Chapter 13
Today was the day that Morie returned to Anteiku after being held up in her apartment. She had the chance to go the day prior after she attended a lecture on the chemical functions of the body but decided against it when a person accidentally bumped into her which sent waves of pain up her spine.
Just as the bell announcing her entrance rang everyone looked up at her and she became as still as a statue. It just so happened to be that at that time everyone in Anteiku was a ghoul. One by one some of the customers came up to her.
"I thought you were human the entire time!" some random man said to her as he began patting her on the back. Morie just stood there glancing around the café. She made eye contact with Kaneki who gave here a sheepish grin before sliding into the kitchen out of sight until the scene had quieted down a bit. The register was left to Yoshimura. "Fighting off a Dove. You have some guts," the guy continued.
At that comment her eyes darted to him and she grabbed his wrist firmly. All that patting was aggravating her back. "That's not what happened," she stated harshly but her tone changed slightly with her next sentence. "I do however appreciate the praise but unfortunately I am still recovering from my wounds and thus would like time to myself." She released the man's wrist with a forced smile.
Hearing this the ghouls around her began to back away making room for Morie to walk up to the counter. Yoshimura smiled at her as she told the elder ghoul her order. Digging into her pockets, Morie grabbed a handful of loose yen coins and began counting the 480yen which was needed before giving up and placing a single 500yen coin down instead. With careful movements Yoshimura printed the receipt and handed it to Morie. Two 10yen coins held it down.
A moment later Morie took her usual seat and waited for her coffee to come. Whilst she waited her phone caught her attention as she scrolled through pages of articles. It was only when a cup was placed in front of her, she glanced up. Kaneki stood there with a soft smile.
"Do you mind if I join you?" he asked. "The Manager told me to take a break."
Morie gestured for her friend to sit. Kaneki slid the chair out and gracefully took a seat. At the same time Morie put away her phone and watched his movements.
After taking a sip of the coffee and flinching due to the heat, Morie spoke. "I thank you for the book and the bookmark."
Kaneki's smile widened. "I'm glad you like them." He tilted his head down as his smile faded. "I'm sorry about what happened."
"You already have apologised. Although I am serious when I say that I want new clothes. Nothing fancy, just an outfit to replace the other one." She took another sip as he raised his head.
It was at this point in time that the café's door slammed open. Everyone in the area looked in that direction. In the doorframe stood Touka. Her hair looked windswept and her chest puffed in and out at an uneven pace. As the girl marched up to the table near the stairs both Kaneki and Morie glanced at each other, eyebrows knitted together in confusion.
"Hey, you two!" Touka slammed her hands down on the table with a thunk. Morie was thankful that she was holding her cup rather than having it on the saucer because if it were on the table some of it would have been spilled. "You're coming with me."
"You can at least call us by our names," muttered Kaneki as he rolled his eyes but begrudgingly got up and walked over to Yoshimura.
Morie's eyes narrowed as she glanced at Touka who stood there cross armed. She began gulping down the coffee. "So, what do you need us for?"
"Look, I just need your help," Touka huffed as Kaneki returned with his bag holding his belongings.
Seeing this Morie gulped down the rest of her coffee before placing the empty cup back on the saucer and picking up her bag.
They walked out into the street and wind immediately started to ruffle their hair. It was just that time of the year when autumn was turning into winter. The air had gotten chillier and it would continue to get colder until eventually snow would begin to pile up. Touka was determined to push her way through the gusts of wind with a hurry.
"Where are we going?" asked Kaneki as he too tried his best to fight the wind.
"Just shut up. We are nearly there already!"
"We better be," growled Morie, hands clutching the strap of her bag as they began to shiver.
Sure enough, in a matter of minutes the trio found themselves at the entrance of a large supermarket. Immediately they entered. The entrance was pretty standard. There were shelves and open fridges full of the latest seasonal fruits, vegetables, tofu, meats and dairy products. Nestled in behind that were freezers hosting more vegetables and meats but Morie knew it well for being the place she could pick up ice-cream. Of course, there were isles containing grains, cleaning products, snacks and other items. There was even an area out near the registers where flowers, cards and seasonal products were being displayed.
"Really?" Morie said as she turned towards Touka.
The ghoul in question stood still before glaring back at Morie. Just being in a space full of human food made her want to throw up. "YES! Now tell me what I need to buy to make lunch."
Kaneki started to chuckle whilst Morie was fighting the urge to rub the bridge of her nose.
"Do you even know what you want to cook?" Kaneki questioned as he flicked away a tear from his visible eye.
