Chapter Seven #2
“They study human diseases,” Luis explained. “Cassie hasn’t picked a specialty yet since she just finished her first year, but she’s leaning toward hematopathology.”
He flushed, because it wasn’t hard to make the connection between her studying blood diseases and Luis. On his best days, Luis couldn’t think about it, let alone talk about it.
“Disease research,” Julien said approvingly, “we need smart people on it.”
“Yeah, she’s going to do great things,” Luis said, and meant it. “She’s amazing.”
At the front of the bar, the next band was almost set up.
“Black Fang Candle?” Karim asked after squinting to read the name on the drum set. He turned to give Luis a look. “Is this a vamp band?”
“Maybe,” Luis said.
Karim looked at him, and Luis braced himself for whatever snarky comment was going to come next.
And then… it didn’t. He saw the moment that Karim’s eyes flickered down to Luis’s fidgeting hands on the table, then back up to his eyes, and then away. Then he closed his mouth and said nothing.
Luis felt disappointed. He moved his hands under the table where no one could see them.
“This is exciting,” Julien said, smiling as the band got into position on the stage. The smile grabbed at Luis, and trickles of pleasure dripped through him. It was a small thing, that smile, but he felt ridiculously pleased to have done it.
Then some lights flashed to cue the band, and Luis caught Karim watching him.
His cheeks burned. Did he look like he was mooning over Julien’s excited delight? He did his best to rearrange his features into something neutral.
Julien, oblivious, leaned over to Karim. “They’re so young,” he said, nodding his head to the band members. Luis looked, but the musicians on stage looked in their late twenties, not that young.
“Do you remember when we were that young?” Julien continued. His eyes were bright, practically glowing. Luis didn’t know what it was about tonight, but Julien looked somehow younger. Refreshed. “Do you remember Tangier?”
Karim shifted in his seat. “I remember,” he said softly. No bristle or joke.
Luis leaned in to hear better. “Tangier?” He asked.
Julien licked his lips, his eyes landing on Luis like a weight. Suddenly, Luis couldn’t breathe.
“That was where we met. We were both in the wild years after our Change,” Julien explained with a secretive smile.
The Change was what everyone called the transition from human to vampire. A difficult, complicated process according to the rumors Luis had heard. He’d never looked it up to actually see what it entailed.
“Oh?” Luis asked. His mouth was dry.
“Mhm, we…” Julien’s eyes trailed back to the band.
“New vampires seek all sorts of thrills with their new lives. You get new senses, new feelings, new ways of thinking. You have to find something to pour those into, or it can get… difficult. It’s why new vampires these days have to have a guardian. ”
Karim made a sound and shifted again in his seat. “It’s not a lifestyle for everyone.”
“Starting a band is an interesting idea though,” Julien said, nodding to the front. “Less messy.”
“Less fun,” Karim groused. “How’re you supposed to burn down a convent and start a cult with a band?”
“To be clear,” Julien said, trying to repress a smile and failing, “the convent was holding those women against their will, burning it down was a public service.”
“It was justice,” Karim said with heat. The way he said it threw Luis back into the memory of last Friday, to Karim’s fury as he took care of Eric.
“I see,” Luis said, even if he very much didn’t. “Justice.”
Karim grunted. “Sometimes shitty people need consequences.”
“Karim has a very strong sense of justice,” Julien explained.
Yeah, Luis was coming to understand that.
Julien reached for Karim’s hand and squeezed it.
“I’ve always loved that about you,” Julien said earnestly to Karim.
“I know I nip at you about your impulsiveness, but I do appreciate your candor and the tenacious way you go about the right thing. I can be too slow, too cautious sometimes to do the action required when it’s required. You balance me out.”
Karim looked caught off guard by the compliment. His usual unimpressed, stony expression cracked open to something softer. His brows furrowed to tenderness in a way that Luis couldn’t look away from.
“Yeah, well,” Karim said, clearing his throat, looking away, “somebody has to act before you get a pitchfork to the chest for rescuing a child from a river.”
Julien laughed sweetly. To Luis he explained, “Once upon a time being able to swim, or at least not drown, was a sign of witchcraft. That was most often what we got accused of.”
