Chapter 3

Unexpected Hangout

I was betrothed once... She was from Weinland, a small kingdom right next to Westalis. Her name was Luna Axemora and she was also of royal blood. Our marriage was to establish a good relationship between our kingdoms. Despite being engaged by our parents, it's not as though we were against it. I also wasn't aware of what it means to be betrothed to someone. I thought that it was a friend bound for life so I accepted it without having a second thought.

The first time I met her was in the garden inside the main castle in Westalis. She was picking out some flowers and at the time I didn't know who she was. I was playing by myself with a wooden sword and simply stumbled upon her. As a five-year-old, I thought it would be cool to sneak up behind her and pretend to stab her. As soon as I did, I received my first slap from a girl. I lost my cool and yelled at her why she just slapped me. She and I got into a heated argument and one of the servants had to come in between to stop us.

I remember walking back to my room with my wooden sword annoyed. Along the way, I stumbled upon one of the servants who told me that I was being called into one of the many meeting rooms in the castle. I arrived at the meeting room with my wooden sword and my hot temper. Both my parents and Luna's parents were there but of course, I didn't know it was Luna's parents at the time. I stood in between my parents while waiting for someone.

I remember my mother asking me about the red mark on my face but simply dismisses it by saying that I was hit by one of my imaginary enemies. The door opened and Luna entered. As soon as our eyes met, she and I got into another heated argument. I told my parents that she slapped and she told her parents that I stabbed her with a sword. Our parents didn't know what to do so they just let both of us have at it until we got tired.

After everything calmed down, my father formally introduced me to the Axemora family. I was confused as to what was happening and I remember being uninterested in everything. Then out of nowhere, my father said that Luna and I were engaged and will get married once we get older. I was shocked, pissed, excited, and happy all at the same time. I didn't know how to react as she and I will be friends for life... Her reaction was a bit opposite of what I had as she immediately looked away with her hands crossed.

She and I may not have gotten along in the beginning, but after going on our arranged "dates", we found a way to have fun together. We would play with swords and would sometimes talk about the books that she was interested in. We had a mutual understanding. But all of that was about 12 years ago. I don't even know whether she is still alive or not. Since humans and vampires have the same lifespan, she should be 18 years old by now. Unless she used her royal arts to stop herself from aging. But that's only hoping if she managed to survive all this time. And if we do meet...Will she remember me? I hope so...

*Ding-dong...

Mhm... Just a bit more sleep...

*Ding-dong

Tsk... All right I get it... Just a bit more...

*Ding-dong

"All right I get it! I'm coming!" I yelled.

I stumbled on pieces of trash that were laying on the floor before finally reaching the front door. I didn't bother looking through the peephole as I felt lazy to do it. Every movement I made felt like a dream but it wasn't. I opened the front door and two people welcomed me... Carl and Mary.

"Yo. We're here... I guess you just woke up." Carl said.

"Hmph! Still living like a mess." Mary followed up.

Huh? What the hell are they doing here? It's still early!

"What are you two doing here? It's still early..." I said.

"Hmm... it's already 1 pm Nate. I thought that by the time we arrive, you would've at least started cleaning." Carl said as he looked at the trash that was on the floor.

1 pm! Holy crap! This is bad.

"What's with the eyepatch? Are you a pirate in... pyjamas?" Mary asked.

"You guys just wait here for 2 minutes. Or maybe 3. I'll be right back." I said before slamming the door shut in front of them. Don't do that to your guests...unless they're your friends.

The first thing I did was to change my clothes into something decent. The second was to remove my eyepatch and quickly used royal art to hide my vampire's eye. The third was grabbing the trashes on the floor and putting them into a corner close to the sink in the kitchen.

I live on the third floor of a very fancy apartment building. Upon entering through the front door, the first thing that you will see up ahead is the full-length windows with curtains on them. Close to the front door, there is a closet for jackets on the left. On the right, there is a door which leads to the laundry area. After about walking 7 steps ahead, an empty living room right next to the kitchen area will welcome you. Upon looking to the left, you will see the bedroom which is connected to the only washroom of the apartment. The floor is made of hardware wood and the kitchen countertops are all made of ceramics.

Despite my apartment looking modern and fancy, it only has one piece of furniture and that is my bed. The sink, bathroom, electric stove which I never used, and closets were already in place when the old man bought the place for me. Despite not having to pay any rent, I still have to pay for electricity and water.

In just 3 minutes, everything looked presentable at least. The unwashed dishes were still present but it was inevitable. I lack time so all I was able to do was the major ones. I walked back to the front door and with a smile, I opened it.

