***Hello, everyone! This is the first Tokyo Ghoul fanfic I've ever posted, but not the first one I've ever written. Still, please don't be too harsh on me, because I'm still learning. I don't own any of the cool stuff, but there is one character that is mine who you'll meet shortly. Without further ado, let's go!
Hide didn't think that anyone would call him in the middle of the night. But when his cell phone woke him up at just past midnight, he still put in his voice box and answered.
"I didn't think you'd call me this late, Kaneki."
"Hide, I need you to come take Ichika back to your house for a little while. Touka's water broke, and I don't want Ichika in the house when it gets really bad for her..."
"You can count on me, then. Need me to call Kimi?"
"I just got off the phone with her. Touka insisted I call her first... I can't blame her, though."
"I'll be there in a few. Don't be too freaked out, okay? Touka's tough, and this is her second time doing this."
"You have a point, I guess."
"Of course I do! Now, keep you kid busy until I get there."
"Bye, Hide."
After Kaneki hung up, Hide quickly put on some clothes. He made sure to cover up his scars before leaving the house.
XxX
Even after all these years, Kaneki was still never good at masking his nervousness. Touka had insisted that she would be fine, but that didn't mean that every inch of Kaneki's body wasn't itching with the urge to go back to the bedroom and comfort her through every contraction.
"Daddy? Why are you worried?" Kaneki was snapped out of his thoughts briefly by Ichika's sleepy voice. Kaneki couldn't blame her for being as confused as she was; her father had pretty much just plucked her from her bed in the middle of a dead sleep and gone to the living room to call Kimi for medical help, then Hide to be the babysitter. Kimi and Nishiki both lived farther away that Hide did, though...
"Daddy..." Ichika said insistently, and Kaneki realized he'd forgotten to answer her. "You know how your mom and I told you that you were getting a new brother or sister a few months ago?" he asked. Ichika nodded.
"In a few hours, your new sibling will be born."
And immediately, Ichika shot off of Kaneki's lap. "I want to be here when they come!" she said, running off back towards her parents' bedroom. Kaneki easily caught her before she could get to the stairs. "You're going to stay with Uncle Hide until the baby's born. Once they come, you'll be the first person to know," he said.
Ichika pouted, but held out her pinky. "Pinky promise?" Kaneki couldn't help but smile as he looped his pinky around hers. "Pinky promise." It was then that they heard pounding on the door.
Kaneki and Ichika both went to the door, and Hide was standing there. "Nagachika Babysitting Service," he joked, smiling behind the cloth. "Thank you," Kaneki said.
"It's no problem. Besides, I always like seeing Ichika," Hide said, holding the younger girl's hand. Kaneki knelt down to his daughter's level. "Be good for Uncle Hide, okay?" he said. "Okay, Daddy," Ichika said. She hugged Kaneki before he all but ran to go be with Touka.
Hide went out to the car he'd finally decided to buy, then gotten Ichika in the backseat before he began driving. Ichika was oddly silent on the short drive over to the apartment Hide lived in. But whether that was from worry or tiredness, the blond wasn't sure. Once they arrived, he decided to ask.
"What's on your mind, buddy?" he asked, holding Ichika in his lap. To his surprise, she was actually on the brink of tears. "...is the baby hurting Mama?" Hide internally sighed, gently stroking Ichika's long, white hair and letting her talk.
"When Mama and Daddy get hurt, they don't want me to be with them... I can help, I can," she insisted. Hide gently wiped Ichika's tears away. "Your mama is going to be just fine. When she had you, she handled it like a pro. She's super strong, isn't she?" Hide asked. Ichika smiled a little. "Yeah... and she's a little loud," she said.
"Well, she used to be a lot loud. And your dad used to be scared of her," Hide recalled. Ichika giggled at the thought of her father being afraid of her mother. "You're being silly, Uncle Hide," she insisted.
"I'm telling the truth," Hide said. Ichika smiled, then yawned, cuddling against Hide. He smiled faintly as he carried her to his bedroom and tucked her in. Her violet eyes were already drooping shut.
"Get some sleep, Ichika," Hide said. Once the little girl was asleep, he went to the couch to try and get some rest as well.
XxX
"Just one more, Touka, you're doing so well!"
