My Neighbour Is A Vampire

I tried to get a proper glimpse of the house's interior adjacent to ours through the window of my room and found it covered in darkness as usual. Not a single ray of light could be seen. It had been two and a half months since our new neighbours had moved next to our house. And I haven't got a single glimpse of them. A warm welcome to the neighbourhood and asking about their wellbeing would be a nice gesture from my side. Of course, I am not being nosey or anything.

I went to their house and knocked on the door. There was no response for some time, and as I was about to leave, the door opened slowly. And woah! A handsome guy was standing in front of me. Though his skin was a little pale, he was remarkably charming and handsome. His eyes were of a greyish-green hue, and I found myself instantly pulled towards him.

 

He was followed by a beautiful woman who introduced herself as his mother. She was a lovely and polite lady.

“Umm... Hello,” I said with a slight stammer. “I just wanted to come and greet you all.”

“We are glad that you came by,” the lady replied with a beautiful smile. “We usually don't get many visitors."

“Yeah. I hope you are all doing fine,” I said, returning her smile. “Probably, I should go now.”

“Halloween is around the corner and we are planning to throw a party,” the lady said. “We would like to invite you to the same. And we will be glad if you can join us.”

“Oh, Of course, I will come. Thanks for your cordial invitation.”

I stole a quick glance at the handsome guy and found him staring at me with his stunning eyes. And then I left the place.

I went to their creepy house on Halloween, anticipating an exciting night ahead. I donned a Bloody Mary costume. As I walked through the door, I noticed a sudden drop in the temperature, and a shiver went down my spine. They had a haunted house theme party with skeletons and spider cobwebs clinging to the walls. Scary yet, beautifully carved-out pumpkins with candles adorned the tables. The whole place was flooded with red and blue lights.

I was surprised to see that half of the townspeople had turned up for the party. People wore scary costumes along with monster and ghost masks. The music was on, and people were seen grooving to its tune with great excitement, each one of them holding a glass of wine. My eyes searched for the handsome guy I met the other day, but he was nowhere to be seen.

While searching for him around at the party, I spotted a man wearing a vampire costume ready to bite into a woman's neck. Then I saw the man's teeth slowly transform into fangs.

“Ahhhhh....” I couldn't stop myself from screaming my lungs out.

He glared at me through his bloodshot eyes, and I found my legs glued to the ground. Soon the whole place was in chaos. There was a lot of screaming, and people ran for their lives, but the door was sealed shut to my horror. And then I saw a bloodthirsty vampire advancing towards me with his fangs out. I was trembling with uncontrollable fear, but somehow, I managed to move backwards. Unfortunately, I lost my balance and fell hard, twisting and hurting my left ankle badly. However, the guy I had been searching for the whole night appeared out of the blue and picked me up in his arms. And then he moved me out of that place with tremendous speed.

He took me to an empty room with a few scattered pieces of furniture around and locked us both in. And then he made me sit on a couch and turned all the lights on. Before I could ask anything about the horrific events in his house, he disclosed his identity of being a vampire. 

I shuddered at his sudden revelation.

“Don’t you worry, I would not let any harm come to you in my presence,” he said firmly and with absolute certainty.

“Are you serious? I came here for the party, and now I am trapped here along with the rest of the townspeople,” I replied in a stern voice. “And this is what you have to say.”

“I am really sorry, but I can’t do anything about it,” he apologized, with slight regret. “Certain rules bind me, and I can’t break them. But I promise to protect you,” he added.

“Do you really know? And why would you protect me?” I asked him. “Wow! Never ever in my worst nightmare, I thought I would be attacked by vampires today.”

“I will protect you because I like you,” he replied cautiously. “I mean...You are so lively and beautiful that I can't take my eyes off you.”

“What!!! What did you just say? You like me,” I asked him. “But we have met only once, that also for a few seconds.”

It was kind of surprising, and I stared at him with awe.

“No, I have known you longer," he said. "I have seen you many times outside your house. I have often watched you pass by my house riding your bicycle.”

“So, you are saying that you were stalking me,” I teased.

 

“No, that's not what I meant,” his tone depicted awkwardness.  

I couldn't stop myself from laughing at that point. He stared at me with a hint of confusion in his eyes.

“I too have tried to look into your house but it was always covered in darkness,” I said, biting my lips to stop myself from laughing out too hard. “And now I know the reason behind it.”

