It was Christmas, and Kaneki was late for work. He ran along the sidewalk to anteiku holding a package in his arms, going as fast as he could without tripping. Just as he got to the door, it slammed open, hitting him in the face and knocking him onto his back. "What the hell, you idiot!?" someone shouted, pulling him off the ground by his necktie. "Sorry Touka! I didn't think the door would open before I could get to it" Kaneki laughed nervously, raising his hands in mock surrender.

"Whatever. Come in, you're already late" Touka said, rolling her eyes and letting go of Kaneki. They both walked in, and inside the small coffee shop their manager was serving a single customer. The shop was oddly empty, but Kaneki figured that that was probably because it was Christmas. "Kaneki, why are you late? It isn't like you to miss work" the manager asked, looking up from the table he was serving. "Sorry, I stayed up last night wrapping some presents and overslept." Kaneki said, holding up the package he was carrying. The manager nodded and walked behind the counter on the other side of the room, seemingly satisfied by Kaneki's answer.

"Oh, by the way Touka, the present's for you!" He announced, handing the present to her. "Um, thanks?" she said, tearing open the package to reveal a pair of gold earrings, with a small blue gem shaped like a teardrop on each one. "I know it isn't much, but I hope you like it" Kaneki smiled, blushing a little. "They're pretty…" Touka muttered, inspecting the earrings closely. "What?" Kaneki asked, suddenly worried that he had done something wrong. "I said I like the present, dumbass!" Touka snapped, flicking him on the forehead. Kaneki squawked, awkwardly rubbing his forehead as Touka left the room.

The rest of the day was relatively normal, but when Touka left work that day, Kaneki could have sworn that she was wearing earrings.