Baron, who came to deliver the blood supply that night, brought news that left Odel and the others stunned. A surprising truth—that marrying a vampire didn't necessarily mean the girl had to become one as well. Another thing that sounded ridiculous to her was when Baron even mentioned love before he left.
"Love? What's that?" Emilio muttered before Daffin choked him.
"You're so insolent, Emilio! Clayton almost strangled me to death earlier! Come on! You have to clean up this mess!" Daffin scolded, pointing at the scattered items in their apartment.
"Show me your love, Daffin!" Emilio replied, trying to escape.
"To hell with your love! Clean all of this up!" Daffin snapped again.
Odel sighed, watching her vampire fiancés who could never seem to stay still. Feeling drowsy, she decided to return to her room, but Clayton suddenly followed her and stopped her.
"Odel!"
"What is it, Clayton?"
"I want to apologize! I lost control earlier; I didn't mean to hurt you," Clayton said with a regretful look.
"Forget it, you weren't yourself. But you should keep a backup of your blood; don't let Emilio use up your share again!" Odel warned him firmly.
"Yeah, I understand."
"Okay, I'm going to sleep. Good night."
"Odel!" Clayton called again.
"Yes?"
"Thank you!" he said with a sweet smile. His neat teeth were fully visible, and it sent shivers down Odel's spine.
"Good night, hope you have sweet dreams,"
Clayton smiled before turning back to his room.
Odel stood frozen, feeling that Clayton's brain might be malfunctioning after losing control earlier. The most indifferent vampire she knew... smiled! That was terrifying!
Odel hurried into her room and locked the door from the inside. Lying down on her bed, she stared at the ceiling with a confused expression.
"Clayton... smiled? Seriously?" she muttered, furrowing her brows.
She tossed and turned in bed, trying to erase the image of Clayton's smile, which somehow felt like a hidden threat.
"Maybe... he's still hungry because he only got one drop of my blood? Or... could it be that he wants more?" Odel mumbled, glancing at her finger, which was still wounded from the needle earlier.
She quickly shook her head. "No, no, Baron said my blood is special! One drop should be enough."
Odel buried her face in a pillow and groaned, "But seriously... he said 'thank you'? 'Good night, and sweet dreams'? Ah, whatever, he must have gone crazy. I'm going to sleep!" She pulled the pillow over her head.
***
The next morning, Odel woke up with a pounding headache. She rubbed her face while letting out a long yawn, trying to remember why her sleep felt so restless.
"It must be because of Clayton... that creepy smile," she muttered while grabbing her towel and getting ready for campus.
After finishing up, Odel walked to the dining room, only to be met with a sight more surprising than her wildest dreams. Her three fiancés were already seated at the table, each with an unusual expression. Emilio was nodding off, resting his head on the table; Daffin was massaging his temples with a tired look, while Clayton...
Clayton was in the kitchen, wearing a pastel apron with the words Best Chef in Town printed on it. He was busy flipping something in a pan. Odel stopped in the doorway, staring at the scene with her mouth agape.
"What... is happening here?" she asked, barely believing what she was seeing.
Hearing Odel's voice, Clayton quickly removed his apron and walked over, carrying a plate of breakfast that... actually looked quite appetizing.
"Breakfast for you," he said with a serious expression.
Clayton presented a plate containing scrambled eggs that, for some reason, had a greenish hue, toast that was slightly burnt, and something that looked like sausages... but with the ketchup shaped in a way that resembled severed fingers.
"I found this recipe on the internet. It might not look exactly the same, but give it a try! I think I used the right ingredients," Clayton said.
To appreciate his effort, Odel cut a small piece and put it in her mouth.
"Hey, it tastes pretty good," Odel said.
The two other vampires, who had been sleepy moments ago, immediately perked up, observing Odel's plate as if they were eager to know what Clayton had made for his human fiancée.
"Ah, I think I should start learning to cook from the internet too," Emilio muttered.
"It doesn't even look better than my cooking the other day," Daffin protested.
"You'd better just burn the kitchen down!" Clayton shot back.
Odel held back her laughter; she was starting to feel that these three naïve vampires were actually quite funny.
"Enjoy your chewy meal, Odel. I'm heading to campus now!" Clayton said.
"You're leaving first?" Emilio asked.
"Yeah, so what?" Daffin responded.
"Enough with the questions! I just don't want to be late," Clayton replied, leaving Odel and the other two vampires.
On the city bus, Odel sat in front of Emilio and Daffin, who were very busy arguing about who was the better cook, even though it was clear neither of them was an expert.
"You know, Emilio," Daffin nudged him, "I should be the one getting praise because my menu is much more diverse!"
Emilio scoffed. "Oh yeah? I think you're the one who only knows how to waste ingredients!" he mocked.
Odel just sighed, letting them bicker throughout the ride. However, her thoughts drifted to Clayton. Why did he leave earlier? Usually, he was always by her side, watching over her like an inseparable shadow.
"Is he feeling awkward because of what happened last night?" Odel wondered while gazing out the bus window.
Upon arriving at campus, Emilio and Daffin were unexpectedly confronted by their study group friends. The two vampire men had done absolutely nothing to help with the group project. It seemed their teammates were fed up and determined to make them contribute.
"Odel, I'm taking them!" the group leader said.
"Yeah, go ahead!" Odel responded nonchalantly.
As she walked alone, a cheerful voice called out to her. Fiona and Adrian approached with excited expressions.
"Today's the deadline for our group project submission," Fiona said, linking arms with Odel.
"Yeah, it's due this afternoon, right?" Odel replied.
"Exactly! Let's go to the library after the first class. We need to make sure everything is perfect before we submit it," Adrian chimed in.
Odel nodded. "Alright, I also want to double-check the conclusion section."
Adrian grinned. "Good! I don't want to repeat this year just because of a messy report."
The three of them chuckled as they walked toward the lecture hall. However, along the way, Odel couldn't stop herself from glancing around, looking for Clayton.
The first class started, but the three vampires were nowhere to be seen. It seemed they really weren't attending this time. Emilio and Daffin were probably busy with their group project, but what about Clayton? Odel recalled that he was assigned to a different team than the other two.
"Come on, Odel, let's go to the library," Fiona said after class ended.
"Sure!"
As Odel, Fiona, and Adrian entered the library, Odel's eyes immediately landed on an unexpected sight—Clayton. The vampire was sitting at one of the tables near the window, surrounded by several students who looked deeply focused. What nearly made Odel choke on air was the fact that Clayton was wearing glasses and typing on his laptop with a serious expression.
"Since when did he look like a real smart student?" Odel thought, trying to stay calm.
While Fiona and Adrian busied themselves arranging the materials, Odel sat restlessly. She tried to focus on their discussion, but her eyes kept drifting towards Clayton, who looked surprisingly serious.
Adrian, who was sitting next to Odel, began to notice her behavior. With a slightly raised eyebrow, he became curious about what Odel was looking at. The moment Adrian realized it was Clayton, his expression instantly changed, and he stared at Clayton with a cold, hateful gaze; to Adrian, Clayton was not just an ordinary student but a creature of darkness that should not be among them.