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At last, Hide had arrived back at his dorm room, throwing his bag and jacket on the floor almost before even stepping through the door. He had worked a particularly long shift today, and his calf muscles had been reduced to jelly from the bike ride home.
“Aaaaagh, 7-Eleven is gonna be the death of me,” Hide groaned as he stretched his arms high above his head and collapsed into the welcome embrace of his cheap college-issued mattress. He wasn’t even a full year out of high school, and yet he had already succumbed to the monotony of adult life. Being at the cash register was like being a shopkeeper in some video game, only changing his dialogue depending on whether they were buying oden or lottery tickets. He was already longing for simpler, happier times, like those long afternoons he spent shooting the breeze with Kaneki in the park. Or those traditional Golden Week sleepovers, with Hide furiously tapping away on his Gamecube controller while Kaneki was curled up on his bed with a book. Kaneki. Kaneki.
Oh, right. While he was suffering in the fluorescently-lit purgatory known as customer service, his best friend, Kaneki, was on a date. A date, with a pretty girl who liked the same author as he did. Damn his luck. Hide was still processing that Kaneki actually managed to score with someone he had never spoken to before. Not because Kaneki was bad-looking, of course. On the contrary, he was actually pretty cute, what with his jet-black hair and slim-fit jeans that hugged his narrow waist. Hell, he even managed to pull off a sweater vest without looking like a pervert. And don’t even get Hide started on those eyes. Those eyes that were as gray as rain clouds, and yet somehow shone so brightly when he was happy or excited. Yeah, he was attractive. In fact, Hide wasn’t opposed to the idea of dating him himself, if by “wasn’t opposed”, you meant he caught himself daydreaming about it a few times a week, and even more often ever since he started talking about that pretty girl who liked books. God, what did he even see in her? Just because they have one thing in common means she’s the love of his life? Bullshit. Not to mention that she was obviously hiding something. Hide didn't know what, but she was. His instincts were seldom wrong.
Okay, yeah. Hide was jealous. He always knew he had a crush on Kaneki, but his friend didn’t seem to return his feelings, so eventually he just kind of gave up. Perhaps he came on too strongly, like that one time he thought he could get a kiss from him at the skatepark. That was stupid of him. He still felt a bit guilty about that to this day, but he was just glad their friendship endured. Even so, he probably shouldn’t have made an ass of himself when they were at the cafe talking about Rize, or whatever her name was. He had gotten a bit flirty with their waitress and laughed at the idea of a bookstore date, even as he imagined himself with Kaneki in such a setting and smiled fondly. Perhaps he was just trying in vain to put an end to his little crush. Jealousy sucked, and dating your childhood friend was so cliche anyway. It was the kind of thing that only happened in those girly romance anime he watched out of sheer guilty pleasure. There was no point to trying to live out these fantasies in his head.
Sighing, he put on his bright orange headphones and tried to find the loudest track on his playlist, in an attempt to tune out the thoughts racing through his head. He hadn’t responded to his last text, which, to Hide’s embarrassment, read, ‘ hows it going hotshot ;) ’. Kaneki never replied right away, which sometimes worried Hide, but now, as much as he hated to admit it, it disgusted him. The thought of his best friend being with someone else churned his stomach, and he hated that he felt so entitled. The least he could do for him was wish him happiness, even if he wasn’t the one who would be giving it to him. That’s what friends were for, right?
His eyes grew heavier despite the American pop music blasting through his ears, until at last, mercifully, he drifted off to sleep.
~~~
He didn’t sleep long before he was rudely awakened by the sound of his phone ringing on his bedside. Squinting his eyes, he checked to see who was calling. Whoever it was, they weren’t in his contacts. At 2 in the morning. This had better be good.
“H-hello?” He drawled, trying to enunciate in a more dignified manner as he rubbed sleep from his eyes.
“Hello, is this Mr. Hideyoshi Nagachika?” A woman on the other end asked.
“Y-yeah? Who is this?” His pulse quickened involuntarily.
“I’m with Kanou General Hospital. I’m sorry for waking you at this hour, but...do you know a Mr. Ken Kaneki?” Hide sat silent for a few seconds, dreading whatever news he was about to receive.
“W-what?” Part of him hoped this was some sort of prank, but Kaneki wasn’t the type of person to joke around, especially about something so serious.
“We found you listed as Mr. Kaneki's emergency contact in our patient registry, and he doesn’t appear to have any family we can call. He arrived here by ambulance a few hours ago.” In an instant, all the fatigue fled from Hide’s body as it was replaced with anxiety.
“Kaneki?! What happened to him?!” He shot upright in his bed.
“Well, I don’t want to alarm you, but he’s unconscious, and he’s in critical condition. He appears to have been in some sort of accident. The doctors are doing everything they can but--”
“I’m on my way!” Hide didn’t wait for the receptionist to finish her sentence before grabbing his jacket and sprinting out the door. The brisk autumn air whipped against his face as he raced towards his bike, hurriedly undoing the lock and pedaling as fast as his adrenaline-fueled legs would allow in the general direction of the hospital. All the while, he was half-hoping he’d lose control, crash into a wall and wake up in his bed like nothing happened. First he lost Kaneki to some random bookworm, and now he was going to lose him forever? This couldn’t be real. This shouldn’t be real. Mentally bracing himself for the worst case scenario, he pressed on, determined to be there for his best friend.
