The west side of the mall, home to the maintenance and tech staff, was immediately identifiable by the ubiquitous bags of cleaning supplies and batteries scattered across the floor. The sharp, clean scent of lemon and bleach danced in the air, a familiar comfort that reminded me of my penthouse after the maid’s meticulous cleaning. My body cried out for the familiar embrace of my bed high atop Elysium, longing for its plush comfort and the sweet smell of fresh linens. A sense of hopelessness overcame me, knowing I may never feel relaxed in my own bed ever again.
As we walked through the west wing, the hallway was lined with repurposed shops, their former lives hinted at in faded signs and dusty displays. To the right, colorful mops and brooms leaned against sudsy buckets, their soapy scent filling the air, while the left side was a chaotic jumble of rusty metal parts and cracked computer monitors. The morning rush began, and the aroma of frying faux eggs reached my nostrils as people streamed into the shops with their daily breakfast sandwiches. I watched as men and women zipped into their bright orange maintenance jumpsuits and filled buckets with sudsy soap.
“Follow me, vampire boy.” Jude waved me toward a shop to our left.
After rolling my eyes, I saw a blank space outside the storefront where the sign once hung, and I recognized the logo from years ago. I believe the shop once sold used CDs and DVDs. Years ago, I vividly remember begging my mom and dad to buy me a poster from this store. My mom said no, but my father secretly bought it and gave it to me on my birthday that year. He used to be so caring. The memories of those days filled me with bittersweet nostalgia.
Back when this mall was a vibrant shopping center, the store we stood inside was once a haven for vinyls, CDs, DVDs, figurines, and posters, but all that was now replaced with desks cluttered with tools, surrounded by piles of metallic junk.
Jude guided me to a desk piled high with defunct electronics. “I’m here to see Michael,” he said to the tower of junk in a deep, authoritative voice.
A woman’s head emerged from behind the haphazard stack of metallic objects with a bright headlamp illuminating her face. She brought a finger to the side of her frizzy hair and clicked the light off. “Uh…hi th-there, Jude.” She squeaked, her voice high and trembling. “I-I’ll let Michael know you’re here.” She scurried to the backroom and quickly returned. “You can go back there to speak with him.”
“Stay here and don’t do anything stupid,” Jude instructed as he turned to the short woman before him. “This is Nessa. You two can…chat?”
As Jude retreated toward the back room with a sheepish grin spread across his face, I couldn’t help but feel annoyed. Wasn’t he supposed to watch me at all times? Or was this another test? This thought irritated me even further; it was like they were observing me, being given a test I’d never know if I passed. An experiment.
“Whatta man, huh?”
I looked at the rotund girl sitting in the chair, propping her face in her hands. She had wildly long brown hair that looked as if she’d been electrocuted a few times, sticking out at various angles. The metal frames of her glasses magnified her pupils, making them appear ten times larger, perched delicately on the bridge of her nose. Her light green eyes, sparkling with adoration, watched the man in the flowing white robe vanish through the nearby door.
“Who? Jude?” I asked, a slight uncertainty in my voice.
“Yeah, whenever he’s around, I get all nervous and shaky.” Swaying her head toward me, she sighed heavily. “There are a lot of men in Silvertown, but none are as fine as him.”
“You need to get out more.” I scoffed, a smile creeping at my lips. I liked Nessa; her presence was magnetic, and her innocence was refreshing compared to who I’d been around lately. Considering how annoying I found Jude to be, it was hard for me to agree with her.
“We don’t have many men like Jude here.” With a wistful sigh, she looked at me, her eyes wide and sparkling with mischief. “Although the rumor is he doesn’t play for my team anyway.”
I was surprised to hear this and unearthed memories from before the apocalypse. People were scared to be who they are for fear of ridicule. I guess that’s one good thing about the end of the world—all the unnecessary hate ended. I supposed, even after all these years, humans will still be humans after all. In Elysium, sexuality wasn’t discussed because everyone was fluid. There were no labels on the gender of whom you preferred because we desired everyone. Blood made us horny, and limiting ourselves would only lose precious time before it wore off. Just because I’d never been with a girl didn’t mean I was opposed to it—I just found myself gravitating toward men.
A playful smile crossed her face, like a secret was about to be told. “Tell meallabout the hot vampire men you have in the Elysium.”
“Y-you know I’m a vampire? And that I’m gay?” Nessa’s playfulness was infectious. My heart drew me closer to her. It was clear she didn’t leave Silvertown often and found a strange reflection of myself within her.
“It’s kind of obvious.” She shrugged before looking expectantly at me. “Now spill.”
I wasn’t sure what was obvious, but I decided politeness was key—you catch more flies with honey than vinegar, as they say—so I grabbed a nearby metal chair and pulled it up to the desk. I leaned closer to Nessa, whose breath shallowed. The words were caught in my throat, a smile stretching wide across my face I couldn’t suppress. “My boyfriend, Gabe, isthehottest. Tall, dark, and handsome—what more could you want? He’s part of the military, so his body is muscle upon muscle. To boot, he has a heart of gold.”
“Good in bed?”
My eyes rolled backward. “Amazing!” I had no one to compare it to, but I can assume he’s better than most. “I wish you could see him, your mouth would drop as soon as he walked in the door.”
She raised a finger, a serious expression settling on her face. “You have to promise me if there’s ever a way to see him, you’ll bring him to me first.”
I laughed. “Promise.” This was a breath of fresh air after the last twenty-four hours I’ve experienced. Even though she was a human, Nessa lightened the heavy cloud over my head. Between the bitter resentment in my body toward Jude and the other humans who kidnapped me, and the gnawing fear for my safety, her lightheartedness was a surprising and welcome relief.
“So if you’re a gay vampire, does that mean…”
“I suck dickandblood? Yeah.”
We both stifled a giggle as I gazed at the chaotic array of curly springs, wires, and tools scattered across Nessa’s workstation. I gestured to a pile of cogs with a rusted wrench lying atop. “So what is it you do here?”
“I tinker.” She shrugged. “We try to find ways to enhance the lives of humans using technology, but we have the same broken items we’ve used for years. Sometimes we get new things we’ve stolen from the vampires we find in dumpsters, but that’s rare.” She turned to me and covered her mouth. “Maybe I shouldn’t have said that.”
I shook my head. “There’s so much waste in the Elysiums that whatever you’re able to scavenge, no one would even know. I wish I knew where we threw everything away so you could salvage it.”
She lowered her voice to a whisper. “Wanna see something I recently figured out how to fix and have hidden away, just for me?”
