If You Dare (Finnick O'Dair)

Chapter 14

Thursday

The next few days, the next few districts, went in really slow. It was just the same things happening over and over. Finnick and I didn't engage in much conversation either. We stayed on separate parts of the train and when one of us was in a room, the other stayed out. I wasn't hurt or anything about what Finnick said. It's not unusual for insults to be thrown at me, I'm used to it. But it's just the fact that he was one of my best friends, which sounds so stupid because I haven't even known him that long. I guess that says a lot about me. No friends, no life, no purpose. But today was a good day. I could go home. To the Capitol, I mean.

I started packing three nights ago. I just really couldn't wait to get back home and catch all the gossip about what happened whilst I was away, apart from the games which Katniss already filled me in on. The victory tour train are four days, not including the Capitol, behind us so if my calculations are right, they're in district 4. Ah, the memories from district 4.

I'm not going to lie, the thought of going back to district 12 did cross my mind but no, I'm staying in the Capitol, I'm not going back to 12. Turns out that my family hate me again all because the other citizens of 12 didn't quite take the secret message very well. According to Gale, they accepted it but they hate me even more now, which is great. He says that some of them have even started to give my mother abuse in the streets and she hates me again, which Is also great. Just as your mother starts to love you again, it all goes downhill. She phoned me a few days back telling me never to show my face around here again, for my own benefit, plus the fact that she never wants to see me again because apparently all I do is trail the family name through dirt. Wait until I tell her about what happened at Finnicks! It won't be dirt I'm trailing the family name through; it'll be horse manure.

Rivera and Alphagustus got off at district 1, with the consent of snow, to sort things out with her mother and all that stuff.

When I got back to my three bedroom apartment, which is far too big for my own needs, I went to bed straight away. Yes, I'm a lightweight, I know but I didn't get back until 10:30 which is late, it's dark, it's cold, it's creepy and I was tired.

Just as I was about to drift off to sleep, I got a call on the house phone. I forgot I had that phone, no one ever calls me on it. When I answered it, a very creepy voice replied on the other side. That creepy voice belonged to president Coriolanus Snow. He wanted to meet me, and Finnick, tomorrow to discuss how the tour went. If Im being brutally honest, which I always am, I didn't want to go, I never want to go and meet snow, he's just so cheery but in a really creepy way. It's awful. I hate him but no matter what manner I speak to him In, he always returns with a laugh. I just hate him so much.

***

Friday

When I woke up in the morning, I was struck, firstly by the awful sound of laughing coming from the hallway, but mainly by the fact that I wasn't on a train anymore which really freaked me out.

I got up, eventually, and ate a compressed seaweed and green leave cereal bar which tasted horrendous but with no calories, you can't go wrong. I had to meet president snow at 12 o'clock in his house so that gave me forty minutes to get ready.

With almost 6 years experience of putting on eyeliner and mascara, I was an expert. I think my record for putting them on is 4 minutes which if I do say so myself, is pretty impressive.

I put on a pair of ripped black skinny jeans and a plain black tight cropped top. I curled my hair kind of lightly and tied a bandana in it. It was different, for me. I hardly ever wore that bandana I got. I don't know why, I just didn't. To finish the outfit off, I slipped on a pair of 5" black heels, not too high I'm cutting down.