“Why won’t you just let me die?” She begged her captors. She heard them laugh as they lowered a box next to her. She stared at it in anger. She snickered. They never really stopped humiliating her. She balled her fist. “I’d rather die!” she said.

       YURI woke up. His brows were sweaty and his heart was drumming inside his chest. “Shizuka…”

       KEITO stared at the sleeping body of the girl in the immaculately clean bed. The streaks of tears that fell in her cheeks were long dried but the loneliness was evident. He sighed. The girl had taken a fondness on him. He was sure of that for he was the only one whom she can talk without stuttering or being frightened. He didn’t know if he’ll be happy about it or not.

       He found her quite intriguing. She was a little miss. That was what they know about her but nothing else.

       He sighed. He held Shizuka’s knife in his hand. He walked out and stopped at the porch. He felt the summer air. It was humid yet he didn’t care. He stared at the knife in his hand. The silver coating was as shiny as ever. “Where could your owner be?” He asked the inanimate thing. “What could have happened to her?” Eyes b with tears, heart aching, Keito held the knife tightly, too tight that the handle pricked him. He stared as a small pool of blood started to ease out of the wound.

       “You shouldn’t let you blood ooze at these kind of places.”

       Keito almost jumped in shock at the voice. He was so deep in thought that he didn’t realize Yuto at his back. “Stop sneaking on people like that!” He scolded his best friend.

       It had been a while before he started talking to his best friend again. Albeit the hatred he felt for the vampire that Yuto brought back, he couldn’t stay angry with his best friend.

       “You could have been killed being out of this world like that.” Yuto commented.

       “I know.”

       “You’re thinking about her again. Aren’t you?”

       Keito just gripped the knife tighter causing his open wound to bleed even more. His blood touched the knife’s handle and resting there. “Her parents died from this knife.”

       Yuto nodded though Keito couldn’t see it. “What do you want to do?”

       Keito didn’t say anything.

       “Though we are not even sure if…”

       “DON’T YOU DARE SAY THAT!” Keito exclaimed angrily.

       Yuto sighed. “I know. I’m sorry.”

       They stayed there in silence after a while before they heard hurried steps going to their way.

       They saw Sandhie going their way. She huffed. “Keito!” She exclaimed quite angrily. “I give up! That girl is too stubborn. She wouldn’t eat the food that I brought her. She even spilled it. I brought one again and she just ignored me.”

       Keito looked at her in confusion.

       “That little miss you brought here, she’s a brat.” She said and shoved the tray of food to him. “You do it. She seems nice to you, by the way.” She said and walked away. “And one more thing, I don’t like her!” she exclaimed.

       Yuto looked at his best friend and shrugged.

       “I better bring this to her first.”

       Yuto nodded. “And try to ask her name, while you are at it.”

       Keito smiled though it didn’t reach his eyes.

       SHE HEARD STEPS on the stone pavement of her cell. She knew what they want from her. It was either to torture her or bring her another bloody flask, no pun intended.

       She cringed on the corner of her cell. Her tears had already dried in her eyes. She was also too weak to even shed one. Her hungry stomach just won’t stop grumbling. She didn’t dare open her eyes. She was too afraid that this time, she would really lost consciousness. She didn’t want to give them the satisfaction. Not yet. It would be better to die than to lost consciousness because they kept on torturing and starving her.

       She felt a flask in her side. The stench of blood filled her nostrils.

       She her dry lips. How many days had she been there? She had no idea anymore. It felt like a lifetime to her.

       She felt the steps stopped in front of the makeshift door on the roof of her jail. It opened slowly.

       “Hey…” she heard a whisper.

       She tried to open her eyes slowly to look at the owner of the voice.

       She saw an empty rope lowered. She smirked. What do they want now? She found it amusing despite her weak state, her vampire pride dawning into her.

       “Tie the rope to yourself.”

       She heard him whisper.

       She tried to her head on the side, in effect of confusion.

       “Hurry before they come back! We don’t have much time.” He said. “I’m sneaking you out of this place.”

       She was more confused now.

       “Go!”

       She then took the rope. She used all the strength left in her to tie it tightly on her waist. The guy hoisted her up. She was like a sack of cotton now.

       When she was already outside, he let her sit properly before bringing another flask.

       She eyed it warily as he opened it and brought it near her lips. “I won’t drink that.” She said in raspy voice.

       “Don’t worry, this is just water.” He said silently.

       She sniffed it and realized that it had no blood smell. She took a sip and felt thirstier thus she almost drowned herself in it.

       When she stopped, he asked. “Are you okay now?”

       She nodded.

       “It’s time. Let’s go.” He said. He brought out a silver knife and handed it to her. “Hold this. Stab any vampire that will appear in our way.”

