Hollow Waves | OFAF #1

12

"Give her space," Lance said softly, easing Chris back in his seat, "If we keep pushing her, she'll pull away more. We're lucky she decided to come to us with this to begin with."

Ami's lips turned down. Sauce stained her lips and chin. She pulled a napkin to her face with her pudgy hands. "Why doesn't Eryn like being here?"

Lance's gaze softened. He picked up his fork and twiddled with it. "Eryn likes to be alone. It has nothing to do with us."

Eryn does like to be alone. Marina noticed Eryn lived a solitary life. The only item she cared about in her apartment was the journal. She had a community of people at her fingertips, but Eryn seemed tense more than usual. The food was delicious and dinner continued despite Eryn's absence. Marina mulled over her departure, trying to understand why she was so adverse with blood. If it was something she needed to survive, why did she treat it like she was terrified of what it could do? Was she afraid of becoming like Arlo?

Lance and Chris showed vampires weren't so scary compared to the other vampires Marina saw. Their life... if Aqueria saw them, what would they think?

Marina's father spread lies to them, telling the merfolk of Aqueria that vampires were scary emotionless beasts. All her life, she pictured them as monsters, as grotesque things that needed to be killed on sight. She was wrong, Aqueria was wrong. Lance and Chris had a family.

Chris cast Lance a slight glare, but it didn't have a hint of malice in it. "She isn't a child." Lance gave him a look of understanding. He knew what Eryn was going through, especially with Marina present. She was working hard to not let the past overwhelm her. Marina truly did resemble her sister.

Marina watched a myriad of emotions come across Chris and Lance's faces. Anyone could tell they were on the same wavelength, cut from the same cloth. True love?

"I didn't know vampires could eat human food." Marina took a sip of her water and cleaned her hands with a napkin on her lap.

"Yes, we can. We can learn to tolerate it over time. Eryn has trouble doing that because the animal blood leaves her immune system weak against it. That's why she gets sick." Chris shrugged.

After that, it was the final time Eryn was brought up during dinner. Conversations bubbled up, mostly about the adventures Chris and Lance had together. Marina's heart warmed at their love. With her own parents, she didn't remember much. Her mother died when she was young and her father hardened his heart.

Marina learned so much about the Veronis vampires, how they purchased the land to give refuge for vampires seeking asylum. Vampires who wanted to coexist with humans, but also stay safely away from them. Chris believed in vampires co-existing, but he mentioned vampires would always struggle with their control. The estate gave them the space to not have to worry so much about that. They created guest houses behind the main house, temporary spaces for vampires coming into town and seeking help.

Lance bragged about his skill as an interior decorator, heading to the houses of celebrities in LA or recluse immortals seeking his professional taste. Chris worked for the Seattle vampire council; the Society, a group that consisted of the head of each Seattle clan. He spoke about them with distaste but explained that it was necessary to be around them in order to know what was going on in the circuit. He mostly cared about training new recruits and registering new vampires in the system.

Hearing his job and the mention of new vampires, Marina wondered if Morgan would have to be registered. Did Eryn put herself in an unfavorable position turning Morgan?

"The food and conversation were amazing," With everything going on, she couldn't remember the last time she had a cooked meal. "Cook's a wonderful chef. I've never had spaghetti and meatballs before. I mostly eat seafood."