Chapter Text
It was the last night of winter and Kai was sitting at the bar, twirling his wine glass between his fingers, circling the red liquid inside it.
He wasn’t happy with the taste. It was bland, he thought, which was unusual because it was the one he always asked for. His favorite, AB Type. The finest one among the other types. When it comes to blood, the rarer the better. Yet, it tasted so bland and his body felt so weak. It must’ve been because he stayed out in the sun for too long that day. He stayed out on the streets, exposing himself too much. It was a dumb move, he figured. He thought he could look for his soulmate because time was running out but soulmates come to you unexpectedly, you can’t be the one to look for them. And Kai was unlucky enough to have a human soul as a soulmate and not a vampire soul like him.
During the past thousand years, he always met the same soul on a winter night every two hundred years. Each time, they spent only a short while, not even catching any names, but there was a connection between them like they were two puzzle pieces fitting together. So Kai figured that they were soulmates, he was sure of it.
After the fifth encounter, spending only a few hours with his soulmate, Kai swore to himself. He was determined that in two hundred years — the next time they meet, he’ll make sure they’ll spend years, the whole lifetime of the mortal, together.
But it was the last winter night, two hundred years after the last encounter, and he still hadn’t met his soulmate, so he spent the night at the bar with his two friends.
“You keep talking about this soul and calling it your soulmate,” his friend Soobin said, sitting beside him, “But what if meeting it was just a coincidence?”
“A coincidence doesn’t happen five times.” Kai kept twirling his glass around, not bothering to look at his friend.
“Then, are you sure it’s the same soul each time?” Soobin still had his doubts.
“I think I can recognize my soulmate, Soobin.” Kai finally turned to him. He was starting to get tired of being asked the same questions every two hundred years. “One look is all I need.”
“If you say so.” Soobin took a sip of his own drink, his fangs slightly peeking under his lips as he brought the liquid to his mouth. The color of it was slightly lighter than Kai’s. He preferred the A type; It tasted cleaner, he once said. “I still don’t believe soulmates only meet for a few hours in a whole mortal lifetime.”
“Soobin’s right,” Yeonjun chimed in from behind the counter. He was the owner and bartender. He looked busy wiping the glasses and attending to the other customers but he was listening to their conversation even from far away. “That’s strange. If you were soulmates, then why do you only meet for a day then never see each other again?”
Kai sighed. Not this again. “My soulmate always had things going on in the previous lives. My theory is: that prevents us from being together.”
“Sounds like bullshit,” Soobin scoffed, making Yeonjun chuckle lightly.
The corner of Kai’s lips started to twitch in annoyance. “I told you last time, I’ll be sure to spend more than a day with my soulmate. We’ll spend years together. I’ll make it happen this time.”
“But your soulmate will eventually die,” Soobin said bluntly. His words never failed to shoot Kai straight in the heart. “And you haven’t met yet. It’ll be spring soon.”
“Maybe this time is different.” Kai tried to be hopeful, smiling his way out of his anxiety. Truth is, thoughts were running around in his head. What if the soul had stopped reincarnating? What if the owner of the soul already died in that lifetime? What if Soobin was right and he was actually wrong all those centuries? In the first place, vampires and mortals couldn’t be together. It wouldn’t work. And having a vampire and a mortal as soulmates was almost impossible. It was only heard of once, many many years ago, and it didn’t end well. But he tried to dismiss those thoughts and put his trust in destiny.
Soobin and Yeonjun could see through Kai’s facade and they could feel his misery but none of them said a word. Instead, Soobin took the wine glass from Kai’s hand and placed it in front of Yeonjun to let him refill the “wine.” After Yeonjun finished pouring, Soobin dragged the glass on the counter back to Kai, asking him to drink up like how grandmothers tell their grandchildren to eat more.
Kai appreciated the concern from his friends and formed a tiny smile on his face. His hand reached out for the wine glass to lift it but his body was acting up. He felt faint. “Screw the sun,” he thought to himself before the neck of the glass slipped from his fingers and tipped over, spilling the red liquid on the bar.
“Shit!” he cried out, jumping from his seat, catching the attention of the other bar-goers.
Yeonjun quickly grabbed a towel and wiped down the counter, cleaning the mess. Kai repeatedly apologized to him and Yeonjun repeatedly answered that it wasn’t a big deal, trying to reassure Kai. It was just the most expensive AB blood he could acquire and he could clean up the mess even if cleaning up blood stains wasn’t that easy. Kai then faced Soobin, asking if he was okay because he looked the most startled.
“Are you alright, Soobin?” Kai asked worriedly, checking to see if any blood got on him.
“Yes, I’m fine,” Soobin replied but his face clearly didn’t look like it. He pulled Kai closer to whisper and pointed towards the person sitting on Kai’s other side. “More importantly, I think you should be asking that guy over there.”
Kai turned to where Soobin was pointing and his mouth fell open. He saw a young man wiping down his white shirt, stained red, with a handkerchief. He was mumbling something under his breath but Kai heard it clearly with his vampire hearing. “Fuck, it had to be my white shirt,” the man was saying. The young man scratched his neck and clicked his tongue in frustration.
Kai immediately went up to him. He wanted to apologize but the words wouldn’t come out of his mouth. A mix of emotions were choking him up, not letting him speak. He could only stare at the person in front of him. The person he was waiting for for two hundred years. The person he had loved since who knows when. The person he wanted to spend a lifetime with. His soulmate.
Kai was overjoyed. He was ecstatic. His soulmate is right there in front of him, looking the same as when he met him a few times before.
The man had the same large eyes that stared straight into Kai’s soul. He had the same high nose bridge, the sharp nose Kai always recognized. And he had the same wide rosy lips, concealing the sharp teeth that made Kai almost mistake him for a vampire that had small fangs the first time they met.
He looked exactly similar as that day a thousand years ago — the day Kai was trying to escape from the villagers who found out he was a vampire and ambushed him in his home.
Back then, humans knew of the existence of vampires and hunted them down. Vampires can live on until the end of time but they still die when they’re killed. They’re just like humans except they’re much stronger, they are numb to the cold, sensitive to the sun, and they feed on blood. And human blood is what they most enjoy so humans and vampires were two species that could never coexist and lived to kill each other.
