I bet on losing dogs , treech

four.

Vienna was still confused by what happened, but she shook her head. "I don't want any part in helping your games. I just need to win the Plinth Prize." Vienna sneered at the woman, who was trying to get something out of her.

Dr. Gaul laughed a cruel laugh, almost as she expected the response. "So you are like Sejanus; you believe my games are wrong."

"Me? Like Sejanus? I could never be like him." Vienna truly hated him, but for what reason is what has she yet to figure out. Maybe it's because he has parents who care about him, or maybe it's the fact that he is free to express his opinions.

"I believe the districts deserve to be punished, but is there really no other way to go about it?" Vienna grew louder towards the end of her sentence as the anger took hold of her.

Vienna's defiance echoed in the classroom, her refusal to align herself with Dr. Gaul's gruesome vision evident in her words. The tension in the room intensified as the conversation unfolded.

"I see. I expected better from you. Have your parents not taught you what it means to be a Hawthorne?"

Dr. Gaul's mention of her parents struck a nerve, causing a flicker of vulnerability in her otherwise composed exterior. How was it that everyone knew her one weakness? Vienna squared her shoulders, meeting Dr. Gaul's gaze with a stern look. She was fed up; she couldn't stay in the classroom with everyone's eyes on her.

Vienna stood up from her seat and headed toward the door. Class was not over for another thirty minutes, but she did not care. She didn't say a word as she left the room, her departure leaving a lingering tension behind.

As the door swung shut behind her, Vienna's footsteps echoed in the corridor, each step a testament to her refusal to conform to the Games.

Vienna navigated to the academy's cafeteria, where she sat all alone in a quiet corner, collecting her thoughts. The events of the day had unfolded unexpectedly, and the weight of Dr. Gaul's words about her parents and the expectations tied to the Hawthorne name echoed in her mind.

As she sat in solitude, Vienna contemplated the implications of her actions. Deep down, she knew she couldn't keep up the 'perfect Capitol sweetheart' act forever. The Capitol's grip on its own citizens was suffocating, and she had just taken a bold stand against it.

Vienna would have to face the wrath of her parents one day, but she swore that day had not arrived. She spent so long building up her reputation—it was not going to crumble just like that.

She was a Hawthorne, one of the Capitol's elite families. Vienna was going to make sure everyone knew that. These games weren't going to stop her.

Vienna was disrupted as the cafeteria buzzed with the distant sounds of conversations and clattering dishes. Checking her watch, she realized lunch had been going on for around ten minutes, meaning she had been in her thoughts for forty.

Footsteps were heard growing closer and closer, causing Vienna to tense up. She looked up to find Felix approaching, concern etched on his face. He placed a tray of food on the table, breaking the silence Vienna sat in.

"Pack the food in your bag; we are going to visit our tributes." Felix smiled at Vienna as she looked up at him.

Vienna was very grateful for him; even after everything that happened in the classroom, he was there by her side. He truly was her best friend—someone who saw beneath the polished surface of her Capitol persona and understood the vulnerabilities of her family name.

Nodding her head in appreciation, Vienna started to pack the food in her bag. She was quick with her actions, desperate to see her tribute. Standing up, she grabbed the water bottle on the tray before she followed Felix out of the school.