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But I let him continue. “I was hanging out with my gee’s.

It was me, K. Squeala. J. Money and Lil Reek, we was standing in front of the crib.

Reek goof ass was talking about this bop that he cracked at this party last Friday.

It felt like a regular day. No cap, we was slippin’, cuz fo’ you know it.

Woo-wap-da-bam, The Opps hit the corner and roll up.

And buddy start blastin’ on us. I couldn’t even pull my blickey out my shit.

J. Money got a few shots out before we took off.

I took fo’ of them bullets.” Donté tapped his chest, abdomen, forearm and thigh, marking the places he’d been shot.

“On fo’ and ‘nem, I was outta there. I mean out. Ambulance got me to UIC Medical, but they say I was bleeding out. Doctors was working on my Black ass. I could hear ‘em saying that Grey’s Anatomy shit above my head, but I didn’t see ‘em, just heard ‘em. I could feel myself slippin’, you know? Like falling asleep, like I was on percs, but deeper. I ‘member thinking I wish I would’ve took my dumbass to my granny house over in Lawndale like my mama told me too. Hard-headed, that was me.”

What a colorful story. I nodded, remembering my plunge over the balcony. That millisecond of knowing it was over was a terrible feeling.

“Zand told me he was at the hospital when I died. He was there cuz his lady was a patient.”

“Yeah, somebody jumped her in the parking lot of her old apartment.” I added my facts.

“Right. Zand told me there was a lot of my fam in the waiting room going through it cuz I was shot da fuck up. He said my fam was toe up over me. He said I couldn’t be that bad if all those people was held up at the hospital worried about me and praying for me to make it.”

He had a good point. I was even convinced that he wasn’t that bad. “Why did Zand pick you to turn?”

“He said something about me called out to him. He said he thought he heard my voice even though I was dead.”

Did he really? “And then he turned you?” I filled in the blanks.

“Nah, not right dem and there. My body went to the morgue. Zand said he came back later and copped me.” A smile flashed across Donté’s face. “Rich-ass vampire sneaking into a morgue to steal some YN’s body? Can you imagine dat shit?”

I couldn’t believe I was keeping up with all the AAVE and Chicago hood slang that was coming out his mouth. It had to be thanks to The ShadeRoom. I’m sure it wasn’t my suburban middle-class upbringing. “I can’t even imagine it.”

“My father said he gave me his blood, but I don’t remember that part. I guess I fell asleep, and I woke up like this.” He raised both of his arms out to his sides and dropped them back on the bed. “A vampire.”

“I’m scared of all of this.” I admitted. “I’m afraid I won’t be me anymore. That the vampire will take over and Morgan will disappear.”

“I get that. First few weeks, I kept looking for my heartbeat. Kept forgetting it wasn’t there anymore.” He tapped his chest. “Empty. Silent. On my soul, it freaked me the fuck out.”

“How did you get over that?” I struggled to find the words.

“Father, Zand told me I was going to get something that felt like a heartbeat over time if I continued to drink blood. He said something about vampirism being a virus that mutated over the years. He said old vampires don’t have a heartbeat but all the newly made ones like us do.”

That was something I didn’t know. Harlen said my heartbeat would come back, but he didn’t say anything about a virus or that some vampires don’t have one.

“I really don’t know anything about being a vampire.”

“It’s a learn as you go type of deal. Give it some time.” Donté’s young ass was schooling me.

“Time seems to be all we have.”

“We still can die. It’s just harder to kill us, so we gotta keep our head on a swivel.”

“I’ll remember that.”

“Dead ass, I’m high-key happy father made me.

He gave my Black ass a do over. He showing me a different lifestyle.

As a vampire, I can have a life without poverty.

I don’t have to worry about the police fucking with me.

No drive-by shootings, no more gangbanging, burying dead homies, or killing other YNs that look like me.

Now I got a father. I never had one before, not around me.

Didn’t even grow up with one. My real daddy went to jail when I was three.

I don’t even remember his ass. I was just another YN being raised by a single mom that was working hard to feed me and house me just so I could do all the wrong things.

I know Zand isn’t my real father, but he my father in every way that matters.

On God, being a vampire is better than my old fucked up life. ”

“Well damn, Donté, that’s an origin story.” Another wave of bloodlust hit me. I shut my eyes tight and clawed at my stomach.

“Gee, drink the blood.” Donté’s eyes moved over to the glass of blood sitting right beside me, the one he brought with him.

I glanced over at the glass on the nightstand.

He didn’t have to tell me twice. I picked that bad boy up and tilted it to my lips.

I drank it down until there was only a mask of red smeared on the inside of the glass.

I gently placed the glass down on the nightstand.

I fought the urge to place my finger in the glass.

Dig out what little was left. And suck it off my fingers.

“That actually helped.” I said, surprised at how much better I instantly felt.

“Gee, don’t starve yourself. My father has an endless supply. He got all the blood types.”

I never even thought about different blood types. What type did I just drink? It was del-lish.

“I got a question for you.” I asked.

“What’s up?”

“Did you ever...” I hesitated, uncertain how to phrase the question. “Did you ever hurt anyone? After you were turned?”

He understood me right away. “I haven’t hurt anyone as a vampire. But I hurt a lot of people when I was human.” Donté’s eyes changed. They were filled with regret. His life was better now that he was a vampire. I feared the same wouldn’t be for me.

“I’m afraid I will hurt someone. I know I’m stronger and faster. And then the hunger. I don’t want to attack anybody.”

“We can hurt people without meaning to. But you got all these people around you to help you through the early parts of being a vampire. It’s only been three days, and you doing good if you ask me. Don’t overthink it.”

“I don’t feel in control.” I admitted. “I feel like I’m hanging on by my fingernails.”

“Gee, that’s control. And your nails are fire.” He said and bucked his eyes like I was slow. I mean, okay, I get it. I’m new to the vampire family, but could he stop calling me gee?

“Did you ever go back to see your family after you turned?” I asked.

“Nah, when I died in the hospital, that was it. Father told me if I wanted this new life, I couldn’t go back to my old one. Everybody knows that I died. Your family doesn’t know you died. You can act like nothing happened.”

“Yeah, you’re tight. But don’t you miss your mother?”

“Yeah, fo’ sure, but she better off without me. I was a bad influence on my little brother and my cousins. All I did was cause my mama problems. I know she good. She moved to Ohio to stay with her sister. It worked out for her and my brother.”

A comfortable silence settled between us.

For the first time since waking up to this new existence, I didn’t feel completely alone.

Donté had walked this path before me. He survived it.

He seemed to be still himself. I didn’t know him before, so that was an odd thing to think.

He actually might be better than he was before because he pretty much described himself as a violent youthful offender with his origin story.

“The hunger never goes away completely.” He said after a while. “You learn to make it your strength instead of your weakness.” He stood up and stretched. “Morgan don’t even trip. The fact you worried about losing yourself means you won’t.”

Donté moved toward the door, then paused with his hand on the knob. “We’ve got your back. Me, Zand, Harlen and Chanel. Gee, you not alone in this.”

As the door closed behind him. I sat with his colorful words.

It was information. Data. Something I could learn from and use.

He was gone, and I forgot to ask him if there was a funeral and a burial for him.

I also forgot to ask him if it was an open casket because it couldn’t be open.

If it was, whose body was in the casket?

I knew it didn’t matter, but I was confused and curious about the whole damn thing.

I’m still nosy as a vampire. That part of me hadn’t changed.