An Era Awakens - Effie and Haymitch

4. Keeping A Promise

Keeping A Promise

"Haymitch?" Effie wasn't sure if it had been a good idea to try to act on her promise immediately. Not that it was too late, but she didn't know Haymitch and his sleeping habits. And he hadn't seemed completely sober at dinner.

To her surprise, he responded instantly. The groan was loud and made Effie feel unwelcome, but that didn't matter. Her own feelings had no place during her duty hours. "Do you have a minute?"

"No," came the simple reply, and Effie sighed inwardly – anything else would have been unacceptable.

And for the second time in a day, Effie now found herself talking to a closed door. Something like this had never happened to her before. "I am asking you, its really important to me." She had to make an effort to keep her voice friendly. She had to get along with Haymitch if she wanted to create a pleasant working environment in the long run. Given Haymitch's lack of interest in cooperation, this would prove difficult. For Effie, who never shied away from a challenge, it meant she would have to work harder than usual.

"That means I'd better stay away from it," Haymitch replied from somewhere in his room.

"Haymitch," Effie almost hissed in anger, which surprised her the most. Usually, nothing fazed her – at least by Capitol standards. But Haymitch Abernathy ... she didn't know how to read him, how to find any common ground with this man upon which to build anything. This unknowing frustrated her. "It is about the children. Open the door now! It is important, and if you continue to act in such ignorant manner, things will soon be different around here."

"Is that a threat?" Haymitch asked, and then the door buzzed before opening. His dirty blond hair appeared at the doorframe, and he tilted his head, eyebrows raised as he scrutinized her. "Because if it is, you really need to work on your commanding tone. It's nonexistent."

Despite his teasing, Effie gave him a broad triumphant smile. "May I come in?" When Haymitch furrowed his brow in response, questioning why that would be necessary, she explained herself. "One does not discuss business in a hallway," she added with an undertone that clearly indicated he should have known this himself. "After all, we are civilized, are we not?"

Haymitch sighed inwardly and stepped aside to let Effie in. She couldn't help but notice the wrinkled shirt – not the one he had worn to the Reaping. Judging by the stains around the collar, he had spilled a drink or two. Disgusting. "I shouldn't have opened the door," he muttered more to himself than to her. "Amidst all the joy of finally getting rid of the dragon, I completely forgot how annoying you Capitols are."

The indignant comment Effie had on the tip of her tongue to reprimand his outrageous behavior died along with her smile as she tiptoed into Haymitch's room. "What in Panem's name is going on here?!" she nearly shrieked.

Effie's high-pitched voice made him flinch, but she was too shocked by the chaos before her eyes to care about her own misconduct. Haymitch looked around the room, confusion evident on his unshaven face. His apparent cluelessness only made things worse. Did he not even see the mess? It would explain how things had gotten this bad in the first place. His dirty clothes from 12 lay on the floor, along with two more T-shirts he had already stained with alcohol. His bed was untidy, and the duvet hung more on the floor than on the bed. Not to mention the countless glasses, some still filled with colorful liquids.

Haymitch shrugged as if this was nothing out of the ordinary, as if this was just another day, and that actually scared Effie. Even though she shouldn't have been particularly surprised, after all, she had always imagined a District resident just like this. Unhygienic and uncultured. But it was another thing altogether to see this image confirmed in reality, especially after her upbringing. In the Capitol, the fact that the Districts were less civilized was no secret. Yet she had at least expected more decency from a victor who knew the benefits of the Capitol.