February 2014

I smoothed my skirt, tucked a stray hair behind my ear and glanced at the big clock on the wall about one hundred times before I hear a voice call, "Katniss Everdeen?" into the waiting room. I follow the small brunette down the hallway, the sound of my heels clicking against the floor matching my rapid heart beat. As I spot the mahogany door, I suddenly begin to question whether running away was an option.

Stepping into the room, I stick out my hand and force the most charming smile I can. "Hi, I'm Katniss Everdeen."

The two men exchange glances, raising their eyebrows before shaking hands. The young one turns to me with a smile saying, "Well then, let's get started."

I try not to be intimidated by the two men who could be my future bosses, but it's hard not to be in awed about sitting next to the people you talked about in your Urban Politics class. Sitting across the desk from me is the infamous Haymitch Abernathy, who had managed the campaign of one of the biggest political upsets in Maryland history. After running of the campaign of Maysilee Donner, he rose to fame after she narrowly beat the Maryland senator serving his fourth term.

Everyone knows he's a genius, and unfortunately, a bit of an asshole.

The man siting next to me is possibly the most handsome man I've ever seen. Every inch of him is perfect, from his angular jaw to his perfectly coiffed hair. If someone told me he was a model instead of a financial analyst, I would believe them. Finnick Odair graduated from Stanford business school magna cum laude, immediately working for a big fortune 500 company straight out of college until recently, when he decided to work on the campaign of his best friend and old college roommate.

"Tell me about yourself," Haymitch asks, his voice gruff.

I take my folders out of my purse, handing both Mr. Odair and Mr. Abernathy a copy of my resume. "Like I said my name is Katniss Everdeen, I am 26, and I graduated last year from Georgetown University where I majored in business and finance, and minored in political science. I have spent this year working at several non-profit organizations, but my most recent job was working at a company managing and writing grants that builds parks, museums and community centers in urban areas."

"Impressive," Finnick casually remarks while reading over my resume. I try not squeal as he sends me a small smile. Haymitch takes a long sip of the whiskey he has been nursing since before I walked in, maintaing steady eye contact with me. Finnick starts to rummage through his pile of papers until he finds the one with my recommendation on it. "And a recommendation from Dr. Charles Aurelius? I wrote my thesis on one of his books."

"Thank you!" I say as I feel the nervousness melting away. "If you ever get a chance, I strongly recommend sitting in on one of his classes. You've never seen anything like it."

Haymitch put down his glass, motioning for Finnick to continue. "So tell me Ms. Everdeen, why do you want to work on Peeta Mellark's first congressional campaign?"

I squeeze my eyes for a second to remember the points I came up with on the train ride to the office. "I've seen the work he has done in his community back in Philadelphia, like putting more funds to public projects, advocating for tax breaks for small businesses, and I think it's all great. To see him have a chance to make those changes on a national level would be wonderful and lending my skills to help that would be a privilege."

"I see here that you grew up in Bakersfield, Pennsylvania?" I nod, knowing Mr. Odair's next question before it even left his mouth. "Same town as Peeta, no?"

I smile, feeling Mr. Abernathy's gaze watching me tuck that pesky hair behind my ear once again. "Yes, we did actually. He and his brothers were several years older than me, but Peeta was a senior when I was a freshman at the local high school. However, my feelings and support towards this campaign are completely separate and not influenced."

"Good to hear that," Finnick said at he jotted down a note on the corner of the paper. "Well, to fill you in on what is going on here, basically we want Peeta to win Alma Coin's spot in the House of Representatives. This is her 3rd term representing the 13th district, and she is slowing down Northeast Philadelphia with her out-dated and over aggressive policies. We're selling Peeta as a young, left-leaning kid who is ready to move up from City Council to House of Representatives."

"I couldn't agree more," I interject excitedly.

I see Haymitch sigh and sit back in his chair. I match his gaze, not daring to look away. Finnick looks at him too, unsure whether or not to continue. When he opens his mouth, I brace myself. "There are thousands of people who are older and more experienced who want this job just as much as you do. Why should we pick you?"
For the first time, I feel my confidence start to waver. I know I should stop and think for a second, but the words just come tumbling out of my mouth. "You should pick me because I'm not only good at what I do, but I'm passionate. Numbers and figures are easy, but motivating people to donate to your cause is the hard part. People want to make sure their money is being well spent, and I am willing to guarantee that by working closely with non-profits to stage original, and interesting fundraisers."

Haymitch scoffed, chuckling to himself. "Sweetheart, it's going to take a lot more than willpower to make a congressional campaign happen."

The smile falls from my face as a snarky remark rolls off my tongue before I can stop it. "Then that's exactly the reason why you need to hire me." I scold myself internally as Haymitch raises his eyebrows in surprise. If he didn't think so before, he definitely sees me as arrogant and overconfident. "Sorry," I mumble sheepishly.

