(Events take place immediately after Chapter 27)
After Marcus and the others left the village, Jesse and Joseph were wandering through the streets, following Mira somewhere. Jesse moved closer to Joseph and asked, "Where are we headed?"
Joseph glanced at him with a cheerful grin. "I told you we're just going to enjoy ourselves and help the villagers here and there."
Jesse couldn't hide his confusion. "Right... so what exactly counts as 'enjoying ourselves'?"
Mira stopped in front of a hut, cutting into their conversation with a faint smile. "You'll find out soon enough. Just be patient."
Jesse looked at her, still puzzled, but followed her inside.
The hut was packed with clothes of every color and shape, and a handful of people were busy trying pieces on. Jesse's face lit up with surprise. "Is this... a clothing shop?"
Mira smiled and pointed toward one of the racks. "Exactly. It's the best spot in the village people come here for clean, new clothes, and some of the women get to indulge their hobby, sewing whatever they like, with almost everything they need right at hand."
Joseph wandered over to a rack, grabbed a battered old hat, and plopped it on his head, grinning. "Ha! Look, Jesse it's practically the twin of yours. Go on, try something."
Jesse eyed the clothes warily. "No thanks. I'm fine with what I'm wearing."
Mira's gaze dropped to Jesse's threadbare outfit, and her face twisted with open disgust. She reached out and pinched the fabric between two fingers. "Good grief, this thing is falling apart and it reeks. Honestly, how do you three even sleep with this smell around? When's the last time you washed it?"
"It's not that bad," Jesse muttered, a note of irritation creeping into his voice. "It's still practically new... I think."
"New?" Mira shot back, half-stern, half-teasing. "This is not new. You're changing, end of discussion. There's a whole rack of men's clothes right there go pick something out. And if you need help choosing, I'm right here."
Jesse tried one last protest. "I don't need anything new. This is fine."
Mira wasn't having it. She grabbed his wrist and hauled him toward the racks without a second thought. "Not interested. I could never live with myself if I let someone walk around looking like that."
Off to the side, Joseph watched the whole scene, struggling to keep a straight face. "Something tells me you're not leaving here the way you came in."
Jesse tried to pry her hand off, but despite the size difference between them, her grip was iron. He let out a resigned sigh, scanned the clothes in front of him, and grabbed the first plain shirt he saw, hoping to end this quickly. "Fine this one works."
Mira looked thoroughly unconvinced. She scooped up an armful of clothing from the rack and shoved it into his arms. "No. Absolutely not. You're trying on every single one of these until we find something that actually suits you."
Realizing there was no escaping this, Jesse trudged off toward the small changing room.
He worked through the pile one item at a time, trying to move fast. But every time he stepped out to show a new outfit, Mira would shake her head, unimpressed, and send him right back in with comments like "no, not that one" or "absolutely not."
Eventually Jesse emerged in a dark shirt and simple, comfortable-looking trousers, his damp black hair now visible without the hat, his expression somewhere between resignation and mild sulking. "Okay. Is this... good?"
Mira's face lit up with genuine delight. "Now we're talking!"
Joseph chimed in. "No joke, Jesse you actually look better now."
"Great," Jesse said flatly. "Are we done?"
"Done?" Mira laughed. "We're just getting started."
Jesse's stomach dropped. "Wait what?"
Before he could react, Mira grabbed his hand again and pulled him toward the door. "Get ready for the best day of your life!"
The three of them left the hut, Jesse making a half hearted attempt to double back for his old clothes, which Mira flatly refused to allow. Joseph, meanwhile, was practically doubled over laughing at the whole spectacle.
They wound their way through the village streets, Jesse glancing back toward the clothing shop more than once, clearly uneasy, while Joseph and Mira laughed together up ahead.
Joseph looked back at him, teasing. "What's with you, man? You look like someone died. They're just new clothes they're not going to bite."
"That's not the point," Jesse shot back, irritation simmering just under the surface. "Can I just have my old clothes back?"
