Thirst

What is in a name?

Cleo couldn't believe he admitted he drank blood! And if that wasn't enough, he made sure that they were dead! She had to sit down to unravel her thoughts.

Milly walked into the room with a sour look on her face and sat down next to her.

"He's a jerk."

Cleo started laughing. She calmed down and smiled at Milly. "What did he do?"

She pouted. "He told me that I was out of his league. Me!"

Cleo looked at her and wondered how they've been friends for so long. Milly had the look everyone liked. She was petite with green eyes and blond hair. Her skin was a bit tan from the sun but it looked nice on her.  

She thought back on what he said to her. Cleo knew she wasn't the prettiest but having someone like him put her down like that, was a huge blow to her fragile mind. 

She patted Milly on the back, giving her support. "Yeah, he's a jerk. Don't worry. There's a lot more guys out there."

"Yeah, I know but..." She clenched her fists in the air. "He's just so hot!"

They started laughing. Then Milly suddenly stopped and seriously looked at her.

Cleo blinked. "What?"

"I think he likes you. He wasn't so mean to you."

She waved her off. "You've got to be kidding me. He hates my guts."

Milly inched closer. "Not as much as me. He actually told me to buzz off, has he told you that yet? It seems like you two have history."

She smiled weakly. The one time she wished she wasn't paying attention.  "Oh, he hates me alright. You just weren't there to witness it."

Milly looked at her. It seemed like she was going to say something when the service bell went off.  They both jumped in their seats. Milly got up and went to the front to greet the newest customer.

Cleo got up and waited for her next patient. A couple of minutes later she heard a raised tone coming from Milly. Once she gets heated enough, she can be very loud. 

"No! Leave before I call the police!"

"Calm down. I just want to talk to her." 

She recognized the voice. It was Jason. 

"Why should I even let you see her?" 

There was silence for a moment. Then she heard a sigh. It could have been Milly or Jason but she  couldn't tell.

"Fine but if you hurt her...you're dead."

"Thank you."

Cleo leaned against the counter, waiting patiently for Jason. He came in and turned red from embarrassment.

"I—I...wanted to talk to you."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm listening."

He seemed uneasy as he closed the door. "I just wanted to let you know I'm going to stop chasing after you. If possible I still want to be your friend and if something happens later down the line, then great. Is that okay?"

Jason looked away. She looked at him in disbelief, wondering what happened to him. Ever since they met at a coffee shop, he's been nonstop trying to get her to date him. They've gone on a couple of dates and everything would be great until he tried to seriously date her. Not that she wasn't opposed to it, she wasn't emotionally ready. 

She sighed. "Fine, I'll give you one more try but if you mess this up, you're gone."

He looked at her and smiled. Then he spread out his arms but stopped short. "Can friends hug?"