Techno knew he could only keep ignoring his landlord's calls for so long before the guy would resort to more drastic measures.
His phone had been blowing up for nearly a week. Techno had set the device to silent ages ago so he often didn't even notice when somebody was trying to reach him, but the missed calls were really stacking up now. If it was urgent, they could send him a text. Those were way easier for his social anxiety to deal with. And in this specific instance, he knew what the person calling him wanted from him anyway, so he saw no reason to pick up.
His back rent was building its way up to a ridiculous amount, and his landlord wanted him to pay or move out.
There was nothing Techno could tell them except "I'm working on it", and he doubted that would satisfy their nagging. His phone started vibrating in his pocket as he left his last lecture of the day and without even glancing at the screen Techno fished it out of his pocket and dismissed the call. He had no choice but to stop by the clinic again today, though he doubted Niki was going to allow him to donate. He'd have to try and throw a pity party to convince her to commit medical malpractice.
Maybe if he told her the alternative was him ending up homeless, she'd be swayed.
The clinic was only three blocks down from the university, still in the upper-class part of the city. Techno listened to music on his headphones while making his way there. The buildings in this neighborhood were rather fancy, highrises with balconies on each floor and which Techno could only imagine were filled with lofts or studios or whatever realtors called them these days to make living in an apartment the size of a shoebox feel appealing. If he could barely afford his own place, he couldn't imagine what the people living there earned. On street level, there were stores and restaurants of all kinds. Many of them were open 24/7 because they tried to appeal to a more diverse clientele of both vampires and humans.
Niki's clinic was open 24/7 too, allowing her customers to enjoy midnight takeout.
The young nurse behind the reception whose name he always forgot barely glanced at Techno, waving him over to the back with a quick smile. With how often Techno came by, it wasn't surprising that he'd be recognized. He was probably one of their most loyal visitors.
"Techno!" Niki didn't quite cover up that she was surprised to see him, but to her credit, she didn't seem less excited for it. Over the almost four years of knowing each other, they'd grown quite close. Techno would consider her one of his few friends. "What are you doing here, aren't you scheduled to come back next week?"
"I can't just step in for a friendly visit?" Techno asked, sitting down on one of the swivel chairs with wheels on it that Niki kept behind her desk. Techno loved those things, you could spin around in them.
"Of course you can." She laughed. "Uh, give me a sec to finish this?" She held up the butterfly needle and transparent tube she was holding.
Techno hummed with a nod, watching her walk over to one of the chairs. The woman in it was reading a magazine, keeping her free arm outstretched along the armrest so Niki could do her job without her needing to put it down. She was probably a regular like Techno then, familiar with the procedure.
Only two of the other chairs were occupied. One person was in the middle of getting their blood drained, tapping on their phone as the bag attached to an iron stand next to them slowly filled with red. The other must already be done because they'd been bandaged up and were sipping on a juice pack.
Niki exchanged some words with the woman, making a couple of notes on her chart. The phone in Techno's pocket started to vibrate again but he ignored it, watching as Niki went through the procedure with practiced ease. Cleaning her hands and pulling on gloves, disinfecting the skin where she was going to insert the needle, and sliding it in smoothly. Niki was good at it, Techno knew from experience. He usually barely felt it.
When she was done she checked that the blood was flowing steadily before she took off the gloves and cleaned her hands again, before finally coming back over to him.
"So, what's been going on with you then?" She took the other swivel chair, scooting it a little closer. They should race down the hallways again sometime, Techno thought, that was fun.
"Not a lot. Classes have been pretty boring, same old same old." Lots of deadlines, but that was nothing new. He doubted Niki wanted to hear about those anyway.
"And your landlord?" Niki asked.
"They've been the same old same old too," Techno said cautiously. At least he wouldn't have to beat around the bush for long. Niki was smart enough to know why he actually came by.
"Techno." Her smile was patient, but her eyes were sharp as they narrowed at him. "You're not just here to say hello, are you?"
"How dare you accuse me of having ulterior motives?!" Techno responded in mock outrage. He pushed the chair back until it hit the wall. "I just wanted to see how my dear friend Niki was doing… But since I'm here anyway." He left the sentence there, looking at her pleadingly.
"Our rules for how often people can sell their blood are there for a reason," Niki said. "You can't-"
"I've read the pamphlets, Niki. I know what the rules are. And the risks. But I like having a place to sleep at night and if I don't pay up soon, I'm going to be evicted from my apartment."
Besides, it wasn't as if they'd never broken the rules before. These clinics didn't have to set the same standards as hospitals or blood donated for medical purposes. As long as nobody actually died, the government didn't mind turning a blind eye to what went on there.
A vampire becomes more dangerous the hungrier it gets. It made sense that making their meals readily available to them was a priority. In a very roundabout way, Niki's clinic probably saved more lives than it endangered.
