From the Vault : Works In Progress I

Genre : Flash Fiction Horror

Title : Donor

Tina and Rachel walked out of the office with me to give blood during our lunch break. Sam and Ellis had gone on their break before us at eleven but hadn’t come back. I’m guessing they chose to extend their lunch break to have time to recover after giving blood. Sam was a bit of a light weight. After having drinks with him a time or two and seeing him at the company Christmas party, I could totally see him needing the extra time. Knowing Ellis, they probably drove out to Casa Amigos Cantina to recover. I had a feeling he would use the reduced blood to get tipsy faster on a margarita. 

The girls and I exited the empty lobby and walked across the parking lot to the Red Cross trailer parked in the back. It looked like a standard camping RV only white with a few chairs underneath the roll out awning. Tina went up the aluminum steps first and a short, fair skinned nurse in a mask answered the knock she gave. She asked Rachel and I to wait in the chairs outside. We looked at each other and took a seat in the shaded waiting area.

I glanced at my watch. I was hoping they were knocking out donations two or three at a time. I’d have to extend my own lunch if this took longer than fifteen minutes per person. No wonder Sam and Ellis hadn’t clocked back in. I heard Tina giggle at something a nurse said from within and the trailer rocked a bit under her weight. Rachel and I ignored it. We talked a bit about the work week so far and after a while, we both drifted to our phones. I lost track of time but it was the rocking of the trailer that shook me out of my doom scrolling.

The door opened and the same nurse came back out, a strand of hair loose from her paper hat. Rachel was next and I saw her frown before getting up and walking in. I’m guessing she hadn’t given blood before. She was nervous, no doubt. She looked around before the door closed and for a brief moment I saw a shine of fear in her eyes. I felt bad that I couldn’t go in with her. She was a sweet girl; she’d only been with us for a few weeks and was quick to please. She probably only signed up to donate because she saw others doing it and wanted to feel part of the team. Maybe she was just trying too hard. I went back to my phone and scrolled some more. I had a small feeling I was forgetting something.

I went through my work email and checked all of my to-do items. I didn’t think I missed anything there. I switched over to check what I had in incoming mail. I was waiting on a sample pack from Thru-Line Inc. and maybe Tina could let me know-

Tina. 

I slowly looked around. The door opened again and the nurse stood off to the side of the doorway, giving me a path to come in. Her eyes smiled. I went up the steps and crept inside. There was only a window to my right and the rest of the space opened up to my left. The trailer was bare other than a sink and counter top with an adjustable bed in the opening room. Past that, there was a narrow hall that was maybe six feet long with two side doors to the right and left. I’m guessing one was a bathroom. The other was probably a bedroom converted to a storage space for samples. 

The nurse placed a hand on my back, making me start. She giggled softly. “I’m sorry, Mr. Ballard, I didn’t mean to startle you. Let’s get you laid down and settled.”

I walked to the table and rested my back against the paper protector. It crinkled under my weight and I looked once more around the trailer.

“Where’d Rachel and Tina go?”

The nurse was adjusting her tray of tools and antiseptic and walking them over to the counter next to me. She nodded to the door on the right. I guess I was wrong. Maybe it was a second entry to the trailer. Or a room with snacks and juice to recover.

The trailer felt cold and stuffy. I didn’t want to be here longer than I had to. I felt the urge to leave. 

I rolled my sleeve up on my right arm and the nurse walked up with her gloves on and an alcohol wipe pinched between two fingers. Her shoes squeaked and I looked down. A red streak ran underneath her left shoe. My stomach lurched.

“Lay your head back, please.” said the nurse. 

I did, closing my eyes to steady my nausea and I heard her move closer to me. I braced my arm for the cool of the alcohol and jumped a second time when I felt it on my neck instead. I realized my heart was hammering. I opened my eyes to see her face racing toward me as she pulled the mask off of her crimson lips. 

Her mouth was open.

Her teeth, sharp.

Note from the Author :

This was a story that popped into my mind after watching an episode of The Office in which Michael Scott goes into a trailer to donate blood for the first time and promptly meets a mysterious young lady he insists is a love connection. The episode made me laugh, especially watching Scott start a 'Lonely Hearts' party in the break room, hoping she shows up.

Watching the episode and thinking back to old vampire movies and shows made me wonder why, at least to my knowledge, no cinema vampire had ever thought to open up a blood bank as an easy means of making the food come to him.

It's the perfect scheme, isn't it?

If the story did its job, it gave you a small thrill at the end but also provoked a small giggle thinking of a vampire collecting samples in a lab coat.