A young lady in her mid twenties could be seen sitting quietly on the bench. From the way she has been checking her wristwatch occasionally, one could tell that she was waiting for someone.
And of course she was. Her boyfriend. He was supposed to be here by now, but he was nowhere in sight. She has been waiting for him for over four hours, but he hasn't arrived.
She wanted to leave, but she couldn't. She just had a feeling that he would come, and thus she sat patiently waiting for him to come, even though it's been almost four hours.
Malachi arrived at 7 PM, four hours late for his date night with Sabrina. He wasn't expecting to still see her here. He had expected her to be gone by the time he arrived, frustrated and furious. Instead, she sat quietly on a bench, patiently waiting for him, her golden hair glistening in the white street lights. 'Such a gentle woman' he thought as he watched her intently.
As he approached, the scent of freshly cut grass and blooming flowers filled his nostrils. Sabrina's gaze lifted when she heard gentle, almost unheard footsteps approaching her, her piercing blue eyes narrowing in disbelief at her boyfriend's time of arrival. Malachi's heart sank, anticipating her wrath.
"Sabrina, I—" Malachi started, ready to apologize to her.
"You are four hours late, Malachi," she interrupted, her voice laced with annoyance, one she didn't try to hide. "I thought you'd stood me up. Four hours is a long time to keep me waiting. I should have gone home, but I just stayed here, waiting for you to show up."
Malachi's eyes locked onto hers, his apology genuine. "Work kept me. I'm so sorry my love"
Sabrina's expression softened, the annoyance disappeared as fast as it came, as she rose from the bench, her slender figure unfolding like a blooming sunflower. "You're always working late, Alexander. Don't you think you should take a break less you look older than your age," she teased, her lips curling into a forgiving smile.
A breath of sigh escaped Malachi's lips. He didn't expect her to forgive him easily. Before coming here, he had prepared himself for her wrath, but what she was showing him was nothing compared to what he had prepared himself for. He closed the gap between them and wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug.
As they hugged, Malachi's senses came alive. The warmth of her skin, the gentle pressure of her arms, and the sweet fragrance of her lavender perfume enveloped him. He buried his face in her hair, inhaling deeply.
"I've missed you, Alex," She whispered in his ears. The last time they met was two days ago and it has been really hard for him to stay away from her during that period even though it was just two days. Two days felt like eternity for him. Malachi could swear that it was the longest two days of his life.
It was the same thing for Sabrina. She had missed him so much that last night she cried herself to sleep and when she came out here to meet him and realized that he wasn't here, she was sad and wanted to leave, but something kept telling her to wait for him, that he would show up. She was glad that he really did show up. If he hadn't showed up, she would have been hurt beyond words. She would have thought that he didn't care about her the way she did for him.
"So shall we?" Malachi flashed her a boyish grin as he took her small hands into his large ones. He gave it a gentle squeeze and brought it to his lips, giving it a soft kiss.
Sabrina nodded her ginger hair frantically as she began to walk with Malachi. She has missed this - their quiet moments at times like this.
Their stroll through the park was filled with laughter and conversation. Sabrina shared stories of her family's latest exploits, her eyes sparkling with pride and happiness. Malachi listened intently, his mind racing with the secrets he kept hidden. He was a vampire and she didn't know about it. If she knew, then he is better off dead. So it was better it remained that way. Although, how long will he keep hiding the secrets from her? Two months? One year? Or how long? That he had no idea about, but one thing was for sure. He wouldn't ever let her know about his secrets.
"...and then we were able to capture a vampire who was trying to feed from one of the people. I didn't hesitate to pull the trigger," Sabrina concluded, her voice matter-of-fact. She was very happy about it. She was pleased with herself for killing a vampire. That thought didn't get past Malachi.
His heart skipped a beat. Vampire hunters. Her family. Her family were vampire hunters. His existence would be a death sentence if ever she or any of her family members came to know about his real identity.
