Midnight had become my favorite hour, not because anything special happened, but because everything else finally stopped happening. No cars. No phones. No noise. Just silence… and snow.
The kind of silence that doesn't feel empty—just honest.
I zipped up my hoodie and stepped out into the cold. The street outside my apartment was barely lit, the lamps flickering like they were as tired of surviving as I was. A soft drizzle floated in the air, mixed with gentle snowflakes that melted on my skin before I could even feel them. The ground was wet, shining silver like the night had been crying.
I liked nights like this. They made the world feel slower. Softer.
Sometimes I imagined I was the last person alive.
It didn't feel lonely. It felt peaceful.
I walked down the same road I always did. Past the shuttered bookstore. Past the vending machine that blinked blue like it was trying to breathe. Past the broken swing set near the park that creaked when the wind was brave enough.
I didn't walk for exercise.
I walked because it was the only time I could be myself without pretending I mattered to anyone.
---
People at school didn't notice me. I wasn't the smart one. Or the funny one. Or even the weird one.
I was the "he's in our class?" kind of person.
And I was fine with that.
No attention meant no pressure. No friends meant no drama. No expectations meant no disappointment.
I existed quietly. Just how I liked it.
At least, that's what I thought—
Until that night.
The night I met her.
---
It happened so fast, it felt like a dream. Or a memory from a nightmare I couldn't wake up from.
I was walking past the alley near the old temple ruins—just a shortcut I always took. I stepped into the shadow of the narrow path and—
Everything froze.
The drizzle stopped mid-air. The wind disappeared. Even the snowflakes paused, like time itself held its breath.
And then—
**She was behind me.**
I didn't hear her. Didn't sense her.
Just… felt her.
A cold presence—gentle, but sharp. Like a whisper made of ice.
And then—
**Pain.**
A deep, burning stab on the side of my neck. Like two blades sinking into me at once.
I gasped and fell forward, my knees crashing to the ground. My hand grabbed the wall to stay upright, but my vision blurred. My heartbeat slowed.
Warmth leaked from me. I could feel it.
Something—*someone*—was drinking my blood.
---
I wanted to scream.
But I didn't.
Not because I was brave. I just… couldn't.
It didn't feel like dying.
It felt like falling asleep while on fire.
And just when I thought I'd fade away—
She stopped.
The fangs pulled back. The cold faded. And a soft breath trembled near my ear.
I turned my head, dizzy, half-conscious.
And I saw her.
---
Silver hair. Long and slightly tangled, like moonlight had gotten lost in the wind.
Crimson eyes. Not glowing. Not evil. Just… intense. Heavy. Like they'd seen a thousand tragedies and were still carrying them.
Her lips were red. Not with lipstick. But with blood.
**My blood.**
She was crouched in the alley's shadow, frozen like she didn't expect me to turn. Her eyes widened as if she was… scared.
No.
Not scared of me.
Scared that I saw her.
Her fingers shook slightly. She looked at me—not like a predator—but like someone who had just done something they regretted.
And then, her expression changed.
A hint of something… something I never thought I'd see on a vampire's face.
**Embarrassment.**
Her cheeks turned slightly pink.
She stepped back.
And she ran.
---
Just like that.
Gone into the mist and snow.
Leaving behind only my pulse, a few drops of blood on the sidewalk, and a thousand questions that burned more than the bite ever could.
I collapsed backward, breathing hard.
What the hell just happened?
Who was she?
Why did she look so… human?
And why, despite everything—
> "She was… beautiful."
Those words slipped out of my mouth before I could stop them.
I touched my neck. The bite was still fresh. My fingers came back red.
But all I could see in my mind… was her.
The way her eyes blinked in surprise.
The way she stepped back like she was ashamed.
The way she looked at me—not like prey—but like someone she didn't want to hurt.
---
I didn't sleep that night.
I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, replaying every second. Every breath. Every blink.
My chest still ached. Not from the wound.
From something else.
I'd always walked alone.
But for one moment…
I wasn't alone anymore.
Even if it was a nightmare.
Even if it was a mistake.
Even if she never came back.
That night, I felt something.
Something real.
And I couldn't forget her.
I didn't want to.