Leonidas De La Cruz - Unboxed Pt 2

Midnight Reflections

I stepped out onto the patio. The night air was crisp—a welcome change after three days of triple-digit heat. The moon had risen high in a clear sky, and a fire crackled gently in the pit. Leo sat quietly in a wicker garden chair, his posture relaxed. He wore a soft cashmere pullover and gray slacks, paired with black Ferragamo loafers.

Leo: You look well rested.

2260: Yes, thank you. I hadn’t realized how much the heat had been wearing on me these past few days. What about vampires? Do you feel the heat the same way mortals do?

Leo: Not really. For a vampire, it’s easy to ignore the sensation of heat. But we do register it through sight. Our vision includes what you’d call the infrared spectrum—it helps us track living beings. When the city gets hot like this, though, everything turns red.

2260: That’s quite interesting.

I took a moment to get comfortable, pad in hand, my mind flipping back through the mental pages of what I’d written during our conversation yesterday.

2260: Yesterday, you were telling me about the merchant’s son and your encounter with him. Was that the last time you saw him, or did he come back?

Leo: Yes—the little lordling. No, it wasn’t the last time. He began to find excuses to visit the farm that summer. At first, it was under the pretense of learning about my goats.

“How large is your herd?”
“Do you sell the wool?”

I answered his questions politely, but never gave him the slightest reason to think I was interested in anything more than basic courtesy.

As the visits continued, he seemed increasingly annoyed by my stoicism, as if he expected something more from me. The charm he wore like a mask began to crack. It turned brittle, withering under the weight of my disinterest.

2260: He must have known you weren’t interested. Why did he keep coming back?

Leo: Every time he looked at me, I saw the poorly disguised lust he tried to hide in his heart. There were rumors—whispers from servants, and the occasional story from the village—about boys who had piqued his interest.

2260: It must have been a very awkward situation at best—and a very dangerous one at worst.

Leo: Yes, it was. But in late summer, something happened that changed everything. I had visitors.

My soon-to-be sire, Fernando, and his Blood Match, Genevieve, were passing through the region and sought refuge at my farm. I was a good Christian, so I welcomed them as I would have welcomed Christ Himself, had He come seeking respite.

I had no idea what Fernando truly was. He looked like a youth of sixteen—tall, muscular, with lavender eyes and an ethereal beauty more suited to heaven than the humble earth. Genevieve was older, probably in her early forties. I assumed they were mother and son, and they did not dissuade me of that impression.

2260: Did they seek shelter just for the night, or did they stay longer?

Leo: At first, it was only supposed to be a few days. But those days turned into a week… and then the week turned into longer. I didn’t mind. It was nice having people around.

Genevieve helped around the house—even in the fields. She fed the goats, harvested and ground the wheat, baked bread, and even helped with the cooking. It was good to have someone to share meals with.

2260: How did they explain Fernando’s condition? I mean… he was a vampire. What did they say about the sun?

Leo: Genevieve told me Fernando had suffered from an illness since childhood—something that made him extremely sensitive to sunlight. So he stayed indoors most of the time.

But at night, he would come out and sit with us on the porch in the cool air. He told marvelous stories about the places they had seen and their home in Spain.

Those days… I was happier than I had ever been. The visits from the lordling had stopped. I felt like the noose that had quietly slipped around my neck had finally loosened and fallen away.

2260: So the lordling had lost interest. Fernando and Genevieve had brought you companionship and comfort. You were happy.

Leo: Yes. For the first time since my parents passed, I felt peace, maybe even joy.
Fernando and Genevieve gave me something I hadn’t realized I was missing: love.

I took a moment to consider what Leo had shared. We sat there in silence.

Memories of my own life surfaced, times when I had felt completely alone, only to be rescued by those who would become my chosen family.

In that moment, I understood how Leo felt. For a brief instant, I recognized our connection… our sameness.

As our eyes met across the fire, I knew he understood and recognized that kinship.

I took a deep breath and recomposed myself. I knew that talking to Leo wasn’t just about hearing his story. It was about finding a piece of my own.

2260: So in that moment, you recognized that these two people had become a meaningful part of your life, that you weren’t alone anymore. How did that feel?

Leo: Like I could breathe again.

I had kept everything pushed down inside, using labor and motion to block out the grief and the loss. But in those moments with Genevieve and Fernando, I could let it all go.

I could just… be happy.

2260: What happened next?

Leo: Time passed.

Fernando, Genevieve, and I settled into a rhythm. Genevieve and I working the farm during the day, and at night, eating, laughing, and sharing stories.
Fernando even did some of the cooking, he was a better cook than Genevieve. At the time, I didn’t realize it was because of his centuries of practice.

Leo smiled at the memory.

2260: And the lordling—was he really gone?

Leo took a moment. I could see the joy he had remembered fade from his eyes.

Leo: No.
It was around the time of the harvest, early fall, when he came back. Drunk from the estate’s harvest celebrations, he showed up with two of his men. They were shouting insults and lewd insinuations, calling for me to come outside.

In all the time Fernando and Genevieve had stayed with me, I had never so much as heard Fernando utter a cross word. But that night, he transformed. The rage and the wrath radiating from him were white-hot. I knew, in that instant, I was looking at Alexios’ death.

Genevieve laid a hand on his shoulder, and in a heartbeat, death receded. She convinced him to let me handle the situation.

I went outside and stood on the porch. I told Alexios he was no longer welcome on my land and asked him to leave.

He just looked at me and laughed—his men laughed as well.

I stepped down off the porch and repeated my request.

He looked at me, the drink giving him courage and his lust making him cruel. He grabbed the front of my tunic and pulled me close, his breath reeking of summer wine.

He whispered that he knew what I liked. It would be less painful for me to give in than to fight.

I broke his hold and pushed him back toward his friends, telling him again to get off my land.

In that moment, Fernando stepped out onto the porch.

Alexios looked up at him. Fernando, in all his beauty, more angel than man.

Then, looking back at me, he pulled me close again and said, “I’ll leave. But I’ll be back. You will serve me. It’s just a matter of time. You’re a whore meant to be used.”

Fernando watched as they rode away.

In that moment, everything hit me at once. I collapsed to the ground, the emotion overwhelming me, tears flowing.

Fernando knelt and gathered me in his arms. He just held me while I cried.

Finally, when the sobs had quieted, he lifted me and helped me back into the house.

Gently, he asked me what had happened.

I told him everything from the beginning. How I had lost my parents, how I worked the farm because it was all I had left of them, how the merchant’s son had taken an interest in me that I didn’t share, and how tonight it had finally come to a head.

In that instant, the helplessness I felt after my parents’ death returned.

What could I do? Would I always live in fear of Alexios?

I realized that now would be a good time to stop for the night. Leo had just recounted a very emotional time in his life, and letting it breathe for a moment felt necessary.

2260: Leo, do you mind if we stop here?

He had been gazing into the fire, his thoughts elsewhere in that moment. As I spoke, he looked up at me, drawn back to the present by the sound of my voice. He smiled softly.

Leo: Sure. I think that’s a good idea.

He glanced at his watch before speaking again.

Leo: It’s almost 3 a.m. Where did the time go?

I smiled, thankful for this marvelous, complicated man who had agreed to share his story with me.

2260: Can we pick this up again tomorrow?

Leo: Sure, Hamilton. Let’s do that.
Till tomorrow...

I watched him walk down the driveway and out onto the street. I knew where he was going.

Liam.

Home.