My boyfriend is a Vampire

Lana woke up early the next morning, opened her window, and stared down at the street, looking for Peter. But there was no sign of him. What had she expected? That he would wait all night on the sidewalk just to see her in the morning? She had snuck into her room at the dead of night, climbing up the pipeline, and yet, here she was wondering what was going through his mind. She barely knew him. But she couldn't help wanting to know why he had come.

She grabbed her blue crop top with a pink whale design and a pair of jeans before heading to the bathroom, towel in hand. After getting dressed, she lit the candles in her room. She preferred candlelight to overhead lights, a habit she indulged only when she got a feeling out of nowhere. Her collection of scented candles filled the room with a warm glow. In the flickering light, her reflection in the mirror looked almost aesthetic, like something straight out of a Lana Del Rey song.

When she reached college, she found herself looking for Peter. She checked his classroom and the canteen, but he was nowhere to be found. She even asked a few girls who were obsessed with him, but they hadn't seen him either. Finally, she spotted him under the maple tree where they had first met, engrossed in an old, worn diary.

She waved, but he ignored her. Undeterred, she walked over to him. He was dressed entirely in black—leather jacket, t-shirt, and boots.

"Hey," she greeted, sitting down on the grass beside him. He turned the pages of his diary, pretending she wasn't there.

Frustrated, she snatched the diary from his hands. Still, he said nothing, his gaze drifting upward to the blue sky where a few crows circled lazily.

"Are you ignoring me?" she demanded. He didn't even look at her.

She hit his shoulder lightly with the diary. "Talk to me!"

"No, I'm not talking to you. Go away," he replied, his voice cold and clipped. He was clearly upset—or maybe he was testing her, seeing how far she would go to get his attention. Either way, it annoyed her.

"You don't just enter a girl's bedroom in the dead of night," she said, trying to clear the air.

That made him look at her, his eyes piercing, as though staring directly into her soul. A chill ran through her.

"What?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly.

He chuckled, clearly enjoying her discomfort. Of course, he liked to scare people.

"Okay, sorry," he said finally. "But I came with good intentions, bro."

The casual "bro" stung, and he knew it. She could see the faint smirk he tried to hide, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of reacting.

"Why did you come yesterday?" she asked, her frustration evident.

"To ask you something. But I don't think you're the kind of girl who'd go to a party at night… Still, you're the only person I know, so I thought…" He trailed off, his tone indifferent.

"What?" she exclaimed, incredulous. "You came to ask me to go with you? Like that? That's how you invite someone? It felt like you were inviting me to commit a crime or something!"

Now she felt satisfied as his expression turned sour.

"You're the only person I know here," he explained. "And this girl… Tyra? No, Tiana? Something like that invited me to a party, and I didn't want to go alone."

Lana's shoulders relaxed. It was clear he wasn't interested in Tyla. She couldn't even remember the her name.

"Well, I wouldn't have come if you invited me like that," she muttered, looking down at the grass.

The bell rang, breaking the tension.

"Thought so. I have to go. Class," he said, gesturing toward the college building. He stood up and began to walk away.

"Did you…?" she called out hesitantly.

He stopped and turned to look at her. "What?"

She opened her mouth but wasn't sure what to say.

He chuckled. "No, I didn't go to the party."

Relief washed over her. He waved briefly before jogging toward the class.

When Lana reached the classroom, Tyla was sitting there with a boy, so she chose to sit at another desk. Two best friends in the same room, clearly ignoring each other. Their classmates kept glancing at both of them, whispering behind their backs. Lana opened her book and began reading. Nowadays, whatever she read reminded her of Peter and his blue eyes. She wished she could drown in his eyes forever. Tyla stared at her at random intervals, giving her cold looks whenever the professor was teaching. Lana ignored her. She wanted to solve the issue, but her ego wouldn't let her.

Later, as she walked through the corridor, she saw Peter talking to Professor John, an old history teacher who was never particularly friendly with her or her classmates. Peter was new. They hardly knew each other, yet they were talking like old friends reunited after years. How was Peter so charming and attractive with everyone? He was, in every sense, incredible. His dressing, his walk, the way he talked, the way he ran his hand through his hair—everything about him was perfect. She hoped he had a good heart too.

That day, Lana reached home early and saw Gloria watering the front garden by the gate.

"You're home early today, darling. Can you change your clothes and finish watering? I need to check some papers," Gloria said casually, dropping the hose and heading into the house.

"Seriously?" Lana muttered under her breath. She went inside to freshen up.

As she sat on her bed, a notification lit up her phone. It was Peter's Instagram story. Her heart skipped a beat, and she blushed as she opened it, only to see Tyla and Peter eating ice cream together. They looked cute, sitting side by side. He was with her. A wave of sadness washed over Lana—anger, loneliness, and insecurity creeping in. Tyla looked stunning in her black mini dress and cute pookie hairstyle. They seemed perfect together. It was Tyla's post, and Peter had simply reshared it. Tears welled up in Lana's eyes.

Suddenly, she smelled smoke. Turning around, she saw the other side of her bedsheet on fire.

"Ahh! Mama!" she screamed, grabbing a large water bottle and dousing the flames. Gloria came running at the sound of her panic.

"What happened?" Gloria asked, alarmed. She rushed to get the fire extinguisher from the downstairs storeroom. Together, they managed to put out the fire.

Both sat on the floor, breathing heavily.

"What happened?" Gloria's eyes were teary as she hugged Lana, who hugged her back tightly. Gloria couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to her daughter.

"I'm okay, Mom," Lana reassured her, trying to calm her down. "But how did the fire start?"

Gloria's expression turned serious. "Explain…"

"I was just sitting here, and it… happened," Lana said, still confused.

"Were you… angry? Or feeling something strongly?" Gloria asked, her tone cautious.

"What?" Lana raised her eyebrows, staring at her mother like she was crazy.

"Were you experiencing heightened emotions?" Gloria pressed.

"Well… maybe. But what does that have to do with this?" Lana asked, bewildered.

Gloria stood up, avoiding the question, and walked to the door. "Don't forget to water the plants," she said casually, as if nothing had happened just minutes ago.

Lana sat there, confused and lost in thought.

Later, after getting freshened up, she went out to water the plants in the late evening, her mind still preoccupied with the fire and her mother's strange reaction.