Roku chuckles softly at my proposal, her eyes sparkling with warmth. "Yes… I'll follow you. I'll be faithful to you, Jacob." She pauses before adding with a shy giggle, "I like you. You're different from every vampire I've met before. You act more like a kind human than those damned bloodsuckers."
Her words hit me with unexpected sweetness. I smile as she sits up on the bed, still wrapped in the towel, her ears twitching happily.
"I want to take a bath now," she says, "but first… can we exchange numbers?"
She reaches for an old, cracked phone on the bedside table. The device looks ancient — the screen is badly scratched, and the casing is held together with thick strips of tape. I give her my number and call it so she can save the contact. A second later, my own phone vibrates.
"I texted you," she says with a bright smile.
I check the message and save her number immediately. "Good. I'm going outside for some fresh air. Take your time."
