To Kill a Vampire

Chapter One~The Sharpest Lives

Gwen ran a hand through her bright red hair. Her natural black was beginning to show at the roots.

With a heavy sigh she walked out of the tiny washroom and into the living room. The familiar sound of car alarms and traffic filled the room through the open window, the noises Gwen had become so accustomed to since starting Art School a month ago.

Picking up her laptop, she plopped down onto the couch and turned it on. When the screen turned on she opened her writing document.

"Art History Assignment" it read. That was all she had so far. Not even a creative title. Nothing.

With an exasperated groan she leaned back in the couch. The assignment was to write about an area of Art History that they knew well. If only the teacher had been more specific, maybe she would be done by now. At least she still had time to work on it, but pretty soon she would have to leave to go to school; all part of the average college life.

She had one week to finish her first real assignment, and while most people have probably been working on it since the beginning of the school year, she hadn't even started.

"October 14" she wrote. That was the due date for the project. Hopefully, seeing this every night for the rest of the week would prompt her to pay attention and get started on her project. Maybe she would get extra marks if she wrote about all Art History? She sat and pondered for a moment, then an idea came to her head.

"Claude Monet once said, "It's on the strength of observation and reflection that one finds a way. So we must dig and delve unceasingly."" That didn't sound too bad. When in doubt Gwen always turned to her favourite quotes. She had millions of them memorized in her head, and they seemed to help he in every situation. She continued;

"As this quote suggests, being open in life would mean being open in art." As soon as she re-read it she immediately erased it. It sounded way too high-school level. At moments like this, Gwen always wondered why she was in Art School when she could be out learning to be a doctor or something. She was glad that she was finally here in New York though, going to one of the most prestigious Art Schools in the country.

It had taken her forever to convince her parents to let her come to New York for Art School, both of them having their own reasons for not wanting to let her go. Her mother thought Art School was a waste of time, and her dad was just superstitious. He didn't want her going anywhere near New York, but Gwen was drawn to it. The lights and crowds, even the sounds of the city intrigued her. It wasn't just that though, Gwen felt some sort of subconscious calling to this particular city. She felt like this was where she belonged.

"I need coffee." she finally thought to herself. Her assignment wasn't going anywhere anyway, so why not go out for a quick break to her favourite coffee shop? It was about 20 minutes away but she figured she could use a break. After all, she had gotten her assignment started.

Her mind racing with the thought of coffee, she grabbed her coat and left.

　

The familiar scent of coffee filled Gwen's lungs as soon as she entered the shop. It wasn't pretty crowded today, which was a relief. After ordering a large espresso Gwen took a seat on an empty barstool to wait, actually more like stare at the server as he made her coffee. Gwen was not a patient person. She eyed the plastic cup greedily as the server, a young sandy-haired boy probably in his mid-twenties, wrapped the cup in a few napkins.

"Finally," she muttered when he handed her the coffee. As soon as she had it in her hands she took a big sip, nearly spitting it all out on the man sitting beside her on a barstool. She had almost forgotten that freshly made coffee tends to be- well, hot.