bad news unu

due to my very packed schedule, I will no longer be able to update this on a weekly basis. unfortunately, there's just been way too much going on in my life to be able to keep up with it. this makes me really sad because I love writing so much and I love all of you guys, but this can't be my #1 priority anymore like it was in the summer. I've also been in a major writer's block and haven't written anything in over 3 weeks, which is really bad. I'll try my best to get the chapters out within 2 weeks apart now instead of 1, but please be patient with me if the wait is a little longer! once again I'm so so sorry about this, but I hope you all can understand.

so from now on, this story will (hopefully) be updated every 2 weeks now.

It was now a couple weeks after the movie. Hide had only spent the night once at Kaneki's before it, but he took it as a green light to come over and crash whenever he liked. Even though Kaneki always sighed and mumbled something about how he stole the covers, he knew he didn't actually mind. The fond look on his face gave him away each time he showed up at his door with a pillow and a bright smile.

Their nights were spent relatively peacefully; Kaneki would read while Hide watched television or did things on his laptop, which he brought over most of the time now. Hide learned Kaneki was somewhat of a night owl, and more often than not, he found himself curled up beside him as he read later into the night, eyes closed as he listened to Kaneki's soft, steady breathing. It was strange, really, just how relaxing it was hearing someone else breathe.

Kaneki was constantly worried about whether or not he was getting enough sleep by staying up with him—he did still have morning classes, after all—but it was worth losing some rest to be awake with him. When they were sleeping, they were snuggled up in Kaneki's bed, both sleeping peacefully through the night.

But this night was different.

Hide was awakened by an arm to the face, which was unusual. Kaneki rarely moved in his sleep. Cracking open his bleary eyes, he squinted to make out the jolting head of white hair beside him and the thrashing lumps beneath the covers. In his groggy state, he didn't register what was happening at first, but as the dark room slowly came into focus, so did his thoughts.

Kaneki was having a nightmare.

"Centipedes, centipedes everywhere in my ears my eyes my mouth! I can hear the reaper's footsteps, closer, closer," he chanted, as if under a spell.

Hide immediately began to shake him. "Kaneki! Kaneki, wake up!" Panic was beginning to bubble within him. This seemed bad, really bad. He hadn't seen anything like this before.

Hide tore the covers away from Kaneki, throwing them off the bed. He shook him harder, more violently, but Kaneki was shaking just as much without him. His jerky movements made it hard for Hide to keep his grip, but he did nonetheless. "Kaneki!" he cried once again.

Suddenly, Kaneki's eyes flew open and he gasped, taking in all the air his lungs could hold before releasing it all in a scream. The kakugan in his left eye activated, turning his sclera black and his iris red. There was the sound of ripping and tearing, and faster than Hide could blink, four things on both sides of the bed that could only be described as scaly red tentacles were poised for attack, both aimed at him.

Without thinking, Hide threw himself on Kaneki, pulling him into the tightest embrace possible in their given position. He squeezed him as hard as he could, and the screams slowly began to die down. The tentacles—or, rather, his kagune—moved apprehensively, as if unsure what to do.

Kaneki was now panting, chest heaving up and down against Hide's own. Hide murmured comforting things in his ear, repeating variations of "It was just a dream," and "I'm here, don't worry." Kaneki's arms found his back, and they hugged his body so tightly the air was forced out of his lungs. It was incredible how strong he was.

Out of the corner of his eye, Hide noticed the kagune retracting. They scraped along the inside of the bed to get back into Kaneki's body. When they moved, he was sure there would be a large gaping hole where Kaneki had been lying. Well, at least they were getting new furniture for the apartment. They would have to add a new bed to the list of things to get.

"Hide?" Kaneki mumbled as he slowly regained control of himself.

Hide shifted so his face was directly above Kaneki's and smiled softly. "I'm here, Kaneki. Are you okay? Can I get you anything? Do you need me to do anything?"

"I…" Bewildered, Kaneki stared up at him, his mouth slowly opening and closing as he searched for the words that seemed to be escaping him. Hide nodded at him to take his time. "I-I'm fine, really. I just need to stay up for a little while. You can go back to sleep. Thank you."

His smile slowly dropped. "If you think I'm leaving you alone after that, Kaneki, you're wrong. Even if all you need to do is stay awake, I'll stay awake with you."

Kaneki's hands clutched at his shirt. "No, you should really get some sleep. You have cla—"

"I don't care if I have class." Hide's face softened. He moved his hand to place it lightly on Kaneki's cheek. Kaneki looked at him with pain-filled eyes, silently begging him to just comply. "I'll skip it if I have to. If I don't feel like you're okay, I'm not leaving you. Okay?" he finished gently.

"…Okay."

Hide began to slowly untangle himself from the other, Kaneki's tired and bloodshot eyes on him the entire time. His left eye had reverted back to normal, which seemed to signal that the worst was over.

"Wait," Kaneki said as he stood, motioning for Hide to come closer. He complied and leaned down, smiling when a pair of arms wrapped around his lower back. Kaneki pressed himself into Hide, inhaling his scent before breathing a long sigh. "Okay." He released him and stood as well. "I'm going to make some coffee."

