Afterlife
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This was very much so against the rules, of course; Maeva knew that well. Though, she hadn't exactly been lying when she claimed she had a soft spot for cute girls...So, maybe? No, it was beyond foolish and she knew it. The worst that could happen is that she has to kill the girl, and get a stern scolding from the elders. She shook her head, turning a corner and stepping through a heavy steel door, held open by the inhumanly-massive doorman who simply gave her a curt nod as she stepped into the club.

The club, ironically named Afterlife, was unassuming, generic even. But that was the point; simple, linoleum floors in a gunmetal grey with walls painted black. The bar dominated the back wall and was a simple thing with LED strips lit up blue along the underside of the top lip. A small stage with the DJ’s deck, which was evidently the most expensive thing in the building, sat off to one side.  The place was only just starting to trend towards being open, with the only staff present working to get things ready for letting in the general public. A few raised a hand in greeting, or waved in her direction. She had worked here too in her youth, and it was almost a right of passage for her ‘family’. Of course that meant that everyone currently in the building was undead, vampires or ghouls. The ones that worked in the club proper were either young... by vampire standards or were the type to enjoy toiling away at one thing for the entirety of their unlife. Tom, the bartender, had been there since the place opened and it was really only thanks to the fact that most clubgoers don’t tend to keep going to the same club for decades that nobody’s really noticed. Ginna and Sam were ghouls, a ‘polite’ term for pet humans, though they were a bit more than that; ghoulification changed them enough that they were family too. Today though she didn’t stop to chat with any of them, only gave a wave and a word here and there before continuing right along to the back room and up the stairs.

Up there, she was hesitating. There were a few bedrooms for family members that stayed or needed a place to crash and an office. The latter of which was her current destination, though she was taking her time to get there; dragging her feet and dreading the conversation to come. The family head was her sire, which of course put her in the precarious place of ‘prospective next in line’. Though for the immortal vampire that could mean relatively little. Being as they were, some family heads potentially stay in such a position for centuries. What it did mean was that she was under a lot more of an intense microscope than all of the other family members. And what she had done tonight was very likely to get her properly scolded. Really, only that old man could make her feel like a child again.

“Maeva, don’t drag your feet.” His voice was clear and hid his age well. Walking into the office, she exhaled softly under her breath and turned to face him. The man seated behind the desk looked to be in his late forties, with the well-groomed look of one who’d probably had a few mid-life crises already, the sort of middle-aged sleezeball who now found himself running a club that was trying to win over the college crowd. His hair was dyed blond and slicked back taut over his skull. Clad in a tailored black suit, expensive no doubt, though likely not a name brand. He had well-manicured nails and eyes that burned into your soul as if he was picking you apart with a glance, evaluating you. Sebastian was the head of their family. For all intents and purposes, it was his name that kept them safe in this part of town as by the ephemeral rules of their people each family head was in charge of enforcing in their own territory. But beyond that, he moved with a defined level of assurity that spoke volumes on his mastery of self, honed by no less than decades of effort. He gave her a once-over cursory glance and shook his head slowly before leaning back in his chair.

“Maeva... What have you done exactly tonight?”

She paused and raised a hand, finger extended.

“First off, why is it that you assume I’ve done something? And second, um... well a human girl might have... seen me feeding tonight.”


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Adrenaline had this wonderful little side effect: it made you tired...dog-tired once it had run its course, putting your body in a state of absolute awareness of exactly how much danger you are in. Then it’s gone and it leaves you deflated, empty and tired. That was the reason for Charlotte's crash the night before. And now that she was stirring again, she was going through the whole process all over; the realization of what she had seen...that the woman had been here in her room... that Maeva had been in her room. And that the vampire had made her feel things.

As she was dealing with the crisis in her head, she went through the motions of peeling off her clothes from the day before that she had slept in. She stumbles towards the shower. And even in this mental state, routine was routine. By the time she got the water running and slowly heating up, she could just stop...stop and think properly about how absolutely insane it all was. She’d swear it was a dream, but she’d never had dreams so vivid before. Slowly, she scrubbed and scoured her face with water from the sink. From what the vampire Maeva had said, they would probably be keeping an eye on her, right? That’s just great. She’d be glancing metaphorically and probably literally over her shoulder for weeks.

On one hand, it was a terrifying realization to be suddenly handed the undeniable truth that the supernatural was real; that monsters were out there. In a way, that was cool. And yet...on the other hand, it was terrifying beyond measure. How many people did she know were secretly monsters? Okay...she really didn’t know that many people. But it still made her mind race, filled with what-ifs? Like...Mrs. Smith, in the apartment at the end of the hall. Or any of the hundreds of nameless faces that passed her by in the grocery store. How many? She should just not think about it, truly. But how do you stop thinking about something like that?

Her mind was roiling with the constant churning of these thoughts. She stepped into the shower under the punishing stream of heated water, letting it run through her hair and down her body. Her mind continued to mull in thought. Then, there was Maeva herself... The vampire seemed to be almost…flirting in a way. She had been rather attractive, in all honesty... but that could just be part of what makes her a good predator, right? She had long come to terms with her own sexuality being all over the place, and it was honestly not a huge concern anymore, as there was always something more pressing than if she liked dudes or chicks. Like making sure she could pay her rent. Dating was just one more thing that fell to the wayside and got lost in that grey frog of boredom.

Was she attracted to the vampire? Uhhh, probably? Would that mean anything? Most assuredly not; there was no way. The vampire had let her live on a whim, after all. And even if things did progress in that direction, was she actually thinking about getting involved with a monster that had threatened her life? That would be a very stupid decision in a very long line of stupid decisions. So for now, she’d shelve the thought. And write off all of those thoughts as nothing more than some silly fantasy about the scary sexy monster lady. Yep, yep...breakfast time.

She killed the shower and continued on with her morning routine. She had work in a few hours and simply couldn’t afford to miss a shift. Rent wasn’t going to pay itself, after all. So a few minutes later, she was heading out the door and onto the street proper. Suddenly, she came to a grinding halt. Maybe she should just turn around and go back inside. Her eyes darted around. That man reading a newspaper at the bus stop...was he a vampire sent to keep an eye on her? Or that nondescript car driving by? It all came crashing down in a brutal weight that made taking a single step all but impossible. And before she could change her mind, she was running back to her apartment.

Slamming the door shut behind her, Charlotte slumped towards the floor. What the fuck. No, seriously. How was she supposed to just not think about these things and just go about her day? Screw that! How was she supposed to live her life knowing there was some sort of Sword of Damocles hanging over her head at all times, just waiting for her to step out of line and slip up, or say something she shouldn’t so it could fall? Her head fell into her hands and the tears started to flow. Pitiful mewling that quickly turned into hiccupping sobs.

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