The Crimson Butterfly [My Hero Academia & Tokyo Ghoul]

Chapter 19: Let's Keep Smiling!

(The Remedial Course Arc)

Nana's POV

Many said that when you die, you will meet a robed skeleton holding a scythe. Some said you go to Heaven or Hell. Some say that you are reincarnated. Some say you turn into a ghost, while some say you sleep for eternity.

Death wasn't kind. I knew that. It snatched where it could, taking people who were far too young, far too good. It didn't pretend to care, it didn't pretend to distinguish.

When I was little, I believed that death was a body or shadow that lurked in the dark, he crawled under little children's beds and he was always there. He was always there, following us and the closer he got the sooner he would take us as his own. He was the ghost that people feared and he was the tormentor of the many corpses claimed by death.

You know when your time is nearing its end because you can feel the chill of his icy breath as it tickles the hairs on the back of your neck.

The hooded vale of death had hung over my life for a long time, always threatening. It had never touched me quite so close. Death had ripped away a part of me, the part of me that was most loved. At first my parents. Then Touya, even though a part of me still believed that he was out there somewhere, alive, especially after meeting Dabi a few months ago. And now, Sir Nighteye.

Death is inevitable, but it's something that we can't easily accept.

The rain tapped on the glass of the window beside my bed and I lay down on my bed and pulled my blankets up around me more, staring out at the gloomy city with a frown.

It always rains when someone close to me dies...

Some knocked sound on my door but I ignored them, not even bothering to turn around to look, and kept on looking outside through the window. The door opened and then closed, and the bed sunk down, revealing Kaneki sitting on the edge with my back facing him.

After our fight with Chisaki and his gang, I didn't go back to my dorm, because I knew my friends couldn't handle my depressed ass. It had been three days since I was staying over at Kaneki's place, moping around. My old man Aizawa freaked out at first when I didn't return to the dorm but Kaneki informed him about my whereabouts and so here I was now, with Kaneki, in his apartment.

"Nana..." Kaneki softly called out.

But I remained quiet.

Kaneki let out a sigh before crawling into my blankets and lying down beside me, wrapping his arms around my frame from behind and burying his face into my raven locks.

"I failed Ken..." I muttered in a broken tone, my vision started to get blurry.

Kaneki looked over at me with wide eyes in surprise. After all, this was the first time in my life I called him by his first name.

"No, you didn't." Kaneki shook his head, tightening his grip around me. "You did well."

"But I could've done better, I could've tried harder..." I mumbled, biting my bottom lip, my breaths became shallow and shaky. "Maybe Sir would've..."

All my vulnerabilities being shown to him, the fear and emotions I dug so deep down were now displayed. The last time Kaneki had seen me this distraught was when Mom and Dad passed away and when Touya went missing for good.

"You did well, Nana." Kaneki sighed, slowly running his fingers through my raven locks. "You did more than what you could've done. Even though you're now literally a hero, you can't save everyone around you. That's a harsh reality that you need to accept. Nana, remember, not everyone can be saved, nor is it your responsibility to save everyone. The important thing is trying and don't let pain and abuse get away unchecked. There may be situations that are out of your control, but that's no excuse not to try or empathize. Try your best to spark a light in a dark tunnel because you may not know it, perhaps you've saved a life."