       She took it from him and nodded. He lowered himself so she could jump into his back. She looked at him uneasily.

       He nodded and smiled at her. It felt heartwarming. She felt that it was the first real smile that she saw after she was held captive and she was thankful for it.

       She held on his neck as she pulled herself in his back. He held her in place with one hand while he grabbed a silver sword with another.

       They ran towards a tunnel-like extension. So it was the only passage towards her prison. She closed her eyes as they ran on a corridor. The corridor was dark but the man carrying her didn’t have any problems. Any vampire would also be comfortable in the dark. She knew that.

       The guy stopped at the end of a corridor. They held their breath. “Somebody is coming.” He whispered. “Get ready!”

       She held the knife tightly. The footsteps rounded the corner. A vampire stopped in front of them in shock. The guy carrying her smirked. He then stabbed the vampire with his silver sword. The vampire shattered into dust before totally vanishing out of the thin air.

       They ran up some plight of stairs. “The real battle starts now. Ready?” he asked her.

       She nodded at his back.

       They turned the corner. She blinked her eyes as dim lights shocked her. How many days haven’t she seen any light? She wondered.

       The vampire guards sensed their presence. They looked at them but the vampire carrying her was faster than anybody. He slashed at three altogether.

       The commotion must have been heard upstairs as a vampire checked on what was happening underneath. The vampire stopped on his tracks as he saw his brothers turned to dust.

       “A traitor!” he shouted and ran away.

       The vampire carrying her ran in pursuit but was slowed down due to her weight.

       The other vampire came back followed by several others. They ran towards them while baring their sharp pangs.

       The captive and her savior readied themselves, aiming to take down as many of the vampires as possible.

       She grasped the knife in her trembling hand while they ran towards the vampires who were attacking them. When was the last time she did this? It was the time that she was held captive. She poured all those days of anger to those vampires. She slashed here and there. It was probably the adrenalin that was surging in her veins that let her become a killing machine just like before.

       He was not bad himself. Despite carrying her in his back, he was able to take down five to seven vampires.

       They went directly to the door after the encounter. It led to a large pavilion. There were several tables lined up evenly on all corners of the room. Each were decorated with adorning black and red table cloth.

       “We have to be quick before they come back from the hunting.”

       “Hunting?” she asked.

       “I’ll tell you next time.”

       They ran towards another door. They didn’t meet any vampires at this part of the mansion. The guy really seemed to know his way around it.

       “The vampires are probably on the front and back door so we have to go out of the window near the kitchen but there are still guards roaming around so we have to get past through them.” He said more to himself than to her.

       They arrived in a large kitchen. It was empty just like how he predicted. “We have to go out of that window.” He said pointing at the large window near the sink.

       He put her on the counter before hopping on it. He pried open the large window and peeked at it. He saw no guards roaming near it. He took her hand. “Ready?”

       “Uhm!” she said nodding her head.

       He held her as she lowered herself on the ground from the window. Thankfully, the ground was just a floor high.

       He landed next to her. When he was about to let her hop on her back, she stopped him. “I can walk properly now.” She said.

       He smiled at her and held her hand on him.

       They were running away from the castle when they spotted a guard. They sneaked at him and slashed him until he was one with the wind.

       That was before he cringed in pain. She stared at him in shock before turning at the vampire who stabbed him at the back. The vampire smirked at her.

       She looked at him angrily before grasping her knife and storming at him. She tried to stab him but he was too quick for her human state.

       The vampire captured her wrist. “You’re brave, human!” he said laughing at her. She staggered from his hold but he wouldn’t let her go. She was shaking away from him when he let go violently causing her to fall on the ground. He slowly shattered and turned into dust.

       On the vampire’s place was her savior with his sword drawn. He was in pain. She ran to his aid. He was holding the wound near his left ribs.

       “You are losing blood.” She commented in fear. “We have to get out of here.”

       She helped him on his feet before allowing him to put one arm around her neck.

       SHIZUKA opened her eyes. She blinked as the dim light touched her eyesight.

"How do you feel?" she heard a voice asked. Her heartbeat quicken. She knew that voice by heart but she was afraid. She was afraid that her imagination was playing on her again.

"Shizuka?"

She bravely turned her eyes towards the voice. "Keito?" she asked.

A smile lined his lips.

The tears that she thought had dried fell from her eyes. She hated herself. Why does her pride crumble whenever she is near him?

"Hey! Don't cry..." Keito said. He sat next to her. He cradled her head in his chest. "I heard what happened to you." He whispered on her ear. "I regret not being with you."

Shizuka looked at him. She saw the pain in his eyes. "I'm sorry..." He said.

She shook her head.

Keito's tears fell down. "I should have been there. I should have been the one who was tortured."