From the SHOWCASE archives...

Fiction: “Fulfilling,” by Jocelyn DeVore

I’d been born and raised in sunny Florida, so isn’t it ironic that the one thing I fear most in life is a night-stalking bloodsucker? I’ve spent many nights staring out my bedroom window at eyes glaring back at me from the trees.

 

My friends and family think I’m crazy, of course. Which is why they will be utterly horrified when they see my lifeless body completely drained of blood one morning. I can see it now: my mother would walk into my bedroom to ask me if I want pancakes or waffles (despite my open distaste for the first option), only to be greeted by the gruesome scene of her daughter with two puncture marks on her neck (or my wrist, or my breast—I really don’t know what vampires prefer). She would be numb with the bombardment of both sadness and anger. Until she finally floods my room with tears and wails (no, not the kinds with fins—though sometimes she sounds like one). Of course, reality isn’t nearly as romantic as TV would make it seem. Or so I found out when my worst fear came true.
[...read the rest of the story...]

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JOCELYN DEVORE is a writer and storyteller from the Pacific Northwest. She has written for a number of non-fiction online magazines and is a cozy mystery ghostwriter. She is still learning how to properly use a semicolon and frequently breaks the rules for sentence fragments because she finds them punchy, dramatic, and short. Just like her. She also writes, directs, and produces her own Lovecraftian audio drama, Poplar Cove.

When she’s not writing, you can often find her curled up on the couch with a book and a cup of coffee, or watching a scary movie on Netflix. You can also find her online at www.jocelyndevore.com.