Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The bell above the door chimed as Hide pushed the door open and he took a deep breath of the warm air inside as he hurriedly closed it against the cold.

He stomped his feet and looked around, taking in the cluttered but homey look of the store and the inviting displays of some of the books that clearly were one of the worker's favorites.

He walked up to the counter and found it empty. Now that he thought about it, the whole store seemed deserted. It was big enough that he couldn't see all of it at once, but not big enough that he shouldn't be able to pick up on any movement if someone was there.

He slowly started walking down between two rows of bookshelves, deciding that he might be able to find the books he needed himself and that he would worry about the missing workers when he had to pay. They would probably have appeared by then. Hopefully.

He turned a corner and stopped dead when he finally spotted someone; a young man was sitting in an armchair beneath one of the few windows in the store. He had a book in hand and was distractedly turning a page with a small frown on his face, his hair was startlingly white in the faint sunshine and the quiet in the surrounding store made Hide feel like he was intruding on something private. The mysterious man also had a name tag on his breast pocket, stating that he was happy to help and that his name was Kaneki.

Hide cleared his throat and the young man looked up as if he had been slapped, wide grey eyes taking Hide in. Hide smiled and raised his hand in greeting, "Hello! Sorry to bother you!"

The man named Kaneki stared at him a second longer before he seemed to remember he worked there; he gave a small "oh," as he blushed, got to his feet, gently laid the book he had been reading on the small table beside the armchair, and gave a slightly awkward smile back to Hide. "Hello, welcome. I am sorry I did not hear you come in."

Kaneki's voice was calm and soft; a voice that made Hide feel at peace by just listening to it. Hide waved the man's concerns off with his smile still in place. "No problem! I just wanted to ask you for some help. I need to find a couple of books."

Kaneki's own smile turned more genuine and he took a small, seemingly unconscious step in Hide's direction. "I can help with that. I am fairly certain I know every book in this place."

The enthusiasm this person showed for books was adorable and Hide decided that before he walked out of the store he would make him smile that smile again. "That's great! I need to find some books about ghouls. Preferably about their biology, but I'm interested in social customs, history, or anything you got, really."

The smile on Kaneki's face seemed to freeze in place and Hide couldn't blame him, even if a small part of him did feel a bit disappointed in the other's apparent discomfort at the subject. A lot of people still had problems with ghouls, despite the fact that they had been an officially accepted part of society for many years. He hoped that Kaneki would still help him to pick out a book, which would be better than the last bookshop he had visited.

Kaneki broke the slight tension that had settled over them by nodding and gesturing for Hide to follow him. "Yes, we have some books about ghouls. Follow me."

They ended up at the very back of the shop, in a dark corner out of the way of the rest of the store. There was no surprise there; nobody who wanted to keep their business displayed goods pertaining to ghouls in a prime spot.

"Here they are. It's not a lot, but at least it's something," Kaneki said with a smile and a gesture towards the small collection of books on a shelf in the corner. Hide could almost have sworn that Kaneki was giving him a calculating look, but he wrote it off as the dim lighting playing tricks on him.

"Thank you! That's a great help."

Instead of simply walking off, like most employees would have done at this point, Kaneki stopped in front of the shelf with Hide and asked, "So what are you looking for?"

Hide felt a bit taken aback by the question, not that it was strange per say, it was just that he didn't really have a good explanation for his interest. People usually judged him before asking.

He settled for the simplest truth. "Ah, well, I just want to learn more about ghouls."

Kaneki looked slightly surprised at that, which in itself wasn't a surprise, not a lot of people willingly spent time learning about ghouls more than they had to at school. Hide felt the unexpected need to explain himself to this quiet and kind man. "I have reason to believe that what we learn in school and what they say in the media isn't the whole truth." Hide shrugged. "I just want to learn. There are a lot of ghouls living in Tokyo and I think it's important to understand them."

"To be able to avoid them?" Kaneki asked with a guarded look in Hide's direction.

Hide decided to throw caution to the wind and tell the truth. If Kaneki proved to be an asshole he would be out of the shop soon enough, so he allowed a big smile to take place on his face as he exclaimed with honest enthusiasm, "To be able to live with them!"

Kaneki simply stared at him with his mouth slightly open and Hide barged on, "I'm always scared that I'll accidentally hurt or affront someone since I don't know much about them. Or maybe they are exactly like you and me and I don't have to worry! But then I want to know that. And I know they have some different needs from a strictly biological standpoint and I refuse to look at that with nothing but fear. I want to understand."

Kaneki blinked once and then surprised Hide by breaking out into laughter.

Hide was used to people treating him like he was strange for wanting to learn about and for being fascinated by ghouls, but getting laughed at was a new low. No matter how nice Kaneki's laughter was to listen to. Hide huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, I'm so glad I could entertain you."

Kaneki stopped laughing, but he was still smiling as he shook his head, "No, no, I'm sorry. I was not really laughing at you. I was just surprised, is all. Not a lot of people look at ghouls witch such a positive attitude. I am happy to hear it since I'm also…" Kaneki paused and seemed to consider his words for a second before continuing, "Interested in ghouls."

Hide allowed his crossed arms to fall to his sides and breathed out. The fact that the man in front of him shared one of his interests made him disproportionately happy and Hide didn't fight it as his smile spread across his face again.

Kaneki turned towards the shelf. "If you are just starting out, then I would recommend this." He reached out and delicately plucked a book from the shelf, carefully handing it over to Hide.

Hide accepted it and looked down to see that it was a book on basic ghoul biology. He raised an eyebrow in question as he glanced up at Kaneki. "Didn't we read something similar in school?"

Kaneki made a so-so gesture with his hand. "It covers some of the same areas, but the one they use in school is heavily censored as to not… risk upsetting people."

Hide nodded, that was exactly the reason that had made him decide against doing his research in the library—even if they were getting better at it, most of their limited collection of books about ghouls were still censored. The government had been very clear about their preferences on the subject. "That makes sense. I'll give it a try."

"You can look through it at home and then come back later if you decide that it's not useful to you? I'll make sure that you can exchange it for another if that is the case."

Hide wondered if he had imagined the slight blush that crept up Kaneki's cheeks, but he was fairly certain that the expression on the Kaneki's face was something akin to hopeful. He guessed that they didn't get a lot of customers here.

"That is really helpful of you. Are you sure it's okay?" Hide felt touched by the nice offer, but the last thing he wanted was to get Kaneki into any kind of trouble.

Kaneki shrugged. "I like to make sure that the books we sell ends up in homes that want them. That way, people are more likely to take care of them."

"Well, I will do my best not to disappoint!" Hide said with a laugh and relaxed as Kaneki joined in. Emboldened, Hide held out his right hand towards Kaneki. "I'm Hide, by the way." It was only fair that Kaneki got to know his name as well, right?

Kaneki smiled and shook the hand. "My name is Kaneki. It was nice to meet you."

Hide decided not to mention the name tag that Kaneki had clearly forgotten about and instead focused on Kaneki's surprisingly strong grip. He guessed even cute and soft bookworms could be working out. "Well then, Kaneki. Thank you for the help!"

"No problem," Kaneki answered with a soft smile and Hide had to swallow hard and pull his hand free of Kaneki's grip quickly as he fought down a sudden and unexplained blush creeping up his neck.

They went over to the register and Hide paid for his book, and all of a sudden there was no more reason for him to stay.

"Well, thank you for all the help!"

