"Come on, Odair! Just one date! Daislene!"
I huffed, flipping my long bronze hair off my slim shoulder. Even though I had begun to walk in the other direction, Odin kept following me.
Odin Palmer liked to stay around to watch the way my hips naturally swayed from side to side when I walked, to take a peak at my slim build and protruding bust and rear end, and he was always glancing at my button nose and emerald green cat-eyes. But when it actually came to dealing with me, he couldn't leave fast enough. Just like every other boy.
With the exception of Nolance, not counting family.
Feeling him place a hand on my shoulder, I instantly felt disgusted and spun around to face him. Without wasting any time, his mouth poured out reason after reason about how 'that nerd didn't deserve someone like me' or why I should 'just give him a chance'.
"Shut up, Odin! Just shut up!" I sneered. He pursed his lips. "You know I don't like anyone except Nolance! Beside, if you want a pretty face to look at, go buy a doll. Don't be stupid and chase after me. I won't fall in love with someone who I can barely keep a conversation going with!"
I didn't stick around to see his reaction, I ran. I ran to where nobody would be able bother me, the sea. It's District Four's trademark, which I thoroughly appreciated. I grew up learning the butterfly stroke before learning my ABC's
Tossing Croosh's big, baggy shirt to the sand, I grabbed my fishing nets and dove from the pier into the lukewarm water. Instinctively projecting my body downwards a good six feet, I opened my eyes to find a school of fish much farther down, to my left. Just what I needed to improve my day, a full load to bring home. Quickly re-gripping the rough rope of the net, I directed my body towards them.
Only after trapping the 30-40 flounders did I realize that I had underestimated how much they would weigh. My lungs still weren't at bursting level yet, and I desperately wanted to bring something home to later celebrate after the Reaping with, so I tugged harder on the ropes. The only thing it did was keep them from dragging me even farther down. After a couple more seconds of this, I could start to feel the pressure in my lungs, and began to panic.
Not even a second before I was going to let go of my huge catch did I suddenly see Victorian swoop down to the other side of my net and grab hold. The pressure in my lungs was becoming irritating, so I started swimming up right away, and it only took him a moment to follow. When we finally crashed into the atmosphere, I took in gulps of air, trying to breathe back life into my shocked lungs.
"Just breath, Daislene. Swim up to the pier, Croosh is waiting for us" I nodded towards my brother, this wasn't the first time he saved my butt fishing. Treading back to the pier, I inwardly groaned thinking about what my other older brother might say to me to get under my skin. Croosh never failed at that.
"What? The oh-so-amazing Daislene Odair can't take a couple tadpoles to shore by herself? Are her ginormous, ever masculine muscles turning to mush?" Croosh snickered once we were close enough to hear him. He had a big, lop-sided grin on his face, and his hands on his hips, effectively turning some of the girls near the shore to goo. They were about to scream for him, too, until they saw me and Victorian in the water. Being the only sister didn't mean I was also the only sibling to throw an icy glare sometimes. Victorian, Croosh, and Landen could all get nasty with each other's followers at points.
"Sorry, I didn't have any fan girls around to throw me an oxygen mask whenever I flashed a wink at them, like you" I said throatily. My voice was still a little scratchy, since I swallowed some ocean water on my way up. The good thing that came out of it though might've been the fact I broke my own personal record for holding my breath, at five minutes and 52 seconds. The highest score around here is nine minutes and 45 seconds.
"Too bad you're not as gorgeous as me then, huh?" he continued. A laugh actually escaped me at that one, I had been voted Most Beautiful Teenage Girl for five years straight, while Croosh had only been Most Handsome Teenage Boy for four, since Victorian had the title five years before him. I rubbed it in his face whenever I could.
"I beg to differ, Croosh. Although I suggest you two stop bickering, that is unless Daisy wants to be late to the Reaping" Victorian finally cut in, tying up the fish we had caught. At the mention of the Reaping,I snapped to attention, if I didn't get home soon, I really was going to be late.
