𝙷𝙾𝚄𝚂𝙴 𝙾𝙵 𝚁𝙾𝚂𝙴𝚂 | 𝙵𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚒𝚌𝚔 𝙾𝚍𝚊𝚒𝚛

𝙴𝙸𝙶𝙷𝚃𝙴𝙴𝙽

Tick.

Tick.

The clock echoed through the quiet room as Valeria raised her eyebrow at the man sitting in front of her as he scribbled notes on his notepad.

"This is so unnecessary," Valeria huffed with an eye roll as she uncrossed her legs, catching the man's attention as he glanced up from his notes.

"Your grandfather wants to make sure there aren't any relapses from the incident," her therapist's words almost made Valeria scoff. So that's what they were calling her being held at gunpoint.

"And I told you I haven't been seeing anything out of the ordinary," Valeria felt like a broken record as she repeated the same words to the therapist her grandfather insisted she saw.

All lies, Valeria thought to herself, but if her grandfather thought she had relapsed again then he would put her under surveillance for however long he deemed necessary. That was the last thing she needed.

"And you've been taking your medication?" he asked.

"Every day," Valeria retorted as she crossed her arms over her chest defensively. "Are we done here?"

The therapist sighed as he set down his notepad, reaching up to take off his glasses as he looked at Valeria.

"I'm only here to help you, Valeria," the man told her. "It's very common for relapses in schizophrenia after a traumatic event like that."

Valeria knew he truly meant what he was saying, but it didn't matter. Anything she said in that room would no doubt be reported back to her grandfather no matter what patient confidentiality the therapist would claim.

When she didn't respond, he released a defeated sigh.

"Yes, you're free to go if there's nothing you'd like to talk about," he relented, knowing Valeria long enough to know she wouldn't talk if she didn't want to. "But you let me know if anything changes at all."

"Will do," Valeria sent him a tight-lipped smile as she stood from the couch, leaving little room for any more conversation as she walked over to the exit.

She paused slightly as she reached for the doorknob before she wrapped her hand around and twisted it open. Ignoring the blood that seemed to seep over her hand from the doorknob, she shut it quickly behind her as she released a shaky breath now that she was alone.

Despite the room spinning around her, making her head hurt, she managed to find her way to the car waiting out front for her as she slipped into the backseat without a word to her driver. She sank into the plush leather seat, her mind still reeling as she stared out the window. The city passed by in a blur as her own thoughts swirled in a chaotic dance.

Valeria finally glanced down at her trembling hands, the blood now smearing on her skin from the tainted doorknob. She clenched her fists, trying to push away the hallucinations despite knowing it was no use. They were relentless, clashing at the edges of her consciousness and threating to consumer her whole.

It had been like that ever since she was a child. Ever since she watched her parents die.

The car slowed to a stop, jolting her out of her downward spiral as the door swung open. Valeria blinked, realizing they had arrived at her destination in the center of the Capitol where the games were being livestreamed in the main square. The loud voices and cheers filled her ears as she remembered she still had a part to play.

With only six tributes left, the games were coming to a close soon and that meant Valeria had limited time before the parties would die off and become more infrequent as people returned to their everyday lives.