Neckbeard Vampire: Nightbeard Rising

by David Morgan

  Chapter 9

  Chad set a tiny metal war-dwarf onto the surface of the table, gently blowing the paint until satisfied that it was ready to be left to dry. He looked up at the clock: 8:25.

  Paxton had still not shown up, but he could just be running late for whatever reason. He picked up another figurine—an elf this time, bearing a bow, cocked back and ready to release a deadly arrow at some yet-to-be-identified enemy.

  As he pulled the tiny bristles across the pewter figurine, making sure to gloss even the tiniest corner with paint, his mind went to thoughts of Dasha. She was nowhere to be seen on Monday, having not returned to school. Darren had disappeared, and Paxton’s behavior raised concerns.

  She was beautiful, he had to admit, but Chad had been through the friend zone and back so many times that he had no desire to be duped into liking a girl way beyond his league. Still…no, he pushed the thought from his mind and checked the clock again: 8:45, and still not so much as a text from Paxton.

  He thought more about girls and glanced around the Comic shop. All the regulars were there—the usual crowd playing Magic or skulking around, looking to debate about the metaphysical impossibilities of a deity. All more or less nice, intelligent guys—and not a single one of them had a girlfriend.

  He reminisced about the times Kara would come in to play Magic or check out a new issue of her favorite Manga. The ensuing results at wooing her never ceased to be entertaining. The guys would offer up the most pathetic attempts at showing off.

  Then, that autumn—she showed up for the first time since school let out—she’d dropped about fifty pounds and looked amazing. Every single head in the place would turn and the guys basically began fighting each other for a chance to talk to her. They’d make complete and utter fools of themselves, ripping each other down and bragging about such-and-such a card, or beating so-and-so. If she wanted, she wouldn’t have ever had to pay a dime for anything.

  The more subtle of the socially inept would even going so far as to follow her silently around the room, pretending to look at games and comics right next to her, hoping that she’d notice them and start a conversation.

  Of course it never worked.

  ‘It’s just too much’ she said, and that was the end of it—she stopped coming. She decided it was best to leave comic-related purchases to the Internet.

  Just about the only one who seemed impervious to the bewitching nature of the ladies was the owner/cashier: Mickey, who had married a year or so ago to a barmaid he met at the Faire.

  Chad’s phone vibrated, he glanced at the screen to see the time: 09:15. One text message from Paxton. He popped it open:

  Won’t make it tonight. Sorry.

  The light jingling of bells signaled that someone had entered the store. Chad looked over—as did every head in the place. A girl, dark and beautiful, glided into the room. She stopped in front of the register display, patiently waiting for the arrival of the cashier.

  Every person in the room was overwhelmed by her charm, captivated with her presence, and they fell silent. No Magic, no victory cheers, no rustling bags of Doritos, no unsealing of Mountain Dew—all eyes were on her, including Chad’s.

  But while every man in the place was fantasizing about this girl becoming his own, allowing himself to be carried away in far-off fantasies of a life that could never be, Chad was overcome with the sinking feeling of inescapable danger. He needed to leave—immediately.

  Mickey stepped up to the register, “Can I help you?” He began, neither showing disinterest nor anything excessive to the most run-of-the-mill of all customers.

  It seemed odd to Chadwick that he was somehow not stricken with the same paralyzing awe that possessed every neckbeard in the place. With feeling of impending doom growing more inescapable by the second, Chad tried to duck out unnoticed, hoping that she didn’t see him.

  He breathed a sigh of relief as the door closed behind him and he entered the parking lot.

  “Hello Chadwick,” she was standing right in front of him, behind the glowing halo of a street lamp, just beyond the reach of its light. Chad froze. Did he miss her leaving somehow? She seemed somehow different. “I noticed you inside, I thought I’d say hello.”

  Chad looked back through the glass doors to see that Dasha was still in the shop, perusing through a bookshelf chock full of Manga with the cashier while several others orbited around, waiting for their chance to talk to her.

  He stood there, stunned at a loss for words. “How did you--” but the girl took a step forward, walking into the light of the lamp above. The steampunk goggles gave her away.

  “Kara!” He said—both relieved that it wasn’t Dasha and genuinely glad to have a private moment with the girl. “What are you doing here?”

  “It’s the comic book store,” she said sleepily, “I come here sometimes.” Did she? Chad racked his brain to remember the last time she’d been inside of the store or hung out with the crew there.

