Forever My Human Girl

What is Love?

This was something new altogether; you were feeling an extremely strange flurry of emotions; you were nervous as you were in public for the first time sine that incident, glad that no wanted posters of you were put up yet, happy that Ayato finally paid you some attention and lastly, frustrated because the afternoon crowd was annoying.

People pushed and shoved as they walked up and down the street, it was the usual lunch time rush and you never hated it more than this moment, right now. You'd put on a surgical mask before leaving the headquarters in case any CCG investigators were patrolling and recognized you straight away; to be convincing, you coughed every once in a while like you were sick and that helped your traveling a little bit as people avoided you like a plaque.

You struggled to keep up with Ayato as he waded through the crowd easily, he wasn't extremely tall but you managed to keep your eye in him pretty good so far. However, it was evident that the distant between you and him grew and grew until you were so far behind that your heart began to race out of anxiety.

"Aya-" you were cut off when a hand grabbed your arm, you gasped when you realized that whoever this person was, he or she was pulling you toward an alleyway. You tried to wriggle your arm out of their grip but the heavy crowd avoided you from doing so efficiently.
--
Once you'd reached the alleyway, completely out of everyone's sight, you then realized who this person was. You'd recognize her freckled face anywhere.

"Miyako?" You said incredulously.

"(Y/N)." She said simply, "I can't really explain this now because if I did, you won't take what I'm about to give you, so just," she reached into her pocket and pulled out an envelope, "take this and keep safe." She looked at you one last time and took off, disappearing back into the heavy crowd, you assumed.

"Wait!" You wanted to run after her but stopped, knowing that there was no way you could catch her in such a massive group of people; you couldn't even keep up with Ayato- "SHIT." You panicked, wondering what to do. He didn't tell you where he was bringing you to so you had absolutely no clue where he was and how to find him.
--
Ayato sensed something strange and turned around, his eyes widening as an overwhelming sense of dread washed over him. "(Y/N)?"

He turned around and looked for any sign of you; a waving hand, a call, a shout, anything. But alas, his efforts were futile until a girl walked past him, your fainted scent lingered on her. He rushed forward and was about to grab her but stopped right before he did; he couldn't mess up today. That girl could be from the CCG. She could be anyone. If he was going to find you, he'd do it himself.
--
Ayato backtracked and spotted an alleyway, he shrugged to himself before entering it, looking out for any clue of you being there previously. After a minute of walking, and being on the verge of giving up and just going back to the main street, Ayato was greeted with the sight of you looking very frightened. Something triggered his mind in a split second and his instincts forced him towards you.

"(Y/N)!" He called out as he swiftly wrapped his arms around you protectively, his eyes darting around for any assailants. "Are you okay?" He asked after noticing that the coast was clear.

You said nothing but laughed, so hard that tears beaded at your eyes. Ayato looked at you, confused, weren't you in danger? Didn't his sudden presence saved you from what could've been lurking in the shadows, waiting to kill you?

"I'm okay," you said, slightly out of breath, "I always was, Ayato," you smiled brightly, a smile that reminded him of a moment that occurred thirteen years before. "Thank you."

His face turned red as a tomato before he replied, stuttering, "n-no problem..." His look of embarrassment caused another hysterical fit from you and he huffed, arms crossed, a slight pout on his face; and he walked away.

"Wait," you laughed, hand gripping your aching stomach, "I don't mean to laugh," you heaved a deep breath and caught up with him, "I'm sorry," you smiled. His eyes looked at you from the corner of his eyes and a smile of his own appeared on his face, although he tried extremely hard to hide it.
--
At the entrance of the alley, you noticed that the crowd hadn't died down yet and fear ran through you as the thought of getting lost yet again invaded your mind.

Ayato observed the dreaded look on your face and quickly took you hand in his, his warm hands enveloped and yours easily. "Just don't let go, alright?" His voice was kind, no teasing, no sign of irritation.
--
You hummed in satisfaction as you finished your slice of cake. Ayato'd brought you to a nice little cafe which apparently, like Anteiku, catered towards ghouls as well as humans. It was a safe haven for all.

While you were devouring your snack, Ayato watched you, his features were gentle, the opposite of his usual scowl. Before him sat a cup of half-drunk warm black coffee, which he later gave to you as you needed something to wash down the cake. A sense of affection rushed through him as he watched you drink from the cup he just drunk from with no hesitation at all.

"Is there anything you want to buy?" He asked out of the blue. You looked up, swallowing your last gulp of the warm beverage before replying, "no, not really."

"Are you sure?" Coming to this place, for some reason, he thought about the things that Haise Sasaki bought you for your birthday and a surge of jealousy ran through him.

"Yes, I am." He was being awfully persistent.

"Real-"

You leaned forward and caught his lips in a deep kiss, one that you craved for a long time, "yes, really. Let's go back now, shall we?"
--
When you left the cafe, his arm casually rested around your waist, the crowd wasn't as huge anymore -- which should've been a good thing but the first person who spotted you was a CCG investigator. While the man took a few seconds to process who you were and why you looked so familiar, Ayato swore under his breath and led you away.

While walking briskly towards the same alleyway from earlier, the purple-hairs ghoul took off his scarf and wrapped it around your neck, pulling it up to cover the bottom half of your face; he did it all so gently that it made you pounding heart swell with affection.

But soon, the frightening anxiety returned and your face slowly paled, you were so used to killing ghouls for the CCG that killing humans never occurred you to. Ayato pulled you into the alley, the investigator's footsteps followed, "look, (Y/N)," he said calmly, pulling out a leather mask out from his jeans, "I know you're afraid to kill them," he put it on swiftly as he spoke, "so I'll do it, you just stay behind m-" he grunted. He was hit.

Ayato knew that he had no time to turn around and fight them while you were still vulnerable, so he shielded you with his body, taking all the ruthless hits from the investigators. He was hugging you, making sure that all your vital points were protected. He looked down at you, your face was extremely pale and fear numbed your senses.

'Come on, (Y/N),' you thought, 'you're strong. Stronger than all of them... So why are you letting Ayato slowly get killed for you?' You screamed in your head, pleading with yourself to do something. Anything. You willed your head to look up and gasped when blood began to seep from his mask. But still, his eyes remained on you, his gaze was gentle, as if telling you that if you didn't want to, you didn't have to fight them. 'Just leave it to me,' he seemed to be saying through his gaze.

"No." You said, breaking free from his grip and smoothly switching places with him, "I won't let you die for me."
--
You took deep breaths as the bodies of the investigators last at your feet. You weren't wounded.

"(Y/N)," Ayato grunted from behind you, you turned and around and fell to your knees in front of him. He was healing fast but no doubt it hurt. "Are you okay?" His eyes scanned your body for any injuries.

"No, I'm alright." You smiled, helping him up, he was almost fully recovered. "Ayato, why're you suddenly so sweet to me?"

He choked on his breath when you asked that dreaded question, "I just..." He said, a blush gracing his cheeks, "I love you."

Your heart warmed up before you hugged him firmly, head burying into his chest, his arms curling around your shoulders as he rested his chin on your head. "And I'm never going to hide it from you ever again."