"That bad?" Niki's expression softened. She was empathetic to his struggles since she knew about Techno's past. This malpractice thing was going to be a piece of cake.
(Techno did feel a little bad about that, but he'd make it up to her later.)
"You don't have to do a full batch. Just enough for me to be able to pay the guy tonight," Techno insisted. "Then he doesn't have a reason to kick me out."
She stared at him a moment longer, probably inspecting him for visible symptoms of anemia. Techno waited, sitting very, very still. He needed this money.
At long last, she sighed. "Fine. How much do you need?"
"Five hundred bucks would work," he answered. That should allow him to pay off a third of the back rent. Not much, but it was a start. And he didn't feel like pushing his luck with Niki.
"Get in the chair."
Not wanting her to change her mind, Techno quickly pulled off his hoodie and bunched it up in his lap, already laying out his arm. Niki was still gathering the materials so as an afterthought, Techno grabbed the book he was reading for his literature class from his bag. It was a collection of short stories by Edgar Allan Poe and it was the most boring read in the world. But if he wanted to keep his grades up, he'd have to truck through it. Might as well try to get a chapter down while he waited the five to ten minutes it would usually take to donate.
Niki came back to his side, pulling up her chair. She'd brought his chart. "There have been no changes in your health, right?"
"Fit as a fiddle," Techno assured her.
She unraveled the tube and connected it to a blood bag. "No unexplained bruises? Vertigo? Headaches?"
"Absolutely none."
"What about your diet?" Niki asked. "I'm taking it that hasn't improved either?"
Ouch. Techno chuckled awkwardly. Since he was a college student, surviving no energy drinks and cup noodles was kind of his thing. He nodded at his arm as she attached the pressure cuff around it, pulling it tight. "I'm sure there are enough nutrients in there to satisfy them."
"That's not what I'm worried about," Niki shot back. "Eating properly is important, especially if you're going to let your blood be drawn this often." She still had the needle in her hand, making no move to insert it, and for a moment Techno was scared she'd changed her mind. He really needed that money.
Then she picked up the disinfection wipe and dragged it along the inside of his elbow. "Besides," she went on, "what's in your blood does actually change depending on what you eat, so…"
Techno looked away while the needle went in. He was used to this and neither the sting nor seeing blood really bothered him. It was always a bit unpleasant to watch his skin bulge around the steel of the syringe though. Niki used a small piece of adhesive tape to secure it.
"What about your sleep schedule, has that improved?" Niki said.
"I don't think that's on your questionnaire," Techno joked. She rolled her eyes at him.
"Consider it me asking as a friend then."
"I get by," Techno said. "I don't have too much free time."
As was the fate of any double major. Techno had nobody to blame but himself for being indecisive on which branch to go into and thus deciding he'd just do both. His education was one of the things he'd always excelled at, so it made sense for him to throw his all into getting two degrees. He was currently dual majoring in English and history, which left little time for… pretty much anything else.
Which was also the main reason he couldn't get a normal part-time job to earn extra cash (on top of his social anxiety balking at the very thought of having to work in customer service). Selling his blood was much easier and much quicker.
At Niki's disapproving look, he only shrugged a bit. As she went to help one of her other donators, Techno opened his book and started to read. With how dense this writing was, he only managed to finish a few pages before she came back to remove the needle. She'd only drawn enough to fill one small bag from him, much less than she usually would. But Techno wouldn't complain - not when she handed him the envelope with cash that he quickly stashed into his backpack. There was definitely more money in there than he'd usually get for such a small amount of blood. She must be getting soft on him. When he tried to stand up, Niki pushed him back down into the chair.
"Stay there for at least fifteen minutes," she said sternly. "Do you want chocolate milk or orange juice?"
"Do you happen to serve anything that isn't from the kid's menu?" Techno asked lightly. Not that he disliked either of those beverages, he'd just murder for a cup of coffee right now. He still needed to finish an essay before going to bed tonight.
Sensing his intentions, Niki laughed. "I'm not going to give you anything with caffeine in it, you'll faint."
"Chocolate milk it is," Techno said.
He managed to finish the chapter while he waited and had his drink. When he checked his watch, it was almost seven pm already. If he hurried, Techno could still catch the bus and avoid having to stand around for half an hour before being able to get home. He pulled his hoodie back on and said goodbye to Niki hastily, not even bothering to put away his book and keeping it in his hand instead. He was a bit dizzy but that could be because of a million reasons completely unrelated to the blood thing, surely.
Though it was probably why he didn't notice somebody was coming in through the door at the same time Techno was trying to leave.
Their bodies collided with surprising force. Techno landed on his butt quite embarrassingly - which he'd also blame on the blood draw making him unstable. The guy he'd run into didn't budge an inch, like a brick wall or something. He quickly bent over to help Techno up.
