"Where have you been?"
Damon stood up, blocking Elena's path. His cold eyes slowly swept over her—lingering on her pale neck, her collarbones, and moving down her body with a deliberate, almost predatory calm.
"None of your business. I'll be leaving tomorrow. Thank you for your hospitality," Elena replied, her voice as frosty as her gaze.
At that moment, she wanted nothing more than to be away from this ruthless, cold-hearted human.
"Wait. You're hurt."
Damon grabbed Elena's wrist, his eyes drawn to the raw, bare skin of her exposed ankle.
"So what? It'll grow back, won't it?" Elena shot back, the words biting. She was using his own phrase from earlier that morning.
"You need treatment," Damon said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
"I'm not going anywhere. Let go of me."
Elena tugged at her arm, trying to break free from Damon's grip.
"No."
"Let go!"
"No."
"Let go!"
"No!"
Smack!
In the middle of their heated exchange, Elena slapped Damon across the face. Her hand left five distinct marks on his cheek.
As they struggled, the bed sheet Elena was wrapped in tore in two, falling off her body without warning.
In the dim light, Elena stood there, completely exposed. She was slender, graceful, and perfectly bare.
Damon froze in place, his sharp features stiffening, his lips parting slightly in stunned silence.
Elena's face darkened. She stood still for a moment, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment, and quickly covered herself with the torn sheet, hurrying up the stairs.
Damn it! What the hell am I doing?
"Don't... don't go."
In the half-darkness, a long arm shot out, wrapping tightly around Elena's waist. Damon's voice carried a note of desperation.
Was she cold, with her wet skin, in this dark night?
Before Elena could react, Damon's lips descended on hers, pressing a soft but insistent kiss that silenced any words she might've said.
Elena was stunned, her mind spinning. She hadn't expected this from him—not this human, not now. But the kiss... she couldn't deny it. It was gentle, warm, and the faint scent of rose tea and lemon lingered on his lips.
Damon's heart raced, his kiss a hesitant, tender thing—unfamiliar, almost shaky.
Elena, for a moment, lost herself. She never thought a human could kiss her like this, but somehow, she found herself enjoying it—lost in the warmth of his touch, the unexpected softness.
It felt like an eternity, this kiss. It clung to her thoughts like a memory, vivid and unshakable.
That night, Elena couldn't escape the tender feeling that had settled over her. How Damon had carried her into the bathroom, cleaned her wounds, all of it had blurred into a swirl of color and shadow.
"I'm sorry, I—"
Damon stood at the foot of her bed, his face once again cold and expressionless. He didn't know how to apologize. Maybe it was the slap, maybe his anger, but it wasn't his intention to offend her.
Elena had come to her senses, the reality of it all sinking in. Just hours ago, Damon had been talking about hunting her kind, and now here he was, kissing her? How laughable.
She lay back in the bed, not sparing him a glance.
"You give me a slap, and I give you a kiss. We're even."
Damon furrowed his brow, pausing for a moment. Finally, he nodded, his voice soft but resigned. "Fine." With that, he turned and left.
Elena closed her eyes, the room dark and quiet.
At this moment, her heart—something that should be dead—was beating faster than ever.
She didn't realize it, but something had already begun to grow inside her.
Later that night, the wind whispered through the trees.
The stars glittered above, casting their silver light on the quiet world below.
Damon stood on the balcony, holding a cup of rose tea, letting the cool breeze ruffle his hair, his thoughts restless.
How had it come to this?
He had lost control—kissed a vampire.
The next morning, Damon skipped breakfast and went straight to work.
Elena awoke to a silence so thick it felt suffocating, the house eerily still.
In the kitchen, she found the fridge stocked with blood bags—more than she had ever seen before.
She bit into one as she entered the living room, only to notice a note stuck to the door. Along with it, an unsigned bank card.
The note was written in Damon's neat, sharp handwriting.
"Remember to come home on time.
Password: 141131.
And stay away from Windy City University."
Elena couldn't help but sneer.
"What, are you an idiot?"
This man was trying to win her over... while still insulting her.
But she wasn't about to let that slide.
If he wanted to treat her like this, fine. Today, she was going to make him pay.
She was going to have a shopping spree using his card. Why not? It wasn't her money, after all.
So after a quick breakfast, Elena slipped into a white sundress, grabbed a small backpack filled with her lunch, and threw on a sun hat.
With a white Samoyed dog trotting happily beside her, Elena stepped out like a high-society lady, parading down the street.
Woof! Woof!
Fluffy, her dog, bounced around with energy, sniffing everything and wagging its tail, oblivious to anything but its own excitement.
Elena could only sigh in exasperation as the dog ran around, constantly getting into trouble.
"Fluffy, no eating the grass!"
"Fluffy, no pouncing on the girl!"
"Fluffy, stop flirting with that dog!"
By noon, Elena made sure to avoid Windy City University—no need to get caught up in the danger zone with the vampire hunters.
Without even realizing it, she wandered over to Shan Global Mall.
The same mall where Mason had taken her the day before to buy shoes.
Elena stood at the entrance of the mall, about to lead her dog inside, when a security guard rushed up to stop her.
"Ma'am, pets aren't allowed in the mall. Could you please cooperate?"
The guard said, his tone firm.
"Pets aren't allowed? Why?"
Elena blinked in confusion, unaware that such a rule had developed in the mall during her long absence.
