Marked by the Vampire King

I was finally 21. My birthday. I should have been having fun, and I really was… mostly. The bar was loud, full of music and people shouting, laughing, and clinking glasses. I could smell the faint smoke from cigarettes mixed with alcohol and the sweet tang of cocktails. Balloons floated above us, some swaying lazily, others pressed to the ceiling by the heat of the crowd. Neon lights blinked across the walls, painting everyone in shifting colors. My friends were practically dragging me to the dance floor. I took a deep breath. This was my first birthday since leaving college, my first “real” 21st with freedom to do whatever I wanted. I felt light and dizzy with excitement, my nerves tingling with anticipation. “Selene, don’t just stand there! Come on!” Lila pushed me forward with a playful shove. I laughed, holding my sparkling drink. “Are you challenging me to dance?” “Absolutely!” she said, grinning. “We’ll see who’s the best dancer here!” I spun into the small space, arms flailing as I tried to follow the beat. We laughed, stepping on each other’s feet more than once. I almost tumbled over, but Lila caught me just in time. “Whoa! Thanks for catching me!” I said, brushing my hair out of my face. “You almost fell on your face!” Lila teased, grinning. I laughed, shaking my head. “Fine, fine… enough dancing for now. Mia, take a selfie with us!” Mia held up her phone. “We need proof that you survived turning 21!” “Okay, but no filters this time. I want them to remember the real me!” I said, laughing as we posed together. We posed for a few more selfies, pulling faces, laughing at the silly expressions we made. Lila’s hair fell in front of her face at one point, and she swatted at it, laughing so hard she almost knocked her drink over. I couldn’t stop laughing either. I looked around at my friends’ glowing faces under the neon lights, and for a moment, it felt like the world had shrunk to just us. After the selfies, we went back to our table. Lila insisted I try a new drink she had ordered for me. It was bright pink, sweet, and surprisingly strong. I coughed after the first sip. “Wow! That’s… strong,” I admitted, laughing. “Exactly! You’re 21 now. Time to start celebrating properly,” Lila said with a mischievous smile. Mia nudged me. “And no holding back. Today, we let loose!” I smiled, raising my glass. “To 21! To surviving college! And to… well, just surviving life, I guess.” We all clinked glasses and drank. The taste was sharp, but I felt a little thrill run through me, light and dizzy in a happy kind of way. For a moment, I forgot everything—the stress from work, the deadlines piling up, even the little tingle I’d felt at my chest earlier that evening. We played games, dared each other to dance in funny ways, and took more selfies. At one point, Lila even tried to balance on one leg while holding a drink in each hand, nearly falling over, and we all ended up in a heap of laughter on the floor. I was having fun. Really fun. And then… I noticed shadows flickering at the corner of my vision. Subtle, almost like movement in the crowd that shouldn’t have been there. I blinked and shook my head. Probably just the lights… or the drinks, I told myself. Still, a small shiver ran down my spine. I tried to focus on my friends again, but the shadows didn’t fully disappear. Something felt… off. My heartbeat quickened slightly, and I touched my necklace unconsciously. It hummed faintly against my chest. A strange warmth ran through me, and I couldn’t help but glance over my shoulder, half-expecting to see someone standing there. “I’m going to get some air,” I told my friends, waving. “Don’t disappear!” Mia called after me, laughing. “I’ll be right back,” I said with a smile, slipping through the crowd and walking toward the quieter end of the bar. The music here was muffled, distant. The air felt warmer and heavier, like it had a weight of its own. I rubbed my arms, trying to ignore the strange flutter in my chest. It’s nothing… just my imagination. Then I bumped into someone. Tall. Broad. Blood ran down his arm, dark against his black jacket. His brown eyes locked on mine. Sharp. Intense. My stomach flipped, and a strange, unfamiliar tension ran through me. I froze in shock. I had never seen someone bleed so much, and the sight made my chest tighten. He staggered, about to fall, and without thinking, I rushed to catch him, my hands trembling as I held a stranger’s weight. “Oh gosh! You’re b-bleeding! W-what happened? Should I call the police—” “N-no, I can handle it. J-just bring me to my room… please…” His voice was calm, steady, low, and it made me freeze, even though I wanted to run. “Your… room? I… I should call someone—” He lifted a hand slightly, silencing me with the smallest gesture. “I own this bar. No one will interfere. You’re safe. Please… trust me.” Slowly, he extended his arm, offering me his keys. I hesitated, studying him. Something about him made my heart thump fast, and I didn’t understand why. Against my better judgment, I nodded and brought him upstairs to his office. True to his words, he really was the owner of this bar. My eyes caught his name carved neatly on a small plate resting on his desk—‘Caius Mortem Veyran.’ The name itself sent a chill through me. It was strange, heavy, and unlike any I had ever heard before. “Sit,” he said, pointing at a chair. “Drawer. Get the bottle inside—” I froze, not sure if I should obey. His voice wasn’t harsh, but there was something in the way he spoke… calm, steady, almost too steady, that made my chest tighten. “I… I should call someone—” I said, my fingers brushing against my phone in my pocket. “Please, don’t. Just help me. That’s all.” His eyes locked on mine, sharp but not cruel. He looked pale, worn down, almost like a man holding himself together by sheer will. Hesitantly, I opened the drawer. Inside was a small, dark bottle. It felt cold in my hand, heavier than it looked. I placed it carefully on the table in front of him. “Turn around,” he said quietly. “Don’t look at me.” My brows furrowed, but something in his tone made me obey. Slowly, I turned my back to him, standing stiff, uncertain. Behind me, I heard the faint twist of a cap opening. Then the smell hit me. Sharp. Metallic. It clung to the air in an instant. My chest tightened, and before I could think, heat rushed through me. It spread fast, burning under my skin, until my knees nearly gave out. I gripped the chair to steady myself. My necklace tingled faintly against my chest, buzzing like it held a pulse of its own. “What… what’s that smell?” I whispered, barely finding my voice. “Medicine. For me,” he said curtly. His voice was steady, giving nothing away. “Stay still. Don’t turn around yet.” I turned slightly, still facing away, my voice shaking. “I… I think I should go.” My body didn’t feel right. My pulse was too fast, my breath uneven. Fear clawed at me, but something else, something I didn’t understand, held me there. He didn’t move. He just spoke again, calm as ever. “You helped me. I’ll give you a reward in return.” The heat inside me only grew stronger, burning through my chest and down my arms. My breath came quick and shallow. I pressed a hand to my necklace, desperate for some relief. “Can… can I turn the AC up?” I asked, my words stumbling. He moved silently, like a shadow, and adjusted it himself. “Done.” Cold air swept through the room, brushing against my skin. But it didn’t matter. The fire inside me didn’t fade. My heart hammered harder, each beat too loud, too strong. My breath caught as every nerve in my body seemed to wake at once. I finally turned to face him, and something shifted. Something I couldn’t explain. The fear was still there, but it twisted into something else, something that pulled me closer against my will. The tension finally snapped. A glance too long, a touch that lingered, the heat that refused to let go, it all rushed together, too much to fight, leading me somewhere wild and unexpected. When the sun finally broke through the curtains, I was trembling, drained, and shaking all over. Panic drove me to my feet. I grabbed my things and bolted, leaving my necklace behind on the floor without realizing it. My chest still burned. My pulse was wild. The room was quiet, except for the soft hum of the AC. I left without looking back. I stumbled into the empty streets, my thoughts spinning, my legs heavy as if they didn’t belong to me. My palms were damp, my chest still on fire. Who was he? Why did my body remember him like that? It was something that I’ve never felt before. Somehow, deep down, I already knew. I would see him again.