THE SECRET DIARY OF PEETA MELLARK/ THE BOY WITH THE BREAD
yeah, that was stupid. but I couldn't resist it. her phone was right there, what do you expect me to do? she'll thank me later. i hope. she better. because if she doesn't I'm going to die tonight. I haven't known her for very long, and yet I've already seen her most obvious side- the angry, bad side. pray for me.
"You think I can't handle this myself?" Katniss whipped me to the side, hitting me in the face with her long braid. "And how did you text Johanna?" I gulped and resisted the answer. She stared at me until I finally gave in.
"Okay. I saw your guy's texts and texted her on your phone asking her to come because I knew you didn't actually want to come to the party." She let out a frustrated sigh.
"You piece of sh-" she paused. "Thank you." She loosened her grip on my arm and walked past everyone else, right into the house. I didn't know what to do, but eventually I followed behind her. I was only able to see her for a little bit, until she vanished into the crowd and I was sucked into my own vortex of people.
"You lost?" Smushed up against the wall, I peeled myself away and faced the source of the voice. A young, blonde girl who was just as attractive as she was quiet. And she was very quiet. I was barely able to make out her voice in the midst of the music and yelling.
I had been to a lot of parties. They had always been my favorite. But this one was weird. I wasn't the center of attention, and no one knew who I was.
"Very lost," I said, looking a little dreamy eyed and bonkers in the head. "If you can even get lost at a party." The girl smiled a little and brushed some hair out of her face.
"I'm Delly," she said quietly, reaching her hand out. I gently shook it.
"Pe-." I almost slipped. "Rowen," I said as I let go.
"Nice." We stood there in our own silence for an eternity, and it seemed impossible to break. But she did, eventually. That had been the most I had talked to someone in a long time. No girly squeals. No autographs to sign. An actual, human one on one conversation with someone.
"You're sweet, Rowen. I'll see you around?" She left before I could answer, but not before she pecked me lightly on my cheek. I felt myself blushing.
"Where the hell have you been?" Katniss walked up to me from behind, causing me to jump and squeak like a little girl. She laughed. "Who were you talking to?"
"Her name's Delly. You probably know her," I said casually. At that moment, I knew that was probably the stupidest thing I could have said.
"Shit, kid. Everyone knows everyone here. This isn't Hollywood."
"Ummm. Okay?"
An awkward silence stuck in the atmosphere until Katniss finally spoke up. Yet again, the girl had to break the ice and I felt like absolute shit.
"Let's get back to the party."
"Why? We could just stay here."
"There are snacks," she said with a wink.
"We should get back to the party," I repeated mockingly, leading my own path to the center of the party where rows of tables were set out that had different kinds of food. I instantly took advantage of the stack of brownie bites.
"Dear God, Peet- I mean Rowen," Katniss said. "How many of those have you eaten?!"
"Uh," I said, mouth full with brownies. "Nine?"
She shook her head and then grinned. "They are good though." I stayed at the brownies, but Katniss took advantage of the drinks, a side of her I didn't think I'd ever see. Bottles of wine and different champagnes lined the tables, and Katniss didn't hesitate to grab the first bottle that caught her eye.
Not the first bottle. Bottles. She grabbed bottle after bottle until the first table was over half empty. At first, she sat down in a corner of a room, slowly drinking from her first bottle. The purple wine seemed to seep into her quickly, Katniss soaking it up like a sponge. At the end of her second bottle of the purple wine, her teeth were tinted purple and so was the area around her lips.
"Maybe you should stop drinking," I said, attempting to take away the bottle. Instead, she growled at me, like some kid acting like a tiger. Swiping my hand away, she slurped from the bottle until it emitted a gross gurgling sound.
She set down the now empty bottle and stood up. More like wobbled, because she acted like she had two left feet. I grabbed her shoulders to balance her, but she shrugged me off again. I realized it was probably best to not get involved.
"Woah, Katniss." It was Finnick, who had finally decided to join the crowd. "How much have you had to drink?"