"You guys could come in now..."

They went in and went straight to the empty living room. The unwashed dishes were on the sink awaiting to be washed and the pieces of trash were on the corner. I was a bit embarrassed but there's nothing I could do now.

"...Your place sucks as always. Let's go downtown instead. Remember that bakery that opened a month ago? Let's go there..." Carl said.

"You mean the place that Ellie wanted to go to..." Mary said, despondent.

I'm sure that Carl did not mean to remind everyone of Ellie's death. But he did. Mary continued to look down while I tried to look for words. Mary and I still haven't made up yet so I didn't want to risk it by saying something that may make her pissed at me even more. But I knew deep down that I had to say something to break the awkwardness.

"I'm sure Carl didn't mean-" I said intending to reassure.

"Huh? Who are you talking to? Anyways let's go downtown. I'm sure Ellie would want us to do that." Mary said as she walks back to the front door.

This girl... She just knows how to piss me off. Here I am trying to be nice and she just acts like I assumed wrong...

"I guess Mary still hasn't forgiven you. How about you take a shower and I'll try to talk to Mary hm?... In exchange, how about you set up a date for us a week from now? I think it's about time for me to man up and confess. What say you?" Carl whispered as he leaned on my shoulder.

This guy... Sure, I'll set up a date a week from now. I'll be sure to be there to see him get rejected.

"Deal..."

"Nice!... Mary! Nathan is just gonna do a quick shower. How about we stay here a bit." Carl yelled across the apartment.

"Huh!? Why do we have to wait for him?" Mary said, annoyed.

Carl pointed at the washroom telling me to take a shower. He gave me thumbs-up and a smile before I headed off to the bathroom. I quickly took a warm shower and picked up my outdoor clothes. I had limited choices with my clothes as I hadn't done the laundry yet for the week. I was lucky that I still have outdoor clothes.

After I changed, I went back to the living room where Mary and Carl were talking. I was shocked(not really) by what they were doing. Mary was washing the dishes and Carl was sweeping the floor. Although this wasn't the first time they'd done this, I was still happy and grateful for having such good friends...

"So... What's in exchange for all the cleaning?" I asked knowing that there'd be some sort of exchange.

"This one is free of charge...Right Mary?"

"Y-Yeah..." Mary said, hesitant.

Oh... I see how it is. Carl truly wanted me to set up that date.

"All right, You guys did well. I'll do the rest later... Let's go downtown. We might miss the bus." I said.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

"Yeah, good idea...Right Mary?"

Carl looks at Mary and Mary immediately looked flustered all of a sudden.

"Mhm..." Mary murmured.

"*Sigh, all right let's go downtown," Carl said as he went to the front door.

Just what the hell did Carl say to Mary?

The three of us continued walking around downtown. We got stuck in traffic multiple times but that's to be expected as it is a weekend. Mary was silent throughout the trip which is odd as she would always have something to say in everything. Carl and I simply talked about dumb things on the bus.

"The bakery should be up ahead," Carl said.

I'm sure Carl noticed that Mary was acting weird. He does like her after all so it's natural for him to notice those things. Although I got the feeling that he was the cause of why Mary is acting weird. He's making me curious about what he said to her. Carl and Mary were walking ahead of me. Usually, I would walk ahead of them but today I simply let them walk ahead. I would rather be the one watching rather than the one being watched.

"Carl... come here for a sec," I said.

Carl was startled and Mary made eye contact with me. As soon as our eyes met, she immediately looked flustered and looked away. What the hell... Carl slowed down his walking speed so that I could catch up to him. Mary continued walking ahead. Silent.

"What the hell did you say to Mary?" I whispered to Carl. "She's been acting weird ever since I took a shower."

"Oh, yeah. I simply told her to tell you how she feels about you. Like forgiving and stuff. And then I told her that Ellie would surely want all three of us to be friends again." Carl whispered "Honestly, I have no idea why she's acting weird all of a sudden. She looks like a girl that's embarrassed when she looks at her crush or something. Either way, I find it cute."

"Wait... tell me the exact words you said to her and the things that happened afterward."

I got the feeling that he said something to her that was easily misunderstood.

"Oh...I told her to tell you how she feels about you and Ellie not wanting this. Then I suggested to clean your place and then she started acting weird. I literally just told you this 3 seconds ago."

"So you didn't say anything about forgiving?"

"Well, I guess not. Telling you how she feels about you is a part of that right?"