But Kai hated that and loved humans. He wanted to prove to other vampires that he could live among humans and that they will learn to love vampires. He was foolish for thinking so. His foolish thinking led him to being tied up in front of an angry mob and attacked viciously. He had rocks thrown at him, scorching charcoal pressed on his back, and he was left under the sun for too long.
When his skin had started burning from too much exposure to the harsh rays, he went berserk. He had to escape so even though he didn’t want it, he resorted to killing some humans off when they tried to resist him. He ran off to the woods and hid away in a cave to cover himself from the sun. From inside it, he could hear some villagers shouting and running around, trying to search for him.
Despite the damage done to his body, he still managed to safely reach the cave he was hiding in but he had used up all his energy from running away so he couldn’t move his body freely. His body was resting on the wall of the cave as he panted heavily. He struggled to raise his trembling hand to cover his mouth and hush his heavy breathing. His whole body was burning and he knew he would die in a few hours if no one came to help him. He wanted to scream, scream out all the pain and call for help but no one could possibly be around to help. No vampire was brave enough to live near a human village, no vampire except him.
With his hand still pressed against his mouth, he muffled the cries and the whimpering he let out as he wept. He wept for his poor life, his foolishness, and the hateful world. His vision started to blur and darken. He thought that was it so he said his goodbyes to the awful world and closed his eyes.
Hours later, he awoke to find that night had fallen and miraculously, he was still alive. His body was heavy and still in pain, slightly burning and stinging, but he felt better. His vampire senses were faintly restored and although it was a silent night, he could hear that someone else was in that dark cave with him. He could hear low breathing and quiet footsteps slowly coming close to him. Kai grew his fangs and worked to move his body for his defense but he only fell, his cheek pressing against the ground.
From a low angle, he could see the figure of the person who squatted beside him and was doing something with his hands. Suddenly, there was a weak light in the cave. Kai could see that it was a young man in front of him who lit the lantern that allowed the both of them to see better.
Kai was filled with fear and was wary of what the man might do to him but he was helpless. He could only flail around like a bug, waiting for what would happen next.
The man brought his hands on Kai’s shoulders and propped him up against the cave wall, allowing him to rest with a more comfortable position. Now that he was back to his original position, Kai could see the man’s face clearly. The man looked harmless yet he was observing him closely, making Kai continue to doubt him and because he wasn’t saying a word.
Then the young man suddenly started to speak. “Who did this to you?”
The young man had an unexpectedly warm voice that sounded comforting to Kai but he didn’t want to trust him just yet. Kai scanned the man’s features starting from his dark brown eyes then followed the outline of his high nose and moved on to look at the wide line between his lips. He continued to move his gaze downwards, setting his eyes on the man’s hands. One of them was wounded and wrapped with cloth. The wound seemed fresh because Kai could see and smell the blood seeping through the cloth on his palm. Then Kai observed how he was very warmly dressed, fitting for a cold winter night, and the things that were placed behind him. Kai thought he was a vampire who had small fangs at first, after seeing his pointy teeth when he spoke, but after observing him more closely, Kai presumed that the young man was a traveler, a mortal, and thought he could at least give him a bit of trust.
“The vi-” Kai tried to utter, but his throat was rough and dry like sandpaper, giving him trouble speaking. He furrowed his brows and huffed out his breath.
The mortal patiently waited for him to finish his words, blinking at him in anticipation.
“Villagers,” Kai finally croaked out. He saw the mortal curve his lips into a frown and lower his head.
The mortal sat down, folding his legs, and raised his head again to face Kai. “Humans are such vile creatures, aren’t they?”
Kai was startled by the mortal’s choice of words. The mortal specifically said “humans” and not “villagers.” Kai didn’t answer him and waited for him to continue.
“They call vampires monsters but they don’t realize they’re monsters themselves,” the mortal said, a hint of vexation and disappointment in his tone. His face was blank but Kai could sense some sadness in him and wondered what could have caused it.
Kai finally opened his mouth to say something. “Ho-How did you-” he struggled to get his voice out but it was much easier than the previous time. The mortal raised his eyebrows and leaned in to listen closer. “-find me here?”
“I was just passing by and I saw you in this cave.” The mortal scratched his neck then placed his hands on his lap. “I thought you were dead but I checked and you were still breathing.”
“What did you do?” Kai managed to ask. His condition was getting better and his voice was starting to get back to normal. “Why am I still alive?”
“I, uhh-” The mortal looked down at his wounded hand and covered it with the other. Then he faced Kai again with confidence. “I- I killed a boar and let you drink the blood.”
Kai blinked at him in silence. “So he was aware that I’m a vampire,” he thought to himself. He was puzzled, wondering why the mortal wasn’t afraid of him and even saved his life when he could’ve left him to die. He was surprised the mortal was also knowledgeable about vampires, knowing that any form of attending to wounds would be fruitless and that just by drinking blood, vampires would recover on their own. He watched the mortal who was staring back at him, sitting beside him with only a few inches between them. Hours ago, Kai had just lost faith in humans and the world but it seemed that there were still good people out there.
“Thank you,” Kai told the mortal and smiled faintly at him. “But why did you save me?”
“I see someone in trouble, I help them,” the mortal responded plainly.
“But you’re aware I’m a vampire.”
“It makes no difference.”
Kai wasn’t convinced. He knew there must be a reason for his lack of fear and for saving an unfamiliar vampire dying in a cave. He slowly raised his hand, the pain nearly gone, and held the mortal’s face.
The mortal jumped in his seat and was startled by the vampire’s cold hand against his cheek. He gazed at the vampire who still had his fangs out and his long fringe hanging in front of his face. The mortal’s heart started to race when he saw the vampire staring straight into his eyes without uttering a word. He turned away from his stare and said, “Fine, I’ll tell you.”
Kai moved his hand away, pleased because he got what he wanted.
“A friend of mine was a vampire,” the mortal started. Kai nodded his head when he heard that. It explained how the mortal knew things about vampires that normal humans didn’t. “He got in the same situation as you but I couldn’t save him from the people in my village. I wasn’t with him that day and I was too late.”
