Stitching up gashes with threads of deceive is not the answer, even if the kisses taste like ash.
I'd like to thank Hanten for beta-reading this chapter.
''
It's Not Always Sunshine
6
''
Yoriko walks with guarded caution to the orange-haired male across the street. Hide announced to Touka and Ken that he would escort the equally orange-haired girl home, but not without flirting with her along the way. So, in order to avoid getting into meaningless rants about how a guy and a girl shouldn't go together in the night by her mother, the Kosaka girl suggested that they part ways, but still in the same direction.
There Hide is, at a safe distance, swimming through the wrong path of the sidewalks, having people—an old man even frankly glared at him at some point—looking at him as though he wasn't a resident of Tokyo. He glances at Yoriko, who seemingly enjoying the 'escort', small hums can be heard around her, thanks to his extreme senses for the experience.
Then Yoriko laments the absence of voice between them. The guy is escorting her home, after all, where're her manners? "I-It's a good night tonight."
Yes, Kosaka, stuttering is the new black.
Hide's adequate reaction is to halt and raise an eyebrow at the girl across the road. Really, if that was supposed to be a pickup line, he pities whoever dudes she has dated so far—if there were—because that sucks. Hard. But upon seeing the orange-head's restlessness, he sighs and just go with the play. "Yeah, it is."
After the words leave his mouth, a sound of stomach rumbling whispers to both of them. Yoriko is almost sure that nobody heard the little cry her digestion system made just now, until her wary, bright eyes fall onto Hide's questioning expression. Marvelous, she thinks, pretending not to acknowledge the male's stare on her and continues to walk accompanied by her speeding heartbeat.
After a full minute of blushing and internal self-scolding, Yoriko finally realizes that the guy who is supposed to take her home isn't there anymore. Midnight is around the corner but the road is tireless, cars run across her sight to where Hide was before now empty. The girl puffs her cheeks in disbelief. What if she encounters a ghoul? Honestly, the world lacks gentlemen. With a mental vow to raise her future child as a decent human being useful to society and the Earth, she stomps her school shoes to the ground grumpily. She's still hangry it seems.
Forty seconds into her journey, she sees the dude, just meters ahead of her, drinking a coffee in one hand and offering a newly made croissant in another. "Only one though, how could you are starving just minutes after we got out the café?" Hide asks nonchalantly.
Yoriko isn't certain whether to accept the offer like the graceful woman that she believes she is, or to burn the sweet dessert in red like a mad man, after all, she and Hide just met each other an hour ago. Sure, he might be Touka's friend's friend, but she isn't stupid enough to trust the friend of her friend's friend that soon. Criminality is a serious matter nowadays.
"Come on." Hide rolls his eyes in irritation. "It's not like I'm going for a lame-looking girl like you." When he sees the girl parting her lips to protest and probably to read a well-scripted tirade of his impoliteness, the ghoul takes the swift chance and, once again happening to her, shoves the croissant down her throat. He laughs at her flabbergasted face. "Just kidding, now eat, I'll take you home once your stomach stops imitating Simba."
Rawr.
After gulping one hell piece of the dessert and almost choking in the process, Yoriko carries on with the walk even grumpier then before, if that's even possible. She wonders if one of the Kosaka Rule of Law has just been disgraced. Seriously, an act like that should have been illegal! What if she clogged and... and... She shakes her head, she isn't going to imagine her own funeral. With all the mess inside her head, she forgets to mention how inhumanly fast he is.
Hide chuckles from behind. Gotcha. But he has to be careful, one wrong move and tomorrow's breaking news will involve a dead high scholar found decapitated near a river. This girl's pulse really is something. It's strong, although still weak compared to that emo chick's, yet richer. The smell is really nice that if she gets too close when he's in the mood for a little snack, dangers will ensue. It is a good choice to hunt a week ago; his play is going smoothly.
The orange-haired ghoul is about to ask the human girl if she dyed her hair, it's not every day you have someone with the exact shade of hair as you anyways, until a peculiar thing in the sky steals his attention. He crooks an eyebrow at it. Why is a human flying?
He runs up to Yoriko and taps her shoulder, her shocked response does what they call butterflies for a short while, then he says whilst pointing up above, "Uhh, isn't that your friend?"
No way. "Kaneki-san escorted Touka-chan home, there is no possible way for her to be on top of a rooftop now," refuses Yoriko, making it more difficult for the male to knock into her sense that Touka-chan is doing a back flip airborne just tens meters vertical up her head. He can even hear giggles from above. Cool. Who the hell giggles when there's a ridiculously high chance of them dying minutes later? Kaneki better has a twenty pages essay regarding a flying Tokyo-woman assigned to him soon.
Perhaps due to the tiredness or the absurdity of the moment, Hide gently pushes her chin up so she can witness what he sees. In the back of his mind, the ghoul curses himself for thecliché act he's doing right now, and let's not forget her pulsating blood in her soft veins. Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap.
However, his hunger-induced stupor is quickly broken by Yoriko's panicked outburst. "Oh my God, Touka-chan!" Then she runs, not once looking back, where to he doesn't know, nor he cares enough to find out. One thing disappointing though;
It sucks to have his play ruined by a flying emo chick.
