Days have past.

Isa hadn't been in touch with Tatara in a long while.

She lied down on her bed after finishing a book she had borrowed from the library. It was one of the new releases, written by an author Isa had never heard of. She was very sure it was a pen name, since the author's name was Clowns. It was a poem book called "Two Separate Minds, Two Worlds, Two Lives" with illustrations by oil pastels. The main story was interesting to Isa, which was why she wanted to read it. Although short, it was quite meaningful in depth, about two friends who were completely different, and their lives were a contrast. The ending was quite sad, as one friend died in front of the other from an illness.

Tatara suddenly came into her mind. She wanted to see him for so long. She wondered how his recovery was doing-if he'd taken off the bandage right when he came home, knowing he was a bit stubborn.

Rolling over, she got off the bed and headed to the kitchen to get some tea, and sat on an armchair in the living room, looking out the window. Then it hit her. How did Tatara talk to Isa on the phone on the day he'd gotten injured near her house? She closed her eyes and thought, trying to remember exactly everything that happened that day when she met him on the street. There was no payphone nearby, and Tatara didn't have a cellphone on him, unless it was in a pocket. Wait, did he have a pocket?

The more she thought of it, the more it made her wonder if Tatara really did have a phone all this time, and he had just hid it from her. The thought of it stung her. Maybe all this time he was… No. No.

She abruptly stood from her seat and went back into her room and grabbed her phone, searching through her phone call history. The number was there. She dialed it. A message saying the call could not be forwarded cut the dial tone, making Isa feel more desperate and doubtful. She tried again, and then again, but each time the same thing happened.

Don't jump into conclusions… What if he's busy?

Sitting on her bed, she closed her eyes and tried her best to relax. Why did something so strange just come into her head now? And why wouldn't Tatara want to give her his number?

More days have past. Tatara didn't contact Isa in any way. She was planning on to visiting his house after work-until she remembered about Takatsuki's business contact number that she had given to her a long time ago. Isa thought that catching up with her would be nice, since they hadn't talked since.

They met at the bookstore where they first met each other, sitting at the same table.

Isa took a sip of coffee, while Takatsuki played with a sugar spoon.

"It's been awhile, Isa," Takatsuki said, giving a warm smile.

"Yes it has. I wanted to contact you sooner but I had no chance. How is everything going for you?" Isa politely asked.

Takatsuki dropped the spoon into her empty cup, an expression of amusement crossing her face as she smirked. She shifted her eyes back towards Isa, sitting up straight from her slouching position.

"I've been doing good. Everything is going well. It's smooth, nice. How about you, Isa? How are things with your work, and-Tatara?" She gave Isa an evil grin.

"Ah, well. It's been good, but also really strange. Like… Well…"

Isa told her the story of how there was a weird attack with the little girl, but she didn't mention about staying at his house for the night. She talked about Tatara and his injury, and how he mysteriously called her.

"Well," Takatsuki said. "He actually does have a phone-from when I saw him a year ago. It was an old flip phone, and it didn't work properly from what he'd told me. He said it sometimes worked and then sometimes it wouldn't work. I told him to get a better phone but he refused, saying it was just a waste of money. And well, if he still has that piece of garbage, then maybe that's why he isn't responding your calls, and maybe that thing really broke for good."

Isa made a thinking face, weighing the possibilities.

"Maybe he never told you about it because he was self-conscious," Takatsuki suggested. "Even if he seems really careless, apathetic and stuff, he still has feelings of self-consciousness. Every human does."

"I guess so," Isa replied, absentmindedly looking out the window while thinking of Tatara. "He needs a new phone, gosh." She looked back at Takatsuki, who, looked back at Isa with a smirk on her face that slowly turned into a big grin. Isa knew what she was thinking. And she smiled as well.

Eto wondered why Tatara wasn't keeping in touch with her. Was he getting tired of her? She wondered.

That couldn't be the case… Eto knew that Tatara was able to do anything that could gain him an advantage for Aogiri. Something was a little off.

Eto leaned back on the pile of construction beams, exhaling. "No," she said to herself. Her lips curved upwards to a smirk, and she leaned forwards again, giggling.

Can it really be?

Is he trying to…

Protect her?

Tatara attended another meeting concerning the actions of the CCG before the upcoming raid. He dispatched squads to different wards. They needed as much information as possible by spying on the CCG's actions to decipher and make their move. Always staying ahead of the CCG was Tatara's top priority. The raid was in three days. They needed to win this battle-redeem their previous losses.

The squads left with their assigned tasks, leaving the executives of Aogiri and Tatara in the big gym of the abandoned school building they took over. Tatara then dismissed the other executives, to either patrol, train, or catch up with the squads who were doing their missions.

Eto and Tatara were the only ones in the gym. It was the usual, since Tatara and Eto were the main leaders of Aogiri. They were also close friends ever since they were young teens.

Tatara rose from his seat in mind to go back home, but Eto broke the silence and spoke. "Isa is starting to worry about her relationship with you because you wouldn't contact her through your phone. Were you hiding it from her the whole time?"

"I called her once using my phone only because I had to. I guess she told you about everything?"

"Hmm. I don't think it was...everything," Eto laughed, but cut it short. "And I told her that your phone is broken."

Tatara didn't reply. Eto knew that he was about to leave-she figured that he wasn't in the mood anymore-if what he felt about Isa was true. She watched him walk out the door, then smiled inwardly.

Two separate minds, two worlds, two lives.

How...pitiful.

:)