The Daylighter Apprentice

Chapter 2 - The History Lesson

"Vampire?" I try not to sound too incredulous after the happenings of the past 30 minutes. Matthew grins again, showing the teeth again.

"Indeed. I am a vampire. Have they not told you about the vampires yet?" Matthew raises an eyebrow.

"No... But I thought vampires didn't exist?" I shake my head slightly. No. Vampires didn't exist. It was all bullshit.

"Ah, well technically vampires do not exist as we are not living. No blood pumps through our veins, no heart beats in our chest."

"So what do you do? If you don't exist?"

"We survive and thrive." Matthew declares proudly, bearing his fangs once more before retracting them back into his gums so they just look like normal, if not slightly pointier, canine teeth.

"So by vampires you mean burn in the sun, warded off by garlic garlands and crosses soaked in holy water?" I ask and Matthew laughs loudly.

"Yes, we do burn in the sun. But the garlic and crosses bullshit was made up by the Catholics in the late 1700's. In fact, I fucking love garlic. Garlic is great. OK, it burns my nose a bit but it tastes amazing."

"Wait, burns your nose? Do you snort it like cocaine or something?" I cock my head to one side. This question draws another long laugh from Matthew.

"Of course not! You quite evidently know nothing about our species. Typical arrogant Daylighter- we vampires know everything about your measly race but yet you know diddly squat about us... Anyway, it only burns because a vampire's senses are hyper-sensitive so when we catch smell of it, it hurts. That's where the myth of vampires being warded off by garlic comes from." Matthew shrugs out of his lab coat to reveal a slim fitting black button up shirt, the top 2 buttons undone to reveal a small expanse of his flawless, pale skin.

An awkward silence settles on the room. Matthew makes no attempt to hide the fact he's staring at me and I can't help but feel even more uncomfortable under his stare. Was I just going to be a meal for him? Or perhaps just a starter... Oh god what if he was going to drink my blood?! Would I become a vampire too? I couldn't become a vampire! I love the sun and I'm not prepared to sacrifice my tan for anything.

My heart rate increases dramatically. Matthew's eyes flash with concern.

"Are you OK, Dominic? You've gone awfully pale." He asks, getting up and filling a glass full of water. "Here, drink this."

"Thank you." I say weakly, my head spinning from all the worries and doubts swirling around in an endless tornado of fear. I take a small sip of the cool liquid and Matthew hovers close by, hands twitching every time I sway slightly.

"Do you feel faint? Your heart rate has increased beyond normal level. Do you want somewhere to lie down?" He enquires and I squeak slightly.

"You can tell my heart rate?" I whisper, hand clutching the glass. Matthew rolls his eyes.

"Of course I can. I can hear your heart beating. And why the squeak? I'm not going to suddenly lunge for your throat and suck you dry. Vampires actually have surprisingly good manners believe it or not. You've been reading too many horror stories."

"But you do drink blood?"

"That much is true. But not directly from the human themselves. We rely on donations from the public and when hospitals perform an autopsy, so long as the blood is healthy, the body is drained and the blood put in the blood bank. Vampires that actually drink directly from a human are punished in a rather painful way. Just a word of reassurance there." Matthew smiles and I finish the drink and place the glass on the table.