Kaneki smiled. "It was no trouble. You are welcome to come back if you need any more of it. Or if you want to talk." This time Hide was sure that he wasn't imagining Kaneki's cheeks turning a light pink. "About your research that is."

Hide nodded as he smiled back, trying to convince himself that it was simply Kaneki's way of trying to get him to come back and buy more books. His voice came out embarrassingly shrill as he repeated a simple, "Thank you!" Before his brain decided to stop working and he finally managed to talk himself into exiting the shop—mostly to escape his own embarrassment.

The cold outside felt even more biting than before and Hide decided that the store must have been warmer than he had thought.

It had been a rather nice store, and they did have some more books about ghouls that he could check out when he was done with this one… Maybe he would have to come back later.

He gripped the bag with his new book hard as he started walking home, intent on reading through the whole thing as fast as he could.

Chapter Text

Hide pushed open the door and smiled as he heard the doorbell chime out. He had taken care to go to the store at approximately the same time as his last visit, not only because it worked best for his schedule, but because he hoped that Kaneki would be there this time as well. The only reason, of course, being that Kaneki had seemed very open about answering Hide's questions as well as being very knowledgeable. If Hide was being honest with himself then his gentle and kind demeanor and good looks didn't hurt either.

He approached the counter only to find it manned by a young woman who looked up as he approached. She smiled and marked her place in the book she had been reading—was that a prerequisite to work here?—before closing it and standing up behind the counter. "Welcome to Cloudburst Bookshop. Can I help you find something special?"

"Yes!" Hide exclaimed, ready to ask her to help him find a new book, before the thought of not getting to see Kaneki again fully registered. It wouldn't hurt to ask, right? He hesitated slightly before settling for, "Can you help me find someone working here named Kaneki?"

She looked surprised at his admission and sent a quick look over her shoulder towards the back of the shop before turning back to Hide, still hesitating. "Why?"

Hide smiled in what he hoped was a reassuring manner. "I just want his help picking out a new book. He helped me check out last week when I was here."

"Kaneki doesn't man the register," the woman said at once with a shake of her head.

Hide raised his eyebrows in surprise at her curt reply, not knowing how to respond to that he simply said, "He did last week?"

Her small frown held out for a few more seconds before changing into a soft smile—and was that understanding in her eyes?—before she turned back around and called out towards the back of the store, "Big brother! Someone is here to see you!"

"Coming!" Someone called from behind a couple of shelves and Hide felt his smile spread as he recognized the voice.

A few seconds later the same white haired young man appeared from behind a bookshelf and Hide watched with bated breath as Kaneki's eyes widened slightly as they landed on him. Hide did not bother to try and tamper down his own smile and waved excitedly. "Hello! Nice to see you again!"

Kaneki blinked once before a small smile stretched over his face as well. "Yes, hello again. I take it the book wasn't what you were looking for then?"

"No, no! It was great," Hide waved him off, big smile refusing to die down, "but I've finished it and was wondering if you can help me pick out another one?"

"Oh." Kaneki looked surprised, he shot a quick glance towards the woman behind the counter–his sister?–and she grinned back at him with a nod. Hide followed the exchange with rising trepidation which abruptly changed into delight as Kaneki blushed, turned back to Hide, smiled, and finally nodded. "I would be glad to help you."

They spent more time than strictly necessary talking about ghouls, society, biology, history, and everything in-between. Hide quickly learned that Kaneki wasn't simply carrying around books all day to suit his incredibly nice aesthetic, but he was also very smart and well-versed in a lot of different subjects and Hide was more than willing to listen to him elaborate on subject after subject. He had no idea how much time had actually passed until the young woman from the counter suddenly cleared her throat from behind them.

Hide caught sight of a slightly guilty look on Kaneki's face as he addressed her, "Sorry I left you all alone to tend the store for so long, Hinami."

She smiled a knowing smile with a look in Hide's direction that made Kaneki blush before she shook her head. "It's fine. I just wanted to tell you two that we have to lock up in five minutes."

Hides eyebrows rose in surprise. Had they really talked for so long? Hadn't he arrived in the afternoon? He cast a quick look outside and was shocked to see that darkness had settled over the city. Sudden shame rose in him at the realization that Kaneki was so nice and that he was probably too polite to tell Hide that he needed to get back to work, and here Hide was—obliviously taking up all his time. He hung his head, unable to meet Kaneki's eyes as he said, "I'm so sorry! I've been keeping you from your work!"

"That's alright, I had fun," Kaneki immediately answered in a kind voice and no matter how hard Hide listener for it he couldn't pick up on any trace of annoyance in it. He looked up in time to see Kaneki's smile turn teasing as he continued with, "And you are going to buy something, right? So you can't really say that I'm not working." Kaneki raised an eyebrow with a teasing smile as he shot the small pile of books that had ended up in Hide's hands during their conversation a pointed look.

Hide laughed at the badly concealed sales-pitch. "Well, now I have to! But I still feel bad about it."

The young woman–Kaneki had called her Hinami–smiled at them. "It's fine. I have already closed the register, so I'm sorry if you wanted to buy something. You'll have to come back later." She sent a look over at Kaneki at the end, and Hide didn't need to know her to pick up on the equal parts of fondness and teasing that it contained.

"Ah, well," Hide said and he did his very best not to look in Kaneki's direction, "I think I can do that." He didn't miss Hinami sending him a pleased look.

"I can take those," Kaneki nodded towards the books in Hide's hands with a smile. "I'll keep them for you until you come back. I hope they will help you."

Hide laughed as he handed Kaneki the books. "Well, if they're not, then you said I could come back with them, right? Like you promised." He winked at the last part, more teasing than serious.

Hinami looked at Kaneki in astonishment. "You promised him what?"

Kaneki busied himself with arranging the books on the counter and trying not to look too guilty. "Well, he wasn't sure what he needed and I would feel bad if we sold him books he didn't want."

"I know you like—" Hinami started before glancing in Hide's direction and cutting herself off. Kaneki had frozen at her words and Hinami gave a strained laugh before barging on, overly casual. "You know this isn't a library big brother!"

Hide decided to step in, feeling bad for seemingly starting an argument with his thoughtless joke. "I was kidding! I'm not going to come back with it."

Hinami whipped her head around to look at Hide with wide eyes, as if she just remembered that he was there. "Oh, no. It's alright. If Kaneki here promised you that you could hand it back, then you can."

It was the first time he heard Hinami use Kaneki's first name and he saw the other wince. He tried to send Kaneki a reassuring look, but the other didn't notice as he pleaded with Hinami. "I'm sorry, Hinami. I won't promise that to people again."

She crossed her arms, and huffed out, "You better not!" Hide had a second where he was afraid that he had seriously started a fight between the two of them, but as he looked closer he saw the small smile tugging at the corners of Hinami's lips. She raised her chin high and put on a voice of mocking superiority. "Or I will make you man the register for a whole month!"

Kaneki snorted and put the back of his hand against his forehead, leaning backwards with an exaggerated expression of suffering. "Oh nooo! Not the register!"

They both broke out into laughter and Hide couldn't help but join them, very charmed by this goofier side of Kaneki that he hadn't seen yet. Kaneki smiled as he turned to Hide, still bright-eyed and with lightly flushed cheeks. "Ah, sorry about that."

Hide just smiled and shook his head. "There's nothing to be sorry for? I don't have any siblings, but you guys make it look like fun."

"Still, that was unprofessional of us. I'm sorry for the trouble."

