Beep. Beep. Beep. The alarm roused me from my sleep. 5:45. He’d be home soon. He had to be back before the sun came up. My phone rang. It was him.

“Wore out your welcome again?” I asked. I slipped on a sweatshirt and some slippers.

“Yes. Hurry up and get down here. The sun is coming up soon” he hissed.

“I’ll be down in a minute.” I hung up. The elevator was out of order again. I opened the gate and put on the largest grin I could. “Good Morrow Stanislaus! What brings you here on this fine morn?”

“C’mon just let me in. You don’t want to deal with Mr. Lewis if we don’t make the rent”

“Why that’s awfully impolite of you Stanislaus. Nevertheless, come in, come in.” With a flourish he dashed past me and into the stairwell. When I caught up to him, he was pulling down the living room blinds. I might as well make breakfast since I was up anyway. The remains of a goat had expired in the fridge. “Stanislaus, the goat needs to go, or I’m paying the rent with your head!” I began spreading a mixture of pesto and avocado on some toast. A breakfast of champions.

“The goat is a problem when you eat that every morning? Never in my 700 years have I met someone as insufferable as you Terrance!” He lay down on the couch. “ I come home from a long night of work only to come home to you! You don’t welcome me, instead playing your sick games! you leave your stuff everywhere, and you eat every meal with garlic! I have half a mind to just feed upon you!”

“Ah ah. Mr. Lewis would never let you back in, if you committed a murder in here” I chided him. I took a quick shower and got dressed. “Stanislaus! Where did you put my work stakes?”

“We talked about this. No stakes in the living room. I threw them out.”

“Those were my lucky stakes! What are they going to say when I show up with the decorative stakes I got for my birthday?”

Somebody knocked on the door. Stanislaus beat me to it. It was Mr. Lewis. A well built balding man with a cigar in his mouth. “Terrence. Stanislaus. I’ve received a lot of noise complaints about you two. I’m evicting you.”

We locked eyes. I tried to jump away but Stanislaus was faster. He hit me squarely in the jaw. I ran into the living room and pulled the blinds up, keeping him in the foyer. “You can’t hide there forever Terrence!”

“I don’t have to. You remember when I washed the couch cushions last year? I put a decorative stake in each cushion. I knew this day would come.” I began rummaging through the couch.

Mr. Lewis walked in. “This won’t do. Quicker. ” His head shimmered and a demonic visage appeared. A jet black snout with rows of teeth.

Stanislaus and I both screamed.

Max trudged up the stairs to his apartment and fished the keys out of his pocket. Dawn was just breaking, and he was sore and tired after a night of hunting renegades. He unlocked the door, came inside, and slung off his jacket along with the bandolier of hawthorn stakes and vials of holy water. The apartment was quiet and dark, with blackout blinds lowered over every window. Hopefully Clarice was asleep. He was too worn out to deal with her antics.

He kicked off his shoes and made a beeline for the fridge. Reaching past bloodbags that had expiry dates scribbled with a permanent marker, he picked up a cold can of beer and cracked it open.

He lifted the can to his lips, only to pause as he felt a presence behind him. It hadn't been a creak of a step that alerted him, or a sound at all—just a faint disturbance in the air, but that was enough for his honed senses.

He took a deliberate sip of the beer even as he reached for the silver stiletto concealed behind his belt. In a smooth motion, he whirled around and slashed at the level where a person's neck would be.

Clarice leapt back with a hiss, baring her elongated fangs. She wore a figure-hugging black dress with wide sleeves and an obscenely short, ruffled skirt with fishnet stockings underneath. His eyebrows rose. Vampires had a strange sense of fashion, but even so, her outfits had been getting increasingly ridiculous lately.

"Late night?" she asked, her mellifluous voice betraying no anger at his sudden attack.

"Right back at you," he said, stepping slowly away from the fridge. "What are you doing out of your casket?"

"I wanted to see whether I needed to start looking for a new roommate," she said, stepping sinuously in the opposite direction. "But I see you haven't had your throat torn out just yet."

"Fat chance of that." He didn't lower his stiletto as they slowly circled each other. When he reached the counter, he took a sip of his beer, never letting his eyes off her, and set the can down. "I eat your kind for breakfast."

"Mindless mongrels who gave in to their bloodlust." Her fangs flashed white in the darkness. "Don't compare them to me, ruler of the night."

"So, what?" he asked, reversing the grip on his stiletto. "Has the ruler of the night finally decided to show her true colors?"

Her smile widened. "Just keeping you on your toes."

Their eyes locked for a long moment. Then Clarice lunged, long pale fingers with black nails thrusting at his neck. Max dodged aside and countered with a slash of the stiletto. She somersaulted backward in a swish of black fabric and landed in a crouch on the sofa. With a manic grin, she sprang at him.

Grunts and gasps filled the room as they fought, his steps heavy on the laminate floor, hers light as if she weighed nothing at all. She danced around him, lashing out with lightning-fast jabs, while he kept his center of gravity low and looked for opportunities to retaliate.

