The Donor to a Vampire (Donor #1)

Chapter 24: Afterglow

The ride back to the Camaraderie was done in enjoyable silence, our hands clasped the entire way. Words weren't needed since they would break the lull of calmness that set over Ly and me; it would be a disturbance of intimacy that ruled this moment. Not even the radio played as we drove away from the magical meadow, with Tom watching the back of the car. The fox observed the vehicle as it moved away, then turned, becoming one with the woodland nightlife as his fur disappeared in the forest undergrowth. The noise of gravel under tyres was invading my hearing, along with occasional bumps here and there rocking my frame.

The car's interior was dark, with the exception of the neon shine of the dashboard. It illuminated slightly the otherwise dark night. It didn't stop me from eyeing the driver. Ly was shirtless, and the olive skin of his torso glistened, repeatedly taking my breath away. Tugging at Ly's too-big shirt, I adjusted the fabric for the tenth time as it slid from my shoulder, revealing the freshly healed pink skin. The bite was nowhere in sight. But Lys' damn pectorals were, and he wasn't helping me when he flexed them as he shifted gear. With the windows down, the straight white strands flew around in such a way that he would be the envy of all the commercial hair models.

A bloody tease that is what Ly is, testing my ability to keep my hands to myself.

I fixed my gaze out the window, trying to keep my mind off the extracurricular physical activities. While holding Lys' now warm hand, I wanted to squeal like an overly hormonal teenage fangirl who had just learned about a favourite BoyBand gossip.

Squeezing my hand slightly, I turned to find Ly watching me from the corner of his eyes with a question rising in them like a tide. "What is the name of the song you keep on humming?" h

Surprised at the inquiry, I replied without hesitation. "Was I humming?"

Ly lifted our clasped palms to kiss mine, nodding with a slight smile. "You have since we left the meadow."

"Really?" Fluttering my eyelashes in confusion, I turned toward Ly while my mind was analysing what I was unconsciously humming. "I–I don't know the name of the song actually. My mom had always sung it when my grandpapa was still alive. It was their song, you see. I heard it last at the Grandpapas' funeral when I was six, I think? Since then, I haven't heard it, and I don't remember the words, just a small part of the melody." Shrugging my shoulders in defeat, I was agitated that my memory was too young at the time to remember something that would be so important to me now. "It bugs me all the time that I can't recall. Especially since Jeremy keeps asking me why I hum."

It was a constant itch at the back of my brain that I couldn't scratch in the right place to stop it from nagging me. It was an essential connection to my mother and the kind elderly gentleman who always smelled of pipe tobacco when I sat on his lap, pressing my ear to his chest. At the same time, they repeatedly listened to the record and sang to it.

"Were they close?" Ly prompted me to speak when I fell silent, lost in my own head and memories. "Your mother and her father, I mean?"

"Yes, very. Mom was an only child, and Grandpapa was in his mid-forties when she was born. Grandmamma died of kidney failure soon after Mom's second birthday, and that bonded them even more. I suppose hers was an idyllic relationship that a daughter could have with a father." Grumbling, I added with a sarcastic tone. "Not that I can relate."

Ly gave my hand a squeeze before letting it go to shift gears. "Your mother sounds like a lovely person."

"She was." I fixed my eyes on the landscape outside, resisting the surge of emotions that threatened to overcome me.

"I sense a but," Ly prodded.

"But," I sighed. "She was a little too kind and warm to everyone, even if the person didn't deserve it. Mom was loving, a true innocent; therefore, she was duped and cheated so many times. Nevertheless, she still let it slide. 'You never know what the other person is going through,' that was her excuse for the misdeeds and transgressions of others." I could hear Mom's voice echoing in my mind. Being older now, I saw her not as infallible but as a human being who should care more for her children and not for every single being who crossed her path on this Earth. That was the reason for most of our financial troubles. Mom gave away everything to the less fortunate instead of being a more responsible adult. Yes, it was kind, but being just steps away from poverty ourselves was not the best decision." Looking back on it now, she was horribly naivë. Mom saw the world as a kind place that would sort its way out if you were good. Grandpapa sheltered her too much, not allowing Mom to recognise bad people."