Hide felt amazed at Kaneki's care and kindness towards a relative stranger. And wasn't that a shame? That they were still practically strangers to each other?

Hide cleared his throat and lowered his voice as to try and keep Hinami from hearing him when he said, "I still feel bad about keeping you from your job and since you're closing up now…" Hide took a deep breath and finally found the courage to look up into Kaneki's face, finding the other looking at him with wide eyes. "Can I buy you a coffee or something?"

Kaneki's mouth opened into a silent "Oh" and Hide watched with a detached sense of panic as a blush quickly spreading over Kaneki's face was the only other response he got.

After several tense seconds Hide heard Hinami clear her throat, dashing Hide's hope that she hadn't heard him but also managing to startle Kaneki out of whatever it was that had frozen him in place. Kaneki shook his head quickly and took a small step in Hide's direction. "I would love to!"

It was the first time Hide had heard Kaneki raise his voice and he blinked before the words registered. "You… Would?"

Kaneki nodded decisively. "Yes."

It only took Hinami and Kaneki a couple of minutes to finish closing up the store, Hide stood outside in the warm spring air and tried to take deep breaths as he tried to convince himself that this was not a date. They were simply hanging out after work to drink coffee, nothing more.

Hinami came out first, gave Hide a small wave, and immediately took off down the street. Hide had just enough time to start doubting that Kaneki had been serious about meeting up with him–maybe they had an exit in the back as well and he was standing here waiting for no one–when the door inched open slowly and Kaneki peeked his head out. Hide was fairly certain that he didn't imagine the relief on the other's face as his eyes landed on where Hide was standing.

Hide stuffed his hands in his pockets, hoping to look relaxed. "You ready to go?"

"Yes," Kaneki said with a jerky nod as his eyes flitted away from Hide. There was just enough light outside the shop for Hide to see the pink creeping over Kaneki's cheeks as he turned around towards the closed door. "Let me just lock up."

Hide nodded before cursing his stupidity–Kaneki couldn't see him–and cleared his throat, croaking out an, "Alright."

Well, that wasn't any smoother. Hide removed his suddenly sweaty hands from his pockets, discreetly wiping them on his jeans and then leaving them hanging by his side. Had they always felt so out of place? What were you supposed to do with your hands while standing?

Hide was, thankfully, pulled from his spiraling thought by Kaneki turning back around with a smile. "I love the bookshop, but nothing beats fresh air after a long day, right?"

Hide nodded in agreement and hastily re-planned the whole evening in his head–he couldn't very well take Kaneki to some stuffy café right after he had said that, now could he? He realized that it was still too early in the year for any of the cafés to have their outside seating set up and desperately cast about for something else they could do. "Do you want to buy a drink and sit in a park?"

Hide wanted to disappear into the ground. Who, in their right mind, took someone on a first date—it wasn't a date!—to a park? Kaneki would surely laugh him off and just leave, finally realizing that Hide wasn't worth his time.

Instead, Kaneki looked at him with wide eyes and a small smile, seemingly relieved. "That would actually be pretty great. There's a really nice park close by."

"Sounds great!" Hide clapped his hands and laughed to cover up his own relief. "Lead the way!"

They walked the short way to the park and Hide was pleasantly surprised when there was a vending machine right by the gate where they could buy their drinks. The fact that Kaneki didn't seem to mind their more down-to-earth plans only served to make Hide even more excited about their impromptu...whatever it was. Their definitely-not-date.

Hide sat down on a bench with a sigh, stretching his feet out in front of him and smiling up at Kaneki as the other stopped beside him before sitting down as well, two hands cradling the cold coffee in his hands.

"I can't stay very long, but thank you. I needed this," Kaneki said as he smiled up at the dark sky.

Hide didn't even attempt to look away from Kaneki's face, but did his best to keep his staring to the corner of his eye to make it less obvious. He was only so strong. "No problem, really. I needed this as well. All this studying means I spend most of my days inside."

"Yes, I know what you mean!" Kaneki said with a laugh and holy shit, Hide wasn't prepared for that.

He averted his eyes fast enough to make himself dizzy and resolutely focused on the sky instead even as he swore to himself that he would make Kaneki laugh again before they parted ways. "Yeah? You're studying?"

"I study literature. An evening course after work."

"Wow! That's very impressive." Against his better judgment, Hide looked back down at that—genuinely touched by the fact that Kaneki managed to study and work at the same time and still taking the time to hang out with him, a stranger.

Kaneki smiled and blushed at the praise but shook his head. "No, not really. It's just a hobby."

Hide hadn't known until now that he found book smarts enticing. Well, you learned something new every day.

The conversation flowed freely after that and Hide felt himself marvel at how natural the whole thing felt–it was as if this was something he had been missing without knowing it, just sitting at Kaneki's side and talking about anything.

All too soon Hide felt himself shiver and he startled to realize that the evening had changed into night without him really noticing.

"Are you cold?" Kaneki asked with a concerned voice before joining Hide in his surprise as he looked around with realization dawning on his face. "It's starting to get late."

Hide hoped his disappointment wasn't too obvious as he nodded. "Right, yeah, we should probably go. You needed to study as well, right?"

Kaneki opened his mouth, closed it, and then nodded. "Yes, I do." He got to his feet and Hide followed.

He desperately tried to think up a way to ask if they could meet up again without coming across as too creepy, but before he could come up with something adequately casual, Kaneki surprised him by asking, "So... I'll see you again?"

Hide took a second to get over his shock and admiration for Kaneki's gut—how could he just ask like that!—before he remembered that he had to answer as well. He settled for a lightly teasing,"Well, I do have to buy those books, right?"

It seemed to go right over Kaneki's head as he raised his hands in a disarming gesture while shaking his head. "That was just a joke! Of course you don't have to, I'm sorry!"

Hide laughed and patted Kaneki on the arm. "I know, I know. I'm sorry, I'm just joking. But I actually do want those books if you don't mind. I'll come by tomorrow?" Hide kept his voice light, desperately hoping that his nerves couldn't be heard as he waited for the sentence.

He didn't have to worry. Kaneki smiled wide and nodded as he said, "That's perfect. I start at two. That is… If you want me to help…?"

Hide nodded so vigorously he worried he might get whiplash. "Yes! I would love it if you helped me."

Kaneki smiled in relief and nodded. "Then let's meet tomorrow."

"Sounds great!"

"Do you want me to walk you home?"

"Oh, no, I'll be fine," Kaneki said with a smile that seemed to hint at some hidden joke before frowning and continuing, "... Do you want me to walk you home?"

"No, no," Hide waved his hands in denial, he didn't want to take up any more of Kaneki's scarce time. "I live close by."

"Alright."

"Alright."

They both looked uncertain at that—what were the correct social cues in this situation?—until they both broke out into laughter.

Hide chuckled and managed a, "Good luck with your studies."

Kaneki smiled warmly at him. "You too."

Chapter Text

Hide went up to the cash register the next day and tried to quell his nerves. During the evening, night, and morning he had managed to convince himself that he had read too much into the previous day. He just hoped he hadn't made too much of a fool of himself while he had been at it.

The register was once again manned by Hinami, and she narrowed her eyes when she saw him before smiling somewhat thinly at him. She gestured to the back of the store as she looked back down at the book in her hands. "He's in the back."

Hide hesitated, taken aback by the small show of hostility from her, and realized that the two of them hadn't really introduced themselves to each other. He had simply barged into the store one day and asked about her big brother—no wonder she was feeling a bit hesitant towards Hide. Well, that wouldn't do.

