AN: Wow, I am so excited! The reaction on the first day alone for this story is amazing! I thank all of you for supporting my lovely story, it means a lot. So, this chapter is longer than the first one and the next chapter will be even longer so, yay! Um, no real drama in this one but don't worry because chapter three will be full of drama! So, I hope you enjoy this story as much as I am enjoying writing it! Thanks for reading!
Disclaimer: I do not own "The Hunger Games" or anything in it. That honor goes to Suzanne Collins. I do, however, own my OC and her family/friends and anything else I make up!
Dare to Breathe
Chapter 2: Follow Me There
I woke up in a cold sweat. This is my first nightmare in over a year... All I remember is I was running through a dense jungle... running and running until I fell and then I couldn't stop falling till finally I hit the bottom and that's what jolted me awake. I glanced around at my surroundings and realized that Finnick must have carried me to my room and put me to bed. I expected it to be morning but when I realized it was only 1:30 am I rubbed my eyes and put my head back down on the pillow.
I found after 20 minutes of failing at my attempts to get back into a deep night's sleep that it was pointless so I pulled myself up, out of bed and to the door. Before I got the chance to open it I heard gentle voices speaking from outside. I couldn't really hear what they were saying to I opened the door and took a quiet step out. It took me a few seconds to realize it was a TV voice talking. Someone must have been going over which tributes were chosen from each district.
I wrapped my arms around my shoulders to protect myselffrom the chill that the train gave off and strolled down the hallway till I finally reached the destination that the noise was coming from. I saw Finnick deep into watching exactly what I thought it was. I walked up behind him and put my hands on his shoulders. He jumped a little bit before turning around and realizing it was me. He reached up and grabbed my hands but turned his attention back to the video.
"Couldn't sleep?" he asked, already knowing the answer. I squeezed his hands and sighed.
"Nope. You?" I asked back, my eyes never leaving the back of his head. He shook his head back and forth.
"No. I just tossed back and forth so I decided to see who your competition was instead. I am your mentor after all," he joked. I couldn't help but smile at him. His hand pulled away from mine and patted the seat next to him, motioning for me to sit down, and I did. He pulled me into his side and started the video from the beginning so I could see everything that happened yesterday.
District 1's tributes looked interesting. Marvel, the guy, was handsome and strong looking but Glimmer, the girl, didn't look threatening at all. She just looked like a pretty picture in my opinion. District 2 got my attention though. Clove was the girl and she looked about ready to take off your head and feed it to the dogs, while Cato was this heartbreakingly handsome blond haired, muscular guy who looks like he could break you with his hands. In a way, he's pretty scary to look at yet you never want to stop looking.
District 3 wasn't super important and I made Finnick skip ours. Nothing interested me till we got to District 12. A little girl was called up, probably no older than 11, then her older sister went up and volunteered for her. It broke my heart to see it because I know I would have done the same thing for my sister in two years. Then the boy looked terrified but I knew I had to meet these two tributes. I had to.
"I like her..." I whisper to Finnick. I feel his chest raise up and down as he chuckles.
"Of course you do," I feel him kiss my forehead before getting up and I sit up against the back of the couch. He goes over to turn off the screen and I quickly think of something.
"Finnick..." I speak his name, barely audible. He's busy doing something and his back is facing me.
"Is there any chance of me getting out of this alive?" I ask seriously. He stops whatever he's doing and turns to face me.
"You will get out of this alive. I will make sure of it if it's the last thing I do. You got that Viena?" He asks, almost angry. I flinch back but nod.
"Good," that's all he says before he leaves me alone in the dark. I hear his door close and flinch again. When did you become so weak? I rub my eyes and realize that I am exhausted. Too exhausted to actually get up so I lay down on the couch and my eyes close involuntarily. Hopefully, if I'm lucky, I won't dream again. One can only hope...
I woke up a few hours later to voices conversing behind me. I yawn and stretch out and all my muscles sigh and thank me. I smile and look out the window to the trees that pass by in a blur. Then I remember... I'm going to the Hunger Games. I'm most likely going to die and the smile on my face instantly fades. I get up and look over the couch to see everyone having breakfast. Great, I'm starving. Just as a whiff of food drifts by my nose I hear my stomach growl and force myself to stand up and walk over to the table. Everyone turns to look at me.
"Sleep well?" Finnick asks knowingly and winks at me. I throw a piece of bread at his head and miss. Antoinette starts freaking out, telling me that's not how a lady should act. Finnick proceeds to tell her that I can't be a lady and a killing machine at the same time. I can't be bothered to fold a napkin perfectly when I'm slicing someone's head off. If was a harsh way of saying it but he was right. I had more important things to be worried about.
I sat down and grabbed another piece of bread, for eating this time. Alec passed me some jam and butter and I sent a genuine smile his way. For the little time I knew him, he seemed like a sweet boy.
"Thanks." He replied simply by smiling at me. A person walked over and poured some reddish liquid into my cup and I stared at it for a bit before looking over at Alec.
