Ghosts of the Past

Chapter 39

Nobody said a word.

All was quiet, and for a moment, Kaneki held a split second of regret.

He pushed that away, telling himself that he needed to do this.

"Kaneki?" Hide's dad spoke in a disbelieved whisper. "Is that really you?"

Kaneki let out a small noise, and scratched his cheek sheepishly. "Yeah."

Hide's mom stared at him, and a warm smile slid onto her face. "Come on in. I'm sure you both are freezing out there."

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"Would you like anything to eat, Kaneki?" Hide's mom asked as she fumbled around the kitchen. Hide, his dad, and Kaneki sat at the table.

Hide flinched, and Kaneki laughed nervously. "No thanks. Black coffee will be fine."

Hide's dad eyed them, but said nothing.

Hide's mom made him his coffee and sat next to her husband.

"So, what brings you two here? Last I heard, you were both in America." She said.

"We were." Hide confirmed. "We came here because Kaneki requested it."

"And why'd you want to come here?" Hide's dad asked curiously.

"I'm sure I recall Hide telling me about his talk with you." Kaneki pointed the statement towards Hide's mom.

"Yes, he talked to me. Told me how he was a ghost, and how you were able to see him." Hide's mom agreed.

"Yeah...well, the thing is..." Kaneki stuttered slightly. "I might know who killed Hide."

"What?!" Both parents screamed, making Kaneki cover his ears.

"Sensitive hearing..." He muttered, eyes squeezed shut.

"Oh, sorry." Both parents backed off.

"Still, you know who killed Hide?" Hide's dad asked.

"Yeah." Kaneki nodded hesitantly.

"Who? Who killed my son?" Hide's mom asked desperately, but Hide stopped her. "Calm down, mom. You're making him nervous."

"Hide, do you know who killed you?" His dad asked.

"Yeah. I knew the moment I became a ghost." Hide shrugged.

"Let us call the police! They can arrest the guy!" Hide's mom cried.

Kaneki flinched and tried to sink into his seat, but Hide pulled him back up, glaring at his mom. "Stop."

She went quiet and watched the two boys.

Kaneki gulped lightly and shuddered.

"Kaneki," Hide started. "You don't have to do this."

"I want to." Kaneki protested, waving off Hide best he could.

Kaneki licked his lips nervously, mouth suddenly feeling dry. He closed his eyes tightly and decided to get it over with quickly. "I killed him."

Silence.

"Very funny." Hide's dad glared. "If you know, tell us."

Kaneki slowly opened his eyes, staring at Hide's parents.

Hide blinked at them before sighing. "He's not lying, dad. Kaneki really did kill me. Tore me up, actually." He laughed. "I was curious as to how my body wasn't torn up when I returned to it, but whatever, I guess."

Both adults looked at the two boys expressions. They were serious. Completely and utterly serious.

"That doesn't make any sense." Hide's mom took a deep breath. "You guys still act like best friends. Besides, Kaneki would never do that..." A pause. "right?"

"No," Kaneki shook his head. "I would never do that. Not if I was in my right mind, at least."

"What he means is he couldn't exactly control himself." Hide summarized.

"Why not?" Hide's mom asked.

"I guess it's just best to tell you straight out." Kaneki sighed. "I'm a ghoul."

Nobody said anything, there were no words.

"That's impossible." Hide's dad growled. "When you were younger, you ate dinner with us all the time. Ghouls can't eat human food."

"They can't." Kaneki agreed. "I was human then. A while ago, I got turned into a ghoul, more commonly known as a one-eyed ghoul, or half ghoul."

Kaneki, not waiting for a response, peeled off the medical patch that covered his left eye. He quickly activated the kakugan, letting black and red seep into the eyeball.

Gasps echoed throughout the small kitchen.

"Oh my..." Hide's mom covered her mouth, tears building up.

"So, you ate Hide?!" Hide's dad barked.

"Not on purpose." Kaneki quickly added.

"He didn't mean to, dad." Hide protested. "Besides, he was so hungry, he was weak. I could have easily pushed him off. I let him eat me. Don't blame him. He starved himself, and there was no other food source for miles."

Both parents stared at the two boys, both best friends, one ghoul, one human, a dangerous mixture.

"Start from the beginning."

And start from the beginning they did.

__________________________

The concept was difficult for the Nagachika family, but both parents agreed to keep it a secret and accepted him.

It would take some time to get completely used to it, but they had a few months to try.

__________________________

After the few months were up, Hide and Kaneki went back to America, not before saying goodbye to Hide's family and the :re employees.

Lily and Ned welcomed the two back with open arms, and the group visited Melinda and Jim that day to greet them.

Hide enrolled in the same college Ned, Lily, and Kaneki were going to, and Eli helped the group out from time to time.

There was slow progress for people to trust Kaneki again, but it was progress, nonetheless.

Kaneki was happy where his life was now. He remembered all of the pain, torture, and grief he'd gone through, but it was slowly decreasing. He was slowly healing.

All of the heartbreak was just that now, a distant memory, a dream.

It was just his Ghosts of the Past.

This is the end! I hope you all enjoyed this crossover! I enjoyed writing it! Bye my doggies, and I'll see you in my next book!