Touka gave him a light smack over his head. "Don't laugh at me." She then looked at the ground. "I was hoping you two would be able to tell me…"
Morie raised her hands up into the air in a mock surrender. "You shouldn't be asking me. I grew up on being fed school lunches that the CCG prepared. It was along the lines of rice with steamed vegetables, soups and bread. I was given full, warm meals."
"That sounds like what I ate in elementary and junior high." Kaneki placed his chin on a clenched fist as he pondered. Eventually an idea hit him when he spied a rack of magazines. "Why don't we look over there for recipes?" he suggested.
"Fine. Whatever."
The trio walked up to the rack and began to flick through magazines. There just happened to be multiple magazines detailing recipes for lunchboxes. Kaneki was the first to find them and notified everyone else.
As they turned the pages Touka kept showcasing recipes accompanied by the colourful photo of the finished cooked item. "I don't want this. It's too mushy and will stick in my mouth." This time she showed an image of hash browns.
"What about this?" Kaneki countered as he showed her instructions for asparagus wrapped in bacon.
It went back and forth like this until a list of five dishes were made; fried chicken, omelettes, battered fish, assorted sandwiches and the asparagus.
Because Morie was carrying her university supplies with her, she had her notebook and pens with her which allowed her to jot down all the ingredients. As she did so Kaneki walked off to get a basket. When he returned Morie placed the magazines containing the recipes into it. Touka just watched the two of them work although her impatience was growing.
"Where should we begin?" pondered Kaneki.
Morie took the basket from him to save the boy the trouble of carrying it. "I suppose we should begin with the vegetables. Touka follow me." Morie gestured for the girl to follow her.
Once they stood near a section containing lettuce Morie bent down and picked a head up. She showed it to Touka. "People, when shopping, inspect the fresh produce before deciding what to buy. Look here." She pointed to the lettuce. "This one isn't good. There are brown patches around the leaves." Morie then directed Touka to choose the vegetables explaining that it was a vital skill.
Eventually the trio made it to the register. Touka took out her purse and paid for everything. As the basket full of paid items was slid back to them, it came to their attention that other than Kaneki and Morie's bags which were already pretty full, they didn't have any bags that they could put the items in. So, they settled on carting them in their arms until they reached Touka's apartment.
Along the way Kaneki looked down at the items in his arms and noticed a small cardboard box labelled gelatine. "Um, why do we have gelatine? It wasn't an ingredient on the list."
"I want to make something too," replied Morie. In her own arms, buried underneath potato starch and bread she held a jar of instant coffee. "It should be something that the two of you should enjoy if my theory is correct."
Touka shot the woman a cold look. "So, you snuck that in? Are there any other secret items I should know about?"
"No."
The walk was a relatively short one. Arriving at an apartment complex, Touka showed them to an elevator. She pressed a floor button with her elbow and they were soon standing in front of Touka's front door. Everyone's hands were unavailable at the time to unlock the door so Touka simply kicked it. "Hinami, it's me. Open the door," exclaimed Touka.
A few seconds passed before some rustling was heard and the door creaked open. Morie could see the small frame of Hinami's through the crack. Upon seeing Touka's companions, the girl opened the door wider with a grin. "Brother Kaneki and Aunty Morie!"
The girl backed away from the door and let everyone enter. Due to how small the gekan was everyone had to enter one at a time. Hinami being the ever so kind girl started taking ingredients into the kitchen whilst people took off their shoes.
Just as Morie joined Kaneki and Touka in the kitchen Hinami sprung upon her with a hug. Kaneki had already been hugged by her when he entered the living space.
"It's good to see you too. I've heard you went to the library." Morie with a shaky hand patted her soft brown hair.
Hinami looked up at her. "Yeah, I have and all the books are amazing."
"That's nice. Mind releasing me now?"
With that Hinami unwrapped her hands from around Morie's waist and leaned on the counter. "So, what's all this?"
"I'm going out tomorrow," said Touka as she started sorting out the items. She passed the magazines to Kaneki. "so, I am making lunch for a friend and I."
Hinami tilted her head to the side. "Lunches?"
"Yeah," Kaneki nodded before turning to Touka. "We should start soon if we want everything to be prepared by tomorrow." He pushed his sleeves up and both Touka and Morie followed suit.
It was cramped inside the kitchen but everyone seemed to manage. Kaneki took the role of showing Touka how to properly cook whilst Morie started working on preparing the sandwiches because they were simple enough to do. Hinami watched with fascination and whenever the magazines weren't needed, she borrowed them to read.
