A couple of weeks had passed since Ume had her outburst at work in which she asked Kaneki out on a date. They had settled on a day and finally that day had come. It was a Sunday morning and she stood in her kitchen, looking over everything one more time. A lot of preparation had gone into the meal she made. A lot of pleading had been done to receive the ingredients that she needed.

Every dish was neatly contained and settled into a bag. Her stomach growled at the mere scent of the food. What am I going to wear though?! Ume let her hair down from its ponytail, shaking her coppery curls loose. She had spent an immense amount of time trying to determine the best menu and spent a comparatively smaller amount of time looking at fashion magazines.

Touka is pretty stylish. Could she help me put together an outfit? I could call Irimi-san, but I don't want to bother her. She's so mysterious. Ume stared down at her cellphone screen intensely before scrolling through her contacts. "Um…I was…w-wondering if you could help me," she started.

"What? What do you need help with?" Touka asked.

"Y-you're not busy today, are you?"

"No, but what do you need help with? I'm with Hinami, but if it's an emergency-"

"Ah! I-it's not really an emergency, but…um…d-date outfit…"

Touka snickered. "Seriously? That's what you're so worked up about? Okay, we'll be there soon. I'm bringing Hinami."

Ume said her farewell and turned her attention back to the kitchen. Digging through a cupboard, she found some 'gummy bears' that she knew Hinami would like. Her interaction with the child had been limited, but she was aware of what she had gone through. Ume ran her fingers through her hair to try to loosen her curls and walked quickly into the bedroom. She pulled all of her cutest clothes from the closet and tossed them onto her bed. What am I going to wear?!

When Touka arrived, she found the light-haired ghoul frantically digging around in her makeup bag. "Your date isn't until this afternoon, right?"

She jumped, nearly dropping her cosmetics. "I-I just…um…I want to make sure I look okay! Ah! H-Hinami-chan, it's good to see you!"

The young ghoul frowned, tilting her head. "Ume-chan, why do you look so worried? Do you think you're going to get rejected?"

The thought had been pushed to the back of Ume's mind, but now that it resurface, she winced. "N-no…maybe…I-I'm trying to make this a good date, but…I-I have no idea what I should wear!"

Hinami looked to the pile of clothes on the bed. "What about that pink and white dress? It's really cute!"

Ume followed to where she pointed and lifted the dress. "Th-this one? It's kind of small though…I've had it for a few years. Um…hm. Maybe with stockings, it would look good? B-but what if Kaneki-kun thinks I'm trying too hard?!"

Touka shook her head. "It doesn't really matter what you wear, you know. It's just that you're going on a date with him. He probably won't even notice what you're wearing."

Frowning, Ume turned to the mirror on the wall and held up the dress to see how it would look. Is it too girly though? I wore this when I was still in high school and I've…grown a little. The chest might be too tight. She glanced over at Hinami, who was still looking at the dress. "Hinami-chan, do you want this dress?"

The younger ghoul nodded and eagerly accepted it, beaming with delight. "Thank you, Ume-chan! It's so pretty!"

"Don't I get anything?" Touka joked.

Shift P.O.V

He was nervous. Beyond nervous. Especially when he thought back to the last date that he went on. Kaneki shook his head and reminded himself that Ume was completely different from Rize. She was sweet, nervous, and bubbly. Touka and the others at Anteiku even vouched for her when he asked about the girl.

They had agreed to meet in a park that afternoon. He left his apartment early and decided to wait for her there, sitting on a park bench. I'm really nervous though. She made lunch for us both. I didn't eat in front of her last time…what if I do something weird? But I'm really surprised that she wanted to eat together. Koma said that female ghouls don't like to be seen eating. Kaneki fidgeted with his phone, texting Hide for some encouragement.

Just as he began to question whether or not he was dressed well enough for a date, he caught sight of her coming down the walkway. Color rushed to his face when he saw her. Ume was wearing a knee-length green dress with a white jacket, her ankle boots clicking on the pavement. Her coppery hair was pulled up in a ponytail and she was carrying a rather large bag with both hands.

"S-sorry if I made you wait!" she called ahead, approaching him. "Our lunch…I had to make sure that I had everything. I-I didn't know if you prefer chopsticks or forks so I brought both and…um…K-Kaneki-kun?"

He stifled a laugh and shook his head. "S-sorry."

"Wh-what? Do I look weird?" Ume's lips drew down into a frown as she neared the bench, worry clear in her expression.

