"Two glasses of red wine, one of white wine, two beers and some fries with hot sauce, please."
"Coming right up... I love your dress Abir... green really suits you..."
"Seriously?" The woman looks at me in disbelief from the other side of the table.
"Sure, it makes your eyes stand out..." I wink at her and move closer to the bar counter in order to get their drinks. It doesn't matter if they're young or middle-aged, they come from a wealthy family or they work as a pickpocket at the port... all girls deserve a compliment sometimes. And I was being honest in this case: around 20 years ago Abir was one of the most beautiful women here in Sala, according to my uncle, and she had the richest men of this city at her feet competing against one another to get her favours, giving her stunning jewels as presents. But contrary to her work mates, she saved her money instead of spending it in gambling houses or fancy luxuries and now she's retired at the age of 45 knowing that she has enough money to live comfortably instead of wandering through the streets given herself to a sailor for one coin.
"You should learn from her, niece, and have always a plan B just in case..." That was what my uncle advised me and I was doing fine, I still have some money saved from the sale of the farm and I was thinking that I should invest it wisely buying a warehouse on the dock and then rent it but now... I don't know what to do. What is the perfect plan B for a vampire's pet? How much time is she going to spend with me? Will she allow me to keep my tavern for some years? Will she kill me when she gets bored? Why should I be worried about my future if I'm going to end up being the dessert of her dinner?
"Boss... eh, boss..." Laila snaps her fingers in front of my face bringing me back to reality and to the hum of conversations around me.
"Yes, sorry... What?" I look at her bewildered.
"Fries are ready... Abir's table order..." She points at the tray on the counter where the food and drinks are waiting.
"Yes, all right... sorry... I'm going to..." I shake my head to clear my mind and take the heavy tray.
"That flu hit you pretty bad boss, you have to take of yourself..." My head waitress rushes in the opposite direction in order to bring their drinks to the customers while I walk slowly with my fragile cargo till I reach Abir and her friend's table safely. They all smile happily when they see their fries with hot sauce, the most popular and delicious dish of the Frisky Unicorn. I heave a sigh of relief since I didn't spill any drink and turn around getting closer to the bar counter again when the tavern door opens suddenly and a hooded figure with a black cape rushes in... my heart skips a beat... till that person takes his hood off and I realize that he's one of the regulars at my uncle's gambling house. I heave a sigh of relief again but also... of disappointment?
I throw the cleaning cloth I had in my hand behind the counter angrily and start placing some clean glasses on a shelf. I don't understand what's wrong with me... when I woke up two days ago the only thing I was able to do was crying for one hour, grateful for the fact that I was still alive after spending one night with a vampire. I found her note on my desk later, written with a nice handwriting like the one you could find in the most expensive books, telling me that she couldn't make it that night and I had to sit down on my chair because my legs started shaking in relief. I worked all day long in good spirits and had dinner with Dráa and my uncle, laughing at their bad jokes, singing songs with my customers and I even drank a bit too much so I collapsed on my bed and slept like a log.
The problem is that... she didn't come last night either. After spending hours looking at the door out of the corner of my eye while I tried to bring drinks to my customers without spilling them on the tables, I went upstairs to my bedroom expecting to find her there, thinking that she'd got into the building through the back door or a window probably... but she wasn't there. I couldn't sleep well last night, waking up every few minutes because I was afraid of the shadows around my bed that had the shape of a hooded figure and I was expecting to find a vampire watching me... but nothing happened. And it seems to me that tonight won't happen either, it's getting late and some regulars are saying goodbye in order to go to their usual gambling houses and brothels; however, she's nowhere to be seen and the point is that I'm not only feeling relieved, which is normal, but also disappointed and that scares the hell out of me.
