Shyla stood up from the dining table, preparing to leave them alone. But she paused near the stairs, turned her face toward them, and said, "Good night, Mom. Good night, John." Then she left without waiting for a response.
Once inside her room, her mind was consumed with her father's book. She wanted to read it immediately—she was dying to uncover its secrets. She closed the door and locked it, aware that her stepfather or mother might throw the book away if they saw it. Taking precautions, she went straight to the bathroom to shower, ensuring no interruptions during her reading.
After her shower, she hurriedly opened the closet for her nightwear. "Shyla, you're really dumb—you forgot your nightwear… as usual. And this book… ahhh! I'm dying to read it. It's making my brain go dumb—I can't function properly. Okay, wait… we have two days left before we leave for New York on Sunday… can I even finish it? I'll die with anxiety if I don't… shit!"
She grabbed her nightwear and changed quickly—a cute red t-shirt and yellow pajama, just like POO. Then she searched for the book.
"Now where the hell did I leave it? On the bed, I think."
She marched to the bed and found it under the sheet, hugging it as if her life depended on it.
Settling herself, she opened the book and began reading again, starting from the first page to review the content. She was particularly confused about the two abilities mentioned in the book and their resemblance to hers—and her father's.
"THE SECRETS OF VAMPIRE WORLD," she read aloud. "Why was my father reading this book? It… is… really—"
The words on the page suddenly began to glow. Shocked and scared, she threw the book across the room. The glowing stopped.
"What was that? It's glowing… I don't want to read… maybe it's dangerous… is it cursed? Magical? Ahhh! This curiosity is going to kill me someday!"
Despite her fear, she picked up the book again and started reading.
The first page, which she had read earlier, now appeared blank. Only a few names remained. The glowing incident had removed other details. "Why is this page empty? Didn't it have the author's name? Huh… where did it go?"
Shyla quickly gathered her thoughts and turned the next page. There, she read: "Maybe I will not live long, but this is for you, dear."
Below the lines was a name—familiar yet foreign: "ALEXANDER CLARK."
"Hmmm… but Dad's name is Alexander Park. Why the hell am I comparing everything in this book to myself? Not only that, but my dad didn't have that name… I'm literally nuts," she thought, trying to clear her mind. Questions swirled, but there was no one to answer them—only this book.
"Okay… I'll continue reading," she muttered to herself, trying to steady her racing thoughts.
The next page described vampire appearances. "It's the same—blue, black, crystal blue corneas… oh my… Shyla, what is this? Wouldn't someone die seeing this? Red-colored… it's insane… I'll die just from the sight… impossible… it can't be…"
Before she could finish, the page glowed again. The words disappeared and then reappeared in front of her. Her eyes widened. "What the hell is going on? Am I dreaming? Night dreaming? I don't know what I'm saying… why was Dad reading this?"
She stared at the page. Then the words became clear:
"Vampires can have different colored corneas as mentioned before, but they can hide it well by looking normal, like humans."
Shyla was dumbfounded. "Is this book… answering my questions?"