บท 18: Two Vampires Walk Into A Cafe.. (1)
After gaining superpowers from a vampire mugger, joining an undercover vampire police program to bust vampire drug dealers, and entering a fake relationship with a vampire girl from Transylvania, you'd think surprises would be few and far between.
However...
"It costs how much?!" I blurted out, my eyes widening as I stared at the barista at Luxebucks. The lady repeated herself with an innocent smile, "The espresso costs nine dollars, and the white chocolate mocha costs fifteen, sir.."
I shifted my gaze to the two cups of coffee in my hands and unconsciously swallowed the saliva in my mouth.
What the fuck are they making this from? Gold?
After a brief period of silence, I asked, "Um, do you accept installments?"
"Sir?" The lady raised an eyebrow, clearly puzzled by my question. I quickly shook my head, handing over my debit card before explaining, "Nothing, nothing... Just- Don't worry about it."
"Wow, check out that chick, dude!"
"She's super hot. I'm pretty sure she's not from around here. I would've known if she was."
"What do you think? Is she sitting there alone?"
"Come on, you and I both know she's too good-looking to be single!"
"True, but I'd still take my chances. I mean, have you seen her a-"
Irina occupied a seat by the window of the cafe, her eyebrows beginning to furrow slightly as she continued to pretend not to notice the comments coming from the men around her.
'Seriously. Those fuckers….' She held back the urge to snap at those people to mind their own business. They were whispering after all, and only someone with heightened senses like hers would catch their comments.
'Just relax. This is how it is around here.' She reassured herself before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.
"You alright?" A familiar voice broke through her thoughts, and she opened her eyes to see me standing before her, offering a white chocolate mocha with a quirked eyebrow. "Don't tell me that you don't like this, because I seriously just spent all my money on this."
Irina let out a sigh as she grabbed the cup from me and took a short sip of the drink. I pulled a chair out and seated myself across from her, and a collective groan echoed through the café, causing me to flinch.
"What the fuck was that all about?" I inquired, perplexed by the sudden noise, and Irina dismissed it with a shake of her head. "Don't pay it any mind. It's nothing."
"Alright…" I responded, still befuddled, and took a sip from my espresso. I then added, "Remind me to take you to a local coffee shop next time. We have to boycott these large corporations and start supporting the small businesses, you know?"
Irina arched an eyebrow. "Next time?" she questioned with a smirk, and I shrugged nonchalantly. "Yeah. You did say to make it look convincing, right? Well, this is me trying to make it look convincing."
"...Yeah, that's alright, I guess.." Irina agreed after a brief pause, nodding her head, and I reclined in my chair, sipping my espresso again before broaching the topic. "So, what's the deal with you and your father?"
"Well, it's a long story.." Irina sighed heavily, twirling the straw in her plastic cup as she began elaborating. " But basically, my dad's a really old vampire warrior. I mean, he's so old that even he's lost track of his age. That's how old he is. But other old vampires remember him. Granted, they're not as ancient as him, but they've passed down tales of his exploits through their generations. He's practically a living legend in the European vampire community."
"W-Wow, your father seems like quite the formidable guy.." I responded with a hint of nervousness, taking another sip of my espresso.
I guess having a duel with her father is one hundred percent off the table now.
"He is. He's the greatest.." Irina acknowledged, a warm smile gracing her lips as she spoke, and for a second, I was captivated by how beautiful she looked while smiling.
"But, um, he's also the head of the Cristea Family.." The smile on Irina's face waned, replaced by a touch of melancholy. "Being at the helm of a prominent vampire family comes with certain… responsibilities. He's obliged to establish peace with various other families and clans for the safety of our members."
"Okay?" I nodded attentively, giving her my full focus. Irina went on, "Of course nowadays, these procedures are more modern, and often involve financial transactions or exchanging assets to maintain the peace. However, back in the day, the methods that were employed were a bit.. different.."
Her gaze shifted momentarily to my face before landing on the white chocolate mocha, and I furrowed my brow in puzzlement.
"These methods usually included arranged marriages.." She disclosed after a brief pause, and a realization dawned on me. "Oh, I get it…" I murmured softly, and Irina affirmed with a nod. "Exactly. So, in order to secure peace, my father arranged my marriage with the eldest son of the Valentine family head even before I was born."
"Wow, that's fucked up.." I exclaimed, and Irina released another sigh. "Tell me about it. And even though the protocols have evolved recently, becoming a lot more modern, my dad is a man of his word. He wouldn't go back on a promise he's made. So, marrying Richard Valentine was pretty much set in stone for me…"
"But Richard's dead now, isn't he? Shouldn't the arrangement be null and void?" I inquired, taking another sip of my espresso.
"It doesn't work like that," Irina shook her head. "If the eldest son passes away, I'd simply be slated to marry the second eldest, Raymond Valentine."
"Damn it! So it just moves on to the next son?" I groaned, frustration etched on my face. "Wait a minute.. I have a question. Suppose I go along with this scheme and pretend to be Richard Valentine. How on earth would I be able to fool his father? Or even his brother? I mean, his family would know what he looks like, right?"
"If they were a normal human family, then yeah, they'd probably see through our plan in no time," Irina said as she leaned in, her tone serious. "But you have to understand that us vampires age extremely differently when compared to humans."
She then pointed her finger in my direction, and asked, "You know how you look like you're in your late teens right now?" I responded with a nod. "Yeah?"
"Well, you're going to look like that for another fifty years," Irina said it so calmly, but I almost spit my espresso out of my mouth. "Wh-What?"
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