KITSUNE

➖ Rebound: Merry

HAISE SASAKI WAS EXCITED – HE TRIED HIS BEST TO KEEP THAT EXCITEMENT AT BAY. However, his squad members were not unfamiliar with his character. He was a bit down for a moment when a message came on his phone that a certain guest he had invited for dinner would have to postpone their arrival because one of their clients was having a mental breakdown due to the negative reviews they received for their work.

Sorry I won't be able to get there on time :(

Don't wait for me!

I'll get there for that delicious coffee you said you'll make for me! :)

Haise remembers reading those messages after he expressed his discontent with her not being able to arrive on time. However, he understood why she couldn't just say "no" to the client. She lived alone and had to pay for everything from her pocket – therefore, working hard was not an option for her. She had to work hard if she wanted to live comfortably.

During the dinner, Haise was pressured by Shirazu and Saiko to tell who their guest was. They were all curious (except for Urie) about the mysterious person Haise had been seeing lately. It was not hard for them to become aware that there was a special person in Haise's life that he had taken interest in. They could tell it was serious – he would not have invited that person to meet Quinx if it was not. As their mentor, he was careful with people meeting Quinx, especially people who were not part of CCG.

"Mister Sass! Come on, tell us! Who are they?" Shirazu was not giving up.

"Don't hold us in suspense now, teach!" Tooru said.

"Yeah, Maman, tell us!" Saiko demanded.

Pathetic – Urie thought as he silently ate the meal Haise prepared. If anything, Haise was a very good cook. However, he would appreciate it if he could enjoy the meal in peace and not listen to children yelling. The entire day he had been listening to Shirazu, Tooru and Saiko discussing the mysterious person with whom Haise has been hanging out in his free time from time to time.

Even Urie, who was usually training in the gym or going for a run or avoiding everyone in Chateau, managed to notice a change in Haise's personality. He was usually cheerful and positive, but lately, there was a different vibe when it came to that cheerfulness and positivity. It got everyone curious and Urie just wanted to be excluded from the topic.

"Alright, alright." Haise intertwined his fingers in front of him on the table. "Her name is Hayami Ikeru. She's a junior editor at Shoeisha. She likes to drink coffee and she likes to read books, though not as much as before as she is caught up with her work..."

Here he goes. Urie mentally rolled his eyes as he listened to Haise talking about a woman named Hayami Ikeru. He went on and on about her; about her likes and dislikes, about how he met her and helped her get to Shoeisha, and how they went on coffee and again and again... Idiot is in love – Urie concluded.

"She's human." Urie interrupted once he was done listening to his lovesick mentor and got all the attention on him. "Isn't she afraid you'll devour her? Being ghoul and all..."

All the eyes returned to Haise and he stood there – perplexed. She doesn't know. – Urie was quite confident in that. He had never told her and he hadn't even thought of telling her that he is a half-ghoul; not a Quinx like the rest of them. The rest could see that as well. The pause in the atmosphere had answered Urie's question.

"Well..." Haise's shoulder slumped. "That is something I haven't yet had the opportunity to tell her..." He confessed. "But I will!" He pointed out.

Right after I gathered the courage to tell her. He was not certain how she would react – will she distance herself or understand his situation? He didn't know – and not knowing scared him. Hayami seemed like an understanding person. She did say she was not afraid of ghouls – therefore, maybe she won't be afraid of him. I can only hope.