Page 7 of Vampires and Violas

“Decaf coffee,” I say, hiding my frustration. It’s not her fault she has lousy timing. “If you have it.”

“I’ll brew a new pot.” She looks at Noah. “And for you?”

“Water’s fine, thanks.”

She walks away, and I contemplate Noah. “I’ve never seen you eat a vegetable.”

“You haven’t, no.”

“I thought you didn’t like them.”

“They were never my favorite. It wasn’t a big loss.”

“Can you have tea and coffee, or do you have to abstain from all plant-based foods like Cassian?”

“I do fine with both. I can have alcohol, too, but it messes with the drugs, and I don’t really like it anyway.”

“That’s right,” I say softly. “You must be on all those medications.”

“Four of them, yes. I don’t care for the synthetic blood, though. It doesn’t taste right when you drink it straight.”

“And you can’t hide yours in a smoothie.”

“That’s how I used to take it, but I had to quit when I entered the final stage.”

“What kind of blood do you take?”

“Buffalo right now.”

“Huh.” Suddenly, I have an epiphany. “You were picking up your prescriptions when I ran into you at the pharmacy while I was buying my blood that first time.”

“I was, yes.”

There were so many little signs…and I missed them all. I was too preoccupied with my own drama, my own changes. Or maybe…maybe I didn’t want to see them.

Because this is weird and wrong, and it makes me sad. Noah isn’t supposed to be a vampire. He’ll never age. He won’t be able to have a family. He’s stuck like this forever.

“You seem really stable for a vampire,” I say, trying to hide my melancholy. “So…good job, I guess.”

“Are you okay?” he asks.

“Not really.” And apparently, I’m not hiding it well enough. “How long have you been in the final stage?”

“About three years now.”

“And you still haven’t forgiven Cassian?”

“He told you?”

“Yeah.”

“I know why he did it. I just didn’t want…” Noah frowns. “This.”

“For what it’s worth, I’m glad you’re not dead. If he hadn’t turned you, we wouldn’t have ever met.”

He contemplates me solemnly. “Even with everything that happened, you’re glad?”

I think about it, taking the question seriously. “Yeah.”

---