Lesson 85- Medicine may taste sweet, but it's not candy!

Hanging out with Lindy is fun. She’s a lot more laid back than Laura, so it doesn’t require much energy. That’s not to say I don’t enjoy spending time with Laura, just that we do different kinds of things. Since she’s a bit of a homebody, Lindy has a huge collection of books and of course that includes e-books. She ends up reading a book to me while I sketch. We don’t actually talk all that much, just relax and enjoy our time together. Torin stops by to check on us every hour or so and as it gets late, Lindy eventually falls asleep in the recliner again. I throw a blanket over her and leave her be while I continue drawing. By the time the night ends, she’s been asleep for hours and I have a finished portrait of her in my sketchbook. When I hear the bar closing up, I gently nudge her awake.
“Hey Lindy. It’s morning. Why don’t you wash up a little and I’ll ask Tori to give you a ride home?” I suggest. She nods sleepily and lets me tug her along to the bathroom. By the time she’s done, Torin is just seeing Laura out.
“Hey Tori, do you mind giving Lindy a ride home again?” I ask cheerfully and he nods.
“Thanks, I appreciate it.” I tell him gratefully.
“I don’t mind. I’m glad you had a nice night with your friend. I want you to feel at home, not like a prisoner.” He says earnestly. I give him a sad smile.
“You know, one of the best things about having a home? Getting back at the end of the day.” I say pointedly. Torin frowns and Lindy clears her throat awkwardly causing Torin to jolt into motion.
“Right, I’ll get you home then. Sleep well Rina.” He says sweetly before the two of them leave. I still feel bad every time I upset Torin by pointing out that I don’t want to be trapped here forever. But at the same time I have to do it. The moment I give in and accept my fate is to stay here, trapped as the bar’s pet human, is the moment I know my friendship with Torin is basically over. So I’ll just keep giving him reminders and chances, and hope that someday soon he accepts one of them.

I wake up early feeling awake and very refreshed. Probably because I had such a chilled evening off. I take my time showering, washing my hair and generally making myself feel good. I even take the time to apply a little makeup and tie my hair into a tidy braid. All in all, I feel more put together than I have in a while. I think part of it is that I’ve put real shoes on for once. Since I never get to go outside, I basically live in slippers or no shoes at all. Still, it’s nice to feel a little bit pretty and put together every now and then. Torin arrives and pauses when he sees me.
“You’re dressed differently.” He comments. I shrug.
“I just felt like putting in a little effort today. No real reason behind it.” I inform him.
“Oh… Well, you look nice.” He says awkwardly, a hint of pink in his cheeks. I smile brightly.
“Thanks!” I notice that he has another bouquet of flowers with him tonight. I guess he’s decided the flowers in my room need replacing. This weeks flowers are orange, yellow and white. I like them, they’re cheerful which suits my mood right now. He goes and sets them down in my room while I start setting up the bar. I’m working with Catcher again tonight, he should be here soon. Since Torin is here, I can have internet access on my tablet so I use it to play music and dance around while I set up for the evening. I yelp when I turn and find Torin watching me.
“You scared me!” I say, slightly breathless and laughing.
“Sorry.” He apologises. He opens his mouth to say something else but is interrupted by a knock at the back door.
“Oh, that’ll be Catcher. I’ll get it!” I rush to answer it, whatever he was about to say forgotten.

The bar is busy tonight but everyone seems to be cheerful and having a good time. I answer more riddles for Anat and when the vampires arrive I'm particularly excited. I have a plan to deal with their constant whining about their drinks tasting awful. Tonight is the night I’m going to try it out. I actually know HOW to make bloody mary’s now so I’m able to make them the drinks they request. But they order them all the time and still complain, so tonight I’m trying something new. The vampire who orders for them looks bored.
“Three of our usual please.” He says politely. Most of the regulars have learned what happens if they’re rude to me, and no one likes paying the asshole tax so they’re usually polite, if not genuine. I make their drinks and add a little something extra. The first vampire takes a sip of his drink and automatically scrunches up his face as if he hates it, then the expression drops and changes to one of shock.
“This… this tastes… Good?” He stammers out, clearly confused. The other two vampires try their drinks and their faces light up in excitement.
“You’re right! These DO taste good!” They turn to me, huge smiles on their faces with their fangs in full view.
“You finally got us blood? It’s about time!” They are practically cheering. Catcher is staring at me, a combination of shock and horror on his face.
“You… You didn’t actually give them blood, did you? Where would you even get that? Oh shit, please tell me it isn’t yours.” His tone is serious and pleading and I roll my eyes.
“Dude, I am not that dedicated to making good drinks. I didn’t add blood to them, don’t be ridiculous.” I say incredulously. He can’t seriously think I would do that. Torin can tell something interesting is going on over here so he comes over to investigate.
“What’s going on over here?” He asks, his tone vaguely threatening. Probably because all three vampires are leaning over the bar and staring at me like I’m some kind of treat.
“She finally got us blood!” One of the vampires crows and Torin turns to look at me with concern. I shake my head.
“I did NOT give them blood.” I say firmly.
“It TASTES like blood.” One of the vampires chimes in, still sipping at his drink gleefully.
“That doesn’t mean it IS blood. You know that iron tonic stuff you can get? People take it when they’re anaemic and stuff. I added a bit of that to their drinks.” I explain.
“You added iron?” One of the vampires asks curiously and I nod.
“Yeah, I ordered it last week. It was in that last lot of packages you bought me Tori.” I answer, then I turn to the vampires.
“I thought it might make it taste a little bit more like what you enjoy. Although I doubt I can give you more than one drink like that, I know people can overdose on iron, I don’t want to make you guys sick.” I warn them. The vampires scoff.
“You don’t need to worry about that. We can’t overdose on iron, that would be like overdosing on blood. Besides, we heal quickly when we rest.” They are like excited children on a sugar high. They’ve all finished their drinks and are bouncing in place.
“Would you please make us three more drinks?” The vampire that was previously bored asks. I’m surprised to find that he actually sounds genuinely respectful and pleasant for once. He definitely doesn’t sound bored anymore.
“Oh, uh, sure. Although I have to warn you, these will cost a little more than a standard bloody mary since I have to get the iron tonic stuff to add to them.” The vampire nods eagerly.
“That’s fine, not a problem.” He pulls out his wallet and places a hundred dollars on the bar in front of me.