You idiot!!! That's equivalent to saying to confess her love for me or something...Wait. Why the hell would Mary be acting flustered instead of straight up saying no? No, it can't be. It can't be! Mary told us she's not interested in a relationship so calm down. Don't assume...Act oblivious as always.

"You Idiot! That's basically saying to confess her love for me... Think about it. If you were in her position and someone said to you to tell me how you feel about me..."

"...Wait...Oh sh*t, you're right... But why would Mary not straight up deny it?"

"Don't overthink it... Just go up to her and clear up the misunderstanding."

Carl went ahead to talk to Mary about the misunderstanding. It seemed to have gone well. I continued walking behind and looked up at the tall skyscrapers. Having lived in the human world for 10 years has shifted my way of thinking. Now that I've lived in both worlds, I could safely say that humans and vampires are similar in multiple ways. It's a wonder to me why they never tried to get along.

Mary slowed down her walking speed while Carl continued to stay ahead. As I caught up to Mary, she and I were silent for a brief moment as we searched for the right words. I didn't have the guts in me to say something first due to her reaction earlier when I tried speaking to her. I waited for her to say something first.

"Sorry for ignoring you and not talking to you the past few weeks, ok?" Mary said as she looked away.

"Uh yeah me too for prioritizing school over friends..." I lied. I never thought of that as a bad decision.

"So uh, how exactly did you hold up during Ellie's death? I heard from Chi that you still went to school the next day after hearing about Ellie's death. So I would assume that you somehow moved on pretty quickly."

"Oh uh, well yeah. I'm kinda used to it I guess."

Crap. That's not what I wanted to say.

"Used to it?"

"I mean distracting myself so that I'm not reminded of Ellie's death by a whole lot." I lied. But part of it was true. "Anyways how did you hold up? "

"Oh, I just locked myself in my room for weeks. Do you remember, I asked for help if you two could come to my place the day Ellie's death was told to us? Then you simply texted that you had an English essay to do and it was much more important than helping your grieving friends. Do you remember that?"

"Uh yeah... Sorry about that. I made the wrong decision. I couldn't really focus on the essay so I didn't do too well on it."

"Hmph, you definitely deserve that."

"Yeah..."

...

"Uhh, guys... I think there's a line inside the bakery." Carl said as he pointed at the bakery.

We went inside the bakery with low expectations. The first thing that welcomed us was a sweet and yeasty aroma. To our left were the counters where all types of pastries are located. To the right were a few seats with not many people eating. Where's the line that Carl was talking about? There were only 3 people in line by the cashier up ahead.

"You lied..." I said to Carl. Although he wasn't technically lying as he only thought there was a line, but still. I simply wanted to see his reaction.

"Calm down... I only thought there was a line. I was wrong... So I am very sorry." Carl replied. Sarcastically.

Tsk. This guy knew...

I was about to make it seem like a big deal but Carl found out. How? He would usually not admit to his own mistake and try to defend himself. The only times he admits is when he caught on to my plan. And after he admits he would usually go up to me and say "I knew what you were planning to do" and then have a smug look on his face. Carl can be both stupid and smart at the same time. The only problem is that I don't know which one I'll get at the moment.

"Hm? Why did you suddenly go quiet Nate? Did I ruin your fun?..." Carl said with a smug look on his face.

I ignored him and went straight to the counter where there were different types of croissants. His reaction as soon as I passed him was priceless. His smugness turned into a fret and his eyes told me to say something. Heh? I still got the reaction I want so I'll consider that as a win for me.

Mary went to the danishes and Carl shortly followed behind her after contemplating at the entrance. I continued to look at the different types of croissants wondering how they are overpriced. One has a chocolate filling which costs $9.99. The pastry cream one was for some reason $8.99 and the apple fillings cost the same as the chocolate. The sweet scent and looking at them was good enough for me. I wasn't particularly hungry due to the amount of blood I drank last night. I was also broke so that was another thing.

I went to where Mary and Carl and I was quite surprised by how much they were buying(She has a list). It was mostly Mary and Carl simply got taken in. Can you even finish that much? Knowing Mary being a fan of danishes I was quite sure she would finish them. Ellie was also a fan of danishes and the two would sometimes visit bakeries in other towns unbeknownst to us guys.

"Are you not buying Nate?" Carl asked.

"I'm good, I'm a bit full so I'll just watch you guys eat," I answered with a forced smile.

