Chapter two, the story is speeding up. :)
. . .
"You don't understand," Katniss Everdeen huffs, "I would not be here frequently if the school were not made up of such vile imbeciles."
"Katniss dear, in order to make it in life you'll need to raise your tolerance level." Ms. Trinket leans closer as if to empathize her words, the lights make the jewel-studded neckline of her dress flash as she adjusts to a new angle.
"Miss you still don't get it, these are not slightly irritating people these are full out assholes."
As Katniss curses she briefly bites her lip in regret, Jo has rubbed off on her too well, she cannot seem to form a single sentence anymore without inserting at least one swear word. However Effie seems unfazed by her string of words, she knows the girl before her is blunt and painfully honest. If she were to bother with sugarcoating her words the world would stare at her for an hour and wonder if she were drugged or something.
The perfectly made up woman behind the desk only purses her lips as if to bite back a smile. "I'm sorry, but these kinds of people are always going to be there, even as you get older. Throwing milkshakes at people across a room is just not acceptable. You can't keep doing these things or we will have to expel you from school, we've been trying to avoid that as that will go on your record and prevent you from getting into a good college." Katniss can't help it, when she brings up throwing drinks she cracks a smile wider than sun itself, the specific words bring up Cato covered in whip cream, face painted in shock. But when she mentions college she thinks of her scholarship at Sarah Lawrence and it sobers her up instantly.
The younger girl tilts her head down to the laced hands in her lap. "I understand this." Suddenly the girl looks back up to the pale woman. "But I am not the core of these problems, my actions are only the appropriate response. I cannot just stand around you know." She swallows thickly, her throat feeling extremely dry since the mention of her life afterwards, when this school year comes to an end.
Her visits to Miss Trinket were more pleasant than most, the guidance councilor enjoyed a student she could actually be real with. Katniss didn't get her feather's ruffled she only laughed at you, embarrassing her was the very example of a rare happening. Effie secretly liked her blunt personality, it reminded her of her fiancee Haymitch.
"Very well darling, just don't let it happen again. You know what they call you around here right? I believe it's the witch or shrew. . ." she trails off in thought before speaking once again. "Maybe you should work on improving yourself, be kinder, more approachable."
The fiery teenager restrains any emotion from dripping through the cracks, "I can't do that. I'm not my sister."
Trinket clicks her tongue in disapproval. "Well," Effie opens her laptop, "I believe our chat is finished. Get to class, you're already fifteen minutes late."
Katniss rises, pushing in the black chair and stretching her limbs. "I like our visits very much Effie, enjoy your smut writing. See you soon."
The councilor turns redder than apple skin, but doesn't reject the words or brush them off as untrue. "Get out of here."
Katniss smiles but lingers a little longer to irritate her. "As you wish."
. . . .
Later on that day Prim's normal table has one more guest than usual. Rory Hawthorne.
He's already there when she arrives and fixes her skirt to sit. He must have rushed because Prim didn't take too long to get to the lunch room with Glimmer sashaying beside her featuring cleanly shaved mile-long legs. "Hi there, are you new here?" Prim asks with a silvery voice as she straightens her posture.
Rory feels his heart sink to his stomach like a stone. He didn't expect her to recognize him but he had stupid hopes, he tries his best not to look wounded when he looks her in the eyes again. "Oh no, I started here at the beginning of this year, you just seemed like a nice group so I decided to try something new."
Prim eyes him and she can see her blonde friend doing the same from the corner of her vision. She notes him as average, but being around males feels like some exciting forbidden territory, so eagerly she accepts him. Her mind flickers to Cato. In her world he's exquisite, she likes to think he would sit with her if they shared the same grade. Nothing can distract her thoughts of him, he's been lurking there since he noticed her yesterday. Prim feels like she's found her light at the end of the tunnel, but her father has thrown a wrench in her way and she will find a way to fix it. She knows it.
Glimmer nods to him like an excited puppy. Afterwards she fixes her hair with her fingers; unrealistically afraid a light strand will point upwards and make her look atrocious. "Well, we should all go get some lunch."
He smiles timidly and follows them to the growing lunch line, which is full of rowdy bodies and ceaseless chatter. He watches as another girl bounces up to Prim like she is long lost family or something. The teenage boy is teeming with nervous energy, he almost wants to say forget it and cross back to the beginning of the line but he can't, Rory likes her too much to do that. The line moves slowly, a few push past and butt into the front but nothing major occurs. "Are you okay?" Prim suddenly inquires, hand skimming his forearm, he jumps back like a coal had just touched him but immediately regrets it. The mildly concerned blonde girl feels embarrassed by doing the gesture in result, her cheeks show it.
"Of course, I was just thinking."
She takes a step closer, he's half a head taller than her. "About what?"
"Uh what I want to eat today." He instantly lies, almost suspiciously so, but she seems to buy it. A handful of profanity walks through his mind, he wishes he'd have made a better topic. How will he ever be interesting to her? The truth is he was thinking of how to ask her about doing something with him. Or maybe the reason her father has decided to ban dating and see if he could find a way around it.
