Steam poured over the shower curtain and clouded the room in a soft haze. Annie tilted her head back and allowed the steady stream of water to massage her scalp and rinse away any lingering shampoo. She added some conditioner for extra shine and hoped it would be enough. The bright-eyed woman she saw in the mirror deserved a quick smile while she wrapped herself up in her towel.
The dress had been hanging off her vanity's matching chair for nearly a week, and her favorite heels had been patiently waiting on the floor next to it for almost as long. The rest of this would not be so easy.
She avoided looking at the slender top drawer of the vanity as she dried and styled her hair. If she ignored it for long enough, perhaps it would go away. Annie squeezed one eye shut and peeked down. Oh well, she hadn't really expected that strategy to work. The drawer slid open on its smooth, well-oiled track, and Annie sat there for a long moment studying the sticks, gels, creams, and powders before her, unsure of where to begin. She bit down on her bottom lip and tried to remember her prep team's ritual, but she could only recall the discomfort of sitting bare as strangers poked and prodded and pinched every inch of her for her parade and interview. After her Games, when she should have been more comfortable with the prep team, Annie had been in no condition to take notes on what product went where.
He wouldn't care what she looked like. No matter what, Julius would kiss her hand when she opened the door and tell her how lovely she looked, just as he had on each of their eleven other dates. Still, this party was important to him, and Annie hadn't had a good excuse to dress up since her disastrous Victory Tour.
She picked a compact and a brush at random and rubbed the red powder across her cheeks. Blood dribbled down her face, and her eyes snapped shut. You're okay, it's not real. Just keep breathing. In the nose, out the mouth. Again. Again. She opened her eyes and gave her reflection a shaky smile. "On second thought, maybe this isn't the best idea." Even the cheeriest voice she could manage sounded worried. "You can wash it all off. It'll be fine. Aren't you glad you gave yourself some extra time?" Nervous giggles shook her shoulders, and she splashed cold water on her face before they could cross the border into hysterics.
Ten minutes later, Annie could still make out the dark pink patch of, well, whatever that was, on her cheek, still starkly visible against the raw, red skin around it. She blew a strand of her away from her eyes and allowed her eyes to go out of focus as she thought. With a final glance in the mirror, she hurried down the stairs and out the door, not bothering to slip on a pair of sandals before hurrying up the street.
Her first knock went unanswered. "Please be home." Heavy curtains protected the front rooms from the heat of the midday sun, but they also stopped her from peeking in to see if anyone was coming. "Please?" she pleaded as she knocked again.
Annie's hand flew to her cheek when she saw who had opened the door, but she didn't get it there fast enough. "What happened to you?"
"And hello to you too." She hesitated for a moment before lowering her hand. "Is Mags home?"
Finnick grinned, and the sun caught his hair and eyes in a way that was absolutely divine – not that she'd ever tell him that. The man had plenty of ego already, and Annie wasn't going to add to it. "Are you saying you aren't here to see me?"
"As much as I'd love to stand here and talk to you all day, I really do have things to do. Is Mags home?"
"Yeah, she's in the living room. Come on in." Of all the houses in the Victors Village, only this one felt like a home. While Annie's house looked like a recreation of one of the Capitol's many decorating magazines, it could not compete with Mags and Rhonda's home, complete with worn, once-grand carpets and out of style furniture, for comfort. The floor creaked beneath her as she allowed Finnick to lead her through the entryway and kitchen and into the den, where the two old women sat chatting.
Rhonda caught sight of them first. "Annie, it's so nice of you to drop in, and looking so lovely too! Come along, come on so we can get a better look."
She smiled at Mags as she stepped into the room. "Thank you." Mags gestured for her to show them the back, and Annie twirled for them.
"Very pretty," said Mags.
Rhonda nodded. "Isn't she? Don't you think so, Finnick?"
The man flushed, but with the eyes of all three women in the room on him, he could do little than shrug. "Yeah, I guess so." Finnick agreed, though his noncommittal shrug stole any possible compliment.
"Well, I know so. What's that on your cheek, dear?" Rhonda motioned for her to sit between them.
"Umm… well, the Peacekeepers are having their party for Two's solstice festival tonight, and Julius invited me along, so I thought I'd try to use some of the makeup that my prep team left here after my Tour." She heard Finnick snort at her mention of Julius, so she avoided Finnick's eyes as she continued, "I guess I'm not cut out to be a makeup artist."
Finnick crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe. "Well, I suppose it's a good thing you didn't pick that as your talent, then."
"Boy, make yourself useful and go get Annie's makeup from her house." When Mags ordered you to do something, you did it, and Finnick Odair was no exception. "It will be in her bedroom in her vanity, and don't tell me that you don't know where that is because it's the same layout as your house. No, go on, shoo." She waited until Finnick had hurried from the room before turning back to Annie. "Now, dear, how is Julius these days? We haven't seen him around lately."
