Rose settled into Blake's house, trying to restore a sense of normalcy after the recent chaos. She excused Lily, telling her to take a rest while she busied herself in the kitchen, determined to cook a meal for Blake as a small gesture of gratitude. The rhythmic chopping of vegetables and bubbling of pots on the stove helped calm her nerves.
As Blake sat at the dining table, the tablecloth adorned with flickering candles, Rose presented a dish – a hearty chicken Alfredo pasta, each strand of pasta glistening with a velvety cream sauce. The dish was accompanied by a vibrant salad, a colorful medley of fresh greens and sun-kissed tomatoes.
Blake's eyes, usually filled with warmth, now carried a tension that mirrored the recent upheaval. The clinks of cutlery against the plate resonated as he ate, no words to say, eyes completely void.
While Blake consumed the carefully prepared meal, his gaze remained fixed on Rose. The tension in his eyes danced with unspoken questions, observing her every movement with a depth that went beyond the surface.
'Is she going to talk about it? Surely Reggie must have told her everything, right?' Blake thought, observing Rose bite through her pasta nonchalantly.
'His heartbeats is irregular. Is he scared...of me?' Rose thought minding her food but she could sense his gaze and hear the blood flow through his veins.
After the silent meal, Blake rose without uttering a word, a mere "thanks" escaping his lips as he retreated to his room. Rose, understanding the weight of unspoken turmoil, let him go without pressing for words.
Undeterred, Rose entered the bedroom after him, approaching him and planted a gentle kiss on his forehead, a silent reassurance that transcended spoken language. However, as she withdrew, she noticed Blake lying still, feigning sleep, a shield of vulnerability concealed beneath the pretense.
Not willing to leave him alone in the face of evident distress, Rose retreated into the bathroom to freshen up. The sound of running water and the clink of toiletries echoed through the quiet space. Returning in a comfortable nightgown, she cast a watchful eye over the room, her resolve firm – she wouldn't risk leaving Blake alone that night.
The nightgown flowed gracefully as Rose settled into bed beside Blake's bed.
Blake could feel her presence as he lay on the bed, eyes closed but mind racing. Images of Reggie's selfless act replayed in his mind - the literal sacrifice to save his life. Guilt and confusion swirled within him as he found himself more concerned about the act rather than what it meant.
He didn't fully understand this dangerous world he had stumbled into, but he knew he owed Reggie a debt he could never repay. However, his gratitude couldn't trump his curiosity. What happened that night...no...it needed to be talked about.
Rose left the bedroom just as he was about to turn to her and start pouring out his chest.
However, she returned shortly, balancing her laptop as she climbed onto the bed beside Blake's still form. She focused intently on her work, pulling up schematics and budgets to rebuild the headquarters that had burned to the ground. The clacking of keys filled the heavy silence between them.
Blake after a while of thinking of how to initiate the conversation decided against it. What if it was the trauma and none of it was as he thought? Could it be that being almost half conscious made him see different things from the reality?
No, he was going to let the matter die and forget all that he thought MAY have happened. It became even hilarious to him when he thought any human could survive a twenty five story jump.
'He isn't one punch man. If he did jump from that high, there would be no Reggie nor Blake today. Just our paste on the drive way,' Blake thought as eh resolved the issue in his mind.
***********
"Show him what you truly are!! Show him!!!!" Elena growled slashing her claws viciously at Blake.
Rose faltered, torn between the instinct to hide her true nature from Blake and the desperate need to protect him. Elena seized on her hesitation, feinting left and then whipping around to slash viciously at Blake with her razor-sharp claws.
Time seemed to slow. Blake stumbled back, raising an arm in a futile attempt to shield his face. He felt a line of searing pain blossom from temple to jaw as Elena's claws raked across his flesh, tearing through skin and muscle. Blood poured hotly down his neck as he crashed to the floor.
The next moment, an inhuman roar shook the room.
Blake looked up through a haze of pain to see Rose transformed. Her beautiful face was a mask of fury, eyes now glowing a hellish red. Purely white pale skin replaced her body, her hands elongated into monstrous claws. She had transfofmed into her full form, radiating waves of scorching heat and sulfurous stench.
With a screech like nails on a chalkboard emanating from Rose's mouth, Rose launched herself at Elena, all hesitation gone. The fight was brutally swift, a hurricane of slashing talons and gnashing fangs, the sisters moving in a lightning-fast blur.
Elena was laughing even as Rose drove her back, step by step. "Yes!" she crowed in vicious delight. "There's my sister! There's the real you!"
Rose snarled, redoubling her attack, but Elena danced just out of reach. With a final mocking laugh, she smashed through the window in a rain of shattered glass and disappeared into the night.
Silence fell heavily over the room, broken only by Rose's heaving breaths and the steady drip of Blake's blood on the hardwood floor.
Slowly, painfully, he pushed himself upright, one hand pressed to his mangled cheek.
Rose turned to face him, anger draining away to be replaced by apprehension and sorrow. Blake stared at her true form, revealed at last. Monstrous. Vamperic. Inhuman.
She reached a trembling hand towards him, taking a hesitant step forward. He flinched back reflexively and she froze, anguish twisting her features. The hurt and fear in his eyes cut her to the core.
"Blake..." she whispered, voice raw. "I'm so sorry. I never wanted you to see...I didn't want to frighten you."
He opened his mouth, but no words came out. What could he possibly say? His world had shattered, all his perceptions and beliefs crumbling to dust. The woman he loved...was a monster. A vampire.
Rose's shoulders slumped in defeat, tears glittering in her hellish red eyes. She turned away, unable to bear the revulsion on his face for another moment.
"I'll go," she said softly, voice heavy with pain. "You don't deserve this," she said.
"You won't ever have to see me again. I'm so sorry I brought this darkness into your life."
She moved towards the ruined window, glass shards crunching under her feet. Blake watched her retreating back, emotions warring within him.