They made their way to the kitchen, both tired and weary. "Are they always this bad?" Hide questioned as he watched Kaneki prepare two cups, one black and one mostly cream. Kaneki faltered for a split second, hand holding the cup of water freezing up. He breathed another sigh before resuming his task.

"Most of the time, yeah," he answered. "I haven't had them recently, though, so it was worse than usual. Not the dream, but the experience. It's hard to explain."

"You grew accustomed to them, and when they didn't happen for a while, it was like a slap in the face having another, right?"

"Something like that, I suppose."

Hide immediately picked up on the fact that Kaneki wasn't comfortable talking about the nightmare at that moment, so he dropped it, instead opting to make lighter conversation. "I think the chair and the table were a good choice," he stated, surveying the new furniture. "They're re—"

A pounding on the door cut Hide off, and he turned to Kaneki, who looked like a deer in headlights. "We'll ignore it," he said quietly.

Unfortunately, the door-pounder was there to make himself known. "Hey! Open up the door, you damn brat!" he shouted. "Some of us are trying to sleep right now, so you shouldn't be fucking screaming in the middle of the night!"

"Says the one yelling and banging on a door," Kaneki muttered.

"Open up! I know you're in there! Hey, Kiyoko, help me get this kid out."

Suddenly, a new voice spoke up, this one high and shrill. It belonged to a woman. "Get out here, kid!" she hollered. "If you don't, we're all filing complaints against you!"

Something in Kaneki's eyes changed. "I can't let them complain against me, Hide," he said, voice tight. "I have to go talk to them."

"They only want to cause trouble, Kaneki. If you don't go—"

"If they complain and get others to file complaints against me as well, my landlord will do a check on me and I'll get kicked out. I have a better chance at not having to move if I go out and face them," he explained.

"Kaneki…" Hide tried as Kaneki went to answer the door. He grimaced. Talking to those people would only put more strain on him right now, and that was the last thing he needed. But he reluctantly stood by, watching as the door was opened, revealing a man and a woman who both appeared in their late thirties.

"There you are, you brat," the man snarled, grabbing Kaneki by the shirt. "You think you can just do whatever you want, huh? Well, guess what—the world doesn't revolve around you. Someof us have steady jobs that they need a good amount of sleep for, and screaming and waking us all up when it's two in the morning doesn't exactly work for those kinds of people."

The woman nodded as he spoke. "You don't belong here, kid. You're different."

Kaneki's gaze darkened. "Please let go of me," he said to the man calmly.

"And why should I? Are you gonna keep screaming?"

Hide watched the exchange with fearful eyes. Would Kaneki…do something if provoked enough? And what exactly would he do? This wasn't looking good.

And then, as if sent from the heavens above, someone new—and more importantly, unbiased—appeared.

"I believe it's in your best interests if you release him."

Akira, who materialized behind the two people tormenting Kaneki, radiated nothing short of pure power and control. The man instantly dropped Kaneki and backed away, the woman following suit. Akira stared them down until they finally retreated back into their respective apartments, each muttering crude insults directed at both her and Kaneki. "Are you alright?" she asked once they were gone.

Kaneki nodded. "I'm alright. Thank you, Akira-san."

Akira nodded back in acknowledgement before looking beyond Kaneki and into his open apartment, where she saw a very relieved, very disheveled Hide. "Hello, Nagachika."

Hide gave a small wave and a sheepish grin in response. Well, this was kind of embarrassing. Akira, his former superior, had caught him in another man's home. At night. Okay, it's not like they were doing anything, but it still felt weird and awkward. Especially when she was in pajama pants and a tacky red cardigan, which had been hastily thrown over a yellow tank top with a cartoon cat on it.

And yet she was still as intimidating as ever.

"May I come in?" she asked Kaneki, who hesitated before saying yes and stepping aside to give her entryway. She walked in and took a look around, and Hide half expected her to comment on the lava lamp, but she said nothing, which was oddly disappointing. Instead, she opted to take a seat on the couch. It was evident she was expecting them to sit down as well, so they did, Hide in one chair and Kaneki in the other.

Akira took a deep breath in before heaving a long sigh. She appeared to be as tired as they were. Nevertheless, she wanted answers. "So, I'd like to know what this ordeal was about."

He and Kaneki exchanged glances. Hide recognized the plea for help in the other's eyes. "Kaneki had a nightmare," he answered. "He woke up and screamed, which woke the neighbors up, and they came to complain."

"I see. And what did they say to you, Kaneki?"

Kaneki grimaced. Hide wished he could take on the question, but since it was addressed to him specifically, he couldn't help. "They said I shouldn't be screaming at night and that they were going to file complaints," he said quietly after collecting his thoughts.

Akira nodded. "Unfortunately, I can't do anything to stop the complaints since this isn't blatant discrimination against you. Nagachika, you're aware of Kaneki's state of being, correct?"

"Yeah," he replied, nodding. That was an odd way to ask whether or not he knew he was with a ghoul or not. What would she have done if he hadn't known? "How did you guess that?"

