Maybe Just A Bite

001

            Knox trudged along the sidewalk, feeling dead on his feet as he returned to his apartment. The sky was still inky, though it was beginning to lighten, promising that the sun was going to rise soon. There weren't many people out, a few cars driving past, more sleepy-eyed individuals on their way to work. Otherwise, the streets were empty, and he was grateful he'd just clocked out. It felt quiet and peaceful, the promise of his bed beckoning him after such a long night. When he'd taken the job as a night clerk at a convenience store, he hadn't anticipated how much his body would protest being awake all night. It paid decently though, and it gave him a chance to study as the store was empty most of the time.

He was nearly to his apartment, passing an alleyway when something made him pause. A strange feeling washed over him, making him turn toward the alley and peer into it. It was nearly too dark to see past the streetlamp, and he could just make out a few broken chairs from the restaurant in the accompanying building, an overflowing dumpster. Nothing out of the ordinary, really, but a small whimper had him stepping past the sidewalk and into the darkness.

Looking back on it, that probably wasn't the best move. Knox knew about the creatures that lurked in the night, the ones who would love nothing more than to catch a vulnerable human off guard. Still, he crept forward, holding his breath so that he didn't breathe in the stench of trash. There, on the other side of the dumpster was a figure. The person was curled up against the brick wall, arms wrapped their legs and face buried in their knees.

"Hey." He said to get their attention. The figure looked up, and the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. Their eyes were glowing red.

The person, no vampire he supposed, was pale even in the dark, fangs dropped and digging into their lower lip. He felt frozen for a moment under the hungry gaze of a natural predator, until their head fell back onto their knees with a groan. They mumbled something, too low for him to understand.

The vampire clearly doesn't want to hurt him, giving him an out to what could possibly be a dangerous situation. Most people would turn tail and get the hell out of there, but most people didn't know that vampires even truly existed. Knox doesn't have an explanation for what he does next.

"The sun's coming up soon. My apartment isn't far." He said, stepping tentatively toward the vampire.

The vampire flinched back against the brick, "Stay... stay away. You don't want to do this." Their voice is hoarse and slurred from the awkward way their fangs sit in their mouth.

"You'll die if I leave you here."

"You might die if I go with you."

"I have faith," He argued with more confidence than he actually felt. He took the vampire's hands then, which were unpleasantly cold, and pulled them up. They stood only barely, bodily leaning against him as if even being upright was too difficult.

"You're so warm," they breathed, leaning in closer, "you smell good too."

"Don't start getting any funny ideas," He huffed, deciding not to focus on how the vampire is looking at him like he's a particularly juicy piece of steak. Instead, he pulled them toward his apartment, which is only a few buildings away. They reach it in no time, and he unlocked the door just as the sun is breaching the horizon. He has to invite the vampire in properly, which is probably the worst idea he's ever had, but it's too late and now a very hungry looking vampire has access to his home.

"My name is Knox, by the way." He moved to close the curtains in the living room, hoping that the sheer things will protect the vampire from the sunlight. If not, he supposed that he could always just stick them in the bathroom or something. He glanced back to the vampire, finding them curled up again where he'd dropped them on his tiny couch. Their eyes are pinched shut, breathing ragged even though he was pretty sure vampires didn't need to breathe, and he almost felt bad. "Uh, is there anything I can do to help?"