I Dare You

...

I look in the mirror, unsatisfied with... this. I fiddle with my braid, twisting it violently. "Katniss! Time to go!" I hear my mother yell in a sing song tune, from outside of my room. The glass of the mirror reflects to her standing in the doorway watching me. I try to ignore her, but fail when she walks up to me. Go away, I think scowling at her.

She frowns sadly. "What's wrong?" There's concern in her eyes and voice that makes me feel guilty and embarrassed. I go inside the bathroom and lock the door. I'm not going to school today. Why? Because I don't want to.

My mind flashes back to yesterday. Glimmer and her stupid, blonde curls. She never leaves me alone! None of them do. Clove, Gabby, Ilene, all of them. If they hate me so much, why don't they leave me alone?

I can't make sense of their repetitive visits. Banging on the door snaps me out of my thoughts. "Let's go." My mom orders. I look in the mirror on the cabinets. Let's see, boring gray eyes, braid we see everyday weaved together from crap, dark brown hair strands, and gross sausage lips. They're not my own thoughts, making it questionable that I dare even believe them. It sounds like something Glimmer would say to get on my nerves.

Brat. Even when she's not here, I hear her sickeningly sweet sounding, insulting remarks. I unlock the door to find my mom's angry, flushed face contort into a worried one. "What's wrong?" She asks just like earlier. I hate when people ask me that.

"I'm fine." I answer brushing past her. I pick up my bookbag from the hallway floor, heaving it on my back while clutching the straps, then sliding my arms through.

...

Our car drives up next to the school's entrance. I immediately take note of what I'm wearing- white button up with skinny jeans and brown fur boots. I look perfectly fine and I don't care what anyone at school will say. My mom and I say our goodbyes and I open the car door to get out. "Are you sure you're okay?" My mom asks just as a kid my age walks by.

"Mom." I whine. She throws up her hands in defense. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She says. I huff, getting out and slamming the door. I storm away to the school doors. I hear mom drive away. Thank guiness.

As if I need anyone besides myself to make an embarrassment out of.

...

I meet Amber in the 9th grade hallway. "Sup Foxface." I say fistbumping her. "Nothing much, kitty cat." She answers.

"Do not call me that!" I yell in laughter. "Meow." Amber taunts. I roll my eyes, laughing a little more. Madge walks up just then. "Hey guys. Let's go to the library." She says.

We all walk together to our newfound destination.

Once we arrive, I find a perplexing sight. Cato reading a book. "Cato reads?" Madge asks in a whisper. "I guess not everyone puts knowledge to good use." I express simply.

"It'd be of some good use if the boy put it in his head." Someone whispers from behind, their breath tickling my neck. And it wasn't Madge or Foxface.

I whip around to find none other than Peeta Mellark. He blinks at me with his long, blonde lashes, nervously smiling. "Hey Peeta." Madge friendly greets. Thank God! I couldn't make words come forth my lips. "Hey guys." He says. After an awkward silence, he walks away.

He looks over his shoulder at me before studying a bookshelf. "Poor boy." Amber/Foxface says. I don't want to know what she means, so I go to a bookshelf, pretending to be interested in a certain book. They follow me, of course. "He's got it bad." Madge agrees. I feel them staring at me and ignore them by staring more intensely at the book in my hands which I have no interest in whatsoever.

Amber knocks the book out of my hand. "Hey!" I protest. "Come on, Katniss, he loves you." She declares dreamily. I pick the book back up. "You can only read the blank cover so many times!" Amber shouts. Madge laughs. "Foxface." I whine in nervous laughter, eyes darting about.

Peeta catches my eye before I quickly look away. Madge looks over to Peeta, noticing. Dang her observations. "Just admit he likes you and you like him, so I can find out what happens next in The Hunger Games!" Cato yells in agitation. We all glance in his direction. He is anxiously concentrating on chapter something.

Poor kid really looks to be in distress. "I agree with Cato." Foxface states. "If you make her admit to something like that, it won't count. Young love is very delicate." Madge argues. "What young love?" I whisper angrily in question. "I don't know. How do you know I'm not in love with Cato?" Madge jokes. He looks over his shoulder.

"I'm just kidding!" Madge quickly backtracks. Me and Foxface laugh. "Seriously though, I dare you to get next to Peeta and pretend you're looking at a book." Foxface declares.

I shrug. "Easy enough." I state. Madge and Foxface look at each other smiling.

They better not be planning something. I walk over next to Peeta, picking up a book and feigning interest in it. I feel his blue eyes on me. "So you like reading books?" He asks, eventually. "Ha. No I hate it actually." I answer, then realize what I just admitted to. I look up at him in panic. He smiles, amused.