Joseph shrugged, unbothered. "Maybe later. Not now. Today doesn't end until we've squeezed every last bit of fun out of it before Marcus gets back, anyway."
They stopped at the usual mushroom stall, where the owner was in the middle of ladling soup for a customer.
He spotted them and broke into a welcoming grin. "Mira! Haven't seen you in ages where've you been hiding?"
Mira dropped onto one of the stools. "You know Marcus. Never runs out of jobs to pile on me."
The old man chuckled and reached for three wooden bowls from a shelf, then turned to the pot and began ladling out steaming soup with practiced ease. He set the bowls down in front of them, beaming. "Here you go on the house. Just enjoy yourselves."
Mira grinned back. "Thanks, uncle." She lifted her hand toward him, eyes warm and full of easy trust. He met her gesture without missing a beat, and their palms met with a sharp, satisfying smack. "Uncle?" he said, feigning offense. "I'm not that old."
Joseph set his bowl down and played along. "What are you talking about? You're still young, old man."
The vendor scratched the back of his head, clearly pleased despite himself. "Ha stop it, you two, you're embarrassing me."
The mood stayed light, full of easy laughter except for Jesse, who sat hunched over his bowl with a troubled, distant look, as if those clothes had meant something far more to him than they let on. Eventually he picked up his spoon and began eating slowly, trying to blend into the cheerful atmosphere around him.
The vendor noticed him and turned to Mira, curious. "Hey, Mira who's your new friend? Haven't seen him around before."
Joseph answered before she could, smirking. "That's Jesse. Came in here in some ratty old gray rags. Ha I can't believe the difference."
The vendor studied Jesse for a moment, frowning slightly. "Well... looks aside, he doesn't seem like he's doing too well."
Everyone's eyes turned toward Jesse, who seemed lost somewhere deep in his own thoughts. Catching the attention on him, he took a sip of soup and said, in a deliberately calm voice, trying to smooth things over, "This soup's as good as ever. You really know what you're doing."
The vendor smiled, touched. "Oh thank you, son. I always put everything I've got into it." Then his smile faded slightly. "Tell me, though is something bothering you?"
"No, everything's fine," Jesse said. "Just a little tired, that's all."
"...Ah. Alright then." The old man turned to Joseph instead. "Anyway any news?"
Joseph slurped his soup before answering. "Nothing much. Marcus went to the neighboring village to pick up a vaccine for some illness."
"Say what you will about the man being overly strict," the vendor said, "but he does everything he can to keep us safe here, away from those creatures."
Joseph nodded in agreement, still eating with enthusiasm. Throughout the exchange, Jesse ate in near silence, and more than once Mira found herself sneaking glances at him, a mix of worry and confusion tugging at her thoughts.
Why does he seem so down since we left the shop? Didn't he like the new clothes? Or... did I do something wrong?
Eventually, everyone finished their bowls. The three of them rose, said their goodbyes to the vendor, and continued on with their day.
Joseph and Mira fell back into planning their next move, chatting animatedly, while Jesse trailed quietly behind them, lost in thought. Then, without warning, he stopped mid-step, turned, and walked off in the opposite direction.
It wasn't until Mira and Joseph finished their conversation that she turned to say something to him "So, what do you think about going—" — only to find the spot beside her empty. "Wait... where did Jesse go?"
Worry flickered across her face as she scanned left and right, hoping to spot him nearby. Joseph, still oblivious, turned to her, confused. "What's wrong?" Then he noticed too. "Where'd he disappear to?"
"I don't know," Mira said, unease creeping into her voice.
The two of them backtracked, searching, calling out his name as they went but there was no answer. They kept at it for nearly an hour before exhaustion caught up with them, and they dropped onto a couple of nearby chairs.
Joseph caught his breath. "I'm wiped. I can barely move."
"Me too," Mira said, her voice cracking with worry. "Joseph... why would he just run off on us like that? Did we do something wrong?"
