Problem Child

[likeits1999]

...So, uh. Got some things I should probably tell you guys.

[ Kevin seems a little nervous, he has trouble doing "eye contact" with the mirror. ]

I guess like... first of all, I'm Kevin? I'm from New York? I skate? I've met some of you but not everybody so...

[ He shrugs. ]

You ever known somebody who... uh, has a personal problem? But it turns out that if you know 'em and are around 'em all the time it kinda winds up to be their crap ends up being everybody's shit to deal with?

It's kinda like that.

[ Everything about trying to explain this is awful. Everything. ]

The thing with me is... well..

I'm... kind of a vampire?

[ There. He said it. Getting that part out helps him square up and face it a little better, his gaze steadies straight on the mirror. ]

Actually, not "kind of" at all. I'm definitely a vampire. I drink people's blood. I have to. Been doing this shit a good while, too. The Green's got my back with the whole sunlight deal, but I still ain't exactly keeping down regular grindage if you know what I'm saying.

[ Kevin winces a little. He tried. ]

So... here's the deal: I need to drink blood sometimes. Otherwise I get hungry, and when I get hungry I stop... being able to be a person so good? It's bad. Trust me.

[ Please, please trust the self-described vampire. ]

It's not a lot all the time, I can go a bit if I'm full up, and I can stretch it on animals and junk like that, but it's... yeah, dog.

[ He makes his lungs pull in air and breathe it back out in a long hwoo. ]

The other thing is it's probably... if I'm gonna be real with allay'all, I don't want to put my teeth in you? I mean, I got 'em.

[ He takes a second to drop fangs and show the mirror before pulling them back in, which probably does a whole lot of good for his image with the team. ]

It does stuff to people, though? And I don't want to be like that if we're gonna be doing this Lord of the Rings shit together, alright? If we're gonna be real, I'm gonna be real.

[ Kevin's shoulders sink a little as this sudden surge of confidence falters. ]

I don't know what I'm supposed to do about this, but I'm not lying about it and I'm not gonna sneak around. And I mean.... if y'all wanna run me off into the woods, cool, but I'm gonna end up stuck comin' back like any of the rest of us.

If I could just go find someplace else to be, I mean...

[ He smiles weakly. ]

You wouldn't be hearing this.

Comments

[loadme]

Is it really?

I've never met a vampire before, or been to New York, but I guess this isn't what it's usually like for you, huh.

[likeits1999]

Maybe you have. We're stealthy. It's how we get by.

It's... yeah no, I don't generally go talking about this. There's people that'd gut me for an example, you dig?

[loadme]

[No she's pretty sure she hasn't before.]

Wow, really? That seems like a pretty drastic outcome.

[likeits1999]

Them's the rules, man.

[ Kevin shrugs. ]

I didn't make 'em. Somebody lets on that we're real, that somebody doesn't get to stick around.

[loadme]

Those are some pretty silly rules if you ask me.

[likeits1999]

I mean... it's real nasty, but it makes sense?

You do something that makes it dangerous for everybody, everybody's gonna make it dangerous for you.

[loadme]

That makes it all the better that you're here instead.

Not that this world doesn't have it's own share of danger. It really does!

[likeits1999]

Yeah. I guess.

[ Kevin has to think about that for a second, but yeah. ]

Like... I haven't told anybody that I'm a vampire before. Not anybody who wasn't a vampire too. It's different.

[loadme]

Are there really that many vampires back where you're from?

[likeits1999]

Yeah. I've seen a whole bunch in New York, and I don't know all of 'em. But it's a real big city, there aren't so many in smaller places.

But there's lots of us.

[loadme]

That's good, isn't it?

A lifestyle like that would sound pretty harsh if it was by yourself.

[likeits1999]

There being vampires is pretty much a bad thing for everybody.

[loadme]

I can understand that. But you look like you've managed just fine so far.

Or at least, you're making me believe that you have. And that's good enough!