Hide smiled and reached out his hand towards her, catching the way she tensed up momentarily at his sudden movement. "I remembered that we hadn't properly said hello. I think we've seen each other enough time to warrant a handshake, right?"

Her narrowed eyes widened in surprise as she looked down at Hide's extended hand and for a few long seconds she didn't move. Hide had just enough time to start screaming internally—standing in the middle of a bookshop with his arm extended like an idiot—before she carefully reached out her own hand and grabbed Hide's.

Hide relaxed as his smile widened. "I'm Hide! Nice to meet you."

Hinami smiled back with a small laugh and Hide breathed out a silent sigh of relief as the last tension of the moment dissipated. "I know. My name is Hinami. Nice to meet you too."

"Hello, Hinami!" Hide shook their hands with exaggerated enthusiasm and was rewarded with another laugh. A thought occurred to him, and before he could stop himself he blurted out, "Next time, maybe you could help me pick out a book?"

Her smile widened at this and Hide congratulated himself at his fast thinking at the same time as he tried not to laugh out loud—the two of them were so similar! Mention books and both of them were completely sold. "I would like that. Just tell me what you are looking for."

Hide stepped back and hoped she was as open-minded as her brother as he said, smile still firmly in place, "I'm looking for anything to do with ghouls!"

Hinami looked taken aback at the statement and Hide cursed his own carelessness. Off course she wouldn't be as open about ghouls as Kaneki was, almost no-one was. If she hadn't been hesitant towards him to begin with, this was sure to remedy that. Hide put his hands up in a disarming gesture and tried his best to smooth it over. "I'm sorry! That might have been rude of me? I'm just curious in regards to studying them."

Hinami didn't relax. "To study them?"

Hide nodded. "Yes, or, to learn more about them." How could he explain that they weren't simply the horrible monsters that most media made them out to be? He didn't want Hinami to think he was crazy. "I think it's important to learn about them, to understand."

"That's… Good." Hinami surprised him by saying. She hesitated slightly before nodding resolutely. "I'll see what I can find."

Hide had a weird feeling as if the conversation had just shifted from him trying to defend the morality of learning about ghouls to him passing some unspoken test. "Thanks?"

Hinami nodded and Hide didn't know what else to do, so he turned to leave to go and find Kaneki, before remembering something he had meant to ask. "Hey, by the way, how come I never see Kaneki behind the counter? Or anyone else for that matter? I know other people work here." And it would be easier to find Kaneki if he wasn't always half-hidden in the back, went unspoken but Hinami's look told him she had caught on to his real reason for asking.

Instead of calling him out on it, however, she shrugged and smiled. "I like it here. It gives me an excuse to talk to people."

"The others working here don't want that?"

Hinami shook her head without hesitation. "Not really, no. And it's just as well since they aren't very good at it."

Hide thought about Kaneki and his smile and their easy conversations and felt a sudden flare of indignation on the other's behalf. "I'm sure they would do fine!"

Hinami gave him a knowing look. "It's not only Kaneki, you know. But big brother is horrible at talking to people!"

"Hey! He talks just fine to me!"

"Yes, and I don't know if that says the most about you or him."

Hide gasped in mock outrage. "Are you implying that I'm not people?"

She shrugged, a teasing smile on her face. "Or that he makes an exception for you."

For some reason the first implication felt easier to handle.

Hide opened his mouth to retort, closed it again, and decided that the safest route was not to acknowledge her comment. "Uh, I'll go and see if I can bother Kaneki then?"

Hinami laughed and waved him off with a cheerful smile. "See you later! Have fun!"

Hide turned on his heel and hurried towards the back of the store. Just as she had said, Kaneki was there; busy unpacking boxes upon boxes of books. Hide stopped in his tracks as he saw Kaneki lift up a huge pile of books in one go, not struggling in the slightest. He felt his mouth go dry. Kaneki was definitely stronger than he appeared.

Hide cleared his throat and did his best to look anywhere but at Kaneki's arms, visible by his rolled up sleeves.

"Oh, Hide! You came."

And now he had to look away from Kaneki's smile as well. Damn, he was weak. Hide settled for looking at the boxes on the floor, but couldn't keep his traitorous mouth from saying the truth, "I couldn't stay away." He snapped his mouth shut and tried to cover it up with an, "A—and I promised didn't I? So, do you need any help?"

"Are you sure? You don't have to."

"I want to help. And it's the least I could do after all that you've done for me." Hide still kept his gaze resolutely focused on the boxes.

"Ah, alright, that would be great. Thank you."

Hide looked up at the sound of Kaneki's bashful tone and immediately regretted the decision–Kaneki's smile was still in place and it was now accompanied by a blush and it was dangerous to look at.

"Where are these going?" Hide hastily asked as he aimlessly grabbed a couple of the books from the closest box and almost tipped forward as he straightened up again. They were even heavier than they looked and he desperately tried not to think about how strong Kaneki had to be to lift them so effortlessly. Get a grip, Hide silently admonished himself, before you embarrass yourself further.

"Over here, let me show you."

They worked in silence for a couple of minutes before Kaneki broke it with a hesitant, "You know… I am just doing my job. Not that I don't want to help you, I do. But it's not really something you have to pay me back for."

Hide set down the books he had been carrying and turned towards Kaneki, deciding to be honest. "I've learned more from you during this short while than I did for months on my own. I just hope I'm not being obnoxious with all the questions."

"I'm glad I can be of help." Kaneki ducked his head as he smiled.

Kaneki was too kind, and the subject of ghouls wasn't something most people wanted to think about too much. "Just tell me if it ever makes you uncomfortable and I'll stop."

"I promise. Thank you, both for being considerate and for trying to understand." There was a bit more warmth in those words than Hide thought was warranted, but he had already made too much of a fool of himself during this conversation so he didn't say anything as he continued unpacking books.

The next time Hide entered the store there was a stranger behind the counter. He cast a quick look around for Hinami but couldn't see her anywhere. Well, talking to a new person it was then. Hide sighed and made his way over.

"Is Kaneki in?" Hide asked the man behind the counter, careful to smile and keep his voice perfectly polite—this was Kaneki's colleague after all and he wanted to make a good impression. The blond man looked up from his phone and his thick-rimmed glasses and styled hair made him look like a good fit for a more hip bookstore downtown. Hide had seen him around the store a few times but he had never talked to him, but he looked friendly enough. Until he opened his mouth.

"Why do you wanna talk to that idiot?"

"What?" Hide asked in surprise, feeling off balance by the sudden hostiity.

The man heaved a heavy sigh, rolled his eyes, and pointed down the aisles to the right. "He's in the back somewhere. Find him yourself."

"Nishiki!" Hinami came up from behind a bookshelf, arms leaden with more books than looked strictly safe and Hide almost felt week-kneed by the relief of seeing a friendly face. "We've talked about this! You can't speak to the customers like that."

Nishiki groaned and slumped down in his chair, turning his attention back to his phone, but not before muttering out, "It's their fault for always being so boring."

Hide raised an eyebrow and he suddenly understood why Hinami was the one who usually manned the cash register. She had not been exaggerating about the other employees not being very good at talking to people.

"I'm so sorry Hide," Hinami said with a pitying look thrown at Nishiki, "please excuse him."

Nishiki slammed his hands on the table as he got to his feet. "I can speak for myself!"

Hinami didn't miss a beat. "Well, maybe you shouldn't."

