Ren dreamt of eyes again.
Golden, gleaming, watching him from behind shattered glass and falling rain. The city burned in the distance, shadows running like blood down the sides of buildings. He stood at the edge of a rooftop—alone—but something was behind him. Breathing softly. Too close. Familiar.
Then a voice, low and broken:
"Do you remember me?"
He turned.
And woke with a start.
His room was still dark. Early morning. Cold. The rain had finally stopped, but the wind still clawed at the windows. Ren sat up in bed, chest tight, heart pounding like he'd just run from something. He stared at the ceiling, trying to shake the image, but it clung to him—just like it had for the past three nights.
Ever since he saw that boy.
He didn't even know his name, but the dreams kept returning. More vivid every time.
He ran a hand through his hair and glanced at the corner of his room. His old hunting gear was still there—a reminder of what his family had once tried to make him become. A killer. A weapon. But he wasn't like Kyouko. He never had been.
Ren didn't want to destroy monsters.
He wanted to understand them.
Downstairs, Kyouko was already awake. She sat at the kitchen table in her worn leather jacket, flipping through old dossiers spread out across the surface—crime scene photos, sketches of fangs, blurred surveillance images. Her eyes were bloodshot. She hadn't slept.
Again.
"Did you see him?" she asked without looking up.
Ren paused. "What?"
"The vampire," she said, voice sharp. "The one from the other night. Did he come back?"
"No."
"Liar."
He frowned. "I didn't see him, Kyouko."
"But you felt him." Her gaze finally met his. "Didn't you?"
Ren didn't answer. He didn't need to. The silence said everything.
Kyouko exhaled and leaned back in her chair, rubbing her temples. "They're moving closer. I don't know what game he's playing, but you're the piece they're circling. You feel it too, don't you? Something's changing."
"Maybe I'm just tired," Ren muttered.
"You're not tired. You're waking up."
Later that day, at school, everything felt… wrong.
The sky was too gray. The halls too quiet. Ren couldn't focus in class. The clock's ticking dug into his skull. He caught reflections in the windows that weren't there when he turned. Something was watching him. He could feel it in the base of his spine, crawling up into his neck.
During lunch, he skipped the cafeteria and climbed to the roof. No one ever went up there—it was locked, technically. But Ren knew how to slip past locks.
He stood near the ledge, looking over the schoolyard and the streets beyond. Something about heights calmed him. Or maybe he just liked pretending he could disappear from up here.
Wind whispered past his ear.
He turned—and his breath caught in his throat.
Across the next building, standing at the edge of a rooftop, was him.
White hair. Eyes like wildfire. Still. Watching.
Ren's hand tightened on the railing. "Why are you following me…?"
The boy didn't answer. He didn't move.
Not until the wind picked up again—and suddenly he was gone.
No sound. No blur. Just... vanished.
Ren's heart pounded so hard it ached.
He turned and rushed down the stairs. He had to find him. This time, he would find him.
He didn't see the vampire watching him from the alley across the school gates.
Not Kazuki.
Another one.
Eyes red. Smile sharp. Shadowed by a hood.
And hungry.