She was the first to score blood, leaving three thin scratches on his forearm. Leaping backward, she met his eyes and licked her claws. Her crimson eyes glowed in the darkness.

"You're delicious," she crooned.

He beckoned with his free hand. "Come and get more if you dare."

She laughed and launched herself at him in a flying kick. He caught her leg and flipped her over his shoulder, his muscles screaming with strain. Her head rebounded off the floor, a gasp escaping her lips. Pinning her down with his knee, he grinned savagely as he pressed the blade to her pale throat.

She met his eyes for an instant before her body exploded into a swarm of bats. They battered him with leathery wings, tangling in his hair, clawing at his shirt. He sprang to his feet and slapped them away, but as soon as he got rid of one, two more took its place.

Swearing, he staggered up to the window and gripped the chain of the blinds. The bats caught on and surged away from him with a flurry of clicks. With a victorious smirk, he tugged the blinds open, flooding the room with morning light.

There was a loud screech, and the bats coalesced back into a naked and furious vampiress. She took cover behind the sofa and poked her head out, her eyes narrowed against the light. Baring her fangs, she hissed at him. He raised his stiletto and stepped closer.

The doorbell rang. The two of them froze and blinked at each other. The doorbell rang again, followed by a series of insistent knocks. Max groaned.

"Truce?" Clarice said, arching an eyebrow.

He lowered the stiletto. "Truce."

"Let me handle this. You're terrible with people." She half-rose from behind the sofa before glancing down at her bare front. "Mind handing me my clothes? And close the blinds already."

Max sighed. Stooping, he gathered up her dress and underwear and tossed them in her general direction. Ignoring her indignant outcry, he lowered the blinds and flicked on the lights. The knocking on the door persisted, now accompanied by muffled yells. Clarice got dressed and went to answer the door, while he ambled back to his unfinished beer and took a long draught.

"Good morning, Mr. Sziller," Clarice said in a honeyed voice. "I see... Sorry about the noise. Screams, you say? Well..." She giggled throatily. "That was just me and my boyfriend."

Max choked on his drink and broke into a coughing fit.

"Yes, of course... Sorry again, Mr. Sziller. Have a good day."

Clarice returned to the living room, her black dress slightly awry and her pale cheeks still flushed from tasting his blood. She linked her hands and stretched them high above her head with a sigh of satisfaction.

"What?" she asked.

He wrenched his gaze away and drained the remaining beer. "Just thinking of the best way to exterminate you."

She laughed. "Oh, please. Had it been night, I would've had you, bloodbag." Prancing past him, she opened the fridge. "Another beer?"

He grunted in agreement and caught the can she tossed at him with more-than-necessary force. "You wish, leech."

She took out a bloodbag for herself and raised it to her mouth before glancing at him. "Want me to go away so I don't offend your delicate sensibilities?"

He snorted. "I've seen worse, trust me. Help yourself."

He found himself watching with a sort of queasy fascination as she sank her fangs into the bloodbag and drained half of it in one go. Her pupils dilated, and the flush on her face intensified, extending down her neck.

She exhaled slowly through her nose, then rummaged in the fridge and produced a carton of eggs and a package of bacon. Max stared as she put a pan on the stove and turned on the heat, the bloodbag still stuck between her lips.

"What are you doing?" he asked incredulously.

"Wha' it look like?" she asked around the bag. "Cookin'."

"But your kind doesn't eat normal food," he said slowly.

She rolled her eyes, pulled the now-empty bag from her mouth, and smacked her lips. "It's for you, idiot. You can't live on a diet of beer and chips."

He shook his head. "Why?"

She bustled around the stove, not meeting his eyes. "Can't have you weakening and dying to some rando in the streets. You're mine to drain when I so choose."

"Should've figured it was something like that," Max grumbled, making sure his stiletto was nearby before cracking open his second beer. One of these days...

"I don't understand why it's so hard for you to clean the damn mirror!"
"I can't even use the mirror!"
"That makes it easier for you to clean! You can see all the spots!"
"Stop trying to distract me! This has nothing to do with the pre-diced garlic you keep buying. I told you you can only buy it fresh if you're going to use it even though a powder would be so much easier."
I leapt back into the argument. "You don't get the same depth of flavor with powdered garlic."
"That's not the point! You don't see me buying peanuts. I respect your allergies why won't you respect mine?"
I laughed, "Haha. Point."
"No! Don't you," he tried to stifle his smile but it was made harder by the fangs. "Don't you start!"
"Oh yeah? Am I...cross-ing a line?"
The laughter tugged at his beautiful, dead face.
"Don't make me bite you," he said with a huge grin on his face.
"You'd like that...wooden-t...you? Damn, I don't think that one worked."
He shook his head at me but the smile didn't fade. "Too much of a stretch. Where's your game at today?"
"As spotty as the bathroom mirror."
"FUCKING FINE. I'll clean it. Stop buying that shitty garlic. It smells so strong and gets everywhere too easily."
I would have to relent on this one. If he was finally going to clean the mirror I guess I should do something in return. "Fine, but my chili won't taste the same."
"I wouldn't know since I've never been able to eat it until now, asshole."

