novelraw Chapter 105: Sparks Flying
Chapter 105: Sparks Flying
[Diana]
The city at night was loud in a way that made my head hurt a little bit. I could hear all the heartbeats and voices that merged into each other to create the least sonically pleasing song ever.
So much blood was moving in places where it shouldn't be.
Standing at the edge of a building, my eyes bounced around from place to place.
I was looking down at the streets below me.
My senses had been enhanced far beyond what they used to be due to becoming a vampire and although I was far from him, the connection telling me that he was sleeping soundly and was in no danger gave me comfort.
Bell was still unconscious. It has been six days since the attack on Jasarath Academy.
Currently, the school is shut down. The Headmistress had told the students to stay at home while they repaired the buildings, cleaned up the mess, and improved their defenses for the future.
Word around town is that the demonic sensors had been turned off, which implies that there was a mole at the academy.
There was a reason that I wasn't at his bedside at the moment.
Ever since he passed out, I hadn't drunk his blood. Not once.
The temptation was there, especially when I was in the hospital room. The smell of his blood was so sweet and refreshing. I had to actively stop myself every second I was in there.
However, it just felt wrong.
Although drinking his blood was a means of survival, to me, it was also something more. It was something intimate. To do it while he was asleep felt — it felt vile.
No matter how much his blood was calling out to me, I ignored it.
So what have I been doing to survive and quench my urges?
Slipping out of a narrow alley was a man whose hands were stained in blood from fresh violence. I had just watched him beat up a homeless man and was laughing as he walked.
A lowlife. A scum of the earth.
…Him.
I moved. One moment I was on the rooftop, the next — I was gone.
I didn't realise that I could do this at first, but as I've been repeating this process the past few days, I began to understand more about this ability. Flying in the sky, I had transformed into a bat.
Then, once I was behind the man, I transformed back into my human form and landed silently behind him.
Looking down at the puddle below me, my reflection was gone.
Opps.
I had to do this little trick to bring my reflection back. I'm not sure why I'm able to do this since one of the signs that someone was a vampire was their lack of a reflection.
It might have something to do with the fact that there seemed to be a second entity inside of me, but… I'm not exactly sure.
The encounter with the man was quick and clean.
It had been done so fast that he didn't even have time to scream.
My claws pierced into his body with just enough force to poke holes. There was no risk that this man was going to die. He was scum, but he wasn't an irredeemable monster.
With one gesture of my hand, the blood pouring out of the holes in his body responded.
I pulled it out and gathered as much as I could into this sphere of pool that floated between us.
Anymore, and he might die. That should be enough.
Guiding the blood, I separated the mana from the blood cells themselves.
Condensing the mana, a small solid pill formed. It landed softly in my palm.
Mana from humans was what a vampire needed to live. Not the blood itself. Blood was more of a delicious treat that they enjoyed feasting on.
I didn't want to drink anyone else's blood. Even that one time I accidentally drank Peneri's blood made my stomach feel upset. It didn't taste as good as his. It didn't feel right.
Releasing my control of the man, he collapsed to the ground with a—
Thud.
Unconscious, he was snoring and didn't even know what just happened to him.
Swallowing the pill, my urges settled.
But it wouldn't be enough. I needed more pills for later so that I didn't have to constantly leave the hospital.
So again, I turned into a bat and moved.
Then I attacked another scum and formed a pill with their man.
Then another.
Then another.
The hour passed as I bounced between rooftops, flew around the sky in my bat form, and landed in alleys. Each time, I used the same method as before.
When it was done, several pills were inside a small container I had in my pocket.
That should be enough for a day. I need to hurry back in case he wakes up.
I wanted — no, I needed to be there the second that he awoke.
Returning to the hospital just before dawn, I slipped into Bell's room before any of the workers even noticed that I had left.
Ichiko was there.
I had expected this.
She's probably been in his room longer than I have because, while I needed to leave to create these pills, which could take a while depending on my luck, she simply stayed put and only left when she needed to shower or to eat.
