Trust

“Did you know? In our language, the word ‘night’ means ‘day’ in yours,” the blonde woman spoke as she sat atop the window sill.

“Well, you guys are nocturnal after all, no?”

“No, that’s not what I meant. A direct translation would be something more like, ‘the hour of living’, I guess you could say?”

“Is that so.”

“Yes! And our word for ‘dark’ - ‘the source of life’ - means more ‘light’ than ‘dark’ to you. That means ‘light’ for us is also ‘dark’ in human language.”

“This entire talk about light and dark and whatever is giving me a headache.”

“Ha haa! Well I can’t say I’m not confused as well… but I wonder really how different this world would be if humans had treated light as dark, and vice versa.”

“Wouldn’t we just be nocturnal as well?”

She watched silently as the middle aged rose from his bed. He took a few steps and stopped, as if just to stare at the blank wall in front of him.

“Hm? Where are you going?” her head tilted. “There’s nothing in this room except for this bed, you… and me! Ha haa!!”

“I can’t sit forever…”

“Hm…”

“H-hey!” the man shrieked as the weight of the blonde jumped right on his back in surprise. He looked back at her face as her arms and legs wrapped around him. Her deep blue eyes glared, and her wide smile bore the fangs of a best.

She was nothing short of captivating.

“Tee hee! Hey, Tristan, Tristan! Tell me more of your stories, come on!”

“W-what stories? I don’t have any such thing.”

“Come on, you said you had a wife, didn’t you? Tell me more about her, tell me! I’m so eager to hear!”

“Not really a wife, we were just engaged, but hey! Get off me!”

“Ha haa!!” she laughed innocently and jumped, her back now turned against the window.

The wind was blowing through the curtains and her hair, and the sky - filled with shining stars.

A full moon, roaring. And yet, her eyes were prettier than any scenery as she smiled.

“I, Seraphine von Geheimnis, vowed my life to you the moment we met. I’ll do anything and everything in my power to help and support in any way I can Tristan Vane, the man standing in front of me. In other words, you!”

“...All right, so, just sit down.”

Without any objections, Seraphine sat down on the bed, her legs crossed and her chin rested on the palms of her hands, keenly waiting to hear his stories.

“Let’s see… She was tall, and had long blonde hair. Her eyes were a bluish mix of the colors of the ocean and the sky. Even without perfume she smelled like roses. Huh, when I say it outloud, it kinda seems like I’m describing you.”

“Was she pretty?”

“Prettier than the sun itself.”

“Prettier than me? Tee hee!”

“...”

“It’s a joke, just a joke! I never got to see the sun myself after all,” Seraphine clapped her hands with a giggle. “Tell me, what was she like?”

“She really loved eating, especially meat. It was always fun seeing her eat. She also loved working out, and reading romance books, especially ones with vampires…”

“What?? I wish I could meet her, we’d be best friends!”

“Well, up until you appeared I thought vampires were only fiction, I wonder how she’d react if she saw you.” Tristan crouched and sat down on the floor. Reminicsing, he said, “but more than anything, she said she loved me. We were always, always together.”

“Aww… That’s cute. What happened between you guys? Did you have a fight and broke up?”

“No… She died some time ago.”

“...” The vampire lowered her eyes, as well as her tone. Feeling cheery - wasn’t correct right now. “What happened, can I ask?”

“I don’t really know the specifics…”

Seraphine dropped on her back and turned around on the bed, cuddling with the warm blanket. “Losing someone you loved so much… must be hard. I’m sorry. But, I’m here for you, any time.”

“Yeah… thanks. It’s fine, though, it’s been a while ago.”

“Well, if you ever need something, you can ask!” She raised her head up. “Hey, Tristan. What’s this thing?”

“Huh? What?”

The man looked up to see his friend pointing in the direction of his crossed legs. More specifically, on his right ankle.

“There’s something attached to your leg. It’s beeping.”

A black box, attached with a strap right to Tristan’s ankle, and from it, a red light turning on and off, repeatedly.

“Oh, this is… some device to keep me safe.”

“To keep you safe?”

“Yeah, in case anybody comes to hurt me.

“Huh… how does it work?” she came closer to him, trying to inspect the mysterious device. She touched it, but nothing happened.

“I don’t really know. My sister told me to never take it off, and that’s about it.”

“Was she the one who told you it’s for your safety?”

“No, well, nobody really told me that, but it makes the most sense.”

Seraphine tilted her head in confusion. “Who’s gonna hurt you?”

“You know, Seraphine. There are bad people in this world. You can’t trust everyone.”

“But you can trust me! Tee hee! If it’s for your safety, you don’t need some box device to protect you when you have me!”

“Ha, yeah I guess. You seem like the trustable kind.”

“Of course I am! And I’m sure I can trust you too, with everything! Right?” Seraphine said as she stood up, holding her hands behind her back. Beneath the moonlight, her smile shined brightest.

Tristan’s heart skipped a bit. It was a sight he just realized he longed to see. He couldn’t answer, Seraphine was just too stunning.

“I need to go back now anyways, I shouldn’t stay here when the sun rises. But I’ll come talk tomorrow!” the bewitching vampire said as she turned her back to him, stepping closer to the open window. “But hey, Tristan, There’s still something important I don’t know about your lost partner.”

“What is it?”

“You never told me her name.”