A long distance from the Ghoul Restaurant, on a hidden coffee shop at district 20, some of the ghouls that managed to escape the massacre that Arima's squad caused were resting in silence, trying to understand what happened there.
Suddenly, one of them decided to speak.
-So… eh, was it really him, Yomo? – Nishiki was lying on a couch, playing with his broken glasses with his fingers.
-It's him, Nishio – Renji Yomo was standing next to a window on the room they were using – both of us checked it, and also Tsukiyama made sure it was him.
-Ah, that useless Tsukiyama… Is he going to survive? – Even though Nishiki said this with an indifferent tone of voice, he really cared about Gourmet's health.
-Yeah, he is forcing himself to eat a lot to regenerate even faster. Knowing that Ken is alive gives him hope.
-And here's me, wishing that he would break after seeing Kaneki beat the shit out of him… well, that's what he always really wanted, right? That sick bastard was into that.
-Am I sick, Monsieur? Such an offense!
Suddenly, the conversations both ghouls had got interrupted by the entrance of the Gourmet, who showed a radiant aspect filled with happiness.
-Couldn't you stay dead on a corner? – Nishiki was throwing derogatory stare at the Gourmet while he was slowly walking to one of the empty couches on the room.
-And do nothing? Never! I shall be part of the squad that rescues Kaneki, of course.
-We haven't decided what to do yet, Tsukiyama – Without taking his sight off the window, Yomo made sure to calm the Gourmet.
-Oh, please! We don't even need to discuss it; we shall rescue him as soon as possible. Kaneki won't belong to anyone else! – Covering his face with his bare hands like a tragedy act, Tsukiyama started to mourn.
-Fucking sick asshole… - Such reactions bothered Nishiki.
-You three never shut up… don't you understand I'm studying? – Then, another ghoul entered the room where the three ghouls were discussing.
-Touka… - Nishiki was the first one to notice her and react.
-Ah, madmoiselle! I bet you support my idea – without changing a bit, the Gourmet greeted her.
-…Touka – Only when he sensed her presence, Yomo decided to look away from the window and confront her.
Both Yomo and Nishiki changed their attitudes when Touka entered furiously to the room, but she rapidly changed to a shady smile staring at the ground when she listened to Gourmet's words.
-…Just shut up already, I have to study.
Without adding anything else, she closed the door and went to her own room on the second floor of the coffee shop, which was closed to public that day. Some minutes had to pass before the 3 male ghouls decided to continue their discussion, only when they were sure that Touka was away and wouldn't hear them. Though, it wasn't necessary, since Touka went straight to her room and closed herself in, laying her head on the closest book she could find. She tried to read it, but after some seconds she noticed that the pages were getting blurred, and even later she realized that the pages were wet, and ended up burying her head on the book, inconsolably crying but smiling at the same time.
-You are alive, you idiot…
Arima explained everything to me, and I can't quite understand everything yet. My head hurts from the stabbing he did, but it hurts less than before. This time they didn't force a reboot on my memories, so at least I retain the memories from my time as investigator. Will I be able to keep living like this? Is there any other life for me out there? According to Arima, nobody besides him knows what happened on the ghoul restaurant, because Leonard fainted before I…. before all that happened. But know I can't stop feeling a tickle on my back, because now I'm conscious of my… abilities. Doctor Kanou… I've been told that it will be impossible that my past memories return, I still keep the feelings from that time, and a lot of hate flowed through me every time Arima mentioned that person. It was him who made me who I actually am, after all.
But it's my decision what I do from now on. Still, I have a lot of fear about all of this. How can I keep faking a human life when now I know that it's not what I am? Should I run away and start a life as a ghoul? I'm locked inside my room; Arima left me alone so I could think about everything. Could it be that he is expecting my rebellion and waiting on the other side of the room with a contention squad? No, I don't think that would happen as he is capable of dealing with me alone. When I open the door, will he be waiting outside with his quinque on his hand, ready to finish me? Ready to end his… personal assistant, that it. Arima, who I always admired. I was nothing but a weapon for him, after all. A freaking experiment that is still alive, somehow.
At least, alive for a while.
If that's the case, it doesn't matter if I think about all of this, right? I just need to open the door and deal with reality. Slowly, I reach the door handle and push the door outside, and just like I thought, Arima is standing there. But there's no sight of his quinque or any weapon for that matter. Am I so weak that he can deal with me bare-handed? But that gives me advantage. If I decided to escape, I believe I could be faster than him, because he left an aperture on his right side, pointing to the CCG's exit. Is it a trap, is he baiting?
-I see that you are finally out, Kaneki. Did you think about it?
He seems as cold as ever. Maybe he would let me escape if I took that route? Right now I don't know what to think about him, because he didn't kill me at the restaurant when I went crazy. Does that mean that he will accept any decision I take?
In that case, I guess I'll do it.
After all, I am…