"I've told you that I don't want to man the register," Nishiki said as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Hinami raised her eyebrows with an unimpressed look on her face. "That's no excuse to act like a child."

"Well, then, you do it!" Nishiki sneered and quickly made his way to a back corner where Hide had spotted him on a computer several times during his visits.

Hinami sighted and turned her attention to Hide, her gaze turning thoughtful. Hide had the distinct feeling that he should have followed the rude man's example and vacated the premise. Before he had a chance to excuse himself however, Hinami looked off to the side and took a deep breath before blurting out, "I was meaning to ask you, why do you ask for big brother all the time?"

Hide cleared his throat and hoped that his voice sounded cheerful and casual, and not strained and embarrassed like he feared, when he said, "He is very knowledgeable and he's good at helping me."

She nodded thoughtfully, as if she was judging his answer. Was this how siblings looked out for each other? Hide didn't know and hoped that she wouldn't try to stop him from spending time with Kaneki. The mere thought made something clench in his stomach he looked on with bated breath as Hinami pursed her lips and seemed to come to some silent conclusion. She gave a barely perceptible nod. "Okay."

Hide felt like he had missed part of the conversation as he frowned in confusion. "Okay?"

"Yeah, okay," Hinami seemed to realize that she was still holding what looked like a whole shelf of books, and put them down on the counter before gesturing to the right. "He's in the back again."

"I'm not only here for him this time, remember? You promised to help me pick out a book the next time I came in."

Hinami's mouth formed a small "o" as she stood up. "I did!"

"If it's still alright with you?" Hide didn't want to pressure her into helping him if it would make her uncomfortable.

"Actually, I found the perfect book!" Hinami smiled as she ducked down behind the counter, coming back up again with a massive book in her hands.

"You didn't have to prepare for it! I didn't mean to create more work for you," Hide said, even as he smiled at her obvious enthusiasm.

She shook her head as she extended the book. "No, no. I like finding the perfect ones for our customers, it was no trouble."

"Well then, thank you." Hide grabbed the book before almost instantly dropping it. "It's so heavy!"

Hinami's smile turned a bit sheepish. "It's a bit big, but believe me! It's really good! And I think you would like it. Kaneki told me about the books you have been looking for."

"Have you guys been talking about me?" Hide asked as he carefully hefted the book under his left arm to get a better hold of it.

Hinami laughed. "He will never shut up about you!"

Hide was powerless to fight the blush rising in his cheeks at that comment and fruitlessly opened his mouth to deny it when a voice cut him off from behind, "Hide? Welcome!"

Hide whipped around to see Kaneki walking towards them with a casual smile on his face as if he hadn't just caused Hide to scream internally at his timing. Despite all of this, Hide couldn't keep a smile from spreading over his face as he greeted Kaneki. "Kaneki!" Had he heard what they were talking about? Hide opted for a tactical change of conversation. "This time I guess you had to go and find me for a change."

Kaneki laughed. "I guess that's only fair."

He looked at the book under Hide's arm and then at Hinami, a teasing smirk spreading over his face. "Are you seeing other bookshop employees now? I thought we had something special."

The words were spoken in an exaggeratedly dramatic tone. Despite the obvious joke Hide still felt disproportionally flustered by the comment and laughed awkwardly before managing to wrestle back some sense of control over himself. He leaned back, putting his hand against his forehead in a dramatic manner. "I would never betray you! What we have goes beyond a single book."

"Yeah, you've soon bought all of them," Kaneki laughed.

Hinami cleared her throat, "I'm still here, you know?" Despite her words, she was smiling as she looked at Kaneki.

Kaneki waved it off, still laughing. "Sorry, sorry! Come on Hide, I had a book I wanted to show you."

He reached out a hand and grabbed Hide's right arm, seemingly without really noticing, and Hide was all too happy to allow him to drag him away. Hide looked over his shoulder and gave Hinami his best helpless look while still grinning like an idiot. "Thanks again for the book!"

Hinami laughed as she shook her head. "I hope it will help."

"I'm sure it will!" Hide shouted with a laugh just as he was pulled around a corner and Hinami disappeared from view.

Hide turned back towards Kaneki and caught the other smiling at him. "What book did you want to show me that's so important that you had to pull me away by force?"

Kaneki laughed again—Hide would never tire of that sound—and didn't let go of Hide's arm as he spoke, "It's this great book that we got just last week, but we only have one copy left. It didn't come to mind at first, but I think you would like it." Kaneki stopped in front of a bookcase and started trailing his hand over the backs of the books as his eyes scanned the titles. The hand that was still restingon Hide's arm seemed to burn with unnatural warmth, dragging Hide's attention back to it again and again.

Hide couldn't stop smiling. This enthusiastic and happy version of Kaneki was impossible not to love—and the fact that he was this enthusiastic for a chance to show Hide something made him feel all warm inside, and the lingering hand on his arm only added to that heat.

"It's not really a scientific book about ghouls, but it is still good, and it is a good recollection of where we come from as a society, of how it used to be…" Kaneki trailed off as he stopped his search with his hand hovering over an empty space between two books. "Huh, someone has already taken it."

"I'm sure we'll find it!" Hide said, desperate for the good mood to continue, "I can read this for now." Hide inclined his head to indicate the book he had gotten from Hinami, still firmly clasped under his left arm.

"Oh! Right! Hinami gave you that?" Kaneki asked as he let go of Hide's arm, tilting his head to try and get a look at the book's spine. Hide tried not to think about how cold his arm felt at the loss of contact.

"Yes! I asked her to help me pick a book out," Hide said as he grabbed the book from under his arm and held it up to help Kaneki get a better look at it.

Kaneki laughed as he read the title, shaking his head. "That's great! It's actually the book I was looking for!"

"Really?"

"Really!"

"Well, it must be a great book if both you and Hinami would recommend it."

"It's an old favorite of ours." Kaneki had a fond smile on his face, eyes distant, as he spoke. "I actually used to read it to her when we were younger."

Hide raises a brow at the massive book in his hands which title consisted of three words he wouldn't have been able to understand the full meaning of until he started university. "That's impressive. And cute," Hide added as his thoughts turned towards a younger Kaneki patiently reading the big book to Hinami.

Kaneki blushed and waved him off, turning towards a small table in the back, "Come on then, let's start reading."

"Now?"

"Did you have something else to do?"

"No," Hide was quick to say, before adding, "You're not working?"

"It's fine. I'll get up if a customer needs me."

As it was, nobody needed his help, and Kaneki and Hide were left undisturbed in the back of the shop as they read. Hide suspected that it had more to do with Hinami looking out for them than cheer luck.

They settled into a comfortable almost-silence; Hide reading the book he had gotten from Hinami and Kaneki reading his own book, they only paused to offer each other the occasional comment or question. Kaneki's shift had ended an hour ago, but neither of them made any attempt to move.

The further he read in the book the more gratitude and horror Hide felt towards their current society; both for ever having been as bad as it had been, but also for rising above that and becoming something better, even if it was far from perfect. The book detailed daily lives of ghouls during different time periods, with a main focus on the time before the Great Reformation that happened a couple of generations ago. Hide had a general understanding that the lives of ghouls before had been worse than they were now, but not that it had been this bad. Hide felt a wave of frustration at just how much they chose not to teach in schools.

He had to take a short break after reading a particularly gruesome part and looked up to find Kaneki already looking at him. Hide smiled and raised an eyebrow as he half-jokingly asked, "You said you read this to Hinami when she was younger?"