"Not as much as you'd think, actually," I replied. "But she's definitely in to have more." By then, a crowd had gathered in the center of the large room in the midst of the tables. Katniss was in the very middle, dancing like there was no tomorrow.
At first it was just the simple disco, slightly embarrassing. But the crowd, who all had undoubtedly had some to drink as well, came in with the hype, cheering and clapping, handing her more bottles of wine and champagne.
Bottle after bottle of alcohol crashed to the floor, breaking into millions of delicate glass pieces. Katniss chugged without stopping. Once she finished one, someone handed her a stray bottle and the process started again. Over and over and over. I really wanted to do something, but instead I continued to back away.
Soon, Katniss had had at least ten, definitely more, bottles. As she was dancing, she began to sway, but the smile never moved from her face. The cheers only got louder and louder and people drank more and more until the room stank of alcohol. I knew at that moment that I hated (hated was a strong word, but it was the right one) college parties.
Finally, Katniss stopped the drinking. I thought maybe this whole craziness was over but it only got worse from there. She called my name, loud and pitched, but slurred and depressed. "PEEETTTAAA!" I could barely understand what she was saying myself.
She looked at me straight in the eyes, her cold, drunk face clicking with mine. My head shook vigorously back and forth, begging her to somehow keep my secret. She sounded like a gargled zombie, but soon, the name would come out clear and everyone would know.
For a quick moment she looked confused, like she had completely forgotten the whole fake ID thing. She snapped her head away, licking her lips, then stared right back at me, still dancing around and clapping along to the crowd. Finnick came and stood by my side, his mouth dropped in horror and shock.
As Katniss's mouth opened again, she locked eyes with Finnick and I knew this time she would completely give us away. To distract her, I rolled another bottle of champagne her way, which I probably shouldn't have, but it worked and Finnick and I pushed deeper into the crowd so she couldn't see us.
Marvel's house was bigger than it was given credit for. Aside from the huge center space where the drunk party goers were, rooms lined the hallways in the back and there was a huge kitchen in the back of the house.
Annie and Prim sat on the king bed in one of the bedrooms, the door just a little bit open. They sat on their phones, surrounded by boxes of board games that had been left untouched for a long time.
I pushed Finnick into the room and shut it, knowing having both of us out there was too risky. But I also knew I was doing him a favor because the looks on his face showed he didn't want to be out there any longer.
I was stupid to hope Katniss hadn't done anything shitty while I was gone. By the time I had gotten to the back of the crowd, Katniss was dancing on a table alongside a couple other people. The most barf worthy dances of the century.
I pushed to the center of the crowd, but Katniss was moving quick. Slowly, her hands crossed to the bottom of the shirt and she pulled it up over her head, revealing her bare skin and the only underclothes she wore were what was necessary.
She jumped off the table and chugged more champagne. That had been the most drunk I'd ever seen anyone ever. One of the people from the table, who I recognized to be Cato, dropped down and helped her unbuckle her pants. The room was full pandemonium.
Katniss continued to drink, and was hyped with the whole nude party idea. She willingly stepped out of her pants, but when she realized who was helping her, she lost it.
As Cato tucked his hands into the untouchable, she yelped and swung her fist at his face. She didn't bother about her clothes, in fact she didn't even try to pull up her slipping underclothes. But she was slowly backing away. In almost an instant, Cato came from behind and roughly pulled Katniss into him. He was clearly taking advantage of her drunken form.
She yelped again, and I instinctively ran toward her, reaching forward, but Cato shoved my hand away. "Heyy, baby," he said in a deep, slurred voice. It was then I knew he was just as drunk. Unhealthily drunk, just like her.
"Cato, get off me," Katniss demanded, trying to pry his strong fingers off her arm.
He smirked and said, "You're my girl. I can do whatever I want to you, baby."
"Stop it!" she shrieked. I was too appalled and shocked to do anything, so I just stood there, gaping.
