The Biotechnology Board of Canada and Other Bloodsuckers (1.7)

“You’re shitting me. He did not say that. That’s insane.” Shay insists, bundled up in layers and layers of coats and sweaters and long-sleeved shirts. Ever since they went on hormones, even fall weather has been ‘too cold’ for them. Apparently. I had to find out secondhand. I wish I’d kept in touch with them and Jet more. I really do. It feels like part of my life got lived without me.

“He did! He said that if he caught someone who’d been attacking people like this he’d kill them, that’s what he said.” Sylvia says.

Jet stands up in one swift, dramatic movement. He walks to the edge of the field, silhouetted against the skyscrapers by the waxing city lights of the early evening. We look after him, Mount Royal at our backs. You can always tell when he’s about to say something that’s not easy to answer. The world turns into a stage play.

“So, what are you saying, we’re the fucking Scooby-Doo gang now? Someone is literally going to die if we don’t find the Montreal Vampire ourselves and what—smuggle them out of the city!? It’s not just insane, it’s bullshit. O’Hagan said that to scare you guys! To look tough! These feds, the fucking… bloodsuckers, they’re like any other cops, they want you to think they’re in control of everything. He won’t find shit, and if he does everyone’s gonna be fine, and we don’t have to be doing this!”

He gestures wildly, the arm of his jacket casting flashing shadows across the face of the city. The wind makes waves in his spiky black hair. I thank the patron saint of loudmouths that nobody else is using McGill’s sports field right now, that it’s just us out here.

“You weren’t there, dude, you didn’t see his face. He really thinks that if—”

Jet cuts her off.

“Okay, you want to talk about if? What if we get involved in trying to catch the stupid vampire and we get caught? You’d be fine! But what happens to Jimin, huh? Or me? It’s not worth it. O’Hagan can handle it. I mean, screw him, sounds like the guy’s a creep, but he can handle it, okay? We don’t go around trying to do citizens’ arrests because cops suck, right? How much crazier is it to try the same shit with monster hunters!?”

It’s like the aftermath of some natural disaster. Sylvia shuts down and goes back to scrolling through her phone. Shay spends a minute just looking at us, dark eyes darting around like a couple of synchronized ghosts, waiting, before… laying down on the bench and letting out a long, loud sigh.

When we were younger, when we were kids, if Shay didn’t want to say anything it always meant that whatever it was was my problem. I don’t know how we grew up and they can still pawn whatever mess they want onto me. They’re lucky I’m okay with that.

“I thought you were going to kick this thing’s ass.” I say to Jet when he inevitably comes to sit down next to me.

“Yeah. I still want to. It’s just… not fair. And this whole thing is stupid. It doesn’t stop being stupid just because I don’t want anyone to get hurt. Someone’s gotta say it.” he says.

Jimin rushes over like he’s being chased by a wild animal.

“Wait! I want to do it!” he says.

“I know.” Jet says.

“We shouldn’t give up just because we might get caught. I-If we help out, we can at least make sure that the monster hunter, that he doesn’t hurt anyone. Even if whoever it is gets arrested that’s still better than…”

“Yeah, Jimin—”

“…better than anyone getting hurt. It’s okay, I’ll r-risk it.”

“I know! I just had to say how stupid it was first.”

Jimin fidgets and takes a suspiciously awkward drink from his water bottle.

“Oh.” he says sheepishly.

Jet rolls over onto his side, spreading out on the bench. He brushes his hair out of his face with a skinny arm and looks up at me. A few minutes ago, everyone was waiting for me to talk. Now it’s him. Now, his go-ahead is all we need to start doing this. It feels so sudden. I can’t believe Shay can still thumbs-up react to everything I say while lying motionless on a bench. It’s like they’re psychic.

I think I knew it’d depend on Jet from the moment Sylvia started talking about doing this. Actually trying to save this person, this weirdo who chewed up a high school kid’s arm and drank her blood. On principle. No matter what the risk is. Well, Sylvia didn’t say that—she’d do it even if she couldn’t save anyone—but it’s why all the rest of us would even consider something this insane. It was always going to be about Jet. He hooks you in from moment one and then everything hangs on him somehow. I think maybe, at first, people don’t expect a kid named Jet Xiang to look as white as he does, or they don’t expect a track bro to be… like him, and then that little jolt of surprise takes over, seizes the reins, turns him into something he’s not. When we go out to eat, he picks the spot. When we go catch a maniac, it’s his call too.

He has to. I told him he has to, and so did Jimin, and he knows we’re right, and we’re still waiting for it.

“So, what are we gonna call ourselves? The… Sherlock Homeless? Seriously, Antoine, you gotta get some new clothes. Oh, how about Dr. Marcotte’s Charity Blood Bank? That’ll catch our guy easy.” he says.

Shay laughs. Jimin takes a minute to get the Sherlock Holmes joke, but he laughs too. Just like that, it’s happening. Just like that, we’re… monster-hunting teenage detectives, and taking it seriously somehow.

It’s funny how you never regret something right away. You’re too caught up being there.