CHAPTER SEVEN
I find Rohan at the entrance. He’s seated on the floor with his back on the wall; one leg stretched on the floor and his arm resting on the other’s knee. He looks so relaxed; the katana on his lap seems to be out of place. The glass door is barred with a steel gate but Rohan added a barricade of cabinets and tables. Outside, howling and snarling sounds emanate from a distance. Vampires.
“Where are you going?” he asks when he sees me with my bag perched on my back.
“To get you,” I simply reply. His eyes don’t show anger anymore. A good indication that he has calmed down already.
He smirks at me. “Why? Have I gone somewhere that I’m not aware of?”
I just purse my mouth and shake my head as I drop beside him. Nobody speaks. We just sit in silence for a while. Unable bear the dead air’s pressure more, I slightly bump him with my right shoulder. He answers by nudging my shoulder back. I nudge back and he sticks his elbow on my side which is ticklish. I jolt from it and suppress a laugh. He’s okay now, I tell myself. I got my partner back.
When our sniggers dwindle, I hear him sigh.
“What is it?” I ask him.
He looks down before speaking in a soft voice. “Sorry. You know, for how I acted back there.” The corner of my mouth twitches.
“It’s alright,” I say. I’m quick to forgive anyway. There’s no point bearing a grudge when I know he only wants to protect our safety.
“You weren’t that nice to me when we first met. You tried to ditch me by running off.” My eyes dart to his face.
“What? Is that why… Oh.” My voice trails off. That’s weird. Why would he be focusing on that factor? Besides, that was not what happened.
Rohan remains silent. He just leans his head on my shoulder and my heart leaps onto my throat. I can’t help but smile to myself. I feel silly.
“It wasn’t like that. You got it all wrong,” I find myself saying. “When you were out cold, I fought with Vaughn. I even put a gun on the little kid’s head which is definitely far from being nice. I think I frightened her.”
“Really?” he says and he chuckles. “Now, I feel guilty I taught you the moves.”
I just laugh at him. I can’t concentrate on what we are talking about. My whole mind is focused on his breathing beside me and the warmth of his body. Ironic. In some way, it’s uncomfortable but I could stay like this forever.
“What’s your favorite song, by the way?” he asks out of the blue.
I scoff. “What kind of question was that?”
“I don’t know.” He shrugs “I guess I just want to know you better.”
“Why a song, then?”
“Well, I’m no expert but I’m quite sure music is the only thing everybody enjoys. That’s in general, of course. Genres have their disparities,” Rohan says. “Besides, we killed vampires together along the way, you told me your biggest secret, and I know nothing else about you.”
“Ditto,” I say with a grin. “I know nothing about you but your name.”
He lifts his head and faces me. “In that case, I should formally introduce myself.”
“Seriously?” I raise an eyebrow.
“Yeah, seriously,” He grins boyishly. “Hi, I’m Rohan Everett and I’m nineteen. I was born and raised in Chicago and went here in the Philippines for a vacation just a year ago, but got trapped for some reason that involves an unprecedented war. It was nice to meeting you, Hope Rivera.”
He stretches his hand on me and I shake it sportily while chuckling. “My pleasure, Rohan Everett. You have a weird name for an American boy, by the way. It sounds Indian.”
“Yeah, my mom got some Indian blood in her, that’s why.” We let go of each other’s hand. “So, may I know what your favorite song is?”
“Still?”
He nods considerably. “Yes, still.”
“You first,” I say.
“It’s not a hard question, why so elusive?” He frowns and shakes his head.
“Well, it’s because I don’t really have a favorite,” I say with regret. Come to think of it, I was never a big fan of music. “I do listen to music but when asked with a simple question like this, I have nothing in mind. Really. I don’t even have a memorized song in my head that’s why I’m asking you back.”
“Wow. How boring. I wonder how you lived all these years.” I punch Rohan on the shoulder. He raises his arms in submission. “Okay, okay. I’m vintage so you’ll probably cringe at my music choice.”
I lift my chin to him. “Try me.”
