CHEERING UP BRUTUS

"Brutus!" Enobaria called from outside. "Brutus, come on out. I know you're upset and all, but please come out. I'm worried about you."

He shook his head. He was sitting on his desk in the upstairs bedroom, looking at Enobaria attempting to make him feel better through the window. Poor Brutus. He's been upset for a long time since he was told that he and Enobaria could no longer be mentoring for more than two years straight, even though they were the most popular mentors from District 2. They made special exceptions for them. They liked mentoring because they always looked forward to bringing home a tribute safe and sound, even though most times they failed to do so. She was also upset, but she didn't show it because she had to be strong for Brutus's sake.

"Come on!" she shouted. "I've been sleeping in Nero's house for three days straight after I decided that you needed some space. It's my house too, you know? I even decided to take Ace with me so that you could have some alone time."

He simply stared back at her. She got annoyed and walked up to the front door. She tried to unlock the door with her key, but it had a second lock which was the chain lock that she had no control over. She groaned and walked away from the door. He already changed positions and was no longer staring out the window.

She gave up and decided to go back to Nero's, or so Brutus thought. A few minutes later, Enobaria came back, wearing more layers of clothing with heavy snow boots while Ace and Paul, Nero's dog, walked beside her. Even though Brutus got her a new dog, Ace, that didn't mean she loved Paul any less.

"Let's cheer up Brutus," she said playfully to the dogs. She built a humongous snowman, accessorized with buttons, tree branches, a carrot for a nose, a face, a scarf and a winter hat. Brutus told her once he wanted to build a snowman, but never had the time to. Enobaria threw pebbles at their bedroom window, asking for his attention. He looked out to see the big snowman Enobaria built for him. "Come on out!"

He refused her offer. She tried again, determined to make Brutus feel better. She went back to Nero's and came back with a snow shovel and a sled big enough for two. She piled up the snow to form a big hill. Brutus told her how he wanted to slide down a hill on a sled, but never had the opportunity to do it. She set the sled on the top of the hill and sat herself down. She threw pebbles at his window, again. "Brutus! Come out!" He shook his head. "You know you want to slide down this hill!"

He stopped looking out the window. Enobaria groaned. She failed again. She decided to try again. Victors, especially Career Victors, don't give up. They're determined. She decided to build a big igloo for him. Brutus told her he wanted to build an igloo and camp out in it, but never got the chance to even build one. This would take her a lot of time and work, but it was all worth it. She was so determined on building the igloo that she didn't notice Brutus looking at her through the window, a grin on his face. He thought it was sweet how she was trying so hard to cheer him up.

She said, "Keep walking, nothing to see here!" to the people who walked past her and gave her strange looks while she was in the process of building the very special igloo for her lover. She didn't care about what others thought of her. Everyone was a freak in District 2, victor or not.

It was sunset once she finished her masterpiece. She threw pebbles at the window again. He looked out and Enobaria pointed at the big igloo she built for him. "Come on out! I built this stupid igloo for you, might as well get in it!" He refused her help again. "Fine! I'll just stop trying to help you! For Panem's sake, can't you just accept people's help for once in your life?!" She walked away from their house, followed by the two dogs, tears in her eyes.

Now Brutus knew that enough was enough. She was right. He should have accepted her help, not thrown it back at her in the face. She was trying so hard just to see him smile if it were just for a mere second. He was upset, but he shouldn't have done what he did. He ran out of the house, forgetting to put on a coat, and sprinted the small distance to Nero's house. He knocked on the door, expecting to see Enobaria.

It was Nero, instead. "Hey Brutus. How have you been?"

"That doesn't matter right now," Brutus said. "Is Enobaria here?"

"No," said Nero. "The dogs came back, though. I haven't seen her in three hours since she left to check up on you. Did something happen?"

"Yeah, I kind of got her upset once I refused to accept her help," he explained, rubbing the back of his head.

Nero sighed. "You know she's upset about it just as much as you are. She just didn't show it for your sake."

"I love her so much," Brutus told him.

Nero smiled at him. "I know you do. She loves you, too. Better go get her if you love her so much."

"Thanks," Brutus said. He turned around and searched for her. Where would she be? he asked himself. Where does she usually go when she's sad? The lake! That's it! He sprinted to the lake. It was near the Victor's Village, but it was hidden. Enobaria was wandering around out of boredom when she found it. It was a peaceful place. She didn't know he followed her where she went to when she was sad. That was her spot, no one else knew about it. Except for Brutus.

There she was, sitting on a large rock overlooking the frozen lake. She was still beautiful, even though she was silently crying. He quietly sat next to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, trying to keep her warm. She didn't fight him, though. "Hey, are you okay?"

"No," she replied.

Brutus held onto her tighter. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that. You were just trying to make me feel better."

"It's okay," she told him.

"Nero told me you were also upset about the situation," he stated. "Baby, you don't have to be strong for me."

"Neither do you," she told him. "Brutus, I'm here for you and I'm here to help you in any way I can. But you just have to let me help you."

"I know," he said. "Enobaria, will you help me?

He felt her smile. "Yes, I will help you."

They stayed in that position for a few minutes before Brutus said, "Enobaria, can we go back?"

"Why?" she asked.

"Because I forgot my coat at our house and I'm freezing," he told her. She chuckled and stood up, giving Brutus a hand. They walked home hand in and hand and then played in the winter wonderland that Enobaria created for him.

THE END