"It's nothing. I'm just n-nervous." Kaneki rubbed the back of his neck as she sat beside him, her knee touching his. Does she know about what happened with Rize? I never told her, but Touka might have. I don't really want to hide it from her, but I can't just bring it up while we're on this…date. Just thinking the word made his face heat again with a blush. "S-so do you want to eat here on the bench?"

"Ah…there's a picnic table that I thought would be good. I-if you want to eat there. I just thought…b-because it's farther away from the street so…no one will bother us while we eat…"

"A-alright." Kaneki stood as she did and offered to carry the bag, but soon realized how incredibly heavy it was. How is she able to carry it like it's nothing? He watched her lift it easily and conceded defeat. "Th-that dress really suits you."

"Th-thank you. I wasn't sure if it was too much or…and Touka said it didn't really matter, b-but I had to be sure that I didn't look frumpy, but…ah! You probably don't care about that kind of stuff though! Sorry!"

He saw her looking away as they walked and frowned. "No. I care. I mean, I care about what you're saying; it isn't boring or anything. I tried to dress different, but…"

She looked at his sweater and dark pants, still blushing vibrantly. "Y-you look really good though! I mean…you always look cute so-! No, I mean…um…"

Now they were both averting their eyes as they neared the table. Kaneki silently helped her set out all of the containers and sat watching her portion everything out. The smell of the food made his mouth water and he could hear his stomach growl. "Th-thank you for doing this."

"W-well I really like cooking for people. I know it's usually something that only humans do, but I just…love trying to find new ways to prepare meat and…" Again, she shook her head as if she was embarrassed. "Sorry to ramble."

He smiled reassuringly and was glad when she smiled back. "It's neat though. I didn't know that ghouls cooked so…it's really cool to see what you make. Like the bento. It looked so much like beef you would find in a restaurant that I sort of felt almost human when I ate it."

Her smile grew and she nodded. "R-right? That's why I do it! I want to be able to feel normal so if I can help other people feel normal when they eat, it's perfect!"

"So what did you make? This looks like a lot of trouble." Kaneki felt his heart skip a beat when her expression turned from nervous excitement to sheer delight. She really likes cooking. I wonder how long she looked through cook books before deciding what to make. She seems like she studies a lot of recipes.

"Okay so…I made sliced cuts, seared and drizzled with a hardier coffee-based sauce. I also made a soup from bone, complete with a few chunks of meat that marinated for a couple of days before cooking. Ah! They were pan-seared also so they might have a little crunch! Let's see…I also made some 'gummy bears', my own all-meat variation of sushi, and some crisped skin. I-I hope it tastes alright."

Looking over the meal, his eyes widened a little. She really put a lot of work into this. And it all looks amazing. The two sat across from each other and he lifted his chopsticks to begin eating.

Shift P.O.V

Ume glanced over at him and felt blood rush to her face. He looks so happy. She took a small, careful bite of food as she shyly watched him. It was extremely uncommon for her to eat around a boy. When she did cook for someone else, it was usually Touka or Hinami. I'm eating. With a boy. I made a date lunch for me and a boy. I'm on a date! Her heart began to race and she bowed her head to focus on eating.

"This is really good, Ume-chan."

"Y-you really like it? Which part?"

"All of it. It's all delicious. It's been a long time since I've been able to eat this much. And it…doesn't even look like human meat," Kaneki told her. When he realized how excited he had become, he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. "I-I really appreciate everything you've done for me, Ume-chan."

"It…it's no trouble! I mean…I…um…" Tears of panic formed in her bright green eyes as she met his gaze, her face a bright pink. "Kaneki-kun…I…r-really like you! So I wanted today to be perfect! I-I've never been on a date before! And I've never really…wanted to get close to a boy before so…um…"

He nearly dropped his chopsticks when he heard this, nervously looking at the girl seated across from him. "Ume-chan…I like you, too."

"Wh-what?! Really?" Her eyes widened, the tears trickling down her cheeks in relief. He likes me? He really likes me back? How…is this possible? I can't believe this! She bowed her head, letting loose copper locks fall over her face to hide the intense blush taking over her face. "D-do you…do you want to…um…?"

"Do you want to…er…w-will you…?" Kaneki seemed to be just as taken aback as she was.

Finally, Ume had another outburst. "W-will you go out with me?!" she blurted out, red-faced.

"A-alright!"

The two shared a look of relief and each turned their gaze quickly back to their meal, laughing a little. Although it was clear that they were both happy.