The days that followed were a blur for Maya. Adjusting to her new reality was far more challenging than she could have ever imagined. Each morning she awoke, her first instinct was to believe that it had all been a nightmare—a cruel trick of her mind that would dissipate as soon as she opened her eyes. But every time, the truth of her situation was inescapable. The hunger lingered just beneath the surface, a constant reminder that her life would never be the same again.
Kazuki stayed true to his word, guiding her through the process of learning to control the hunger. He taught her how to suppress it during the day and how to feed without losing control. The animal blood he provided was enough to keep her alive, but it did little to fully satisfy the gnawing thirst that plagued her every waking moment.
But the most difficult part wasn't the hunger—it was the emotional toll. The grief over her lost humanity, the fear of what she had become, and the isolation she felt from the world she once knew weighed heavily on her. She found herself withdrawing from everything and everyone she had once cared about, too afraid of what she might do if she lost control.
Kazuki understood her fear, but he also knew that isolation could be dangerous. "You can't cut yourself off from the world, Maya," he told her one night as they sat in the mansion's shadowy living room, the only light coming from the flickering flames of the fireplace. "If you do, the hunger will consume you. You need to hold onto the things that make you feel human."
Maya stared into the fire, her mind heavy with memories of her old life. "How am I supposed to feel human when I'm not even sure I am one anymore?" she asked, her voice hollow.
Kazuki sighed, running a hand through his dark hair. "Being a vampire doesn't make you any less human, Maya. It's not your humanity that's changed—it's your circumstances. You still have a choice in how you live your life."
Maya wanted to believe him, but the truth was that she felt like a monster. Every time she looked in the mirror, she saw a stranger staring back at her—a creature who craved blood, who had the power to destroy lives. The thought terrified her, and she wasn't sure she could ever reconcile that part of herself with the person she used to be.
Despite Kazuki's attempts to help her, the distance between them grew. Maya found herself questioning everything—his motives, his intentions, and the darkness she sensed in him that he never spoke of. She couldn't shake the feeling that there was something he was hiding, something that made her wary of trusting him completely.
It was on one of those lonely nights, while Kazuki was out hunting, that Maya stumbled upon the first clue to his past.
She had been exploring the mansion, trying to find something—anything—that would take her mind off the hunger gnawing at her insides. The mansion was massive, with countless rooms filled with dust-covered furniture and relics of a bygone era. Most of the rooms were locked, but one door on the third floor caught her attention. It was slightly ajar, and she felt a strange pull toward it, as if something inside was calling to her.
Pushing the door open, she stepped inside. The room was small and sparsely furnished, with a single bed, a desk, and a wardrobe. It was less grand than the rest of the mansion, more personal, like someone had lived here recently. But what caught her attention was the small, ornate box on the desk. It was old, intricately carved with symbols she didn't recognize, and it seemed out of place in the otherwise plain room.
Curiosity got the better of her, and she approached the desk, her fingers brushing over the surface of the box. It was locked, but the lock was simple enough that she could pick it with a hairpin she found in the desk drawer. With a soft click, the box opened, revealing its contents: a stack of old letters, yellowed with age, and a small, leather-bound journal.
Maya hesitated for a moment before picking up the journal. It felt wrong to invade Kazuki's privacy, but the need for answers outweighed her guilt. She had to know more about him, about who he really was and what he was hiding.
She opened the journal to the first page, her breath catching as she recognized Kazuki's handwriting. The entries were dated decades ago, and as she began to read, she was transported into a past she could hardly believe.
---
*April 12, 1892*
I had hoped that leaving Tokyo would be the end of it, that I could escape the shadows of my past and start anew. But no matter how far I run, the darkness follows me. Every time I close my eyes, I see their faces—the people I've hurt, the lives I've destroyed. The curse that runs through my veins is inescapable, a constant reminder of the monster I've become.
My only solace is the hope that one day, I can find a way to atone for my sins. But how do you atone for centuries of bloodshed? How do you make amends for lives you can never restore?
I don't know if redemption is possible for someone like me, but I have to believe it is. If I don't, the weight of my guilt will consume me.
---
Maya's hands shook as she read the entry, the reality of Kazuki's past sinking in. He had been a vampire for over a century, carrying the weight of his actions and the curse of his immortality. The guilt and sorrow in his words were palpable, and it made her see him in a new light—not just as the vampire who had turned her, but as someone who had been battling his own demons for far longer than she could comprehend.
She flipped through the pages, reading more of his entries. Each one was filled with regret, with a longing for redemption that seemed impossible to attain. He wrote about the people he had lost, the lives he had taken, and the loneliness that came with immortality. But there were also glimpses of hope—moments where he had tried to do good, to make up for the pain he had caused.
One entry, in particular, caught her attention.
---
*August 3, 1927*
I met someone today. Her name is Aiko, and she's different from anyone I've ever known. There's a kindness in her, a light that I've been missing for so long. She doesn't know what I am, and I can't bring myself to tell her. I'm terrified that if she knew the truth, she would run, and I would lose the one thing that makes me feel human again.
But I can't keep lying to her. She deserves to know the truth, even if it means losing her. I've made so many mistakes in my life, but I don't want this to be one of them.
---
Maya's heart ached as she read the entry. It was clear that Kazuki had cared deeply for this woman, Aiko, and that he had struggled with the same fears and doubts that she was facing now. She couldn't help but wonder what had happened to Aiko—whether Kazuki had told her the truth, and if so, how she had reacted.
But the journal didn't provide answers to those questions. The entries became more sporadic after that, and there was no mention of Aiko in the later pages. Maya could only assume that something had gone wrong, that Kazuki had lost her in the end.
She closed the journal, her mind swirling with everything she had read. Kazuki had lived a long and painful life, filled with loss and regret. He had made mistakes, just as she had, and he was trying to atone for them in the only way he knew how. But even so, she couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to his story—more that he wasn't telling her.
As she placed the journal back in the box, she noticed something else at the bottom—a small, folded piece of paper that had been hidden beneath the letters. Curious, she unfolded it, revealing a photograph of a young woman with dark hair and kind eyes. The back of the photograph was inscribed with a single word: *Aiko*.
Maya stared at the photograph, a strange sense of connection forming between her and the woman in the picture. Aiko had been important to Kazuki, someone who had brought light into his dark world. And now, all these years later, Maya found herself in a similar position, caught between the darkness and the light.
But unlike Aiko, Maya knew the truth about Kazuki—about the curse he bore and the hunger that plagued him. She knew the dangers of getting too close to him, of letting herself care for someone who had the power to destroy her.
Yet, despite everything, she couldn't deny the bond that was forming between them. Kazuki understood her in a way that no one else could, and despite her fear and anger, she found herself drawn to him, just as he had been drawn to Aiko all those years ago.
But what did that mean for her? Could she trust Kazuki, knowing the darkness that lingered within him? Could she forgive him for what he had done to her, for the life he had taken away? And most importantly, could she find a way to live with the monster she had become?
Maya didn't have the answers to those questions, but she knew that she needed to confront Kazuki, to talk to him about what she had found. She couldn't keep running from the truth, and she couldn't keep living in fear of what might happen.
With a newfound resolve, she left the room and made