Prey

Alex

Alex opened his eyes and sat up in his bed. He was around six feet tile, with a thin but slightly muscular build. He had shaggy and disheveled brown hair, and a somewhat handsome face. He checked the time on his phone. A quarter past seven, fifteen minutes before his alarm. He sighed heavily and headed to the kitchen. He heated up his breakfast from the day before and ate while scrolling through social media. Afterwards he got ready for work. He stopped by the pile of mail on his counter, opening the one on top.

Rent’s due next week... He set it back down and headed for the door. I missed last month’s; I’ll get kicked out if I miss it again.

He locked the door behind him and walked down the hall to the elevator. His eyes immediately met the sign reading ‘out of order.’ He turned back around and walked to the stairway on the opposite end of the hall. He walked down the three flights of stairs and headed down back towards the front entrance, turning left into the garage. He got into his car and turned the key in the ignition. After a few slight sputters, the engine died down. He tried again a few times to no avail. He pulled out his phone and checked his account balance. About 37 dollars. He booked a ride and went to wait by the side of the road.

“Good morning.” His driver greeted him cheerfully.

“Morning.” He said as he climbed in.

“Seems like the roads aren’t too busy today.” His driver said as he pulled onto the road. “Shouldn’t take long.”

“That’s good at least.” Alex said as he smiled wryly. He turned to the driver. “You seem to be in a good mood.”

“I’ve had a great week.” The driver responded. “My daughter graduated college, and I got a promotion. With her working herself, and my income increasing, I can quit this side job. Maybe I’ll pick up a hobby.”

“That’s good to hear.” Alex said with a smile.

The rest of the ride passed in silence. Alex walked through the doors of his office and saw his coworker, Jenny, shaking the vending machine. He saw her drink stuck against the glass, refusing to fall despite her best efforts.

“Ah-“ She tipped the machine just a little too much, and it started to fall towards. Alex easily caught it with one hand, pulling her out from under it with his other.

“You really should stop doing that.” He said as he lifted it back into place.

“You should’ve let it fall on me, let me enjoy some worker’s comp.” She said, barely keeping her composure.

“You might not be alive to enjoy it.” He said as he handed her the drink, which had been dislodged once the machine fell.

“Well, fortunately we’ve got Hercules around.” She took a sip of her drink, then looked over at him. “Thanks.”

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“No problem.”

They went to their respective desks and began working. Once lunchtime came around, Alex’s boss came up to him.

“You need anything?” Alex asked as he approached.

“Let’s talk.”

Alex winced. That doesn’t sound good.

Once they arrived at his office, Alex took the seat across from him. His boss sighed.

“Word came down from up above.” His boss said. “We need to cut spending in a few places. It’s been decided that you’ll be let go.”

“I see.” Alex looked at the man across from him. He’s a good guy. He probably tried to talk them out of it. He looked out the window of the office. Richard... He’s hated me from day one, and his dad’s an investor.

“Thanks for all the hard work.” He heard from behind him as he walked out.

Alex walked over to a nearby park and sat down on a bench to eat his lunch. Once he was done, he stayed there, looking straight up into the sky.

I’m fucked. He sighed heavily, checking his phone. How did things get this bad? Is this what humans dominated the planet for? He got up and started walking through the park. He passed by a few stands selling snacks. He watched a woman inspect the prices at one of the stands. She turned to her son, a boy about nine.

“Sorry. It’s too much.”

Alex looked over at the prices himself. Nothing on there was more than four dollars. He reached into his wallet and pulled out a five-dollar bill, the only money he had on him, and handed it to her. She looked at it for a second, then smiled.

“Thank you.”

He nodded and walked off. He wandered around until he found a nice pond and laid down on the grass next to it. He stayed there for hours looking at the sky, thinking about nothing. Once the sky started to change color, he decided to get up and go home. He chose to walk, taking over an hour to get home. A few streets from his apartment someone stepped out from an alley in front of him, pulling a knife from his pocket. He could hear someone behind him too.

“Give me everything you have on you.”

“I don’t have anything to give you.” Alex responded as he shrugged his shoulders.

“Show us.”

Alex sighed and walked slowly towards him.

“Stay further back!” He said as he brandished the knife.

Alex grabbed his outstretched hand, squeezing it hard enough to make it crack. The knife fell to the floor, and Alex slugged him in the jaw, knocking him three feet back into the wall. He heard footsteps running up behind him. He turned just enough to see the second assailant, trying to stab him. Alex sidestepped the attack and grabbed his knife hand as well. He swung the man around, lifting him entirely into the air, and slamming him into his friend, who was struggling to stand back up.

Maybe I should try to become a bouncer. He thought as he continued leisurely back to his house. Or maybe a bodyguard.

He climbed up the stairs, and slowly walked down the hall to his apartment. He stopped in front of his door and looked down for just a moment to grab his key.

And then he had a bad feeling. There was no sound, no scents, or anything else out of place. Nonetheless, for a brief moment, he felt something was wrong. And he chose to act on that feeling. He dodged backwards, just barely avoiding an outstretched hand, moving so fast he could barely see it.

Who is this woman? He had no time to properly consider this question, and his body was already acting on instinct. He aimed a punch directly at her face. And for the first time in his life, he didn’t hold back. But his strike never made contact. As he was about to land the strike, she turned into a reddish smoke, circling around behind him. He kicked straight backwards and felt the attack actually land. He used the momentum to turn to face her and lifted his arms into a guard. His kick had launched her twenty feet away from him.

“Just my luck.” She managed to say. “The only lone human I could find is blessed.”

“I don’t feel very blessed.” He said with a grimace. Human? Does that mean she’s not one?

“It doesn’t matter.” She started walking towards him again. “I can’t reclaim my territory unless-“ She stopped for a few seconds, and then a grin crossed her face.

I don’t know if that’s good or bad for me.

“Hey.” She said as she looked him in the eye. “You wanna become a vampire?