Author's Note: This is a new story I'm trying out. The outline is based on an original story I wrote back in 2009. I've updated it for 2019 and added more chapters. It is based on the real life relationship between Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch. She gives him sweetheart eyes whenever he's not looking. It's freakin' adorable.
1:
It was so quiet.
Becky Lynch could hardly hear a thing.
She was sure the students and faculty could hear her every move.
The afternoon sun filtered through the custom tinted windows of Draculae Academy, casting an eery yellow glow that enveloped her like a fever dream. The teacher's lounge was designed with a cold color scheme of slate gray and gold. It held no one else but Becky.
She was the only human on campus.
She shrugged off the loneliness and idly stirred her coffee, wondering if someone would bother to come in and greet her on her first day back from summer break.
When Becky was just a child living in Ireland, the vampire race had begun to make themselves known to the public. It started with prominent figures coming out in Europe, mostly political figures and those with enough money to hide if they were not accepted. When they came out in the United States, they were met with harsh criticism. They worked for years to negotiate a peace treaty with the world, claiming that they would drink animal blood and humans would never need to fear them.
During negotiations, vampires were killed left and right. Most of them were burned, being more susceptible to hot burning fire but not as sensitive to sunlight as once believed. They were somewhat intolerant to the rays of mid-daylight, but they could walk in it like anyone else. Crosses and holy water did nothing, and a wooden stake was powerless. Rumors spread that silver stakes could paralyze a vampire if struck in the heart. These stakes were mass produced as a form of protection, though many were being used in secret government operations to further eradicate the vampire population. For low-income families who could not afford silver stakes, garlic water was sold as a spray deterrant to keep vampires away.
Beck had just turned twenty-one when an amendment to the Constitution was passed that allowed vampires equal rights. They were able to build their own schools, create their own communities, marry one another and establish families through artificial reproduction. Discrimination was still a largely human matter and unwritten rules were established that vampires should stay with their own kind. During times of hate, they chose not to retaliate against humans. There were times when a vampire did commit a crime against humans, but they were punished by fellow vampires.
Despite all efforts to show that they were trustworthy and meant no harm, vampires continued to be treated as a minority to be hated and feared.
Becky was more accepting than most when it came to working with vampires. They were a hard-nosed and overly serious race, utterly proud of their heritage, but they were the most willing to work with humans during the toughest of times, supplying jobs and housing when there was not enough to go around.
Becky Lynch was hired with Draculae Academy, the most prestigious all male vampire college in the United States. She was one of the only women in the Academy next to Dean Bayley Martinez. Becky was also the first and only human willing to work there so far.
The boys of the Academy ranged in age from eighteen and up. Due to the rapid memory recall and maturity of vampires, many graduated and returned to their communities by the age of twenty-one.
The young vampires were born artificially, and they would continue to grow until the age of twenty-four, where they will only age a year for every Century that passed. Male vampires were known to be more territorial and rebellious in their late teens, though they had shown progress working with humans. The female vampires could become possessively attached, which deemed the women's schools unsafe for humans until a better solution could be reached.
Becky Lynch understood her role as an educator and as a human. If she were to prove that humans could successfully work with vampires, the school may one day be open for human student admission.
The door to the lounge opened. Dr. John Cena stepped through it and gave Becky a warm smile. He was one of the oldest vampires known to humankind, though he appeared to be in his late 30s. He had short dark hair and soft blue eyes that twinkled when he smiled. His expensive suits and his easy way of conversing with others made him appear deceptively normal.
"Hello, Miss Becky. You are looking lovely today," he said.
John seemingly glided across the room in a moment of time, taking the seat across from her at the table.
"Thank you, Johnny. How's your day, so far?" Becky asked.
Vampires had very accurate hearing, but it still felt like the teacher's lounge was some faraway place where troubles could be told and frustrations could be vented without fear of retaliation. John remarked with a sigh, "A student refuses to call on my title. He claims that, by being a doctor of education, I am not medically certified, and therefore, I should not take away the good graces of our medical practitioners by calling myself Dr. Cena."
