Sorry for the short chapter, but something is better then nothing right? I decided to rewrite this chapter and the next few and it took me a while. Uta's muse was a little harder to capture then I thought I would, but I'm happier with the rewritten versions. Sorry if it seems a bit rushed, next chapter will be a bit short too.

Warning: Includes mention of self harm, abuse, and possibly suicide in later chapters.

I don't own Tokyo Ghoul

I probably stared at him for a good thirty seconds before snapping out of it. He must not have read the closed sign. He couldn't have been here to pick up his order, I would have known if it arrived yet. The confusion must have been obvious on my face because he tilted his head and pointed towards the door, the small smile on his face growing wider. Giving myself a small internal shake, I made my way towards the door to see what he wanted. His smile didn't waver as his patiently waited, his glasses still obscuring his eyes from sight. I wasn't exactly sure what it was but something about not seeing his eyes bothered me. It wasn't until I twisted the lock that I realized I had forgotten to put my mask back on.

"C-can I help you?" I asked while opening the door wearily. Of all the times for me to start stuttering...

"Hmmm... I don't know, can you?" he started. "Are you closed already?"

"Oh, yes. I-i'm sorry but we closed early for the day."

"Ah..." he started then trailed off. He didn't say anything for a moment, and I awkwardly cleared my throat to break the silence.

"D-did you come to pick up your o-order? I-i'm afraid that it's not ready yet. " I managed to blurt out after a moment. Curse this nervous stuttering, I needed to get a grip.

"I see," he finally said. The awkward silence stretched on for a moment. "You're Kukiko, right? I wanted to add something to my order, but if your closed I can come back another time."

That's all he needed? Sure adding something to an order last minute wasn't uncommon, though it would make the delivery process more of a hassle. But why did he go though the trouble of coming all the way here just for that? Surely he could have called and asked at any time.

"I guess I'll come back another day then, if it's too much trouble."

"N-no wait." I stuttered out as I opened the doors wider. "Please, come in."

He nodded his head in thanks before stepping inside. "Thank you, I'll try to make this quick."

Moving behind him I quickly re-locked the door so no one else could come in. I led the way towards the front desk where we kept our book for all our orders. Did he want to add something to his order maybe?

"No actually. I'm here for something else." You raised your eyebrows at that. Did I say that out loud?

A nervous cough made it's way to into my throat. "So is there anything I could help you with?"

"I wanted to invite you out for coffee. If you're not too busy that is." he said with a small smile on his face.

His smile grew as my eyebrows shot up to my hairline. He came all the way here, to ask me out for coffee? We've only seen each other once before this and he wanted to ask me out for coffee? I don't know if he was bold or just bored- maybe both? He couldn't really be here for that could he?

"Hello..?" he said waving a hand in front of my face. With a jolt I backed up a bit. Without thinking I grabbed his hand and pulled it away from my face. Huh, he had tattoos on his hands... Wait focus!

Shaking my head a bit, I took a breath before addressing him again. "I-i'm sorry Mr..."

"Just Uta is fine."

"Right, um. Uta... is t-there any p-particular reason you a-actually came here?" I asked while trying not to fidget under his intense gaze. My stutter was coming back full force.

"Hmm... no. I just told you didn't I?" he said tilting his head a bit. "Do you have something better to do?"

This was a joke right? One one hand the look on his face was friendly enough, and he didn't seem like he had a hidden motive. On the other hand I didn't know him, at all. It wouldn't surprise me if he was up to something. Glancing over my shoulder at a nearby clock on the wall I checked the time. I had maybe an hour and a half before I was scheduled to be home. I guess it could be ok. "W-well at the moment, no... as long as it's q-quick. L-let me just get my s-stuff-"

"Good. Let's go."

He made his way to the door and left me standing there. Quickly I grabbed my face mask and bag from behind the counter before running towards the front door. Briefly I locked the door again just as he grabbed my arm gently and tugged me towards the door. Wait did I even finish locking everything up? He tugged my arm again and picked up the pace.

My head began to hurt from trying to process all this. Was I really about to go off with some stranger to go get coffee? Sure we've talked all of two times, if I included this time. But he was still a practical stranger, wait, no. He was a client at work. Oh no what if Mrs. Kenta found out about this? Would I get in trouble for going out with a client like this? Was this even allowed? I barely processed that we were boarding a train as question after question fired off in my head.

It was probably too late to tun back at this point.

The urge to devour her right then and there was nearly overwhelming. He didn't know why he felt the sudden urge to come back to this shop just because of her. The order he placed probably wasn't ready yet, nor did he actually need to add anything to the order he previously placed. He just wanted a reason to come and see her again. Granted he had no idea if she was even working today, but he took his chances. Lucky for him they paid off.

The scent of the human in front of him invaded all of his senses. It was an odd, yet mouthwatering scent. A bit of something sweet, yet homey. If he had to relate it to anything, it would remind him of his own special blend of coffee made fresh from Anteiku. It made him want to drool... it made him hungry. He felt the need to sink his teeth into something, but he knew it would be better to wait. He wanted to savor her taste, to revel in it. He could wait however, he was very patient.