He chuckled and said, "Feisty girl." He planted his wet, alcohol-tainted mouth on Katniss's, who tried to wriggle free, but was still caught in Cato's tight grip.
The next thing that happened was completely out of my control, but I wish I had done something to help.
Katniss pushed Cato off of her with all her might, so that he stumbled back and crashed into a table, which collapsed under his weight. His nose was bloody from the punch, but now the blood was smeared across her face.
He roared, and in a drunken rage, picked up a bottle of champagne and chucked it at Katniss, who dodged it, screaming. Although still drunk, the crowd of her friends quickly dispersed.
"GET AWAY FROM YOU YOU DEADLY BASTARD!" she screeched, waving her arms wildly as she stepped back.
"Katniss," I said, trying to reach out to her.
"Get off of me," she snarled. I backed away instantly.
"I DON'T LOVE YOU!! I NEVER HAVE!! YOU ARE TOO ROUGH AND VIOLENT AND CRUEL!" she screamed, stamping her feet. "YOU ACT LIKE YOU OWN ME BUT YOU DON'T! GET AWAY FROM HERE!!"
Cato growled and began walking towards Katniss. His behavior resembled a fierce mutt, and for that reason, I grabbed Katniss's shaking arm and pulled her down the hallway and back into the separate room, where Prim, Annie, and Finnick looked up from their Monopoly game, shocked.
"What happened?" Annie cried, stepping towards Katniss, who looked wild. Her hair was all messed up from Cato's tight grip. Her underclothes were only half on. But she didn't care.
"Cato," she said in a low voice. "I hate him."
Finnick bent in between Prim and Annie, whispering something I could barely make out. "She must really hate him because she's really drunk." Her sisters looked at him slightly surprised. Katniss must have heard his comment, because she hardened her stare.
"Whoa," Prim said, eyes widening. "You finally stood up to him?" Despite Finnick's statement, she still strived to find the best in the situation.
"We've been wanting you to do that for so long," Annie said quietly. "He was no good for you."
"Don't you tell me what to do," Katniss said in a shaky voice.
"She's been through a lot," I said quickly, before Annie could open her mouth to reply.
"I need to leave," Katniss said, and wrenched herself from my grip, which I didn't notice until then.
"Wait!" I said. I followed her out of the room, but she was already far gone. From behind, I could see her straighten her current outfit, grab a couple more bottles of alcohol, and run off.
When I got back, the room was silent.
"Where do you think she went?" Finnick asked hesitantly.
Annie sighed. "Probably dad's."
"Her father's?" I asked, surprised.
"Our dad's old cabin," she responded. "It's a bit away in the woods. She goes there to cool down sometimes."
"Oh."
"Yup."
There was another pause.
"Do you think we should go after her?"
"No." This time, it was Prim who answered. "She does that when she needs time. She'll come back when she's ready. And if she isn't back within the hour, we can go look for her."
"Are you sure?" I asked, still a bit doubtful.
"Yeah. Let's just chill in here until she comes back," Prim suggested.
"Okay," I said, deciding that she knew best. But the thought of her alone in the dark woods with a bottle in hand still made my stomach twist with worry.
The time seemed to crawl, and I kept checking my phone out of habit, seeing if she texted me. Although there was no reply, I still would check. But, I was conflicted with feelings of hurt and betrayal. She had nearly given us away, and Lord knows what would have followed if that happened. And Prim, Annie, and Finnick continued to play Monopoly, and to my dismay, they seemed oblivious to Katniss's state. All except for Prim, who, when I shot her worried glances, looked back at me with an understanding look in her eyes. At last, I heard a scream and a shout, which was my cue that Katniss had returned.
"Katniss!" I cried, making my way towards her, trying to decide if I should punch her or hug her. But her eyes were clouded with the after effects of alcohol.
I was pushed aside by a small but strong body. Johanna grabs Katniss's arm, shot me a knowing glance, and said, "We'll be back soon. Gotta talk. Girl stuff."