Kai frowned at his words. That was the cause of the mortal’s sadness. “I’m sorry to hear that,” Kai said regretfully. He imagined the pain his friend must’ve felt and the pain the mortal must’ve felt after not being able to save a dear friend.
The mortal shook his head, wearing a tiny smile on his face. He continued his story, “After that I couldn’t bear to live in the village anymore so I left.” He creased his brows and the smile disappeared from his lips. His hands curled into fists on his lap and he was shaking with anger. “I didn’t want to be secluded in a place with such people. I want to be free and know the world with my own eyes.” He relaxed his muscles and took a deep breath. “So here I am.”
Kai lifted the corner of his lips. “That’s actually amazing. I’m happy for you.”
The mortal chuckled lightly. He looked at the vampire and was curious about what happened. It was his turn to ask. “How did the villagers find you?”
The vampire had a long sigh and fixed his posture as if he was getting ready for his story. He still leaned against the hard cave wall and had his long legs stretch out in front of him. His head was faced towards the young mortal, still sitting with his body facing towards the vampire. Kai finally said, “I lived there and they found me out but I’m not sure how.”
The mortal’s face turned sour. He couldn’t fathom how a vampire could actually live with humans in a human village. He had many questions for the vampire and proceeded to ask one of them. “Why were you living there? Even I, a human, grew tired of my village but you, a vampire, chose to live there?”
Kai laughed softly, amused by the mortal’s expression, then he wondered when the last time he laughed this sincerely was. He went on to answer the question, “Because I wanted to prove something — that humans and vampires could be together in peace.”
The mortal’s rigid expression relaxed then he chuckled gently, for he too was amused by the response he received. “Then you’re just like me,” he said, making the vampire raise his eyebrows in surprise, “Foolish, aren’t we?”
“But look at us,” Kai said, still wearing the fangy smile on his face, “I’m a vampire and you’re a mortal. Aren’t we together in peace right now?”
Kai was right. They were together in that cave, sitting closely beside each other and talking like normal friends, like how they wanted the world to be. “You’re right,” the mortal acknowledged it and continued to chuckle to himself.
They continued their conversations into the night. Their gentle voices lingered in the air along with their soft giggles. It was a cold winter night but it felt warm in that cave because a vampire and a mortal had warm conversations about themselves, their wishes, and their hopes for the awful world. Strangely enough, they both felt comfortable with each as if they hadn’t just met, as if they had known each other for a long time.
Kai couldn’t remember the last time he felt this happy and pleasant. He felt safe with the company of the mortal, something he hadn’t felt in years. He had to admit, since living in the village, he was always on his toes. There was a part of him that still doubted the humans and hated himself for it but in the end, his doubts were correct. But on that night he felt out of harm’s way for he wasn’t alone, he was with someone he could trust.
Both of them eventually got tired and fell asleep side by side, one’s head resting on the other’s shoulder with their backs pressed against the wall.
When Kai woke up, he found that he was alone. There was no lantern, no things, no one. The mortal had left him during his sleep. Kai also found drops of blood on him which were dry. He assumed the mortal gave him more blood before leaving but what Kai also noticed was the blood smelled like the blood on the mortal’s wounded hand the night before.
He felt sentimental. He was emotional because of the mortal’s actions and because he couldn’t even get his name before he left. But it’s fine, he thought. He had engraved every feature of the mortal’s face, his voice, and his kind personality in his mind. He would never forget that night and if they were fated, then they would meet again and Kai would instantly recognize the mortal.
Two hundred years passed and they did meet again.
The vampire came across a farm during his solo travels and saw a farm boy chopping some firewood. Although the boy looked a bit differently from the mortal in the vampire’s memory, Kai immediately recognized him even from far away. He had the exact same facial features and the same body proportions. The only difference was the farm boy had his hair cut very short and wore layers of clothes that were too big on him.
Kai suspected the farm boy was a reincarnation of the mortal’s soul and he knew that the human shouldn’t have memories of his past life but he didn’t care. He was thrilled upon seeing the mortal after two centuries since he was left in that cave so he approached him and made conversation.
“We meet again, dear friend.” The words slipped out of his mouth before he stopped them. Kai was too excited. He called himself stupid in his head for saying those words.
“Have we met before?” the farm boy asked. His voice was still as warm and comforting as ever. He had his eyebrows creased and sweat was dripping on his forehead. He was confused by the sight of an unfamiliar man before him.
Kai wanted to say yes. He wanted to tell him that they have met, that the mortal saved his life and that he was eternally grateful for it. But of course he shouldn’t, he’d only confuse him. “No. I mistook you for someone else. I’m sorry.”
“That’s alright,” the mortal said then continued on with his work. “What brings you here, sir?”
“I’m just a passing traveler and I thought I’d rest for a bit,” Kai answered honestly. It was true that he was just passing by and found the farm. Meeting the mortal was purely a coincidence. “If that’s alright with you?”
The mortal paused his work and turned to Kai. His eyes shone brightly and a wide smile appeared on his face. “You’re a traveler, sir?”
“Yes, I am.” Kai nodded and wondered what made the mortal glow with joy.
“Then I’d like to talk to you about your travels, sir!” The mortal was in high spirits and nearly jumped from being too excited. He was extremely enthusiastic about learning that Kai was a traveler. But his toothy grin suddenly turned into a frown. “Oh, but I might disturb you since you came here to rest.”
“No, no, it’s not a problem,” Kai reassured him. He was actually delighted that the mortal wanted to talk to him.
“But I have to finish this first and you might have planned only to rest for a short while, then I wouldn’t have the chance to talk with you,” the mortal continued to voice out his worries.
“I can wait until you finish.”
“But I have more work to do after this. My great uncle is arriving at dawn so the whole farm’s busy preparing for his arrival and I won’t finish until dark!” The mortal clearly looked sad, thinking the traveler would have to leave even before he finished the day’s work.
“Then we can talk after it gets dark and after you finish all your work.”
“But you’d be wasting your time, sir.”
“I have all the time in the world,” Kai said honestly with a smile. That was true too. He could take his time in doing anything and everything for he was immortal. Besides, two hundred years have passed since their last meeting. He thought he could easily wait for a few hours just to talk to him again, especially when the mortal was so eager to have a longer conversation with him. “And we can talk while we watch the stars.”