“I have even heard you playing the guitar. You really play well...,” he broke away abruptly as there was a knock on the door.

He shushed me and made me hide inside a closet. I could hear voices outside, but I couldn't discern it. Nevertheless, I found a book in the closet titled, ‘Life of vampires- Everything you need to know about vampires.’ It must be from the previous owner of the house. After some time, he opened the closet, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Immediately I climbed out of it coughing and hiding the book behind my back.

“Are you alright?” He asked with concern-filled eyes.

 

“Yeah. I am fine,” I replied. “Just a little bit of uneasiness as I was locked inside a tiny closet,” I added, with a subtle hint of sarcasm.

“Oh, I am sorry I had to do that,” he apologized. “I did it to protect you. You know, our kind can smell the mortals.”

“Well, thank you.” 

 

“What are you hiding behind your back?” 

 

“Umm...Nothing. It's just...,” I mumbled stupidly.

In an instant, there was a whooshing sound, and the book was in his hands. He looked at the title, grinned, and raised one of his eyebrows crookedly.

“If you want to know about me and my kind, I can tell you that myself,” he said. “You don't need the book for it.”

“No, I don't want...I found it in the closet you locked me in.” 

“So, you don't want to know about me.”

“Yes...No... Yes,” I stammered.

 

He laughed hard at that. And I… I couldn’t stop my gaze from looking away.

     

My ankle was still hurting, and unable to bear the pain, I sat down on the couch. He came to me and carefully took my ankle in his hands and examined it. And then he did something like brushing his hands across my ankle, and all the pain was gone in a jiffy. It was magical and quite impressive.

 I realized that being a vampire he possessed many mysterious and mystical powers.

“You can ask me anything, I will tell you whatever you want to know. It's going to be a long night, and I can't let you go until the sun comes out.”

“You are a vampire, too. So, do you not drink us, humans, blood?”

“No, we…means my family and I drink animals’ blood. Blood is essential for our survival, so we can’t help it.” 

“Your family?”

“Yes. Me, my mother, and my brothers.”

“I met your mother that day, but where is she now?”

“She is in the basement with my brothers. We usually keep ourselves away from this havoc.”

He explained to me that they signed a treaty with other vampires that they would not interfere in their matters and vice-versa, all the while moving about the room. I really felt bad for him and his family. I wanted to learn more about him. After some time, he sat down next to me, keeping some reasonable distance.

“Well, I didn't introduce myself. My name is William. But I prefer Liam.”

“I’m Vanessa.”

“Vanessa, hmm…,” he said softly. “I kinda like it.”

“You seem to be different from other vampires. Just out of curiosity, how did you become a vampire?” I asked without offending him.

“Okay, I can tell you that,” he said. “It's a long story but I can brief you a little.”

“Go on, I am listening.”

“Well, I never wanted to become a vampire. Most of us don't. Once, my family and I decided to visit my uncle who lives far away in the mountains as he prefers to be left alone. We were travelling in a carriage, and soon came nightfall. We lost our way and wandered deeper into the woods. A bunch of vampires attacked us, and they turned us into one of them. Maybe they wanted to quench their thirst and increase their numbers as well. I lost my father in that battle. I searched for him everywhere but couldn't find him anywhere.

 

They took us with them and fed us their blood. Then they killed us and waited for us until the full moon to completely turn into a vampire. We needed to feed on human blood once to turn ourselves into full-fledged vampires. Don't worry, human blood was in a blood bag. Most probably stolen from a blood donation camp. But we refrained from drinking human blood further. Initially, it was hard for us to control ourselves. However, with regular practice and through the support of each other, we eventually learned to gain control over our pangs. Now, we decided to feed on animals’ blood for our survival. It doesn't give us immense power but enough to fight back against any challenging situation. We need to comply with the other vampires as per the law and help them whenever the problem arises. Therefore, we keep moving from one place to another to hide our identity and keep our secret safe and secure,” he concluded.

“But now, I know your true identity. And are you not going against your own people for me?” I was concerned.

“Yeah, that's right,” he nodded. “But you don't have to worry about that. I will handle it my way.”

“Ok."

“What about your parents? I never saw them.”

“They died when I was a kid.”

“Sorry.”

“It's okay. You don't have to be sorry.”

A sudden jerk woke me up. I realized that I had fallen asleep. And my head rested on his shoulder. Liam checked his watch and said that it was dawn already. And it was finally safe for me to go home now. I sat straight and rubbed my eyes.

