Chapter Text
Kairo was getting used to blending into human society.
Although her skin was paler than the normal, and when some kind coworkers invited her out to eat, she never ate a thing, she always had some sort of clever excuse at the tip of her tongue. Whenever someone asked why she would never eat fish, she would just say she was deadly allergic. When someone asked why she was so pale, she would say she didn’t go outside much. It was a perfect decoy.
She hadn’t heard anything from the army or her mother, which was good. At least the war was finished long ago.
They were sat on the couch, watching some crappy tv show with some popcorn… covered in blood instead of butter. Animal blood though. The salty popcorn definitely helped with the overly sweet taste.
Kairo was getting extremely bored watching the same girl and guy break up and fall in love again. First of all, it isn’t healthy to do that in real life, and second, staying inside all day wasn’t good for anyone, not even a vampire. Despite drinking blood most of the time, vampires still need exercise.
Sighing, she got up from the couch and walked to her bedroom. It was just her, living in a medium sized apartment with a couple rooms, though they were unoccupied. It was the best financial decision, as she had found some shabby office job that paid just enough to keep her alive and in good condition. It’s not like she could die anyway.
Out of her wardrobe, she pulled out a fancy dark red shirt with some silver accents and some black pants with silver chains. They debated if they should wear their cape, but it was best to not draw attention to herself, so she grabbed a black sweater.
Next stop was the restroom. As she walked out her bedroom, she took her favorite red and black bow off the wall. Once in the restroom, she clipped it perfectly into her hair, the red lace contrasting with her black rockstar-looking haircut. She then grabbed her red, black, and white headdress from where it was left by the sink and slid it on her head.
They shut the door behind them as she exits her apartment. Most of her skin was covered from the sun, but despite popular belief, vampires don’t vanish in the sun. They just become slightly weaker.
As they walked across the town square, she got a few stares from some people, but not very many. Most people were regulars and had seen her before. One person happened to be one of her coworkers, Eric, who was sitting at an outside table, most likely waiting for some lunch from the restaurant he was outside of.
”Hi Kairo!!!” Eric exclaimed, noticing Kairo. “Whatcha doing today?”
”Oh, hello Eric. Nothing much, just walking out into the park.” Kairo answered calmly. It’s not that she didn’t like Eric, she just couldn’t bring herself to match his energy.
“As usual. Hey, by the way, did I ever formally invite you to my wedding?” Eric questioned, fixing his black-framed glasses that had fallen down his nose ever so slightly.
Kairo shook her head as she sat down. They knew he was engaged to a woman.. Jenny? Jessica??
”Oh, I’m sorry!! Jill and I are getting married on the 21st!! Can you make it?” Eric asked, clasping his hands together hopefully. “We’ll be having a barbecue and a chocolate cake!!”
“Ah, right, Jill. She seemed like a nice lady.” Kairo noted to herself.
“No, sorry. I took a day off and the boss said I had to make it up.” Kairo told him, which was partially true. She had taken a day off, but she could choose the day to make it up.
“Awhh… Well, that’s okay! You need to keep up your decent living conditions! For someone who just showed up one day, you’re doing pretty good!!” Eric says, looking a little disappointed.
“You should be the one working hard before you spend your fortune on your wife!” Kairo responds jokingly, earning a squawk-like sound from Eric.
”Hey!! When you find the perfect woman one day, you’ll understand!!” Eric tells her proudly. Kairo scoffed disbelievingly.
A woman with black hair and red highlights walks out the restaurant, holding a tray of food. Eric waves to her.
”Jill!! Come say hi to my coworker!!” Eric yelps.
Jill comes and sits down next to Eric. “Hello. Eric has talked quite fondly of you. Kairo, I assume?” Jill says, kindly starting a conversation. Kairo nods.
Jill smiles kindly. “You always seemed like an honest soul. Talking with you is always a pleasure.”
“Jill, dear, stop flustering the young lady!” Eric whisper-yells to Jill. Jill giggles and messes up a bit of Eric’s neatly-combed blonde hair.
“Young? I’m older than both of you!” Kairo thought to herself.
“I’ll leave you two to enjoy your little date and continue with my walk.” Kairo states, standing up from her chair.
“It was nice talking to you, Kairo!” Eric exclaimed as Kairo walked away towards the town park.
Kairo walked calmly through the whispering trees, occasionally sitting down on one of the many benches scattered around the park.
On one of these breaks, Kairo was sitting under a tree, enjoying the shade, when suddenly, she heard a small cough above them, causing a rustle in the branches above them. Kairo tensed, remembering the last time someone caught her by surprise.
“Who was that?” Kairo questioned, her voice tense as she looked up.
The branches rustled once more.
A person skillfully and gracefully climbed down the tree, landing behind the bench Kairo was sitting on.
The person sighed. “It was about time somebody noticed me.” They told Kairo, who was still a little shocked.
Kairo eventually finds the words to speak. “Well, ah, what are you even doing in that tree?”
“It’s my current home. I’ve been trying to find a place to stay, away from everything, but I've had no such luck.” They responded casually, as if they weren’t starving and looked like they hadn’t eaten in weeks.
‘Wow, I really did get lucky..’ Kairo thinks to herself. “Well… My apartment has a spare room. Maybe… you could stay there for a while?” Kairo tells the stranger, fidgeting nervously with her hands. She wasn’t sure if this was a good idea, but it was better to be kind so no one could suspect your intentions.
The stranger chuckles. “I’d hate to be a bother, but you offered so kindly so I might as well accept your offer.” The stranger replies thoughtfully.
Kairo smiles. “Oh, don't worry! You won't be an inconvenience.” She reassures them. “By the way, what's your name? I want to get to know you, mysterious tree person.”
“My name is Soo-Yun.”