Kaneki looked a bit sheepish at that. "I skipped most of the violence."

"Good call." Hide nodded, but couldn't keep from commenting, "It's… an interesting book to read to a child."

Kaneki's face turned sad and his eyes distant. "It's to remind us of how it used to be, so that we can avoid ending up there again."

It was still not something Hide would ever choose to read to a child, but he kept that comment to himself. He was sure that Kaneki had his reasons; maybe someone in their family was a politician or maybe they were ghoul activists, there could be a hundred reasons as to why and Hide didn't know. The fact that Hide didn't know this about Kaneki irked him, but he had a feeling this wasn't the time for personal questions, so he simply nodded and meekly said, "I'm all for that plan."

It was getting closer and closer to dinnertime and after the third time Hide was pulled out of his reading by his own stomach grumbling he gave in and put his book down. He waited until Kaneki did the same before asking, "Do you want to go to the barbecue down the street and eat?"

Kaneki frowned at the question. "That's not really in line with my… dietary requirements."

Had Kaneki mentioned something about his diet? Hide felt shame fill him at the thought that he hadn't been paying attention to something Kaneki had said. Was he a vegetarian?

"Oh, right. Of course. I'm sorry." If it was something Hide should already know about, he couldn't very well ask about it now; that would just be rude. "I… forgot."

"It's alright." Kaneki smiled at him. "It's actually nice with someone forgetting about it for once."

That was a bit of a weird comment, but Hide guessed that you wouldn't want people to constantly be thinking about how you differed from what they considered to be the norm, even if it was something common like a dietary requirement. Hide cast about for something safe, desperate to try and smooth things over. What had he seen Kaneki eat or drink before…? "Do you want to go for a coffee?"

"That would be nice. Sorry for the trouble," Kaneki said with a blush and a smile and Hide smiled back, happy that he hadn't made a fool of himself twice in as many minutes.

"No worries! Let's go." He started packing up, happy that he got to spend some more time with Kaneki and willing to wait a bit for his dinner to do so. Hide vowed to himself that next time he would muster the courage to ask Kaneki out on a proper date.

Kaneki smiled and got to his feet. "Yes, lets."

Chapter Text

It became something of a routine during the next couple of weeks; Hide visited the bookstore, talked to Kaneki and Hinami, helped out a little, talked with Kaneki about ghouls and anything else that came to mind, bought a book if something caught his attention, tried to avoid Nishiki, and dragged the time out before he had to leave again.

Sometimes his hesitation led to him and Kaneki having a coffee after the other got off from work, but never anything more than that and Hide still hadn't been able to make himself ask about that date. He would do it next time, the timing just wasn't right, it wouldn't be natural in this particular conversation, or Kaneki didn't seem to be in a perfect mood. There was always some excuse that convinced him to just do it next time.

There was also the looming thought of possibly ruining something good; they had a great time together, often talking late into the evenings, and Hide had started to catch himself thinking about the next time he could meet up with Kaneki even as he was still spending time with him.

Kaneki was in most of the days he visited and Hide didn't know if that was because he got lucky, or because Kaneki spent most of his days working in the store anyway. Hide hadn't dared ask yet—afraid that mentioning it would somehow break his luck and that Kaneki wouldn't be in the next time he came by.

Hinami almost always manned the register, and as the days went by she seemed to get over some of her initial hesitation towards him.

She was a constant during his visits, so much so that when Hide stepped into the store one day and found the register manned by someone he didn't recognize, he stopped short just inside the door. It took him a second to shake off his surprise and register the person's impassive look that still managed to convey irritation at a rather impressive scale. He also noticed that the intimidating gaze landed squarely on him as soon as he took a step through the door and Hide couldn't help but feel immediately vulnerable.

The gaze belonged to a young woman with dark hair covering one of her eyes and even though she wore the uniform of the store, Hide was sure he would have remembered her if he had seen her before—she was even scarier than the angry and rude man called Nishiki. She watched him walk up to the register with a scowl and then silently raised a hand to point to the left. Hide didn't have the guts to disobey, even though he silently doubted that she knew he was going to ask where Kaneki was. He walked to the left at a quick pace, following her silent order, feeling her stare at the back of his head the whole time.

To his utter relief he found Kaneki.

Hide didn't waste a second before asking in a rather breathless voice, "Thank god you're here, where is Hinami?"

Kaneki turned at the sound of his voice and Hide basked in the way Kaneki's face lit up as he spotted him. "Hide, hello! She's just taking a day off. Why?"

Hide sent a cautious glance over his shoulder; he could swear that he still felt the glare leveled at him even through all the shelves. "No real reason."

He heard a snort and turned back to Kaneki to see the other holding a hand over his mouth as he giggled. "Ah, I see you met Touka."

"So that's her name…" Hide muttered. "I think she already hates me, and we haven't even spoken a word to each other."

Kaneki waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. "No, no, that's just how she is. She sent you my way, right? I think she likes you."

"Likes-?" Hide thought back to the hard stare and shuddered. "I highly doubt that."

Kaneki laughed again and Hide slumped down in a chair, hands covering his face in embarrassment. "Why are all of the employees here so scary?" He dragged his hands down his face and sent a teasing smile up at Kaneki. "Except you and Hinami, of course."

"I'm touched," Kaneki said with a slightly sarcastic tone of voice that did nothing to hide the slight blush that spread over his cheeks.

Hide felt a matching heat spread up his face and decided to change the subject before he said something even more stupid. "By the way, I finished the next chapter in the book you and Hinami recommended."

Kaneki took the bait and perked up at the mention of the book. "Oh? What do you think so far?"

"It's really good. Or, I mean, it's horrible but it's interesting! You get a real feel of how public opinion has shifted over the years."

Kaneki nodded. "It wasn't until a few years before I started working here that ghouls could even legally buy things in ordinary stores."

An angry voice suddenly cut them off, startling both of them and forcibly reminding them of the fact that they weren't alone in the store. "Did you say ghouls?"

Hide and Kaneki turned to see a middle aged man standing behind them, furrowed eyebrows and downturned mouth painting an almost comical picture of outrage. Kaneki smiled politely and said, "Yes?"

The man's anger only increased at this as he straightened up and took a deep breath before bellowing, "Does this filthy store support ghouls?!"

"We only sell books, sir, to whoever buys them." Kaneki was as calm as Hide had ever seen him and his respect for the other reached new heights. He knew that if he had been the one that had to handle such a customer, then he would have started arguing the minute the question arose. Hide decided to leave this interaction to Kaneki—he was the employee and was clearly better equipped to deal with the situation. Hide would just stay out of his way and—

"So you're okay with ghouls buying your books?!"

Hide had never been very good at staying out of arguments. Especially not if he knew someone was wrong and especially not if the argument was directed towards someone he liked. He raised an eyebrow and his voice as he asked, "Why wouldn't they be?"

The man whipped around to face Hide, an angry red blotching his cheeks. "Did you just say something?"

"Just tell me, I'm curious, why would it matter if ghouls bought books here?"

"I refuse to shop at a store that caters to that vermin!"

Hide felt taken aback; he knew that there were lots of people that hated ghouls, and this wasn't even his first time seeing it in action, but this was the first time he found himself on the receiving end of that hatred.

Before Hide had a chance to gather himself enough to come up with a response, Kaneki surprised him by stepping in; talking in a casual and friendly voice as he calmly looked the angry man in the eye. "We will sell books to whomever we please and if that bothers you then you are welcome to take your business elsewhere."