It’s 4:56 when i here the frontdoor open. Theodore always tries to be quite, but the building we live in if old and the floor creaks. I get out of bed, i’m already awake and won’t be able to sleep again. “Good morning, sunshine” he says when i walk into the kitchen. “It isn’t even morning yet. Can’t you come home a little later?” I say annoyed. We made some ground-rules when we first started living here, knowing we had to make this work, but it’s hard making rules for a 600 year old vampire who never had any rules. Theo and I have been living together for almost a year now and things haven’t escalated even once, i’m out at day to go to college and he’s out at night to feed. My parents don’t know my roommate is a vampire, they would kill him and kill me after probably. My parents are 2 of the best vampire hunters, which makes me a vampire hunter too, even if i don’t want too. My parents allowed me to finish college before i become a full-time vampire hunter, so i got two more years of freedom.

“I’m sorry if I don’t wanna burn to death” theo says, pulling me out my own thoughts. “I was done feeding and the sun comes up at 5:30” he goes on. “I know, i’m just tired” i say, knowing he isn’t annoying me on purpose. “You’d like coffee?” He asked, just like everyday. “Change first, your bloody” i reply, just like everyday.

I arrive early on campus, wanting to spend some time in library. I don’t really have friends here, knowing i’ll have to go home after college and would never see them again. I spend all my time studying and reading. The only person i hang out with is Theo and that’s only because he’s my roommate. I’d come to like Theo more than i ever thought I would. My parents always told stories about vampires to scare me, telling me they are ruthless and have no trance of humanity left. However Theo is just a normal guy, apart from the fact that he drinks blood and could kill me in 2 seconds, he’s not that bad. It makes me even sadder that i have to become a vampire hunter one day, only to live up to the legacy. I’ve always wanted to become a teacher, cause i love to work with kids, but i don’t have that choice.

When i come home around 5:00 Pm, Theo is already making dinner. He always cooks because he’s home all day and probably bored. He isn’t a very good cook, but he tries his best. “How was your day?” He asked as i sit down at the table. “Normal, boring” i reply “yours?” “Normal, boring” he replied as he sets my plate down and takes a seat across from me. During the time i eat we don’t talk, he just looks at me. It isn’t an uncomfortable silence, we just have nothing to talk about. When I finish my dinner i set my plate in the dishwasher, thank him for dinner and go to my room. I study a bit until i hear him leave the house, thats when i go to sleep.

Beep, beep, beep. My alarm clock goes off at 6:30 in the morning, it’s already light outside. There is an instant worry through my body, i have never not hear him come home. The worried feeling surprises me, i never knew i cared about him. I walk out my room and find a empty kitchen and living room. I walk faster towards his bedroom door and knock as hard as i can, but nobody answers. I start calling his phone, only to hear his voicemail. He has never stayed out during the day and for so far i know he hasn’t got any friends. I feel my heartbeat speeding up, when i open his bedroom door. I have never been inside his bedroom, it’s not as dark as I expected. He only has a simple wooden bed and a dark blue rug. I sit down on his bed and call his phone again, but no one replies…

I stayed home all day, even though i know he won’t be able to come home during the day. I called him so many times i lost count and have made up a lot of scenarios that could have happened to him, not many ending with him walking through the front door. I feel so stupid for being so worried about him, I shouldn’t care about him. He’s annoying and only my roommate because i would be homeless without him, but over the past year i come to like him more and more. I see the sun starting to set and keep my eyes on the door.

After what feels like days the front door opens. There he is, looking completely fine. My blood starts to boil, but at the same time i feel extremely relieved. “Where the hell have you been?!” I scream at him, while i feel tears piercing in my eyes. “I worried sick!” I go on. He looks startled, like this was the last thing he expected to walk into. “I wanted to give you a good night of sleep. I stayed over at an old friend” he says calm. “And you didn’t think about telling me?” I scream while feeling a tear rolling down my cheek. He walks closer to me, “I left a note in the kitchen, i didn’t want to wake you up last night” i look around seeing a piece of paper on the cabinet. I calm down a bit “why didn’t you pick up your phone, i called you a million times” i feel my voice breaking. “It died. I’m so sorry Frances, this was never my intention” i says and i can hear in his voice that he means it. He gently brushes his hand over my cheek and i look into his eyes. Before i can second guess it i kiss him, surprising myself. He kisses me back with so much passion i never wanna stop. We start moving towards my bedroom like we have done this a million times before. My hands around his neck, his hands on my cheeks. We both don’t say a word and i instantly know our situation has become a lot more difficult…

The door bursts open and slams against the wall violently, putting yet another dent in your rent-controlled apartment. You resist the urge to roll your eyes when you see who’s standing in the doorway, looking pissed.

“What the fuck, Chris?” Damien shouts, red eyes narrowed to slits.

You sigh heavily, pinching the bridge of your nose. You knew this was coming. “Now, before you get started, just listen for a-“

“No! Fuck you and your ‘conflict resolution’!” Damien hisses, punctuating his words with air quotes. He stomps into your shared living room and points an accusatory finger at your chest, his sharp claw worrying close to you.

