Winter
꧁༒☬.☬༒꧂
Evelina's mother stroked her hair softly, her finger nails gently scratching at her child's scalp. Evelina inhaled her mother's smell, cherishing it, savoring it as if it were the last time she would see her. She never thought she would survive, let alone return home. Her parents tell her the entirety of 12 had a little celebration when they saw she won, as a way to cheer her up. At first, Evelina smiled with them, but the thought of them cheering over the death of 23 other tributes saddened her. She spent the rest of that evening in bed, tucked deep beneath the covers.
On her days off she wrote letters. All were addressed to Coryo, who she hoped she'd never see again. They were letters that were never to be sent. She knew that if she saw him again she'd do anything for him. She would fight in another games if it meant she got to be his, and he got to be hers. Scolding herself, she stacked the letters into a neat pile in the corner of her desk, the white paper contrasting harshly against the chestnut wood.
To raise her spirits, Daffodil would visit often. The Corwin family was always good to the Sanders', though their loyalty truly stood out after the games. Evelina saw a bit of Nadine in the girl. She saw Nadine around lot. She saw her in the color red, in the voices of the mockingjays, and in the opinionated rebels that floated about 12 secretly. She tried to distract herself with gathering flowers, painting and moments with her family she never thought she'd have the luxury of having after the arena. But it all came back to the Games. It all came back to Coriolanus.
"Well, I hear Nylah, you know, Nyla Scott, is pregnant with some rebel's baby," Daffodil whispers. The two girls had a lot of gossip to catch up on, and because neither one really had any other friends, it was the most entertaining part of the day, when Daffodil would come over after work. Evelina told her all about the Captiol. The people, the food, the buildings.
"I just wish I could have seen it under different circumstances," she had said. And it was true. She would have loved to see the tremendous city if she wasn't being thrown into a dome to fight for her life.
Evelina was folding her hair into a neat braid as Daffodil continued babbling about the things she missed when she was away. She looked into the mirror and saw Nadine, her fingers folding the dark pieces of hair into the beautiful masterpiece Evelina was trying so hard to replicate now. A single tear trailed down her cheek.
"Evelina, are you alright?" Daffodil questions.
The victor wiped the tear off her face, sniffling. "Yes. I just remembered something."
"Well, like I was saying-"
"Let's go out," Evelina chimed, turning around in her chair and smirking. "I haven't done so in ages."
Daffodil raised a brow. "Are you sure?"
"Yes," Evelina sighed. "Come on!" She was tired of people treating her like she had an illness, like she couldn't do anything fun. She had survived the games. She was still the same girl who had left all those weeks ago. Was that right? It feels like she had lived many lifetimes between then and now. She hadn't seen Coryo in a long time. A month, it must be. She yearned for his touch, for his smell. Just to look at him, she knew her nightmares would fade. Oh, the nightmares. She had them often. How could she not? Every night she awoke screaming. She could almost see, feel everything that happened during her time in the arena. It was as if an instant replay would go through her mind every night, reminding her of the deaths that would continue to scar her. Her parents had to remind her she was home, safe in District 12 any time she disrupted their sleeping with her shouts.
"Right, then," Daffodil beamed, hopping off of Evelina's bed and grabbing her friends' hand, guiding her out of the house. "We'll go to the Hob, there's some bars down there." They practically skipped to the pub, their skirts bouncing along the street. Evelina's a dark red and Daffodil's a pale yellow. They had to be careful, though. Many Peacekeepers were not that strict, and would also be enjoying their night off, but there were always a few you had to look out for. Both girls knew this, so they crept quietly along a wall to avoid three Peacekeepers they viewed as 'strict' on their way to the bar.
"The Victor!" Someone announced as the pair entered the room. Heads turned, their glasses raised as if to say 'congrats'. Evelina pursed her lips, shook some hands, and sat down at a table in the corner.
"Regretting it yet?" Daffodil asked, sitting beside her.
She shook her head. "No. It's about time I got over it, I think." She would never really 'get over it'. She felt too much all of the time.
Daffodil ran to get them drinks, her ginger curls flowing behind her. Evelina examined all of the couples who danced before her. They were stomping their feet and swaying their bodies to the changing rhythm of every song. She was almost jealous. Yes, that was definitely the emotion. Jealousy sat like a pit in her stomach. She wanted nothing more than to dance with Coryo like they all were, but deep down, she knew they weren't good for one another. Coal isn't made from snow. It's made from the ground, dead plant matter to be exact. Coal fueled their lives. Coal doesn't associate with snow. District 12 did not need a Coriolanus Snow. Evelina, too, did not need him.
"Here." She hardly noticed Daffodil returning with the drinks, but the cool liquid immediately relaxed her, sliding down her throat with ease.
"Yum," Evelina smiles.
"So," Daffodil set her glass down, "do you ever miss him?" Daffodil hardly knew of Coryo, but she knew enoygh to know how Evelina felt about him.
Evelina paused, her eyes fixed on a white rose lying limp on the dance floor. She tilted her head, her eyes narrowing. "Yes. All of the time..." She got out of her seat and picked up the flower. She spun around, her eyes searching the room for any sign of him. If he was here, really here, then maybe everything would be alright. It was like she was forgetting everything she had thought before.
Suddenly, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see Coryo, her Coryo, eyes bluer than ever and blond hair now shaved, grinning down at her. She almost couldn't move. His hands snaked their way around her waist, pulling her closer. And then they kissed, and for a single second she felt all of the pain vanish. She could hardly remember the tribute's grotesque, decaying faces, the only one visible in her mind being the one she was kissing. She couldn't hear their begging screams over the boom of the music. She couldn't feel the stab of a knife over the touch of his hands. She simply did not think of anything else besides him. She did need him. Maybe there was a chance he needed her, too.
And that was enough for her.
"at the restaurant, when i was still the one you want
cross-legged in the dim light, everything was just right"
BẠN ĐANG ĐỌC
Panem Forever
Fanfiction"hope. it is the only thing stronger than fear." Anyone would tell you that Evelina Sanders was not a "go getter". She was a gatherer, not a hunter. She wasn't particularly good at anything, though she could fancy herself a painter if she were aske...