Touka squeezed Kaneki's hand hard enough to nearly break his fingers as she bore down. But in a matter of seconds, she felt release, and she fell back into the pillows that had been keeping her upright for the past few hours.
"It's a boy, you two," Kimi said, smiling. When their son began crying, both Kaneki and Touka smiled as well. Kaneki sat next to Touka, careful of the mess on the bed, and held her close as Kimi carefully cleaned up the newborn and examined him in the corner of the room.
"I'm so proud of you, Touka... you gave us a son tonight," he murmured against her sweaty temple, kissing her there. "It's morning, Ken," Touka replied, still a little breathless. Indeed, the sun had begun to rise outside.
Kimi came back with the baby boy, gently putting him on Touka's chest. She immediately held him close, wanting to soothe his cries. "He's perfect, isn't he?" she said. Kaneki gently laid his thumb on his son's soft, red cheek as he calmed down and opened violet eyes to the world for the first time. Tufts of black hair were on his head, poking out from the hat Kimi had put on him when she'd wrapped him.
"Absolutely perfect," Kaneki said, not caring as tears fell down his face. "No matter how many I have, you'll cry every time, huh?" Touka said. Still, her own eyes were glassy with unshed tears.
"Do you guys have a name for him?" Kimi asked.
XxX
Hide woke up on the floor instead of on the couch he'd started on. He stood up and realized that, for the second time, he'd been woken up by his phone ringing. He saw Kaneki's contact displayed, and he picked up right away.
"Well?"
"It's a boy."
"Dude! Congratulations!"
"Can you wake Ichika up and bring her over? Touka wants her to meet him before she gets some rest."
"I'm on the way."
Then, Hide hung up. He found Ichika curled up in a small lump under his blankets, practically drowning in the fabric. "Hey, Ichika, I have good news for you," he said, sitting next to her. His weight on the bed caused her to wake up.
"Nn..." came Ichika's tired, half-asleep mumble. Hide smiled and dug her out from under the blanket pile. "I thought you would be more excited than that to meet your younger brother," he said.
That was all it took for Ichika to wake right up and cling onto Hide, immediately asking all sorts of questions. He laughed, gently prying her off of him. "I'm excited too. Let's go and see him, okay?" he asked, putting the little ghoul on his back. Ichika nodded.
XxX
Touka had just finished nursing her son and gently wiping droplets of milk form the sides of his mouth when the doorbell rang. The baby began to whimper, and Touka soothed him. "Must be Hide and Ichika. I'll be right back," Kaneki said. He gave Touka a brief kiss before going to the door.
Indeed, Ichika was standing there with Hide, and she immediately clung to Kaneki's leg, asking about her baby brother. he smiled and held her hand, leading her and Hide to the bedroom. "Ichika, meet your baby brother, Kota," Kaneki said.
Ichika climbed onto her parents' bed, looking over Touka's shoulder. "Be easy. he's just little," Touka said, gently shifting Kota so Ichika could see him better. The older sister held out her fingers, and Kota held onto one of them with his tiny digits.
"He's so little..." Ichika mumbled. Touka smiled, vaguely remembering the first time she saw Ayato in the hospital. "Do you want to hold him?" When Ichika nodded, Touka carefully helped her hold Kota.
"You're really tiny, for how big you made Mama," Ichika said. "You were even smaller than he was when you were born, you know," Kaneki said, resting his arm around Touka as he sat down.
"But I'm a big girl now! Right?" Ichika asked. Kaneki watched her, wondering just how lucky he'd been to wind up with two healthy child and a beautiful wife. "You're always going to be little to me," he said. Touka smile tiredly, wishing she would've had a camera to capture the moment her daughter and son met for the first time.
Although she didn't know it at the time, she was in luck. Hide had take a video of it, even if the family had been unaware. He'd sent it to both Kaneki and Touka, along with a single text before he left them to rest:
I want to hold him next time.
***I have a few more Tokyo Ghoul ideas that I haven't completely worked out to the point where I can write them. A few of them involve Kaneki and Touka, a few involve Nishiki and Kimi, and a few involve Tsukiyama. Anyways, be sure to leave a review on the way out, and I'll see you all in the next one! Bye!