“Well, I like any song from Pink Floyd, The Beatles, Bob Marley and Jimi Hendrix.”
“Oh. Psychedelic and reggae. Nice,” I remark.
“I thought you’re not familiar with music?”
“I never said I’m not familiar with music,” I say. “I read a lot so most of the time I stumble on music-related articles, and just so you know, I’m into anything that came from the 60s to 90s.”
Rohan nods considerably. He’s obviously pleased. A corner of his mouth is raised smugly. “Okay. How about a favorite book? Movie? Anything?”
“The Lord of the Rings,” I answer without falter. To this one, I’m sure what to answer.
“No way. Seriously?” His face lights up.
“What, you’re a Tolkien fan, too?”
“A big fan. I got bullied during freshman year for decorating my locker with photos of Middle Earth, though. ‘Said I was a dork.” He shakes his head while laughing silently. I remember calling him ‘dork’, too, when he compared me to that Pokémon character, Misty.
“Really? ‘Bet you’re imagining you’re slaying Orcs instead of vampires.”
“No. More like slaying multiple Gollums.”
“Right, they’re not much different in looks.”
“Yeah, and also because our blood is so precious,” Rohan imitates how Gollum says the word ‘precious.’ It’s so funny so we break into hearty guffaws. I cover his mouth because we’re too loud but we still into sniggers. Our laughs are interrupted by a bang on the metal gate. We both hurry up to our feet.
The sight startles us. Outside, a small hemophage is growling between the bars. It’s groping the metal with a fierce look on its face. My chest tightens. It’s boy. A mere child. And it already turned into a monster. Rohan’s hand close onto mine. He grips it tightly; I know he’s thinking the same thing I do.
“He can’t get in here. I think we’re safe for now. Even if he calls the attention of others, they cannot enter the clinic. We made sure of that,” he says false-calmly, but the way he grits his teeth suggests that it wasn’t what he really wants to say. He wants to scream. He wants to let his anger loose.
I stare at the small body that’s been trying to squeeze itself inside with no luck. The familiar twinge of guilt chokes me. My eyes burn. Am I really supposed the one who can end this? What if there’s no cure? What if they cannot make an antidote out of my blood?
“Let’s go. We should get to rest,” I say in a strained voice and I pull Rohan away from the gate. I cannot bear the sight anymore. Any second, I’m going to break down.
We walk back at the pharmacy hand in hand. That gesture made me feel much better despite of my aching back and my still sore muscles and the unshakable image of the hemophage boy outside the bars. But Rohan is squeezing my hand too hard so I stop walking. He stops, too and looks at me questioningly.
What should I say? I don’t know. But still, I find myself releasing the words out.
“I think I know now what my favorite song is,” I say. He puckers his brow in puzzlement but I just continue talking. “It’s the ‘The Hobbit’ soundtrack, ‘I See Fire.’ A line there says, ‘If we should die tonight, we should all die together.’ It’s kind of depressing because it implies hopelessness but there is something in that line that reminds me of unity. Maybe, just maybe, it is what we need to end this.”
Rohan doesn’t speak for a while. I can my palms getting sweaty. He takes both of my hands and looks me into the eyes. My throat dries up.
“Sometimes, you don’t sound like you’re just seventeen,” he says. I smile at him and before I can figure out what’s happening, he moves closer and locks me inside his arms. It brings forth hundreds of conflicting emotions in me. For a while, we stay like that; me, listening to the sound of his heartbeat and him, resting his chin over my head. When he pulls away, he takes my hand once again and we walk into the pharmacy.
Vaughn is already asleep with Jillian so Rohan and I occupy the other end of the room. Tonight, we will be sleeping side by side which is new and strange. No words are spoken again. As we lay on the floor, I’m totally aware of the warm body on the right. It doesn’t seem to bother him because within a minute, he’s already asleep. I decide to close my eyes too and the last thing I know, I’m dozing off with one his arms wrapped around me. Rohan Everett. It’s so hard to not like you no matter how I try not doing so.