That statement brought a smile back to the mortal’s face. He was moved that the traveler was willing to wait for him even if he wasn’t obligated to. So he offered his room, a room in the tiny house built away from the main farmhouse, as a thank you for agreeing to his request and because he wanted the traveler to rest somewhere comfortable and warm before they watch the stars. The vampire accepted the offer with pleasure, he needed to find a shaded place to rest in before his skin started burning.
Kai left his company and arrived in the farm boy’s room in a flash. The sound of his heels on the floor echoed as he stepped in. He looked around. It was small, only fit for one, and although it was filled with things, it was clean. Ornaments and little decorations were lined up neatly on a hanging shelf. A wooden chest was placed at the foot of the narrow bed. There was a small fireplace and a pile of firewood beside it. But what caught Kai’s eyes were the maps scattered on the table.
“Hmm,” Kai hummed as he looked through them. The reason why the farm boy was enthusiastic after learning that he was a traveler became clear to him.
Hours later, night fell and a knock came on the door. Kai immediately got up and shuffled his feet towards it. When the door opened, standing before him was the mortal who looked exhausted yet had a smile plastered on his face. Then the mortal arched a brow as he looked behind Kai.
“You didn’t light a fire, sir?” He was confused by the lack of warmth in the room.
Kai glanced behind him and let out nervous laughter. “Ah, I put it out earlier.”
He didn’t want to let him know about him being a vampire. Although it was the same soul, the person in front of him wasn’t the same person he met two hundred years before that. The previous owner of the soul wasn’t afraid of vampires but this one might be different, especially when vampires were still often hunted down by humans during that time.
The mortal shrugged and entered the room to grab another thick layer of clothing to shield himself from the cold. He took out one more from the cabinet and handed it to the traveler, thinking he would freeze to death wearing such thin clothes in the winter. He was confused once again because of it and asked about it, and the traveler answered that he left his coat somewhere and just forgot. Weird answer, the mortal thought, but the traveler looked fine so he dismissed his suspicion.
When they left the room, the mortal asked Kai to follow him somewhere, saying he knew the perfect place to watch the stars. They arrived atop a hill and sat next to each other. The mortal sat with folded legs and the vampire sat with his stretched out, similar to when they were in that cave.
The atmosphere was quiet at first, only the sound of the two of them breathing in the cool air, then the vampire broke the silence.
“So,” Kai said, catching the attention of the mortal, “What would you like to hear?”
“Oh.” The mortal got back to his senses and was reminded why he was there. “Any story would make me happy, sir.”
“Where should I start?” Kai mumbled to himself but it was clear enough for the mortal to hear.
“How about starting from the beginning?” the mortal suggested, his large eyes shining brightly under the dark sky as he spoke, “Or what made you want to travel?”
“The beginning, huh?” Kai smiled as he thought about it and remembered a beautiful memory again. “When I was on the verge of death, a passing traveler saved me.”
The mortal scooched closer to listen more closely to what sounded like the beginning of a heartfelt story.
“And he told me that he was travelling because he wanted to be free and see the world with his own eyes so I went to do it too,” Kai continued, the smile on his face only growing wider. He looked at the mortal beside him who was the reincarnation of the traveler he was talking about and was once again thankful for having met him, twice. “Actually that traveler was the person I mistook you for. You look just like him.”
“That’s strange then,” the mortal said, giggling softly. Kai was puzzled by it and arched a brow. “I have the same wish and you said I look like him?”
“Yes, exactly alike,” Kai said. He wasn’t lying, that was another truth. Of course, they looked alike.
“What a strange coincidence.” The mortal continued to giggle and ponder on his wish. He let his back fall on the ground and gazed up at the heavens with his arm acting as a cushion under his head. He was dazed again as he watched the twinkling stars etched in the black sky. That was a ritual he did whenever he felt sentimental, wishing upon the stars to make his dream come true, his dream of travelling the world. “I love it here and I love my family but I want to see more. I want a life more than just a life on a farm. I want to see the world with my own eyes too.”
Kai followed and laid down on the ground beside him. The stars did look exceptionally stunning that night and he admired every one of them, then he remembered the maps in the mortal’s room. The mortal seemed prepared and passionate about it. “What’s stopping you?” Kai asked curiously.
“My parents.” The mortal was downhearted, a complete change from his high-spirited self when they arrived at the hill. He sighed heavily as the breeze blew, making the mortal shiver. “They said they’d leave the farm to me and not to my lazy older brother.”
“Have you told them about your dream?”
“I have. I said I wanted to join my great uncle when he comes back but they said I’d only be a burden to him,” the mortal answered sadly. Although Kai couldn’t see his face, he knew exactly what it looked like. The mortal had the same sadness in his voice as when Kai heard it in that cave two hundred years before. But the sad tone vanished and was replaced with a determined one. “But I’ll try again and ask my great uncle in the morning.”
A smile tugged on Kai’s lips and his heart went soft. He was happy and proud of the mortal for not giving up on his dream. “I’m sure he’ll agree to you coming along with him.”
The mortal turned away from the sky and faced the vampire beside him, gazing at him with his large blinking eyes as he lifted the corner of his lips to form a wide smile. “You think so?”
“I’m sure of it,” Kai said as he faced him too.
They stared at each other’s eyes for a while and they both seemed to think they were still looking at the stars.
The mortal closely observed the vampire’s fluttering eyelashes, his pleasant face, and his sharp features. He thought the vampire was absolutely gorgeous and admired his beauty.
Kai thought the same. The last time he saw the mortal, it wasn’t this close and his sight then wasn’t this clear. He could clearly outline the shape of his doe-eyes and see its dark color. He loved how his wide lips were paired with his thick eyebrows and how his nose bridged them. He thought the mortal had charming looks and he had never seen anyone like him.
The mortal’s cheeks and ears started to turn pink, possibly because of the cold or because of his racing heart. He shifted his gaze towards the starry sky again and cleared his throat. “I hope you’re right.”
The mortal continued to ask his questions and the vampire continued to answer them. They talked about his travels, about the world and its beauty. The mortal’s heart was beating loudly like a drum in the silent night as he heard of Kai’s travels and he wished and wished that he too could do the same one day. The reality of standing before the world and appreciating its wonders in person was like a distant star to him but he hoped that it would become a shooting star falling in his direction and he would gladly catch it in his arms.