He laughed quietly but drank some from his glass so I figured it was okay to drink some as well. It tasted like fresh cherries and I found myself wanting more before I even finished. I heard some laughter and I looked up to see it coming from Finnick.
"What are you laughing at, jokester?" I poked fun at him. He shrugged in indifference and laughed some more.
"Like your drink?" he asked smugly. I threw another piece of bread at his head, hitting him in the eye this time which caused a chuckle from Alec and a small giggle from Antoinette. "Fair enough," he replied while rubbing his eye.
"How about you stop making fun of me and teach us something important, hmm?" I joke. He laughs once more at me but nods in acceptance.
"Fine. I have to get both of you sponsorswhich should be interesting. I might be able to sell your looks Viena and Alec, you're young enough for people to feel bad enough to send you stuff if you make it. I need to know both of your strengths," he notifies. I look at him blankly for a moment.
"Sell my looks?" I ask annoyed. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"You're hot. I can use that to your advantage. Don't get pissy at me," Finnick replied sternly. The whole room got quiet real fast. "I'm trying to save your life, Viena. If you don't like that then tell me now. I can just let you die in that arena or I can help you now what do you want? Please, enlighten me." I freeze and tears appear in my eyes. I can tell right away that Finnick regrets saying those things. I don't let the tears fall and Finnick doesn't apologize. He's stubborn and I'm too stunned to speak. When I try, the words don't seem to come out. I simply wipe my mouth with a napkin, push back my chair as gently as possible, stand up and walk out with a calm demeanor.
I don't even get to the door when I hear another chair being pushed back roughly. I expect to feel Finnick push me back once I get out into the hall but when I feel a small hand grasp mine and I look down to see Alec staring up at me, concerned. I smile down at him and just keep walking till I get to my room. I let him come in behind me and I close the door.
When I walk over to the mirror I can barely recognize myself. My eyes are sunken in from being completely exhausted and I'm pale from recent events. My long dark brown, curly hair seems to be in knots and my ivory skin seems a shade lighter then normal. My brilliant green eyes don't have their normal blue shimmer to them. I look, all together, broken down. There is no doubt that I'm beautiful but having Finnick say that he could sell my looks just hit a nerve with me. It made me feel like an object instead of a person.
I ran my hands through my hair and shook it up a little bit. I turned around to see Alec looking at the one thing I brought with me. A picture of my mother and father on their wedding day. I smiled at him.
"That was my mother and father. Do you like it?" I ask quietly. He looks up and me with a smile and nods.
"Where are they now?" He asks. I'm startled considering I haven't heard him talk since we've gotten on this train. It takes me a second before I can reply.
"They died," I answer as simply as I can. I hate talking about it and I can tell he notices.
"She's beautiful. She looks like you," is all he says before he gives me the picture. I feel the train stop and I know we've arrived at the capitol. I look down at him and smile.
"You ready?" I ask. He nods, going back to his natural silence and I grab his hand as we both walk out to meet the lovely Capitol and all its people.
Antoinette opens the door and the screaming is overwhelming. Hundreds of people have arrived to greet us.
"This is almost disgusting. They're initially rooting for our deaths..." I mumble. Alec squeezes my hand and smiles up at me. I realize then what he wants me to do. I take in a deep breath and start to wave while I smile at the screaming lunatics that surround me. Finnick appears behind me and I feel his hand on my back. I see his other arm raise up to wave with us. This makes the crowd go wild. I keep my composure and continue to wave and smile dramatically. Finnick is, by no doubt, a crowd favorite. His looks and personality have definitely won him that honor. All the women grovel at his feet and all the men envy him.
I feel Finnick lean into me. His breath tickles my ear and an electric shiver runs up my spine.
"I'm sorry about earlier, Viena. I shouldn't have said what I did. I-" he rambled on and on. I grabbed his hand on my lower back and clasped it with my free one. No one could see since Alex moved in between us. Thank you Alec. Finnick was my mentor, my best friend, and as close to a brother as I could get but the crowd doesn't know that and we don't need rumors like that spreading around.
"We'll talk later," I whisper, still smiling brightly at the crowd. I feel him nod behind me.
Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, peacekeepers took us away. We arrived at this massive building that simply took my breath away. Before I knew it, massive amounts of stylists appeared around me. I was stripped, hosed down, waxed, poked and prodded at. By the time they were done, my skin burned like I was standing in flames. The clowns, which is what I call them, take me to a secluded room and leave me to wait for my stylist. Tonight was the opening ceremony where we ride out in cherriots in "beautiful" costumes.
I sit in an empty room and fidget with my fingers, attempting to occupy myself. Finally the door opens and in walks a... well, she actually doesn't look that bad.
My stylist has on a long red dress that shines with an orange tint when she moves. Her heels are pitch black and simple. Her skin is untouched and her make-up simple. Her hair is up in complicated curls and has a gentle shimmer. She smiles a perfect smile at me and makes me twirl in a circle to show her what I got.
She holds my shoulders gently and looks me up and down. "You are stunning my dear. My name's Ember and I'll be your stylist for this years games.