"Then why are you in a library?" He breathes out laughing shortly. "I-I don't- my friends...made me come?" I answer in distress. "Right." Peeta says, probably just to reassure me. He scoots closer to me, and looks at me like he's about to share a secret with me. "I don't really like reading that much either." He whispers. Now I'm really confused.

He watches me amused the whole time. "Then why - " I start before I'm interrupted by the bell ringing. Time for class. "Bye." I tell Peeta, walking away. I meet up with Madge and Foxface, who are grinning for some reason.

...

In homeroom that day, someone throws a paper ball at my head. I catch it before it drops to the ground, glancing in the direction it came from. Clove. She grins mischievously, waving at me in a patronizing manner. I scowl and turn back to the paper ball in hand, uncrumpling it. You look like a boy with long hair. The note reads.

I snort and crumple the paper back into a ball, aiming it in the trashcan. This is just silly. The note is such a frivolous attempt to hurt someone, it's laughable. I'm amused more than anything. I feel like turning around just to tell her, "You have the maturity of a five year old." But I don't. She's not the only one who has made comments about my looks.

...

When it's time for gym class, I scurry to my locker before someone can steal my clothes. They know my locker code. I swing open the locker after unlocking it to find...nothing.

Great. Now I'm going to have to wear sweaty clothes for the rest of the day. We're running laps for this gym period. No exceptions. I put on a lot of deodorant.

As I'm running laps around the school with the other 9th graders for this class, Glimmer tries catching up with me. I accelerate my speed so as to not be caught at the same pace.

I don't want to hear whatever it is she has to say. I know she took my clothes. Well, it was her idea at least. She could've gotten her friends to do the dirtywork like always. I wouldn't be surprised if that were the case.

"Don't feel bad." Glimmer says, panting between words. She's a skinny thing, but never had much stamina. "Stealing the clothes was simply helping you. Don't want to reveal your ugliness even more by wearing shorts and a tee shirt, do you?" She giggles, then runs away. I find my gym clothes in a mud puddle up ahead. I stand, looking at the now dirty mess of garments. Frustration builds up in me, making me short of breath.

What did I ever do to make them so hateful towards me? Out of anger that drives to impulse, I kick over a giant rock. I bite my lip to keep from crying out when it hurts my toe.

I suddenly hate everything. Finnick jogs up to me. "What's the problem?" He asks.

"Stupid girls threw my clothes in this mud puddle." I mutter bitterly. His signature smile fades. "Really?" He asks this time with sympathy in his sea green eyes. "Yeah." I answer walking past him. Then I remember I'm supposed to be running laps. I pick up my speed.

When we get back to the locker room, I redeodorize and put a perfume on called, 'Twilight Woods'.

...

I'm unknowingly walking down the hallway, when I trip over a perfectly pedicured foot. "What the - " I start before falling over. My bookbag that magically has unzipped throws up all my books and...personal items. Panicky, I begin to gather up my stuff. No one needs to know what tampons or lip gloss I use. I see a flash of blonde hair sway as the owner of it runs towards me. Peeta.

What's he doing? He stops in front of me smiling, without having to catch his breath. I happen to know he is very athletic, which must be the reason for his stamina. When he bends over to pick up a binder, I look up at him in confusion. "What are you doing?" I ask, almost in suspicion. He hangs out with Glimmer and her crew. I don't see why he would care enough to help me.

His blue eyes sparkle up at my dull, gray ones. "Helping you. Is that okay?" He says, noticing my discomfort and almost annoyed by it. Well I'm annoyed by his annoyance. "Fine, I guess." I answer to him with frustration. Even though I might possibly like him, I still don't trust him because of his associates. You can't not be influenced by your friends.

I pick up one of my own binders, distracted by Peeta. Again. He's laughing. Why is he laughing? I look over at him, to find him reading the notes me, Madge, and Foxface wrote to each other earlier today in my notebook. "Peeta!" I scold, snatching my notebook up. "I'm sorry." He apologizes.

I watch him to study his blonde hair ruffled from today's events and lips stretched into a small smile. Even his eyes smile, pillows of skin underneath them. He catches me staring. "Oh! Um, it's okay." I twist my braid nervously, casting my eyes down. I sense him smiling at me before putting more books in my bag. I close the notebook in my lap and slide it in the bookbag as well. Noting that he is busied with packing up my things, I take the chance oncemore to observe him. His eyes were already watching me, so this time he is caught staring.

My lips twist into a smirk I try to suppress as I look away, putting a pencil in my bag.

...