Soo, is there potential interest in a TouKen Zine? 🥺💞
I want to see if it's even worth thinking about and if there is enough interest to plan one, so any reblogs and comments are very welcomed and would help me a lot!
Please also vote in the poll below for me to see the rough interest for one <33
(FYI: Nowadays a fanzine is a collaboration between multiple artists, writers or other creatives with a certain focus, may it be a character, ship or any media. After everyone has finished a piece, it can be sold as a physical book with merch or be kept digital or a mix of both.)
Being the head of a resistance organization isn’t as glamorous as the movies and books make it seem. Those stories never seem to acknowledge just how many lives are at stake, how difficult the day-to-day operations are to manage, how to keep yourself and others motivated to the cause rather than slink away in hopes of finding a temporary haven. It’s suffocating.
Not to mention, he can’t just underestimate Furuta. Especially when the man overtook the CCG rather easily. What if this public execution is just a front to lure them out?
Kaneki let out a deep sigh.
But he can’t just let everyone starve.
Just… Just how is he supposed to do this?
How can he do this without losing people important to him?
Has nothing changed since losing Arima-san? Shirazu-kun? Kouto-kun and Kei-san? Ryouko-san? And…
The image of a blonde haired man flashed across his mind.
Was he also going to live only facing death? Like his mother had done?
“Hey Kirishima-san!”
Kaneki looked up at Touka who held her hand up in greeting, “Yo.”
Kaneki couldn’t help but smile at the sight of her. In an instant, all of his thoughts of hopelessness seemed to dissipate and all he could focus on was what was in front of him and that was Touka. He loves her…
He wanted to live.
For her.
For them.
For the family that he wanted to build with her.
Despite the hardships that they have endured and the challenges that they’ve yet to face, he’s not willing to give up his life, not this time. He stepped closer to Touka. She looked at him in mild confusion.
“Yomo-san, Tsukiyama-san.”
“Hm? What is it?”
Without giving too much thought about his next words, he wrapped his arms around Touka and cheerfully announced, “I married Touka-chan.”
Summary: A TouKen Vampire Au for @toukenweek, where Kaneki is saved by a mysterious after being attacked by a vampiric being one night.
Words: 4203~
Notes: I'm a lil late for the Vampire Au, but I hope this contribution still counts! This was an au I had a strange amount of fun with, though I guess it's because it's so similar to TG itself. Anyway, I hope y'all enjoy!
Kaneki was never religious, nor did he believe in any kind of God or Devil. In the past, he would offer a prayer or two at a shrine during New Years, though these ‘prayers’ were nothing more than brief moments of reflection and hope for the future. Prayer was nothing more than a traditional obligation, though he would not go as far as to say such things aloud. It was easy, then, to see the supernatural as nothing more than a fantasy conjured up in the minds of humanity’s superstitious ancestors.
Even so, whenever he came across a ghost or ghoul in one of his many novels, he found himself unnerved and discomforted by their presence. He was not afraid, per se, but there was something unsettling about these monsters as they hunted their prey in human forms. And when these victims are cornered and forced to face their devourers, their humanity would shed away and their monstrous bodies would emerge. Large fangs that protruded from their hanging jaws, sunken eyes that emitted a reddish glow, and their elongated limbs that stretched into gnarled claws. They’d lean in close and feed on the human’s fear as they confront the unavoidable finality of their painful deaths. It was a fear Kaneki never wanted to experience, even if he knew such monsters were nothing more than fiction.
Kaneki shut his book as he finished another chapter from Takatsuki’s most recent work. He nodded approvingly and took a sip from his coffee, his eyes glancing towards the time. He was supposed to meet Hide, but it would seem that he was running late. Kaneki shrugged and checked his phone, seeing a message from Hide telling him that he has another delivery to make before he can finish his shift. Placing his phone aside, he took another sip and opened his book again, eager to continue onto the next chapter.
“Oh my,” Kaneki hears a woman say, followed by a lighthearted giggle. “Is that Takatsuki’s new novel?”