He knew that it was only something he could hope for and not something that would really happen yet chatting with the unfamiliar man he had just met in the afternoon was making him think otherwise. The traveler’s words were meaningful and gave him encouragement. Those conversations with him were unlike the conversations he had before with anyone. He felt connected to him and he was strangely comfortable being around him. He wondered why.
Kai felt nostalgic. During the past two hundred years, he had never felt the same way he felt during the first time they met until they met again. He knew there was something about this mortal soul that made him feel safe and understood. Something that calmed him down and brought out his personality. He wondered what it was.
When the cold became too harsh on the mortal and his weariness became overpowering, he thought he had to get back to his room and get some sleep. His great uncle was also supposedly arriving soon and he had to get up early to greet and ask him an important question. So he rose and stood on his feet, brushing off the dirt on his pants as he told Kai that they had to end their conversation and how he was thankful for meeting him. Kai followed and reflected his words back at him, flashing him a genuine smile that made him slightly reveal his fangs to the mortal.
The mortal noticed this and everything clicked in his mind yet he paid no attention to it. He had grown fond of the traveler that whatever he was didn’t matter. Besides, if he were to become a traveler himself and see the world with his own eyes, then he shouldn’t be afraid of whatever came his way.
The mortal tried to ask Kai to stay the night in his room and let him leave in the morning but Kai refused it and said he had to leave. The mortal didn’t question this anymore and bid farewell to the friend he made.
As Kai walked away, the mortal gathered his hands beside his mouth and yelled, “When I finally fulfill my dream, I hope we meet again in the future!”
“I’ll see you then!” Kai yelled back and chuckled to himself. Last time he thought he’d never see him again but did after two centuries, maybe it wouldn’t be impossible for them to meet again.
Kai had been truthful to the mortal the whole time but he was lying when he said he had to leave. In truth, he returned to the farm to check on the boy a few days after their talk under the starry sky and was overjoyed when he saw the mortal leaving the farm with his great uncle. He felt happy for the mortal that he was finally on the way to fulfilling his dream and hoped that they’d really see each other again in the future.
They weren’t specific enough when they mentioned the future so they met again after another two hundred years.
Kai climbed a mountain one winter night and arrived at a cliff that overlooked the city, bright and full of life contrasting the dim and silent mountain. From the cliff, there was a glowing light, which seemed out of place, that came from a lantern. Kai found that beside the lantern was a petite figure sitting at the edge of the cliff, a woman with long flowing black hair, kicking her feet back and forth without a care in the world.
Kai approached the woman slowly and asked, “May I sit beside you?”
The woman glanced up at him and he slightly parted his lips upon seeing her face. She was beautiful, bewitching, and most importantly, she had the face that was deeply engraved in Kai’s mind. She was someone Kai could recognize.
Kai was taken aback. It was absolutely incredible to him that he met the mortal soul for the third time in winter, two hundred years after the last meeting, but this time it was a woman.
“I don’t mind,” the woman said, her soft voice ringing in Kai’s ears, making him get back to his senses. Although it sounded different from the first two times, it still sounded warm and comforting to him.
Kai lowered himself and imitated the woman’s sitting position, hanging his legs at the edge of the cliff and used his hands to support his upper body. He noticed that the woman had bare feet, dirty and scratched, as if she had been running around without her shoes on. He also noticed how thinly she was dressed and how she sniffed and shivered every time the wind blew so he took off his coat and offered it to her.
The woman glanced at the thick coat then back at his face. She flashed him a soft smile as she took the coat and wrapped it around her. “Thank you. You’re very kind,” she whispered.
Kai smiled faintly too then gazed at her unhappy expression. “Why are you here alone?” he asked worriedly as he noticed her rose-colored cheekbones.
“I wanted to see the city. It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she said, not removing her eyes from the view in front of them. The city lights were shining in the dark like the stars in the skies. It looked as pretty as a picture, Kai acknowledged it, yet he could only see the attractive woman beside him. “I love the city so much, although I can’t see it upclose.”
Kai creased his brows. “What do you mean?”
The woman finally turned towards Kai’s direction and scanned her eyes starting from his hair to the shoes he wore, then returned them upwards to look him in the eyes. Kai raised his eyebrows and grinned, expecting her to say something. “You’re not from here,” she said directly.
“How did you know?”
“The way you’re dressed. You’re wearing foreign clothes,” she explained, making Kai lower his head and look at himself. She was right, he thought. That’s why he was being looked at when he was walking in the city in the morning. “You’re not wearing much too. Aren’t you cold?”
“I’m fine, miss, don’t worry,” Kai reassured her.
She didn’t believe him and moved closer, closing the distance between them and took one side of the coat to wrap it around Kai’s shoulder. Kai couldn’t move a finger. He was dazed in an unexpected situation, sitting too close to the mortal with their shoulders touching. He couldn’t even breathe properly and he was nervous, his heart beating against his chest. He was worried it was beating too loudly and the woman would hear it. Suddenly, he felt her hand brush against his, then it was wrapped completely with the warmth of her two palms. “Your hand is freezing!”
Kai let out nervous laughter as he drew his hand back. “Ah, ha-ha, it is cold here,” Kai said, his voice shaking not because it really was cold but because he didn’t know what to say. “What on earth am I saying?” he asked himself in his head.
The woman noticed his teeth and how it was a bit sharper than a normal person’s. She blinked her eyes at them then parted her lips to ask, “Are you a vampire?”
Kai widened his eyes at the woman and gulped. What should he say? He thought vampires have become myths since the past century and that no one knew of their existence anymore. Kai didn’t want to scare her too, yet he was curious why she didn’t look a bit scared. With all the thoughts running and clouding his head, he unconsciously shot a word out of his mouth. “Yes.”
The air was dead for a solid few seconds and they had blank stares at each others’ faces. Kai felt like he wanted to bury himself for admitting he was a vampire, especially looking at the face the woman was wearing, he also wanted to jump off. But the woman’s blank face turned into a pleasant one. Her cheekbones raised and her eyes curved into crescents, ones that looked like they could replace the moon in the night sky. Her rosy lips reached her ears and revealed her toothy smile, a smile Kai couldn’t remove from his memory. Kai felt his heart skip a beat, even with it already beating very loudly.