"Wait!" I said. "I want to talk, too!"
"Nah," Johanna said. "You wouldn't understand."
"Yes I would! What are you gonna talk about?" I protested.
"Uh... periods."
I sighed and threw up my hands in defeat. "Fine. But once you're done, can I talk to her?"
"Yeah, yeah," Johanna said, and then for some reason, winked at me.
Katniss's POV
Everything was blurry, and the only thing that registered in my weary brain was Johanna's firm grip on my arm.
"W-what?" I asked in a dreary voice. "Where are you taking me?"
"It speaks," she said sarcastically. "I'm amazed." Johanna continued to pull me through the crowd, until at last, we reached the backyard, where we sat down in the dark grass. I blinked, and stared at her. Now that I had snapped out of it, she helped me into her jacket and I zipped it up. Now I was barely dressed, but it was better than before.
"Katniss," she began in an uncharacteristically stern voice. "We need to talk about something. Rather, someone."
"Okay..." I said, alcohol still in full effect.
She glared at me, then slapped me full across the face. I jolted back, eyes watering. The pain was pretty terrible.
"What was that for?" I asked, outraged. But now, I felt a sense of clarity that I hadn't earlier.
"Gotta sober you up," she said, winking. "Anyway," she continued, in a more serious voice. "We gotta talk."
"I'm listening," I said, gingerly patting my stinging cheek.
"Good. Now, how do you feel about Peeta?"
"What?!"
"You know what I said," Johanna replied in a lofty voice. "There's something going on between you two. I can't quite place my finger on it, but it's there."
I felt a blush creeping across my cheeks but tried not to show it. "I-I don't know what you're talking about."
Johanna smirked. "That's what they all say, isn't it?"
"NO!" I said loudly.
"Shut up," she said, glancing towards the door. "As I was saying, I'm almost certain he has feelings for you."
I nearly choked on my own saliva at this ludicrous statement. "What?!"
"Dear God, Katniss, keep up," she said exasperatedly. "Don't make me slap you again. Haven't you noticed how different he is around you? How he is more careful? And more loving? And sweet?"
"Uh...." I said, straining my memory, searching for moments when Peeta had gone out of his way to be nice to me. "Nope."
Johanna nearly face palmed. "You are hopeless, you know that, right?"
"Yeah, I do. I think you may have already said that a handful of times now."
"Yes, You're welcome. But, he is totally different around you. And to be honest, you are too."
I am?
"I am?" I asked incredulously.
"Yeah duh," Johanna said. "You are happier around him. More carefree. Lighter. I like that new you."
"That might be the most sincere and kind thing you've ever said to me."
"Pffft," Johanna said, rolling her eyes. "Yeah? Well now it's your turn. Prove me right."
"I..." I said hesitantly. "I don't know."
"Think," she stated. "Think about it. Think about him."
And so I did. I thought about the first day I met him and how I was so opposed to New Capitol. I thought about how his kindness and compassion started to grow on me. I thought about how, during the deepest hours of the night, I would lay awake and think about him, unsure what to do with my conflicting feelings and thoughts. But then I thought about how, even if I told myself the opposite, I was starting to like him.
I looked at Johanna in a new light.
"You are... freakishly good at this," I said.
"Oh, you're welcome," she replied in a superior tone. "Now let's go, shall we? Peeta will be waiting."
"He'll be waiting?" I asked, confused.
"Yeah, I told him we were discussing periods, not deep, conflicted romantic emotions."
"You what?!"
Johanna cackled and pulled me by the arm back inside, where, sure enough, Peeta stood waiting for me. I smiled at him hesitantly, but the alcohol was still inside of me. "Hi," I said sheepishly.
He didn't say anything, but he looked at me like no one had ever looked at me before. Caring, kind, caressing and in love.
We walked down the hall in silence until we came across one of Marvel's extra bedrooms which was empty. There was a bed and a couch, and we both sat down on the couch.