I cringed as Momma tugged all my hair onto the top of my head, but amused myself with the thought that the bun looked like a bag of slight red ground cinnamon placed on my head. Momma had been relieved that only one kid ended up with her somewhat ginger hair, and that it looked nice mixed in with Papa's perfect bronze shade.
When I had come home soaking wet and with only two hours before the Reaping, Momma immediately ordered me to bathe. Afterwards she tugged a robe over me and set me down on a rickety stool to mesh my hair together and dress me. She liked the bonding time before each Reaping.
"The floral or the blue dress?" she asked softly.
"Floral, it's less tight."
She pulled out the hand-me-down from her closet and carefully flipped it over my simple up-do. I tugged my arms in through the holes and sighed as I felt stiffness on my chest. It was her own when she was younger, but my form was...a little more developed than hers was at 17. I could feel her hands shaking as she laced the ribbons in the back up.
"Momma, I haven't taken any tesserae. It's only the mandatory six slips. I won't get picked" I chuckled. None of the Odair's have ever been reaped, and I wasn't about to be the first.
"Daislene, don't say that! You'll turn the odds away from your favor. All I can comfort myself with is the fact that we're somewhat well enough off that you don't need to take tesserae. You know I love you, right Daislene?"
"Yes, Momma"
"Oh dear! I better go check on Landen, he never could comb his hair nicely" she muttered to herself. At the mention of Landen, I stood up quickly. My little brother at only 14 years old, was my world. I loved all my siblings dearly, but Landen was the one I paid extra close attention to, because even if he was birthed from my mother on that fateful summer day, Landen would always be my baby.
"Momma, can I? You go get yourself ready, okay?" I said gently. She took a moment to hesitate, and I sighed. She always got so worked up when it came to Reaping day, so I took her by her shoulders and set her down on the worn out stool. Before I left, I released her hair from the twist she made.
I walked out of her room, and down the wood-floored hallway to Landen and Croosh's room. Squeaking the door open, I found Landen with his dress shirt untucked and his perfect green eyes staring down at this hands. "Landen? Sweetheart, you okay?" I whispered.
He snapped his head up at my voice, and gulped. "Y-Yeah", after a couple minutes of staring up at me he coughed, and said, "Daisy? I don't want to seem like a pansy or anything...but I kinda...need a hug"
I practically broke out crying right then and there, but I held back, knowing that would freak him out more than anything. I gave him a watery smile and nodded, opening up my arms for him. His chin quivered for a second, but he then gave himself a moment to 'compose' himself before walking into my embrace.
Suffice to say, he broke down into a small child clinging onto his older sister after a tiny minute. I stroked his hair, rubbed his back, and hummed a lullaby until his quiet shaking subsided. It honestly scared me to see my ever-serious and sarcastic little brother have such a meltdown, no matter how small. Even as a baby he didn't cry excessively. He gave me on final squeeze and then pulled away.
"I'm sorry. I just have a feeling something horrible is going to happen today" he spoke quietly, like always. I was well aware that whenever he had one of these 'feelings', they were usually right. My expression turned icy at this.
"Then shake it off. Okay? You only have three slips, I only have six. Out of millions. Croosh and Victorian are completely safe. Just shake it off..." I muttered, pulling him back tightly. I was trying desperately to calm him and myself.
Too late. Landen had already seen the look on my face, and he was much too smart to not realize his gut-feeling was something he couldn't just 'shake off'. Whatever Landen predicted would always happen. It was a gift that had saved our skins more than once.
"Are you going to meet up with Lolare and Nolance before the Reaping?" he said, effectively bringing me back to the present. I was going to, the set of lovably dorky twins had been my closest friends since birth, but just glancing at the look in Landen's eyes told me he wanted me there to comfort him.
"No" I lied.