The security guard explained patiently, "Ma'am, there are a lot of people here—children, the elderly—and pets can be dangerous in such a crowded environment. Plus, if a pet misbehaves, it can be difficult to handle."
"But humans can be dangerous too. Like that kid over there." Elena pointed to a child in the mall, who was standing by a plant pot, pretending to water it like a mini sprinkler.
The security guard turned to look, his face reddening when he saw the child's antics. "Well, we'll deal with that situation in a moment, but I really must insist that pets stay in the pet storage area. Please, ma'am."
"Fine."
Elena sighed, not feeling like arguing any further. She led Fluffy, her Samoyed, towards the designated pet storage.
If she was going to live in the human world, she might as well follow their rules.
Woof woof woof!
As soon as Fluffy entered the pet area, the dog began bouncing around happily, its tail wagging in delight. Though this place was technically for storing pets, it was really a shop selling dog food, toys, and treats—basically a doggy paradise.
Elena chuckled to herself, seeing how overjoyed Fluffy was. She took a ticket and walked up to the counter to pay.
While she waited, a woman in a red trench coat and sunglasses brushed past her. The woman accidentally bumped into her bag.
"What are you doing?" Elena quickly protectively clutched her bag.
"Sorry," the woman muttered, her head lowered, avoiding direct eye contact.
Elena frowned but shrugged it off, adjusting her bag and moving out of the way. Perhaps her bag had been knocked while chasing after Fluffy.
The woman simply nodded and continued walking without another word.
After paying and handing Fluffy over to the staff, Elena offered a few soothing words to the dog, then turned to leave.
As she stepped outside, a flash of red appeared behind her. Before she could react, someone yanked her bag off her shoulder, the strap snapping as the thief bolted away.
"Dammit, a thief?"
Elena cursed under her breath, quickly kicking off her high heels and sprinting after the woman in the red coat.
It seemed like no one could outrun her speed—especially not someone who had been born with lightning-fast reflexes.
As expected, five minutes later, Elena cornered the woman in a dead-end alley. The red-coated thief collapsed to her knees, holding Elena's bag high over her head and crying, "Please, have mercy, madam!"
Elena snatched the bag back, inspecting it quickly. There was one blood bag missing.
"Take off the sunglasses. Look at me." Her voice was firm, almost commanding. Something about the thief's face seemed eerily familiar.
"Take them off? No way," the woman protested, still kneeling, but her eyes unwillingly flicked upward.
Elena narrowed her gaze. "Elysia? Is that you?"
The thief froze, her eyes widening. "Busted."
With a sigh, the woman slid off her sunglasses and dropped her head. She slumped like a deflated balloon, defeated.
Elena knelt down and helped Elysia up, giving her a once-over. A smile tugged at the corner of her lips. "So you've fallen this low? A former war god of the Vampire Clan, and now you're a common thief?"
Elysia dusted herself off, putting the sunglasses back on. "Being a thief is still better than being pampered by humans."
"Pampered?" Elena raised an eyebrow. "Who the hell would pamper me?"
Elysia casually pointed at Elena's outfit—white sundress, sunhat, high heels, and her expensive bag. Then she gave Elena a long, scrutinizing look. "You're dressed like you're being spoiled by some rich human. And you're walking around with that dumb, fluffy dog. What else would you call that?"
Elena blinked, feeling a little disoriented. "..."
It seemed like she and Elysia had very different ideas of what it meant to be "pampered" or "noble."
Half an hour later...
Elena led Elysia up to the top floor of Shan Global Mall to a VIP lounge, where they were shown to a private room.
They both sat down and began enjoying their respective blood bags, sharing stories as they ate.
For Elysia, it had been a long time since she'd enjoyed such a luxurious break. Her life, since falling into the human world, had been nothing short of miserable—barely scraping by and constantly struggling.
As she put it, "As a member of the poorest branch of Vampire Clan, I've had to lower my standards. Just trying to get by, you know? Always stuck in a 'survive today, hope for tomorrow' kind of rut."
Elena couldn't help but laugh.
Elysia shot her a glare, looking unimpressed. "What's so funny? You act like you're doing so much better than me."
But Elena just kept laughing.
Of course, she was doing better. She hadn't fallen to the point of becoming a petty thief.
After Elysia rolled her eyes for the fifth time, as though they might get stuck in the back of her head, Elena finally stopped laughing.
"Why don't you take off those sunglasses? There's something called contact lenses now."
Elysia sighed, clearly defeated. "I'd love to, but I don't have money for contacts."
She leaned back in her chair. "If you had a pair of eyes like mine, you'd understand the pain of not being able to see properly."
Yes, all pure-blood vampires had a Dark Gift, a unique ability bestowed by fate.
Elena's Dark Gift was her incredible regenerative healing—if her heart stayed intact, she could heal any wound at an almost supernatural speed.
Elysia's gift, however, was her eyes, which allowed her to see straight through anything—an ability that, while powerful, made her life in the human world incredibly complicated.
As a result, Elysia spent her time scouring ancient tombs, collecting treasures to sell on the black market or exchange for blood. But with increased security around tombs, those opportunities had dried up, leaving her struggling.
So, she'd given up and become a wanderer, living as an outcast.
Elysia's personal philosophy was simple: "I don't trust humans. I don't love them. They're just a pile of bones, covered in juicy meat, ready to be devoured."
She grimaced. "Ugh, gross."