Yarn

3: Keeping ourselves alive

[Mary's pov] in the evening

The slow beeping of the monitor finally woke me up. For the last days I've been waking up, only to faint again, nurses rushing around me like bees around a daisy. But this time I was completely continues. A cute nurse, called Rika, told me about the night I was brought here. How a strange looking ghoul suddenly appeared through a window, leaving me here.
"I thought he was going to kill us" she chuckled, with a hint of regret in her voice "I wonder why he brought you here". She looked at me, lifting her chin a bit, demanding answers. I simply turned to a side, telling her I'm too tired to talk and that I needed to rest. Sighing, she rose from my bed, caressed my hair and left the room.
'He spared me, saved me' was all I could think out. During the night, I kept dreaming about that evening, his body pressed against mine, hands and teeth desperately digging into my skin, his rushed, warm breath, the smell of my blood in the air. I couldn't sleep well so they doped me with pills.
The following day, Kuki, one of my close friends from CCG was going to pick me up from the hospital so I decided to actually have a good night sleep. I slowly rose and picked up the food tray Rika brought me before. I took the plastic fork into my hands and took a bit from the white rice. It tasted surprisingly good, consider the institution I was in. Hospitals are known for their tasteless food. I laughed softly, finishing my meal, then I went back to sleep.

The next day, I was woken up by Rika's gentle voice. She told me Kuki was there to take me. She helped me get dressed with new, clean clothes: a blue blouse and large, gray pants, then she proceeded walking towards the door of my room. I followed her, thanking her for being so nice to me. With a smile, she turned to me, gave me a warm hug and whispered in my year "Please, stay safe, Miss Tsujii".
In the hallway, Kuki was laying in a chair with his usual bored expression on his face.
"Whatcha doing, buddy" I said in a playful manner, approaching him.
He quickly turned at me and smiled. I tried to rise my hand to properly salute him but I felt a sudden pain. I let out an "ouch" as I massaged my shoulder.
"Take it easy, Mary. We don't want you back in there, do we? The doctors barely constructed your shoulder. It was almost eaten whole." He looked me in the eyes then looked back at the wall "That damn ghoul".
I couldn't look at him so I just replied "At least he brought me here..."
For a moment, an uncomfortable silence fell between us.
"I guess so" replied Kuki before asking me to follow him tot he care "Come on, let's go. I better drive you home I have to get back to CCG by 11." He checked his watch then started walking down the hallway.
I followed him to his black car, then got in the backseat, without looking back at the hospital building. The car sped off the front alley then down the main road, towards my apartment.

[narrator's pov]
Seidou watched the black car as it was running down the crowded street. It was a reckless move, going out in the middle of the day, in plain sight, but he had to. He had to see her again, see where she lives. The moment she got our of that hospital, wearing the blue blouse, the one his deceased mother gave her when they first met, his heart started going crazy. He felt both happiness and terror. Happiness, because she was alive, finally healed and terror because he wanted to see her again, talk to her.
So there he was, chasing after the car, a car like he used to drive back when he worked at CCG. Sweet poisonous memories...
The vehicle suddenly stopped in front of a 20 floor building near the centre of the ward, around 20 kilometres away from the hospital. The girl got out of the car, followed by the ghoul Investigator. Seidou recognised him, Urie Kuki from Haise's team. They never got to speak but he knew that it was one of the top Investigators.
Mary slowly made her way to the entrance of the building as Seidou jumped on a nearer roof, watching the two people hugging eachother. His blood was boiling, he wanted to rip off the guy's head and throw it off the building, see it smash on the ground, but he couldn't do it, couldn't bear hurting Mary again. So he just watched them, then her going inside the tall, glassy building.

[Mary's pov]
Kuki slowly pulled himself out of her embrace and excused himself, saying he needed to head back to the headquarters. After he told me I had a free week to rest, he headed back to the vehicle and drove off. I opened the heavy entry doors and made my way to my apartment. When I finally got in, I went straight to the kitchen, making myself a big sandwich, ate it, then threw up everything in the sink. 'Great, even the bread is spoiled' I told to myself 'I need to go shopping soon'. Then I went to my room, threw myself into the big, fluffy bed and covered myself with the red cushioned blanket.

I woke up at ten, with my stomach empty and a terrible headache. I needed to do out, get some fresh air. I put on some comfortable clothes, a pair of shorts and a lokse shirt. As I watched my reflection in the wardrobe's mirror, I finally realised how skinny I was. I looked so weak. There was no way I could've gone back to hunting down killing machines the next week. I rubbed my forehead then put on my fluffy slippers and headed to the rooftop. I lied at the 18fth floor and the next two apartments were unoccupied, so I didn't bother being quiet and I climbed the endless stairs, taking occasional breaks to catch my breath.
Once I made it to the rooftop, I pushed the door and went out in the night. The cold wind blew the hair strands off my face. I looked at the sky, the countless stars, far, far away. When I was little, I've always dreamed of reaching the starts. I thought they were so far away they could've protected me from all the bad things in my life. Maybe this is still valid now...
I took a step forward, closer to the edge. Then another step. I looked down at the town, admiring the lights. Every glassy building, lit up like a candle, a torch in the night. The block next to mine caught my attention. Slowly, more and more windows closed and the lights were turned off. People were going to sleep, probably next to the loved ones. The loved ones... I removed my eyes from the building and once again looked at the sky. I suddenly realised how close I was to the edge. I stopped moving, cupped my cheeks with my now freezing hands and stood there, simply watching the joyful city.

[Seidou's pov]
I quietly watched Mary as she was walking towards the edge of the roof. Her gaze was amazed, as she was watching the city, as if she was looking for something in the night. The urge to talk to her was so intense, but I didn't even know what to say. 'After last time we met, when I lost control, this dammed body of mine went on rampage...' I slowly jumped behind her, my bare feet quietly touching the cement underneath. I approached her, looking at her back. There, standing in the moonlight, her dark hair flowing in the slow wind like a halo around her head, that shirt barely keeping her warm. I wanted to go and hold her close, like I used to in the good times, but they were gone now. 'She lost weight' I told myself. Indeed, she was so thin I could've easily picked her up, take her away from this world... I was suddenly conscious of my own self. What I've become. "The Owl", that's how they called me. Because I killed mercilessly and was able to provide them information about the CCG and their teams. 'How can I tell her everything that happened?' I asked myself. She was the only reason I wasn't a complete monster, why I wasn't feeding myself with a humann's flesh right now. A human, just like her, just how I used to be...
She made a move. She rose her hands to her face, shaking a bit. 'She must be cold' I thought. I approached her, my heart racing like hell as I finally spoke:
"The city is beautiful, right?"