The chicken and fish took the longest to make as a marinade need to be made along with battering. Frying them was a bit of a challenge too as Morie needed access to the oven just as Touka attempted to fish out the bits of chicken.
Despite the space and chaos created by having Touka learn to cook, the three of them pulled through and managed to get all of the dishes made and placed in lunchboxes. Once there was once piece of chicken remaining, Kaneki enticed by the look of the chicken took a piece between his fingers and popped it in his mouth. Immediately, there were coughs and gags.
"You idiot! What did you think would happen, huh?" Touka's harsh words berated his ears but she reached for a piece of paper towel, ripped a square off and handed it to Kaneki.
Hinami concerned by the noises put down her book and ran up to Kaneki who was kneeling on the ground, aggressively wiping his tongue with the paper towel.
"It looked so nice… I-it's awful! The batter tastes like mulch that had been dragged through slime and the meat was like eating a giant earthworm."
"Glad to see you're poetic when suffering," Morie said dryly before handing him a glass of water which he instantly started gulping down viciously.
Morie opened the fridge and took out a tray containing opaque, brown jelly. Earlier that day when scrolling through her phone she happened across a recipe for coffee jelly. Although the instructions called for half a cup of sugar, Morie when making it didn't include it. After grabbing a knife, she cut a square for Kaneki.
"Here. It may or may not help."
Kaneki took it with unsteady hands. His face was still warped with disgust from eating the chicken. He placed it on his tongue. The taste of coffee flooded is senses. "That actually tastes nice."
"Good to know you can eat gelatine. Does anyone want dessert?" Morie offered as she cut some more squares. "It's coffee jelly."
Hinami left Kaneki's side and peeked at the jelly with curiosity. Morie slid a bowl over to her along with a spoon. The girl took a bite then instantly grinned. "Brother Kaneki is right," she beamed.
Touka gestured for a bowl too and Morie complied. Soon everyone was sitting around a table each with a bowl full off coffee jelly in front of them.
"It's a simple recipe," explained Morie as she lazily balanced her spoon on her index finger. "You just use instant coffee dissolved in water and add gelatine. Stir and wait for it to set. There should still be some left for you and your friend, Touka."
After they finished eating, Touka and Morie worked together to wash up the dishes whilst Kaneki talked to a sleepy Hinami about books. After everything was dried and put away Morie excused herself from the apartment and walked home in the dark and cold night.
"So how was the lunch?" asked Morie when she next saw Touka.
Touka stopped wiping down an empty table and looked at Morie for a brief second. "Fine."
"That's nice."
Morie stretched her arms. An evening of studying and report writing really did make her joints lock up.
"Do you need any help closing the store?" Morie offered. "I could use the movement."
"Nah, when Koma comes down he'll clean everything else."
"Very well," said Morie as she left the bright café and into the dim streets of the 20th Ward.
Most days it was like this. She would wake up, attend her university classes then go to Anteiku for the day until the café closed. Occasionally, she would mix it up a bit and studied in her laboratory space but she would almost always make time to visit Anteiku.
BANG!
The loud sound echoed through the normally quite streets, making Morie jump. As she looked around, she saw orange sparks coming from an alleyway. Morie sprinted towards the area but her body hit something sturdy and she fell to the ground. Her body was soon yanked upwards as she started to regain some of her senses.
"No time. Just run." The voice was familiar. Underneath tones of seriousness there was a chipper voice buried.
Morie blinked her eyes a few times before she gazed upon the green jacket of the boy tugging her along the streets. His bright blonde hair bounced up and down with each step he took. "H-Hide! What are you do-"
Her question was cut short as scream pierced the area. Barrelling out of the alleyway and crushing a lamp post was a ghoul. His face was warped with rage and disgust and behind him whipped his bikaku kagune. Morie recognised the man. She had recently seen him in Anteiku although she didn't know his name. "NAGACHIKA!" he roared.
Hide let go of Morie's arm. "Contact the CCG or something!"
"Fine, just follow me."
Morie ran past Hide just enough so that she was in the lead. She pulled Hide around a corner just as the kagune slammed into the ground.
They continued to run until off in the distance Morie spied two investigators clad in white. She made a shrill whistle to catch their attention.
"It's a ghoul," exclaimed one of the two as they rushed towards the male ghoul, quinques already out. In an instance the ghoul's body was stabbed and sliced. Pathetic screams and pleas sounded but nobody answered them.
It was a swift death.
Morie vanished into the shadows of a nearby park not wanting to stick around. Hide had the same idea as he took refuge on a childish spring rocker.
