"Sweetheart, what is taking you so long?"
Effie had been in her bathroom for what seemed like forever, and Haymitch couldn't help but wonder what she could be doing that was taking so much time.
"The door is open if you want to come in," Effie told him. Haymitch turned the doorknob and walked up behind Effie, putting his hands on her shoulders and kissing her hair.
"Why do you spend so much time in here at night?" Haymitch asked her.
"Well, I do have a routine, you know," she replied.
"Yeah, well, it takes forever," Haymitch grumbled.
"Stop complaining." Effie rolled her eyes and dipped her finger down into a jar filled with a clear gel-like substance.
"What is that?"
"Moisturizer," amswered Effie, dotting it all over her face and gently working it into her skin. Next, she picked up a smaller jar, unscrewed the lid, and tapped her ring finger over the top. She rubbed her two ring fingers together to disperse the product, and carefully applied it to her eyes.
Haymitch was mesmerized; he had always wondered how she kept her skin looking so perfect—this must be the answer.
Looking over the counter, he saw a line of jars and bottles, and his eyes settled on a few products labeled "whitening" sitting on the end.
"So this is how you keep your teeth so white," he thought aloud.
"What, did you think I rinsed my mouth out with bleach?" Effie's eyes squinted, and Haymitch saw in the mirror that she was giving him a "are you really that thick?" kind of look.
"Well, uh…" Haymitch rubbed the back of his neck, "I mean, no, but I always wondered what you did use."
Effie shook her head and laughed, "Well, now you know." She rinsed her hands, dried them off, and announced, "Well, I'm finished! Are you happy?"
"Yes, now we can get to bed," Haymitch replied.
"Oh, you want me to sleep with you tonight?" Usually, Effie and Haymitch slept in separate beds because Haymitch slept heavily and got pretty violent when he was having a nightmare, and Effie tending to toss, turn, and kick in her sleep, and usually woke up several times during the night.
"I mean, if you want to," Haymitch said.
"Okay, let me get my book from my room, then." Effie pecked him on the lips and scurried down the hall into her bedroom, emerging a few seconds later with the book she was reading. This was another part of her nightly routine; she always got through a few chapters in a book before bed. It helped put her to sleep, or so she said.
"Hey, are you crying?" Haymitch asked her several minutes later. He sat up and looked at her face; there were definite tears running down her cheeks.
"It's nothing," she said, "This book is so sad."
"Then why are you reading it?" Haymitch could not understand why she would want to read a sad book so late at night.
"Because it's really good!" she exclaimed.
Haymitch began to laugh and kissed Effie's wet cheek. "You, sweetheart, are a strange woman."
Effie giggled, and said, "Stop interrupting me, Haymitch; I'm almost finished."
Haymitch shook his head and lay back down on his side. A few more minutes passed, and Effie, finally finished with the book she had been working her way through over the past week, laid it down on the nightstand, turned off the lamp, and snuggled up next to Haymitch.
"Goodnight, Priness," he whispered.
"Goodnight," she said back.
With that, they fell asleep, and, for once, each of them had a peaceful and undisturbed slumber. Sometimes, it felt nice to break the routine.