The night was cold and quiet. The kind that made you feel something strange in your chest. Hazel held her small flashlight tight as she walked through the old path that led to the castle. Everybody in the village said the place was cursed. That people who went there never came back the same. But she didn't believe all that talk. She just wanted to see it for herself.
She liked going into old places. It made her feel alive somehow. Like she was touching history. She reached the tall gate and pushed it a little. It made a long creaking sound that echoed through the night. Her heart jumped a bit but she smiled. "It's just a gate," she whispered to herself.
The air felt heavy when she stepped inside. Everything looked old and forgotten. The walls had cracks and dark stains. The air smelled like dust and something sweet but strange. She walked slowly, her shoes making soft sounds on the marble floor.
There were candles on the wall, burnt halfway like someone had used them not too long ago. That made her stop for a moment. She turned around to check if someone was there. Nothing. Only silence.
"Hello," she said in a small voice. Her voice bounced around the big hall and came back to her. No reply.
She walked deeper. The flashlight caught on something shiny. It was a mirror, tall and wide. Her reflection looked pale and small. She walked closer to it and touched the glass. Cold. For a second she thought she saw a shadow move behind her in the reflection. She turned fast. Still nothing.
Her heart started beating fast. She laughed nervously. "Maybe I should just go home," she said, trying to sound brave.
But then she heard it.
A sound. Soft. Slow. Like a drum beating from inside the walls.
Thump… thump… thump.
Hazel froze. She looked around, holding the flashlight up. "Hello? Who's there?" she said again, this time louder.
No answer. Just the sound again. Louder this time. Like a heartbeat.
She followed the sound down a long hallway. The light flickered. The sound led her to a big door at the end. She pushed it open and saw a man.
He was standing by the window, tall and pale. His hair was black like night and his eyes looked like red wine under the moonlight. He didn't move. He just stood there watching her.
Hazel's hand shook a little. "I'm sorry," she said quickly. "I didn't mean to come in. I thought this place was empty."
The man didn't speak. He just stared at her like he was trying to remember something. Then he said softly, "I heard your heartbeat."
Hazel blinked. "My what?"
He stepped closer, slow and quiet. "Your heart," he said again. "It woke me."
Her chest felt tight. She wanted to run but her legs refused to move. There was something in his eyes that kept her still. Something not human.
He stopped in front of her, so close she could feel the cold air around him. "You shouldn't be here," he said in a deep voice that sounded both kind and dangerous.
Hazel swallowed hard. "Who are you?" she asked.
He smiled a little, but it wasn't warm. "A man who forgot how a heartbeat sounds," he said.
And that was the night Hazel met the vampire who would change her life forever.
Hazel could not move. The way he looked at her made her whole body feel weak. His eyes were dark and calm but there was something sharp inside them, something that made her chest tighten.
The room was wide and quiet. The only sound was the slow beating of her heart. She could even hear it herself, like it was echoing around the place. He was still standing in front of her, not blinking, not even breathing.
"Are you… real?" she asked slowly.
He tilted his head, a small smile touched his lips. "Do I look like a dream?"
Hazel did not know what to say. She stepped back a little but her leg hit the edge of a chair. She almost fell but his hand moved fast and caught her wrist. His skin was cold, too cold.
"Careful," he said quietly.
She pulled her hand back, breathing fast. "You're cold," she said without thinking.
He looked at his own hand like he was just remembering. "I forgot how warmth feels," he said softly.
There was something sad in his voice, something that made Hazel stop being scared for a moment. She looked around again. The room was beautiful but strange. A big bed with red sheets. Curtains that looked older than her grandmother's house. Candles that burned without melting too much.
"What is this place?" she asked.
"My home," he said. "Or what is left of it."
Hazel frowned. "People say nobody lives here."
"People say many things," he replied with a faint smile.
She looked at him properly now. His face was pale but too perfect. No mark, no wrinkle, nothing. His lips had a soft color, not pink but not dark either. His eyes were deep like they could pull her in.
"Are you—" she stopped herself.
He raised a brow. "Say it."
She swallowed. "Are you human?"
He smiled again, a small one this time. "Not anymore."