"What was all that about?" huffed Morie as she leaned over Hide's body.
Hide flashed a grin before laughing. Wiping a tear away from his eye, he looked back up at the woman. "About to become a meal it seemed."
"I'm serious." Her eyes narrowed.
"Fine. Fine." He lifted his arms up in a mock surrender. "You know that ORC organisation? Well some of the members were going to spy on Kaneki tonight."
"He doesn't work at Anteiku at this time."
"I know, right!?" Hide cleared his throat. "Anyway, turns out that one of the, Cain, was a ghoul and wanted to eat me. So, I just blasted some bottle rockets and shoved a rice ball and meat pie into his mouth."
"You what?"
"Blasted rocket bottles and shoved a rice ball and meat pie into his mouth," Hide repeated.
Morie turned her back to him and started pacing. "At least you didn't die," she said with a soft voice.
"Now if you excuse me," Hide clumsily got off the spring rocker. "Kaneki still isn't out of the woods yet. See ya." He waved goodbye as he left the park leaving Morie dumbfounded.
Morie walked through the halls of the history wing of Kamii University. Her lecture for the day had just finished and Hide texted her saying that he and Kaneki were also finishing up. The area was foreign to her. Instead of white hallways reminiscent of hospitals, the walls were darker and the floor was made of wood. In all honesty she thought it looked as if a stage was a hallway.
"Cain is Adam and Eve's son. He killed Abel, his brother, out of jealousy." Kaneki's soft voice made it to Morie's ears as she saw him and Hide walk through a door. "Are you sure you haven't been reading the bible?"
"Positive." Hide placed his hands behind his head, elbows out. "And, hey, look it's Morie. No need to talk about nerdy book-y stuff now."
Morie shook her head. "That so called 'nerdy book-y stuff' happens to be interesting." She held out No Longer Human in front of Kaneki. "Thank you once again for letting me borrow it. Dazai's works are truly fascinating."
Kaneki took the book from Morie, took his bag off his shoulders, bent down to the ground and unzipped it. "I'm glad. Is there another book you wish to read?"
"No thank you. Because I missed some lectures, I have been busy catching up."
"Let me know if that changes." He carefully placed the book in the bag. Before he could zip it up, Hide interrupted.
"Alright, I'm changing the topic." Hide opened his own bag and started taking out handfuls of snacks. There was pocky, melon bread, KitKats and many more items that were smaller in size that Morie couldn't identify at a glance. She and Kaneki wondered how much space he reserved just for these items. "You, my dear bestest friend Kaneki are always so gloomy so take all of these."
Kaneki fumbled to hold onto a Hi-Chew bar tossed at him. "Um, I-I can't really carry all of these in my bag…"
"Sure, you can," Hide smiled as he lifted Kaneki's bag off the ground. "Here, I'll do it for you."
Kaneki gave a defeated sigh as Hide began stuffing the snacks inside it. Morie hung her head and said nothing. Eventually, her eyes drifted to Hide's packing. Something was up. What looked like stuffing was really Hide lying down the boxes on top of Kaneki's belongings. His pencil case, papers and notebooks were hidden beneath all the snacks.
"All done."
Hide held the bag out to Kaneki who wore a puzzled expression. Just as Kaneki was about to grasp it, Hide dropped the bag. The zipper wasn't fully zipped so as it landed Kaneki's poor belongings scattered everywhere. Even his plastic pencil case had opened upon impact which made his pencils and pens roll.
"I'm so sorry," gasped Hide as he bent down to start picking up everything.
Kaneki looked at Hide with sorrow and confusion mixed in his eyes. His flurried movements toward the novel made it clear to Morie that he cared for it more than anything else he had in the bag. Morie too began to assist with the clean-up. Because the scene was in the middle of a hallway the other students walked around them with glances of interest.
As the final items were placed back into the bag, a dorky boy and long-haired girl watched from afar. The boy pushed up his round glasses before turning to his companion. After a few words passed between them, the girl took out a notepad and crossed off the last name on it -Ken Kaneki.
Out of the corner of her eye, Morie saw the two students walk off. 'Hide's timing is impeccable,' she thought to herself as Hide flashed her a wink.
Author's Note:
Japanese School Lunches: So elementary and junior high schools in Japan have a thing called kyuushoku (給食). These meals are served as lunch to the students and are rather special in comparison to other school meals one may have in other countries because they were designed by in school nutritionists. That's right these Japanese schools have their own nutritionists. Most of these meals include rice, vegetables, meat and soups.