“You killed my brother’s fiancée! You’re a real piece of work, you know that? You knew how excited I was to be an uncle!”

You curl into yourself a little, biting the inside of your cheek. Your boss told you to make sure to prevent vampire reproduction wherever you could, so when you heard that Damien’s brother was trying for a kid…

“Look, man, I’m sorry. I really am; but you know how Church is. If I don’t bring him results, I don’t get paid, and I’m already hard on cash.”

Damien scoffs, crossing his arms over his chest. His red-eyed glare could probably burn through titanium, judging by how harshly your feel it burning through you. You can’t find it in yourself to look him in the face.

Eventually, after a few tense minutes pass, Damien sighs.

“She was kind of a bitch anyway.”

You shrug your shoulders. “Yeah. She tried to sell out your brother instead.”

Damien’s mouth falls open in disbelief “Seriously?”

“Yep.”

“That bitch!”

You nod, standing up from the couch and finally looking Damien in the face. “Sorry about your brother’s loss, though. Really.”

“Oh, please. This is the fourth fiancée he’s gone through in the past two hundred years,” Damien says, waving one hand dismissively at you. “He’ll get over it. He always does.”

You clear your throat, scratching the back of your neck in a nervous tick that you’ve never managed to grow out of. “I’ll take your word for it.”

“So…” Damien starts, drawing out the word for a while.

“Yeah?”

“Can we call it even for when I killed your aunt?” he offers, giving a crooked grin. You look down to see he’s extended a clawed hand to you. After a moment, you chuckle, reaching down to take it.

“Alright. We’ll call it even. …For now.”

Adam wasn’t my first choice for a room mate. Hell, in this city, he wasn’t exactly my last either - but was closer to that end of the spectrum.

I suppose it was my fault for not doing my due diligence in staking out the owner of the room I was going to rent, but I’d just gotten evicted and was kind of emotional.

Besides, I could handle myself.

Adam didn’t ask why I was evicted, in fact we barely spoke. I’d just received a text with directions and was told a key was behind the porch light. My room was open and waiting for me when I got there.

The house was dark, all the windows covered, but I was in a hurry and didn’t bother opening them as I went back and forth from the cab that took me here.

I had thought the house was empty, so I didn’t mind blasting music while I arranged my new living space. Then at around 9 pm he came out of the room adjacent to mine, face skewed in a tired frown. And I knew this was going to be a problem.

Not just because I had just made a horrible first impression, but because he was damn handsome. Tall, clearly built but lean like an athlete. He had a strong jaw and tall nose, but I couldn’t see his eyes under the sunglasses he wore. His hair was either pale blonde or white, it was difficult to tell in the fluorescent light of the hallway. Either way it was striking.

I felt like a stupid little schoolgirl just gawking at him before I remembered what to do with my face.

“Hi, I’m Sarah. Sorry, I thought nobody was home.” I extended a hand.

He just stared at it, at least I think he did. Hard to tell with the glasses. Blue blockers? Maybe he gets migraines. He didn’t say anything as he moved to the kitchen.

“I work nights.” He said, and I heard shuffling around in the fridge. “I sleep during the day. I’d appreciate it if you kept the noise down.”

“Yeah, of course. Sorry.”

You’d think he would have mentioned that in the advertisement. But I let the frosty introduction roll off my back and headed to my room. “Anyway, it was nice meeting you.” I shouted over my shoulder.

He didn’t respond.

I shut the door and take stock of my inventory for work.

Taking a knife and a chunk of wood from my kill-kit, I sat on the edge of the bed and began to carve.

I had four stakes left and a few sprigs of holly. The table leg was lucky, so that only gets brought in emergencies.

Maybe this wasn’t going to work out. I worked nights too.

——

I didn’t go to work that night. I had been tired from moving, and the number of vamp attacks had been lessened in the past few months.

I chalked it up to it being early summer and the leeches having less time to move around. Kids would be staying out later though, and in a few weeks the festivals would start. Then people would begin going missing.

Until then, it seemed the police were content to let the homeless and poor minorities disappear. They’d put in the least amount of effort while bloating their involvement in the media for good boy points.

I really couldn’t tell you what I hated more - the blood sucking murderers I hunted or the ineffectual police who took all the credit.

Whatever.

I went out to find all the shades still closed in the living room. As I went to open them, I found that they were nailed to the windowsill, and the turning pole thing was missing. That’s weird.

I shouldn’t have ignored it, but I did. I chalked it up to him being an albino or something, he looked pale enough. I knew about some guy like that back home. He could only work night shifts and even then still had to wear sunglasses. It seemed to fit well enough. And I guess he could do whatever he wanted, it was his house.

I had brought a couple dishes with me and some meager groceries. Have to ration for now. It’s not like staking vamps really paid the bills.

It was only after I had started my oatmeal that I realized I never brought my silverware.

Shit. Not like I was getting that deposit back anyway. Well, maybe he wouldn’t mind if I borrowed a spoon? I’d wash it after and he’d be none the wiser.

But as I opened the drawer by the sink- no spoons. No silverware at all, actually. Just an empty drawer with a few crumbs. Ok, weird again.