“We don’t even smell like witches,” Karim said with a tone.
“I know dear,” Julien said. Then his expression grew more melancholic.
“But when I see new vampires now, it reminds me of our earlier years, how hard they were. I’m glad that new vampires have it easier than we did.
The Change is difficult on its own without people around you making it harder.
Now you can buy blood at any grocery, stay in one place and work a steady job.
There’s a freedom in being out of the closet, being governmentally recognized and protected. ”
“Now we just suffer Vitavamp,” Karim groused.
Julien laughed, squeezing Karim’s hand affectionately. “Oh, come now, it’s not that bad.”
“Uh huh,” Karim said, but raised his other hand and flagged a waitress to put in an order for them. Two bottles of blood and a water for Luis.
Then the music was starting up, and all of their attention moved to the stage.
The waitress came back with their drinks. It wasn’t Vitavamp, but Karim still made a face when he sipped it.
“Dramatic,” Julien said fondly.
“Bottled just has nothing on the fresh stuff,” Karim said. His eyes met Luis’s. There was meaning there, and Luis almost choked on his swallow of water.
He wanted to say something, to ask what it tasted like in comparison to the bottled. The dark glimmer in Karim’s eyes held his tongue. It felt like it might cross a line.
Then Karim’s attention went back to the band, and the moment passed.
The band kept playing, going through a handful of punk-jazz songs that filled the whole venue. Luis felt envy rattle in his bones the longer he watched. To be brave enough to be up there, doing what they loved…
Toward the end of the second bottle of blood, Karim seemed to actually start enjoying himself. He was plastered to Julien’s side by then, stealing indiscreet kisses and tapping his fingers on the table to the beat.
Luis tried not to watch them, but managed to keep catching Karim’s eye anyway. The vampire gave him a toothy, roguish smile each time, like he was daring Luis to say something.
He didn’t.
When the band finally finished and they’d collectively gone through enough bottles that Karim was slurring, Julien got their bill and put Karim’s card down.
Outside, the night air was cool. Luis’s ears were ringing from the music, but he loved the familiar buzz of it. He’d missed this.
“Wonderful, simply wonderful,” Julien was saying as they staggered out to the sidewalk. Karim was hanging off of him, smiling drunkenly. Luis followed but kept a sharp look out just in case.
“I’m glad you enjoyed,” Luis said with a smile.
“A bit heavy-handed on the metaphors, some of it,” Karim mumbled.
“They’re young, just beginning to explore the depths of their new lives,” Julien chided.
Karim snorted. “Well–”
“And as I recall,” Julien interrupted, going on a little too loudly, a little too pointedly, “a very memorable evening once upon a time where you recited poetry below my balcony that was also filled with ‘heavy-handed metaphors’ about my eyes.” Julien made air quotes before he giggled.
Karim tried to pull away, but lacked the coordination. “You said you’d never tell anyone!”
Julien laughed. “What? Are you embarrassed, mon c?ur? It was very romantic. Don’t you want Luis to know you’re a hopeless romantic?”
“Jules,” Karim hissed. Luis couldn’t read the tone. Was he embarrassed? Irritated?
Julien hummed, squeezing Karim to his side. Karim was the broader one, but Julien was taller and clearly strong enough to keep Karim with him heading toward the car. “So maybe we in glass houses are not throwing stones at young lovers, hm?”
Karim reached up, and it took Luis a second to realize he was trying to cover Julien’s mouth. They went careening sideways and almost toppled over, Julien laughing infectiously. Luis doubled his steps to catch up and get on Julien’s other side to keep them on the sidewalk.
“If you fall over, I can’t carry you,” Luis warned.
Behind the hand, Julien said something too muffled to understand. Karim glared in Luis's direction in a say anything about what you just learned and I’ll kill you kind of way. Luis mimed his mouth being zipped shut on the topic.
Karim cleared his throat. “Some things are private,” he said, as if to remind Julien. “And some things you’ve sworn me to patience on, remember?” He leaned on the last word.
Julien must have done something then, because Karim ripped his hand away with a yelp.
“We’re in public,” Karim said with scandalized surprise. He was holding his hand to his chest protectively, but Luis couldn’t see why. It was hard to imagine what would scandalize Karim.
