Writing Paradise

In the Moonlight © aicchan . Just as Aspros predicted, Asmita accepted the invitation to join the family's monthly movie night without thinking much about it. The moment Defteros finished his explanation about his brothers' plan on helping him to learn the wondrous , the blonde only spare a brief moment to think before firmly answering, "Alright." And so that Sunday evening Defteros came to pick him up. While they made their way to his house, Defteros couldn't help but notice that Asmita never dressed to impress. Things he wore probably were things on the topmost of stacks or anything from his closet that he could reach and put on as quick as possible, because the blond never seemed to care if his attire looks matching or not (not saying that it ever appears weird on him, unlike the clothing that one of his coworkers wears). Not even on this occasion, where he will be introduced to people whom Defteros holds dear, that Asmita wears set of clothing that can e...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . When Aspros was about to unlock the key of his house, he was jolted surprise by roar of laughter that came from inside. He recognized the voice as Kanon's, his youngest brother. As he entered and locked the door again, he wondered if said brother was watching late-night comedy show or some anime, but he found the television to be turned off and completely ignored while his three younger brothers were sitting together on the various seating in the living room. Kanon and his older twin, Saga, was on the long couch while Defteros sat grumpily on a single-seated sofa. They seemed to be quite absorbed with the topic of their conversation that they didn't notice him entering the house just now. But Aspros could care less; he was curious as to what they were talking about before he came in. "What's up? Why is Kanon laughing so hard?" "Aspros," Defteros turned his head and regarded his older brother with a tired look, one tha...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . After three months since their initial meeting, Defteros had learned many things about Asmita. From the basic, like his job as the chef of a rather well-known Indian Restaurant as a way to recompense him living with his managers, to his personality traits, one of them being that the blond is such a perfectionist that there was this one time where they went to an ice cream shop after buying a new cellphone and he repeatedly fix the position of his toppings before he deemed it delectable enough to be eaten. Speak of cellphone, he had also discovered that Asmita had a habit of breaking his cellphones every now and then. The explanation that he provided was that he actually had a great amount of strength and since he never owned a cellphone prior to meeting Defteros, he had a hard time adjusting his power when he handled the electronic gadget. Thus the phones he bought were either snapped into halfsies or had some parts like the screen or the keyboard den...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . The back door of Annapoorna Restaurant swung open and a man with unruly pale green hair and dark skin entered the kitchen. He was kind of surprised to find that the kitchen was occupied by Shijima, the manager of the restaurant, instead of the current shift's chef, Asmita. The redheaded man turned to regard his employee with a smile. "Hello, Fudou. Can you go upstairs before getting started? Asmita needs your help." The worker, Fudou, raised an eyebrow but muttered a quiet "Alright" as he hung his jacket on the hanger and sneaked upstairs, to the third floor. He immediately spotted the blonde sitting on the floor of the open recreation room, staring at an object placed on his laps, which turned out to be a broken cellphone. The sight made Fudou frown. If he recalled correctly, that cellphone was the one Asmita bought some days ago, why would it be— —oh, right. "You broke it with your super vampire strength?" Fud...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . Everything went well since then. When night falls and everyone retired to their respective house and beds, so does Asmita. After switching off the light and sliding under his blanket, he would plug his ears with with earphones that connected to his newly bought cellphone, playing out songs stored in the memory at maximum volume. By focusing to the music, he could completely block off the noises Cardinale and Shijima makes in the next room. Defteros's strategy worked. People all around him also supported this little step ointo a more modern life of his. Shun, one of the waiters employed in the restaurant, happily taught him how to use applications that had been installed in his cellphone, like the camera and the internet browser, the latter application proving to be, in his opinion, a great asset as he could download songs that Cardinale and Sonia recommended—since their taste in music is more or less similar. He learned how to make a call and text...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . The night Defteros found out that he had a habit of wandering outside in the middle of the night due to certain issues, the mortal man got him to make a promise that they'll go out for a shopping together to find something that can help stopping his 'bad habit'—a mobile phone. Actually, the selection of choices were much more than that. Portable audio devices such as mp3 player and iPod were suggested, but they decided to look for cellphones after Asmita noting that he never had one. Ever. Something along the line of cellphones had become as important as staple foods for individuals, especially working adults. Beside, the detective also mentioned that he has an acquaintance who is pretty proficient in this subject and he could get her to give Asmita a good deal on whatever gadget he wanted. "Why are you going this far for me, someone you just met hours ago?" was the question that slipped out of Asmita's lips before he could...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . Sonia Heidrich walked briskly through the mildly crowded street. Her attention was divided between trying her best not to bump at pedestrians, slipping through to reach her destination, and listening to the one talking at the other end of her phone call—Souma, her boyfriend who is six years younger than she is, around the same age as her half-brother Eden. Well, actually only paid attention to what he said when she finally arrived in a small alley which would lead her to the kitchen of a restaurant where she worked at. She is late for her part-time shift, for Christ's sake. "Yeah," she opened the back door and walked in hastily, closing the door behind her then hung her sling bag and jacket on the hanger, "yeah, I get it already. Look, I need to do my part-time work now, okay? I'll see you on Saturday." She ended the call and was slipping her phone onto her pants' pocket when she heard someone whistled mockingly. Turn...