A/N: Hi its been 3 months since I updated and well as I've said on my AO3 I have severe anxiety and depression and that makes it hard for me to do things. This also went way out of control and I was briefly hospitalized but now im out and on medication and therapy so i hope it will work.
On a lighter note when i wrote this (Yesterday) it was my 17th birthday so yay me i guess!
Anyway enjoy
"Jet, we have a problem." The taller woman sighs as she walks into the room, knowing full well her partner will not be happy.
"What is it?" Jet hisses at Aqua through tightly clenched teeth.
"Hide hasn't returned home and it's almost 3 am."
"Oh," Jet says, visibly relaxing as she unclenches her teeth and runs her fingers through her long black hair to hide her embarrassment over her reaction. "That's good, maybe he got eaten by one of those coffee shop ghouls."
"I'm doubtful. They gave him over to Centipede and the trackers we hid on him say he's been in the same place for 4 hours now. A gas station."
"How the hell can you doubt he's dead? They literally gave him over to Aogiri Tree. He's Centipedes dinner hon."
"Dontcallmethat!" Aqua hisses, rubbing the pressure points on the sides of her nose in frustration. Why can't Jet just listen to her for once? She is meant to be their informant expert after all. "Listen to me! Nagachika is alive, and we just lost track of where he is! Time is running thin Jet. With the way you're acting I would say you don't want to save your sister!"
An object passes Aqua's head at an intense speed, shattering on the wall behind her. She looks over to see the shattered remains of a glass that had the unfortunate luck to be around Jet in one of her rages. "Don't you ever, ever, say I don't want to save Idian, she's my sister."
Tension remains so thick in the air Aqua could probably cut it with a knife. A retort worms its way to the tip of her tongue and Aqua struggles to bite it down. There's only one thing she knows will be calm Jet's temper now.
Aqua kisses Jet.
"What is- shit." Jet's anger falls from her like the autumn leaves. She starts to respond. Just as Jet's tongue slips into the other girl's mouth, Aqua pulls away. "You tease." Jet moans, breathing heavily and clutching to Aqua as if she was her lifeline. The only thing keeping her afloat in the deep blue ocean. Aqua leans beside Jet's ear, she blows into it gently and whispers.
"I know Nagachika's alive Jet, please just trust me, dear."
XX
8 hours. They've been on the road for 8 hours now. Hide thinks he's slowly starting to lose it being trapped in this car with Kaneki "Don't you dare talk to me Nagachika." …? Shit!
"I don't even know your first name!" Hide yells at the top of his lungs and smacking his hands on the dashboard in front of him; spooking Kaneki and causing him to swerve as he temporally loses control of the car.
"What the fuck Nagachika!" Kaneki hisses back at him once he regains a steady control. He sends Hide a seething look, but Hide doesn't seem to notice under the weight of his inevitable meltdown.
"I've been in this car with you for 8 hours and I don't even know your whole name. Oh my god! I haven't worked on my formulas since we left the gas station either. I bet you I won't have the proper facilities to even consider making a simple chemical compound let alone a drug where we're going and-" Hide inhales deeply as he realises something dreadful, so deeply in fact he's sucked in a heap of dust he dislodged with his hand slam earlier and is choking. "Kaneki!" He looks over sending a desperate look to the ghoul who was leaning slightly away from the blonde now and clenching the steering wheel. "I'll be kicked out of university and then I'l-"
"Shut up and breathe Nagachika. You're being targeted by assassins and some shitty school is what you're worried about?" Kaneki shakes his head. Hide's offended, it's not like he'd know the stresses of a university student.
"Actually I used to be a literature major." Kaneki says, a hint of annoyance in his tone. Shit he said that aloud?
"But still…" Hide trails off, thinking about his goals and dreams. "I need to keep my grades up so I can access to ghoul research otherwise I'll eventually come to a point where I can't do anymore."
"Why are you so desperate to finish you research? Is it fame? Do you think you'll save lives by completing this?"
"Actually its more selfish than that…"
"Go on…"
Hide gives Kaneki a look, he can tell the white haired ghoul is interested. Yes, Hide! This is your bargaining point. Find information!
"I'll tell you if you tell me your first name." Hide I am your brain and I have to say I hate you!
Kaneki sighs and debates the situation for a moment, but in the end Kaneki is still a curious guy who loves mystery books and this has brought on the urge to know about Hide's dark past.
"…Ken." He mumbles just under his breath so Hide couldn't make out the name.
"I'm sorry what? I don't speak mumble." With a deep sigh Kaneki repeats himself.
"Ken. My name is Kaneki Ken." Hide begins to chuckle then.
"Wow that's very… wow!"
"I know! I know! Just shut up and tell me why you're so desperate to complete your research."
"Well…" Hide begins. "Every night I have this dream of a ghost-like person, a phantom basically; and I feel a comfort so intense it's something I've never experienced before. When I was in high school I didn't know what to do. I had so many interests. I was going to be a folk-lore historian to try and discover more on the dream phantom of mine, a-and I even joined the occult club…" Hide became sheepish at that. It wasn't a time he liked to remember. All black clothes, too much black eyeliner. Ugh! It made him cringe just thinking about it. "Through the occult club, I met a girl who was a ghoul supporter and she told me her idea that we should just allow human corpses to be eaten by them as 'It's not like we need them after we die anyway' and I, just joking around, said to her 'What if we just magically changed their diet so they could eat human food instead of humans?' That night was the very first time the dream phantom ever touched me and I was so elated. I eventually came to the connection the dream phantom would come closer and closer to me the more I researched into this and well… I joined the pharmaceuticals department and rose to the top of the class to gain access to more materials to work with, and… well… the rest of the story is history."
"That is the dumbest reason I have ever heard to pursue a career, and I've spoken to Tsukiyama."