"I can't believe—I won't—" The man actually growled before finally managing, "I'll talk to the press about this!"

Kaneki kept his face perfectly polite—a picture perfect image of customer service—as he said, "Good luck and have a great day!"

The man stormed out, slamming the door behind him. As soon as the door closed it became clear just how tense Kaneki's posture had been as he let out a sigh of relief and relaxed again.

Hide felt another surge of admiration towards the other and he smiled, despite what had just happened. "You handled that very well. I'm impressed."

Kaneki gave a wry smile back. "Don't be, it's not the first time it happens and it won't be the last."

"Sorry for butting in," Hide felt the need to say since he hadn't really done anything except escalate things further. "He was being such an asshole; I couldn't just stand and watch."

Kaneki shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal. "Most do. Just stand and watch, I mean. So thank you for saying something, it was nice of you."

The fact that Kaneki was thanking him for saying anything only served to make Hide angry at himself. "Don't thank me. I've seen this scenario play out before without acting."

"Well, you did now."

Hide looked down, not feeling like he deserved Kaneki's seemingly endless compassion.

He was so causal about the whole situation. How many times had Kaneki had to stand up to an angry customer? How many times had he had to do it alone? "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault, and besides, we're used to people like that."

"That doesn't make it okay." Hide found that his earlier anger had died down almost completely at Kaneki's words, but he still gave it a valiant effort. "I'm always surprised that people can act that way! How can't they know better? If only we had better education then we wouldn't have to—!"

Kaneki laughed. "You sound like an old man complaining about the state of education."

"This is serious," Hide said and was surprised at the pleading tone in his own voice, begging Kaneki to take this seriously—begging Kaneki to be angry at him.

Kaneki sighed. "Yeah, I know. But if we took it seriously every time, then we wouldn't do anything but be angry.

"I guess…" Hide knew that Kaneki was right and felt the last remnants of anger leave him as he gave Kaneki a wry smile. "Sorry, I just really didn't like the way he treated you."

"Thanks for worrying." Kaneki smiled before waving it off. "Now, where were we? You had started on the new chapter?"

"Yeah. Yeah I have!"

"Come on, let's go to the back. It's time for my lunch break anyway."

They sat down at their usual table in the back, Kaneki quickly making them each a cup of coffee from the coffee-maker hidden in the small break room before sitting down.

Kaneki took a sip of his coffee and released a sigh as he sank back in the chair. Hide placed the book he had gotten from Hinami in front of him and opened it to where he was reading—cradling the warm cup in his hands. It was peaceful where they sat, an illusion of privacy created by the bookshelves surrounding them on all sides.

The quiet was only broken by the sound of rustling paper as Hide turned a page and the soft clink of ceramic as either of them took a sip of coffee. Hide had just enough time to relax and put the earlier incident behind them, before Kaneki broke it.

"Are you done with your study soon? You've already bought all our books that could possibly be helpful." Kaneki spoke in a tone that managed to be both teasing and resigned all at once. Hide felt a sudden flare of hope that he wasn't the only one that didn't want their time to end and decided to be a bit bold.

"I don't think I'll ever be done studying this particular subject," Hide said with a wink, not acknowledging the fact that he was very aware that his reason for hanging around the bookstore—and in extension Kaneki—was diminishing in time with the remaining pages of the book in front of him.

"Oh my god." Kaneki hid his face in his hands, but not fast enough to completely hide the blush and the smile that spread over it. "Then, aren't you getting tired of asking me these questions?" His voice was less resigned this time, and more teasing.

"No, not really," Hide said with a shrug and a smirk, taking a slow sip of his coffee and relishing in the deepening color on Kaneki's face before raising an eyebrow in question. "Why? Are you getting tired of answering them? You don't have to, you know?"

"Why do you always ask me these questions? Is it really just to learn about ghouls?" This wasn't the first time Kaneki had questioned him about this and Hide guessed that Kaneki had some deep rooted insecurities about appearing too smart and bookish—at least if the bleached hair and edgy black nails were anything to go by.

"Well, you answer them, don't you?" Hide asked with a raised eyebrow as he crossed his arms over the table and drummed his fingers against the wood. Trying to steer the conversation away from his other reason for staying close to Kaneki—he wasn't that bold.

"Yes, I guess so." Kaneki tilted his chair back, balancing it on the back legs as he looked up at the ceiling. The cup of coffee that passed as his lunch was cooling down beside him. "Is it really such an interesting subject?"

Hide gave an incredulous laugh. "You're one to talk! You know so much about ghouls, you must have studied the topic before, right?"

Kaneki looked surprised at this for some reason that Hide couldn't understand. It wasn't such a strange question, was it? Kaneki allowed his chair to fall back down on all four legs as he shook his head. "No, I haven't really studied ghouls the way you do."

"So you learnt by simply reading books? That's impressive!"

Once again Kaneki looked surprised and this time it was accompanied by a frown. "No? I mean I have read a lot, but not really a whole lot about ghouls specifically."

Now it was Hide's turn to frown in confusion. "But then… How can you know so much about them?"

Kaneki's surprise turned to realization and then hesitation. He was quiet for almost a full minute before letting out a heavy sigh, casting a determined look in Hide's direction. "Well, you know a lot about humans, right?" Hide nodded in agreement, holding his breath as he waited for Kaneki to continue. When he did, it was a simple question. "Why is that?"

Hide gave a small laugh at the silly question. "Well, of course I do! I am—"

Hide cut himself off. Oh. Oh.

Kaneki looked at him with one raised eyebrow as if he was patiently waiting for him to finally figure out the obvious answer.

Hide blinked, opened his mouth, closed it, and tried again, "Wait! You're a ghoul?"

"Yes?"

"I didn't know you were a ghoul!"

"I thought you knew!" Kaneki said as he clasped his hands around the cup, nervously fiddling with the handle. "Why did you specifically ask me to help you out then?"

"I thought you were cute!" Hide blurted or before he could stop himself.

"Oh."

"And, you know," Hide stammered slightly, desperately ignoring the heat rising in his cheeks, "you seemed to know what you were talking about."

Kaneki gave an incredulous laugh "Nice to know that appearances came first."

"So you're a ghoul," Hide repeated, feeling slightly stunned. That explained so much! Hide felt like an idiot for not connecting the dots on what had been right in front of his face—literally!

Kaneki's smile died down and his expression visibly closed off. "Is that a problem?"

"No!" Hide hurried to say, trying to minimize the damage of his careless words, "It's really not! I'm just trying to figure out if I've been unknowingly rude to you in any of our conversations."

Kaneki relaxed and smiled again, "It's alright, you haven't." Kaneki paused for a second before continuing in a thoughtful voice, "Or, well, that thing with trying to take me out to a restaurant was kind of rude."

Hide snorted before he could stop himself. "Well, I'm so sorry for asking if you wanted to—" then he paused and his smile died down. "Oh god, you thought I knew you were a ghoul! You must have thought I was being super rude!"

Kaneki made a so-so gesture with his hand and Hide groaned. "I'm so sorry! I didn't know!"

"Yes, I'm starting to understand that," Kaneki said with a smile that threatened to turn into a laugh.

