Mourning Doves | Tokyo Ghoul

13 | I n t o x i c a t e d

They had been at VICE for more than a few hours, enjoying each other's company and laughing like idiots while the bass in the background vibrated their bones within their pulsing flesh. Etsuko probably had a dozen different drinks, doubling up on a few she had particularly liked, and ended up feeling a lot better than she had been in the past six weeks. The peachy undertone of her skin had been drawn out a little more prominently and the apples of her cheeks now radiated in a bright strawberry, as well as the tip of her nose; her long, slender fingers no longer resembled a skeleton's in all of its bony physique. Her cheeks were no longer hollow, rather only slim and narrow; the sparkle in her eyes had been resurrected, and now burned a passionate, fiery amber. She had been revived, and the night was still blissfully young.

The ghoul bartender had fed her a variety of mixed drinks, exclusive only to her at the moment, and enthusiastically piled more and more glasses in front of her with a genuine, enjoyable smile. She had to get up to go to the bathroom at least three times, only to come back to three more glasses of more mixes in her space. She took shots of pure blood plasma and mixes made with human tears and drops of stomach acid, which apparently was one of the culprits for that alcohol-like after-burn; margaritas were blended for her, the wide glass rims moistened with the same plasma and dipped into a sheet of powdered bones.

The deliciously grotesque menu went on and on, and she swore the ghoul had all of these exceptionally intricate recipes programmed into him; he whipped them up as if he made them nightly, and each and every one fluttered upon her ghoulish taste buds like some extraordinary macabre dance. Still, she had quite a bit of fun with the bartender, making light, teasing remarks and cracking jokes that only ghouls would ever get. It was a lot more fun than any other bar she had ever been to, especially Helter Skelter, where the entire ward feared her presence and as a result, did not make for such light-hearted company.

Ichijou had probably smoked a total of ten cigarettes, seemingly unable to stop as he pulled out one after the other, taking long drags between gulps of fireball whiskey and shots of tequila and lime. Riku remained introverted, and seemed to concave into himself the more he drank; a few women could be seen eying him, since he was, after all, a rather attractive looking young man. However, his either impotent or purposefully ignorant mind shunned them and shut them out, immersing himself in only the occasional word with a very, very drunk Ichijou.

She expected him to be the flirty type, just as any other man she had encountered, where no matter how loyal and valiant he may seem when he was sober, alcohol would unwind him and turn him into a sopping wet mess of sweat, booming laughter, and sexual innuendos. It was what she expected, but from what she had learned already, Ichijou was anything but the typical expectations.

Instead, he turned out to be the overprotective type - an intensified version of his sober self, if she had to describe it in better terms. The arm lounging behind her on the chair slowly slipped down to her waist as time trudged on, his fingers rubbing soothingly against her skin from under her monochrome-striped top, which revealed a bit of her white midriff. Her crimson sweater wrap lay draped over her purse on the counter, since the overcrowded club grew way too hot for her in the first ten minutes of being inside. She sipped a mixed drink on a mist, sloshing the finely shaved ice in her mouth before swallowing the sensational drink.

"Hey," a gruff voice murmured to her from the side.

Etsuko narrowed her eyes in agitation, turning her head lazily to face the troublesome suitor.

He was a typical man of average height and build, lean but not quite muscular. His eyes were ordinary, brown and gleaming with some sort of mischief, with lips that curled up into a smile that would have been irresistible to any other desperate attention-seeking woman.