~~~
Leaving his bike laid down on the sidewalk, he rushed through the hospital doors and up to the reception desk.
“Hello, can I h--”
“H-Hideyoshi Nagachika! I’m here to see Kaneki!” He panted. “Just tell me what room he’s in!”
“I’m sorry, sir, but he’s currently undergoing surgery. I can’t allow you to--”
“JUST TELL ME!” He shouted, pounding his hand on the desk for emphasis, then paused to collect himself. “Please. I need to know if he’s okay.”
“He’s in room 622, but I still can’t let you go in there,” she explained apologetically. “His surgery should be finished in a few hours if you want to wait here.”
“Fine,” he relented, turning away from the desk and reluctantly heading towards one of the many open chairs in the waiting room. He already knew sleep wouldn’t come to him tonight, but he figured he’d try anyway to pass the time. He leaned back his chair and closed his eyes, working to steady his breathing and clear his head.
~~~
“Mr. Nagachika? Mr. Nagachika?” Hide opened his eyes at the sound of his name coming over the PA system. He rose up and walked over to the reception desk silently, glancing at the clock on the wall. 9 A.M. He'd been sitting in the waiting room for a few hours. No wonder his back hurt.
“The surgery is finished, and Mr. Kaneki’s condition is stable. You’re free to go in if you wish.”
“Thanks,” he mumbled, not making eye contact with the receptionist as he headed towards the elevator that would take him to the sixth floor. As he ascended, he wondered what sort of state he’d find Kaneki in. Would his face be disfigured? Would he be missing half his limbs? Sure, he’d seen his friend with all kinds of injuries, what with his bitch of an aunt and those school bullies from their childhood, but he didn’t know if he’d be fully prepared for whatever happened to him now. Nonetheless, Hide told himself that he’d still care about him, and he hoped that Kaneki would find as much comfort in that as he did.
Ding! At last, the elevator arrived at its destination, its doors parting open. He glanced around for room 622, but the corridor before him, with its gaudy lilac walls and freshly waxed floor, seemed to stretch on without end. After what seemed like an eternity, he found it, bracing himself once more as he slid the door open. Hide sighed with relief at the sight of his raven-haired friend sleeping peacefully, with a heart monitor beeping steadily beside him. He took a seat in the corner of the room and looked out the window at the cityscape, his view blurred somewhat by the tears in his eyes as he considered just how close he came to losing his dear Kaneki. He didn’t want him to see him crying when he woke up, so for the time being, he sobbed quietly to himself, letting all his anxiety be purged from his body.
~~~
Hide, who had been silently watching over Kaneki, gasped when his best friend finally began to stir.
“H-hide?” Kaneki said weakly as he opened his eyes.
“Hey, buddy.” The blond boy smiled softly at him, his eyes welling up with tears once more. “I’m here.”
“How long have you been here?”
“All night.”
“You should go home and get some rest,” Kaneki protested half-heartedly.
“Uh uh, no way,” Hide retorted. “I was worried sick about you, y’know.”
“Sorry,” Kaneki looked crestfallen.
“Hey, it’s okay,” Hide reassured him. “That’s what friends are for!” Kaneki smiled back at him, and Hide felt comforted by the fact that nothing had changed.
After a few moments of silent contemplation, Hide asked, “So if you don’t mind telling me, what happened?”
“R-Rize…she attacked me. She was a ghoul. It was all a setup.” Hide’s heart sank. He knew something was off about Rize, but he originally suspected that was just his jealousy talking rather than his intuition. He knew blaming himself would upset Kaneki, but he couldn’t help but feel somewhat at fault.
“Oh, man, I’m so sorry.” He patted Kaneki’s shoulder sympathetically. “Is she…?”
“The last thing I saw before going unconscious was her body crushed under some steel beams,” he said. “She’s most likely dead. Luckily for me, I was pressed up against a wall and I managed to avoid a direct hit. Rize did slice my abdomen, though. I guess I passed out from blood loss and my organs were damaged, so they had to transplant some new ones.”
“That’s good to hear,” said Hide. “I mean, not that you had to get your organs replaced. I’m glad you’re alive.”
“Thanks, Hide.” Kaneki smiled. “I’m...glad you came to see me. It means a lot.”
“Yeah,” Hide nodded, and they both sat in comfortable silence for a moment before he spoke again. “Do you mind if I stay here for a bit? I’m exhausted and I don’t feel like going to class.”
“You really shouldn’t trouble yourself for me,” said Kaneki. “But...I’d like that.” Hide couldn’t help but count Kaneki’s affirmation as a small victory. Yeah, it was probably a bit selfish of him, but the fact that Kaneki enjoyed his company meant the world to him. As they reminisced about all the memories they made together, Hide realized that whatever he felt for Kaneki went beyond a simple crush. It was love, pure and unconditional, and whatever the future held for them, Hide resolved to always be there as a constant reminder that Kaneki was as cared for as he was now.