  She looked worse than the last time he saw her—to describe her as pale would be an understatement. “You look like death,” he said.

  “Gee thanks,” she said sarcastically before adding, “to be honest—I don’t feel great. The night air makes me feel a little bit better, and the moonlight feels nice. The sun today was just a bit too much today.”

  Chad wasn’t sure how to respond. “Uhh…yeah. I guess it was hot today.”

  “I’m really tired,” she dragged the words out—like it was an exercise in great strength for her to speak.

  “You should have gone home right after school and slept,” Chad said, remembering his conversation with her that morning.

  “I did,” she said, “And I felt much better, so I decided to take a walk.” She paused for a minute, then started again, “I left the house and…”

  Chad looked at her, “And you came here?”

  “No.” She said, suddenly serious. “I don’t remember coming here at all.”

  Chad let her continue.

  “I walked down the street from my house and got to the park. I thought I heard the sound of a little cat. It sounded like it was in pain, so I tried to look for it. I went a few feet into the woods and then it stopped.”

  She ran her fingers through her hair.

  “…I felt sleepy. So I…” She trailed off.

  “Went home?” Chad finished her sentence after waiting for her to finish.

  “No. I came here—but I don’t know how I got here.”

  “Would you like to go home?” He asked with concern.

  “Yes—I would like that very much.”

  He walked over to his car and opened the passenger door, letting her take his hand while she sat down. He buckled her in and then shut the door. Looking back one last time to the comic shop, he saw Dasha standing in the window, staring at him.

  He felt her eyes on him as she stood there, expressionless. There was no smile, no knocking on the window like when as if to get a friend’s attention, no waving-over motion. Just standing and staring—like it was the most natural thing in the world.

  Chad slid the key in the driver’s side door and looked up again. She was gone—no she wasn’t gone. She was at the cash register again. She moved fast.

  On the way home, Kara all but passed out.

  “Kara—I want you to do me a favor tonight.”

  “No Chad—no kissing,” she said sleepily, without opening her eyes.

  “What? No! Listen! I want you to close your windows tonight in your room.” He wasn’t even sure why, but it seemed to be the most sensible thing to do.

  “That seems strange,” she commented, “but it’s so hot there,” she added.

  “Look—just tonight, just do it, please.” Chad began to plead.

  “Then how can I pet kitty?”

  “What? What do you mean?”

  “I mean kitty—she likes to be pet.” Kara was just barely able to complete the words before her head fell to her shoulder and her breathing turned
to a light snore.

  “Kara.” Chad said, afraid for some reason to break above a whisper.

  “Kara.” He repeated a little louder.

  “Okay.” She finally agreed, her voice heavy with sleep.

  “Promise?”

  “I promise.”

  “Not even for the cat.”

  “Not even for kitty.”

  The ride to her home was no more than fifteen minutes, and when they arrived he half-walked/half-carried her up to the house and rung the door bell, waiting for her mom to answer. He handed off the barely conscious Kara to her mother and went back to his car.

  A large black cat with yellow streaks sat on the hood, as though waiting for Chad to return. It didn’t move when he approached the car, nor when he tried to shoo it away. Whatever, he thought, it would dash away when he started the engine.

  He put the key into the ignition and revved the engine: the cat still didn’t move. So he tapped the car horn—still nothing. He didn’t want to harm it, but it gave him the creeps. He got up and decided to physically take it away.

  When he opened the car door, the cat casually got up and lightly jumped from the edge of the car onto the grass below, as though it had decided it was time to go home. It watched Chad. But it didn’t just watch Chad—it was looking at him…making eye contact.

  Chad, in response, wanted to call to the cat, invite it to come to him. He summoned his strength and released the parking brake. The vehicle began rolling forward, reluctant to leave the feline behind—it was so beautiful, so fluffy and gentle.

  As the car coasted by, he stepped on the brake and leaned over to open the window. He started to call to the cat but was immediately interrupted by the blast of a horn and a blinding light coming from the opposite direction, pulling him out of the trance. The cat disappeared into the bushes and the car swerved to narrowly avoid crashing into Chad.

  Shocked to his senses, Chad started on his way home, opting to take the long way. Yes it added a half hour to the trip, but it safely avoided the comic book shop—he had no intention of running into her again.