As these thoughts are prodding his mind unexpected words surpass his lips. "I'd like to go ice skating with you."
Surprise shoots through his stomach, he didn't mean to blurt out such straightforward words. Her two friends examine the scene with blatant shock and interest on their features. The blue eye's of Prim widen.
"Do you mean a date? Like, a real date?" Her stomach does a somersault at the thought of ice skating with someone. She thinks of Cato but brushes him aside for a moment, this could make him jealous and drive him to make a move she decides. A boy just stated his intentions and she is brimming with excitement or something akin.
He blushes faintly and proceeds to give a shaky nod.
"I'd love to!" She brightly exclaims, hands clasped together in delight.
"Really?" he asks, clearly over the moon.
"Yes!" her giddiness subsides, and she feels herself still with solemness. "But my dad doesn't let me date. He created some stupid rule, I can't date until my sister does."
"Your sister, as in Katniss Everdeen?" he forces out tense laughter thinking of her hostile eyes and unmovable frown.
"Yep, that's her," she chirps and takes a step forward as the line moves. "I've thought about ways to hook her up," Prim reveals. "But god, it just seems so impossible."
"Surely it's not," he consoles instantly. Rory's determination is like ice soothing Prim's burn inflicted by her father's decision.
"You think?"
Daunting is the eldest daughter of Everdeen, but he believes there's nothing a good strategy can't overcome. He can find a way to work the system, some guy must be desperate enough to give the anti-social girl a piece of his time.
Rory will find a way.
"I know so," the grey eyed boy gives what he hopes is a convincing smile. "Anything is possible."
He hopes snatching her up for his own is possible too, it's selfish but he can't repress his desires.
A bulletproof plan has formulated within a day, it clicks together like a twenty piece puzzle, simple and doable. At first the Hawthorne boy talked to a few blokes who looked like they may be willing for such a task, but none of them were up for it. She's too intimidating, her grim appearance highlights her independence. A girl like her is too much of challenge for an average man, anyone to get her invested romantically has to be a step ahead and sharp as a pin. And brave. Definitely ballsy.
People do extreme things; some climb steep mountains, others jump from the sky, there's the ones that swim with sharks. Rory decides that someone must be very daring to give it a go.
The ultimate factor is money, it drives people to unspeakable limits and pushes them beyond what they've tried before. Someone must accept the offer of taking Katniss Everdeen out for generous compensation.
His quest now is just finding a guy who is up for it.
In multi-grade French class he spins around in his plastic-backed chair and skims the faces until they land on one. The stocky blonde at the back of the room catches his attention; it's a ongoing rumor he was in prison for a year. He's hunted alligator before Rory's heard, perhaps he was looking at the man for the job.
He bumps the arm of his brother, no one realized they are actually siblings they just noted them off as friends. Vick drops his pencil and shifts to Rory agitated, "huh?"
"What about him?" he whispers, eyes flicking to the back of the room.
"Who?"
"Peeta Mellark. You know his records, he seems up for the job."
In all reality Vick thought Rory's relentless determination for Primrose Everdeen was foolish, getting girls like that was hopeless. "You don't even have money to pay him."
"I can get a job," Rory quips. "Burger King hires fifteen and up I'll just go there."
"No," the younger brother gives a weary shake of his head. "You need a backer, someone stupid with money."
Rory gives a dead laugh. "Where do I find this person?"
The youngest Hawthorne sighs and begins firmly rubbing his temples, "If you're serious about this I'll help you, but you owe me big time."
"I'm a hundred percent serious. What do you have in mind?"
. . .
Vick has always been the more apprehensive of the two brothers so the idea of talking to Cato Hadley causes his hands to shake with nerves and dreadful anticipation. He begins to contemplate why he's helping his smitten brother but can't pull up any real reason, he knows better than to back out now. Part of him wants to see it happen, Prim getting together with his brother. Rory he knows, is shooting far out of his league and this whole ordeal is a high level of crazy.
After school he pulls himself together and does it, he approaches Cato with quick strides.
"I heard you had a thing for Primrose Everdeen." He tries to play it cool, he really does. Instead of looking at the towering blonde he shifts his legs and looks at a crack in the cement, but ultimately he just ends up crossing his legs and feeling like an idiot.
"What does this have to do with you?"
Vick feels any ounce of courage he had left plummet to the pits of his stomach. He straightens himself up. "Hear me out. I heard their father made a new rule, Prim can date when her older sister does. I had an idea."
Cato squints at him as if deciding whether or not he liked the boy. Vick knows he could go through with the plan, it wasn't a secret that he had money to burn, he is a teenage model for a bigger name clothing company. He's just afraid he won't be able to convince him to jump for the idea.
"Spit it out kid."
The sun is violent and the wind is soft, a crumpled paper rolls around his shoe as he speaks again, this time rushed. "Peeta Mellark, he seems like a solid investment. You could pay him to take out her sister."
The model's eyes widened for a second, he was hoping that was a good sign. "What do you get out of this?"