"Just admit that you're broke. You haven't even eaten anything since you woke up so it's unlikely for you to be full." Mary said with a worried look on her face. "*Sigh, I'll pay for it. Go ahead and take your pick."

Carl and I looked at each other and without saying a word, we know what to do. We were gonna exploit Mary's odd kindness today and-

"Wait... I'm not finished yet. I'm only paying for 2 and nothing more. There I'm finished." Mary continued.

Tsk. So close yet so far.

I went ahead and got myself a chocolate filling croissant and a plain one. Both will taste bland either way but still. Carl tried asking Mary to pay for his food but Mary's cold-heartedness returned. I was lucky so I will take full advantage of it. All three of us went to the cashier. There wasn't a line anymore so we just went straight to the counter.

As we approached the cashier, I stared at her breathlessly by her hair. She has long silky hair that resembles the snow. I would guess that she was about my age. She stood by the counter with her hands clasped in front below her waist. As we approached, she continued to have a gentle smile with her. I did my best to avoid staring but my eyes would move on their own. I felt something odd about her. I feel like I've seen her before.

"Welcome to our bakery!, how may I help out today?" The cashier asked with a gentle smile.

"Umm, could we get everything on this list?" Mary gave the cashier the list of everything we were gonna buy. The cashier breezes through the lists like someone whose job became routine.

"Oh, uh. We have a new batch of plain croissants, would you...b." The cashier said halfway through before gazing at me with her dark eyes. Her thin lips slightly opened and a tear came down from her left eye. She continues to look at me as if I'm someone she hasn't seen in a long time. It felt like we were the only people in the world. "Zain..." She murmured.

I was taken aback. Not knowing what to say or do. Who is she? How does she know my true name? Have the two of us met before? If so, when?

"Nina you could take your break now..." One of the staff said as she approached the shocked cashier.

Nina? I don't remember having met anyone named Nina.

"You forgot your name tag ag... What the heck! Are you ok Nina? Did the customers-"

"No no. It's nothing. I thought I just saw a long-lost friend..." Nina said after she broke from her shocked state.

"Psst- Nate. Come here..." Carl said as he tapped my shoulder. He pulled me away from the counter. I already know that he was going to ask me if I knew her.

"Do you know her?" Carl asked.

"No..."

"Well, she looked like she knew you... I didn't know you had a stalker." Carl said as a joke.

This isn't really the time for a joke...

"*Sigh, I'm going back to Mary."

I went back to the counter where Mary was. Nina already went to the staff room and the other lady cashier was assisting us. Mary looked at me like I was at fault. How is it my fault? I didn't know whether I should apologize or not. But I knew that I didn't do anything wrong.

As the other lady cashier put all the pastries we ordered(Mary ordered). She would continue to gaze at me like someone assessing their target. She didn't have the same gentle aura as Nina. Dangerous. Was the single word I could think of when our eyes met.

We ate our pastries on one of the seats that were on the side. The pastries tasted bland but I acted like it was delicious as usual. Mary and Carl continued asking me questions and then make fun of me. Mary was able to finish all the danishes she got while Carl and I were dumbfounded by how she was able to eat so many and not get any fat. After we enjoyed our time eating in the bakery, we decided to go to the mall.

"Oh yeah, do you still work at that newspaper job?" Mary asked as we walked inside the mall.

"No... I quit just last night." I lied. I left out the part where I was fired.

"That basically explains why he's broke." Carl followed up.

We entered an underwear store for girls. Mary said that she was gonna do some measuring and all girly stuff so the two of us could just wander off for a while. Honestly, if she made the two of us stay we'll probably run away out of embarrassment like before. It's unbearable staying in such a place. Carl and I went to the gaming store, to a retail store to buy some snacks, and last but not least, to the arcade. Arcades barely exist in today's world and are most likely to be forgotten by future generations. This arcade was the only one remaining in the entire city which is why people like myself support it by going there sometimes.

We played in the arcade completely neglecting Mary. We turned off our phones so no one would bother us as we had fun in the arcade. Of course, that meant that we couldn't hear Mary's call. Mary arrived at the arcade exhausted and upon seeing us having the time of our life, her wrath went down on us. It turns out that she's been looking all over the mall for us for the past hour. Poor Mary. We all went home shortly after with a lump on our heads.

We separated on our transfer to a second bus. Carl and Mary went on the same bus while I took a different one. It was a long and exhausting day. I planned to get ice when I get home for the lump that Mary gave me. But it was fun...I hoped to get another hangout with them again.

*Sigh, I'm beat... I didn't even have time to do my daily's.

...