Thursday, October 8th, 2026
1:25 am
Narrator's POV
They are at Todd Jurich's Bistro, arriving inside a black 2026 Mercedes-Benz C-Class C 300 4MATIC.
"We're here," Kalisha's driver tells them with his deep voice.
"Thank you" Kalisha replied, giving him a five hundred dollar tip. N is shocked by how much money she gives him.
The personal driver stuffs the money into his black suit and gets out of the car to open the door.
"I didn't know you had five hundred dollars with you and that you paid him that type of money," N said in disbelief.
"When you're a daughter of a rich queen, you have to carry a lot of big bucks with you. Plus I always pay my staff well." She responds.
The personal driver opens her side of the door and she gets out, adjusting her skirt. N follows right behind her. The door is shut; the personal driver gets back in and drives off.
N stares at the car leaving, she notices and wonders why he is looking at it.
"What's wrong?" She asked with concern.
"Nothing. Well... Actually... I find it odd that you have a personal driver. When the first time I met you, you were walking alone in an alleyway." He mentions.
"I only walk alone when I'm hunting for human blood." She replied.
"Was the robber your meal for that night?" He asked.
"No, I already ate another human. That robber messed with me at the wrong time and I had to kill him off." She replied.
"Oh," he said.
"Let's get inside and enjoy our date." She tells him.
She holds his hand and they head inside. He opens the door, letting her go in first—He follows.
When they walk in, he is amazed by the beauty and sophistication of the diner. Wooden interiors walls with the finest of art hanging. Black and gray square themed carpet. Everywhere is lightly dimmed and spotless. The square-shaped tables are organized nicely with white table covers, utensils, and napkins comforting each other, a lit candle placed in the middle, and salt & pepper arranged behind the candle. Black wooden chairs positioned next to the tables. There is a bar with all the fine wine and liquor known to man. Customers can watch the chef work his magic in the kitchen. They're playing piano ballads. There are no other customers inside.
"Welcome to Todd Jurich's Bistro. The best diner in Norfolk, Virginia. How may I be of your assistance this night time?" The owner greets them in a friendly tone and a smile.
"We want a table for two," Kalisha said, holding onto N's arms and smiling at him. He smiles back.
"Right this way," The owner tells them, leading them to their table. He pulls the chair to let Kalisha sit down first and he does the same for N.
"Your waiter will be coming with your menus. I hope you both have a magical experience." He said, walking back to his station.
"So... What do you think?" She asked.
"I have never been to do a diner this fancy. Are you sure this isn't a restaurant?" He asked.
"Technically, it is a restaurant but it's a lot smaller and cheap." She responds.
"Judging by the alcohol and the decorations, this doesn't scream cheap to me." He retorts.
The waiter comes to their table holding the menus.
"How are you lovely couple doing this late at night?" He asked them, giving them their menus with a smile.
"We're good" She replied.
"Well, that's good. I'm going to be your waiter for tonight. Look through the menu to see what you want and I'm going to come back to place your orders." He said, leaving the table.
They both look at the menu.
"So do you know what you want? Because I got a couple of options I don't mind trying." She asked.
"I never heard or tried any of these foods before. They don't have no human blood or African food section?" He confusingly asked.
She smirked after hearing what he just said.
"This is an American restaurant. Do you think they're going to serve African food? Plus no restaurant will ever serve human blood." She tells him.
"I honestly don't know what I'm going to get. All this is so new to me. What are you going to get?" He asked.
Before she could answer his question, the waiter comes back holding a small POV system.
"So are you both ready to order?" He asked.
N shakes his head no.
"Yeah, we're ready," She tells him. N facepalmed and sighs.
"What do you want?" He asked her.
"For my starters, I'm going to get Seared Foie Gras. For my seconds, I'm going to get an Apple Salad. For my entree, I'm going to get a Seared Scottish Salmon." She places in her order.
The waiter gets done putting in her order.
"Thank you. What do you want my good fellow?" He asked him.
"Umm... Can I get a Rayan's Ahi Poke for my starter? Can I get the Haystack Salad for my seconds? Can I finish it off with a Roast Leg of Spring Lamb?" He asked.
The waiter looks confused as he doesn't put in his order.