“So, I think this is our last meeting,” I said. “We won't be meeting again.”

“Why would you say that?” 

“I mean, you only said that you keep shifting towns, so maybe it's time for you to move again after what happened last night.”

He seemed to be lost in thoughts. Probably, thinking about his new place. I just wanted to tell him to stay. But I couldn't find a way to confess that I didn't want him to leave. I was too confused about my feelings. He motioned for me to follow him. I carefully followed him outside of the room and across the bodies of half the townspeople. The bloodthirsty vampires were nowhere to be seen. The entire place was dark, and not a single ray of sunlight could peep in from anywhere. I stumbled upon a body and stood there aghast for some time. He gestured for me to keep moving before the cops found out and barged in. If they found me there, I would land myself in serious trouble.

After reaching the door, I looked back to get the last glimpse of him and found him gone. He must have gone to the basement to check on his family. Of course, I deserved a final goodbye, but he was gone. Perhaps, he didn't care. But he said that he liked me and proved it by protecting me. Maybe, his family and all his stupid vampire friends were more important to him than me. My mind was filled with all kinds of outlandish possibilities. I mentally scolded myself for thinking about all these nonsensical things. I went out and inhaled some fresh air which was indeed relaxing after the horrifying events of the last night.

After entering my room, I flopped myself onto the bed. Suddenly, I realized that I loved the comfort of my bed so very much. And then, I took out the book, which I definitely remembered to carry. The sound of sirens gave me a clue about the arrival of the cops. I peeped through my window and saw the cops and other people of the town gathered outside, giving the feel of an ongoing open concert. I quickly closed the curtains and turned all the lights off because I wanted to keep myself as far away as possible from all the mess that was about to unfold.

The very next day, I sat on the sofa in the living room and started reading the book wearing my favourite hoodie. I was sure he must have gone away to some other town with his family, but I somehow wanted to gather some more knowledge about vampires and their lifestyle. Of course, I didn't desire to turn into a blood-sucking vampire, but I just couldn't stop myself from thinking about him. The way he looked at me through his attractive eyes, oh, I just wanted to embrace him tightly and forget about this whole damn world.

I must have dozed off a little because a loud bang jolted me awake. I looked sideways and found the window wide open. A vase kept on the window sill had fallen on the floor, scattering its broken pieces everywhere. Hesitantly, I got up from my seat and looked around the house for any intruders and found none. I was utterly terrified and couldn't sleep for days.

A few days later, I gathered some courage and decided to break into his house. Oops, I guess ex-house. I climbed the fence, jumped to the other side, and started tiptoeing towards the back of the house. Luckily, the backdoor was open, and I couldn't figure out how. I walked inside and looked around with caution as if a ghost would jump in front of me at any moment. Flashbacks of that horrible night danced before my eyes. The furniture was covered in dusty white sheets. Perhaps, it was just my imagination, but for a fleeting moment, I saw a shadow lurking in the darkness through the corner of my eye.

 

I went to the room where he had hidden me from those evil vampires. And it was so soothing back there. Somehow, I felt safe and secure in that particular place. While looking around, my eyes fell on the fairy dream catcher hung near the window. And I was shocked because it was mine. I had no idea how it got there. Again, I felt someone's presence behind me. It had to be him.

“I know it's you. Come out. Stop hiding from me.” I yelled. I stood there for a while but got no response. “Fine then,” I continued, “I am leaving and taking this dream catcher with me because it's mine.” 

I pulled out the dream catcher and asked him one last time to present himself before me. Then I shuffled out of the room, into the hall, and in my hurry, stumbled upon a piece of furniture. I was about to fall when someone came whooshing by. Liam put his hands on my shoulders, thus, breaking my fall. A sudden rush of emotions engulfed me. I was lost in the depths of his eyes for a few moments. Then I disentangled myself from him, and before he could say anything, I bombarded him with a thousand questions.

“What are you doing here? I mean, I thought you moved away with your family.” I was flabbergasted.

“No, I didn't. I stayed back.” He said blandly.

“Why, Liam?”

“Umm, I...,” he started stuttering.

“That means you were here this whole time.” 

“Yeah,” he blushed. 

“What is my fairy dream catcher doing in your house?” I asked him and started wiggling it near his face.

I reflected back to the day when my window was wide open and I thought someone had broken into my house but there was no sign of any intruders. I was so terrified that I couldn't sleep properly for a few days.