Are you excited for tonight?" she asks excitedly.
I smile at her, I don't want to hurt her feelings. I was going to need as many friends for this next week as I could possibly get. "I am very excited," I lie. She claps her hands and leads me away to make me look simply "stunning."
My costume for tonight is a shining light blue dress with sparkling pink scales to represent fish.
We're once again fish, Great, this will not make the first impression I wanted to have. Maybe Finnick is right. I might have to sell my looks like a...
I step up into the chariot and pull Alec up next to me. I place my hands on the pole in front of me and clasp Alec's hand. We smile at each other. Finnick gives us two enthusiastic thumbs up as the cart starts to move towards the uncontrolled screaming beyond the arch mere feet in front of us. When we roll under said arch, the screaming surrounding us is almost deafening. I force a smile upon my lips and raise my hand above my head to wave. I try to make it as convincing as possible but all I want to do is crouch down and plug my ears and by the looks of it, so does Alec.
Suddenly, the crowd above us starts to go wild, untamed. I glance up at the massive screen to see the District 12 tributes are literally on fire.
"No way," I laugh to myself and continue to look ahead, smiling brightly now. This stunt they've pulled just heightens my curiosity. We come to a halt in front of President Snow as he starts to give his speech. I'd listen but I'm far more interested with District 12. The girl looks so reluctant and angry but the boy seems proud and he's glowing from the inside out. Their hands are clasped together like Alec's and I's but they somehow seem much more regal than we ever could dream to be.
"Happy Hunger Games and may the odds be ever in your favor!" President Snow ends his speech and our carts move once more.
Once we were away from the crowd and into a secluded area from the cameras, I jumped off the cart and offered Alec my hand so he could hop down as well. I then raced straight to Ember so she could take this awful outfit off of me. She pulled off the fish scales and my head dress which left me in my long, sparkly light blue dress, that fell to the floor, and my white heels. You could see my toned arms and I pulled my hair out so it flowed down my back. I probably looked like a mermaid from the stories my mother used to read to me.
I strolled over to Finnick with pride. He flung his arms open to great me and he had the largest smile on his face. He pulled me into a warm, engulfing hug.
"Both of you were brilliant! I can already tell that the people of Panem adore you!" Finnick praised. I could already tell that whatever he was spewing was crap and I wasn't even close to buying it. I shoved him playfully away from me and laughed mockingly.
"Ha-ha! You're just a jokester aren't you?" I chidded. He chuckled and ruffled my hair up.
"No, seriously, Viena. I believe I could grab you a lot of sponsors. We have really good odds at winning this thing," Finnick replied solemnly. I reached out for his hand and grabbed it, squeezing it with my smaller one.
"Yeah Finnick, we do," I encouraged. I know there's a very slight chance I'll win these games but I wouldn't dare tell him that. "I'm going to bed okay?" I start to leave when I run straight into something hard. I look up to see a rugged, older looking man with the stench of alcohol fresh on his breath.
"Sorry, darling. You're from District 4, aren't you? I'm Haymitch, mentor for District 12," this man, Haymitch, introduces himself well for being partly drunk. He holds out his hand and I shake it confidently.
"My name's Viena," I reply with a sweet smile. I've always been good at getting along with people. I seem to know the right things to say and what NOT to say so I don't end up offending someone. "It's nice to meet you Haymitch."
"Likewise. Well, I have to go talk to my lovely tributes. Hopefully I'll see you around, kid." He's gone before I can say another word. I watch as he stumbles over to the two most interesting people in the room, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark. Haymitch looks amazingly pleased and so do Katniss and Peeta. They're talking, excited, when suddenly their looks go dull, completely blank, and they turn to leave in a hurry. Katniss is the only one who glances behind her. I turn to see the reason for their unexpected and rash departure. Cato, the boy from District 2, is glaring daggers at the back of their heads.
I stare at him quizzically. What's this guys problem? Is he simply jealous or did they do something to provoke this type of behavior? My thoughts are cut short when his eyes turn to stare straight at me. My stomach flips and my breathing becomes sporadic. My eyes flutter and I lick my lips, which are suddenly dry. He sends a smirk my way and I have to turn away.
I notice Clove, his fellow tribute, gets his attention and I take this chance to race out of there in a hurry. When I reach the elevator, the doors open to welcome me in. I push 4 and the doors close and it starts it ascend to my floor. I fall back and lean against the cool metal. What in the world happened down there? I had to meet this Cato, in person. I had to know what he was all about. For now, i'm exhausted from todays events and all I want to do is sleep.
Tomorrow would be an interesting day, that's for sure. This was going to be an interesting adventure.
AN: Second chapter written, and done. How did you guys like it? A little blooming romance between Cato and Viena? Oo lala. Like it? Hate it? Tell me in a comment! Thanks for reading guys, I appreciate it! ALERT: Also, if you want to know what ANY of her dresses look like then just ask and I'll send you them! - Jenna
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Discofreak1029: I'm so glad you like it so much already! All of your questions will be answered in the next chapter, don't worry! Thank you so much for reading!