"I didn't understand any word you said." He said to him.
"Are you serious?" He scuffs.
"Yeah, I'm being serious. I did not hear anything you said."
N is befuddled. But he repeats his order in a slower and clear vocal tone.
"Did you get that now?" He asked.
"No" the waiter replied.
Red eyes are forming and are piercing the soul of the waiter. She notices that his vampire side is coming out and he is ready to feast on his neck. She stops the tension by putting his order for him.
"He said he wants a Rayan's Ahi Poke for starters, Haystack Salad for seconds, and Roast Leg of Spring Lamb for his entrees." She said.
The tension has died and the waiter puts in his order.
"Anything you both want to drink?" He asked.
"How about a Margarita for the both of us? Are you fine with that?" She asked.
He shakes his head in agreement, trying to compose himself.
"Great. I'll be right with your orders in no time. Sorry for the misunderstanding sir." The waiter said.
N hisses and doesn't look him in the eye. The waiter collects the menus and walks away at a hurried pace.
"Are you alright?" She worryingly asked.
He sighs.
"No, why did he not understand what I was saying?" He asked, crossing his arms in frustration.
"I hate to bring this up, but I don't think humans can understand you." She mentioned.
"What do you mean?" He asked, raising a brow.
"Since your tongue is cut in half, your words are inaudible to mortals." She explained.
"How come you, Shani, and Jymia understand me so well?" He asked.
"We're vampires. We understand every speech, dialect, and language there is. We have super good hearing." She explained once more.
"Oh," he replied, uncrossing his arms and sitting up properly.
She grabs his arms and rubs them softly.
"Forget about him, he's just another basic mortal. This date is all about us. So let's get to know each other better." She comforts him.
"You're right, this date is about us. Thank you so much. What do you want to know?" He asked, feeling relaxed.
"I always wanted to know, what you do for a living other than killing cops? What's your occupation?" She asked.
"I don't have a job" he responds.
"You don't have a job? Wait... So how can you afford to live in an apartment when you don't have a job?" She confusingly asked.
"Well, since I kill cops for a living, I take their money and credit." He replied.
"With all the talks about how you believe blacks shouldn't be stereotyped, you are feeding into the worst stereotype of them all—that all black people steal." She tells him.
"I didn't say I was stealing, I said I was taking." He corrects her.
"Well, what's the difference?" She asked.
"Caucasians have stolen and profited off of African-American culture from the dawn of time. Claiming that they created things and how they deserve all the riches in the world. This time I take back our wealth by killing off the unworthy humans that don't deserve to make any money or live. They kill our beautiful people and they get rewarded for it. Fuck that shit!" He vents out.
"I get it and I feel your pain, but you're still stealing. It pains me seeing a handsome black man like you stealing. If you want a job, you could always work for my sister's beauty salon." She offers.
"Do you think I know anything about makeup or hair?" He asked, trying his hardest not to laugh.
"No. But we could teach you. We make big money from our salon and it could benefit you greatly." She tried enticing him.
"I will think about it. I want to know how it feels being the daughter of a Yoruba Tribe Queen?" He asked.
"It's great being a daughter of a Yoruba Tribe Queen, but I don't consider myself as a princess. I feel like any other average African woman, in the loosest of terms." She confesses.
"Don't you like all the money, honor, and attention you receive?" He asked.
"Yeah, all of them are great to have. But I'm too crazy about it. I like being treated as my individual and not by my status. Plus I love helping people rather than focus on myself." She replied.
He nods his head in agreement, respecting her way of thinking.
The waiter comes with the starters and two bottles of margaritas with cups. He doesn't say anything to them, since he is afraid of getting them angry. He places everything on the table neatly and walks off without saying a word or putting on a smile. They both start bursting out in laughter.
"Did you see how he didn't acknowledge us? It's like he has seen a ghost or something." He said.
"Talk about rude customer service. But it's whatever, let's dig into our food." She tells him.
They both take a bite of their starters.
"Mmm... This Foie Gras tastes so good. You should try some of mine. How's your food?" She asked, while still chewing.
"It's good, but I never ate fish before. So it's taking some time to get used to. Also, I don't mind trying some of your food." He said.