“Was that you? You opened my window, right?”

“Err. Yeah. It was me, the dream catcher broke and landed on me. So, I took it with me.”

“Why didn't you meet me then?”

“I tried but I just couldn't muster the courage to face you. You know, after what happened that night.”

“You said you liked me.”

“Yes, I do. That's why I stayed back instead of going away with my family. But you do realize that I am not a normal human being. I am a Vam...”

“Yeah, I know what you are. You know what, I think it's better for me to leave.”

I walked away from him, out into the backyard and he followed me there trying to talk to me all the while. However, I was so mad at him that I ignored his blabber. I started climbing the fence.

“Let me help you, Vanessa,” he said.

“I don't need your help,” I muttered.

I climbed to the other side by myself and walked to the front door of my house, opened the door and went inside. When I turned back to close the door, he was there standing on the porch. I considered slamming the door right in his face but instead, I welcomed him in.

Liam expressed his feelings of eternal love for me despite being a vampire. He said that he couldn't stop himself from loving me. At first, I was a little bit sceptical about us being together, but I forgot everything when he hugged me softly, the way I had dreamt of. I realized I felt way too much for him, and my anger melted away in a jiffy. I knew it wouldn't be easy dating an immortal, but it didn't matter to me somehow. All I cared about was I loved him, and he loved me too.

We spent quality time together. I would go to the so-called abandoned house during the daylight, and he would come to mine during nighttime after the sun went down. He pampered me a lot and took care of my littlest things. Sometimes, we would spend hours looking into the eyes of each other without uttering a single word. Every moment we shared was special and memorable. I loved his way of talking as well as his mannerisms. Furthermore, he liked playing with words which kind of amused me. His brooding nature attracted me the most. Moreover, he helped me in my studies, and we got along really well. His traditional habits mixed with a somewhat modern outlook and personality traits were quite impressive. Several days passed by, and we were delighted and comfortable with each other.

“It's Spring Ball this weekend and I am totally confused with my outfit,” I said. “What should I wear?”

“It's the sixth dress you are trying out tonight,” he sighed.

I was trying out my outfits for the biggest ball of the year and he was helping me pick up a nice one. He was good at handling stress as well as being patient in every complicated situation unlike me.

“Why are you worrying so much?” He came towards me and cupped my cheeks with his hands. “Van, you are going to look fabulous in whichever dress you wear.”

“Yeah sure. It's easy for you to say that because you are going to look handsome as usual. And... uh... I don't want to look stupid standing next to you,” I said somewhat awkwardly.

“What! No. You are going to look great. I think I should be the one to worry because I haven’t attended a ball in like a hundred years.”

“I know you will handle it, Liam, because I am not going with anyone else but you.”

“Of course, I can’t stand to see you dancing and waltzing around the dance floor with some stupid guy.”

“Aw....Someone is being jealous here.”

“Hold on. Try this,” he handed me a gown.

The Spring Ball night arrived and we drove off to my Academy. He wore a black tuxedo and kept on staring at me as if I were some kind of a diva.

“You are looking really beautiful in this dress, princess. I swear,” he said.

“If you say so,” I blushed.

We walked arm in arm into the large auditorium, which was exquisitely decorated and converted into the dance arena for the ball. I found it already full with my fellow classmates and other students who seemed totally excited for the night.

“Someone is looking really pretty today,” my friend walked towards us with a huge smile plastered on her face. “Oh, my... is he your partner?”

“Yep, he is,” I replied. “Thanks for the compliment. And you are looking gorgeous as always.”

“I have a question,” she said. “Do you mind if I ask?”

“Shoot.”

“I don't think I've seen him before,” she said with a bit of scepticism. “He is not from here, is he?”

“Um... No. He is from another town,” I replied confidently. “I met him a while ago when I went to visit my aunt for Christmas.”

“I thought so. By the way, he is a real stunner,” she winked an eye delightfully and strutted away.

The dance floor was filled with couples who moved around like graceful swans. We danced and had the best time of our lives. I so wished time would freeze and we would continue dancing and dancing till eternity. However, the ball night came to an end after giving us beautiful memories to be cherished forever in our hearts.