It turned out the whole kitchen was like that. Aside from a couple of chipped plates there was practically nothing in the cupboards.

The house wasn’t exactly in the best shape when I got there, but it wasn’t a dump. It wasn’t in the worst neighborhood either, but it was far from the city center in an ugly little burb.

Made me wonder if he was renting his room to afford basic necessities. Then I felt even more like shit for waking him up yesterday.

Took my oatmeal to my room and quickly ate it with my knife. Not the good one, the shitty one in the back of the pack for times like this.

After finishing up breakfast I shrugged into some jogging clothes and shoved my kit under the bed. Last thing I needed was Adam finding that and thinking I was a freak, or something.

I mean, I am, but like hopefully a good one.

Most women I knew who hunted vampires usually ended up a bit nutty.

I considered first responders to be kin in that way. See enough horrible shit and you’re bound to get a sick sense of humor, if it doesn’t drive you completely insane.

The difference for hunters I guess is we don’t have that loss of faith in humanity inherent to emergency crews.

Actually, scratch that. Some of you guys are just plain dumb, walking around with your headphones, getting drunk in public. The hells wrong with you? It’s like you want to be eaten.

Anyway. I was getting ready for my run when I noticed something weird again. Adam didn’t have a car out front. Feeling a bit nosy, I peeked into the garage. There was a ton of boxes, but no car.

Huh. How did he get to work? Did the dude take a cab every day? That had to be expensive.

I swallowed my growing guilt and started my jog, hoping it would take my mind off of how rude I was to a guy who was sharing his basic necessities with me.

I swear, I am not normally this naive- but sometimes you want to think the best in people, you know? Shoulda known better.

I scoped out the neighborhood as I got my exercise in. It was poor. Old town. A lot of the houses were built in the 50s, had that prefab look to them. It kind of made me sad, seeing the disrepair a lot of these houses were in; the sad state of the yards of people working too hard or too depressed to take care of them.

But what really made my gut sink were the fliers on every telephone pole. It was that kid that went missing. Jaime Ramirez. I knew the posters by heart, the shape of the format before the words even came into focus. Poor kid had gone missing while at a park not far from here. Aged 6. Had some sort of disability. His dad turned around for two seconds and he disappeared. The city dragged the river for weeks- but found nothing. There were rumors of human trafficking, and while this shit city was ripe with it, there was my line of work to consider.

I said a silent prayer and headed back home.

There were some days when I wondered I was doing anything at all. Stake 10 vampires- kids still go missing. Hard to tell whether it was people or undead sometimes. Either way it’s monsters.

I get back and head to the shower. At least I had managed to remember my towels. I half wonder whether or not the water was going to turn on - then I remembered the kitchen sink worked for my oatmeal. To my pleasant surprise, the water actually got warm.

I had stripped and almost stepped in the shower when it finally dawned on me what was missing in the bathroom. A faint stain and nails framed where a mirror should have been.

My bullshit senses were tingling. But still, the emotional part of me played dumb and started to rationalize. It’s an old house, maybe it broke and Adam is too poor to replace it?

I rinsed quickly, changed, and scuttled back to my room, trying to will the goosebumps down on the back of my neck. However my brain wanted to rationalize it, my bullshit detector would not be ignored.

I wasn’t going to stake my new room mate just because he didn’t own a bathroom mirror, right?

I ignored the feeling again (don’t do that!) and started to get ready for work.

Yeah it didn’t start until sundown, and that was half a day away, but I had to make it to the edge of town. Figured I’d scope out the fairgrounds and the woods around them.

As I hoist my backpack on my shoulders, I take a look at the meager living room through my door. A shitty old tube TV, old furniture, barely any wall decorations. It was like he’d moved into an old person’s house and never bothered changing out the decor. I wondered if it was his parents? Was he some kind of recluse? Nah, he said he had a job. Maybe he worked nights at Amazon or something. Shit.

I counted the cash in my wallet.

I’d left him my deposit the previous day, but I still had a little. Enough for lunch. Maybe I’d swing by a thrift store and get some silverware or something.

—- (continued) —-

Hi, my name is Al, at the daytime, I am an amateur supernatural blogger and at night I am a full-time volunteer, Vampire Hunter.

As many of you may have guessed as a blogger I don't make much because of that I was kicked out of my former apartment for late payment. So I had to look for a new place to stay but because of my late payment history, I couldn't find one until I came across a shady website called RivallyRoom. Com. It was a roommate and lease finding website mixed, like buy one gate one free but with no return options. I had to sign a contract saying I will rent the place for one year straight with no complaints.

The day I was moving was also the day my roommate Drake was also supposed to move in. however he didn't show up even after sunset so I thought he was not coming today. I locked the door and got ready to sleep taking the night off my vemphunt but in the middle of the night someone made a lot of sounds outside the door, I'm sure you can guess it was Drake, my new roommate.
He looked like a prince of some faraway land that would make all the girls beg for his attention.

I mean I was not jealous or anything, oh who am kidding I was jealous not a little bit but a whole lot. This vemphunting was something I started after a vampire stole my date with his good looks and this roommate of mine reminded me a lot like the guy who stole my true love.