Looking up, Kaneki’s eyes meet a stranger standing by his table - a woman with long, silky hair, pale skin, plump lips, and eyes with long, thick eyelashes and a deep, violet colour. She was also dressed in a long-sleeved dress that hugged her hourglass figure, a cardigan draped over her shoulders. With her glasses, posture, and the soft humour in her expression, along with the smoothness of her voice, there was an errotic sophistication to her that immediately left Kaneki breathless. He gulped and felt his cheeks become warm at the sight of this stranger, and he nodded shakily, showing her the cover.
“Oh, I love Takatsuki!” She clapped her hands together and grinned. “And this new novel - what do you think?”
“W-Well–” Kaneki, flustered, scratches the back of his head as he struggles to decide where to look. “Like a-all of t-their works, it surprises m-me how unique their s-stories are.” He cringes as he continues to stutter over his words and he offers an uneven smile, his ears hot. “I am always i-impressed by their d-dark imagination.”
“I know! I feel the same way.” The stranger then flinches and playfully knocks on her head with an apologetic smile. “Ah, how rude of me. I should introduce myself first.” She offers him a small bow, her hair falling forward. Kaneki gulps again as he smells the woman’s sweet aroma. “My name is Rize Kamishiro.”
Rize. Rize Kamishiro. Her name, spoken with the soothing caress of her voice, lingers in his mind while he clears his throat. “My name is Ken Kaneki.” His heart flutters wildly against his chest. “It is a pleasure to meet you.”
“Oh, no no.” She giggles, like a musical chime. “The pleasure is all mine.”
From behind the counter, Touka glares as she catches Rize watching and smirking at her from the corner of her eye.
He’s mine.
. . .
Kaneki gasps and writhes on the ground, gripping his neck. Blood drips over his scuffed knuckles and down his arm. Red stains begin to spread down his white, torn sleeves, with droplets dripping down onto the ground below. He gasps again and crawls forward, an intense burning sensation coursing through his veins. Rize watches him from a small distance away, blood streaks across her cheeks and dripping from her reddened lips. She slowly licks her lips, lapping up the blood, and grins, with fangs protruding from her upper lip. Kaneki continues to crawl at a slow pace and from behind, he can hear Rize’s footsteps as she quickly closes in on him.
“My, Kaneki, what a pathetic sight you are.” She giggles, pressing a finger against her chin and tilting her head to one side. “Keep crawling. Cry out in pain. Give me more to feed on.”
She then leans forward and grabs his scalp with her sharpened nails, pulling him up so that he can see the red shimmer in her eyes and the narrowing of her pupils. Kaneki winces and struggles vainly against her grip, his legs too weak to carry his weight. She throws her head back and laughs, slamming him onto the ground and straddling his back. There is a ringing in his ears as his body falls limp against her weight.
“Humans are so laughably weak.” She continues, her lips brushing against his ear. He can hear the dangerous sharpness in her voice. “So naive, so clumsy. It was almost too easy to catch you on my web.” She leans back for a moment, her hand still holding onto his head. “You’d make an excellent thrall. Perhaps I’ll make you my slave.” She laughs again and Kaneki wheezes against the cold ground. She shakes her head, smiling. “It’s tempting, but my appetite would never allow it. No worries, sweetie, you should be proud you even made it this far.”
She twists his head to one side and exposes his bloodied neck. Revealing her enlarged fangs once again, she leans forward for one final bite. Kaneki shuts his tired eyes, his ears flooded with the sound of his racing heart.
It was then that he felt Rize's grip loosen, the weight on his back lifted. Cracking one eye open, he hears Rize’s muffled screams behind him, along with the scuffle of footsteps and the collision of bodies. And then there was a sudden silence. Kaneki shut his eyes again and heard someone walk towards him, and he silently hoped that it was his mysterious saviour. Or perhaps it’s another monster, Kaneki thought to himself, wanting to laugh at his misfortune.
