“Who’re you texting?”
“Dennis.”He smiled at my panicked reaction.
“Sean!”
“Don’t worry, it’s not about you. We talk about other shit, you know.” He laughed. “Our conversation won’t leave this alley, I promise.”
“You better not be lying.”
“I’m not. Relax.” He seemed to notice the time and stood.“I’m off for the day, so I’m heading out.”
“Why’re you back here if you’re already off?”
“Am I not allowed to check on you?” He chuckled at my confusion. “I’ll see you later, Emy.”
“Bye.” I looked at the empty crates once he’d left. I was bored again. I headed back inside, planning to mindlessly scroll my phone for the rest of lunch, until I saw Michael on the couch and got a genius idea.“Hey, Michael?”
“What’s up?” He looked up from an inventory form.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Sure. Is everything okay?” He motioned for me to sit.
“Everything’s fine,” I sat down, leaving an empty cushion between us. “My question’s super random but I just realized you’re the perfect person to ask. How do binds block each other from hearing thoughts?”
“Dennis hasn’t told you?”
“No,”I said haughtily.“I ask him all the time and he refuses to explain. Sean and Mateo probably won’t explain, either, since he apparently doesn’t want me to know. But since they’re not around andyou’rehere…”I gave him my sweetest smile, hoping he would oblige.
He laughed and set the forms aside.“Dennismight kill me, but sure. What do you wanna know?”
“Everything. The mind reading, the blocking, all that shit. I have no clue what’s going on. He hasn’t told me anything at all.”
“Interesting.” He adjusted his hat and leaned back. “I guess I’ll start from the beginning, then. In short, it has to do with how strong your feelings are for your bind. It’s said that binds arekinda like soulmates, but only when you find the right one. Supposedly, you’ll know who your true bind is the second you see them. Well, the vampire will. Not the human.”
“So it’s like a one-sidedlove at first sight?”
“Kindof? It’s a lot stronger than that. A real blood bind should be like a part of you.”
“That’s so,” I struggled to find a word, “intense.”
“Yeah,” he said, grinning, “it is. That’s partly why not every vamp wants a bind.”
“What’re the other reasons?”
“There are a few. Some think the ‘true bind’ thing is a myth and binds are a waste of time. Some whodobelieve in it get worried they’ll settle for the wrong bind and destroy their love life. And most vamps won’t bind on a friendship level. From what I’ve heard, it’s too intimate for a platonic buddy. Might get awkward.” He laughed when I emphatically nodded.
“What do you think about all this?”I asked.
“I’m not bound, so I can’t really say. My bind was the kind that doesn’t care to keep one, so he did it as a favor to turn me and undid it right after. But judging from what I’ve seen, I’dsay it’s true.As far as blocking thoughts, the stronger your feelings are for your bind,the harder it is for them to hear you. Eventually they won’t hear you at all.”
“Really? Why?”
He shrugged.“No one knows. Maybe because once you know them well and have feelings you don’t need that extra thing to build the connection? That’s what I’ve always thought.”
I thought for a second, trying to organize everything in my head.“How come I could never hear Dennis, then?”
“When you’re bound and still human, you’re not gonna hear anything. It only works for the vampire until they decide to turn you. Then it goes both ways.”