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . It was past midnight when Asmita decided to have a night stroll. Most stores had closed down for the day, obviously, but not the convenience stores. He originally intended to buy a magazine or some other things from there and went to the closest park to enjoy them, but he forgot all about it when he saw Defteros coming out from an convenience store, carrying a plastic bag of canned drinks and light snacks. For a few moments, they just stood frozen on the spot, staring straight at each other. Then Defteros regained enough composure to make a remark, "Are you out to make a fight with some mobs again?" Asmita blinked fast. "What?" "Like the other day." The taller of the two had his arms folded in front of his chest and gave Asmita half-accusing, half-joking look. "Beautiful people these days... they always hold some kinda dark secrets. I bet yours is that you love to walk around at night like this and pick on a fi...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . It was past midnight when Asmita decided to have a night stroll. Most stores had closed down for the day, obviously, but not the convenience stores. He originally intended to buy a magazine or some other things from there and went to the closest park to enjoy them, but he forgot all about it when he saw Aspros coming out from an convenience store, carrying a plastic bag of canned drinks and light snacks. The man was still clad in the uniform, meant that he hadn't return to his home yet. This was confirmed when they began to chat, and Aspros informed him that he just finished dealing on a case just a few blocks away from there. "I won't be coming home anytime soon, I think. There are still a lot of things to do," he chuckled as he shifted his posture. The items he bought made rustling sounds when he did so. "I feel bad for my little brothers, but so far they'd manage taking care of our house while me and Defteros are...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . There was another long silence then. Asmita waited for the others' reaction patiently, repeatedly shifting her gaze between Cardinale and Shijima. Neither showing signs of them going to give him a sermon, but he did catch them trading glances with each other, as if communicating through mere eye contacts—he won't be surprised if they do have that kind of ability, considering the long history they had together. "... well, what would you like to hear?" Shijima finally speak after the long wait, which surprised Asmita. Not because he didn't expect him to be the first one to speak, no, but more toward the context of his question. What would he like to hear? He certainly didn't want to hear another preach, possibly a long one, in the topic of letting himself be treated by some humans and risked his identity to be revealed. He can go for the option of answering 'no, I don't want to hear anything' and maybe the...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . Asmita said nothing to Cardinale's preach. He had admitted that he was being careless and underrated the vampire hunters—humans who underwent numerous training to exterminate his species. Ah, no. Perhaps he was actually overestimating his ability. He had introspected, so there was no need to heed further scoldings from Cardinale, regardless of how rude he was for doing that to that temporary guardian of his. . Being a vampire that belonged to no family, Asmita had went through his whole life shifting between countless small vampire clans since he was separated from his first one. The process would averagely work like this: an adult vampire took him into the group they were part of, cared for him as if he had been part of theirs since its founding, then when the time comes for the group to move away in order to avoid human's suspicions of their ageless appearance, he will separate himself from them and looked for a new group in a new place. A...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . Asmita's eyes remained fixed on the name card in his hand even as he came out of the bus and walked the way to his home. It was Defteros's. He gave it to him when they reached the bus stop close to his detective office, saying that—he wasn't sure whether the taller man was joking or not—he can contact him with the numbers listed on that card if he need help or just want to have someone to talk to. Asmita wasn't sure whether he should be offended with the implication that he had no friends and thus offered a way to relieve some loneliness through talking to someone like Defteros. Nonetheless, he appreciated the little gift. Looking up, he nearly walked past his destination—a three-floored building that is owned by his relative. An eye-catching plank hung over the awning, telling people who cared to look that the building hosted a restaurant specialized in Indian cuisine on its two first floors. The topmost floor was served as the owne...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . When he opened his eyes, the bright light of the lamp on the ceiling greeted him. He had to lift his hand to block it, and that was when he realized that his arm had been bandaged. It wasn't necessary, but whoever had done it for him certainly didn't know about his real identity. "You're awake?" He turned around and a man clad in police uniform--white shirt, black tie, police badge, black pants, holster--came into his line of view. He had long hair with the color of night's blue. His eyes were gentle yet firm, reflecting his personality. He took notice of the insignia on the man's uniform, finding himself mildly surprised to learn of his rank--five stars; he would either be a Chief of Department or Police Commissioner. Either way, his face seemed to be too young to be someone of such high rank. He would've point it out as a question, if only he didn't remember that he was supposed to be a sick person and a victi...

In the Moonlight © aicchan . Run , he scolded himself. Run as fast as you can. He dared not to look back at his pursuers. Without even glancing back through his shoulders, he knew they were trying to follow him the best they can. They're reek of blood. So thick the scent was that he couldn't help himself but covered the lower half of his face, though it did little in blocking their smell. He tried to shake them off. Jumping through buildings, over high walls that would be deemed as dead end, slid in trees of Central Park. But they just wouldn't stop. They aimed shots at him now and then, trying to slow him down or put a halt in the small game of cat and mouse game they played, but he smoothly evaded them all. Okay. Most of them. Because the last one grazed his shoulder, but it was enough to bring blood out of the torn skin and caused him to trip his own feet, making him ended up collapsing onto the hard cold ground. He couldn't believe that they would be bol...