The dead air sounded with laughter as the woman laughed her heart out while Kai wore a confused look. “Vampire’s don’t exist!” the woman exclaimed, clearly amused.
“Ha-ha-ha.” Kai had a dry laugh. He felt exhausted, like a thousand years were taken off his life, but just watching the woman laugh and enjoy herself made him happy.
“Actually, don’t laugh, but I saw a vampire once,” the woman shared as her laughter slowly faded. She looked at Kai to see reactions and she got one she didn’t expect. Kai was looking at her fondly, with warm eyes that were completely different to his ice cold hand and with curved lips grinning at her lovingly. Her heart suddenly jumped and she turned her blushing face away as she continued, “I don’t remember what he looks like though. I was in a dark cave with him and he looked wounded.”
“Hmm,” Kai hummed. He clearly had a similar memory wherein he was the wounded vampire.
“Then I woke up and realized it was a dream!” She giggled softly then furrowed her brows as she described it in detail. “But it felt so real, like I was really there. Though in that dream I was a boy.” She turned to Kai again, chuckling. “Can you imagine me being a boy?”
Kai simply laughed it off with her but he wanted to answer. Yes, he could. In fact, he knew the mortal as a man previously, but she came and changed everything.
What amazed Kai was that she dreamt of her past life. He had heard of it before but he had never spoken to someone who experienced it. He wondered if she also dreamt of the night when they watched the stars just like how they were watching the lively city from the mountain. Then he was reminded of her peculiar statement a while ago. “I’m sorry but earlier you said you couldn’t see the city up close. What did you mean by that?”
“Oh.” Her high spirits suddenly vanished after uttering a single word. Kai instantly regretted asking when she looked that down but he wanted to get to know her. “I’m not free. I can’t get around the city. I’m locked inside my own home.”
Kai frowned. “That’s unfortunate. Why is that?”
“My family is too overprotective of me and they said they wanted to keep me safe from the dangers outside.” She looked at her toes stained with dirt and hid them under her skirt when she brought her knees to her chest. The cold was biting her fingers too so she grasped her hands together and warmed them up as she smirked. “So I escaped. But they probably noticed by now.”
Kai imagined her sneaking out of her home, running off without her shoes, and climbing the mountain all by herself. He thought he should be worried but he chuckled quietly. He was actually proud of her for wanting to be free of restrictions. He was reminded again of the kind traveler and the farm boy who both wanted to feel free and he felt soft that the mortal soul never changed.
“Actually,” the mortal mumbled. “I’m here to say goodbye to this place.”
Kai arched a brow. Now he got worried. “Where are you going?”
“I’m getting married tomorrow.” She faced the vampire again, looking at him with her eyes glistening as the moonlight fell on them and the corner of her lips slightly turning up. “My family protected me for years yet they agreed to marry me off. Tomorrow, I’m going somewhere far away.”
“Is that something you want?”
“Funny…” she trailed off for a moment. “I asked myself the same.”
“Then I’ll change my question.” Kai turned his upper body to face her, making the coat that covered them fall behind their backs. Both of them had forgotten that they were actually sitting that close and only noticed it when Kai made a bit of space. Kai stared straight into her eyes and his voice had a serious tone. “Will you be free then? When you get married?”
She simply shrugged, making the creases in Kai’s forehead deeper. “I don’t know. Do you think women become free when they marry?”
Kai had a heavy heart. That was the first time he was bothered by the mortal’s circumstances. He looked at how she slumped over, hugging her knees, hiding her bare feet under her skirt. She was a confined noblewoman who only wanted to live her life freely but she would have to face a new life in a day, unsure if it would finally allow her to be free or continue to restrict her. She was trembling, trembling because it was freezing and because she was afraid of the future. But Kai was proud of her. He was proud that she was a strong woman who went out into the world to say goodbye to her hometown and was ready to face her future despite her fear.
Kai took the coat from behind and wrapped it tightly around her to shield her from the chilly breeze. He raised his hand to brush strands of her hair away so he could get a clearer look at her then he cupped her face. His large hand was a perfect fit as he held it, feeling the heat from her blushing.
The woman flinched when the vampire touched her face with his icy hand and her blood rapidly ran in her veins to color her cheeks pink. Her heart started racing again and she had a shuddering breath.
“Miss! Where are you, miss!”
A distant voice echoed in the mountain that startled the mortal and the vampire. The vampire retracted his hand to his side and the mortal stood on her feet then grabbed the lantern from the ground. The vampire followed as the mortal brushed off her skirt, still having the coat wrapped around her.
“They found me,” she whispered under her breath. “I have to go. My family must be dead worried.”
The shouting grew louder and louder and it didn’t come from one voice. A group of people have been searching for her and they were getting closer to the cliff where she was, possibly arriving there any minute.
“Thank you.” The woman flashed her last smile to Kai. She wasn’t saying anything more but Kai felt it, that she was thanking him for keeping her company on her last night there, in the city she loved yet never saw up close with her own eyes.
She walked away while Kai was unmoving, like his feet were glued to where he stood. He couldn’t do anything but watch her small back and watch the distance between them only grow. So he took in a sharp breath and raised his voice. “Will I see you again?”
The woman stopped in her tracks and glanced back at him. The moonlight seemed to perfectly shine down on her like a spotlight. Her long black hair was flowing with the night breeze and a lovely smile was still etched on her lips when she said, “If we’re fated then we certainly will, sir vampire.”
Her words repeated in Kai’s head even after she disappeared from his sight and as he heard loud cries in the mountain, a signal that she reunited with the people searching for her.
That meeting was the shortest yet the most memorable, because that was when Kai officially fell in love with the mortal soul.
He also realized that they weren’t simply two souls in the world but they were fated. They were soulmates. Strange and seemingly impossible but that could be the only reason why they met for the third time.
After that third meeting, he decided to wait for their next encounter and if he was right, they’d meet two hundred years later in winter.