Hide opened his mouth to speak, "I—"

"Hide! Did you read the book?" Hinami's cheerful voice cut him off as she chose that exact moment to walk past them, eyes intent on the bookshelves in search of some elusive book, no doubt. This made her miss the way Kaneki tensed up at her arrival, sending Hide a hesitant look, but Hide didn't. It was then that he realized that Hinami was most likely a ghoul as well and that Kaneki worried how he would react when seeing her. He smiled at Kaneki before turning his attention back to Hinami, he would prove to them that they had nothing to worry about when it came to him!

"Yes! And I'm loving it!"

She smiled and the expression lit up her entire face. "I'm glad!"

Something caught her attention from the top shelf and she reached up and pulled a book down, looking it over with a victorious smile. "There it is! I have to get this back to a waiting customer, I'll see you guys later, right?"

Hide smiled back. "Yes! Don't work too hard!"

"Well, someone has to," Hinami said with a laugh and a pointed look in Kaneki's direction before she disappeared around a corner.

"Ouch. I guess that's my cue," Kaneki said before making a valiant effort to tip the last, cold, dregs of coffee into his mouth. Hide opted for pouring his last mouthful down the sink instead and as he sneaked a glance at Kaneki he was pleased to see that his expression had relaxed into something softer.

Hide packed up his stuff, but couldn't completely shake the worry of having made Kaneki feel bad, so he added, "I still don't think you could be scary. Not Hinami either, you know."

"Thank you?" Kaneki tilted his head and furrowed his brows as he sent Hide a concerned look. "That's a weird thing to say, you realize that, right?"

Hide nodded with a serious face. "As soon as I said it."

They held the silence for two seconds before they broke out into laughter. It felt good—laughing with Kaneki.

"You really don't care about it, do you?" Kaneki asked with wide eyes and a hint of a smile on his mouth, an expression as close to disbelieving as Hide had ever seen on another person.

"Nope," Hide said before tilting his head in thought and elaborating, "Or, I mean, I do care that it affects you. But I'm not bothered by it, if that's what you mean?"

Now, the smile on Kaneki's face was undeniable and if Hide chose to interpret the look in Kaneki's eyes as affection, then who was going to stop him?

As they started walking towards the front of the store, Kaneki slowed down and said in a quiet voice, "Thank you for not treating her any differently."

"Hinami?" Hide asked and Kaneki nodded. "But she isn't any different from before? I just didn't know about this part of her. If anyone has changed, it's me."

To his utter surprise and delight, Kaneki hugged him. His arms were indeed very strong, and he smelled like books, and Hide found himself fitting perfectly as he raised his hands to reciprocate the gesture—

"Get out of here if you're going to do that," came Nishiki's sudden voice from behind them and Hide froze where he stood. How did everyone in this store manage to sneak up on them all the time?

"You hug your girlfriend all the time!" Kaneki said indignantly as he released Hide, and then froze as he realized what he had said, face going from pale to flushed in the span of a second. "I mean—not that I think—I just meant—"

Nishiki threw his hands in the air and groaned, "Are you serious?!" He didn't wait for an answer as he walked towards the back, muttering all the while about shitty idiots and people nowadays didn't even understand what was right in front of them.

"Nishiki is right," a voice from behind them said and Hide turned to come face to face with the scary person Kaneki had said was called Touka. How had he not heard her arrive?! "Get out of here with that, it's bad for business."

Kaneki was by now blushing deep enough to turn his whole face red. "Sorry, sorry, it won't happen again."

Touka took a step closer to them and Hide found new heights of admiration for Kaneki when the other didn't back up at her approach. "It wasn't a suggestion."

Hinami sent them a questioning look as they made their way outside.

"I think she sent us outside to give us some privacy."

"You think so well of her."

"She's not mean, she just cares a bit differently."

"I agree with you there," Hide laughed before patting Kaneki on the arm. "I'm sure she's great when you get to know her."

Kaneki hesitated, looking from Hide's hand that just retreated from patting his arm, to Hide's face, and then away. Before Hide had time to comment on the sad expression on his face, Kaneki spoke in a quiet voice, "Well, if you want to, you are always welcome to come by the bookstore again."

Hide furrowed his eyebrows and tried to remember if he had missed something. "Okay? I'm planning on coming by tomorrow though. If that's fine?" Had he said something really bad? Maybe he had been rude and Kaneki was just too polite to mention it, but now he didn't want to see him anymore.

Kaneki looked taken aback. "You still want to come by?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Hide asked, still afraid that Kaneki wasn't going to tell him that he truly didn't want to see him again, but he was starting to feel like he was missing something obvious in this conversation.

"Well… I thought…" Kaneki trailed off, shifting from foot to foot and keeping his eyes averted.

"If you don't want me to, then I won't!" Hide was quick to assure the other, but he had a creeping suspicion that this had something to do with the whole being a ghoul business. He didn't want to intrude, but if he made Kaneki uncomfortable by being here, then…

His doubts were quickly swept away by Kaneki's instant, "No!" Kaneki took a deep breath before repeating, in a calmer voice, "No, I want you to come."

Hide felt relief course through him as he smiled and nodded, "Then I'll see you tomorrow."

Kaneki copied the motion and nodded his head once as his face flushed a dark red. "Sorry about that, I didn't mean to make you feel forced to come by."

"Nah," Hide smiled and reveled in the butterflies taking flight in his stomach at Kaneki clearly stating that he wanted him to come back, "I like it here."

Kaneki gave a half-strangled cough and croaked out, "So, did you want to buy any of the other books? You have soon bought all that even mentions ghouls!"

"I guess I have..." Hide said, trailing off. When he had read them all, what excuse did he have for coming back here and meeting Kaneki?

"I could—" Kaneki started before hesitating as he looked away, "I could check if we can order some more books about ghouls. There is apparently a high demand for them." Kaneki looked back at Hide at the end, giving him a smile that he no doubt wanted to be teasing but came out more genuine than anything else.

Hide perked up at this; Kaneki was actively trying to create excuses for Hide to spend more time in the bookstore, more time with him! He had no chance of dimming the wide smile that spread over his face as he answered, "That would be a great help! I'm tired of trying to find decent bookshops, and besides," Hide paused to aim a broad smile at Kaneki, accompanied by an obnoxiously obvious wink, "I like the service here."

The effect was instantaneous as a pretty blush crept up Kaneki's throat and spread over his cheeks as he ducked his head down to try and hide it. "Hide! You can't just say stuff like that!"

Hide laughed and it felt like the most natural thing in the world when he gently grabbed one of Kaneki's hands in his and said, "I can if it's true." He felt empowered by Kaneki's reaction and took a deep breath before continuing, "Come on, I don't think they want you back in there anytime soon. Do you think they would forgive you for taking a break for another coffee? An official cup of coffee this time."

Kaneki paused and glanced from their joined hands and up at Hide with wide eyes, blush still visible on his face. "Is that your way of asking me out?"

There was no use denying it now so Hide nodded with a wide smile, "Yes!" He internally cringed at how squeaky his voice came out, earlier calm nowhere in sight.

Kaneki snorted, but he was still smiling so Hide guessed that was a good sign. "That was really unclear!"

"Is that a no?" Hide asked with a raised eyebrow and a racing heart.

"No! I mean, yes, I mean—" Kaneki blew out a breath in frustration as the blush came back full force. Hide did his best not to laugh as Kaneki shot him a warning look before taking a deep breath and trying again, "I would love a coffee. An official coffee. With you."

"Great! It's a date-date!" Hide exclaimed with a wide smile, barely believing it himself.

Kaneki smiled back, bright and happy. "I guess it is."