Vick thinks about his poor social status and his permanently single label.
"I get into your parties?"
"Okay, I can do that. From now on you're allowed to any of the senior parties."
"Alright," the younger one says, incredibly amazed that it had gone well.
"Go on. I have things to do." Cato narrows his eyes.
Rory's younger brother spins on his heels and leaves in an instant, all the while still startled from the bright conclusion of the conversation. What they are setting up is crazy and wrong and the Hawthorne boys can't really stop it now, for it is out of their hands.
. . .
That night Primrose trots in the bathroom after her sister as she gets ready for bed with her brush tucked against her collarbone. Katniss turns the faucet to hot and throws a dry wash cloth in the basin. She wearily eyes her sister in the mirror but doesn't say a word.
"Have you ever considered a new look? You could have potential under all this hostility." Prim pulls up her braid, considering unraveling it for a moment.
The somber grey eyed girl is silent, she balances her palms on the rim of the sink before she speaks. "I am not hostile, I am annoyed."
The young blonde shifts awkwardly from foot to foot beside Katniss before deciding to perch on the lid of the toilet.
"You should try being nice. People wouldn't know what to think."
Katniss chortles darkly. "You forget I don't care what people think about me." She wrings out any excess water from the cloth and proceeds to scrub her face.
"Yes you do," Prim protests weakly.
"No, I don't." She replies with stern vehemence. "You know," the older sister adds, "you don't always have to be who they want you to be."
Prim begins to run the brush through her corkscrew curls. "I happen to like being adored, thank you."
Katniss only raises her eyebrows and continues washing up. After a minute she turns off the water and hangs the wash cloth to dry. "Where did you get the pearls?"
Prim stops grooming suddenly. "They're mom's."
The dark girl's eyes widen. "And you've been what? Hiding them for three years?"
"No," Prim snips, setting a strand of hair behind her ear. "Dad found them in a drawer last week."
"So you're just going to start wearing them now?"
"It's not like she's coming back to claim them!" Prim replies, evidently agitated by her sisters questioning. "Besides, they look good on me." She pets the necklace with fondness.
"Trust me, they don't." Katniss storms out of the bathroom and crashes in her bed.
Primrose huffs feeling exasperated, if only she could convince Katniss to be more feminine the world would be better. She's still unaware of the mess she's created, but soon she'll discover it and she won't do anything to stop it. Despite all the nice traits Prim has, selflessness isn't one of them.
The following day the plan continues forward. During gym class Cato seeks Peeta, a great amount of cash shoved to the lining of his front pocket. "I have come to make a request of you," Cato says, stalking forward towards Peeta with Marvel traveling behind.
"A request? Do I even know you?" His voice he knows, is rude, but the son of the deceased baker doesn't bother to mask it. He never has, not since the day where all the good things of life were suddenly obliterated.
"No," Cato pipes, he's nervous for what seems like the first time ever, he believes every rumor about Peeta Mellark. Cato's seen the graffiti he sprays on the sides of buildings and the kid with the busted eye whom he fought. "But I'm willing to pay generously for this job."
Peeta loosens up, just slightly. "What's this job then?"
"Primrose Everdeen can't date until her older sister does. Their dad's a real pain in the ass. I need you to take out the older sister."
A whirlwind sweeps through Peeta's mind. He is hesitant, should he really accept this offer? He understand that if he does he's playing with people's emotions and that's not very honorable.
"How much?"
Peeta Mellark narrows his eyes at Cato, he's always appeared sketchy. It's like you could feel the bad intentions seeping out of his pores.
"I'll pay you fifty dollars a day." Cato hooks a thumb in his pocket.
"Sixty." Peeta inserts firmly, "I'll do the job for sixty a day."
"Okay," Cato caves, and fishes out the sixty before forking it over. A few onlookers glance over but no one gives it too much attention.
Peeta counts three twenties, and pockets them before stiffly nodding. "I'll get right on it."
Cato points out to the field towards a group of girls kicking around a worn soccer ball. "She's the one with the dark braided hair. Katni-"
Peeta rises from the bleachers with haste, "I know who Katniss is."
And he did, truly, he'd kept her in his eyesight for a while, because he saw her reflected in himself. They are jaded people that seemed to care about life too much. Both have been shaped by the aftershock of an event that had inflicted intense feelings of desperation and hopelessness. The boy could tell she was pushing through life completely independent, Katniss is striving for something, perhaps the day she moved out from her father's home and waved her schoolmates goodbye. He knows she is extremely different, most girls around are like small lap dogs, likeable in every sense but she is like a pit bull and has no desire to change. Of course he knows she doesn't want any trouble, that's why he feels a bit guilty for accepting Cato's deal.
Secretly he's always wanted to talk to her, she strikes him as interesting. But even he finds her intimidating, he understands this job will propel him and leave no other choice than to do it.
Katniss is an unsolved mystery, and he's hoping he'll be the one to figure it all out. Even if he doesn't that's okay too. Although he'd be quite disappointed by that outcome and he can't exactly pin-point why.