Night Owl

Night Owl Ch.2

Monday arrived far sooner than I wished. The thought of Mr. Red haunted me, his voice, his face, his intense gaze all melted me internally. Friday seemed like an eternity away, and I yearned for Tuesday just to be a step closer to him again.

Dragging myself to a typical 9-5 job wasn't thrilling, but it paid the bills. Fortunately, I was quite skilled at work, which helped the hours tick by. As a talent scout and manager at Perfect Match, a leading talent agency, I scout diverse talents in— modeling, musicians, and actors.

Our agency is a beacon, holding the country's top acts. We are a dream and goal for many aspiring to break into the industries we cater to. My main focuses were music and modeling, keeping me perpetually busy. Everyone dreamed of becoming the next big star, though often, they vastly overestimate their potential. It's brutal, but the truth often falls to me to deliver.

No one ever calls me LaRae; it's always Rae or The Fixer. I've earned that nickname for having a knack for matching the perfect talent to every client on my roster. Filling any talent gap comes naturally to me, and I relish the expertise I've developed.

As I glance at the clock, it reads 8:25, and Mia, my assistant and best friend, hasn't arrived yet. Her habitual tardiness usually results in her brining me a peace-offering beverage, a small perk of her delays.

At 32 and full of fire, Mia works harder than anyone I know. She dreams of one day taking over my job, and I'm grooming her for exactly that. She's known about my being a vampire since my transformation and never treated me differently. You see, she was my friend prior to my transformation.

Having a friend who sees me for who I am and isn't afraid is a rare comfort, especially when others distance themselves upon knowing my truth.

At work, most colleagues know what I am and we get along well, except for Liz from the photography department. Liz makes no secret of her disdain for my existence, often pointedly reminding me of her feelings.

Vampire laws are still nascent, offering little protection. This makes living a "normal" life challenging, and dating is equally complex. Most men harbor strange fantasies about being with a vampire or hope to be turned—responsibilities I'm not eager to take on.

Turning a human creates an eternal bond, making you responsible for their actions, almost like a parent. It's a liability I'd rather avoid especially because some human traits get amplified after transformation.

That's unfortunately good news for those who wish to do harm to others. I wouldn't be able to live with myself knowing someone I turned hurt an innocent person just for the hell of it.

I didn't choose this vampire life; it was thrust upon me. The details of how I became what I am remain blurry, my human memories are faint and fragmented still. My vampire friends or, VFs, assure me that these memories will return in time, chalking up the delay to my relative newness to this existence.

"Rae Rae," Mia's voice carried a hint of desperation as I turned to face her, greeted immediately by the sight of a strawberry lemonade-light ice, extra lemon—in her outstretched hand.

"What was it today?" I asked, accepting the drink.

"Honestly, I just slept in late. I was up kinda late, if you know what I mean," she winked awkwardly, and I couldn't help but smile and shake my head.

Mia was in a rare successful relationship with a vampire named Yoongi. They have been together for four years and were deeply in love—a stark contrast to most vampire-human relationships that seldom worked out.

Yoongi, who was 35 in human years was actually 29 in vampire terms. He once shared his transformation story with me—a tale so filled with violence that I preferred to forget it. The humans who despise our kind the most, were more monstrous than we ever could be, driven by the hatred of what they didn't understand.