"So you are a walking mosquito."
Even the bartender gasped at her words, nearly dropping his glass as Reylan's smile vanished. The once vibrant atmosphere turned frosty, and he felt a pang of sympathy for the unsteady woman, for she could leave her last breath any moment or perhaps have her wobbling head rolled on this counter.
However, Reylan's shock gradually morphed into a sneer. He shrugged off her rude comment with a nonchalant sip of his favorite drink. "So she's unveiled," he mused as the woman continued to laugh, momentarily distracted from the pains of her heartbreak.
Humans were grouped into three categories in their world. Veil-walkers, individuals who believed them to be still mere figments of fiction. Pretendians who were aware of them yet feigned ignorance, and Harmonics, humans like this bartender who actively engaged with the supernaturals and coexisted with them.
'Perfect, this will make my job easier.' Reylan thought, taking another sip from the tin can. He decided to cut to the chase, having no more patience for her nonsense.
"That was good, hahaha!" Faking a laugh, he extended his hand and introduced himself, "Reylan Blackwood, by the way."
Christina stopped laughing and looked at him, then at his extended hand. After a moment of consideration, she shook it, appreciating his jokes that were helping her keep her sanity tonight.
"Monalisa," she replied with a smile. Despite his friendly demeanor, she couldn't shake off a lingering sense of wariness. Something about him made her guard go up, prompting her to give a fake name, just to be on the safer side.
Reylan smirked, making a mental note to look into her later. "So, would you like to hang out with me? I can show you how good this mosquito can be--"
"At sucking blood?" Christina interrupted and burst into laughter again.
Reylan faked a laugh and gulped down his drink, controlling his furious fangs. Setting down his can, he patiently waited for her to look at him. All it would take was a simple eye contact to lure her into his trap. But he frowned when she abruptly shook her head, her smile fading away.
Leaning against the counter with crossed arms, Christina murmured, "You would be disappointed and end up hurting me." Her voice, once lively and defiant, now carried raw pain, revealing a vulnerability she had tried to hide all this time beneath her tough exterior.
Reylan's gaze softened, but the smirk remained, revealing a calculated edge. He had finally managed to lower her defenses, a perfectly wielded weapon to use it to his advantage.
"What if I promise to never disappoint you?" Reylan's question caught Christina off guard, chipping away at the walls she had built around herself. She hesitated, then finally met his gaze.
"I know how hard it is to entrust your feelings to someone again. I've been in your shoes before." With a reassuring smile, Reylan leaned in, his hand gently tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "But can you muster the courage one last time and trust me?"
"I promise never to hurt you, Monalisa."
The sincerity in his honeyed words, coupled with the warmth in his eyes, left Christina at unease. Tears welled up once again in her eyes as if an invisible spell had been cast upon her to expose her weakness. The blurry glow in Reylan's eyes, whether induced by her alcohol or something more mystical, completely drew her in, compelling her to nod in agreement.
Reylan's smile deepened, and the glow in his eyes celebrated a silent victory. Wiping away her tears, he extended out his hand, to receive her unspoken consent by touch. It would mark a seal of her willingness to be his prey, keeping him off the radars of all malevolent creatures on their toes to find a flaw in his behavior.
As Christina sat there, drunk and dazed, contemplating what on earth was happening to her, Reylan spoke again, "Trust me, you won't regret it."
And as their eyes locked again, Christina simply held onto his hand, her mind losing its ability to see past through his deception. Reylan smirked, securing his grasp on her hand. With a flick of his fingers, they vanished from their seats, leaving the bartender wide-mouthed in astonishment.
While he had witnessed creatures move at extraordinary speeds even in their human forms, never had he in his 32 years of life seen someone just vanish in the air. How in the world could this vampire teleport?
No, wait! He realized something more significant and dropped the glass in his hand. Staring at the empty seats in front of him, he cried out in dismay, "They forgot to pay the bill!"
He will surely be teleported out of this bar tonight!
---
[Next morning]
The relentless buzzing of her phone abruptly jolted Christina awake, cruelly slicing through what seemed like a fantasy dream. She sat up, silencing the persistent alarm, and sighed in annoyance. The memories of her breakup slowly resurfaced, casting a shadow over her already gloomy Monday morning. However, as she tried to recall the events that transpired in the aftermath of it, her eyes widened, the earlier droopiness completely replaced by shock.
She scanned the cozy hotel room as her mind busied recollecting its lost memories. The room looked expensive and lavish, far beyond what she could afford and the rider's jacket on the couch caught her eye.
'Trust me, I will never hurt you.'
"Ahh," Christina cried as her head throbbed in pain, the blurry scenes filling her with dread. Not just her temples, but she also felt an ache in the crook of her neck, a burning sensation as if bitten by a mosquito. Rubbing it, she frantically bit her lip, trying to recall the bits and pieces of her drunken escapade.
The last thing she could recall was a blurry scene of a stranger, dressed in a similar black rider's jacket laughing with her.
"Arghh, this is so frustrating!" Christina exclaimed. She could barely recall anything, as if her memories had been deliberately erased from her mind. The mysterious gaps left her feeling vulnerable, uncertain of what kind of trouble she might have gotten herself into during those lost moments.
No, she didn't probably…
Her rabid thoughts were cut off by the sound of the shower coming from the bathroom. She quickly glanced at the door, her heart racing with a mix of anxiety and curiosity. But before she could indulge in deep thinking, her phone buzzed again, reminding her of the presentation that was due today.
"Oh, shoot!" Cursing under her breath, Christina quickly shoved her phone inside her purse and hastily rushed toward the entrance. But the gushing wind from the window sent a shiver down her spine, warning her of the cold weather outside. Biting her lower lip, she contemplated for a while before quickly moving to the couch. With a bit of hesitation, she took the rider's jacket and covered her trembling body.
If this stranger could afford lodging in such an expensive hotel room for just a single night, he probably wouldn't mind losing a jacket. Right?
With a quick note written on the tissue, she placed it on the coffee table before hurrying out to save herself from the wrath of her grumpy boss.
A few minutes later, Reylan came out of the bathroom dressed in a robe. Tousling his wet hair, he looked at the bed, his smile turning into a frown as his Monalisa had left without even saying goodbye.
He looked around and noticed the tissue beneath the vase on the coffee table.
"Thanks for the jacket." The note read with a smiley face, and he smiled, recalling the last night. Quickly taking his phone from the bedstand, he dialed his brother.
"I need you to dig into someone," Reylan demanded, giving him the little details she had left behind last night.
"I am not done with you yet, Monalisa." He mumbled with a smirk, gazing at the note in his hand.