"Sorry, I didn't see you there." His voice was smooth, deep but in a pleasant way. His fingers touched the bare skin of Techno's wrist only for a moment while helping him stand but it almost made Techno wince with how cold that touch was, the stranger's skin akin to ice.
Techno looked up into the piercing red eyes of a vampire.
This one looked young. Physically, the man in front of him seemed of a similar age to Techno. Which made it all the more creepy that Techno had no way of knowing his actual age. He had slightly curled brown hair that was long enough to hang in front of his glasses and a kind smile, only slightly undercut by the visible sharp fangs when he grinned. His skin was so pale it seemed almost translucent in the waning daylight.
Daylight that he showed no sign of being concerned about. Yet another sign that told Techno this vampire would be much older than he looked.
His book had slipped from his hand during the collision and while Techno was still blinking dumbly, the man picked it up for him.
"Edgar Allen Poe, hm? Not exactly the type of literature I'd imagine for somebody who comes here." He gestured at the clinic behind them.
"It's for my literary analysis class," Techno said a bit defensively, before immediately wondering why he felt the need to defend his choice of book in front of a complete stranger. The man smiled, forming wrinkles around his red eyes. His narrow pupils were slightly dilated in amusement.
"Is that so?"
"Yeah," Techno said casually. "I don't really like Poe's work. His writing is awfully pretentious."
With a flourish, his book was handed back to him. "I had the displeasure of meeting the guy and I can confirm. He was horribly pretentious from start to finish."
"I imagine you two got along then?" Techno said, eyeing the man's outfit. He looked like he'd walk straight out of a victorian drama, the long tailored jacket and waistcoat more fit on a cosplayer than a guy who looked like he was in his early twenties.
Surprisingly, the man laughed. Techno smiled a little. Then he felt his phone go off again through the fabric of his jeans.
"I have to go," he said hastily, already shoving his book into his bag.
The man nodded. "Pity. I'm Wilbur Soot, by the way. It was nice to meet you."
"Techno Blade," he threw over his shoulder, already scooting past the guy. "Maybe I'll see you again some other time?" Techno doubted it since he usually showed up in the clinic during the day hours. With vampires being nocturnal, that made the chances rather slim that they'd run into each other again.
"I'd like that," Wilbur still said.
Techno only barely made it to the bus stop in time, sinking down into one of the chairs while gasping from all the running. Niki would give him a lecture about taking it easy after having his blood drawn less than an hour ago, but Techno was more than done with today and just wanted to get home.
The moment he set foot into his building he already regretted that decision.
After all: Techno knew he could only keep ignoring his landlord's calls for so long before the guy would resort to more drastic measures.
Camping out in front of his apartment was not what Techno had expected though.
"Blade!" His landlord was pretty much yelling into his face already and Techno couldn't help but wonder if he'd get out of this by sticking the guy with an assault charge. Probably not, but it might be worth a shot. "Did you lose your phone?"
"Not that I'm aware of," Techno said innocently as if he couldn't feel the heavy weight of it in his pocket.
"Well, could have fooled me." When Techno tried to slip past them, they braced their arm against the wall to bar his way. "You owe me rent."
"I'm working on it," Techno said. But it was clear that wasn't going to cut it this time. "Here."
He got the envelope and handed it over, watching his landlord tear it open with no regard for civility and thumb through the bills quickly. Their expression only soured. "You got this by serving those freaks your blood on a silver platter, did you?"
"What does it matter to you?" Techno asked.
"I don't want a blood bag living in my residence, frankly."
Oh yeah, because that's what Techno needed. Them being even more difficult. "You wanted your money, you got your money. I don't see what the problem is."
They inhaled loudly through their nostrils. "This isn't nearly enough to cover your back rent."
"I know," Techno said, trying to get past them again but unable to. Man, he just wanted to eat and sleep. What did a guy have to do around here to get into his own home? "But it's something, right? I can get you the rest later."
His landlord scowled, pushing the money into the front pocket of their grimy overcoat. "When is later?"
"When I have the money?" Why did people have to be so dense? "You can't kick me out so long as I don't fall more than three months behind on my payments."
A legal loophole Techno had been staking his sanity on for almost a year now.
Which is why it was so disheartening when his landlord only smirked, pushing off the wall to finally let him through. "That's too bad since I'll be raising the rent next month."
Techno frowned. "You can't do that without giving me notice."
"I've been trying to give you notice for a long while but somebody didn't answer my phone calls. Not my fault the written notice was lost somewhere along the way too." The lie was bold, but more worryingly it was effective. If they were being serious about this, Techno was screwed.
"You wouldn't-"
"All my money by the end of the month, Blade," his landlord said viciously - knowing full well that with only ten days left, there was no way Techno could get that much together. "Or you better start looking for a new place to stay."
Techno did look for a new place to stay.