My head continued to throb. "You alright?" Peeta asked from beside me.
"I just need to clear my head," I said, shaking it back and forth. He nodded, and a huge smile grew on his face. A special, kind smile that wasn't fake.
"I know the perfect place." He grabbed my hand and pulled me up from the comforts of the couch, practically dragging me across the floor. I was finally able to gain balance though, and my feet stopped skidding underneath me.
He let go of my hand when we got outside. He just stood there on the porch for a minute, staring at the setting sun. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" He said, still looking forward.
"Yeah." I felt a little awkward, just standing there with him. He didn't move, and after a while, I began to bounce back and forth on my feet. "So," I finally said. "Where did you want to take me?"
"Oh, right," he said, snapping out of his trance. "I'm sorry. The sunset has always mesmerized me. It's my favorite part of the night. I smiled. He was such a romantic. Which was not the point of anything.
"What's your favorite color?" He asked suddenly.
"What?" Is all I could come up with.
"Well, you see Katniss, how the whole friend thing works is you gotta give the deep stuff, get to know each other." I laughed.
"The deep stuff..." I said slowly. "Like what?"
"For starters," he said, rubbing his chin and looking right at me. "What's your favorite color?" He repeated his question from before.
"Oh you've stepped over a line," I said mockingly, yet delivering my thoughts exactly from the first time he asked it.
"No, seriously," he said, smiling brighter than before. "What is it?"
"Green," I said. "Yours?"
"Orange. Like the sunset," he said, turning forward again and pointing up at the sky. "It's incredible how one sky can have that many colors in it. Like a big blank canvas that is painted with the most beautiful, colorful shades."
Wow, was my only thought. His sentiment was deep and absolutely adorable, the start of something perfect and everlasting. Johanna was so much more than right. I knew at that instant how much I did like him. I really did. No, I didn't like him. I loved him.
"Do you paint?" I asked. I sounded stupid.
"Yeah. It calms me. I used to do it all the time, but music kinda interfered." He shook his head and grabbed my hand again. "C'mon, lets go." We walked down the massive front steps out into the open air. It was like Peeta had been there a thousand times; he took me wherever with ease and perfect direction.
The fire exit ladder hung down next to the windows on the far left side of the building, and he began to climb it. Around four rungs off the ground, he dropped a hand down to me and said, "You won't want to miss this."
I graciously accepted his hand and I climbed up after him until we were both standing on the roof. It wasn't super high up, but it provided a glorious view of the small city and cast an even better breathy view of the cascading sunset.
The roof wasn't your average rooftop. It was flatter, like the top of an apartment building, and was scattered with an array of garden boxes. The boxes contained anything from blooming roses to evening primrose and towards the back there were tomatoes and melons. The fruits and flowers added a festive, calm atmosphere to the setting.
It was the most romantic spot imaginable, but also the best place for me to clear my mind. I hadn't been there for long, and my vision was already made clearer, my thoughts more focused.
In the box at the front of the roof, there was a small bench covered in ivy and arranged with flowers. He guided me toward it and we sat down. Before I knew what I was doing, I rested my head on his shoulder.
"How did you know about this place?" I asked quietly. "It's amazing."
His glows expression changed from a smile to a simper. "I have my ways," is all he said. We sat in silence as the glow from the sunset illuminated the roof with an earthy glow. The last few rays of the sun beamed down on our bench like a spotlight.
After a while, I felt new. My head and body had been drained of my crazy alcohol spree, but only partly. I lifted my head and looked at Peeta who was in his own little daze.
Then I realized where I was, what I was doing, and who I was with. Slightly embarrassed, I scooted down to the other edge of the small bench and pulled out my phone. I didn't want Johanna to be right. I wanted no romance after the crazy things that had happened with Cato.
I wasn't actually doing anything on my phone, I just didn't want to seem pathetic. An artificial glow came from my blank phone screen as I stared aimlessly at it. I tilted my head, only to notice Peeta was doing the same thing on the other side.