A hand is pressed against his cheek and then below his nose before being drawn back again. His body, now weak and frail, is turned onto his back, and he winces as the streetlight above shines over him. He opens his heavy eyelids and squints, the person standing over him a dark shadow against the light.
“What–” A wheezy cough escapes him as he tries to speak, the taste of iron coating his mouth. “Who are you?” He murmurs.
“The venom is already taking effect, I don’t know if I can suck it back out in time.” The stranger, who sounded like a woman, knelt down to his side and turned his neck so that Rize’s bite was facing him. “This will hurt for a moment. Just…rest for a while.”
And with that, she leans down and sinks her teeth over the bite wound. Kaneki flinches and weakly raises an arm to push her off, but she places a hand onto his chest and pushes him back onto the ground. He feels the blood being sucked away from his body and a warmth begins to spread from the wound until it starts to become a burning heat. And as he groaned against the pain, his body grew limp once again and his thoughts faded into a blank nothingness of unconsciousness.
The woman, Touka, opens her mouth and pulls away, a line of blood falling away between her lips and his skin. Wiping her mouth, she checks his pulse. A slow, steady heartbeat. She sighs and presses her palm against his forehead, which was still slick with a cold sweat. His temperature seemed relatively cold, though it was difficult to make any judgments after being attacked in the middle of the street at night. It would be best to take him somewhere safe, she decided and she stood back up, licking the blood off her hand.
A small distance away, Rize’s body convulsed as the blood continued to trickle away from the slice across her neck. Such a wound wouldn’t kill her - Touka knew this - but it would be a while before she fully healed from so much blood loss. Touka hoped that she would use that time to rethink her future hunts before playing with her food.
“Right,” she looked back down at the young man she had seen earlier and she nudged him with her foot. “What should I do now…”
. . .
Kaneki was haunted by a stream of nightmarish dreams of being chased down alleyway after alleyway, with some being deadends, and others to narrower alleys that Kaneki forced himself to squeeze through. All the while, he heard Rize’s wicked laughter following him from behind, taunting him with words that seemed to cut into his skin and slow him down. Still, he desperately pushed onwards, even if he knew there was no escape from her predacious gaze.
And then, finally, he awoke with a gasp. He blinked through the tears in his eyes and they rolled down his cheeks, which were already damp with sweat. He rubbed his eyes and tried to sit up, only to find that his body was much too heavy and his energy very much depleted. He tried again, pushing himself up with his elbows, and he whimpered as his body protested with sudden shocks of twisting pain. His arms trembled while he looked around, Kaneki breathing heavily. He was in a dark room he did not recognise, though it seemed like a basement of sorts. His bed, which seemed to be a camping cot, was pushed to the corner of the room, a desk with an old computer in front of his bed, a sofa against the back wall, and a stack of different boxes to its side. The walls and floors were grey concrete slabs and there was only one light hanging above.
Leaning back, he then notices an I.V drip to his side and lifting his hand, he sees the needle taped on. Gasping, he then reaches for his neck, which was covered with a gauze and medical tape pressed tightly around. There must have been some kind of painkiller in the I.V, since he couldn’t feel any sort of pain when pressing the wound. But then why does my body ache so much, he wonders and he leans to his side with a grimace. What happened that night, he continues to think to himself, was all of that real? Rize, a vampiric beast, and a good samaritan who intervened. What happened afterwards - Kaneki is less certain of. There’s so much to consider, so many questions that needed answers, but even so, Kaneki could only think of the exhaustion that was washing over his body and threatening to drag him back into the realm of sleep.
When he opened his eyes once again, the room was lit up with a dim light and a blurred figure stood a small distance away with their back facing him. He winced and reached up to rub the sleep from his eyes, and hearing him, the stranger looked over their shoulder and turned to him. He wanted to sit up and ask them a plethora of unanswered questions, but fatigue weighed heavily against his body and he found himself fighting to keep his eyes open.
