He had followed Drew into the place taking in the scents and sounds as they entered. Following Drew to what will be their booth, listening to him order two things of water. He understood that one would be for him which he had no issue for, but didn't think Vampires could drink water, which he found odd. When Rohan came back, he didn't hear Drew go for his wallet or put anything on the table, so instead Dreki tipped the water bringer, slid a $20 on the table for him. He was aware he was spending $20 as a tip, he always tipped heavy so this wasn't out of the norm for him.
"From the beginning? It's quite a story but I'll try to condense it down." He warned as he though for a moment, taking a drink of his water before he started. "My parents died when I was 16. Mom in an accident, Dad, well, he wasn't able to continue without Mom it seemed. So I ended up in foster care, they were afraid of placing me with just anyone because back then I was fully blind. They wanted to make sure however they did place me with not only had room, but had handled special needs kids before in the past. They found a place that was fostering just one other kid at the time, who ended up being Emma. She was 7 when I met her and still in diapers back then. I was naive enough to not realize that a kid shitting their pants was a sign of abuse, but it is something I learned the hard way. Emma was always mentally delayed, she doesn't have downs syndrome or anything, but her bio parents just never interacted with her. She was rescued before she became a true feral child and does have some semblance of Language and whats going on, but she really just never progressed further than what a toddler would."
He took another sip of his water.
"Anyway, our foster dad was abusing her sexually. She had her own way of telling me this, by showing me when it happened. I got incredibly mad and attacked him with my seeing cane. My memory is kind of fuzzy after that, except somehow making it to a gas station parking lot in the middle of the night with her in attempts to run away. It became a rather big thing on the News back then, and while the foster place was trying to find us a new home, the Facility stepped in. Dr. Hofflan came in person to meet with us and talked with me. He wanted to know if I had any wishes, lifetime goals, and other things of the like. As a lonely 16 year old who was ostracized from his peers for being blind, I told him that I wished that I could see and that I wanted Emma to live in a safe environment. For long term goals I told him I wouldn't mind being a teacher, as I enjoyed helping Emma learn for while I lived with her. He promised me sight, a safe home for Emma and myself, and if I still had the aptitude for it, that he would pay for my schooling to become a teacher."
He took another drink, his tone of voice stayed mostly neutral. It was clear on some of the harder subjects to talk about it wavered a bit.
"I agreed and thus he adopted us both. He then explained much more in depth what everything would entail, and they wanted to wait until I was 18 so I could consent to it legally for myself. However if I didn't consent then he could no longer promise the ability to pay for my schooling to become a teacher, so really, what choice did I have? Emma and I were both home schooled at the facility at that point, and he would take blood and other samples of DNA from me to experiment with until the time came. The day after my 18th birthday I went under and didn't fully 'wake up' until a month or two later. I don't remember much of that time except excruciating pain and a conversation they had where they didn't think I was going to make it."
He finished off his glass of water.
"After I woke up and was fine, they ran all sorts of general tests, tests they have run on me before the whole thing and compared. Think like a doctors checkup but way more incredibly in depth. He still runs those tests once a year and compares it all. Apparently I cannot get sick through normal means anymore, I heal incredibly quickly from injuries, I can see outlines of 3D objects rather than nothing at all, that physically it doesn't seem like I'm aging anymore since past 25 or so, that I can heal others at risk of my own physical health, I can generally tell the difference between humans and vampires at least, and..."
He stopped talking for a bit, looked down at his left hand.
"I'm certain there are things they aren't telling me. I've no idea how I've burnt my hand. I have two burn scars on my back as well, it wasn't something that happened before the facility. They also tried to train me how to fight, it didn't work out so well, so they let me loose into the world, paid for my schooling to become a teacher, and thus, thats where I am today. Dr. Hofflan will request I visit the facility from time to time for either check-ups or to hang out with Emma for bit, or something. The most recent check up for myself I remember after he gave me some shots I was incredibly sick for a bit. My memory is fuzzy so I don't remember too well what happened, but what I do remember is leaving the facility to go home, then ended up back in the facility itself. I was strapped down and sedated, and Hofflan, well he requested the nurses, to do something I was very much in no mood for. The last time I went for Emma, I learned that because of the evils of the facility she is now, expecting a child. She barely understood puberty went she went through it, and to say I'm terrified for her is an understatement. I went to try and attack him, but I quickly learned that he was a vampire himself and he very quickly put me in my place."
Those last parts, he seemed very uncomfortable talking about those two visits with obvious good reason.
"I can't say I'm not thankful, without Dr. Hofflan adopting us I'd probably be a poor blind homeless man stuck on the streets with nowhere to go, and Emma, probably become a ward of the state or something, but I can't help but feel like that would have been a better fate than where we are today. He does act like a dad sometimes. He'll check in with me just to check in, not like I really give him more than a one sentence response, but I'm at a point where I really can't deal with this anymore. I want help but I don't know who to ask or what to even ask. This isn't as simple as 'Oh I can't read a receipt to leave a tip' or something else with my blindness. I'm at a loss of what to do but I know that I need to get Emma, get her to safety, get her to a doctor who will understand that she is in no way or shape fit to be a mother, and get us both free from their grasps. If I can ruin the whole place I would because I can't imagine that Emma and I are the only ones they have wronged. Again I just don't know where to start."
He seemed incredibly willing to give up whatever information he needed, and that was as condensed a story that he could give, leaving out a good chunk of details, but spoke about what he felt would be important to Drew's case. He was ready for Drew to ask a bunch of questions, and he was more than willing to answer. He kind of wanted the second cup of water but figured Drew likely ordered it for some good reason and didn't push for it.