Everything went on smoothly until the next Halloween. We thought about celebrating Halloween at my house. I was baking cookies in my kitchen when Liam came over and helped me decorate the place. It was just us hanging out together because of the traumatic events that occurred last Halloween. He was there for me, helping me to get over it. I was preparing sandwiches when I suddenly cut my finger a little with a knife, and blood started oozing out. And he just came in after giving some sweets and candies to the trick-or-treaters who showed up at my doorstep. He saw the blood dripping from my finger, and I was sure I saw his fangs coming out. But soon, he gained control over him after wrestling with his thoughts about whether or not to bite me, I suppose.

He then cleaned my wound with running water and gently caressed it with his hand, healing the wound almost instantly, shouting at me all the while for being reckless. The night had just begun, and more was yet to come.

There was a knock at my door.

“Perhaps, more trick-or-treaters,” I said and started going towards the door.

“Yeah. Let me go,” he said. “You sit here and don't injure yourself. I don’t want to come and see you bleeding all over again.”

“Don’t worry. I am not a kid,” I said while making a puppy face. “I can take care of myself.”

“Yeah, right,” he scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“Now go,” I said while stifling a laugh. “We shouldn't keep our little guests waiting outside.”

A few moments later, he came back dashing towards me. He looked quite worried and uneasy.

“What happened to you?” I asked him, concerned. “Why are you looking so petrified? Don't tell me those little kids scared you.”

“They are here,” he said and clutched my shoulders with his hands tightly.

“Wait. Who is here?” I inquired, trying to make sense of his blabber.

“The vampires. They have my mother and brothers,” he was nearly screaming at that point.

“What?” I exclaimed.

He moved around the house like a tornado and started closing all the windows. Then he went away to check whether the back door was closed or not. After coming back, he ordered me to stay inside the house no matter what. 

“All the windows and doors are sealed tight,” he said. “Don't open the door for anyone. And do not invite anyone in. Do you understand?”

“But…” I tried to say more.

 

“Stay here,” he interrupted. “I will be back soon.”

“But I want to go with you.”

“Are you out of your damn mind?”

“Yes, I am. How can I let you go like this? Let me come with you,” I pleaded.

“You will be safer in this house than anywhere else. Look, your safety is my utmost priority. So, listen to me and do not go anywhere,” he insisted almost calmly.

All I could do was nod my head in a yes. He went out and ordered me to lock the door from the inside. I did what he said. My heart was pounding hard inside my chest out of nervousness.

After some time, I heard a knock at my door. I felt as though my heart had stopped beating. There was another knock at the door followed by several knocks at the windows. I jumped onto the sofa and clutched several pillows in my hand. My palms were all wet, and my legs were shaking hard. Then, I saw a note slip in through the door. I got up from the sofa, strolled towards the door, and picked up the note. I read it and froze. It was written in some old classic handwriting. The note read, ‘He is going to be eliminated from the earth's surface tonight. If you want to save the dear life of your lover, come to the house next to yours.’

I couldn't understand what to do at that moment. It was as if my mind had stopped working. It had been the hardest decision of my life. On the one hand, he had asked me to stay inside at any cost, and on the other hand, his very existence could be in danger. But I had to make a decision, and I chose him. I opened the door an inch, peeped out and saw no one. Then, I jumped over the fence the way I had done so many times before.

I opened the backdoor and made my way inside, tiptoeing, which was totally useless on my part because vampires can smell humans. And what I saw there made me stop right away in my tracks. A grim-looking vampire was holding an axe in his right hand while saying something I couldn't comprehend as I was dumbstruck witnessing the horrible situation in front of me. Liam was bent down on his knees, and two dangerous-looking vampires held him by his hands. His mother and brothers were being held captive by other bloodsuckers.

 

“No, Stop!” I blurted out suddenly.

“Damn it, Vanessa! What on earth are you doing here?” Liam yelled and turned his head towards me frightened to hell.

“I..uh…” I couldn't say anything after that.

 

“Well, well, well. Look, who is here,” the grim-looking immortal, perhaps their clan leader, said, giving a crooked lopsided smile.

He ordered his so-called confederates to bring me to him. One of them came and yanked me towards their leader. I stood there frozen to death. When the leader vamp approached me, Liam pushed away the vampires holding him, and punched one in his face as he tried to stop Liam. Then he darted towards me and stood in front of me, hiding me behind him.

“Don't you dare touch her?” Liam said, fuming in anger.

“So, this is the girl for whom you betrayed your fellow mates, isn't she?” The leader mocked.

“They are not my fellow mates,” Liam proclaimed with utter disdain. “I am nothing like them.”