I sighed silently, tempted to turn off my phone and just go. But something kept me there. As my phone light faded and it was about to turn off, a new notification brightened my screen. It was from Peeta. Something about it made me smile, even though he was sitting right there.
Peeta: I think you probably noticed by now
Peeta: but I really like you
Of course, the unthinkable had just happened, even though it was the most expected, believable part of my day.
Me: why would you like someone like me?
His response was almost instant.
Peeta: what's there not to like? You're kind, beautiful, and you care about your sisters like if they were gone, your whole world would explode.
This didn't seem like a conversation to be having over text, but I liked not having to verbally say the deep stuff. Peeta was beaming at his phone, and I realized so was I.
Me: I guess that works really well
Peeta: what?
Me: I didn't really realize it, but I really like you too
I felt like I had just gotten the deepest darkest secret off my chest. It felt like I was carrying the biggest burden in the world and hadn't cared until I was able to relieve it of my straining shoulders. And boy did it feel good. And so, so right.
Peeta: why would you like someone like me?
His text came with as much sarcasm as there would have been if he had spoken it. I began to text my answer, but I stopped and dropped my phone. He looked at me and dropped his top. We stared into each other's eyes.
And I just started talking. This was the moment I knew it was real. This was something I couldn't text. It wouldn't mean as much, it wouldn't be real. I knew that he loved me more than he said, but what I was about to do was to prove it to myself.
"Everything about you is perfect. I've never seen anyone look at me the way you do. You love with your whole heart and soul. You don't care what other people think about you. And you-"
His lips were warm and gentle. His body slowly crashed into mine as he slid to the other end of the bench, his lips pressing into mine soft and brief at first. He pulled away quickly, but I couldn't wait. I pulled him right back into me.
This was like no kiss I'd ever had. It was warm and sweet. It was orange and green all in one. This wasn't a sloppy Cato kiss. This was a heartfelt, in love Peeta kiss.
His fingers tucked under my chin, raising my head up as we continued to kiss. This was the greatest moment of my life, and I never wanted to let go.
Eventually, we did though. His beautiful eyes washed over me like the icy blue waves of the ocean on the coarse, grainy sand. Just like me, he wanted all of this moment. And I felt, somehow... I wanted that moment too.
"I....I love you, Katniss.." He murmured..
I couldn't help but smile a little bit. My cheeks grew red. "I love you too, Peeta." The air turned warm as we sat on the bench, watching the sun finish setting until all we were staring at was a blank, black sky.
The party music has died down. Stuff was still going on downstairs- I could tell by the slight vibration that people were more drunk than ever now. "We should go," he said. He kissed me gently on the cheek and left down the ladder. I stayed on the bench a little longer, watching him go back into the house.
My phone, which was still on the ground, began to glow, eerily and annoyed. Johanna had texted me at least fifty times, but I hadn't seen them until now. I responded vaguely: meet me outside.
Johanna was outside in seconds, sitting on the last step of the front porch.
"So?" She called to me as I rounded the corner to the front porch, hands on her hips, a smile slipping on her lips.
"You were right," I said. "Oh my gosh that sounds weird." She glared at me, but clapped her hands.
"I told you!" She did a weird dance, spinning and circles, jumping up and down until I got dizzy. It was freaky- Johanna seemed obsessed with fixing my love life.
"Wow, Johanna. You're a girl." She stopped dead in her tracks and I burst, laughing until I was crying. I had never seen her like that.
"Dammit, Katniss," she said, and quit dancing. "Now, there's one more thing you have to do." My cheeriness dropped. "Well two things, actually. Change into some real clothes is your number one priority." I looked down and realized I was still only wearing Johanna's jacket.
"And second. You need to break up with Cato. Officially."
"Johanna. I don't want to go back in there. I hate him. But I can't stand up to him, especially not now."
"No. You have to do it especially now. You can't keep going like this. You love Peeta like you could never love Cato. Now you just need to get rid of him." I took in a deep breath and closed my eyes.