“Are you awake?” The stranger asked, their voice muffled in his ears. He gave them a weary nod. “I want to make sure you have something to eat before you fall back to sleep again.” They knelt beside his cot and held up a plastic bottle with a straw and held it to his lips. He couldn’t see what was inside the drink, but the pain of hunger urged him to take a sip before he could muster the strength to ask. “Drink. It’ll give you your strength back.”
Taking a sip, his mouth was coated with a thick, sweet-tasting liquid that washed away the dryness in his throat. The more he drank, the warmer he felt, and he wondered if he was drinking some kind of soup. It was a nice thought, and an even nicer gesture, he pondered as he continued to drink, remembering the days his mother would feed him freshly made miso soup or porridge whenever he was sick.
Finishing the drink, he leaned back and looked up to the ceiling, his vision now clear and his hearing sharp. He licked his lips, savouring the sweet taste of the beverage the stranger offered, before wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He held it up and noticed a streak of red against his pale skin. He frowned and turned his head towards the stranger, who continued to kneel beside him.
He saw, then, that the stranger was a young woman with black, bob-length hair, her long fringe partially hiding her face, and blue, round eyes that watched him steadily. Her skin seemed all the more pale against her dark hair and dim lighting, as if she were a porcelain doll. It reminded him of Rize, in a way. Right…Rize. He wanted to tell himself that Rize, whatever she may be, was nothing more than a nightmare - a shadow that could do him no harm in the real world. And yet, that fact that he was here, wherever this place may be, was proof enough that something had happened. What exactly that was, he was not confident to say with certainty. For all he knew, the vampirisin he became victim to was nothing more than his mind trying to make sense of whatever had happened that night. Needless to say, he felt that his memories were left in a tangled mess, and the more he tried to make sense of it all, the harder it was to distinguish reality from fiction.
“Who are you?” He decided to ask first, lowering his hand. The stranger stood up and placed the nearly empty bottle aside, frowning. “Where are we? Why…” He paused, then, taken aback by a sudden realisation. “Why am I not in the hospital? Why take me here?”
“Hold on. I’ll answer your questions.” She grimaced and rubbed the back of her head, muttering to herself. “Let me just…” Her eyes wander as her voice trails off. “Let me change your I.V bag first. Wait here.”
Kaneki was about to protest with increased urgency, before remembering that he was in the home of this stranger. A basement, even, from what he could see. This stranger may have saved him, if his memories were anything to go on, but he could not say for sure that he was any safer in the hands of this stranger than he was with Rize. Perhaps that was too harsh, he thought for a moment, as the girl gently examined the needle in his hand and unhooked the nearly empty bag of fluids. Still, it was his lack of caution that caused this whole situation in the first place - he could not afford to be careless a second time. And so, as he watched the stranger climb back up the basement stairs, he slowly climbed out from his cot and followed behind.
His body was not exactly cooperative with his first attempt to move. His knees buckled beneath him and he held onto the desk beside him to hold him up. However, he found that some of his strength gradually returned with each small step he took, and with a deep breath, he forced himself forward. His limbs continued to shake and shudder at first and Kaneki bit his lip to hold back his small cries of pain. He squeezed his eyes shut and breathed heavily through his nose, silently telling himself to make less noise.
Reaching the stairs, he let out another breath as he leaned against the steps and felt the sweat roll down the back of his neck. There was a voice at the back of his head urging him to return to the bed before he was found out, and still, in his panicked state, he kept pushing himself to go further in hopes that, this time, he would succeed in his attempt to escape.
The door on top of the stairs had been partially shut, but not locked, and he stared intently through the gap in the doorway. The thudding of his heart filled his ears as he watched and waited with some distress for the girl to return. But when he reached the top of the stairs, he was quick to slip through the gap and take in his surroundings; it was a regular, plain hallway, with the stairs to the upper floors to his right, and opposite that, a shut door to another room; to his left was what he could only assume was the front door between two archways facing each other. He gulped and crept towards the door, cringing at each slight creak in the floorboards. But he managed to make his way to the door without being caught, and grabbing the door handle, he turned it slowly and prayed that it was somehow unlocked. And as if God had answered his prayers, the door clicked open and Kaneki found himself smiling with great relief as he swung the door open.
