Bloody Base

"Here is your rose tea ma'am. Anything else you want to order?" The waiter asked me.

"Uhmm, I ordered a red velvet pastry too..."

"Yes, I'll bring that to you in two. May I ask if there's any special occasion?"

"It's nothing like that. It's just me alone."

The waiter nodded and left to bring my pending order.

I glanced at my first order. The magenta liquid in the pink mug glimmered under the soft red and white lights, which made it look refreshing. I brought the mug close to my lips and took a careful sip. I sputtered it out after a second.

"Is everything alright ma'am?" The same waiter came just in time with my red velvet pastry and placed it on the table.

"The taste seems peculiar to me, like...Uhmm, something metallic...something...like blood..." My eyes shot wide with sudden realization. Blood was indeed mixed in my rose tea.

"But mam, there's nothing peculiar in that. Blood is mixed in every dish and beverage we serve." The waiter told me with furrowed eyebrows.

"You see this?" He pointed towards the red velvet pastry placed on the table. "Apart from the chemical reaction of raw cocoa powder with buttermilk and vinegar, which gives the classy red colour, our chef adds a considerable amount of blood in it to make it look tempting and pleasing. That's why it's one of the best selling dishes here." He added nonchalantly.

Then, he shifted the pastry closer to me as if requesting me to taste it once.

"I promise, you won't regret ordering it."

I looked at my order as if scanning it whole with my naked eyes. Although I usually don't mind tasting my own blood when my lips bleed, I still couldn't bring myself to taste the pastry- to taste someone else's blood.

"Whose blood are you guys mixing?" I questioned impatiently.

"Oh my God ma'am, it's from the nearby blood bank. We always buy liters of blood from there on discount." He replied as if stating an obvious.

Then, he narrowed his eyes and raised an eyebrow at me as if I were an alien.

"I find it very strange to see someone here who finds mixing of blood in dishes peculiar." His tone seemed to be accusatory now.

I panicked. I didn't know anything like this had happened before. I didn't know what to do. Then suddenly the name of this cafe shop, mentioned on the menu, caught my eye.

Revenant's Repast