𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐁𝐈𝐓𝐄 | 𝘺𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘷𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘴

30: Bloodthirsty

"Here. Please take this. To cover the cost of your hospital bills."

Caleb blinks, visibly taken aback. You can understand why he's surprised, given that you just handed him a fat stack of bills, and so casually, at that. You invited him to hang out after work, and originally, you planned on leaving this till the very end, but you figure you may as well bite the bullet and get it over with.

"What?" Caleb frowns. He's still shocked, of course, but after a few moments, his shock gives way to concern. "[Name], what? I can't accept this. I know money's tight for you. Not to mention that you don't owe me anything. What brought this on?"

You shift on the couch, carefully considering your words. Naturally, you knew Caleb would refuse to accept any of your money. He would never hear of such a thing. He's way too selfless and considerate of others to ever put himself first. And he's right that doing this isn't something you can afford. It's not like you won the lottery-and even then, that still wouldn't solve all your problems.

Kai asked for your help, and while he's certainly no angel, even if he's trying to make amends, you think Caleb deserves a proper apology, as well as the chance to finally move past that horrible incident.

But you're prepared for an uncomfortable conversation nevertheless.

"Kai gave me this," you say, and just as you expected, Caleb immediately scrunches his face in disgust. "I know, I know. I don't expect you to like him all of a sudden. What he did was fucked up, and I can only imagine how terrible you must have felt in that moment. But... it is his fault that you ended up in the hospital, so I think it's only fair that he pays you back. It's a start, at least. He says he wants to be better from now on. He promised he's really going to try and change."

"And you believe him?"

Caleb's tone is uncharacteristically harsh. You flinch a bit, despite knowing that the anger isn't directed towards you. Well, not entirely. From his perspective, what you just said to him must be something akin to a betrayal. He can't seem to believe that you would even utter the words.

"I'm withholding judgment for the time being," you admit. "I still think he's an asshole, but I'm waiting to see if he'll actually make good on his promise and fix his ways. I don't expect you to forgive him right away. I think forgiveness needs to be earned. But at the very least, you should accept the money. It wasn't fair that you ended up in the hospital in the first place. You can accept the money even without forgiving him, right?"

You reach out and try to place the money in Caleb's hand, but he shuffles away towards the other side of the couch and furrows his brows.

"Kai beat the shit out of me," he mumbles. "For no reason. Just because he felt like picking a fight. And it's not just that I had to go to the hospital because of him. He was an asshole to both of us. Even to this day, he still shows up to harass you after your shifts are done. He's basically a stalker. So, it's not just about me. It's about how he treats you too. How can I accept money from someone like that? I still have some pride. I know I must look pretty pathetic in your eyes, and that's my fault, but... I refuse to keep letting him jerk me around."

You frown. "What? Of course you're not pathetic. I would never think that. And why should I? Vampires are stronger than humans. I wouldn't think less of you just because you got hurt. Not a single person in that arcade stepped up to intervene or call the cops because they were all terrified of him. Please don't say things like that. It's just not true."

"Well, even if you don't think I'm pathetic, every time that asshole shows up, I sure feel like I am," he grimaces. "If I accept his money, does he think that absolves him of what he did? Because I'm pretty sure he's just looking for an easy way out. A way to bury the issue and go on with his life like nothing ever happened."