Joseph leaned back, tired. "No idea."
Silence settled between them Joseph trying to rest, Mira lost in thought.
Where could he possibly have gone? We've checked basically everywhere close by... could someone have taken him without us noticing? No there were too many people around, and there would've been some kind of commotion. So then what... He's seemed off ever since we left that clothing shop. Could it have something to do with that place?
Mira tried piecing it together in her head. Then, suddenly, her eyes lit up and a small smile spread across her face. "I think I know where he went."
Joseph looked at her, baffled, but got up anyway, and the two of them made their way back to the clothing shop.
When they arrived, the place was as quiet as ever a handful of people browsing, others sitting and mending torn garments. Mira walked over to a small, older woman dressed entirely in black, her hair cropped short, who was seated stitching a piece of clothing.
"Excuse me," Mira said gently. "Could I have a moment of your time?"
"Of course. What do you need?"
"Nothing much I just wanted to ask if you'd noticed a tall young man, green eyes, damp black hair?"
The woman thought for a moment. "Green eyes... yes, actually. I saw someone like that about an hour ago. He came in, grabbed some old-looking clothes, and left without saying a word."
Mira stood quietly for a moment. "Thank you so much for your help sorry to bother you."
"Oh, it's no trouble at all," the woman said. "Come find me anytime you need something."
Mira thanked her once more, and she and Joseph stepped back outside. Joseph looked at her, exhausted. "Seriously? He ditched us just to grab his old rags back? The guy's out of his mind."
Mira stayed quiet for a moment, gripping her purple scarf tightly in her right hand, studying him with a look somewhere between confusion and concentration. Then her eyes suddenly went wide, as though everything had just clicked into place. She smacked her palm against her forehead. "How could I not see this sooner? I'm such an idiot!"
Joseph stared at her, baffled. "See what? What are you talking about?"
Mira covered her face with her hand, clearly regretting something. "I think... this one's on me."
"What? What do you mean?" Joseph pressed. "Stop being cryptic and just tell me what's going on."
"It's simple, really," Mira said, her voice softening. "Those clothes mean something to him that's why he didn't want to give them up. I just didn't realize it soon enough, because I got carried away."
Joseph looked unconvinced. "Those clothes? Are you serious right now?"
"I'm not joking," Mira said. "They might be falling apart, but they could hold some kind of value for him — something we don't understand yet. And earlier, we practically forced him to get rid of them without even considering that."
Joseph smirked. "Since when did you get so wise?"
Mira laughed. "No idea, ha. Anyway let's go find him."
"Let's try his hut," Joseph suggested. "It's close to the shop anyway."
Mira nodded, and the two of them set off, hoping to find him there.
They reached the hut a few minutes later. From the outside, it looked empty. Joseph approached the entrance and pulled back the cloth covering the doorway and there was Jesse, sitting on his bed, wearing the very same new clothes Mira had picked out for him, engrossed in a black-covered book. He was so absorbed he didn't even notice Joseph walk in.
Mira stepped inside behind him, and relief and joy washed over her face the moment she saw him. "Jesse!!" she called out, practically bursting with happiness.
Jesse's head snapped up, startled. He turned to face them, stunned. "Mira!"
Joseph cut in, a mix of frustration and concern in his voice. "Where the hell did you disappear to? We searched everywhere for you."
"Sorry," Jesse said, getting up from the bed. "I just... wasn't comfortable without my old clothes. I was worried someone might throw them out or take them, so I went back for them."
"You could've at least told us that," Joseph snapped.
Mira put a hand on Joseph's shoulder and gently pulled him back, then stepped forward herself, a puzzled look crossing her face. "Wait — you told us you went back for your old clothes... but you're not even wearing them. Didn't you find them at the shop?"
Joseph scratched his head sheepishly. "I found them, alright but I washed them. Figured that way you two would finally stop complaining about how they looked and smelled."