''
"No!" Touka cries, the winds lashing out on her face making it hard to speak properly. She is happy to witness the beauty of the night while being in the air, but getting free radicals into her mouth is a no-no, not to mention the ground is coming closer. "I'm going to crash now!" Even closer.
Ken just stands there, still moping and wiping his running nose while muttering nonsense like 'y-yo-you're human' or 'can I…' but he never finishes the damn sentence and repeats to 'Touka…'
Enough of feeling like Hetare, her bird pet, the blue-haired girl wails. Nice, Ken, throw people around and let them crash, why don't you? Closer. It's still approximately twenty seconds until her neck break, maybe she can text Yoriko to remind her to keep feeding Hetare?
That line of thought is not helping at all. "Ken!"
Addressed guy lifts his head and freezes. "Oh no, Touka-chan!" He can see the girl buys it and an expression of terror adorns her pretty face. He laughs at that. Ah, what a pure virgin.
He dashes leisurely. If voices could kill, Touka's desperate screams would have killed him thrice in the last five seconds. What concerns Ken isn't the risk of her dying—lol, he's fast—but her screams could attract people. Imagine if people see a girl flying. Superman would be an ancient history then.
She flies to a bridge that connects two sides of a big river. His laughter stops. Damn, it'll be hard to catch the girl if there are people around. Eliminating all of the townsfolk won't be a wise option either.
Speeding up, he gracefully avoids public sights, all focus on the falling girl. Why the hell did he think it'd be a great idea to throw her to the air? She seemed like she enjoyed it though, that's actually enviable. Now he understands why Kamishiro Rize told him he was naïve and was even able to beat him. Yes, a female beat him. He didn't dare to face Hide for three whole days after the little incident.
However, he doesn't understand why Touka is stopped midair, and ever so slowly being dragged to the ground by something sinister. For once, Ken sends a prayer to God up there to grant his plea. It was bad enough having no more than one friend—if he could call el idiota Nagachika Hideyoshi that—he isn't going to let God or anyone else take her from him.
"How foolish, Kaneki, don't repeat the tragedy."
There his prey is, being held by the neck by a small girl wearing a white one-piece that reaches his knees and a purple jacket, its veil covering her greenish hair. The human seems unconscious, blood flowing clean from her right arm. Ken lowers himself, getting ready for a fight. "Eto, let her go."
Eto puts up her hands on her mouth in a mocking way, automatically releasing Touka to the floor with a loud 'thud'. "Ah, sorry, I let go of her."
No more words are exchanged after that—no, Ken isn't forgiving when it comes to people he cares, a human friend in particular—as flickers of red shawls make a show on a building's rooftop, alerting Madou Akira who is on her way to buy Maris Stella's, her cat, food. The beautiful blonde frowns at the gleaming sight, unintentionally crumpling a one thousand yen in her hand, a wicked word in mind.
Ghouls.
''
Ayato clicks his tongue in annoyance. Not the least bit enthralled by Hinami's 'request' to go to a date.
"I'm ready," the Fueguchi girl announces hopefully, wearing a pretty pastel dress that goes below her knees, showing off flowery sandals at the ends of her legs. She pulls the prodigy's hands like a child asking to get taken to an amusement park. "Let's gooo," wails her.
He doesn't even lift his orbs from the Physics book he's trying to absorb if not for Hinami's wails here and there throwing his focus into the air. "Not today, Hinami, I've got a test tomorrow."
Her response to his rejection is to pout and park herself under his desk, causing Ayato to feel like he had kicked a puppy. After several "please?" from the little girl below the table, he finally gives in with one condition; that it will not take longer than until 5 P.M and she will leave him the heck alone for the rest of the night.
"But... it's two conditions?" Hinami herself isn't sure if that is a question or a statement.
The two-years older guy just shrugs. "It's still one sentence."
An awkward silence whispers in Ayato's room until she attempts to bargain, "09:00 P.M?"
"No."
"08:30?"
"No."
"08:15…?"
"I'm gonna throw you out if you don't stop."
"08:00?" The still pathetic attempts make Ayato roll his eyes. "I won't trouble you for two days, too!" She makes a peace sign with her fingers, twiddling it playfully on his face.
"Deal." The blue-haired male nods with newly guaranteed assurance and takes his leather jacket in an instant.
The small brunette decides not to bother any further and just head off to the 'date'.
"So, where're we going?" He asks, closing his books.
Hinami's ears perk up, as if she had been waiting for the question to be said. "A place you'll love!" Ayato swears he can see sparkles around her head.
''
Ken purrs happily behind Touka. Earlier today, the ghoul has called her to ask if she had anything to do for the day, which the girl's sole 'yes' acted as a decent reply.
"They weren't bad people," Touka mumbles in a very low voice that if Ken wasn't a ghoul, he wouldn't be able to hear that. She then touches her right hand subconsciously, making her friend's left eye turn black in alarm.
If only Hide was there, maybe they could have taken down Eto. It wasn't an easy task to protect someone whilst trying to kill someone else. If only he wasn't a mere an A-rate ghoul.