She cuts up a small portion of her food, just in case he doesn't like it, and feeds him.
"So how do you like it?" She asked while he's still chewing.
"It's tastes amazing. This is better than any human meat I'd feasted on." He tells her, she smiles back.
"I want to know, what do you love about me? Please be honest and layout your true emotions." She asked.
He gulps down the Foie Gras, takes a sip of the margarita, and answers her question.
"First off, I love how beautiful you look. Your mesmerizing dark skin hypnotizes my eyes whenever I look at you. Your honesty and you holding me down gives me goosebumps. No person in my life understands how I am truly feeling internally and externally you. You keep me at peace whenever I am angry or when I'm having my nightmares. You always call me out when I'm taking things too far. Lastly, I love how you always represent your culture to the world. You always wear that African hair wrap everywhere you go. Heck, I haven't even seen your real hair once. But that's what I love about you, you don't have to owe the world anything. You always be yourself and I love that about you." He confesses.
A river of tears flows off her eyes, almost ruining her makeup. But she uses the napkin to fix herself.
"Are you alright? Did I say something wrong?" He asked with concern.
"Yeah, I'm alright and you didn't do anything wrong. Honestly, you made me feel like I'm walking on heaven's clouds. No man I've been in a relationship with has said something that sincere and beautiful to me. You did make my night." She responds, still wiping the tears away.
He gets up from his chair and hugs her. She is holding his body tightly. Eyes are locked into each other and their lips connect. Passionately kissing like no one is not around. But they eventually stop when they notice the waiter coming with their salads. He went back to his seat; lipstick on his lips now, but he doesn't realize it.
The waiter does not say anything or look them in the eye, while he's putting the salads on the table. This is not only making N mad, but Kalisha is getting furious as well.
"Hey," she slams her hand on the table and it startles the waiter, "I don't know what your problem is and honestly, I don't care. But can you at least show us some respect? We are trying to have a lovely first date and you ruining it with your rude behavior. Plus we're paying customers just like everyone else and you don't want us having a bad experience. If that happens, I'm making sure that this bistro doesn't even make a penny anymore. So can you treat us fairly, so that we can enjoy our date?" She confronts him.
The waiter clears his throat.
"Yeah. My bad for my terrible behavior. I'm going to get your entrees." He said.
"Can you get us the bill as well?" She asked.
"Yes, right away" He replies, going back to his place.
"That was badass what you just did there." He complimented her.
"It's no big deal. No one disrespects us, especially my boo." She tells him with a smile.
"I want to know, what do you love about me and be honest?" He asked.
"You're a great listener. Whenever something is bothering me, you are willing to listen and understand. You always comfort me, which makes me feel secure and protected. Unlike the other guys I dated, you care for me and not my royalty or money or looks. Lastly, I love how you are supportive of African-Americans. Even though you take things to an extreme and questionable level, I'm glad you are always there to help stop police brutality and racism. Also, you're damn handsome and sexy." She mentioned.
"That's the sweetest thing anyone has told me in my life." He said.
She blushes, taking a bite out of her salad.
"I know mentioned this before, why do you wear that hair wrap everywhere you go? Why don't you reveal your real hair?" He asks while eating his salad.
"This is called a Dhuku and a lot of African women wear this to protect their hair or represent their culture. I wear this because I love representing my culture and I have short hair. That's the main reason why I don't show off my real hair." She explained.
"I have short hair as well and I'm not afraid to show it off." He said.
"That's different. You're a man, so of course, you're not going to be afraid of showing your hair. But as for me, I'm afraid that I won't look or feel beautiful showing my hair to the world. Plus I'm afraid that people will mistake me as a boy." She explained, taking a sip of her drink.
"Fuck the world and what they have to think. You're Kalisha, the daughter of a Yoruba Tribe Queen. You don't need validation from people whether you're beautiful or not. You are worth more than this entire bistro. Plus I love women with short hair, I find them attractive and sexy. Especially how confident and carefree they are. I want you feeling the same way as well." He tells her.
"You always find a way to warm up my heart." She said.