Mira burst out laughing for a few seconds before continuing, her tone warm. "Well, that's good news, at least. Glad you're safe."
Jesse gave a small smile. "Thanks."
That's when Mira noticed the notebook still in his hands. "What's that book you're holding?"
Jesse glanced down at it, then lifted it slightly so they could both see. "This? You mean this?"
It was a book with a black cover, its pages nearly yellow with age, and across the middle, written in bold white lettering: "My Dear Diary."
Joseph stared at it, baffled, then looked back at Jesse. "Is that why you wanted your old clothes back? Because of a diary?"
"No," Jesse said. "It's not mine." He scratched his head, hesitating, then continued after a moment. "Look a few years back, I don't remember exactly when, I was running from a crowd of those... wanderers, or creatures, whatever you all call them. After hours of running, I ended up alone, no food, no water, in this half-desert stretch of land. That's where I got stuck. There was no way out forward or back, it didn't matter. I honestly thought that was it for me. I didn't have the strength to keep fighting it... I collapsed on the ground, completely spent, and just accepted whatever was coming. Then I blacked out entirely."
Jenny curious, leaning in asked, "What happened after that?"
Jesse went on. "Turns out, against every expectation, I didn't die. I was just out cold for a while, no idea what was happening around me. Eventually I came to. I won't lie I was shocked I was even still alive, and honestly a little angry, because now I figured I'd just die slowly of starvation instead of quietly in my sleep. But what really threw me was what I saw when I woke up: a strange man, covered head to toe in black clothing except for his eyes and hands, and the ground around those hands was soaked in blood. He was leaning over me on his arms, blocking the sun from my face. Exhausted and in pain as I was, I kicked him off with everything I had and crawled away. He just dropped to the ground and didn't move — didn't react at all, which unsettled me. I hesitated, but eventually forced myself to go check on him. I nudged his body a few times to see if he was alive... he was dead. I didn't dwell on it much at the time all I cared about was finding food or water on him. I searched his body and got lucky: a little canned food, a water flask. I pulled the cloth off his face and was startled by how strange he looked unnaturally pale, deeply wrinkled, dark circles ringing his eyes. It spooked me for a second, but I kept searching and found a few other things besides the food a small knife, a matchstick, and, of course, this notebook. I'd read half of it before, actually found it in my clothes by chance and figured I'd finish it since I'd forgotten most of what was in there."
Joseph, equal parts baffled and intrigued, leaned forward. "That's wild! So what's actually in it? What's it about?"
Jesse held the notebook out toward them. "Like I said it's the diary of that same man I just told you about. But here's the strange part — from what I've read so far... he was a vampire."
Joseph and Mira's eyes went wide with shock, disbelief written all over both their faces.
Mira pressed a hand to her forehead, stunned by what she'd just heard. Joseph looked no less floored.
"Yeah," Jesse confirmed. "That's what I've gathered so far."
In Mira's imagination, visions of impossibly handsome vampires began to take shape. Joseph, meanwhile, was picturing something closer to hideous, nightmarish monsters.
They both turned to Jesse at the same moment, eyes lit with excitement. "This sounds incredible!" Joseph said eagerly. "Let's read it!"
"Yes!" Mira agreed, just as enthusiastic. "Let's read it this'll be fun!"
A small smile crept across Jesse's face, and he spoke in a calm, contented tone. "Heh alright, go ahead and sit down. I'll read it out loud."
Mira and Joseph settled onto one of the beds, pulling a blanket over themselves as they waited for Jesse to begin.
Jesse sat on his own bed, using it as a makeshift chair, and looked over at the two of them their faces bright with anticipation and curiosity. His smile deepened, and a strange, quiet warmth settled over him, something between nostalgia and comfort, as if some distant memory had stirred inside him. He sat in silence for a moment, lost in that feeling, before Joseph and Mira's eager prompting pulled him back.
Jesse opened the notebook and began to read, his voice calm and steady:
"My Dear Diary..."
(To be continued)