Hey y'all! Thanks for all your patience and love! Today we're focusing on some people who I've been teasing since I started this fic. That's right y'all, it's the first CCG central chapter!

…

Amon sighed as he sipped on his coffee. Leaning next to the door to room 843 he raked his hand through his hair.

About 2 minutes later his partner, Akira Mado, came out of the room.

"How's he doing?" He asked voice laced with worry.

Akira solemnly shook her head "No improvement."

Amon's eyes filled with grief "I see,"

"He's physically ok to leave. The operations all went without a hitch but his psych eval. . ."

Amon nodded "to be fair anyone could feel depressed after an injury like that,"

"That's the thing Amon, he claims he doesn't care about the injury but I've heard him talk about it before and it's inconsistent. He sees the injury as ugly and doesn't like people seeing his face but he also treats it like it's something precious."

"Most of the best agents have some level of insanity but I can't believe it got its hooks in some like him, especially at such a young age. He used to be so bright and full of life but ghouls broke him too,"

"You know, Juzou is only a little older than him,"

"You're comparing them?! He's that bad? We all know Juzou's- well not the picture of mental stability,"

"He's not even remotely that bad," she said, rolling her eyes fondly. "Are you going to go in and see him?" Akira asked

"Yeah, will you wait for me?"

"Always"

…

Amon braced himself before pushing open the door to the hospital room. "Hey Nagachika, how are you?"

The boys in question didn't respond. Instead he curled further in on himself so he was even less visible under his blanket.

The lights were still off so the room was only lit by the rising sun.

"Do you need anything? Water or maybe something other than hospital food?"

Hide made no move to face him but right when Amon thought he wouldn't react a soft slightly metallic voice answered "eating in front of people is hard. I'm mostly tube feeding at this point."

"Ah, I'm sorry-"

"Don't be. I'm closer to them this way,"

"Who?"

"The person I love most,"

"Ah she must be a lucky lady,"

Hide shifted in his bed so he was sitting up and looked Amon in the eyes before saying "not she, he,"

"Huh- oh! You're gay?"

"Yeah" this time there was a little amusement in his voice. It made Amon a bit surprised by how far voice prosthetics had come. They caught so much detail now.

"Well then he must be lucky"

Hide let out a sad laugh "He didn't evacuate the ward in time. I gave up my face because I thought he might be able to live-" his breath got caught in his throat. "- I- he didn't make it,"

"I'm so sorry,"

He laughed softly again "geez you apologize too much. It wasn't like you were the one who killed him or anything"

"If I ever find the ghoul who did this to you-"

"You won't. . . He's gone now"

For a second Amon couldn't tell if he was talking about the ghoul or his boyfriend.

Amon sighed and leaned against the wall. Unfortunately, he hadn't been paying attention to where he was leaning and suddenly the light flooded the room

He flipped the switch

Abruptly he saw the grizzly wound clearly for the first time. The flesh from below his nose, past his collarbone, and down to his upper chest was completely missing. His lips and most of his cheeks were gone. It was one of the worst injuries he'd ever seen on an investigator who was still alive.

"No! Turn it off! Don't look at me!"

The exclamation pulled Amon out of his stupor and he quickly turned the lights off again.

"Amon can you go now?"

"But-"

"Please!"

"O-ok I'm sorry,"

For the first time since entering the room, Hide didn't tell Amon not to apologize.

…

Hide moved his hand over his scar tissue, he gently stroked the tough red skin.

"I told you I wouldn't give up on you no matter what and even if I have to spend the rest of my life looking I promise I'll find you," whispered to himself.

He paused before chuckling wistfully "Besides I don't want to live in a world that doesn't have you in it, so if you really are gone I'll follow you. I'll always be by your side no matter what,"

"Rabbits die of loneliness"

Yes, he'd always been the type of person to die if he was left alone.

…

Amon and Akira walked to the office together. Amon had expected another day of filing paperwork since his group hadn't had many cases since the owl suppression operation. Evidently though the CCG had other plans because he was called into the chairman's office.

"Sir, what did you want to see me for?"

"Amon, I want you and your team to go educate a private school in Scotland about ghouls. The school values its privacy so before I give you too many specifics they want you to sign nondisclosure agreements. I'm aware your team is currently short-staffed so we'll be adding Tamaki, a new trainee to your group,"

Amon thought about it for a bit before speaking again "Actually sir, I spoke to Nagachika this morning and I would prefer if he could be on our team,"

"Nagachika? Oh, you mean the boy who lost half his face. Is that a wise decision? If I'm correct, isn't he still in the hospital?"

"Yes but he's doing much better. I believe the isolation might be part of the reason his mental health hasn't been great."

"So you believe it would benefit his recovery?"

"Yes I do,"

He sighed "I'll look into it but till then Tamaki's on your team,"

"Thank you!"

…

He'd later let Akira know about the assignment and after hearing that not only was the assignment low risk, it also included an all-expenses paired vacation to Britain, she pounced on the offer.

So that only left Nagachika. He couldn't force him to leave the hospital and frankly, he didn't want to but he desperately hoped he would. He didn't want to leave him cooped up alone in a hospital room for the next few months.

It had been years since he'd been inside a church. After Donato the cross that had once given him comfort became a symbol of pain and twisted intentions hidden behind the mask of a smile. Still, he was raised to be the picture-perfect christian boy and it seemed something from his childhood other than trauma had stuck around as he kneeled on his floor and prayed to god that Hide would be ok.

He'd already lost Takizawa, he couldn't lose him too. Even though Hide was still physically with them he'd seen what survivors' guilt and trauma could do to a person.

When he arrived in the chairman's office the next day it seemed his pleas had been heard because there in front of him stood Hide.

"Investigators you're all up to date on the assignment parameters correct? I trust the paperwork is all done,"

All three of them said yes in their own ways and the chairman sighed as he pressed his fingers to his nasal bridge.

"You're all going to be teaching at a magical school." He said tiredly.

Amon blinked.

What?

…

Hey guys! Did you like this peek at Hide? I've always seen him as needing Kaneki just as much as Kaneki needs him because they have a super codependent relationship. From the outside it almost looks like a normal friendship but the further you look the more you realize neither can live if the other one dies.