The Rose and the Centipede

Bloodied.

 He tracked her scent back to Anteiku. She must have stayed there for a minute.

Kaneki had left the warehouse where he and Hanami had stayed, dressed in a casual top and dark pants. He had left his mask at the warehouse, considering no one would recognize him with his hair being white save for the ghouls at Anteiku. In its place was the medical eyepatch he wore to cover his kakugan. Kaneki inhaled, the faint scent of roses filling him, as he climbed up the stairs. He could hear the bustling of the café even when he hadn't reached the doors and nostalgia filled him. How he missed the camaraderie...

This is for everyone's sake. I have to protect them, but...I need Hanami with me. That was the reason he had come. Not for a reminiscent chat; he was searching for his flower.

Kaneki turned the handle to the café door, pushing it open and watching as his fellow ghouls—Koma, Kaya, Nishio—turned their attention to the entrance, only to pause in their usual greeting. Touka stood at the counter, her head turning to look at him and her eyes widened. Shock chilled her to the core and her voice barely rose above a whisper as his name fell from her lips.

"What's brought you by, Kaneki?" Nishio asked, keeping his voice nonchalant as if the younger male had come around often and this was a mere social call. Of course, he also knew better. If Touka blows a gasket now...

Kaneki was silent for a moment, his eyes taking in those who worked in Anteiku. "The girl who was here before," he began before he noticed Touka visibly tensing. "Where is she?" he asked her, ignoring the gnawing hole that threatened to consume him in that very moment. He needed the answer.

Touka averted her eyes, unsure of why. "She left a little while ago," she answered. "She was here to answer some questions I had."

"What kind of questions?"

"She was at the CCG earlier."

Kaneki froze, his eyes widening slightly. Hanami was there? She had no reason to protect him. The only he hope he had for the CCG to not find out him would be if Hanami's heart refused to reveal him. "I need to find her," he muttered.

Touka's eyes flew up to meet his, her teeth furrowing into her lower lip. "Kaneki, you...you can't make her stay with you. I thought the whole point of whatever it was you wanted to do was to cut ties and now here you are--"

"Touka," Kaya cut in, her voice soft but firm, and Touka turned her gaze toward her. The expression in Kaya's eyes said it all and Touka gritted her teeth, her molars snapping together, before she rounded back on Kaneki. There were words piling onto the tip of her tongue and she longed to spew them before they left the acidic aftertaste. Touka thought of Hanami, of the brunette's words and that gentle, kind smile that the white-haired male had mentioned when he was still with the Anteiku ghouls. "She could still smile, regardless of what you put her through," she muttered at last, hoping that Kaneki understood her implications.

He stayed silent, but he took in Touka's words, averting his gaze. Kaneki had caused Hanami's primal instinct to survive him to emerge; that was his doing and yet, she was still able to smile in Touka's presence. She's strong. Stronger than I'll ever be...

The door to Anteiku opened and a familiar voice rang out, "I knew I'd find you here."

Touka suppressed a groan and Kaneki turned around to be face-to-face with Tsukiyama Shu, who wore his polite smile. "Were you looking for me, Tsukiyama?" he asked coolly, schooling his features into indifference.

"Indeed I was. I had encountered something that may intrigue you. It may have something to do with the young miss that occupied your attention," answered Tsukiyama smoothly, bowing slightly to be eye-level with Kaneki.