He only proved himself correct when he was strolling casually in a busy market square one winter day. He caught sight of someone trying to steal food from an unmanned stall. He quickly ran and grabbed the wrist of the thief, only for him to recognize her when she looked at him.
Nothing had changed, he thought. She still looked as beautiful under the sun as she did under the moon. But she looked much thinner, had worn out clothes, and she had her hair tied up messily.
The grocer came and looked delighted to see the woman. “I thought I wouldn’t see you anymore!” the grocer exclaimed. “Aren’t you leaving today?”
“I thought I’d grab some food before I go,” the woman said, “It’s going to be a tiring trip.”
“I see. I’m sorry again for your loss.” The grocer had a regretful look. “Your husband was a kind man and he was too young to leave you in this world alone.”
“He was,” the woman started, her tone sorrowful. “But I won’t be alone, I’m going back to my family.”
“That’s right.” The grocer smiled. “Safe travels!”
The woman smiled back at the grocer then gave Kai the side-eye as she aggressively freed her hand from his grip. She left in a hurry without looking back, leaving Kai in a dumbfounded state. He quickly got back to his senses when the grocer called out to him, asking him if he needed something. He flashed the grocer a smile and bought some loaves of bread then he jogged to the woman’s side.
When he had caught up to her, he remained silent, waiting for the right time to speak. Then the woman stopped so he stopped too.
“Are you following me?” she scowled, glaring at the mysterious man. She scanned him from head to toe and figured he must come from a wealthy family just judging from his clothes and the way his hair was groomed. He was also holding an umbrella. Maybe he’s one of those arrogant rich people who never felt the sun on their skin, she thought.
“No,” Kai said confidently. There was no hint of anxiety in his face and tone. “We must be headed for the same destination. I’m headed for the capital. You?”
“Me too,” she simply answered, then she clicked her tongue and marched ahead.
Kai chuckled to himself and thanked the heavens for his hearing. He had heard her mumble about the capital before he caught up to her and assumed she was headed there. He shuffled his feet to walk beside her then handed her the loaves of bread he bought from the grocer. “I’ll give these to you,” he said.
The woman was still suspicious of him and hesitated for a second but she looked at his kind face. She didn’t know what it was but something inside her was telling her it was okay to trust him. She slowly reached out her hand and took them. “Thank you, for this and for not saying anything about what you saw earlier.”
Kai faintly smiled. “It’s nothing.”
Hours into the trip, not one word was said by any of them, yet there was no hint of awkwardness in the air. Both of them could only hear their huffing breaths, the background noise, and their heavy footsteps. The mortal wondered why she was oddly comfortable with the silence and thought it was like she was having a good time just by walking together with the unfamiliar man. Kai felt the same but he knew the reason for it. He was happy just by being with her.
“Why are you going to the capital?” the woman started, glancing up at the man beside her. From that angle, he looked ethereal. His looks were out of this world. She had never seen such beauty, she thought. Even her dead husband wasn’t that handsome.
“Sightseeing,” Kai plainly said. He actually didn’t have anything to do there so he might as well look around. “How about you, miss?”
“I’m going home.” She looked emotional when she said that. She missed her family dearly, especially after just losing someone she loved so much.
Kai wanted to ask her more questions but she looked like she wasn’t in the right mood to feel interrogated, so he kept quiet and looked at her fondly. He noticed the fading light around them and saw that the sun was starting to set. He closed his umbrella and held it at his side. “How long do we have left until we reach the capital?”
The woman arched her brow. She was questioning why the gentleman didn’t know how long it’d take for them to arrive at the capital when he was supposedly headed there on his own but she simply shrugged it off and went to answer him. “We have to hitch a ride when we get to that road,” she said, pointing somewhere ahead of them. “We can’t possibly walk all the way there!”
“You’re right. My feet are already killing me,” Kai whined and the woman giggled at him. He raised his eyebrows in confusion. He didn’t know what was funny but he adored her soft laughter.
When they got to the place the woman was talking about, they hitched a ride from a passing truck. They rode at the back and watched the dim scenery move away from them as they munched on bread. The air between them was still quiet and still calming that it made the mortal fall fast asleep like a baby with her head falling on Kai’s shoulder.
Kai tried not to move, not wanting to wake her, and simply glanced at her face. He could clearly hear the pattern of her breathing and the sound calmed him down. He looked up at the stars, reminiscing on the previous times they spent together, and he wished that he could stay like that forever. Little did he know, he too fell asleep in a moment.
He awoke in the morning when the sun was shining on his skin. The woman was still asleep on his shoulder and he struggled to open up his umbrella without moving too much. But the struggle woke her up.
The woman was dazed when she opened her eyes. She didn’t know she was using the gentleman’s shoulder as a pillow the whole night and ignored him as he opened his umbrella to shield them from the sun. Looking at her surroundings, she noticed that they were nearing the capital and tapped the gentleman’s shoulder to tell him. “We’re almost there,” she said then yawned.
“I see,” Kai said sadly. The mortal was going to leave again soon. He didn’t want that so he mustered up his courage to say something. “Could we-”
“We’ll part ways here,” the mortal cut him off unknowingly when the vehicle stopped. She hopped down and brushed her clothes. “I have to pass by somewhere.”
Kai only opened his mouth but nothing came out so he pressed his lips together and formed a frown. He furrowed his brows and only blinked at the mortal’s expression. He knew he was unhappy but why did it look like the mortal was too?
“Thank you,” the mortal spoke sincerely, “For keeping me company when I felt the loneliest.”
The vehicle started moving again and Kai could only stare at her sorrowful smile. He wasn’t satisfied. He wasn’t happy that after waiting for so long, he wasn’t even able to talk much with the mortal.
So for days, he strolled around the capital and looked for a woman with her description, thinking maybe she had already arrived. He checked the market square when it became busy and explored the place just to see and talk to her again but to no avail. He only disappointed himself and he had to wait for another two centuries.
He waited patiently and he got what he longed for. He was sitting in a cafe with a spectacular view of the bustling city when he spotted a familiar figure on the wide balcony. The time was right, it was a winter day two hundred years after the last meeting, so he thought of the possibility. He took his umbrella and opened it before stepping out under the high sun and approached the woman slowly. Just seeing her face from an angle made his heart skip a beat. That was the moment he was waiting for.