"Tsuki-who?" Kaneki shakes his head at Hide.
"Never you mind, you'll meet him when we get to Aogiri's temp base, if he hasn't gotten himself killed yet." Kaneki grinds his teeth.
"Ok then, but why did you enter university then? A literature class can't pull much job opportunities."
"This isn't 50 questions Nagachika."
"Yeah but you belittled me so I only think it's fair." Kaneki sighs again. Hide notes down that he seems to do that a lot, especially around him.
"I liked books. There happy? Now I want silence for the rest of this ride."
"Yessir!"
The silence didn't last long.
XX
When Kaneki pulled into an abandoned building Hide was a first confused. Then when 3 sets of cloaked figures appeared he shit himself, grabbing onto Kaneki's arm and making the ghoul turn his piercing eyes onto him in a glare. He still didn't let go though. Kaneki winds down the window and the smallest of the 3 cloaked figures rips off his mask.
"What the fuck is this?" 'Holy shit he looks like a mini, male Touka' Hide notes to himself as the teenage, purple-haired look alike flashes his kakugan at Hide and growls. "You bringing back dinner in the front seat now?"
"Yeah," Kaneki replies to the teenage ghoul calmly making Hides heart stop for a moment and for Hide to dig his nail's into Kaneki's arm tighter. "If you want to be dismembered limb from limb over and over again until I finally decide to put your pitiful existence out of its misery." Kaneki's voice is deep and low as he says this, sending a shiver through Hide's spine that wasn't entirely all fear.
The teenage ghoul hisses and looks away from Kaneki.
"I-I got it."
"Good."
"My, My, Kaneki~ Could it be you've found yourself a little kitten to love?" A smooth voice purrs as another of the masked figures removes his mask to reveal quite a handsome face and bright purple hair. Hide can feel Kaneki tense under his grip and Hide blushes allowing it to slacken in distraction. Kaneki instantly pulls away.
"That's Tsukiyama. See why I said he probably wouldn't be alive when we arrived." Well… He hadn't exactly said that, but Hide understands if he opens his mouth now he'll be the one in big trouble. So he just nods.
"Oh Kaneki~!" Tsukiyama cries, clutching his arm to his chest as if his heart was in pain. "I am hurt, wounded even. Alas that cold attitude makes me want to devour you more." "Holy shit he wants to eat Kaneki?" Hide thinks to himself, aghast at the sudden proclamation. "And Kaneki keeps him around? Unfazed? This can only mean he's either lying and this is a running joke… or Kaneki's stronger than him.'
"In your dreams." Kaneki replies to the other, older, purple haired ghoul and opens his car door smacking Tsukiyama as he does. "Banjo," He looks over to the other, still masked ghoul. "Hide's our guest… and unfortunately we're in a situation where we have to protect him while he works." Hide gives the other ghoul a bright (fake) smile and an enthusiastic (fake) wave. "I'm going to mostly watch him but in situations where I can't he's under your watch. You're the only one I can trust with this." Kaneki touches the ghoul named Banjos arm and- Oh my god! He's smiling! Like an actual smile! 'And he looks kinda hot too- No Hide don't you dare start thinking like that.' Tells himself but it's useless, he's already thought it and now he has to live with it.
"Now…" Kaneki says, turning back to Hide. Smile wiped away. "Get out of my car Nagachika! I've been driving for 16 hours and I'm tired."
"A-alright!" Hide stammers, grabbing his research work and books before hopping out the car and running beside Kaneki. "I-it's nice to meet you all! Thank you for doing this for me."
The teenage ghoul huffs and ends up storming off with a few choice words to Hide. Banjo removes his mask and besides his weird goatee he seems nice as he greets Hide and Tsukiyama holds out his Hand to Hide which is smacked away by a glaring Kaneki.
"Come on let's go." Kaneki hisses before excusing the three and forcibly and painfully grabbing Hides wrist; and he hisses as Kaneki drags him along inside the building filled with curious ghouls as he issues out orders.
"Don't leave the room without me or Banjo. Don't wonder off without me or Banjo. If Tsukiyama or any other unauthorised ghoul approaches you without one of us scream, and for the love of- Stop trying to wriggle your wrist out otherwise you're gonna get eaten." Hide stops at that and lets himself get painfully dragged through a building until they come to a large door. Inside that door was a large white room (larger than Hide's apartment) with papers scattered everywhere. Most on Aogiri ghoul attacks, ghoul arrests and some even on Hide's research.
"Keeping up with my work I see." Hide teases and earns another glare from Kaneki.
"Can't you be quiet for once? Anyway there's a couch or a bed, depending on which one I pass out on the other's yours for the night. We can get some lab equipment in later so until then study or some shit and don't touch m-."
"Wait, wait, wait! We're staying in the same room? Like together?" Hide interrupts, stammering slightly. He's not fond of the idea of sharing the same Earth with Kaneki let alone a room with him.
"Oh my god! This isn't grade school Hide. It's not gay if that's what you're worried about. This is just the safest place for you to stay in since no one but me and who I approve of enters through here."
"I wasn't worried that it was gay. I was worried that you would get irritated with me and kick me out."
"Once again Hide, this isn't grade school."
"Whatever." Hide brushes off, his face is flushed slightly from embarrassment as he sees Kaneki go and lie down on the couch.
"I'm nice so you can have the bed tonight, but lights are off in a minute."
"Yeah, yeah." Hide replies and sighs a bit as he goes to sit on the, surprisingly comfortable, bed. He takes off his shoes as he begins to think about his life back home. What would happen to his apartment? How would his grades go? Would he be reported missing? Would he see his mother again soon? "Man I really wished I called her more." Hide mumbles before his sight is plunged into darkness.
"Kaneki!"