She smiled slyly. "My intuition," she stated. "Back to the subject, I can't intervene as a CCG member because they weren't aware that you're a ghoul. If they were, I might be able to do something. But, even so, my efforts would most likely be futile, as the word would spread and there would be too much pressure for you to move out. That, coupled with the fact the CCG is still reluctant to take actions to help ghouls, makes it pointless to even try."

Kaneki sighed. "What I don't understand is why you're willing to help me, even though you're an investigator."

"The law is more important than my personal feelings as an investigator and a human, Kaneki," she explained. "If this is ever going to work—humans and ghouls living side-by-side—it needs to start by being willing to help each other. If we don't, we'll forever remain separate islands divided by an ocean of hatred and bitterness. While the CCG is rather reluctant to admit it, our main goal now is to be the bridge between those islands. Whether we all sink or swim is up to the rest of society." Then, a few seconds later, "But it appears you two have already figured that out."

A noticeable blush appeared on Kaneki's cheeks, and Hide snickered.

She smiled. "People like you, Nagachika, will make a newer, better world possible. I have hope that the rising generation will be able to cope with ghouls better than us and the older generations. Most of us are already stuck in our ways, it seems. Perhaps someday, ghouls and humans will be able to coexist peacefully. Do you foresee such a day?"

Hide glanced at Kaneki fondly, a gentle smile on his face. "Yeah, I do," he said. Kaneki smiled back wearily. "Maybe it won't happen for a while, but I think it will eventually. I didn't know it until recently, but I've met a lot of ghouls, and they're all just normal people. If they just go about blending in peacefully, I'm sure people will realize that most don't mean any harm."

"Most, yes. While we're on the topic, did you make any progress in your personal investigation of Centipede, Nagachika?"

"O-Oh, you know about that?" He laughed sheepishly. "No, I haven't made any progress for a long time. Has the CCG?"

"We've been led to believe he's either dead or taken on a new identity and is blending in with society. Considering his strength, I'm certain it's the latter. We're having trouble with that. High-rated ghouls are getting a free pass to living peacefully simply by claiming they're a weak ghoul who's unknown to the CCG. It's a real problem. We know some are slipping through, but we can't identify which at the moment." Akira looked to Kaneki, her expression turning dark and serious. "Perhaps you're a bypasser of the system, Kaneki. Could this be true?"

Kaneki's eyes widened. "N-No, I'm not. Wh—"

"I'm joking. Don't get unwound over that. Now, if you'll excuse me"—she stood and stretched—"I'm going back to sleep. It's been nice chatting with you both. Goodnight, you two."

"Goodnight," Hide called as she closed the door behind her. He turned to Kaneki, who looked slightly spooked. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked softly, laying a light hand on Kaneki's shoulder. He tensed before looking up.

"I'm okay," he answered, exhaling a shaky breath. "Just tired."

Hide knew it was much more than that, but didn't press. It was becoming increasingly obvious that Akira's words had a ring of truth to them. Kaneki was most likely a dangerous ghoul who got off scot-free by assuming a different ghoul identity. It didn't make any difference to him—Kaneki was still Kaneki—but it was something to chew on.

He looked over at the abandoned coffee-making supplies in the kitchen. "Do you want to stay up or try to sleep, Kaneki?" he asked.

"…I think I'll try sleeping."

Hide nodded, and they retreated into the bedroom. They both snuggled into each other under the covers, arms and legs intertwined. It was quiet for a moment. Only the sounds of soft breaths filled the silence that didn't feel like the kind of silence you slept in; it was more like something had been left unsaid. And sure enough, Kaneki spoke up a minute later.

"Hide?"

Hide opened his eyes and was met with two gray orbs staring back at him. "Yeah?"

"Thank you."

Those two simple words carried more meaning than Hide ever thought words could. Kaneki wasn't of many words when it came to expressing himself, so the ones he did say carried more weight and importance than all others combined. And it seemed he was fond of "thank you," as he said it to Hide almost on a daily basis. He wasn't always sure what he was being thanked for, but he took it.

Smiling, he shifted to press a kiss to Kaneki's cheek. "No problem, Kaneki."

They fell back into a now comfortable silence before Hide remembered something he wanted to say. "Hey, you know what was really disappointing?"

"What?"

"That Akira-san didn't say anything about the lava lamp. I was legit sad, dude."

"Go to sleep, Hide."

"Are you telling me you don't care about that?! And here I thought the lava lamp was our child. You should be more proud of it, you know."

Kaneki raised his eyebrows in that sassy way of his, the way no one but those who were close to him would expect. It made Hide laugh each time he saw it just because of how much he resembled a disapproving teacher, specifically his science teacher in his second year of high school. "Okay, you're delirious. How did I come to be with such a dork?" he mumbled at the end.

Hide grinned. "And how did I come to be with such a nerd?"

Kaneki sighed fondly, a small smile finding its way onto his lips. "Let's just go to sleep."

He chuckled. "Okay, okay. Goodnight, Kaneki."

"Goodnight, Hide."

thanks for reading!