"Sabrina, you're incredible," he said, forcing his enthusiasm. Even though he wasn't pleased with the thought of her killing the vampire she was talking about, he didn't fail to express his enthusiasm. Anything for her after all.
But his thoughts strayed. He recalled the potion he'd obtained from his witch friend, Chase, to mask his vampiric scent whenever he was coming down to land of the humans.
Sabrina's family were notorious for their ruthlessness, owning all the possible torture tools for killing vampires; they wouldn't hesitate to kill him as soon as they caught his scent. He knows that Sabrina too wouldn't hesitate to, whether she loves him or not. It was her duty to kill any vampire in sight.
As they walked, the moon rose overhead, casting long shadows across the park. Sabrina's gaze lingered on Malachi's face, concern clearly written all over her face. She noticed that he looked a bit distant today. And that was really unusual for him.
"Hey, what's bothering you? Are you okay?" she asked, her voice soft, laced with genuine concern for him, the man she loves.
"What do you mean, love?" Malachi asked, feigning confusion at her question even though he knew what she was hinting at.
"You seem a bit off today. Coupled with the fact that you have been zoning out occasionally. Is there anything bothering you? Something you would like to share with me?". She inquired from him, as she stared at him with hope in her eyes.
No! He can't tell her what he was thinking about. He can't tell her about his identity. If not right here and now, she won't hesitate to kill him with a silver blade if she happens to have anyone with her. Malachi's mask slipped, and he quickly recovered.
"Work. Just stress." He lied. "You know how stressful it is." He added. He hates that he was lying to her, but he can't help it. It's for the best.
Sabrina's eyes narrowed, blatantly telling him that she didn't believe him, but she didn't press further for more words. Instead, she wrapped her arm around his waist, offering silent comfort.
"I'm sorry, darling. I think we both need to agree that this is your call to rest. Don't stress yourself out. You of all people should know the things stress does to the body. You are a doctor after all," She said, a look of amusement dangling in her eyes and Malachi just chuckled lightly.
He lied to her about being a medical doctor too. The reason he lied to her about it is because he wants a valid point to always hold his late coming to.
He couldn't come out during the day to meet her, for fear of getting burnt in the sun. Therefore, he always waits until the sun goes down. Mostly around six or seven, before going to meet her. And whenever they met, he always lied to her that he was caught up with work, whereas he wasn't. That was the only valid reason for his late coming that he could come up with and like the naive little girl that she was, she always believes him.
"I'll think about it," He winked at her and she rolled her eyes as she chuckled at his arrogance.
As the night deepened, Sabrina checked her watch. "Uhm, Alex, as much as I'm enjoying our date night, I'm afraid that I'll have to head home. My father will be home anytime soon and if he comes back and doesn't see me in my room, trust me, I'll get into trouble."
"He isn't back by this time?" He asked her, but she shook her head.
"My grandfather called for a meeting earlier about creating new equipment that will help to keep vampires away. You know how those beasts are. I must say they keep getting stronger and stronger everyday." She replied.
Malachi's anxiety spiked. He knew her family's reputation, their hatred for vampires. Up till date, he still couldn't tell why her family chose to become vampire hunters. There were many other occupations that they could have taken as a family business. "It didn't have to be vampire hunting for heaven's sake." He thought.
After a final hug, Sabrina departed, but she didn't know that Malachi was following her discreetly. He shadowed her, ensuring her safe passage through the darkness until she got home. Funny how he was going after her because he wanted to protect her from other vampires that might want to hurt her.
For someone like her who derives pleasure from killing vampires, she will be the target of other vampires and they wouldn't hesitate to kill her immediately they sights her.
As she entered her family's estate, Malachi exhaled, relief washing over him. He watched the gates close behind her, his heart heavy with secrets.
In the silence, Malachi's thoughts turned to Chase's promise: a solution to make him human. He yearned to shed his vampiric skin, to be with Sabrina without fear of discovery. To be with her forever, without having to be afraid of anything.
The moon cast a silvery glow over the deserted streets as Malachi vanished into the night, his heart torn between his love for Sabrina and his need to change into a human.