"I love doing that. I love seeing your smile, especially when your fangs glow. I love hearing your voice, especially how raspy it can get whenever you're speaking your language. I love spending so much time with you, you make me happy to be alive." He tells her.
"Please don't make me cry na. I don't want Shani to vex me that I ruined her makeup by my tears of joy." She said.
The waiter arrives with their entrees and the bill. This time, he has a huge smile on his face.
"I hope you both had a romantic dinner. Here are your entrees and here's the bill." He said.
The bill costs one hundred and thirty dollars in total. She pays in the cash and only gives him a five-dollar tip since he was being rude and fake to them.
"Have a nice night" he tells them, gathering the bill and walking away with relief.
They both chuckle softly.
"God bless his heart because he looked miserable." She said.
"I wonder if he treated other customers like that?" He asked.
"Judging by how we're the only ones here, looks like no one else appreciates their customer service. Next time, we're going to a professional restaurant and not this bistro." She comments.
"I would love that," he said.
They eat their entree until their stomachs could not handle more. Wiping the remaining mess on their faces and getting their last sips of the margarita.
"Are you ready to go?" She asked.
"Yeah. I'm stuffed. I haven't felt this way ever, I don't know what type of ingredients these American food places put into their food. It tastes so good, but I feel super heavy." He responds.
"I only eat American food on special occasions. Speaking of which, I got to tell you something." She said.
"What is it?" He asked.
"Tomorrow is my mother's birthday and there's going to be a huge celebration at her house. The party is going to be African themed and she wants everyone to represent their culture. Also, only African vampires that live in Virginia are invited." She mentions.
"Wow, that sounds like fun. But I don't have any African attire to wear. Plus I don't even know if I'm African or not." He replied.
"That's alright. You could always wear my dad's old African clothes. Plus every black person got a little bit of African in them. So you have nothing to worry about." She tells him.
"Are you fine with me wearing your Dad's clothes? Wouldn't your mom get angry that some random guy is wearing her late husband's attire?" He asked.
"Yes, you have my blessing. Also, my mom is a friendly person and she would not mind at all." She responds.
"Okay," he replied.
"Let's leave. It's getting late and we need all the rest we can for the party." She tells him.
They get up, hold each other's hands, and walk towards the exit.
"Hope you had a nice time and good night." The owner tells them.
N opens the door; he notices a Caucasian married couple coming into the bistro. The husband is wearing a black suit and a red tie, the wife is wearing a white dress. The husband and he locked eyes with each other. The wife snaps him back to reality.
"Mike... Mike... Mike Benson!" The wife calling out his name.
He looks at his wife.
"Yeah, what is it?" He asked.
"Who are you looking at?" She asked.
"Nobody" he replied.
N stops looking at him and they both leave the bistro.
"What was that about? Do you know him?" Kalisha asked.
"No. But he looks very familiar like I'd seen him before." He responds.
"Well, forget about him. I just texted my driver and he said he's coming in the next five minutes. So let's talk and fool around before he comes." She tells him.
"Okay," he replied.
"What do you think of the bistro?" She asked.
"It was cool. The inside looked magnificent, it felt like I was in an art gallery. The food was good but way too heavy for me. The customer service, especially that waiter was poor. If I had to rate it, I would give it a 2/5." He explained.
"Well reviewed" She complimented him.
"Thank you" he replied.
They walk away from the entrance door and get some private time. He leans against the wall, while she is touching his chest.
"I had a great first date. Despite the poor service, you made everything better. You made me feel confident about myself, you made me feel comfortable around you, and you made me feel loved. I can't ask for more than that." She tells him.
"I never had a first date with a vampire before and this was an experience I will always cherish. You are the best and I love you." He tells her.
Their hearts are making music. Their eyes never look away from each other. He pulls her closer and they sealed a kiss. She is feeling in his arms, while he's grabbing her waist firmly. He started to touch her ass, which startled her at first. But she loved how confident and comfortable he is getting in the relationship, which turned her on. She returned the favor by feeling his bulge, letting out a soft moan from him. They kiss and tease each other until they heard a honk.
"It looks like our ride is here. Let's go." She said.
The personal driver opens the door for both of them. He closed the door and gets back to his seat. Driving them back home, so that they may have enough slumber for the party tomorrow.