(I will write later)

"Alec, are you feeling alright?" I heard my roommate Thaddeus ask from the other side of the door to my room. Thaddeus was a 2000-year-old vampire who originally lived in north London. Despite being Stateside since shortly before the American Revolution, Thad still has his, if slightly modernized, British accent. The kind that would make anyone swoon.

Anyone but me that is. My name is Alec, I'm a monster hunter. You would think that we'd be mortal enemies, Thad and I. Quite possibly the only reason we haven't killed each other yet is the threat of mutually assured destruction. You see, neither of us can afford the rent on this place alone, so we...tolerate each other at best.

"I'm fine," I lied, grimacing through the pain as I took off my shirt. I had been hunting last night, killed a werewolf from breaking into an orphanage. But the thing had managed to get a few hits on me. Including several deep gashes in my side that were bleeding profusely.

"I can hear that your heart rate is elevated and your breathing is much shallower than normal! And I smell your blood! Alec, please be decent because I'm coming in!" Before I could stop him, Thad had broken the door open. His eyes widened at the sight of my injuries. He stepped closer, obviously straining his self control as he struggled with the urge to drain me dry. "You're hurt worse than I thought."

"It'll heal."

"You could bleed out without medical attention." Thad reach under my bed and grabbed the large trunk I kept underneath. He ripped the lid off and gingerly felt through the items, being careful to avoid silver things and blessed stakes. He hissed a few times before his hand came back out, red and blistered yet healing quickly, holding the forst aid kit I kept in there. "Luckily for you, I did learn from the apostle Luke, serve in the Union Army as an Army Surgeon during your country's quaint little Civil War, and as a doctor in both World Wars to know a thing or two about this sort of thing. Most of my patients made it." Before I could protest, Thad had already applied hand sanitizer to his hands and put on a pair of latex gloves. Then, he filled a syringe with morphine and took my arm.

"Trust me," he said, loking me in the eyes as his eyes turned red and his fangs lowered, his nails sharpening to claws. He traced my arm with his fangs, his eyes never leaving mine. He coaxed a vein to appear, and then slowly, carefully bit down, piercing my skin and latching to the vein. He brought the syring to close to his mouth and angled the needle so that it slid along his fangs and into the vein before pressing down the plunger all the way. As he pulled back, the pain already started to subside a bit. Then, turning to the wound, he leaned close, tracing the edges with his tongue, causing me to jump and bite down on a moan of shock and pleasure that decided to lodge itself in the base of my throat. "Our saliva helps with the healing process, nut due to the size of these gashes, you'll still need stitches."

I nodded my head as he began threading the needle before taking his lighter and heating the needle up to sterilize it. When I met him a year ago, I couldn't stand him. This 6'2" man with tanned skin and short wavy curls of jet black hair. His body was as sculpted as Michaelangelo's David, which he constantly reminds me that he modelled for, minus below the belt stuff, which I've seen the print of when he comes out of the shower or wears grey sweatpants (much bigger than the sculpture would suggest). His sea green eyes that twinkle when he talks about his favorite things from history or the way they crinkle and his dimples come out when he smiles.

"All done," he said, after he had made the last stitch and cut the thread. His eyes found mine again and the room seemed to heat up by a thousand degrees. I found myself leaning closer, my eyes closing. I felt him do the same. As his lips met mine, it felt like the birth of a billion galaxies.

I pulled away breathless, either because I'd been holding it or because we had been making out for so long that I'd either lost it or forgotten how to breathe. My heart was racing as I looked into those annoying sea green eyes. "I think my condition warrants overnight observation doc," I smiled nervously.

Thad nodded enthusiastically. "Absolutely. And I have yet to do a full exam." And with that his lips were on mine again as he pushed me onto my back, a roll of gauze, forgotten, unrolling as it went towards the wall.

I try to answer your prompts in drabbles, stories of exactly 100 words. Also I misread the prompt. This one's about two vampires not a vampire/vampire hunter. Enjoy!

--

Do you know what it's like to be broke in the big city? Having to sustain yourself on the blood of the overworked and uninsured? I bet you have no idea what being in a constant state of panic does to the circulatory system. The taste is thin and weak, nutritionally void.

Do you know what its like to share a coffin? To be priced out of your own, private resting place? I bet you didn't know some of us continue to snore despite inert lungs, all through the brightness of day.

I know all these things and it sucks.

The Hunter threw the small plate across the room, it whizzed past the Vampire's ear and hit the wall behind him.

"It doesn't even make sense, you're practically immortal! You and your ilk are supposed to be "living" in an old castle or something!" I shouted as I tried to pick up the broken plate pieces off the floor.

"We spend all our financial resources on fancy crucifix-shaped melee weapons and don't make enough to get better living accommodations, so what's your excuse for living in this dump?"

The vampire calmly took a seat while sipping some cranberry juice.

"Dude, all those old castles are hollywood propaganda. I admit we're good at sucking blood, but not so much at making money."