The woman sat elegantly in her seat, wearing a long dress and her hair falling short on her shoulders. She was holding a sketchbook and a pencil, sketching out the scenery before her. Kai thought it was wonderful and admired it as he got closer to the woman.
“That’s a very beautiful drawing, miss,” he said softly as to not startle her. “It really captures the scene.”
“Thank you,” she replied, still busy with her drawing. “I love to sketch the places I visit and this place has become one of my favorites.”
“Where else have you been?” Kai asked curiously. A tiny bud of happiness and amusement grew inside him. He was pleased that the mortal still had the wish of travelling places and feeling free and heard about it many times except for the last time.
“I’ve only been to a few places in a few countries,” she shared with him gladly then finally looked up at him with a beaming smile on her face. She was glowing with excitement. “But I plan to go as far as my feet can take me,” she continued with her voice shaking with emotion, making Kai smile back at her. But Kai’s smile dropped. “Together with my fiance!”
His heart dropped too. She already had someone else in her heart. He waited for very long years yet he was still late. He wanted to tell her about it, about how they’ve known each other since long ago and how he had loved her too, but it would be pointless. He knew it would be. He’d only confuse her and be remembered as the strange man she met on the cafe balcony.
He didn’t want to hear anything more of her fiance so he focused on her sketch. “May I take a closer look?” he whispered but loud enough to let her hear. He noticed the tiny details as he leaned down, inching his face closer beside the woman’s to see her sketchbook.
He set his eyes at the drawing then noticed the silence in the air between them. Everything else was just background noise. He slightly turned his head and widened his eyes. He was surprised by the close distance between their faces, and how she was looking intently at him without saying a word, only blinking slowly.
He straightened himself and turned away, trying to hide his nervousness around her. His heart was beating rapidly and he tried to calm it down before she noticed.
“You’re very handsome,” she said blankly, still observing Kai’s face. She folded her sketchbook and grabbed her pencil then stood up in front of him. “Would you be my model?”
He was flattered and not thinking properly. “Sure,” he said without hesitation, only realizing what he said after a few seconds.
“Great!” she exclaimed. “Please sit over there.”
“Oh no,” he strongly refused, waving his hand aggressively. He didn’t want to sit under the sun especially when it was noon. The woman arched her brow in confusion. “It’s too, uhh, cold here. Can we take this inside?”
“You’re right. Let’s take this inside.”
When they arrived inside the cafe and found the perfect area with the best lighting at the same time not exposing Kai too much, the woman quickly started her sketch. She sat across him with her legs crossed, one on top of the other. She scanned her eyes on him starting from his parted hair to his wide shoulders. She said she only wanted to draw a portrait of him and Kai didn’t know what expression to make. He wore a stiff smile and froze in place, only blinking whenever she wasn’t looking.
“You’re so stiff!” she said, laughing at him like he was a friend she’d known for a while. “Loosen up! You don’t have to smile if you don’t want to.”
Kai let out his nervous laughter and lowered his head. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down, then raised his head only to make his heart beat faster. He saw her staring at him with warm large eyes and a smile tugging on her lips. It was the look he had been wanting to see.
He tried his best to relax and after a few more encouraging words, he finally calmed down. With a clearer head, he could watch her better. He could watch how she furrowed her brows, curved her lips downwards, and clicked her tongue when she wasn’t satisfied with a detail then erasing it to redraw. He could watch her peek at him to accurately capture his sharp features with her pencil. And he could watch her grin triumphantly when she was happy with her drawing as she finished it.
She had the same toothy grin as how Kai remembered it.
“Ta-da!” she exclaimed as she flipped the sketchbook to show Kai the finished product.
“That’s amazing!” Kai could only gasp and shower her with praise. She got every part of his face accurately and drew it beautifully. It was like a photo taken with a camera. “It’s wonderful!”
“Thank you for your kind words.” She was flattered and couldn't take the smile off her face upon hearing his compliments on her drawing. She was very proud of it and thought it was the easiest sketch she did. The gentleman’s face seemed very familiar to her that her hand moved on its own.
“You’re really talented,” another voice chimed in. The owner of the voice seemed to be the man who appeared beside the woman and saw the sketch as well.
“You’re here!” the woman yelled, jumping to give the man a hug.
Kai’s jaw dropped and he could only watch the scene. Everything else seemed to blur and even sound was drowned out. He couldn’t hear anything and see anything else except for the woman looking overjoyed to see the man he assumed was her fiance.
Kai was dazed even as the woman looked like she was trying to say something to him, something like saying goodbye, he wasn’t sure. He didn’t know why his vampire senses were failing him for a moment and only got back when the woman said, “Thank you, sir! I have to go now, we’re in a hurry. I hope I see you again!”
“Goodbye,” Kai simply replied.
She flashed him a smile then walked away with her arm linked with her fiance.
Kai wanted to catch up to her before she left his sight again. He wanted to at least tell her his name and get hers but something was preventing him, forcing him to stay seated and watch her back slowly disappear.
Kai was extremely disappointed with himself and how things turned out. He was upset that last time, he didn’t take the clear chance of being with the mortal before she parted ways with him and he was upset that this time, he was too late and the mortal already had someone else. He knew they were soulmates but what could he do when the mortal had already found someone else to love?
After watching his soulmate be in the arms of someone who wasn’t him, he felt determined. He swore to himself that the next time they meet, in two hundred years, he’ll spend more than a day with the mortal, spending years in the mortal’s life and becoming someone special just as he should be. He knew the mortal would still die eventually but he didn’t care. He was happy with just being with his soulmate and he thought he’ll just have to wait for another two centuries again. He’s used to it.
So Kai waited for the next meeting. The next first meeting came very slowly but it still came on the last winter night of that year. The night when Kai spilled blood on his soulmate’s white shirt.
The mortal was staring at Kai with the same eyes, the same rosy lips, and the same tall nose. He still had his charming looks, very pleasant to the eyes. His voice still sounded warm and comforting even if he used it to speak harsh words.
Seeing the mortal soul again, Kai was euphoric and he smiled widely at him. He was waiting for that moment for the longest time and he was dead set on finally introducing himself.
“I’m Kai,” he said without pause, “Your name is?”