.
I really did hope things went well. Kaneki deserved a chance at happiness. It pained me to see him so depressed everyday, his fake smiles hiding his real frowns. I remembered when Kaneki was happier, before his torture. That was a sore subject...He didn't talk to anyone about it, not even me. But, that was his choice.
I felt like that creepy girl who stood in the background and observed everything, making sure things went as I wanted. Oh god, was that who I was turning into? No, I just wanted Kaneki to be happy.
Maybe I could follow them around on their date just to- No. I wouldn't get too involved, it wasn't my business, anyways.
I heard a knock at the door and turned to answer it. I opened it a crack. It was Yoriko. "Hi!" I said cheerfully and stepped back a little to let her in. She walked in and waved.
"So, how's it going?" she asked. I shrugged.
"Well, Kaneki went out for a date!" I giggled. She grinned.
"Do you have any chips?" she asked. "Sorry, I'm just hungry..."
"No, you ate them all last time. And I didn't need to go out and buy any so..."
"Oh, oops! Sorry, I'm still getting used to the fact that you're a ghoul..." Yoriko quickly apologized. I smiled and gave her a small peck on her cheek.
"It's fine."
Kaneki's point of view.
I shivered slightly as I opened the door to the same bookstore I had been to last night. Hide, who was over at the counter, waved to me. He was putting on his jacket.
"Yo, Kaneki. I was just getting off work," he greeted.
"Hi..." I was glad that I hadn't stuttered, unlike the last time. He smiled kindly. I walked over to him. "So, what did you want to do?" I asked.
"Ah, well, I was just thinking we could maybe talk?" He questioned. I nodded and blushed slightly.
"Okay."
"Here, I know a good coffee shop we could go to to talk, if you want," Hide said.
"Sounds cool," I said. Hide nodded and opened the door for me. We walked out of the bookstore. "How far away is it?" I asked.
"Not far," The blonde reassured me. He led the way as we walked the crowded streets. We walked in the direction of :re, but I thought that was just a coincidence. Until he stopped right in front of the coffee shop itself. "This is it," he smiled at me. "They make the best coffee ever, you'll like it!"
"Actually, I know they do. Because I work here," Hide laughed a little.
"Oh, sorry." He scratched the back of his neck. "Heh, well, do you want to go in anyways?"
"Of course." I opened the door and let him in first. Touka was at the counter, looking surprised as we walked in. She gave me an amused look as if to say, "Well I get to see if it goes well or not anyways!"
"I never knew you worked here, Kaneki! I only knew Touka did," he laughed a little. I could feel a blush creeping onto my face. I sat down and Hide sat in the chair across from me. "So, Kaneki, you like to read?" he asked.
"Mm-hmm!" I nodded. "Do you?"
"Not really, to be honest. But I do like to read manga! ...If you can consider that an actual book," He said.
"So, you work in a bookstore, but you don't like to read?" I asked and laughed a little.
Hide nodded. "Pretty much!"
Touka walked over to us. "So, what can I get for you guys?" she asked. I ordered black coffee while Hide ordered an espresso.
Touka's point of view.
After I got their orders, I leaned against the wall behind the counter, watching them chat and laugh. I sighed and smiled. Kaneki looked happy, and Hide looked as he always did - cheerful. I think it will go pretty well.
Yoriko walked in the shop and walked over to me, smiling. I pointed to Hide and Kaneki. "Hehehe, it was meant to be," I giggled.
She rolled her eyes. "Touka, you shouldn't get too involved," she murmured.
I sighed. "All I want is for Kaneki to be happy..."
"I know, but, still, you need to let things work themselves out," She gently kissed me on the cheek.
"Okay."
Kaneki's point of view.
We continued to talk until it was 7:30. "I think I should get going," said Hide reluctantly. "I have an exam in Asian History tomorrow."
"Oh...okay," I said, a little disappointed that we wouldn't be able to talk more. That was the first time in ages had I felt so light-hearted.
"Don't worry, I'll text you!" He said with a warm smile. "Oh, and I almost forgot..." he said, pulling something out of his jacket pocket. "This is for you!" he said. It was a white envelope, probably with something in it. "Happy Valentines Day!" he said. I blushed slightly, embarrassed that I hadn't gotten Hide anything.
"S-sorry, I didn't get you anything, I just thou-"
"Don't worry about it," He cut me off. His grin widened.
"Hey, maybe I could walk you back?" I asked, a light blush still on my face. Hide nodded.
"Sure, I could use a little company," he agreed. We walked out and onto the still-crowded streets. As we walked by stores and restaurants, I could see couples holding hands, walking side-by-side, and just enjoying each others' company. They all looked so happy...I wanted to be like that. I wanted to be with Hide, holding hands and walking down the street...
"Hey, Kaneki, have you ever read any manga?" he asked. I shook my head.
"No, why?"
"You should! There's one called Attack on Titan, which I think you might like!"
"Oh, okay," I said. I suddenly flashed back to when I had been in Aogiri...I hoped that Hide would never find out. I hoped that he would never find out that I was a ghoul. That I was an SS-rated ghoul called Eyepatch. I swallowed nervously and listened to Hide talk about Attack on Titan the rest of the way to his apartment near the university he went to.
~Okay guys, I'll try to fit another update in to make up for how long this one took today. cx No promises.~
