Prettiest Vampire

Chapter III: Lilian Again

Chapter III: Lilian Again

Lilian came down the stairs, slowly, as if descending the stairs represented facing his rather bleak future. He had dressed in "comfort" clothes after waking – his old jeans and a baggy sweatshirt from a previous trip that read:

          Gdansk?
Why, are you asking?

The jeans were old and worn and possibly too tight, and the cheap dye in the sweatshirt had faded from red to a fairly even pink after several washings. He had no clean socks and so his ankles showed between the top of his runners and the hem of his pants. But these clothes helped him to feel miserable so he was wearing them.

Maria checked the clock as Lilian found his way to a table at the back. "It is past noon," she called across the empty dining room. "I wondered if I should wake you. I know you had an important meeting this morning. I hope you did not miss it."

"No, but thank you for asking, Maria," Lilian replied, putting on a smile. "My meeting has been postponed. I need to set another date, some time next..." Lilian's voice trailed off as he realized, he didn't have the heart for more lies. His eyes glistened, and Lilian held back tears as he was suddenly compelled to confess, "Oh, Maria, it isn't true. None of it is true. There never was any meeting! I thought I could arrange everything once I got here, but the buildings are empty, and there's no one to meet with, and I spent so much money for nothing and now I'll be lucky if all my uncle does is fire me!"

Maria sat beside Lilian to hold his hand, but soon had her arms around him, stroking his hair and comforting him like a distraught child.

"There, there, mein liebchen, don't worry so," Maria comforted him. "Everything will be fine, you'll see. These things that seem so important to us today, they either work out or they don't. And if they don't, they are soon forgotten. You will see."

"But I might lose my job," wept Lilian.

"So, you might lose your job. Everyone loses a job at some time or other. Then they go out and find another. You will too."

"Are you sure?" asked Lilian, not really believing the words meant to comfort him.

"Of course," said Maria. "I have seen this many times in my life. You can trust me. It's only because you are still a young girl that you don't know these things."

Lilian sniffled, still held tight in Maria's arms. "Thank you Maria, that makes me feel better. Except... I'm not a girl," he said quietly.

Maria laughed softly. "Of course. 'Young woman', then. The point is, you are young. Look at me! I am so old compared to you. You have so much life yet to live, you mustn't waste it crying. Now you will dry your eyes, and whatever your problems are, you must fix them. And if you can't fix them, you must face the consequences bravely, without tears, yes?"

Lilian thought about correcting Maria's misperception again, but decided it didn't really matter. He sat up and faced her, wiped at his eyes and smiled. "Yes, I can do that," he agreed.

"That is my brave little one," said Maria. "Now you should have a good breakfast."

"But I thought breakfast for guests ended at noon, didn't it?" he asked.

"I know the owner," Maria said with a conspiratorial wink, making Lilian laugh. "You need a big plate of pancakes to help you face your troubles."

"Thank you, Maria," Lilian called out as Maria disappeared into the kitchen. With no one to talk to, he distracted himself by looking out the window at the pretty flower boxes on the building across the street.

"My Master wishes to meet with you!"

Lilian nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden voice. He turned from the window to see a gaunt, pale man with dark thinning hair standing at his table, exactly where Maria had been only a moment before. The man had a haunted look to him, and his rumpled suit looked as if he regularly slept in it. Lilian placed his hand over his heart in an attempt to control its rapid beating.