She was standing beside his bed and had a wet towel in her hand. She was gently wiping sweat from his forehead with careful movements.
The moment she felt me enter the room, her eyes slowly turned towards me, but her head didn't move.
Her purple eyes met my blue eyes.
The air between us immediately turned sharp.
However, no words were spoken.
They didn't need to be, as a clash of sparks existed between us.
Her eyes turned back to Bell and she continued to wipe his sweat.
I said nothing as I stepped closer to the bed.
I could still feel it. Our connection. The one that had formed between us during the Winter.
His presence was faint but stable.
Taking a seat beside him, I closed my eyes and listened to the rhythm of his very existence.
The emptiness was still there. That thing that I had stared at before. The one I could choose to look into if I wanted.
But I didn't. I wouldn't do it again — at least, not without his permission.
Hurry up Bell. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up!
❖ ❖ ❖
[Ichiko]
139 hours, 12 minutes, and 43 seconds.
That's how long it's been since Bell passed out and fell into the arms of the Headmistress.
As I was wiping the sweat from his forehead, that third wheel entered the room. Although I dislike her, I appreciated how much she seemed to care for my fiancé.
My… fiance. Mine.
No matter how hard she tries, no matter how close they get, at the end of the day, I will be the one that he gets married to.
That was enough to bring a smile to my face.
Once all of the sweat had been wiped from his forehead, although I was a little tempted to drink it, it wasn't the place and time. Putting the towel into the bowl on the side, I carefully took a seat beside him.
Opposite me was Diana, who had also sat down as if she owned the place.
Hmph.
Closing my eyes, I tried to keep a calm mind but my thoughts were racing.
Images of the day flashed before me. The debris of the building, the chaos, but most importantly, the image of Bell plummeting towards the ground with the demon in his grasp.
Snap!
I opened my eyes at the sharp sound. My fingernail had broken as I clenched my hand too tightly.
After I took a quick glance at it, I glanced back up and there she was.
Diana and her ugly blue eyes.
Tilting her head just slightly, she asked, "Was that… the sound of your nail breaking?"
Her voice was soft, almost polite. Almost. Anyone else might've fallen for it, but not me.
"Maybe," I responded with a casual shrug.
Her lips curved into a small smile. "I think you should go get that checked out. You might have some kind fingernail-breaing disease. Might be contagious. Don't want you to get it on me or worse…" she looked at Bell.
"Hahaha," I softly laughed, putting my hand in front of my mouth. "You're so funny, Diana. Why don't I speak to the Headmistress and help you drop out of the academy so that you can focus on your true talent? Comedy."
Neither of us blinked.
Diana leaned slightly closer and made a verbal pondering sound. "Hmmmmmm…"
Then she leaned back and made the sound again.
Then she leaned forward, pondering once more.
Then she leaned back.
Leaned forward.
Leaned back.
This went on for a solid five minutes.
As she was doing this, I stayed seated, my hands resting on my lap, my eyes never leaving her.
Then as she tapped a finger on her chin, she said, "You know, I'll consider it."
"Oh really?"
"But only if you do me a favor."
"...Which is?"
"If you agree to go get surgery to fix how short you are, I'll agree to drop out of the academy. I hear they have a new procedure where they add a metal plate between your leg bones to extend your height. It would do you some good."
"..."
"It would also help me out because my neck hurts from looking down so often just to see you."
Clenching my jaw, my eye might've twitched a few times, but I took a few breaths and calmed down.
"That sounds like a… like a pretty deal," I nodded. "And when you're there at your first comedy show, don't forget to thank me. I might be in the crowd and donate a few Zera notes so that you can afford some breath mints."
I pinched my nose and shook my head.
"Lord knows you need it," I continued.
Giving me a quiet laugh that was nearly a hum, she stopped talking, and her smile dropped.
I put my hand down and also dropped my smile.
We stared at each other for what must've been an hour. Then at the same time, our gaze split and we did our own things.
You may be good with your words, but the one who will be saying, "I do," during the wedding is me.