Gale Hawthorne was trying to unlock his apartment door - the damned key always got stuck - when a not-quite-welcome voice reached his ears for the first time in years.
"Hey, gorgeous," she called to him from down the hallway.
He turned to look, almost reluctant. Sitting against the wall with a cigarette dangling from her fingertips was District 7's only remaining Victor. Johanna Mason had changed quite a bit since he had last laid eyes on her - which was understandable, since the last time he had seen her, she was curled in a ball in a hospital bed in District 13 with someone else's Morphling drip in her arm, completely bald and with red splotches here and there on her painfully pale skin.
If he hadn't recognized the voice, he thinks it would've taken him a moment to even realize who she was. The mischievous gleam in her eye was back as well as the smirk of superiority - two things he had only ever seen in her expression while watching her interviews during the Games. Her hair has grown back; she has it tied back in a ponytail that hangs to the bottom of her shoulder blades. Muscles have replaced her skin-and-bones look, and her skin is now a good tan color as though she has spent quite a bit of time during the past few years outside.
By this point, she's giving him a weird look because he's been staring at her for so long.
"Hey, yourself," he responds evenly, looking back at his door knob. "What brings you to Two?"
"Just moved in," she says after taking a drag of the cigarette. She nods towards the door across from his.
His eyebrows shoot up in surprise, and she laughs.
"I'm actually surprised that you still live here," she admits.
"Why's that?" he asks when it becomes clear that she wasn't going to elaborate without a push.
"Dunno," she responds. "I guess I just assumed you'd go back to Twelve."
He lets out a bark of almost-cruel laughter as though what she has just said is the most ridiculous idea he's ever heard. "I guess you don't know me at all."
"I guess not," she says, frowning at him. "Well, it's good to know that you got away from..." she pauses, as though lost for words, and then decides on, "All of it."
"Yeah," he says, thinking. This admission has captured his interest, and he decides that maybe talking to Johanna for a little bit can't hurt that badly, can it?
"What about you?" he asks, sliding down the wall to sit across from her.
She looks surprised. "What about me?"
"What have you been doing for the past... what, nine years?"
"God," she says, shaking her head slightly, "Has it really been nine years? Seems like it was yesterday. I was in 4 until a few days ago."
Now it's his turn to be surprised. "You didn't go to 7?"
"No," she says. "I didn't want to... to see it, I guess."
"Why 4?" he asked, genuinely curious. 4 seemed an odd choice, especially considering the severe hydrophobia she'd had at the end of the war.
"I said I was going because someone had to look after Annie," she explained, and then bit her lip. After a moment's hesitation, she added, "I think I partially wanted Annie to look after me, though. She needed help with the baby, and we both needed a lot of help getting over Finnick's death... It just kind of worked. And she and Finn definitely helped me with the whole water thing, so that was another plus."
"Why'd you leave? If you don't mind me asking."
She shrugged. "We initially only planned on that arrangement lasting for a few months, tops. I guess we both decided to put on the big girl panties and get out there on our own, you know? I mean, neither of us is on our own, but..."
"You're not alone?" he asked, looking towards her door.
"No," she said, a light smile appearing on her usually-grim face. "I've got two kids. One that's five and one that's three."
"Really?" Gale inquired, genuinely surprised. "I didn't think you were the type."
"Neither did I," she says with a smile that seems forced. "My boyfriend wanted them. He begged and begged until I agreed."
"You've got a boyfriend?" he asked, trying not to look disappointed. He must not have done a good job hiding it, though, because Johanna laughed at him.
"Don't worry your pretty head over that, Hawthorne. He walked out on us about two years ago."
"Where'd he go?"
"I'm not sure," she said, not upset in the slightest. "Someone told me they heard someone saw him in 8. I honestly couldn't care less where he dragged his sorry ass off to. Maecyn and Victor are better off without him. I am, too."
He gave her his best are-you-fucking-kidding-me expression.
Her eyes widened. "What?"
"You're really vain, aren't you?" He looked disappointed.
Her jaw dropped slightly; it was evident that he had offended her. "If you think I should've stayed with that stupid asshole-"
"That's not what I'm saying," he said, waving her off. "I'm talking about your name choices for your kids. Your last name, I mean, that's not so bad, but Victor, really? What, is he supposed to be a 24/7 reminder of the Games? Of all the people you killed?"
She let out a cruel laugh. "Yeah, because I need a constant reminder of the event that ruined my life-"
"Well then why the hell would you call him that? To remind the rest of us how important you are?"
"Will you shut the fuck up? You have no idea what you're going on about, dumbass."
"Please enlighten me," he spat.
"I decided to call him Victor because we won the war, not because I won the goddamn Games. I wanted Victory but he was a boy, so we went with Victor."
Gale huffed, but he shut up.
"Yeah, next time don't talk crap unless you know what you're talking about. I'll see you around, pretty boy," she said disgustedly, throwing her cigarette on the ground and stomping it out before going inside of her apartment.
Gale just shook his head. Dealing with the woman had always made him a little bit on edge. Now he just needed a drink.