"How about we trick him into doing it for me?" I said mischievously.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, but I like where this is going."
"Well, he obviously thinks I'm still drunk. And even though I'm not in there, I know he is more drunk than before. I know what will get his attention." It was past midnight, no one was outside, and yet we still whispered. It felt good to be plotting against Cato, and soon we had something figured out.
"I hope this works," I said, slowly opening the door.
"It will. He won't know what he's doing." It was nice that Johanna was remaining so positive, which isn't usually either of our fortes, but it kept me confident.
As we stepped inside the house, the party music grew louder and it looked like even more people were here than before. "I'm gonna have to get kind of drunk again, won't I?" I asked Johanna, and she nodded.
"I want to get drunk with you this time," she said. I shook my head, but she laughed and walked deeper into the commotion of the party.
Empty, full, broken; you name it. Bottles were scattered everywhere. There was way too much alcohol. When it came to drinking, college students were like bottomless pits. Marvel seemed to have an endless supply of wine at his house.
I had been gone from the party for a while, but I was still practically naked and not fully sober, so all I had to do was drunken myself up again to make this work. Johanna was already at the life of the party. And she was not at all kidding when she said she wanted to get drunk too; she was making quick work of it.
To sell it, I wobbled a little, tripping over myself as I went. I grabbed a bottle and threw it against the wall, turning the majority of the attention to me. Just as I was hoping, Cato came out of the crowd.
I ignored him, however, and downed a few small bottles of wine. Annoyed, Cato continuously tapped me on the shoulder, but I didn't answer. Still ignoring him, I removed Johanna's jacket and tossed it into the corner.
The break up plan was in full blown motion. Despite my silence, Cato was fully mesmerized by my sudden burst of sexy. Slowly, as I continued to drink, his fingers curved over my shoulders and he began to unclip my bra. It was risky, but he was buying into it.
Just as he removed the second clip, I swung around and hit him in the face. This time, it was entirely purposeful. I wasn't as drunk as I'd expected to be by this point, but he was. And he was already very angry.
"What the hell!" He roared. "What's wrong with you?"
"I wonder the same thing about you," I retaliated, turning to face him. This might've been one of the best moments of my life, because I could tell Cato was on the brink of breaking.
I threw another bottle, this time at him, and he lunged forward at me. Stepping to the side, he barely missed me, and instead crashed to the floor. He was looking like quite the fool.
While he was recovering, I grabbed another bottle, opened it, and poured it all over his head, staining his blonde hair. My goal was to end it right there, hoping that would set him off, but no. He just kept going. This time, he was the one who retaliated.
It was sudden and unpredictable. I didn't move out of the way in time, and I slipped backwards, crashing to the ground. The glass shattered, the liquid spilling over my body. He had chucked a bottle at my face, and now I was bleeding like there was no tomorrow. And if I didn't get bandages there probably wouldn't.
"We're. Over," he said loudly, in between breaths.
"You took the words right out of my mouth!" He stormed off, but not before grabbing a couple more bottles. It probably wasn't safe to keep drinking, but I didn't care anymore. I never did.
Blood clouded my vision, filled my eyes. Scratches covered my face and shards of glass clung to my hair and skin. And everything hurt. He took things way too far, like usual, but it worked.
"Katniss, that wasn't supposed to happen." Johanna helped me off the ground, brushing the glass off my body.
"I'm just glad it's over," I said quietly. We walked out of the room, all eyes on us. In the same room as before, Peeta, Finnick, Annie, and Prim still made at a game of Monopoly, but looked up as soon as the door squeaked open.
Simultaneously, everyone's jaws dropped and they stood up. "Damn... did you win?"
"Finnick!" Annie scolded. "That's not funny."
"It kind of is," I said, forcing a smile. The cuts on my lips hurt as I tried to lick away the blood pooling in my mouth.
"We need to bandage you up," said Prim. "Peeta, Johanna, come with me."
