The Complicated Life And Times Of Winry Butler (First Life)

I sat in an empty guest room and contemplated Nate’s doom. I wanted to wipe that smirk off his face and doing a small prank didn’t seem to cut it.

I looked up at the wall opposite me, where a portrait of an ancestor hung. I looked at his features that reminded my of that stupid, arrogant–

I had to stop before I punched something and hurt myself. Oh, his face...I just wanted to–

I snapped my fingers and jumped up off of the bed. “Got it.”

During dinner I was quiet, I didn’t speak, I just ate and excused myself to our room. I still shivered at that word.

Our... I shuddered as I reached our door and walked into our room. I couldn’t get rid of that feeling that made me roll my shoulders, like I was very uncomfortable thinking as a plural. I shivered once more to get it out of my system before I walked into the en suite bathroom and locked the door behind me. I ran the bath water in case he came in. He would suspect nothing.

I pulled on the non-frumpy silk nightgown and sat on the edge of the tub waiting until it filled. I turned off the water in time to hear the bedroom door close and I threw my legs into the tub quickly to show him that I was innocently in the bathroom.

Only thing is, I forgot which tap I had turned and quickly found out that it was the hot water. I yelped and fell backwards off the edge of the tub, onto the floor.

In the bedroom, I heard rushed footsteps, the room seemed to burst into stars for a moment before I was able to focus and wonder why the door was sideways. Quickly, I sat up as there was a knock on the door.

“What was that?” The door muffled his voice, but I could tell that it was Nate. I tried to think of a quick excuse and came up with,

“I saw an enormous spider, jumped up, and tripped over the side of the tub to get away,” for an added effect I threw one of my slippers across the room and it landed with a nice slap on the tile squashing the invisible spider, “Got it.” I jumped to my feet lightly and took a bow at the slipper and mouthed,

“Thank you, thank you. Hold the applause!” My charade was brilliant.

“You’re such a klutz.” I froze mid-bow and looked at the door.

“I’m sorry, but who just killed a spider with an amazing throw of a slipper?”

“You still fell onto the floor.” I could almost see his nonchalant shrug through the door. A smile appeared onto my face as I quickly strode to the door, unlocked it, and flung it open.

The hollow thud that accompanied it, I nodded my head in smug satisfaction before I closed it and locked it again. I slowly counted to three before I heard the banging on the door and I laughed quietly to myself. Maybe my original plan of drawing on his face with make-up was ruined, but at least I caused him almost as much pain as I had felt falling onto the floor.

I turned around to unplug the drain on the tub, and gasped. Nate was standing right behind me, a smirk on his face as I looked at him in shock.

“Well, well. I guess you forgot that the master bathroom has two entrances.”

I silently cursed his speed and stealth as I tried to sidestep him, but he easily mimicked me. I felt my frustration grow and he just stood and smirked.

Then a brilliant idea came to me. I looked up at him, studying him for a moment and his smirk froze as he became unsure, it was almost as if he knew what was going through my mind.

Quickly, I pressed my lips against his soft ones and wrapped my arms around his neck, to keep me from falling off my tiptoes. His arms wrapped around my waist lightly as the waves of want flowed through my veins for an instant, but I ignored them and swiftly let go of him. That was when I sprinted out of his light grip and out the door and into the bedroom, leaving him standing there speechless.

I looked around the bedroom, our bedroom, and thought at the moment that kissing him before going toward the bed I shared with him wasn’t as brilliant an idea as it seemed a few seconds ago.

Before he could say a word, I was running down the hall. The soft padding of my bare feet on the runner carpet was drowned out by the pounding of the blood in my ears. Why had my body reacted that way? I was supposed to be angry about being here, being forced to stay away from my sister until I married that...that....vampire.

My pace slowed to a wobbly walk and I chanced a glance over my shoulder. No one was there. I placed my hand over my heart and stopped walking for a moment, closing my eyes.

What was wrong with me? I stood in the hallway, trying to catch my breath in a silk nightgown in the middle of the night after I had purposefully kissed the prince vampire.

Needless to say, I slept in a guestroom that night.