Merlot Over Blood

It was fall of 2031. Humans lived in a world where they can coexist with vampires and werewolves. The appearance of a vampire included pale skin and bright red eyes in addition to sharp, one-inch fangs. A werewolf would have a widow’s peak and bright yellow eyes. Anger would transform them into full werewolf mode with fuller and thicker body hair and large pointy teeth. All species had to follow a law that said that one shall not attack nor kill another specie unless it was out of self-defense.

At Georgio’s Bistro, a vampire-owned Italian restaurant in South Philadelphia, a bald vampire named Drake Vladowski was sitting alone at a table. He appeared in his late thirties, but he was actually over 200 years old. He had slight facial hair. He was well-dressed in black and red formal attire. The only things on the table were napkins, utensils, and an unknown dark red beverage in a wine glass in front of him. He appeared to be very relaxed as he was patiently waiting for his date.

Suddenly, a woman in her late twenties quickly approached the handsome vampire. She had jet black hair down to her shoulders, brown eyes, and smooth mulatto skin. Her long, red dress was a floral summer dress. Her name was Olivia Teal. She appeared nervous when she looked at him. “Drake?”

Drake quickly turned to her with a friendly smile. He stood up as his smile got bigger and his fangs were showing. “Hi Olivia.”

“I’m sorry for being late.”

“It’s fine.”

Olivia put her right hand out to initiate a handshake. “It’s nice to meet you finally.”

Drake gently took her hand and surprised her with a sweet kiss on the back of it. “The pleasure is all mine.”

Olivia blushed. “Very charming.” She carefully sat down across from Drake.

After Drake waited for her to sit, he lowered himself into his chair while making heavy eye contact with her. “You are even more beautiful in person.”

Olivia blushed again. “Thanks. I’m sure you say that to all the girls.”

“Okay, maybe a few,” Drake jokingly commented.

Olivia giggled. She fidgeted with her fingers out of nervousness.

Drake noticed her behavior. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I just never dated a vampire before.”

“Don’t be nervous. I don’t bite on the first date.” Drake winked.

Olivia rolled her eyes with a smile. “Very funny.” She picked up the menu in front of her to view it. “I should probably order a drink now.” She noticed the drink in front of Drake and asked, “This might be a stupid question, but is that blood?”

“It’s not a stupid question.” Drake raised his glass. “It’s Merlot.” He took a sip. “Would you like for me to order you a glass of Merlot?”

“No, thank you. I rather not drink alcohol.”

“Why?”

“Men on that dating site have tried to get me drunk all the time. I’m sick of it.”

“Consider me your first date who is not trying to get you drunk. It’s just one glass.”

“I rather not. I’m fine with drinking Coke or Sprite.”

“Are you sure?”

Olivia nodded. “Yes, I’m positive.” She went back to looking at her menu.

“I respect your decision.” Drake picked up his menu and looked at it.

A middle-aged male werewolf arrived at their table. He was their server. He turned to Olivia with a courteous smile. “Would you like to order a drink, Madame?”

Olivia looked up at the server. “Yes, I’ll have a Coke, please. Thank you.” She looked back at her menu.

“Sure.” The server turned to Drake. “Sir, how is the Merlot?”

Drake raised his glass up. “Excellent, thank you.” He took another sip.

“I’m glad.” The server walked away.

“I think I’m going to have the Fiery Sausage Pasta.” Olivia put her menu down and turned to Drake with wonder. “May I ask you a personal question?”

“I have nothing to hide.” Drake put down his menu. “You can ask me anything you want.”

“Were you born a vampire or were you turned?”

“I was born a vampire.”

“How old are you again?”

“221 years old.”

“And you told me that you were once married. Did your wife pass?”

“No, we got divorced.” Drake took another sip of his Merlot. “I met her when she was a human about eighty years ago. It felt like she was the one. We were the happiest couple. After I proposed to her, I turned her, and it was hard for her to adapt as a vampire in the beginning. But she got used to it and eventually love the vampirism.” He chuckled as he shook his head. “Shortly after we got married, our relationship went downhill. We started off as the most perfect couple to the worst couple ever. I mean we would have arguments over the smallest things like every five minutes. It was that bad.”

“Whatever happened to her after the divorce?”

“She married a werewolf.”

“And you never had children?

“No. She didn’t want any.”

“So, you have been on the dating scene ever since?

“I’ve had girlfriends. They were all great, but the relationships never worked out.” Drake desperately exhaled. “I guess I was not ready to find the one during those times.”

“You think you’re ready now?”

“It feels like it.” Drake flirtatiously smiled at Olivia.

The server arrived with a glass of Coke. “Here is your Coke.” He placed it in front of Olivia.

“Thank you.” Olivia took a sip of her soda.

The server got his notepad and pen ready to take orders. “Are you two ready to order your meals?”

“Yes. I’ll have the Fiery Sausage Pasta,” Olivia spoke up.

The server wrote on his notepad. “Excellent choice.”

“I can’t wait to try it.” Olivia handed the menu to the server.

The server turned to Drake. “And you, Sir?”

“The Spicy Van Helsing Burger sounds delicious. I’ll have that.” Drake handed the menu to the server.

The server wrote down Drake’s order. “The sauce in the burger is incredible. How would you like your burger?”

