Unspoken Shadows

A Break from Shadows

As Lavi sat in the library, the soft hum of students shuffling between shelves and scribbling in notebooks surrounded him. He stared blankly at the open textbook in front of him, the words blurring together. No matter how hard he tried to focus, his thoughts kept drifting elsewhere, and it was impossible to concentrate. The upcoming midterms loomed over him, but they were the least of his worries. Lately, everything seemed to be slipping out of his control.

It had been weeks since he found that tome in the library, the one that had upended everything he thought he knew about himself. The revelations were still fresh in his mind—about his lineage, his place in the vampire world, and the fact that he wasn't just some ordinary student. He was the missing prince of all vampires. Well, "missing" only in the sense that the rest of the vampire world thought he was dead. Allen had known who he was immediately, and that still bugged Lavi to no end. What else did Allen know?

Then there was Allen himself, who had been acting strange ever since that day. Lavi had picked up on the subtle changes, the way Allen seemed more guarded, more distant. Their dorm room, once a place of easy camaraderie, now felt like it was filled with tension. The unease between them had only grown, and Lavi couldn't shake the feeling that Allen was hiding something—something big. And Lavi wasn't sure he wanted to find out what it was.

The sound of footsteps approaching pulled him from his spiraling thoughts, and he glanced up to see Allen making his way over, a smile plastered on his face. Lavi immediately stiffened.

"Hey, Lavi," Allen said, his voice as upbeat as always, though Lavi could detect the strain beneath it. "So, got any plans for winter break?"

Lavi shrugged, forcing himself to relax. "Not really. Haven't thought that far ahead."

Allen's smile grew, and for a second, Lavi almost believed it was genuine. "I was thinking... you could come with me. Back home, I mean. It'd be fun. We could hang out, relax, and you know, not worry about school for a while."

The offer caught Lavi off guard, and for a split second, he considered it. Allen was his friend—or at least he had been. But that nagging sense of distrust, the one that had been festering for weeks, stopped him. He didn't want to spend the break under Allen's watchful eye, not when so many questions remained unanswered.

"Thanks, Allen," Lavi said, keeping his tone light. "But I think I'll pass. I could use some time to figure things out for myself, you know?"

The disappointment in Allen's eyes was clear, though he tried to hide it. "Yeah, of course. No pressure. Just thought I'd ask."

Lavi nodded, watching as Allen left the library, the tension between them palpable. He let out a long breath once Allen was gone. It was the right decision, he told himself. He couldn't afford to let his guard down, not when he didn't fully trust Allen anymore.

But that still left him with the same problem—what was he going to do over the break? He had no family to go back to, and the idea of spending the winter alone in the dorms wasn't exactly appealing. He stared down at his notes, the pages a jumbled mess of information, but his mind refused to focus.

"Lavi?"

The sound of Lenalee's voice snapped him out of his daze. He looked up to see her standing across from him, a concerned smile on her face. She slid into the seat across from him, her hands clasped on the table.

"You look like you've got a lot on your mind," she said gently.

Lavi rubbed the back of his neck, forcing a half-smile. "Yeah, just midterms. Nothing too exciting."

Lenalee tilted her head, studying him for a moment. "It's not just midterms, is it?"

Lavi hesitated. Lenalee was always kind, always willing to lend an ear, but he couldn't exactly tell her everything. Not about the vampire world, not about his suspicions of Allen, and certainly not about the fact that he was supposed to be some long-lost prince of all vampires.

"It's just been a long semester," he said finally. "And now I've got no idea what to do during the break."

Lenalee's face lit up, her smile warm and inviting. "Well, if you don't have plans, you should come with me! I'm going back to stay with Komui, and we'd love to have you. It'll be nice and quiet, and I promise it'll be better than staying here alone."

Lavi blinked in surprise. The idea of spending the break with Lenalee and Komui was tempting. Lenalee was always easy to talk to, and Komui, despite his eccentricities, had always been welcoming. It would be a peaceful way to escape everything that had been weighing him down.

"You sure I wouldn't be intruding?" Lavi asked, still hesitant.

Lenalee shook her head firmly. "Not at all. You're my friend, Lavi. And Komui would be thrilled to have you. We could all use a break from everything that's been going on here."

The sincerity in her voice was enough to convince him, and for the first time in what felt like weeks, Lavi felt a flicker of hope. A break away from campus, away from the tensions with Allen, away from the confusion and the weight of his newfound identity—it was exactly what he needed.

"Okay," he said, smiling for real this time. "I'd love to come with you."

Lenalee beamed, clearly pleased with his decision. "Great! We'll head out right after midterms. It'll be fun, I promise."

As Lenalee stood to leave, Lavi watched her go, the weight on his chest lifting just a little. It wasn't a permanent solution to his problems, but for now, it was something to look forward to. Something normal.

He looked back down at his textbook, but the words still wouldn't stick. His mind wandered again, this time to the things he was trying to forget. He may have been the forgotten prince of the vampire world, but he wasn't sure how long that would last.

His time away with Lenalee and Komui would be a reprieve, a chance to put some distance between himself and the mysteries he'd been untangling. But deep down, he knew that when he returned, the questions would still be there, waiting for him. And sooner or later, he would have to face them.