A beat went by, then two. They were almost to the car and Luis had just nonverbally promised he wouldn’t say anything, but Karim hadn’t taken a single shot at him tonight and Luis wanted that back. He didn’t want playing-nice Karim, he wanted the real one.
“So, was this like a Romeo and Juliet scenario?” Luis asked.
Julien guffawed and Karim whipped around to look at him.
“Karim and I, star-crossed lovers,” Julien sighed wistfully and turned his head to kiss Karim off-center on his cheek. “Yes, it was something like that,” he said softly, “Karim’s father… no wait, I’m shutting up,” Julien said, as if he’d just realize he was about to go too far.
“I knew I should’ve stopped you at three bottles,” Karim said.
“Sorry, sorry,” Julien said, “goodness I just get so chatty. Ignore me Luis, I’ve overstepped.”
“It’s okay,” Luis said. As much as he’d like to know something about Karim’s history, it was best to get it from Karim himself, and not when they’d been drinking.
At the car, both vampires collapsed in the backseat as Luis got in the front. Julien started talking about one of the songs he’d liked, and Karim agreed that he’d make a playlist for Julien, but only if he wore his headphones to listen to it.
A drunken argument about headphones and the sanctity of silence followed.
Luis drove them home, partially listening, partially letting his mind wander.
Tonight had been nice, better than nice.
It had contained all the magic of the nights out with Cassie, but with something different and new too.
For some reason instead of sticking to the small-talk topics they usually did, the conversation had, for brief moments, dipped down into something deeper.
Luis didn’t know what to make of it, but he wanted more. Wanted to hear more about Tangier and how they’d fallen in love. Wanted to tell them about his music, about Cassie, about how lonely he’d been since she’d been gone.
He wanted more than what he’d signed up for with this job.
“A wonderful choice,” Julien said when Luis parked at their house. “Thank you for tonight, Luis.”
“More affordable too than your fancy bars, all those drinks and the bill was still less,” Karim slurred beside him in approval. He tipped his head at Luis, giving a sloppy salute. “Thanks. Night.”
“Goodnight Luis,” Julien said as they began stumbling up and out of the car.
“Night,” Luis said, turning off the engine to get out and return to his car. He waited until the front door closed behind them before turning the engine on.
On the drive home, his mind sifted through the evening, landing on the last bit from Karim. More affordable too than your fancy bars.
Luis had never seen a bill on their nights out, but he suddenly wondered about the cost. How much was a bottle of blood? How much was fresh blood?
They sold bottles in every grocery store, but Luis couldn’t remember ever looking in that section. His mother had always steered them far away from the vampire areas.
Not knowing something so basic bugged Luis the whole drive home. He’d been going out with them for over a year now, he should at least know the cost of blood.
When he home, he went straight to his laptop.
They weren’t likely to go back to Bite Back for a while, so he looked up the menu at The Last Drop, a bar he thought Julien might make their new primary.
His mouth fell open in shock when it loaded.
A 30ml ‘drink’ of blood from a human donor was priced at one hundred dollars.
One hundred dollars?
Quickly, Luis pulled up the menus of a few other bars they’d gone to. Everywhere the prices for donor blood were about the same.
Luis did some quick math. If Julien and Karim went weekly, and between the two of them they had four drinks, then weekly their bill was topping four hundred dollars. That didn’t include what they paid him weekly, and–and did they have bottled blood at home?
Luis did a quick search on how much blood a vampire needed to sustain themselves. There was a range, but–but yeah, they were not subsisting on their once a week drinks.
Luis felt stupid that he hadn’t known. Obviously people were getting paid, there was a market for fresh blood with how nice the bars were, but he hadn’t considered what that might cost. Hadn’t considered that it could be so much.
And every few weeks Luis was throwing away hundreds of milliliters of blood down the drain. He wasn’t even donating it.
It was so naive to only now realize how wasteful throwing away his blood was. It had genuinely never occurred to him. With his medications, he’d never been a candidate for human blood donations.
But what about vampires?
Luis pushed an irritated hand through his curls. If he really thought about it, there was an obvious reason he’d never come to this realization.
His mother wouldn’t have wanted him to.