"He's good. Working a lot, but good." She didn't realize she was twisting the fabric of her dress between her fingers until Rhonda reached out to stop her. Annie gave her a sheepish grin and glanced at the doorway. "What's wrong with Finnick? Is there something I should know about Julius?" One would hope Finnick would tell her if she needed to be worried about the handsome Peacekeeper, but Annie had never quite understood the other Victor. Rhonda and Mags exchanged looks. "What is it?"
"Nothing, dear. I'm sure Finnick just doesn't know how to feel about you being with a Peacekeeper, is all," Rhonda comforted her.
"Well, he should cut it out. I don't care what he thinks about it."
"Always good to know that my opinions are valued." Annie whirled around to see Finnick holding a bag full of cosmetics, which he held out towards her. "Here, take these. I'm going to go out and weed the garden for a while." He had left the room before she could thank him or apologize.
Mags got up to follow him while Rhonda leaned over to pat her hand. "Don't worry, dear. He'll be all right."
"You're sure?"
"Of course I am. Now, let's see what kind of damage we can do with these."
As it turned out, Rhonda armed with a few brushes and some pots of makeup was a very dangerous woman indeed. Annie couldn't see any trace of her own failed attempt, and she had to pull herself away from her own reflection. Vanity – even if she did look drop-dead gorgeous – wasn't an attractive trait. "I love it. Thank you so much."
"It was fun, dear." Rhonda had already returned to her usual spot on her rocking chair. "You have fun and stay safe tonight, you hear?"
"Yes, ma'am." Annie beamed at her. "Thank you again for everything."
"Get out of here before I have to get up and push you out the door," Rhonda laughed.
Annie wouldn't admit it, but she half-walked, half-skipped her way home. With her bare feet and party dress, she probably looked every bit the mad Victor the Capitol liked to describe her as. By the time she reached her front door, she was humming under her breath. The sound of her telephone beeping at her greeted her at the door, and she hurried into the kitchen to listen to the message. Despite the scratchiness that the machine added to every sound, Annie immediately recognized the voice. "Um, hi, Annie," it began. "Look, well, I don't know a good way to say this, but I'm getting moved to another district soon, and I don't think this is going to work long-distance. I think it's better that we just call it quits now and don't try to force something that isn't going to happen. You're a real nice girl and all, and I really hope you find someone to be happy with. I'm sorry this is such short notice, but I really can't see you tonight."
Some masochistic streak in her made her replay the message twice, and by the end, Annie could taste salty tears. She wiped her eyes and nose with the back of her hand and sat in the corner of her living room. I don't care. It's not as though I'm in love with him. That didn't stop it from hurting.
A soft knock came at the door. Annie considered not answering, but a moment later, she heard the hinges squeak as it opened. "Annie? Are you still home?"
"Yeah, Mags, I'm here." Please don't come looking for me.
"I thought I'd come and see the finished product." The old woman finally came into view, and Annie fought the urge to shy away. "Oh dear, what's wrong?"
"I'm not going tonight, Mags. I'm not going to see him again." She tried to keep her voice even, but her body betrayed her, and a few tears managed to escape her eyes.
Mags leaned heavily on her cane as she made her way into the living room and sat down on the chair next to her. Annie moved to rest her head on the woman's lap, and she stroked her hair. "Don't worry, love, it'll be all right. I never liked the expression when I was younger, but there really are plenty of other fish in the sea, and you're such a wonderful young lady that I'm sure you'll find yourself a good one."
"I… I didn't think that we were going to fall in love, or last forever, or anything like that, but I didn't want to get tossed aside like that, like he never even cared."
"You'll find someone better. There are men out there who would never treat you that way, and you deserve one of them."
Annie shook her head. "They're all the same."
"Now, you know that's not true."
"Okay, fine. There are some nice men out there, but that doesn't mean any of them are going to be interested in me."
"I can think of one or two who seem very interested indeed."
Annie studied the other woman's face for a moment, but it revealed no more clues. "So, are you going to tell me?"
Mag shook her head. "No, but I have the feeling you'll figure it out soon enough. These things do have a tendency of working out for the better. Now, if you're feeling better, I have to say that Finnick, darling boy that he is, picked some of the strawberries this afternoon, and since you no longer have a prior commitment, you could do worse than come and see what Rhonda's managed to come up with for tonight." She pushed herself up from the couch. "Come along, up with you. There's nothing better than chocolate covered strawberries for broken hearts. You won't find that nice boy you're looking for moping around here." Mags didn't look to see if Annie was following as she hobbled out of the living room as quickly as her legs and cane could take her.
A/N: This was originally published as a chapter of my story Memories of Us, but I chose to continue it. There will eventually be four chapters. Thank you so much for reading! I really appreciate any feedback on my writing.