Finnick flashes me a smile from the chair next to me. "No need to apologize, sweetheart," he says with a wink. I feel my stomach tighten as I watch the interview go downhill.

I try to read Haymitch's body language as he scribbles some notes on a piece of paper. Minutes feel like hours when he finally looks back up at me. "So Ms. Everdeen, how soon can you be in Philadelphia?"

I look to both of them in disbelief. "I got the job?"

Haymitch extends his hand, and I accept it gladly. "Welcome to Mellark 2014."

"You're kidding right? If you're not kidding I really think I'm going to need another drink," Madge Undersee declares, rubbing her temple with her left and holding my hand across the table with her right. I solemnly nod, letting out a big sigh.

While working for Peeta's campaign was an opportunity I never dreamed of, it also meant leaving behind my life in D.C. Since I arrived on the Georgetown campus 8 years ago, Washington D.C. has been my home. Madge was my roommate freshman year, and we quickly bonded over music, booze, and our love for peace and quiet.

"It kills me to leave but John Hopkins is only a 2 hour drive from Philadelphia. You and Gale can come visit me every weekend." Madge's eyes lit up at the mention of her boyfriend, Gale. They had been dating ever since she went to John Hopkins to get her masters in teaching, where he was a TA for her intro to psychology class.

"I know I'm acting sad, but you know I'm so proud of you," she cooed before taking a sip of her beer. I study her face as I do the same. "Peeta Mellark is the hot one right? If he's single, you should definitely pull an Olivia Pope and hit that." She piped, her expression completely serious.

I burst out laughing, nearly choking on my drink. Madge cracks up watching me struggle, and soon our usual light mood is back. "Are you drunk?" I ask, once I regain composure. "Because I know I'm not drunk, and I really wanna get drunk. Shots are on me."

I wake up in the morning in my downtown apartment, regretting almost every decision I made the night before. Madge was curled up next to me in my bed, makeup from last night still smudged on her face. It was the same arrangement we always had in college, where after a night of drinking we would come home to whoever's house was closer (and it always ended up being mine) to sleep, and whoever woke up first had to make breakfast (which once again, was usually me).

I rub the salt out of my eyes before picking up my computer from the nightstand to check my emails. My eyes quickly scan through them, my heart skipping a beat when I see one from Haymitch. I open it, reading every word twice.

HAbernathy

Hello Katniss,

As discussed in the meeting, we are going to need you to relocate to the Philadelphia area to help with the campaign. We understand that moving is difficult, so we here at Mellark 2014 are wiling to offer you a three week stay at the Four Seasons hotel in Philadelphia. At the end of those three weeks, if a rental has been found, we would like to subsidize the cost by $1,000 per month. In return however, we do ask that you join us here by next week. Please let me know if this is possible.

Hands shaking, I quickly type out a response.

KEverdeen

Thank you so much for your offer! I will start arraigning my relocation as soon as possible, and will see you in Philadelphia next week.

I cover my mouth with my hand after pressing send. Madge moans and moves around in the bed, looking up at me with her eyes half closed. "Shouldn't you be making breakfast?" She croaked, throat completely dry.

"I just got offered a three week stay at a hotel, and a thousand bucks off my rent. Holy fucking shit," I whisper, my mouth still open in surprise.

Madge opened her eyes for a second, mouth forming an "o" before lying her head back down on the pillow. "I'm a little too hungover and it's a little too early for me to be completely excited for you. But congratulations, I love you, I'm going back to sleep."

The next few days go by in a blur. I spend the days writing emails and having phone calls with all my current organizations, explaining my situation. I spend my nights looking up possible apartments to rent eating takeout with Madge, or researching more about the campaign, but more specifically Peeta Mellark.

I vaguely knew him as the popular, smart, athletic kid who got a full ride scholarship to Stanford his senior year. It was big talk around the small town of Bakersfield, where everyone either goes to an in-state college, or doesn't even bother with getting their degree.

I hadn't kept up with his activities after high school, but when my comparative politics teacher Dr. Aurelius suggested I work on his congressional campaign, I wasn't surprised to hear the name.

The night before I was scheduled to leave, I sit down, and take a look around my empty apartment. All the furniture is stored in a storage facility, save for an air mattress and all my clothes in boxes and suitcases to take with me. This is it, I think to myself. 8 years in this wonderful and occasionally shitty city.

My phone lights up with a text from Madge, reminding me how much she loves me in case I forgot in the past three hours. Looking at the late hour, I turn off my phone, turn off the lights, and try to sleep, dreams of my future bouncing around in my head.

Hi guys! Very classic me, starting a new story when Promises hasn't been updated in a month. I haven't forgotten about it, I've just been super busy.

I've been watching a lot of Scandal recently, which sort of inspired this story. This chapter was so short because I wanted to figure out how you guys felt about it before developing it into something longer. So please, leave reviews, favorite, follow, I want to know if I should keep writing this.