Chapter 7: How Not to Survive Your First Date

Ming's POV

I changed my outfit seven times.

"You look fine!" Ploy yelled from her bed, where she was supposedly studying but actually watching me have a complete fashion meltdown.

"Fine isn't good enough for my first real date!" I pulled off the blue dress and threw it on the growing pile of rejected clothes. "What if he thinks I'm trying too hard? What if I'm not trying hard enough? What if—"

"What if you pick something and stop spiraling?"

I stared at my reflection in our tiny dorm mirror. My hair was doing that thing where it looked cute from one angle and like I'd been electrocuted from another. My skin was its usual vampire-pale, which looked either ethereal or sickly depending on the lighting.

"What if I accidentally do something embarrassing?" I asked quietly.

"Like what?"

"Like crush his hand when he tries to hold mine. Or react weird to the smell of food. Or—" I stopped myself before I could say 'extend my fangs if he tries to kiss me.'

"Ming, you're overthinking this. It's just dinner at a night market, not a performance test."

If only she knew.

I finally settled on a simple pink sundress and sandals - casual but cute, and most importantly, nothing I could accidentally destroy with vampire strength.

My phone buzzed.

Kamon: Ready? I'm outside your dorm.

My heart immediately started doing gymnastics. He was here. My first real date was actually happening.

"Wish me luck," I told Ploy as I grabbed my small purse.

"Try not to destroy any market stalls!"

"Very funny!"

But as I walked downstairs, I couldn't shake the feeling that something was definitely going to go wrong.

Outside the Dorm - 6:30 PM

Kamon was leaning against a motorcycle, and I nearly tripped down the last three steps.

"You have a motorcycle?" I squeaked.

"Borrowed it from the garage," he said, straightening up. He was wearing dark jeans and a simple white t-shirt, and somehow managed to look like he belonged in a magazine. "Is that okay? We can walk if you prefer."

"No! I mean, yes! I mean..." I took a deep breath. "A motorcycle is perfect."

He smiled and handed me a helmet. "Don't worry, I'm a careful driver."

The helmet was bigger than my head and made me look like a bobblehead doll, but Kamon's expression was so sweet and earnest that I didn't care.

"Ready?" he asked.

I climbed onto the back of the motorcycle, and immediately realized I had no idea what to do with my hands.

"You can hold on to me," Kamon said softly, like he could sense my confusion.

I wrapped my arms around his waist, and the contact sent little electric shocks through my entire system. He was warm and solid, and he smelled like that intoxicating mixture of motor oil and something uniquely him that made my vampire instincts purr with contentment.

This was nice. This was perfect. Maybe I could get through one evening without any supernatural disasters.

The motorcycle roared to life, and we pulled into Bangkok traffic.

Chatuchak Night Market - 7:00 PM

The night market was a sensory overload even for someone with regular human senses. For someone with vampire-enhanced hearing and smell, it was almost overwhelming.

I could hear every conversation happening within a fifty-meter radius. I could smell every type of food being cooked, every person's individual scent, every flower and spice and cleaning product from the surrounding shops.

"You okay?" Kamon asked, noticing my slightly dazed expression.

"Just... taking it all in," I managed.

"It can be intense the first time. Want to start with something easy? There's a great pad thai stall over there."

He guided me through the crowd with one hand on my lower back, and I tried very hard to focus on his voice instead of the cacophony of sounds and smells assaulting my enhanced senses.

The pad thai stall was run by an elderly woman who beamed at us like we were her favorite grandchildren.

"Two pad thai!" she announced before we'd even ordered. "You make beautiful couple!"

I felt my cheeks turn bright red. "We're not—"

"Thank you," Kamon said quietly, and my heart did a little flip.

We found a small plastic table near the stall, and I watched Kamon dig into his noodles with obvious enjoyment. He had good table manners but wasn't precious about the casual setting. Everything about him seemed genuine and unself-conscious.

"So," he said between bites, "tell me something about archaeology that isn't about pottery disasters."

I laughed. "What do you want to know?"

"Why did you choose it? What do you love about it?"

The question was simple, but something about the way he asked it - like he genuinely wanted to understand me - made my chest warm.

"I love the stories," I said. "Every artifact tells you something about the people who made it, used it, lived with it. It's like... time travel through objects."

His eyes brightened with interest. "That's beautiful. I never thought about it that way."

"What about architecture? Why buildings?"