Becky shook her head, replying, "What's the matter? You did your time! You're a doctor by all means!"
John smiles and leaned in to tell her softly, "Congratulations on a year of service."
"Oh, bless you, Johnny," Becky blushed.
:-:
"Would one of you tell me how the law of gravity works on a vampire in motion?" Becky asked the classroom.
Becky faced the classroom. The seating was arranged like a college, a set of semi-circles rising up to the top of the room while she stood in the lowest point next to a large wooden desk and a wide-screen TV. The dozens of young male students that filled the seats stared back at her with stoic expressions. To the untrained, it would make them feel smaller and preyed upon. Becky had long since gotten used to the penetrating gaze given off by vampires.
Kofi Kingston raised his hand. He was one of the more composed students of the school. His demeanor was considerate and he was socially casual, but he did appear to be interested in what the teachers had to offer as far as education. Becky pointed at him and he lowered his hand, answering, "A vampire can defy the law of gravity while in motion, but only for seconds at a time."
Becky nodded and replied loud enough for the class to hear, "Precisely. A vampire can stay in a state of levitation for up to five whole seconds at any height, but no longer than eleven seconds."
She turned back to write on her laptop screen, which would project onto the wide-screen TV for the students to see. A familiar male voice interrupted her train of thought when he asked smoothly, "How do you know that for certain, Miss Lynch?"
Becky didn't have to turn around to know who was speaking. Seth Rollins was a nineteen-year-old student she knew all too well. He had a knack for being quietly rebellious, questioning every teacher in the Academy to the fullest extent. He also used his quick wit and athleticism against fellow students in competitions. His father donated the finances required to build the Academy, and therefore, Seth was considered untouchable. It was obvious in his glowing deep brown eyes that he knew that fact.
Becky turned around to face him. Seth leaned back in his seat and placed his index finger between his lips, toying idly with one of his extra long fangs while she replied to him, "I'd say it is not certain, but a matter of declaration on behalf of the book of records. No vampire in recorded history of the race has been in a state of levitation for longer than eleven seconds."
Seth blinked slowly. He stared down her body, then lifted his gaze to match her hazel eyes. Becky remained undaunted, knowing that vampires in large groups tended to become agitated by signs of weakness. Seth sat up and straightened his handsome features as he asked calmly, "Your proposal is that it is a law, but is it truly, Miss Lynch? If someone happens to come along and break the record, would it not be a law at all?"
A few snickers escaped the lips of the other students. Seth smiled slightly, awaiting Becky's answer with the utmost confidence that he had gotten the best of her. Becky could feel his gaze penetrating her very being. He was either intensely analyzing her reaction for signs of a break, or he was fantasizing about her.
"I said that gravity has a law, but not the act of levitation. As you have pointed out, Mr. Rollins, we have no way of writing vampire levitation down as law. There are times when some vampires are not able to maintain levitation for the full eleven seconds. It may be more of a skill than to believe that anyone is capable."
Seth's confidence faded. He had not expected her to counter him so clearly. He replied with a harder tone, "Are you suggesting that some of us are weaker than others, Miss Lynch?"
This provoked more intensity from all the students in the classroom. Most would have reacted based on fight or flight in the midst of such a large group poised in a threatening manner, but Becky had been well trained before arriving at the Academy. She also had a year of experience that had given her enough knowledge to understand how to handle this challenge.
"Not at t'all. Weakness is not based on a talent or an ability, but on the one who uses them. Levitation is much like a piece of artwork, Mr. Rollins. Some can do it well. Others fair not so well and others still may have a talent with a brush rather than a charcoal mark."
The intensity passed quickly. Seth made no more remarks. Becky turned back to the board and continued her lecture.
She knew from experience that Seth Rollins would not let her get the best of him. He was quiet for now, but he was not finished probing her.