Her mouth went dry. She stepped back again, her hand shaking. "Then what are you?"
He looked down for a second, then his eyes came back to her. "Something you shouldn't have woken."
Her flashlight flickered and went off. Darkness filled the room. Hazel gasped and tried to tap it, but before she could, she felt his hand again on her arm. This time softer.
"Do not be afraid," he said, his voice close to her ear now. "I will not hurt you."
His breath was cold against her neck. Her heart beat faster and faster, and he closed his eyes like he was listening to music.
"You can hear it," she whispered.
"Yes," he said. "Every beat."
She could feel him so close. She could not see his face clearly anymore but she knew he was smiling. She took a deep breath and whispered, "What's your name?"
He paused for a while before saying it slowly, like he had not said it in years. "Lucain."
The name rolled out of his mouth like a secret. Hazel felt something strange when she heard it. Like the sound itself had weight.
"Lucain," she repeated quietly.
When she said it, he looked at her in a way that made her heart skip. "You should not have come here, Hazel," he said.
She froze. "How do you know my name?"
He smiled again. "Your heartbeat told me."
For the first time that night, Hazel started to believe that maybe the stories about the castle were not just stories.
Hazel's heart was beating too loud. She could feel it all the way in her ears. The room was dark now except for the little light from the moon coming through the window. Lucain stood close to her like he belonged in the shadows.
"How can you know my name from a heartbeat?" she asked, her voice shaking a little.
Lucain looked at her the way someone would look at something they've missed for a long time. "Because your heart does not lie," he said. "It speaks louder than words."
Hazel swallowed. "You're saying my heart spoke to you?"
He nodded slowly. "It woke me. I have slept for a very long time, Hazel. I was not meant to wake again."
She moved back until her back touched the cold wall. Her mind was full of questions but none made sense. "You mean… you were dead?"
Lucain's lips curved in a small smile. "Death is a word for humans. I was only still."
Hazel hugged herself. "This is crazy. I shouldn't even be here."
He stepped closer. "You shouldn't," he said softly, "but you are."
His voice was calm, deep, and smooth. It made her body shiver. When he got closer, she could smell something faint on him—like old wine and rain. He stopped right in front of her. His eyes looked different now, brighter, like fire hiding behind glass.
Hazel looked up at him. "What do you want from me?"
Lucain tilted his head. "I do not know yet," he said quietly. "Your heart calls to mine. I cannot ignore it."
He reached out, touched a strand of her hair. His fingers brushed her cheek so lightly she almost didn't feel it. But she did. Her breath caught in her throat.
"You are warm," he whispered.
Hazel froze. "You make it sound like a bad thing."
He smiled a little. "No. It's beautiful. I had forgotten what warmth feels like."
She pushed his hand away. "I'm leaving," she said, trying to sound strong.
Lucain didn't stop her. He only said, "You can try."
She turned toward the door but when she opened it, everything looked different. The hallway she came through was gone. In its place was a long corridor filled with mist. She blinked and stepped back, frightened.
"What is this?" she whispered.
"The castle does not like visitors," Lucain said. "It keeps what it wants."
Hazel's heart dropped. "You mean I'm trapped?"
He looked at her, quiet for a moment. Then he said, "For now."
She shook her head, fear and anger mixing inside her. "You can't keep me here."
Lucain's eyes softened. "I don't wish to harm you, Hazel. But the castle listens to me. And now, it listens to your heartbeat too."
She didn't understand what that meant, but she could see he wasn't lying. She pressed her back against the wall again, her breath fast. "What are you going to do with me?"
Lucain walked closer until there was almost no space between them. His voice dropped low. "Nothing," he said. "Unless you ask me to."
Her breath hitched.
He leaned closer, his cold breath brushing her ear. "You woke me, Hazel. Now we are bound by that sound in your chest."
Hazel felt her knees go weak. She didn't know if it was fear or something else, something she didn't want to name.
Lucain pulled back slowly, his red eyes never leaving hers. "Sleep," he said softly. "You need rest."
Before she could say a word, the world around her began to blur. The room faded, her vision dimmed, and she felt herself falling into darkness.
The last thing she heard before everything went quiet was his voice
"Your heartbeat belongs to me now."