And just as his body was flooded with the warm glow of the evening sun, he found himself struck with a burning sensation that painfully prickled his skin like a spray of acid that trickled over the entirety of his body. He threw his arms up to shield his face and he stumbled back, crying out in pain. Squeezing his eyes shut, he heard the door close and felt immediate relief with the sudden darkness, like a cool breeze had drifted over his blistering wounds. He fell onto his knees, panting, as he let this sensation wash over him.
“I told you to wait.” Hearing her voice, Kaneki froze, his heart skipping a beat. He slowly looked back and saw the girl standing behind him, holding an I.V bag in her hand. She looked down at him with eyes that now glimmered with a deep red colour. His mouth felt dry as he stuttered out a weak excuse, glancing between her and her hand which was now squeezing the bag.
“I-I’m sorry.” He stammered with a weak voice. “I was– I panicked.”
She shuts her eyes and heaves out a heavy sigh before placing the bag to one side. She steps forward and Kaneki flinches, pushing himself back against the wall behind him, and he hears the girl click her tongue. Kneeling down, she reaches forward and gently places her hands onto his cheeks, much to his surprise. He tenses up as she brushes her fingers over his skin, carefully moving his head to one side and then to the other as she examines him carefully with her eyes. His eyes widen when he notices that they have now returned to their previously blue colour. He feels his cheeks become warm as she moves even closer to him, suddenly enveloped with her surprisingly floral fragrance. With a slight frown, she leans back and then squeezes his cheeks between her finger and thumb, her eyes narrowed.
“Um…” Kaneki's voice was muffled as he tried to squeeze out a question. “What are you–”
“Quiet.” She lets go with a small push and brushes back her fringe, rubbing the back of her neck. Standing, she sighs again. “Well, I guess there’s no denying it, but…” She shakes her head and holds out her hand for Kaneki to take, which he does with some hesitance. “I did tell you to wait.”
“I’m sorry, I…” He frowns, then, and looks down at his hands, rubbing his skin with sudden urgency. “What happened? Just a minute ago, it felt like my skin was burning. But looking at it now…” His voice trails away as he examines his arms and touches his neck and face, looking between himself and the door. His eyes then meet the girl’s watchful gaze, and he silently pleads for some answers. Her expression remains unreadable while she watches him slowly piece things together. “Does this have anything to do with Rize? Was what happened that night real?”
“Yes.” She nods. “I tried my best to take the venom out, but it seems it still had some effect on you.”
“Venom? What venom? Am I sick?”
“In a sense.” She tilts her chin up, crossing her arms. “Vampirism. Have you heard of it before?”
He stares at her blankly, and then incredulously. “Are you calling me a vampire? No, that’s–” He paces away from her, his hands clenched together. Images of Rize, the vivid memory of Rize biting into his neck, and the stranger leaning in to do the same - they all flood through his mind at once and he shakes his throbbing head. “Vampire…That’s…no, that can’t be. I…I need to go. I need to find Hide.”
“I can’t allow that. Not yet. It’s too dangerous and–”
“Are you…sick, too?”
His voice was small, but cold, a quivering fear laced between his words. She presses her lips together and nods, and she watches his shoulders drop as he stares deep into her eyes, trying to fathom her entire being within a single, brief moment. She seemed normal enough, he thought, and yet…and yet…
“Why did you bring me here?” He finally asked and the girl looked away for a moment.
“It would have been inconvenient for me if anyone else found you and Rize. That’s all.”
Kaneki lowered his head, not entirely sure what he expected. She had saved his life - he knew that much already. A part of him wanted to show her his gratitude, but his gratitude was overshadowed by the frightening revelation that now consumed his thoughts, like a parasite ready to burst in his skull. He wanted to tear it away, to be rid of all this, and yet, with each passing second, he realised that this was his new reality, whether he liked it or not.
“How long will I have to stay here?” He asked in a murmur.
