Dani stood at the sink, her hands in a bowl of warm soapy water as she washed the evening’s dishes. Although it had been well over a week since their strange visitor had left and Amanda was finally beginning to relax about the whole fiasco, Dani just could not get her mind of it.
She slid the sponge over the mug again and immersed it into the water, a vacant stare filling her eyes.
"The cups clean you know," said Amanda as she held her hand out for it.
"Huh?" asked Dani.
"The cup. You've washed it about ten times already.”
"Oh." said Dani and she gave a sheepish smile as she handed to the cup to Amanda for her to dry.
She didn’t even know his name, who he was or where he had come from, but yet she felt as if she had known him forever, every quiet moment she got, her mind would wonder off to imaginary encounters with him, where they shared stories of their lives with each other, even in sleep Dani couldn’t escape him.
She knew it was utter madness. He meant nothing to her just as she meant nothing to him, but she couldn’t help it. Something about him had sparked something deep inside. She felt like she was being pulled to him. Maybe this was what they called love at first sight. Yeah Amanda would love that, her best friend in love with a night hunter.
With the dishes finally cleaned and put away, Amanda had gone into the lounge to watch some documentary on the environment, or at least the state of it. Dani didn’t know what to do with herself, she wasn’t particularly tired, but she didn’t want to join her friend in front of the television. The mundane stuff that she enjoyed easily just seemed pointless now and she didn’t know why. She felt she should be doing something. Maybe now was the time she should decide what to do with her life. It was ok living with her friend and surviving on her inheritance, but that didn’t give her life substance, she was just existing. There was more outside these simple bricks and mortar, but dare she venture out.
Dani couldn’t settle on anything, even sitting around doing nothing was not appealing, it was as if something inside was restless and needed more, the only way to silence it was sleep.
It didn’t take Dani long to fall asleep and a smile creased her face as she entered her dream. He was there waiting as normal, under the weeping willow at the bottom of the garden. She didn’t go over to him right away, she wanted to savour the memory of just watching him stare out into the water.
He turned and saw her and she smiled more, she fought with her self as she walked over to him, her legs felt unsteady as if just looking at him made her drunk. He took a step forward and held out his hand as she reached him.
Neither of them spoke, they didn’t need to. He raised his hand to her face and gently ran the back of his fingers down her cheek and then cupped her face with his hand. Dani melted into him, pressing her face into his palm and holding his hand in place with her own as she closed her eyes.
She knew what he was, but in her dream he was so warm, the heat from his hand crept up her face and she step into him.
He pressed his forehead against hers and just breathed in the scent of her perfume.
“Sometime I wish I didn’t have to wake up.” He said.
“Since I met you, I wish that all the time.”
He didn’t notice her eyes fill up and she closed them to save them from crying. She wanted to savour every moment with him, even if it was just in sleep. His arms came around her and wrapped her in warmth, she never wanted to leave.
“You seem troubled tonight?” he said as he pulled away just enough to look at her face, but she pulled him closer and rested against his chest.
“I’m ok, its just...”
“Just?” he stepped away from her and sat down on the ground, pulling her with him.
She sighed. “Have you ever felt like there is more to life, like suddenly there is something missing, but you only just realised.”
“Sometimes we don’t know we are missing anything until we find it.” He said.
She nodded and began to run her fingertips up along the pale flesh of his arm as she thought. She wanted to know so much about him, but he must have lived so long being what he is, where did she start?
“Do you miss being human?” she asked.
“Only something’s.”
“What do you miss?”
“Mortality.” He said without hesitation, and then he smiled. “And sunshine.”
“Mortality? Most people want to live forever, that’s why your species is such a contradiction, your not the hunters, you’re the hunted. Hunted by people who seek eternal life.”
“It is not what they think it is.” He said.
“You wish to die?”
“I wish to have no more pain. I have outlived all my family. I watched all of them die knowing that I will never join them in the after life. I watched my children grow old and die before me.”
“You had children?”
“Yes, I had four children and I have outlived them all.”
Dani had never thought of it like that before. His life must be so lonely, and suddenly she felt sad for him. She couldn’t even imagine how he felt.
She moved even closer to him and put her arms around his neck, his soft hair tickled her bare arms as she pulled his mouth to hers and kissed him.
Her eyes opened and Dani was back in her room, alone, but she could still feel him in her arms, this stranger that seemed to be haunting her, she still hadn’t learnt his name, even in her dreams he never told her.
She wrapped her arms around herself and rolled onto her side, trying the keep away the empty gap he had left.