I could see the relief flash in the green of his eyes. He nodded, his infamous, dimple-decorated smile growing on his face. "You'll walk with me and Dole?"
I jerked my head into a harsh nod, and finally began tucking his crisp green dress shirt into his dark black slacks. Dole was his new, first, girlfriend. Who he was to think he could have a girlfriend at such a young age was beyond me, but I had to admit if it had to be any girl, I would've chose Dole anyway. She was blonde, with naturally loose, curly hair that reached just a little beyond her shoulder. Very pale skinned, which I didn't understand how she could have if she lived in District 4, with round, pale blue eyes, another rare occurrence here. She was just a petite thirteen-year-old who blushed at every little acknowledgement, but she was the first girl to try and get to know my complicated little genius of a brother.
Landen knew I approved of her, but even at a solid three months, I still hated the idea of him in vulnerability of getting hurt. My hands reached up to his neck, absently coming upon empty space, and I rose my eyebrows to him in question.
"You know ties hurt my neck"
"Where is it?", I sighed. He grimaced but nodded his head in the general direction of where it sat on his dresser. It was black, to match his slacks. I grabbed it, and began to tie it around his neck. Once I was done, I pulled away to grab the comb on his small bed. He stood still as I swept his hair into a swoop to the front, fully knowing that by the time we got to our town square the wind would have it in it's usual messy style.
"You'll end up ruining all of this by the time we get there", I stated.
"Most likely. Wind's gonna ruin my hair, sleeves will be rolled up from bothering me, shirt untucked by my constant picking at it, and I'll stealthily ditch my tie behind a tree or building of some sort", he grinned.
"That's my baby brother" I smiled back at him. Feeling a sense of nostalgia, I looked up at him, "I love you, Sweetheart"
"Love you too, Lazy Daisy" His eyes softened from the playful teasing, and he dipped down to place a quick kiss on my forehead. Even with my age advantage, I was still very short for seventeen and he was no doubt tall for fourteen.
"Come now you two, it's time to leave" Both Landen and I turned to the gruff voice at the door. It was our fisherman of a father, his stance manly, but he had a rough grin on his face and a soft look in his pretty emerald eyes at our display of sibling love. We smiled at him, and then continued to follow him out.
"Daislene! Daislene!" I whipped my head back to look for the quiet voices calling out to me. A couple immature boys whistled at me as I scanned the crowd for my friends. After a second of confusion, I found two long, gangly figures waving at me. My smile brightened ten fold, and after hugging my siblings and parents, I gave myself a measured running start towards them, wanting to show off my new trick.
Feeling my momentum rise, I hastily sprang forward on my hands, quickly executing a rough-around-the-edges double back handspring. Landing just a foot in front of them, they broke out into applause, causing me to grin proudly.
"Finally! See? I told you that you wouldn't crack your head open as long you set up your angles correctly" Lolare announced triumphantly, pushing her big, blocky glasses up her nose. I shoved her shoulder lightly, still grinning.
"Hey now, don't forget that I am the one who actually executed it"
"Are you trying to deny me my credit to your fame?"
"Why of course not, a gymnast is nothing without her coach" I winked, successfully getting her to crack a grin with my spot on Capitol accent.
"She's right you know, Daislene. Even though the landing was a little off, you should at least be able to execute your round-off now. Congrats" Nolance commented. I nodded up at them, pleased that they stated I wasn't a complete mess. It was the highest kind of praise from them.
"Where are your parents?" I asked, not noticing them hovering over their only two children.
They shrugged simultaneously, "Out in the crowd. We've already conducted the hugs and 'Good luck' wishes, even though they don't have a purpose, seeing as we'll come out of this unharmed and as non-reaped as before. They said may the odds be ever in your, and Landen's, favor" Lolare stated.