“I don’t know. That will depend on you. I’ll be sure to help you through the new changes the best I can. To be completely honest, I don’t even know just how much of a vampire you really are, though maybe you’re still changing in your physiology. It might be taking longer because only a small amount of venom was ingested into your bloodstream.” Her voice trails off for a moment as she mulls over her thoughts. “We’ll see. But first, I need to make something very clear to you.”
She steps forward then, and Kaneki freezes as she grabs his shoulder with a firm grip, her eyes locked onto his. With his focus on her, his heart begins to quicken while she continues to speak.
“Like I said before, vampirism is a sickness that must be kept hidden from the public at all costs. I can explain the details later. Just understand that, from now on, the person you were before - a college student, a childhood friend, a loving son - that person no longer exists. They are dead to the world now. Do you understand?”
“Dead?”
She nods, her grip tightening. “Yes. Dead. It is imperative that you know that. That you understand what that means. I’m not just saying this for mine, or even for your sake. If you cherish the people you love, you will keep those ties cut and exist as a nobody while you learn to adjust to the venom. If you cannot do that, or if you refuse to heed my advice,” Her eyes narrow then, her next words spoken with a fearsome finality. “I will not hesitate to kill you.”
A growing dread begins to rise up from Kaneki’s stomach, his legs suddenly weak once again. Still, his eyes remain on hers, and with tears threatening to fall from his eyes, he nods.
“I understand.”
“Good.” She loosens her hold on him and lowers her eyes, but keeps her hand on his shoulder for a moment longer before pulling away with a strained silence. “Good.” She repeats, her voice wavering. “Let’s go back down. You need more rest.”
Kaneki wipes his eyes with the back of his hand, sniffling as he follows the girl back down the stairs to the basement. She pauses for a moment before taking the last step, and without turning back to him, she quickly mutters something.
“My name is Touka, by the way. Touka Kirishima.”
She continues to walk into the room and Kaneki wipes his sore eyes again with a wry smile. “My name’s Ken Kaneki.”
“I wonder what that person is doing today…” he mused, tapping his pen against the desk. “On a date maybe?”
Haise’s eyes widened.
No! What is he thinking?
He quickly shook his head to try to shake those ponderings from his thoughts.
There are other things that should be on his mind- he shouldn’t be concerned about the waitress from :Re! And it’s certainly none of his business if such a beautiful woman decided to go on a date with someone on the most romantic day of the year!
Although…if she wasn’t, then how was she spending the day? With friends? Maybe dinner with her family? Would it be too weird if he asked her that the next time he went to the cafe?
…
Yeah, that might be weird, even for him.
He let out a huge sigh.
He tapped his pen again.
It’s probably for the best that he didn’t ever work up the courage to ask her if she wanted to join the Chateau’s Christmas party this year; he wouldn’t want Juuzou or any of the Quinx to share any embarrassing stories about him.
~~~
A snowflake fell down on his nose, despite the umbrella that Haise was holding over him.
It’s cold!
Haise sighed, to see his breath against the chilly January air. He could feel the chill all the way to his bones even through his gloves. On days like this, it’s pretty tough to patrol and do outside work. And this won’t even be the worst of the cold since it’s only a week into the new year. It’ll probably still be snowing pretty heavily well into the next month.
Should he stop to get something warm to drink before heading back to the office?
The image of the waitress flashed in his mind again.
No, no, no!
He honestly just wanted a cup of coffee! Even though there were coffee shops that were closer on his way back to the CCG headquarters, it wouldn’t be the end of the world if he just walked a little bit further out to go to :Re! It’s just because he wanted his favorite cup of coffee, that’s all-
“Oh, Sensei.” He turned to see the woman of his thoughts right in front of him. She was dressed warmly in a coat, holding onto an umbrella to block the falling snow and paper brown bag. “Happy New Year.”
“H-Happy New Year! Please take care of me this year as well,” he greeted, bowing quickly so she couldn’t immediately see the embarrassment on his face.
“Likewise,” she replied, bowing slightly in return, “Are you heading to the cafe?”
