The Inheritance Games Chapter Rewrites

Let Your Colors Burst (Ch.4 of THL)

Summary: A bunch of little "What if?" one-shots based around Jameson and Avery practically about to kiss so I modified them. On AO3 and Tumblr they were posted as part of the THL Kiss Drabble collection which are five in number. However, they were not in order but here I will post them in chronological order.

"What's life without a little risk, brother?"

I turned toward the elevator. I hadn't noticed it going down or coming back up, but there Jameson was. He strolled past Grayson and settled into the seat on the other side of mine. "Made any progress on our bet, Heiress?"

I snorted. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

Jameson smirked, then opened his mouth to say something else, but his words were drowned out by an explosion. More than one. Gunfire. Panic shot through my veins, and the next thing I knew, I was on the ground. Where's the shooter? This was like Black Wood. Just like the Black Wood.

"Heiress."

I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. And then Jameson was on the floor with me. He brought his face level with mine and cupped my head in his hands. "Fireworks," he told me. "It's just fireworks, Heiress, for halftime."

My brain registered his words, but my body was still lost in memory. Jameson had been there in the Black Wood with me. He'd thrown his body over mine.

I nodded numbly, trying to regain any semblance of control in my panicked state.

"You're okay, Avery." Grayson knelt beside Jameson, beside me. "We won't let anything hurt you." For a long, drawn-out moment, there wasn't a sound in the room except our breathing. Grayson's. Jameson's. And mine.

"Just fireworks," I repeated back to Jameson, my chest tight. He nodded.

Grayson stood, but Jameson stayed exactly where he was. He stared at me, his body against mine. There was something almost tender in his expression. I swallowed—and then his lips twisted into a wicked smile.

"For the record, Heiress, I have been making excellent progress on our bet." He let his thumb trace the outline of my jaw. For a split second, I let him before glaring at him and swatting his hand away but he caught mine and gently intertwined his fingers with my own. Instinctively, I squeezed and again, there was my second glimpse at that somewhat tender look on his face but it disappeared just as quickly, as if I never saw it.

"Come on, Heiress, up you get." And just like that, he was tugging me up with him as he stood and I turned my head, watching as Grayson left for the elevator then returning my gaze to Jameson who was still locked in on me. I wanted to look away, the intensity of his focus burning me from head to toe, but I couldn't.

When we were both upright again, I tried backing away from him as fast as possible but I tripped backwards and he caught me. With an arm around my waist, he pulled me right up against his torso but when I looked up at him again, he was watching his brother's retreating back and I turned my head to look, too. Until Grayson was safely in the elevator and out of view, we remained motionless, entangled.

The second that his blonde hair slipped from sight, I jolted to life and tried separating from Jameson but he didn't let me go. Instead, his grip on me tightened and I was about to tell him until he gently turned me in his arms and led me towards the window. The fireworks were still going on, music from down below dampened by the sound of their explosions.

They were beautiful but I didn't want to watch them. That night in the Black Wood was running through my mind again and the sorry truth was the gunshot had ruined them for me. It would be a while before that feeling went away. If it would ever go away. I looked down, away from the colorful bursts of light. "Jameson, I don't-"

Another one popped, this one a bright orange and I flinched involuntarily, completely turning away and hiding my face into his chest. His hand immediately went to the back of my head. If this had been any other time, I would have been embarrassed and probably fleeing the scene as soon as I regained any composure but that was not the case here.

For a beat, it was quiet other than the loud crackles outside and I let my eyes shut. "Do you ever feel like a plastic, drifting through the wind, wanting to start again?" I heard Jameson's quiet voice, a bit muffled. There was a pause before he continued. "Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin... like a house of cards, one blow from... cavin' in? Do you ever feel buried deep? Six feet..."

Why does that sound so familiar? As he trailed off again, I tried remembering where I heard that song before. "...in you. You just gotta...ignite the..." For what was a very impromptu performance, he actually had a decent singing voice but he didn't have to know that; his ego was already big enough. Heck, he might even had the ability to hear my thoughts but I just decided to ignore all the thoughts and focus on him. That's when it hit me.

Is he? "Are you-"

"Just ooohhh-wn the night, like the Fourth of-" It was. Firework by Katy Perry. I pushed off his chest and looked at him in disbelief. Jameson continued crooning in a hushed tone, smirking and cocking an eyebrow mischievously but he sounded so good I couldn't even hit his chest in annoyance. He had me captivated and there was nothing I could do about it. "-ow 'em what you're worth, make 'em go 'Oh, oh, oh' as you shoot across the sk-ah-eye...baby," he winked at me then and I rolled my eyes, "you're a firework, come on, let your colors burst, make 'em-"

"Okay, I get it. You're also a platinum pop singer that captivated millions of little girls and boys back in 2010." He grinned boyishly and leaned in, nuzzling his nose against mine. I let him and I closed my eyes again.

"But it worked, didn't it?" he asked softly. I glanced at him through half-lidded eyes. He looked sincere and I nodded. A few seconds went by, him hovering so close and I decided to close the gap. Jameson happily reciprocated. Thirty seconds may have gone by but it felt like minutes, hours before we parted.

I let go first, gasping. He wasn't as bad off but he was breathing hard. When my breathing returned to normal, Jameson leaned in again and I was about to do it again until I remembered our bet. I put a finger on his lips. "Uh-uh Hawthorne. What'd I say about never charming me again into kissing you?"

Momentarily confused before the spark in memory, Jameson cheekily smiled that crooked smile of his. Devastating. What? Avery, no- "Why Heiress, I would never."

I narrowed my eyes. His smile only grew wider and he winked, standing up to his full height as he leaned back. Trouble. Nothing but trouble. Remember that Avery. But that kiss... I shook my head. I needed to focus. I had a mystery to solve and more importantly, a bet to win.

It may have only been our second one ever but I would forget it too. If I won, he would have to forget it as well and not bring either up. It would never happen again. We'd never kiss again. Or would we? As I watched him move away and sit in one of the seats, I turned away for a second to catch a breath of Jameson-free air. Sneakily, I tried to look out of the corner of my eye but I was caught and he winked again. "I saw that, MG." Yeah, okay, it might.