Two days later

Justin asked Lewis if he wanted to join him again, knowing that the answer would still be no. It was, which perversely pleased him. While he might promise Maya there was not a single thing he would miss about vampirism, a tiny part of him remained curious. His twin's determination to remain one would allow him to experience that life vicariously.

They spent the night before his conversion together at Vamp Towers, as Lewis packed his meagre belongings into a rucksack. He wore that bikers jacket emblazoned with Bloodz Bros across the back, the crystals twinkling in the light. To celebrate their new short hair, they'd both dyed it blonde—a stark contrast to dark skin, which took some getting used to.

"Where will you go?" Justin asked, leaning back against his bed to watch him.

Lewis shrugged. "The West Country, maybe. Lots of vampires down that way."

Justin had tried to persuade Lewis to remain in Dunrovia too, but his brother had shaken his head. Nope, too boring. Besides, someone needed to kill off Queen Bitch once and forever, and who better than the world's most powerful vampire, as the events of the last few days had proved?

"I love you," Justin said. Lewis rolled his eyes. "Fuck off with the soppiness. It doesn't suit you."

And for five minutes, they escaped. Leapt beyond the walls of that depressing narrow room, with its uncomfortable single bed and barely room to swing a cat space and returned to their childhood home many moons ago—two 13-year-olds battling testosterone and the frustrations of having to live confined to such a small space and tussling with each other.

They traded insults—competed to come up with the most bad-ass remark.

Whaddya call a girl who agrees to go out with you? Desperate.

Yeah? You're nicknamed Subway 'cause you got some low-quality meat, and you lied about it being six inches.

Justin found his lips twitching, stifling laughter, fearful it might trigger tears, too. Lewis, his bag packed, sat down beside him and took his hand.

"She's not desperate—she's brilliant." He meant Maya. "Though you tell her from me. If she dicks you around, I'll come for her."

Justin squeezed his hand back. No-one could take another for granted, but something deep in his bones and about-to-be rebooted blood and guts told him worrying about Maya's future fidelity was a non-issue.

How are you gonna manage being a step-daddy?

He and his twin often saved the important questions for their heads, rather than saying them out loud. As soon as Justin went through that cure, he would return to human ageing, his body starting the slow decay that all humans embarked on the minute they pushed their way out of women into the world. Even so, he would emerge from that cure as a twenty-one-year-old. Young to find yourself an instant father.

Dunno. It's not like we had a role model, is it?

Lewis gave him a half-smile. Brought up by lesbians, they'd missed out on the father figure, though Justin didn't think it had done them any harm. But the Mirac thing worried him. Would he resent the kid for not being his? How would he feel when Kyle insisted that he had no right to make any decisions relating to Mirac?

Want me to kill him for you? He's a total prick. I'd be doing the world a massive favour.

Justin returned that half-smile. Being human brought millions of complications with it, Mirac's care just one of them. All the other stuff too. Working out what he did, jobwise, once he no longer had the novelty value of being a vampire chef. Living on a planet that hurtled ever closer to destruction, thanks to the climate crisis. Keeping your friends safe, as they all opted for the vampire cure. Facing up to death when it came, having thrown away your shot at immortality.

"No, you can leave Kyle alone. Didn't he redeem himself in the end?" It seemed important to say it out loud. "He dropped by yesterday."

"Fuck."

Fuck, indeed. In yet another echo of Before Times, Kyle had visited Club Sapphire, this time telling Justin he and Maya getting together was the best thing since sliced bread. He'd brought Deeta with him, insisting on holding her hand through the entire conversation in what Justin took to be a demonstration that: a) someone wanted him and b) a protective thing.

Kyle's olive-tinged skin took on a pinkness. "I've... um... been seeing a counsellor. About anger management. Deeta insisted."

Well done, Deeta. While she might stare at him devotedly, there must be enough steel underneath.

"Maya deserves happiness," Kyle added. They would be getting a quickie divorce, meaning Maya would no longer be his wife by the end of the month.

When will I see you again? Justin returned to the present.

Dunno. Depends if I go rogue or not.

Ah... state licensing had never suited Lewis. The answer sounded to Justin like an admission he planned to return to the traditional vampire diet of old. Human blood.

Lewis got to his haunches and launched himself up, the movement cat-like graceful. He removed his jacket. "Here."

With that, he was gone, disappearing out of the open window robbing Justin of the chance to say anything more. He buried his face in the coat as the rough crystals embellished on the back scratched his cheeks. Tomorrow would be exciting, interesting, fascinating, rewarding and hundreds of other positive things, but for now, all he had was scraped cheeks and an ache deep in his gut that pinned him to the floor, unable to move.

*****

Maya, Mirac in his car seat next to her, picked him up in Sharon's car the following morning. "Sure about this?" she asked as he climbed into the back, folding his body into the cramped space.

"Yup. What about you? It might turn out that you only like me because I'm a vampire."

She twisted her head to glance at him. "Don't fish for compliments. They only mean something—"

"When you don't ask for them."

That often-used exchange made them both smile. Justin had woken hours ago, nerves jangling, and mind too filled with noise. Even reading old recipe books, working out how he would adapt and improve dishes, failed to stop the tremble in his hands. At first, he'd told Maya not to accompany him, worried that part of the process might be undignified, before changing his mind. If she clasped his palm to hers throughout, perhaps it might not terrify him that much.

"How's Mirac?" he asked. The question wasn't necessary. Having spent some time with the kid over the past few days, he'd realised he was in the presence of a junior mind reader. One who hadn't worked out how to use his powers to his advantage yet, but by the time he did, he would be formidable.

This morning, Mirac projected happy as Larry vibes.

"He slept through the night," Maya said, "which is amazing. I'm taking him to his daddy's."

Drop-off made, Justin catching a glimpse of Deeta stretching out her arms to take Mirac from Maya, he returned to the question about his conversion. 'What if' questions were pointless, but how might life had been if when Maya met him for the first time, he'd been human and not a vampire? Would they have got together?

"Yes," she said, hitting the signal to turn right into the industrial estate. In the last few days, the area had undergone a transformation. There was a lot of work still to do, but the Assembly had drafted in a team of workers to tidy the place up. They'd smartened up the buildings hosting the vaccination and the cure, and a corridor created going between one to the other, so those cured vampires could receive the vaccination straight away.

"You're still fishing for compliments, but I'll let you have one or two. You're gorgeous, principled, fun to be with and kind. I would have drunk a few cocktails to make me brave, swaggered up to you and begged you to date me."

The car came to a halt. He stepped out as she did, watching as she struggled to lock the car, dropping the keys. She must be as nervous as he was. They stood outside the warehouse for several minutes, Maya snuggled into him and his arm around her shoulder.

"What's the date?" he asked. The last few weeks had been so chaotic he'd lost track.

"Thirty-first of December. When were you converted?"

The realisation made him jolt. "New Year's Eve 2023."

"Wow. Two years as a vampire then, but you'll get to start 2026 as a brand-new human."

If it worked. If it didn't kill him.

"Ready?" she asked.

Aye, ready. He pushed the door open.

AUTHOR'S NOTE - thanks for all reads, votes and comments! Next update, Friday 24th September 2021.