Chapter 4
He slept longer than expected. It was probably due to the stress he was dealing with. It's not often we find ourselves confronted by something once thought of as being fiction, only to discover it was indeed real.
Lost in thought he picked up the watch wanting to try it on but didn't. He liked it but didn't want to wear it, thinking he'd be making some sort of a concession if he did. He wasn't ready to accept vampirism let alone what appeared to be an invitation to join them. The thought was too weird to consider as he returned it to its box, closing it slowly.
The subject of vampirism was new and his curiosity about it became an obsession. He wanted to stop at the library before they closed. He realized much of it was heaped in lore, like Robin Hood and Sherwood Forest. Yet even to this day many continue to find arrowheads and other signs of Robin Hood's presence in Nottingham.
While in the library he came across an interesting book suggesting vampires were from a distant star-system. If indeed they were aliens, they would've evolved differently than humans and as far as he could tell, they did. The only other explanation would be that they were an inscrutable subspecies, like we consider Bigfoot to be. None of his mother's letters indicated anything so bazaar yet plausible. Was it possible she didn't know or didn't care about their origins?
So many questions occurred to him:
"Were vampires evil because they didn't have souls or because they have an affinity for human blood. And if souls were invisible, how do we know they don't have one. And perhaps more importantly, why would you need a soul if you lived forever?"
He closed the last of the books he was reading before folding his arms on the pile and burying his head in his arms, overwhelmed by the possibilities -- hoping for inspiration that never came.
Eventually he left the library returning to his apartment. He shaved and showered, putting on a fresh band-aid planning to stop at a local sports-bar later. He saw no reason to go to
Sangre Maria's
due to the nature of the place. He wasn't ready or willing to flirt with danger, knowing enough to be cautious. For all he knew there might be a porthole to a whole new dimension there. Though fascinated by the idea he knew such things could be dangerous.
A much needed diversion with George at the bar...
After watching nearly an entire soccer game he saw one of his chess friends entering, looking tired and haggard. He offered to buy George a drink. George smiled in acceptance patting Demetri on the back before sitting on the stool beside him.
"So what's new George, I haven't seen you for awhile."
George watched the bartender placing his drink in front of him. He nodded to the bartender before taking a sip, preparing for what he was about to say.
"I don't know Demetri I think I'm losing it. My concentration is kaput. I can't even sleep for more than three hours at a time. I wake up in the middle of the night forgetting why I went to bed in the first place."
Demetri would be hard pressed in finding anyone to get his mind off of things the way George could and with little or no prompting he related the following experience, much to Demetri's amusement:
I decided to join a church group called Single Parents with Children; thinking I might meet someone nice. It was a few Saturdays ago and we were supposed to go picnicking in the country. I brought two huge tubs of potato salad holding one under each arm. Everyone was supposed to bring something, right?
We met in the churchyard where there was a large group of people gathering, standing around talking and getting to know one another better. There I was nodding my head, smiling instead of shaking hands like everyone else was doing; my arms full with potato salad.
This was new to me, church-gatherings. I met a lot of new people. I didn't see anyone who caught my eye but I knew I had a lot of new names to remember. Eventually someone came out of the church telling us we could get on the bus since everyone was there and we could be on our way.
There I was with my arms full and in an effort to make others laugh, I pointed my feet outwards as I waddled back and forth hopping up the steps, one at a time. You know like penguins, they don't have knees I guess. Everyone got a kick out of it and began to laugh, making sure I wouldn't fall. I can see it now, there's George lying on his back in a pool of potato salad, right?
It had been a while since I'd been on a school bus. I found it brought back some memories. You know...
Anyway, the picnic was a lot of fun. We played games, socializing and having a good time the whole day through until we boarded the bus to leave. I sat in an aisle seat. A guy named Evan sat on my right. In front of me, against the window was a full-figured young woman named Connie who engaged me in conversation a few times earlier in the day. I could tell she liked me by the way she looked at me. She had that look...the one some women get when they meet someone they're interested in.
