"You know how you look like you're in your late teens right now?" I responded with a nod. "Yeah?"
"Well, you're going to look like that for another fifty years," Irina said it so calmly, but I almost spit my espresso out of my mouth after hearing her words. "Wh-What?" I asked, stuttering my words in the process. "Wha-What do you mean I'll look like this for the next fifty years?"
"You've seen those vampire movies, right? Where the main character appears young but is actually centuries old?" Irina asked casually, though her words felt like a revelation shaking my world.
"S-So, you're saying my friends and classmates will be like fifty, and I'll still look like- like this?" I stammered, my confusion and anxiety evident, and Irina gave a nonchalant nod. "Yup. You didn't know this?"
"Nobody told me!" I exclaimed, and Irina shrugged dismissively. "Didn't you learn about vampires from movies? You're telling me you didn't consider the fact that they don't age?"
"Yeah, well, I don't burn and disintegrate into dust when sunlight touches me, so forgive me for not using movies as my primary source of information," I retorted with a hint of sarcasm. Irina let out a sigh and shook her head. "Well, whether you like it or not, you won't age like a human. And that's the point- are you paying attention?"
"Oh, don't mind me. I'm just having an existential breakdown.." I replied in a depressed tone while my body slumped into the chair. "Just continue with your explanation.."
"Alright, fine, I guess." Irina raised an eyebrow, her gaze showing a hint of concern, but she continued nevertheless. "Now, Richard Valentine had a very… difficult relationship with his family. He was exiled from the Valentine family at the age of twenty for doing something extremely… heinous."
Curious, I turned my gaze back to Irina, who cleared her throat before continuing. "Ehem, it might involve some sexual harassment."
"Oh," I nodded my head. "Well, anyways," Irina continued, "The gist of it is that the Valentine family hasn't seen Richard in over 80 years. The last time his father saw him, he looked like he was still in middle school."
"Don't I look like I'm still in highschool, though?" I asked, and Irina waved her hands. "We'll say that you've got a babyface. And besides, you really don't have to put that much effort into fooling his father, Emery Valentine."
"Why's that?" I asked, confused by Irina's words, and she clarified. "Because his father is blind."
"What?" I exclaimed with widened eyes, and Irina nodded her head. "Yup. Lost his eyes in a war about seventy years ago. And the Valentine family doesn't have all that power in this day and age, anyways. Most of their servants have already died or were let go off. So there's rey not many people who can ruin our plan."
"What about his younger brothers?" I asked while taking a sip from my espresso. "Both of them were born after he was exiled." Irina responded. "They haven't even seen him before. And their mother died while giving birth to the third brother."
I leaned back on my chair, tilted my head up onto the ceiling, and let out a long sigh. "So we're really going through with this huh?"
"We're really doing this, yeah.." Irina repeated my words, taking another sip from her cup only to realize her white chocolate mocha had been emptied. Her gaze met mine, and I nodded in agreement. "I suppose it's time to go."
As we rose from our chairs and started making our way toward the exit, all of a sudden..
"Oh yeah, she's definitely got a nice ass!"
Irina clenched her fists tightly and bit her lips, once again resisting the urge to shout at the group of men who were whispering inappropriately.
'Come on, girl. It's not worth it..' She said to herself, as the whispers continued to increase.
"Goddamn! Look at that body! I'll tell you, if I could have her for a night.."
"You? Buddy, you don't even have a chance! I, on the other hand, would definitely show her a night that she'll never-"
"Hey!" I called out loudly, abruptly cutting through the hushed comments, my attention fixed on the group of men gathered at the corner table. In an instant, all eyes in the café were on me.
Irina appeared taken aback by my sudden outburst, and she began to ask, "Felix, what are you-"
"Don't you have better things to do than to stare at teenage girls, fuckers?" I shouted at the men, my voice filled with a mix of frustration and anger. The entire café seemed to pause, with patrons turning their attention toward the group. Whispers filled the air as people discussed the unfolding situation. The men at the corner table appeared visibly uncomfortable under the scrutiny, their expressions shifting between anxiety and bewilderment.
"Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about!" I continued shouting at them, and Irina grabbed onto my arm, pulling me towards the exit. "Alright, that's it. That's enough. Let's head out now."
"I heard you fuckers, okay?" I continued shouting until I was outside the café. I turned to look at Irina with a confused expression on my face and rubbed my arm. "What's going on?" I asked. "Why'd you pull me out of there? They're like, super old and creepy!"
"Yeah, no shit!" Irina exclaimed, clearly frustrated, as she poked my chest with her finger. "They were whispering under their breaths!"
"So?" I retorted. "A whispering creep is still a creep!"
"But you wouldn't have been able to hear them if you were human, dumbass!" Irina rubbed her forehead in exasperation while explaining, and suddenly, realization dawned on me. "Ohhhh… Oh shit!"
"Yeah, so now you get it," Irina rolled her eyes and started walking away. I scratched my head, my face red with embarrassment, before hurrying to catch up with her. "I mean… They probably won't figure out that we're vampires, right?"
"Just because they didn't notice doesn't mean others won't," Irina sighed and shifted her gaze towards me. "There are plenty of people who hate vampires and want to kill them. If you don't want to end up on the wrong end of a stake, then I suggest you keep a low profile."
"Alright, alright, geez," I responded, waving my hands in the air. "I'm sorry, okay?"
Irina didn't reply, and continued walking. I joined her side, occasionally stealing glances at her face, attempting to discern whether she was still upset or not, but it was hard to tell.
".... Thanks, though.." Irina's voice was barely audible as she whispered, and I turned to face her. Her gaze was on me, and a faint blush colored her cheeks and ears. Holding eye contact seemed difficult for her, and I arched an eyebrow, asking, "What?"
"I'm talking about what you did at the cafe," she explained, though her words seemed hesitant. The blush on her cheeks deepened. "Thanks for standing up like that."
"O-Oh.." I muttered, my hand nervously scratching my cheek. I searched for a cool one liner that I could use for this occasion, but I came up empty-handed. Eventually, I settled for, "...Well, you are my girlfriend, in name at least, so..."
Irina's eyes widened, and she quickly averted her gaze to the ground. As we walked on, silence resumed between us.