Yes, yes it was. “I try not to think about it too hard.”
I stayed by the wall another few minutes, debating about whether to wait for Jack or to go home to my game controller and Left 4 Dead (I was aware of the irony of this). Home just about won out, when one of the women from the bar—not the one I’d isolated, and not the one who’d gasped, but the “What the hell?” one—came out the door and looked around as if searching. When she spotted me, I cringed. Yeah, I should have started for home about thirty seconds ago.
She regarded me for a moment, then said, “Does that always work, or did it just work this time?” She was talking at me like I was an actual person.
I smiled wryly. “It usually works. Surprisingly enough.”
“That’s kind of amazing,” she said.
“Mostly it depends on how eager his target is to meet an actual vampire. Do you and your friends, ah, read a lot of vampire novels?”
“Jenn has been talking for a year about how much she really wants to meet a real vampire.”
“See? That’s the real trick. Jack knows how to spot ‘em.”
She pointed a thumb over her shoulder. “Do I need to go back in and rescue them? Are they in trouble?”
I winced. “It depends on how you define trouble. But no, Jack won’t hurt them.” Much...
“And you… what? You just stay out here playing bad vampire?”
“That’s me. Bad vampire. Rawoar.” I couldn’t pull it off, here under the streetlights.
She crossed her arms, smiling gamely. “I figured you couldn’t be a total asshole if you’re wearing an old-school Metroid T-shirt.”
Was I? I had to look. And sure enough, there was Samus in her armor, facing out, beneath the blazing logo. The image was faded enough Jack hadn’t chastised me for it.
“Good eye,” I said. “Well, you got me, it’s true. I’d rather be at home playing Left 4 Dead.”
“Me too, actually. Jenn got a raise at work and really wanted to celebrate. She heard vampires hung out here. I told her she was crazy.”
“Not so crazy after all.”
“Yeah. I’d never have guessed Denver was interesting enough to have vampires.”
“Oh, you’d be surprised.” Vampires, werewolves, some real haunted houses and a few other things besides.
“So. Left 4 Dead 1 or 2?” she asked.
“First one. Oldie but goodie. Just straight clean play, no bells and whistles needed. And Zoey kicks way too much ass for me to ever abandon her.”
“You don’t think it’s maybe a little… slow? No real strategy or tactics necessary, you just stand there and press down on the trigger. Some of us like a challenge, I suppose.”
Something in my non-beating heart popped. I tried to play it cool. “Yeah, well, you kids today don’t know how good you have it, with your 3D rendering and your games that require actual conscious thought. I’m old enough to remember when the NES was cool.”
“Hey
, I played NES. When I was three.”
There came that popping again. “You’ve been gaming since you were three?” So had I, but when I was three the only game out there was Pong.
“What, shocked at meeting a real-life gamer girl?”
“No… you seem more of a gamer-woman to me. I’m just… I hardly ever get to talk about this stuff with anyone in real life. You’ve met my one roommate, and the other… well. I’m Sam.” I held out my hand for shaking because it seemed like the sanest, most stable thing I could do at that point.
“Ginny,” she said, accepting the gesture. “And you’re really a vampire?”
“I really am.”