"For centuries our kind buried our personal wealth in random fields hoping to come back to it decades later, but then we either forgot exactly were we buried it, or we find out that somebody had built a freakin monastery above it. Don't even get me started with all the stuff I deposited with the Reichsbank in the 1940s.."

"Look I'm not too thrilled with rooming with you either, but I really don't want to move out right now and the deposit is non-refundable sooo can we at least declare this place as a neutral ground? Truce?" The Vampire said as he held out a pale hand for a handshake.

"Why would I even trust you?" The Hunter shouted angrily as he prepared to throw yet another plate at his roommate "I found you last night in that alleyway where 3 people have been found drained of their blood in the past week alone! In the middle of the freaking crime scene! Good thing I recognized you before I drove that stake into your chest!"

"Dude, again I'm telling you it wasn't me." The vampire stood up, apparently mimicking a shaggy-like dance from that song that was popular decades ago. "I was there dumpster diving, looking for a meal- but not like what you're thinking! I wasn't looking for fresh blood, I was in that dumpster looking for that crate of expired cranberry juice they threw out-" as the vampire reflexively blocked his head with his hands as the hunter was about to throw another innocent plate.

"How do I know I can trust you?"

"Didn't I tell you I am vegan?"

"Everyday for the past month since we moved in, and that was before I found out what you really are, you monster! How is it even possible for a vampire to be vegan? How do I know you're not lying?"

"You'd be amazed at what modern technology can do, and it doesn't even involve stem cells!" The vampire beams happily, baring his retainer covered fangs.

"So truce?"

"Yeah sure, truce, but the moment you act sus-"

"Wouldn't think of it! Now, what did you bring for lunch? I'm starving."

"Just some bread." as the Hunter passed a plate of bread to his unusual roommate.

"Dude, garlic bread? Really?"

Woken up by a horrific noise, Yvonne narrowed her eyes and charged downstairs, grabbing her bedside stake, just in case. Grumbling when she realised the commotion, she charged into the living room.

“I told you not to feed in here! It’s really annoying to get woken up by the sound of screams at.. at 4:23 AM!” Yvonne did a little glance at the grandfather clock, which ticked ominously. Faustus grumbled, dropping his prey on the floor like a scolded dog.

“I couldn’t get anyone when I was out hunting. Had to drag a morning passerby into the house before dawn. Thanks oh so much for the pithy little welcome mat, too. It barely counts as letting me in.”

Faustus resumed his barbaric feast on this poor pedestrian, who looked absolutely dazed. Yvonne wasn’t a vampire hunter because of any sort of justice reasons. She was apathetic to murder and death, considering it would make her a hypocrite to criticise it. Rather, she just didn’t like the pesky things, and the job paid enough for… joint rent. Hands on her hips, Yvonne sighed.

“You know, if you didn’t pay rent, I’d kill you.”

Faustus finished his meal, swallowing down the last of the (now absolutely dead) pedestrian’s blood. He pointed lazily at his fangs, then made a chomping motion. “You’re lucky I don’t just decide to mooch off of my friends. Amelia would be happy to take me in, and then I could dispose of you!”

“Oh yeah? Bring it on!”

Yvonne readied her stake, and Faustus bore his teeth and claw like nails, when a yell came from the flat above theirs.

“KEEP IT DOWN!”

Now, being a vampire, Shadow was naturally in tune with his bloodlust and hunger. He couldn’t afford any risky moves if he was hungry after all. The last risky move was… Well it was moving into this dingy apartment in the middle of the city with… Her… Don’t get him wrong, if someone told Shadow years ago that he would willingly move in with a vampire Hunter, much less have any sort of romantic feelings towards them, he would most likely have laughed and tore out the throat of the fool who suggested it. Yet here he was.

All this set up to say, that when his tentative roommate came home at the brink of dawn smelling faintly of blood and frustration, Shadow was not happy. He waited in the dark living room, sat on a seat that he had brought in, claiming it on day one. Slowly dragging her feet over the floor, an unsteady rhythmic tapping against the carpet, approached the area. She appeared around a corner and Shadow gripped the arms of his chair tighter, leaving even more scratch marks on the wood. The women had her dark brown hair tied tightly into a bun, pins keeping hair out of her pale face, green eyes shifting across each room, bags heavy under her eyes. A product of paranoia, Shadow had surmised, having almost got shot the first time he tried to spook her. It had served her very well on a hunt, but at home…

A whisper of a breath passed through her lips as she looked up to where he sat. “Good morning.” Her voice croaked out, another strike in Shadow’s book. The vampire found himself standing, towering over the young hunter, taking long stride to where she stood, long dark hair flowing around his form like a cloak, wine red eyes gazing down at her. She was not in her hunting garb, confusingly, yet the scent of blood was still strong, disorienting. Regardless however, she pushed him to the side, weak, yet he moved as if he was just a curtain. It was then that he spotted the plastic bags in her hand. Ah, shopping. He should have guessed. Still…

“You’re late Kalia. Much to late in fact.” His voice rumbled through the room, deep and encompassing. The women, Kalia, made no sound as she trudged into the kitchen, unpacking groceries. “Got caught up, something unexpected happened…” She whispered, yet his hearing still picked it up. “Shadow, I know we have a sort of tension going on, but please… Just… Just leave me be…” Ah, a request from the human. Something he could use.