“Rare.”

Olivia chuckled as she looked down to hide her facial expression. She was trying to control her laughter.

After the server walked away, Drake noticed Olivia’s reaction and smiled. “I’ve had well-done before.”

Olivia looked at Drake and nodded. “I believe you.”

Drake took another sip of his Merlot. “So, what about you? I read on your profile that you were never married.”

“Nope. But I was engaged once.”

“Why did the engagement end?”

“He cheated on me.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It took me over a year to get over it.”

“You should never put anyone on a pedestal but yourself.”

“Unfortunately, I had to learn that the hard way.”

“And you’ve been on the market ever since?”

“I guess you can say so. I did have one boyfriend, but it only lasted for a month.”

“Why only a month?”

“He also cheated.” Olivia took a drink of her Coke. “So, I’ve decided to not focus on having serious relationships and just make things casual for now.”

“So, you’re just looking for friends with benefits.”

“I guess you can say so.”

“I don’t get why anyone would cheat on you. You’re so beautiful. You’re kind. You’re highly intelligent. You’re independent. You are an amazing woman.”

Olivia giggled mockingly at Drake’s comments. “You don’t know a lot about me, so there is no need to say those things.”

Drake leaned a little closer towards Olivia and whispered, “I can pick up a human’s energy. I know I am right.”

Olivia froze. “What?”

“I know that you are a people pleaser. You always donate to charity. You try to keep your circle of friends small because you’ve been backstabbed before. You were an honor student. You don’t let anyone do things for you. I don’t know your birthday, but I know that you’re a Capricorn. You – “

“Stop!” Olivia demanded out of fear.

Drake sits back with sorrow. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. But I will say this. I think you should give yourself some credit. Love yourself more. Be nice to yourself.”

Olivia was flabbergasted. She knew Drake’s words reminded her that she was struggling with improving her self-worth. “So, are you a mind-reader?”

“No, I don’t read minds. I only read energy. I can sense hidden information about a person. There is a difference between that and knowing what someone is thinking.”

“So, you’re like a psychic.”

“Yes, you can say that.”

“A psychic vampire? You feed off a person’s energy?”

“No, but I can. However, I rather not. I find it immoral. I can pick up a person’s energy without draining the life force.”

“Is it illegal?”

“Unfortunately, it’s not. It cannot be proven if a person is feeling drained, disoriented, or exhausted because of a vampire. Like I said, I rather not. Besides, I prefer blood.” Drake winked at Olivia.

Olivia rolled her eyes and smiled. “So, if you can identify information about me, then you already knew about my broken engagement before I even told you.”

“No. I can pick up some information, not all.”

“I am assuming that all vampires can pick up energy.”

“Only the ones who were born as vampires.” Drake took another sip of his Merlot.

Olivia nodded with amazement. “That is very interesting.” She drank some more of her Coke. “So, I read on your profile that you own many restaurants across Pennsylvania. Is this one of them?”

“No. A friend of mine owns this one. I would love it if you checked out some of my restaurants later.”

“Maybe.” Olivia teased him.

“Now, what I don’t know about you is your occupation. I am unable to pick up that energy. Besides, you left that blank on your profile.”

Olivia laughed. “I’m a writer.”

Drake grinned as he folded his arms. “So, are you trying to interview me?”

“What?” Olivia asked with confusion.

“It was a joke. I’m sure you’ve seen the movie Interview with the Vampire.”

Olivia giggled for a bit. “Oh yeah. I’ve seen the film and read the book.”

“What do you write?”

“Children’s books. I have published three so far.”

“Impressive. What are they?

“They are Ada and the Dragon, Ada and the Mermaid, and Ada and the Alien. The series are basically about a daring little girl going on adventures with different mythical and mystical creatures and even monsters.”

“I would like to read them some day.”

“Now, I’m working on Ada and the Witch.”

“Really? Maybe you should write Ada and the Vampire next.”

Olivia laughed hysterically. Drake laughed along with her. Olivia gradually stopped laughing and cleared her throat.

After Drake stopped laughing, he continued to smile at her. “Only a suggestion.”

“Actually, it’s not a bad idea.” Olivia drank her Coke some more. “You mentioned that you want to read my books. Do you like kids?”

“Yes, I do. But to clarify, not to eat.”

Olivia burst into laughter. “I know what you meant.” She continued to laugh.

One hour later. Drake and Olivia were laughing during their conversation. The food on their plates were halfway gone. Their glasses were empty. They were enjoying each other’s company.

The server arrived. “How is everything?”

“Wonderful,” Drake responded.

“Good. More Merlot?”

“Yes.”

The server turned to Olivia. “More Coke?”

“Actually…” Olivia paused as she looked at Drake. She continued, “I’ll have a glass of Merlot too.” She winked at him.

Drake smiled at Olivia with astonishment. “I didn’t see that one coming.”

The server collected the empty glasses. “Two glasses of Merlot coming up.” He walked away.

Olivia smirked at Drake. “Let me guess. You were unable to pick up that energy.”

Drake chuckled. “Why did you change your mind?”

“You’re absolutely right. It’s about time I start being kind to myself.” Olivia smiled.

Both of them continued to smile at each other. They knew that it was the beginning of a beautiful friendship – or relationship.