He is so absorbed in his thoughts that he bumps into Touka when she stops all of a sudden in front of twin tombstones. He mutters a bashful apologize—he almost hugged her!—as he realizes the blue-haired girl is no longer breathing. He vaguely remembers she was holding her breathing too the first time they met. Does she always do that when surprised or sad?
Blood is starting to drip from her bandaged arm due to how hard she is crushing it.
However, the girl doesn't seem to realize what she's doing. Ken tries to control his instinct as a predator and be the kind ghoul that he strives to be. "T-Touka-chan, your arm—"
"You killed my parents."
''
"You tried to kill me." Eto rolls her eyes.
Juzou chews his strawberry shortcake whole, making the other costumers in the café gasp in horror; someone even starts typing 911 in case his face turns blue. "Well, you killed my father."
"You were so beautiful when devastated, couldn't help it." A sip of her coffee before she continues, "Also, Mr. Cutie-Investigator, your father murdered my dad. I couldn't just forget that, could I?" The silvery white-haired CCG worker growls lowly, with a scary radiance of his naturally red eyes. Eto blushes at that. "Ara, isn't this quite the pretty sight?"
Juzou pouts with his sugar-smeared mouth. He doesn't know how to handle a half-ghoul who walked ever so calmly into the CCG headquarters just to request a meeting with him with a childish smile. Wasting time drinking coffee with his prey isn't something he does regularly, but a job is a job. "So, when can I kill you?"
One of the green-haired girl's eyes turns black and red in response for the question. "Would now be okay?"
Public display of elimination? The young investigator clenches his briefcase even harder. "Nope." If only Shinohara hadn't taught him etiquette of hunting ghouls in public, tens of knives would be targeting the girl's throat right now. She is cunning, he realizes, she invites a meeting at a café in an elementary school area. "Still, Eto-san, it's your fault for killing my father."
Eto growls and bangs her head tiredly to the table, flailing her hands as temporary pillow. "How many times are we going to have this conversation? I already told you who killed my father."
"Yourself, ain'tcha?"
She smirks under her arms, her green locks shake under the yellow light so ambiguously. "Might be."
''
What kind of a 'date' is this, exactly? Ayato wears a bored frown when he faces the girl beside him, who is happily skipping from tomb to tomb, giving a flower each. She waves to him from seventy feet afar. "What are you doing? Help me!"
No, what are you doing? He's convinced she doesn't even know all of them, or any at all. He has no idea where the hell does she get money to buy that much flowers. "Why the hell are we here?"
"To visit the dead," replies her as she hurtles closer to the guy at the far end of the cemetery. Suddenly, a strong wind passes and blows her dress warningly high, making Ayato shifts in unease. "Kyaa!"
And the fact that he spots something he shouldn't ever see. Lucky bastard.
He pretends not to regard it while the blushing girl acts like she had just spilled CCG's greatest secret to Aogiri, a well-known ghoul community in Tokyo. He awkwardly scratches the back of his head and enters the section for 20-30 years old graves. "L-Let's just go."
Don't think Hinami doesn't notice the tinge of red on his face.
When they arrive at their initial destination as she calls it, Ayato's parents' graves, a couple is already there. If it was any strangers, he'd be delighted, but just his fate that he meets his sister one day after he has sent a 'love letter' to her. Fortuna, the goddess of fortune, is a bit unstable deity, it seems.
Touka hasn't noticed their presence yet so he is about to greet—or annoy the hell out of her, same thing—when something off about that guy next to his sister, looking at her bleeding right arm, stops him dead in his tracks. Something he'd rather not know. Something dangerous.
He starts to worry about his stupid sister's circle of friends.
''
I'd love to provide longer chapters, but... Please at least be happy by the AyaHina's scene, yeay!^^
Thank you for those who followed, favorited, and even reviewed! Unlimited gratitude to you:
xxxDreamingflowerxxx; You're very welcome, the same goes for you; thank you, too. I haven't played Zelda yet, but he sure sounds promising! I did, and tbh, my shallow knowledge about Legend of Zelda really frustrated me, so… And yeah, Knawki will have something bite him in the ass later for ruining a normal girl's life lol. Once again, thanks for reading!
jy24; Thank you very much!
Lena-luvs-cats; T-Thanks! (Oh, and I love cats too…) XD
codename00guest; Whoa, thanks for coming this far! Oh, this chapter answers your question^^
wisegirl0603; Thank you, I hope I will.
I'mAStrangerRead (Guest); Yea bro thx oh no English aint my forte, but seriously, thank you :D
AlphaKiller – Leon; Thanks so much! And the answer to that question lies within this very chapter… (Anyways, thanks for reminding me to inform Kaneki's rate^^)
Orang (Guest); ye bazeng mending gausah sekalian wasyuhhh. Untung orang indo dikit yg baca ff gua hehehe jadi gak ketauan amat jayusnya WKWKWK btw review lu nyepam tas, lu aja ga baca ff-nya #feels
Aye, this chapter foreshadows something. Have a good day!
So, kind readers, any thought?
05/11/2016 ¬NollyLvn