“But you are an immortal though, like us, aren’t you? How could you fall for a human?” The leader taunted. “It's ridiculous.”

“You know nothing about love,” Liam asserted.

“Oh, I know sufficient,” the leader smirked. “Love only inflicts pain and it is the eminent cause behind all kinds of sufferings as much as regrets that last for a lifetime. And I am going to prove that now.”

“I told you I am ready for the punishment,” Liam said. “Let them go. Let her go.”

“What!” I blurted out.

“Keep your mouth shut,” Liam whispered to me. “I told you not to come here. Then why?”

“I was worried about you after reading that note,” I defended myself.

“What note?” Liam asked clearly confused.

 

“The note that...,” I started to say.

“Enough! Stop your lovers’ quarrel. How can I let her go?” The leader said. “She is behind all this trouble.”

“She has nothing to do with it. Let her go,” Liam implored.

 

“Awww. This love. I kind of like it,” he cackled. “But you didn't give me much of a choice. My hands are bound.”

“Stop this madness!” A loud booming voice came floating through. A man draped in a cloak appeared out of the shadows. Liam's mother exclaimed and sobbed in happiness.

“Father!” Liam cried out.

Liam's father was miraculously alive as an undead. He said to the leader guy that if anything happened to his family, he would have no choice but to declare war on him and his clan. Clearly, it showed that Liam's father had power in his hands because the clan he belonged to was one of the most powerful and influential clans in existence. The centre point of the order and the head clan.

 

Suddenly, blackness shrouded my eyes, and as I was about to fall, Liam came to my rescue and held me in his arms. He was saying something, but his voice was distorted, and everything descended into pitch black.

When I woke up, I found myself in my room, and the sunlight was peeking in through the curtains. Liam was sitting on the bed next to me, smiling broadly. Maybe I hadn't woken up yet and still dreaming. I rubbed my eyes, but there he was, as real as he could be.

“Am I dreaming or what…” I inquired sluggishly.

“No, you are not,” he beamed.

“How?” I asked. “The sunlight...”

“Come with me,” he took my hands in his and pulled me out of the bed. Then, he walked me up to the windows, pulled the curtains aside and stood there fully absorbing the sunlight.

“Now, we can grow old together,” he chuckled.

“Wait, what?” I asked totally confused.

“Yeah, now that I am a human and a mortal just like you. Everything just feels so good and uh...different.”

“What did you just say? How? What did I miss?”

“Hold on. You saw that right; my father came to our huge rescue yesterday.”

“Yeah, where is he?”

“Uh... he went back to his place and took my mother and brothers with him. He wanted me to go with him but I couldn't just leave you here. Can you believe he was searching for us after he found out we were alive and finally found us here?”

“Yeah, but you met your father after so many years. You should have...”

“Well, I told him that I love you and chose to stay with you instead. I told him everything about us.”

“And he was okay with us being together?”

“He respected my choice and asked if I wanted to become a human being again.”

“What?”

“Yeah. He had a cure. A magical potion which has the ability to cure vampirism.”

“That's fascinating.”

 

“He said, a long time ago, he met an old man who offered him a cure in return for his help. He acquired it after going through a series of tests.”

“You mean like a quest.”

“Yes, but he never used it as he kinda liked being an immortal. When I told him about us, he gave me the potion. Of course, there was a whole ritual to go with it.”

“So, now you are a human just like me.”

“Affirmative.”

“But why did you do that? I was totally okay with you being a vampire.”

“Yeah, I know that. But I did this for you. I thought you would jump with joy when I gave you this news. Didn't you like the surprise?”

“No… I mean...Yes...I mean it was so cool you know. Dating a vampire and all that.”

“Well, I am not a vampire anymore.”

“Okay, stop making that gloomy face. Come on,” I pulled him close. “Stop sulking. I was kidding. I am so happy that I want to kiss you.”

“Then, what are you waiting for?”

“Are you not going to miss your powers? Because I am definitely going to miss the way you could heal the wounds in a flash.”

He cracked up at that.

“Maybe, a little bit,” he said and held me close to his heart. “But you are worth more than those powers.”

I was so happy that he didn't have to stay inside during the daytime and go out whenever he wished. There would be no more hiding behind the walls. We could lead a normal life, but still, I knew it would take quite a bit of time for him to adjust to being a mortal. I mean, he was once a mortal, but that was like so many years ago. And living a life without powers is going to be tough for him. You know old habits die hard.