“Yes!”
“Then shall we walk together?”
He couldn’t help but beam in joy, “Gladly!”
As they walked, he made sure to match her pace and did his best to make sure that their umbrellas didn’t bump against each other. They were still a good 10 minutes away from the coffee shop.
Maybe now would be a good time to bring up how she spent Christmas? Or is there a better way to ease into that topic? If he does this right then maybe he could really casually figure out if she was seeing someone-
“Were you on a Christmas date with someone?”
His ears immediately turned red.
Why! Why did he say that! Now she’s gonna think that he’s even weirder and just when he thought that they’ve moved on from when he cried after drinking her coffee!
She turned towards him with a slightly confused look on her face, “I’m sorry, did you say something?”
Thank god she didn’t hear that!
“U-Um, not really!”
“Is that so?” Maybe he should’ve asked her about her Christmas, ah, why didn’t he do that?” “How was your Christmas, Sensei?”
“I had some people over for a Christmas party,” he answered. Now he could ask her without it being weird. “What about you? Did you spend it with anyone?”
“Not really, I was working at the cafe with my brother as always.”
“Is that so?”
“You never know when someone needs a cup of coffee.”
“That is true.”
In his mind, he signed out in relief.
So she wasn’t with anyone this Christmas. Maybe if she’s free, he can ask her if she’ll come by and spend the next Christmas with him?
He smiled at her with sincerity as she stared back at him in disbelief and hurt, “I’ll see you later, Touka-chan.”
When he first left her behind all those years ago, he didn’t intend to be cruel to her by excluding her. It’s just…He wanted to keep her to enjoy the ‘peaceful’ life, studying at school and hanging out with Yoriko-chan. He didn’t want her to have to sacrifice that just to follow him. He wanted her to be safe and out of the CCG’s sight.
He had every intention of coming back at the start.
But as his sins piled on and the target on his back became larger. Things became…difficult.
He didn’t think that he had a right to go back to Anteiku, back to her.
~~~
His sentiment from back then still remains true even now. He wanted the people precious to him to be safe. Even if he didn’t make it out with them.
He knows she’s here.
How could she just stand back when Ayato-kun, Yomo-san and everyone else were here? When Hinami-chan was at death’s door?
Arima-san moved closer to them. Within an instant, he attacked!
No warning huh!
He could barely block the heavy blow; it’s not the time to get caught up in the past. There’s a lot on the line right now. With not much time left.
“Ayato-kun! It’s the “outlet at the bottom”, right?!” Ayato’s eyes widened in realization. “I’ll let you handle it!”
Ayato and the other quickly rushed out, but he could still feel someone’s gaze on him. Even then, he dared not to look back.
Even though it’s been years since he’s been fully Kaneki Ken.
Even though it’s been an even longer time since they met on the bridge.
Even now, he couldn’t bring himself to face her.
“Kaneki!”
His body flinched at the sound of her voice.
His eyes widened.
With a sweet smile, she said, “Kaneki, I’ll see you later, ok?”
In that instant, he felt his fingers tremble and his resolve crumble. In that instant, he thought about living. He thought about abandoning his plan to become a sacrificial pawn for Yomo-san’s sake, for Hinami-chan’s sake, for everyone’s sake.
But then he forced himself to look forward, clenching his teeth.
(Don’t look back.
Don’t look at her.)
He needs to look forward, at the obstacle in front of him, at Arima-san, at his future. He knows-He knows what he’s supposed to do! And yet…
He’s facing forward. His neck locked in place so he doesn’t dare twist it around. His eyes continued to look forward. He’s concentrating on keeping his vision clear, but something’s getting in the way. He could feel the liquid bead down the side of his face.
Yet again, please make sure to use #toukenweek2022 or to @toukenweek directly! Also use the correct community label or content/trigger warning if needed.
Have fun creating <3 (and Happy Birthday to Kaneki!)
Artists (on Twitter): @/ZlightyearBuz , @/HakuchoArt , @/rosekasart , @/ammenite
