[Taylor's Point of View]
"Yess."
My thoughts literally stumbled when I heard that single, unexpected word.
What?! I screamed in my head. I didn't expect it to go so well. How did that even work?!
Were all of Emma's dating tips a lie?
Now that I think about it... that's actually very possible.
Maybe she was just wrong.
I was startled out of my disbelief when the waiter came over to ask what I wanted to order.
Since I didn't want to talk, I made the genius move of just pointing at something on the menu.
Then I looked back at the girl and gave her my calmest, most composed nod — to make it look like this was all part of my master plan.
Unfortunately, she seemed to interpret that nod very differently.
She blushed.
Did she think I was agreeing to date her?! I definitely didn't ask her out on purpose!
Then she just started... staring at me. Like, in awe or something.
So, naturally, I stared right back to assert my dominance.
While holding eye contact, I started wondering why she was staring. Maybe she was just copying me?
Should I look away?
...No. What if that's a trick?
Yeah, better keep staring. It's a battle of will now.
[Amy's Point of View]
I was startled from my mortification when the waiter asked the beautiful girl what she wanted to order.
She silently pointed at something on the menu. Then she looked straight at me and nodded.
What… what does that mean?
Is she saying she wants to date me?
Or is she agreeing to be my girlfriend already?!
I couldn't think straight. My mind was a mess. I just stared into her eyes — those strange, beautiful eyes — and she stared right back at me.
Am I… in love?
No, no way. I can't be in love with her. I'm only in love with—
I shook my head. Maybe this is good. Maybe I don't have to pine after someone who'll never love me back.
Yeah. Maybe I should take this date seriously.
So, I decided to ask her what she likes to do for fun.
She took a full minute to respond, still staring at me, before finally saying:
"…Eating."
I nodded patiently. Not a bad wait, honestly. Looking at her face wasn't exactly unpleasant.
And then — for some reason — my brain-to-mouth filter still wasn't working, so I just blurted out:
"I like smoking."
Panic immediately set in. What if she gets disgusted and leaves right now? What if I ruined it?!
But she just nodded. No judgment. No reaction. As if it was perfectly normal.
Her indifference… weirdly comforted me.
Emboldened, I kept blurting out my likes and dislikes. She just nodded along through all of it, expressionless, calm, almost otherworldly.
But I didn't care. It felt good to just talk.
Honestly, I never thought this would happen to me — being the talkative one on a date.
And, well… it wasn't too bad. Especially since I got to keep looking at her face.
[Taylor's Point of View]
I zoned out halfway through the weird girl's rant. I was nodding, but not really listening.
My thoughts drifted to something much more interesting — how to test giving people powers.
Maybe I could even give this girl powers, as a reward for accepting my half-second confession.
But which method should I use first?
If you're wondering how I plan to give people powers, it's based on my dreams — the ones about transforming others into different species like vampires, oni, or demons.
I was snapped out of my thoughts when my food arrived.
Luckily, the weird girl stopped talking and just started looking at me again.
I didn't want to indulge her dominance attempt, so I refused to start another staring contest.
Instead, I started eating my food and drinking tea.
Yes, tea. In a café. Blasphemy, I know. But I'm a tea person — coffee disgusts me.
The weird girl started mimicking my movements, eating when I ate. See? Superiority confirmed.
Then she started talking again.
I quickly tuned her out, but kept nodding and pretending to listen like I understood.
Honestly, she's like Greg — desperate for attention. But I have more important things to think about. Like how to give her powers.
Speaking of that, it's actually pretty simple.
All I have to do is give her about half of my MA energy in a specific way so that it entangles her soul.
Yeah, I know. It's weird. But it works.
So behold — my genius plan: once her soul is entangled with my MA energy, she'll be able to steal essence from others and grow stronger.
And by "essence," I mean blood.
Yes. I'm turning her into a vampire.
Technically a progenitor vampire, but details, details.
Why, you ask? Because if you squint hard enough — and maybe hit your head against the wall a few times — she kind of looks like Vampy from my dreams. And I want my Vampy in the real world.
So, while she was distracted talking, I quietly and stealthily entangled her soul.
Hopefully she'll awaken her powers when she gets home.
I was startled out of my nefarious scheming when she asked me what kind of books I liked.
Of course, I answered with the only acceptable option: "Shakespeare."
What, did you think I'd say manga? No way. My mom raised me better than that. Shakespeare is classic literature.
…Just don't look at my manga collection.