Page 29 of Vampire Bite

The idea of her on some sunlit beach, braving the waves, was so far removed from this world we’d fallen into. But I could almost see it, and something in me tightened. “It’d suit you, I think,” I said. “Fearless.”

She laughed, her eyes meeting mine. “Fearless? You’ve seen me run from wolves, Lucas. You’re the fearless one here.”

I shook my head, a little smile tugging at my lips. “Running isn’t the opposite of fearlessness. Sometimes fear makes us more human. But that doesn’t make you any less brave.” I paused, feeling her gaze on me, and continued. “What about your favorite book? I know it’s impossible to pick just one, but if you had to.”

She brightened a little, a hint of surprise crossing her face as if no one had asked her that in years. “The Count of Monte Cristo,” she said, almost without hesitation. “The story of fighting back, of overcoming everything, becoming something stronger in the end. Not giving up, even when the world’s against you.”

I nodded slowly, letting that sink in. “Fitting,” I murmured. “You’ve got a bit of that spirit in you yourself.”

She looked away, a faint blush on her cheeks, and the silence that settled was comfortable, easy. For a few breaths, it was just us—two souls in this strange, fractured world, learning each other’s edges and dreaming of places we might never reach.

“What about you?” she asked, breaking the silence. “What’s one thing you’ve never told anyone?”

I hesitated. There were things I kept buried so deep they rarely saw daylight, much less the early light of dawn. But with her, somehow, the words found their way out.

“I once thought I’d end up leading my clan, building something better for our kind. There were… expectations. But that life was ripped away.” I let out a low, humorless laugh. “I’ve been angry at the world for it ever since.”

She was quiet for a moment, absorbing that. Then, almost too softly, she said, “Maybe you still will. Build something better, I mean.”

“Hope should always be the last thing to disappear,” I agreed.

Then suddenly, she started asking me questions. Random questions, things I didn’t see coming, things that seemed almost childlike in their curiosity.

“What’s your favorite color?” she asked, and her face was so serious I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Color?” I repeated, raising an eyebrow. “After everything we’ve been through, that’s what you want to know?”

She shrugged, looking slightly embarrassed. “Humor me,” she said, feigning indignation, but her grin gave her away.

I tried to think about it, though the question itself was so out of place it felt strange. “Black, I guess. Though I know it’s not much of a color. It just… feels like home.”

She laughed at that, rolling her eyes. “Of course, you’d say black. Vampires and their love for dark colors. What a shocker.”

“Oh, yeah? What about you?” I countered, crossing my arms, daring her to answer.

She looked thoughtful, almost like she was weighing her answer. “Green,” she said after a moment. “It’s the color of hope, of growth—even if it’s hidden under dirt and shadows, it always finds its way back.”

Hearing her say it like that—there was a quiet resilience in her, and I could tell this wasn’t just small talk to her. But then, before I could say anything back, she hit me with another question, grinning mischievously.

“If you weren’t a vampire, what do you think you’d be doing right now?”

I laughed out loud, and she joined in, the two of us sharing this unexpected moment of levity. “Not sure. Farmer? Librarian? Hard to picture anything too peaceful, given… well.” I gestured to myself.

She leaned closer, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “I could definitely see you as a librarian,” she teased. “All brooding, organizing ancient books no one’s allowed to touch.”

It was a ridiculous thought, and I chuckled again, realizing I couldn’t remember the last time I’d laughed like this—freely, without restraint. She was unfolding a side of herself I hadn’t seen, a side that was light and bright, hidden beneath everything that had happened.

“All right, all right, here’s a real one,” she said, eyes alight. “If you could have any superpower, what would it be?”

I chuckled, pretending to ponder it like it was some great philosophical question. “Are we not counting my longevity and vampire strength? Because if so, I’m pretty sure I’m already at the top tier here.”

She rolled her eyes at me. “No, I mean something totally new. Like flying. Or mind-reading.”

I paused, looking up at the night sky as if the answer was written there. “Flying does sound nice,” I said. “But… maybe teleportation. Less time spent dodging trouble on the way back here every night.”

She laughed at that, shaking her head. “Of course, you’d pick something practical. I bet if I asked you for a second power, it’d be ‘unlimited memory storage’ or something equally boring.”

I raised a brow, feigning offense. “Hey, are you saying I’m boring?”

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