That evening, Ethan was in for a big surprise when he returned to his rented room. A huge package was waiting for him, addressed simply to "Ethan Duong," with the sender listed as "Autumn Nguyen." Of course, there was no return address.
Ethan lugged the box up to his attic room and eagerly tore it open. Like most teens these days, he loved the thrill of opening a blind box and this felt the same.
He just hoped there wouldn't be any annoying Labubu figures inside, that trend was long over.
To his delight, the box contained not one but two freshly laundered Harmony High uniforms, neatly folded inside paper bags. The quality was clearly bespoke, much like the uniform he was currently wearing. A pleasant scent clung to them, confirming they'd been properly cleaned.
There was also a small basket of fruits: Apples, red grapes, dragon fruits… Maybe eating red-skinned or red-fleshed fruits really did help replenish blood?
The thoughtfulness of Autumn's family truly warmed Ethan's heart.
He was about to compose a thank-you message when his phone suddenly rang.
"Hello? Ethan?"
The angelic voice of Autumn floated through the phone, making Ethan's heart skip slightly.
"Yeah, it's me, Autumn."
"I was a little busy this morning, so I couldn't text you back right away…"
"It's okay. I understand."
There was a slight hesitation in Autumn's voice.
"About your question… Celestia is Ruby's older sister. Why do you ask?"
"Oh, I just had some theories… about the attacker last Friday night."
Ethan smiled. He finally understood the rush Andrew The Detective must have felt when uncovering juicy information.
"Ethan, with how close Summer and Celestia are… Ruby is basically like family to me too."
Autumn's voice grew cautious:
"So… could we wait until Royce recovers before we meet and discuss this?"
Ethan felt a twinge of disappointment at her careful tone, it was obvious she wanted to protect Ruby.
"Alright. So you're not coming back to school midweek?"
"No… Something came up. I'll have to stay out until next week."
And just like that, Autumn smoothly changed the subject:
"By the way, about you missing the Harmony math team selection exam… Has your mom found out yet?"
"Yeah… She knows."
"What did you tell her?"
"Uh… I didn't dare call her directly. I just texted her, saying I suddenly fell ill and couldn't make it."
Ethan stared up at the ceiling, lost in thought.
"And how did your mom react?" Autumn asked.
"Strangely… she just said, 'Oh, I see,' and didn't ask anything else."
Autumn sounded noticeably more cheerful:
"Then that's good, right?"
"Probably not… After that, my little brother Victor texted me, asking what the hell I did to make Mom suddenly become so sweet to him."
"What do you mean?"
"We hardly ever text each other…"
Ethan spoke in a slightly downcast voice.
He rarely ever shared sensitive matters like this with anyone.
"Victor isn't really into academics. He's good at literature and spends most of his time writing online novels. Mom always nags him, scolds him… compares him to me. She wants him to be good at math, physics, chemistry - just like I am."
"Sounds just like how Ruby's parents always compared her to Celestia."
Autumn sighed in understanding.
"… So if Mom's suddenly all warm and kind toward Victor and cold toward me… it means she's really mad about me missing that exam."
Autumn gently asked:
"So… Do you still want to retake the test?"
"I don't know anymore."
The name Nathaniel suddenly popped into Ethan's head, the only eleventh grader on Harmony's Math Olympiad team.
If by some miracle Ethan passed a retake, he would have to study alongside that arrogant guy.
"You should think it through carefully, Ethan," Autumn said.
"By the way, has your appearance… gone back to normal yet, Autumn?"
Ethan decided to copy her usual trick of casually switching topics.
"Ah… Let me switch to a video call and show you."
Ethan could see that Autumn looked much better now.
The veins along her neck, forehead, and jawline had faded to almost nothing, and her mesmerizing eyes had returned to their usual clear brown.
But… What was she wearing?
Another classic, romantic nightgown, flowing and dreamy.
"Don't mind the background, okay?" Autumn said, blushing slightly. "Like I told you before: At the moment, my mom's aesthetic taste is completely stuck in the Victorian era."
She shyly waved her hand as if trying to hide the overly frilly, princess-like decor of her bedroom.
"Well, goodnight, Ethan. Sweet dreams."
"You too."
Just as Ethan was about to mention the new Harmony uniforms and the basket of fruits.
"By the way, thank you…"
Autumn hung up before he could finish his sentence.
Ethan found himself floating on a strange, giddy cloud of happiness.
It felt like this had been the longest conversation he'd ever had with Autumn.
In fact, it was probably the longest conversation he'd ever had with any girl.
And it was even through video call!
He tried hard not to let his imagination get too carried away. Thankfully, he remembered there was still something important he had to do.
Ethan quickly pulled out the stack of craft paper and started cutting and assembling. Under his skillful hands, delicate white and pink paper flowers began to take shape.
After several hours, he had only managed about 10% of his planned total.
The deadline to finish everything was October 13. If he worked a little each day and focused over the weekends, he should have plenty of time.
According to plan, Ethan would bring all the finished flowers to class, where the boys of 11D could help him complete the "artwork."
The various-sized flowers would be attached to the upper right and lower left corners of a large backdrop board.
It's perfect for the girls of 11D to pose with during photo ops.
Yawn!
Ethan let out a long, sleepy yawn. His eyelids were drooping.
Normally, crafting didn't make him tired at all. But after everything that had happened lately, he knew it was better to go to bed early and recover properly.
Still, something was strange.
Even after turning off the lights, Ethan tossed and turned on his familiar old bed, unable to fall asleep.
He flipped to the right.
He flipped to the left.
But sleep stubbornly refused to come.
A chill ran down his spine.
The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.
His heart pounded like a drum, and a sharp ache twisted his stomach.
Cold sweat began to bead on his forehead.
His gaze was drawn, against his will, to the balcony door.
It felt like someone… or something… was lurking out there, waiting for him to fall asleep.
Suddenly, a sharp pain flared up from the bite mark Autumn had left on his neck.
Eventually, overwhelmed by exhaustion, Ethan slipped into unconsciousness.
But even in sleep, he found no peace.
When he finally woke up, he was drenched in sweat, his heart still hammering violently against his ribs.
He must have experienced a terrible nightmare, yet he couldn't remember anything about it.
All he knew was that it had been horrifying.
His entire body was still trembling.
And the bite mark on his neck?
It throbbed and ached painfully with every beat of his heart.
It wasn't until much later that the pain began to ease.
By then, the sun had fully risen above the horizon, casting its warm golden light through Ethan's window.
Ethan quickly freshened up, brushing his teeth, showering, and washing his hair.
Amazingly, the claw marks left by the bloodthirsty Vampire on his arms had faded into faint, nearly invisible scars.
Whatever remedy Marina had used, it must have been miraculous.
Ethan decided there was no need for bandages anymore. He picked out a short-sleeved shirt to stay cool.
As he buttoned up, he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror.
He looked pale and noticeably weary but thankfully, his eyes beneath those fine eyebrows still gleamed sharply with life.
And on his neck, the bite mark from Autumn… It was even more visible than yesterday.