The search lasted about an hour before he had to give it up and resign to being miserable about the results. His building was pretty much the only place that ran as cheap as it did, everywhere else the rent was ridiculously high. If he couldn't afford his current apartment without going into debt, getting anything else was out of the question.
This boiled down his options to either asking his uncle for help or dropping one of his majors.
The first option sounded like a terrible idea. Techno hadn't really exchanged any words with that man aside from the odd holiday greeting since he moved out at eighteen. Techno had lived with his uncle for only a couple of years after his parents died in a car accident, and if those years had taught him anything it was this his uncle didn't have any kids of his own for a reason. He wasn't interested in raising Techno, and Techno doubted he was interested in helping him with the financial aspect of his studies either. That's why he choose a university on the other end of the country and moved out on his own.
The second option… Well, it wasn't any easier for Techno to accept either but it was all he had left. He'd already maxed out what he possibly could get from his university regarding financial support. They'd tell him that if he couldn't raise his income, he'd need to cut down on costs. It was basic math.
By the time he went back to Niki's for his scheduled appointment, Techno had more or less accepted his fate. He just hadn't been able to bring himself to contact his administrator yet to give them the news.
Once again, the nurse at the desk didn't really acknowledge him, correctly assuming Techno knew where to head. But as he rounded the corner into the main room, he almost ran straight into somebody again.
Not any somebody. The same person as last time.
"Is this going to become a pattern?" Wilbur asked, bemused. At least Techno managed to stay upright this time and retain some of his dignity.
"You tell me. Are you going to keep lurking around corners like a creep?"
And just like last time Wilbur laughed. He must be a fan of Techno's scathing sarcasm. His laugh was light, aimless. The kind that sounded like it belonged in a song. "Did you get through Poe yet?"
"I wish. Was he as prone to using homonyms in real life as he was in his stories? Because if so, he must have been a blast at those Graham's Magazine parties."
Wilbur's eyebrows raised a bit in sincere surprise, eyes widening behind the round golden frames of his glasses. "Oh, it was the dullest shit in human memory. I had to attend them because of work and fell asleep multiple times. The drinks were pretty good though, editors do not skim on cheap wine. I'm surprised those types of events are remembered over two hundred years later, is that part of your curriculum or do you simply enjoy flexing obscure history facts?"
"I'm a dual major with a good memory," Techno answered off-handedly.
The vampire inclined his head, lips pulling up a bit. He looked at Techno as if seeing him for the first time. As if seeing straight into his soul. The intensity of his stare sent a shudder through Techno. "Impressive."
"It was while it lasted," Techno commented, trying not to squirm beneath that gaze. Being reminded of his predicament wasn't fun either. He hadn't entirely accepted it yet, but he'd have to sooner or later.
Wilbur might have wanted to add something more, but that's when Niki came out of the backroom carrying a small carton box, carefully sealed with white tape. The biohazard symbols on the outside left little to the imagination as to what might be inside.
"Oh, hey Techno!" she greeted happily upon spotting him. "Here you go, Wil. These should last you about a week." Those last words were aimed at Wilbur while handing over the box.
"Not at the rate he's eating," Wilbur said. "Phil's getting a bit concerned."
"You can bring him in if you want?" Niki offered. Techno wasn't sure what about that suggestion was so off-putting for Wilbur to scowl at it.
"Yeah, we'll see if that flies with Phil. Thank you though." He turned to Techno. "Good luck with Poe."
"Thanks," Techno said. "Maybe if I drink enough wine while reading, the book will be easier to get through as well." His joke got another chuckle out of Wilbur.
"You two have met?" Niki asked.
"We only had the pleasure of making acquaintances out of each other recently," Wilbur said. "Niki, you never told me you had such an amusing Fount at your clinic."
Techno didn't know if he should be offended or not that Wilbur referred to him with such an archaic term, so he stayed silent instead.
"You never asked," Niki shot back. "You folks used to make me deliver, remember? You never took an interest in the other humans at the clinic before."
"Maybe that's about to change then," Wilbur said mysteriously while looking over at Techno. Before he could really respond though, the vampire was already heading out the door. "I hope to see you both again."
Techno watched the trail of that ridiculous trenchcoat disappear around the corner.
"He's weird," he said. Niki laughed.
"Wil's harmless, just theatric," she said fondly. Clearly the two had known each other for a long while. "You get used to him. Are you ready for your appointment?"
He nodded, taking off his hoodie again as he sat down.
Techno wondered how long Wilbur had been getting blood for his coven from this clinic. It was entirely possible he had fed on Techno's blood before, which was a bit of a strange thing to consider. Techno knew that his blood was being sold to vampires, obviously. He'd just never been confronted with it so directly.
The thought really did not horrify him as much as other people seemed to feel it should.
Not that it mattered any, since Techno doubted he'd be seeing the man again anyway.