I nodded uncomfortably, "I will never understand how you two never seem nervous by Reaping day. Even if the chances are small, there is still a chance,"
"You've seen us year after year calculate the ultimate possibility of any of the three of us getting picked, and even combined those chances are rare. After six uneventful Reapings, we really are ultimately unfazed," Lolare sniffed, but then smiled fondly down at me, tapping at my nose, "besides, as long as we have your lucky button nose, we know we won't get picked"
Nodding in agreement, Nolance swiftly kissed my so called 'button nose' as he does every year since we found that my nose was just oh so full of good fortune. Nolance was one of the only boys I trusted, and he had earned that trust more than on one occasion. He resembled his sister greatly with the flippy platinum blonde hair and brownish green eyes, no where near my own color. He was lean and tall, almost a foot and a half taller than me actually, with long, awkward limbs just like Lolare. His skin was tanned slightly from the sun, but still fair over his slight muscle. He wasn't the most gorgeous thing in District 4, but he was far from ugly, and I would never do anything to improve him. I could feel my own eyes betraying me, openly displaying the raw tenderness and warmth I felt towards him. I turned towards Lolare.
"I'm going to kiss your brother now," I told her firmly. She did nothing but roll her eyes and turn her head to look in a different direction. I simply grinned and reached up to cup his sharp featured face. Quickly realizing what I wanted, he wrapped his arms around my waist and leaned down to meet me halfway in a gentle kiss.
I sighed into it, feeling his smooth, pale pink lips move in a familiar way with mine. Nolance and I weren't...a couple. You could tell me to get some self-respect or say that this was wrong, but I didn't care. Even at seventeen, I wasn't ready to completely commit myself to anyone, to give just one person the power to break me, and Nolance accepted that a long time ago. I knew very well that he'd wait for me, and he would be the first person I would run to when I was ready. For now, all I could handle was playful flirting and random displays of affection, like this.
After a moment, he kissed me deeper, more passionately than usual, and I gripped his hair tighter. A couple of minutes went by, and it was only when we heard Lolare grunt, "Peacekeepers are watching you", did we pull our faces from each other, our limbs still entangled.
Nolance blushed deeply, but I only giggled at his red face and then, just to make him uncomfortable, I squeezed his bottom before pulling away completely. His face reddened even more and he scolded me with a squeaky, "Daislene! People are watching!"
I threw a careless hand up to show I heard him, and then hooked my arm through his sister's and practically skipped towards the seventeen-year-old section. She chuckled, but I knew she secretly loved the way I could get her twin so flustered.
Once we found the girls section, we settled into spots right by the ropes, so we could leave as quickly as possible afterwards. Since we waited till the very last moment to arrive, the mayor started rambling almost immediately.
With some difficulty, I looked over at the boy's side of the ropes, finding Nolance. He met my stare, showing me a small amount of concern, but then quickly tipping his head at me in a single nod. I knew it was suppose to be a sign of comfort, and I smiled as I nodded back at him. My eyes broke from his just a second to look up at the stage, realizing our tubby mayor would be finishing off about the Treaty of Treason very soon.
Glancing in front of us, I scanned the fourteen-year-old boy section for Landen, and even from here I could see his hands shaking. In the background I could hear our escort Westabon humming, "Gentleman, why don't we let the ladies go first, hm?" as always, but I could only think about wanting to run up and wrap my little Sweetheart in a hug and calm his nerves as I did this morning. Wishing the odds to be in our favor both, I noticed how his appearance was indeed a much rougher version of before. He didn't completely ditch his tie though, I noticed with a smile, but instead it hung very loosely around his neck, with his collar unbuttoned. It was a little chilly out, and I mentally scolded him for not wearing a jacket over his-
"Daislene Odair!"
Yeah, so. Just popped into my head. Don't worry, there will be actual mention of Finnick in this story, you know, cause he cannot be ignored. I figured that if he was only fourteen when he won the games, he should have had some motivation from somewhere else right? Like maybe having a close relative picked...
Review to tell me if I should continue:)
~SweetheartCandy