My Personal Vampire

After we walked out of class, I left to grab some food. All the students of our college went to the cafe near the college, it was pretty and cozy, it was called “Tara’s” Just Tara’s, she was a young girl, self made and haughty like me. I got along with her pretty fine. I went and sat alone, in a corner like usual, thinking innately about how he’d beamed his perfect teeth at me like I was really just a friend. He was a fiend. A murderer in my eyes and I wanted to do something but even after eighteen years of planning, nothing came to mind. What if he killed me first, there was no reason to let me live, right? 

I was drowning in my thoughts, when I heard someone pull the chair across from me and take a seat. I sucked on the lettuce that was stuck on my fork, “Excuse me, but I prefer-“ I was about to say sitting alone when I saw who it was. Who else? My favourite vampire. 

He looked at me with a smirk on his face that burned me, “I know but I don’t.” He said. “You’re very interesting,” I said as I leaned closer to him, “I’m pretty sure I’ve seen you before and the way you’re acting right now is making my suspicion and speculation seem factual.” “I’m pleased to hear I’m interesting to you, but I came because I wanted to tell you something.” Was it the moment when I’d finally learn why the devil had sneered on us when I was young? I asked myself and then faking a smile I looked up at him, my eyes filled with curiosity, “We’re in the same group for Cases 1.” He said disappointing me. “I know.” I said. Who’d been so kind to put us in a pair? God knows. 

“We’ll have to work on Cases together then. But it’s after school so why don’t you come to my house every night after we’re done with ‘Recognition’?”, I asked, he’d always barged into my house ignoring my preferences. What now that I was inviting him in? Would he still suck on me or would he cave and chicken out before he was too deep into the waters. 

“Sure,” he said, no emotions showing on his face. Damn, I’d never seen such control in anyone except for myself. That happens when you have to give multiple people your testimony which is deemed inadmissible because a child like me could write a fictional novel at the age of 3. Of course. Normal. 

Before I could say or conjecture anything else, he’d already gotten up and gone off to wherever his personal hell was. 
I went home, and the first thing I did was analyse the note he’d touched to check whether vampires had fingerprints… I’d suspected not but I don’t know why it still surprised me when I couldn’t see anything, there was nothing just my fingers had latched onto the paper and left a mark, had he barely held it? I tried to remember his movement and was pretty sure that he’d touched the note, but why were there no fingerprints? 

I’d fallen asleep on my desk and for the first time in a long time, he didn’t come. I’d gotten used to waking up when I felt his hands around me, waiting to bite but now… nothing. He didn’t come, I was so shocked that I’d startled myself out of a nightmare, I was kind of missing him, this was a ritual that he’d always performed like a machine programmed to do so, where was he today? 

I’d forgotten eating dinner like usual, so I woke up and sat down with some cereal, it was 1:00 clock, and I was quite bored now that no one had sucked blood out of me, I felt quite energised, I took up a case file and began reviewing documents. This case had happened six years ago, in a rural town, gotten media coverage but not enough to cause a stir up and it had received attention but not enough since there it lay unsolved. 

I finished eating and finished researching about all the victims and then I saw it was about to be 4:00 am. I’d not realised how time had passed. I weakly stretched my arms out and went to bed. I’d have to be up in a couple of hours, might as well monopolise the time left. Then I fell asleep. It was the sweetest slumber I’d even fallen in. 

The next morning I left for class, looking pretty as usual and reached “H.U” on time but there were still fifteen minutes left. I wanted to buy coffee for our first lecture, our first lecture was on serial killers, their psychological make up to be exact. 

As I headed towards Tara’s, someone grabbed my arm as I had Air pods on, it was him. He showed me the coffee cups in his hand and I took out an air pod to ask, “What?” “Here, you can have it,” he said generously and I wondered why he hadn’t visited yesternight, I looked at the offered beverage suspiciously and then rearranged my face to look grateful. “By the way, I’m Atlas, you didn’t introduce yourself yesterday.” I looked at him, my face horrified, no one had ever spoken to me like that, so freely, so… I wasn’t sure back then but with so much admiration and affection in their voice, my parents had died when I was young and other than them, no one, no one had ever even looked at me with affection, he was the first and I wondered why, maybe even shuddered but oh well. 

“Is he acting?”, I wondered to myself and then looked at him, “Sorry about that, went right past everything on my mind, first day jitters.” We started walking towards the garden that was adjacent to our school building. We had more than enough time to get to our class, might as well talk. 

“I’m Emma!” I announced. He was the first “vampire” I’d ever introduced myself to, though I think I was sure, he knew me. He had to. Otherwise, all the blood transactions, what were they about? I wasn’t stupid, I’d figured out that he needed my blood to survive, otherwise why’d he target a single human, there were plenty of people who’d be willing to offer him their blood, I can’t deny he had a pretty face. 

“Emma Webster.” I finished and he was looking at me, memorising every fold of my face, sort of in a trance, I was amused and shook him. “Sorry,” he said, “you’re really beautiful.” Another first for me, despite the fact that people had called me pretty from afar, I must’ve seemed dangerous, solemn and serious, no one had ever complimented me like that. “Uh, thank you.” I said, a bit disgusted with myself, I still needed to think about how I was going to tell the world what a monster pretty boy really was. “So, why did you join this university?” He asked, counting the trees that we passed, I could almost read his mind, he was so obvious, so simple, like an open book and I was scared but I had to read him. “My family was murdered when I was young, I wanna bring the murderers to justice.” I soliloquised. He winced and I could make it out, though he tried to hide it, I could feel it, the expression on his face was grave, so the bastard was seemingly aware of his nearing doom. “I’m sorry,” he said and after a pause continued, “Do you know who killed them?” He asked, it seemed like he had practised this as much as I had. “A couple of vampires, why do you ask?” I tried to sound as serious as possible and he tried to laugh it off, “Oh come on!” But I wasn’t joking. 

Before he could say anything else, I looked at my watch, “Let’s go.” I said as I hurried off to our first class. He followed behind, relaxed but I could see his expression from a little while ago, “Do I know who killed them?” I thought, “You and your bastard friends.” I’d summarised. 

Hey, how did you like this episode, or chapter, whatever you wanna call it, will Emma be able to keep calm in Atlas' presence, she despises him, will he kill her first? Will Emma fall too deep, and be betrayed? What do you think will happen next? Thanks for reading this. Check out my other story called, "Because I Loved You...", here is the link to the first chapter: https://lifesitivity.blogspot.com/2021/04/my-personal-vampire.html.
Happy Ramadan!
Love.
L.