A huff escaped his tall frame as he left the doorway to the kitchen and wandered to the bathroom. He carefully plugged the tub and let it run warm, wandering off into his room, coming back with what could only be described as a care bag. Pouring in bubble bath and Epson salts, he carefully mixed it together, before slinking out and into Kalia‘s room. Normally? The pair had an understanding. No going into each others room, but today, today was different. He made sure to leave with a comfy pair of PJs, setting them safely away from the water. After taking a moment and inspecting his work, he left the bathroom once more and returned to the kitchen when Kalia was carefully putting items away, sluggish and tired. This would not do.

The noise Kalia made when picked up was that akin to a squeak, followed by squirming. “Shadow what the hell? I told you I am not in the mood!” She protested as he carried her to the bathroom. Upon seeing the warm water of the tub, however, she relaxed. “… S… Shadow why?” She could mutter as he set her down, about to close the door on her. He paused in the frame and was silent for a long moment. Why? Well, the same reason why he lived with her. Stayed near her. Made her life easier by being off the streets… He could have killed her much easier in the beginning, he didn’t honestly need a roommate… But… He grinned at her with half lidded eyes, almost a dreamy gaze. “Because you are mine my dear. I take care of what is mine.”

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The crunch of the older man's footsteps into the frigid ice was the only sound in the night. He was dressed in practical clothing, a dark shirt and trousers underneath a heavy hooded black cloak. He wore a toolbelt holding strange instruments and tinctures and a small book tucked into his front shirt pocket. Altogether an odd look.

The apartment he was approaching was the only one for quite a while around, a dark, dilapidated wooden located on a lonely hill in a forest near the edge of town. Took some walking to get to, but he preferred it that way. Quiet. Peaceful. Away from prying eyes.

He slowly approached the front door.

Well...

Almost Quiet.

The instant his hand turned the doorknob and opened the door a crack, the sound of rock music shattered the peaceful night air like an iceberg cracking, blaring out into the night. Immediately taken aback, the bearded man quickly looked around, pulled the door open completely, deftly moved inside, and slammed the door shut in a huff of frustration. "ELENA" he bellowed toward the next room. "TURN THIS INFERNAL MUSIC OFF." The room he found himself in was a small living room that doubled as an entryway - a small couch, a television, a vintage jukebox that the old man gazed upon fondly. What he did not gaze upon as fondly was the travesty that was spread all over the room. A layer of rats, bunnies, squirrels, rodents, shriveled and compacted: unrecognizable. Used ramen noodle containers laying on their side, puddles of salty water leaking out. Frozen meal boxes that had been heated up and then discarded after being consumed.

The man's face darkened as his eyes narrowed.

The music continued to play.

"ELENA"

Immediately, a form swung down in front of him like a pendulum. Sharp teeth, red eyes, short black hair - Elena. Upside down - An excited expression. "HENRY!" Her face exuded affection, melting Henry's frigid heart for a second - until he glanced at the mess behind her and the tomb of his heart sealed shut again. No - he had to be stern this time. First things first - he went over to the jukebox and turned it off. Merciful silence. Behind him he heard the faintest sound as Elena righted herself, her feet touching the floor almost silently.

"Henry, I did it! I beat the other mail carriers!" she proudly strode over to the couch, digging underneath the refuse and pulling out an envelope as well as a small photo of her underneath a sign - "Carrier of the Month" "Oh congratulations!" Henry took the photo from her and examined it closely. It was Elena in her makeshift mail delivery uniform and hat, taken under the shade of a tree next to a kind-looking old woman holding up an envelope.

Elena ran a small overnight mail delivery service for the town. Though there was an official post office, sometimes delays and funding presented issues in getting crucial (or illicit) deliveries safely and on time to residents, particularly ones who lived far out of the way like Henry and Elena. Thus she decided to stake out her niche to find work. She only took nightly deliveries but didn't complain no matter the distance or the time of night. This was because Elena was a bat.

Or rather, a vampire.

Henry's grave face crinkled into an uncharacteristic smile.

"Elena I'm so proud of you! Congrats!"

She had been working hard to advertise her business, as difficult as it was to advertise during the day. Some of the residents even had bizarre eating habits - she had to make a hasty and apologetic retreat when offered a garlicky dinner once or twice while getting to know some of the town residents.

Henry steeled his heart again. He had to admonish her. Of all the vampires, this was the one he found hardest to deal with.

Elena beamed, retrieving the envelope that was next to the photograph, which was oily with food stains.

Henry wiped the envelope carefully using a nearby overturned tissue box

"Elena, this room is disgusting. You have to clean up around here. You can't let it build up like this."

Elena's face fell. She shifted, looking guilty. "I was in a rush after my deliveries and..I was afraid to go near the windows during the day" she said meekly.

He sighed. "I'll help you clean up this time but I really don't want to see any dead animals in here. And for God's sake turn your music down."

May add more but I'm tired for now.