"Same reason, I think. Buildings outlast the people who design them. They become part of the landscape, part of people's daily lives. There's something powerful about creating something that will still be standing long after you're gone."

I stared at him, struck by the thoughtfulness of his answer. "That's... really profound."

"Is that surprising?"

"No! I just... you don't talk much in class. I didn't know you thought about things so deeply."

He was quiet for a moment, twirling noodles around his chopsticks. "I prefer listening to talking most of the time. You learn more that way."

"What have you learned about me?"

The question slipped out before I could stop it, and I immediately wanted to take it back. It sounded fishing for compliments, which wasn't what I'd meant.

But Kamon considered it seriously. "You're curious about everything. You care about your friends. You get nervous around new situations but you try anyway. And you're stronger than you think you are."

If only he knew how literally true that last part was.

"That's... really nice," I said softly.

"It's just true."

We finished eating and started wandering through the market stalls. Kamon bought me a small elephant charm for my keychain, and I picked out a simple bracelet for him. Normal, cute couple things that made my heart sing with how wonderfully ordinary they were.

Everything was going perfectly.

Until we reached the flower section.

The vendor was selling jasmine garlands, and the scent hit my vampire-enhanced nose like a physical blow. Jasmine was one of those flowers that triggered something primal in vampire genetics - something about the intensity of the fragrance and the way it mixed with human pheromones.

I felt my fangs start to extend.

"Ming?" Kamon had stopped walking and was looking at me with concern. "You look pale. Well, paler than usual."

"I'm fine," I said, covering my mouth with my hand and trying to will my fangs to retract. "Just... the smell is really strong."

"The jasmine? Most people love that scent."

"I have... allergies," I mumbled through my hand.

"Flower allergies?"

"Very severe ones."

We moved away from the flower stalls, but the damage was done. My vampire instincts were now fully awake and aware, making everything seem more intense. Kamon's scent was more noticeable. The sound of his heartbeat was clearer. The warmth radiating from his body was almost magnetic.

"Want to sit down for a minute?" he asked, guiding me to a small seating area.

"That would be good."

We sat on a bench, and Kamon turned to face me fully. "Better?"

"Much better."

But it wasn't better. Because now we were sitting close together in the romantic lighting of the night market, and he was looking at me with those intense dark eyes, and I could hear his heartbeat and smell his skin and—

"Ming?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I ask you something?"

My fangs were still slightly extended, so I kept my mouth carefully closed. "Sure."

"Are you always this nervous around me, or is it just the market?"

The question was gentle but direct, and I realized he'd been picking up on my weird behavior all evening. He thought my supernatural reactions were anxiety about him.

"It's not you," I said quickly. "You're perfect. I mean, not perfect! Nobody's perfect! But you're... really wonderful."

He smiled softly. "You're wonderful too."

"Even when I'm being weird about flowers and engines and basically everything?"

"Especially then."

The way he said it, so matter-of-fact and accepting, made something warm bloom in my chest. He liked my weirdness. He thought it was endearing instead of suspicious.

"Kamon?"

"Yeah?"

"This is my first real date. Ever."

His eyebrows rose slightly. "Really?"

"Really. So if I'm being weird, it's not because I don't like you. It's because I like you a lot and I have no idea what I'm doing."

"You're doing fine," he said quietly. "Better than fine."

We sat there smiling at each other, and I felt like maybe everything was going to be okay. Maybe I could have this - a sweet, normal relationship with a boy who liked my weird quirks and didn't ask too many questions about my impossible reactions to everyday things.

Then he leaned closer.

"Ming?"

"Yeah?" I whispered.

"I really want to kiss you right now."

My fangs immediately extended to full length.

"Oh no," I breathed, slapping both hands over my mouth.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing! I just... I think I bit my tongue! Very sharp teeth! Family trait! Need a minute!"

I jumped up from the bench so fast that I knocked over a nearby potted plant.

"I should probably get back to the dorm!" I called out, already backing toward the market exit. "Early class tomorrow! Thank you for dinner! This was wonderful! I'll text you!"

And for the third time in a week, I ran away from Kamon just as things were getting good.

But this time, as I fled through the crowded market with my hands clamped over my mouth, I couldn't help but smile behind my fingers.

Because even with the supernatural disaster, even with my terrible timing and emergency exit, I knew one thing for certain:

Kamon wanted to kiss me.

And I wanted to kiss him back - fangs and all.

[End of Chapter 7]