Make Your Move Katherine

His fiancé

‘A vampire. As if.’

Kat stared at her slim watch on her wrist, then held out her left hand in front of the watch staring at her glittering ring. She was engaged. To a man, she did not know, nor had seen for the past hour. He had introduced her to some other people before vanishing. She remembered how he demonstrated to her, how to slightly tilt her head- “Maybe a centimeter down- ever so slowly politely then back up. That,” he had told her, “is just to show acknowledgment.”

A Queen had to do so but not a King he had said. He had warned her to never bow and to never look with downcast eyes. Of course, she had asked him but what if she wanted to look away and he had replied with, chin high and then look away. “Always raise your head higher, even if you think you might be wrong and never look downwards ever.”

“Keep your chin up at all times. You are always the most important person in the room- except when I am there of course,” he had muttered to her as the woman he had introduced as Lady- something came to him with her hand held out. He had kissed the back of her hand as she congratulated them.

Was this a good enough time to leave her engagement party? Er- ball?

She smiled as a woman walked past her and looked back down at her ring. Platinum with three diamonds diagonally on top just like Oscar’s except hers was also cased with smaller diamonds on each side in a flowing sort of pattern.

Being ignored at your engagement ball- oh joy. The people all spoke to her in mostly English and even the ones that didn’t and had spoken in their own native tongue, she understood them. It was a strange feeling but Katherine had spoken to her mother before, using the foreign language. Even the staff spoke near-perfect English, which came as a surprise to Katherine. Guards and maids.

She took the last sip from her wine glass and set it down on the table next to her. She had been sitting almost an hour, hoping Oscar would rescue her but he was a no-show.

Probably drunker than her now and passed out in his room. What was the time anyway? She glanced back down at her hand and the ring stunned her- once more.

Wrong hand. She wiped her nose sniffing and she looked at her other hand and at the watch once more, wondering why the face was so small as she squinted her eyes, trying to focus.

“This would not happen if I had my phone,” she said without worry for the music was loud.

Jazz?

“Who the heck hires a jazz orchestra for their engagement? I’ll tell who -Oscar,” she asked and answered herself.”

She got up from the chair she was seated in and continued talking to herself, “I would hire a nice band- a wedding singer even for mine- oh.” This was also her party too- she sobered a bit with that realization. “And I would be married to Simon. Dominique would be my maid of honor and I would be happy for the rest of my life!”

Kat looked around, blinking slowly- she felt so drunk- but she had been having non-alcoholic wine. Didn’t she? And water. They both ate something too …so even if she had one or two drinks it wasn’t supposed to affect her like this.

Where is Oscar and why is she alone here with all the stuck-ups of stuck-up here. With his family and friends? Oh- God- she turned and walked away when she saw Oscar’s cousin, Yichen, heading her way. Prince Yichen.

“And his eyes- did you see his eyes? A vampire he said he was,” she asked one of the ‘Lady's' that her fiancé had introduced her to. The girl twisted her face and walked away muttering.

“See? Stuck up,” she muttered to herself.

Katherine ignored the memory of herself… the feeling of being on fire for two seconds when she had seen Oscar’s eyes changing just before he looked away from her to smile at the crowded room. The fiery feeling vanished when he had turned. She remembered his eyes when the priests said the word phoenix. Oscar's eyes had lit up, like fire for a second. She had blinked and stared and he had smiled his fake smile at her before turning to the room of people and waved, telling her to smile and wave too.

“Anthony,” she called out seeing the familiar face.

“Yes?” the Royal Guard walked up to her.

"Are you aware that Oscar is a vampire?" she mumbled.

"Yes, Miss Katherine. Can I help you with anything else?"

“Where’s Oscar?” Kat could hear the slur in her voice and she was somewhat worried about it.

“He’s asleep,” the guard took in a deep breath as if his patience was running thin but Kat couldn’t care less.

“He left me here? Take me to him. “

“I don’t think-”

“Take me to him now!” Kat shouted and grabbed his hand not caring who looked at her and he nodded. Holding onto his strong arm so she won’t fall over from her aching feet that were in stilettos, Anthony’s long legs led the way.

To make the lengthy silence not feel awkward she asked him about the woman they spoke of earlier.

“What woman? Miss Katherine?” he muttered gravely, without looking back as his long legs took strides.

“I’m going to kill her with kindness. I will make her so comfortable,” she recalled Oscar’s smirk as she walked up to them earlier tonight. He had been in an empty hallway with the guard. “Ever heard of the term, revenge is a dish better served cold?”

She had called him out then, for though she disliked the man, he also happened to be the only person she knew here. He had looked behind the guard and to her and smiled.

“Oh, I don’t recall at the moment,” the royal guard said now and came to a stop then and knocked on wide oak doors, on the opposite side of where she remembered her room was and waited. No answer. He knocked again, “Your Majesty.”

“Why do you keep calling a prince that?” she giggled in her half-drunken feeling, state.

“I said don’t disturb me, Anthony,” she heard Oscar’s crossed voice from the inside. A bit dull through the thick heavy doors.

“Er. I know-”

“I thought you said he was asleep Anthony,” she chided the Royal Guard.

“It’s your betrothed, Your Majesty.”

"His fiancé,” Kat corrected him humming to a tune that was popular at that moment. “Betrothed sounds very old-fashioned Anthony-get with the times.”

“Gosh what about her?” Kat heard Oscar yell and she stepped back.

“She’s uh- intoxicated.” Kat was a bit ashamed by the way Antony looked at her in a once-over. Had she been loud and embarrassing?

“Take her to her room- dammit!” and Oscar pulled the door open. His eyes showed his surprise at the sight of her by his door and she excused Anthony, “Thank you. You can leave now," and walked into her fiancé’s room.

His bed sure is rumpled she noticed and walked towards it. Not that she was going to sleep with him- it was just that she needed to scold him for leaving her alone. With people, she didn’t know. He didn’t even have the decency to let her know he was tired himself and off to bed.

Had it been with her family and friends she would not have minded.

She saw two glasses of champagne by the bed and smiled for she thought he was expecting her. She took up the full one and drank it down in one shot, for the other one which was half-drunk must be his.

“Kat, can we talk in the morning?” Oscar was guiding her to the door where Anthony stood with a weird expression on his face.

"Come- please,’" he encouraged her by holding out his hands. “Let me take you to your quarters.”

“Nope, Vampire King,” she playfully mocked as she turned back into the room, shooing the Royal Guard, and poking Oscar in his chest, through the parted blue, unbelted robe he wore as she spoke. “I need to tell you off now. You are so unfair to have me sign that stupid contract and leave me. You should have said you were going!”

“I know. I’m sorry,” Oscar tried to guide her back to the doorway again but she shrugged away.

“I only stayed for you-” she pointed him, “-because it was the proper thing to do, although I didn’t want to.”

“Yes, I’m sorry.”

“You’re a piece of sh*t!” she stumbled and he caught her, “My feet hurt and I’m drunk. Because of you!”

Oscar stared at her, his chin twitching, revealing a slight dent on it, “Please leave while I’m being nice.”

“Nice?” she scoffed and turned to look at the bed. “Why the way you’re acting-” she moved like lightning speed for Oscar’s swipe forward was too slow to stop her. “-you’d think you were hiding-” Kat froze with the sheet in her hand, “-someone.”