The bathroom was at the end of the hallway, and like everything else here, it was massive. Prim found everything she needed with ease, patching my face and cleaning the scrapes. At times, she had to remove pieces of stray glass that had lodged in my cheek. But she did everything quickly and without a problem.
Finally, I saw my face again. The blood lake that was my face before was gone, and there was only the occasional- and unstoppable- drip of blood.
"Now will you tell me what happened?" Prim threw away the final cotton pads used to clean my face. Her hands were stained with my blood.
"Cato happened." She looked at me, not satisfied with my answer. "We're finally over."
She clapped. "You finally did it?"
"Actually, he called it off. But that was my plan. I didn't want to, it scared me. I think this," I gestured to my scabbing face, "was the best possible outcome."
I pressed a cool cloth to my face, and we headed back to the room. Finnick and Annie sat in a laughable silence, and Annie was only half awake. Finnick was barely holding on himself.
"You're back- thank goodness. Let's go home." Finnick was up and out the door before anyone else could respond and we had to run after him.
The night air was cool, and the drive home was silent. When we got home, it was past two a.m. and the dark foggy night obscured any vision the car's headlights may have allowed.
My clunky car screeched in the driveway, pulling up next to Madge's car. But it wasn't her car. I recognized it even in the dark. Plus, Madge wasn't staying the night tonight.
"I thought Mom and Liam weren't coming until tomorrow!" Prim shouted, mirroring my thoughts exactly.
"Wait, Dad and Mary are here?" Annie got out of the car and headed towards the front door.
"I'm so confused," said Peeta.
"My Dad, Prim and Kat's step dad," Annie said. "So technically we're step sisters." Peeta just nodded his head, but he still looked confused.
The sudden glowing light from our television approved our suspicions. When we walked inside, my mother and step dad sat on the couch. I flicked on the kitchen light, scaring them off the couch.
"When did you get here?" I asked.
"A while ago. It was a late trip. We texted and you never responded," my mom said. She hastily made her way to Prim and Annie, pulling them into a tight hug. I didn't bother to say hello to my step dad. Let's just say.... I don't want to say.
I went around the house, turning on all the lights. The whole house was immediately illuminated, and I had to blink quickly a couple of times because the ghastly glow was so much different from the dark outside.
"Katniss. What happened to your face?" My mom turned away from my sisters to examine my non bandaged cuts.
"Oh, nothing. It's nothing." But she knew better then that.
"You were cut by glass. What did you do?" This is what I got for trying to lie my way out of that. Trying to lie about your injuries to a medical professional was idiotic.
"Mary, she's fine." Liam (step dad is too long to say it over and over again) still stood off in the corner, his hands in his pockets. My mom glared a little, but then pulled her hands away from my face.
"Alrighty then." Neither of them had even noticed Peeta and Finnick- I never told them about them staying with us. But that was a conversation for another day.
Well, at least I thought it was. "And who are these two handsome gentlemen?" My mom had finally noticed them standing by the door.
"Umm." I didn't really know what to say. I didn't know if they paid attention to modern day musicians, but I still didn't want to give them away.
Using words was Peeta's specialty, not mine, so I'm glad he did the talking before I said something stupid. "I'm Rowen, this is Merrick," he said, pointing to Finnick. They went in for a handshake, but my mom exposed her awkwardness and went in for a hug instead. Unprepared, Finnick and Peeta got squished in their grasp.
"Wait." Liam stepped forward. "I know you guys. I've seen you before."
"I'm sorry I don't-" Peeta attempted.
"Shit! You guys are pop stars. Super famous." He then turned to me. "What the hell are you doing, trying to cover them up. I can see right through your lies."
"Let me explain," I tried.
"Let's explain in the morning. Or when we all wake up later," my mom said. Without her interference, I don't know what I would've done. We all dispersed, heading into our separate bedrooms. As I walked away, my step dad gave me a cold look. Every bone in my body wished my real dad was here to take his place at the moment.