Annoyance

Katniss glares at me in frustration on the opposite side of the table, trying to figure me out. I'm not all that easy though, especially when I play my role as the shy, optimistic retard, and I sometimes loose myself trying to get it just right.

Oh she must also be mad at what I did for the cameras. I just stood there, pretending to be dizzied by the flash then shouting," WAIT!" Yes, then I spread my arms out and said in a cheery tone through a gritted smile, "Ok! NOW! CHEEEEESE!" Lobo got a kick out of Katniss' expression.

I twirl my fork on the table, swirling the cloth the table is lined with, up around the fork. A plate is set in front of me, and I poke at the heavenly smelling glob on my plate.

"What is IT?" I ask in wonder.

The Avox server boy replies with, "Duck," he replies. Wow a non- mute Avox. I slam my palms on the table, and stand up. Katniss and Peeta are startled at my reaction. "A BIRD? YOU SICK PEOPLE! WHY WOULD SOMEONE HURT A BIRD?" I shout, outraged by the thing on my plate.

"I-I'm sorry!" The Avox stuttered. Lobo appears amused. Effie walks in and abruptly backs up, and gasps.

"No, I-I'm sorry. I just really love birds, well not eating them, that is almost like cannibalism," I say, and then I stare in shock in horror at what I said. "Well, I mean not exactly, cause they're not mammals or anything close to even an ape, but my pets… They were my best friends, but then someone," I trail off. Then I start to tear up. The story I tell them is not true, and I'm not in the least bit sad over any past pets, but I break down in tears anyway.

"AH HA!" Katniss shouts standing up as I sit. I look up at her and try to pretend she didn't figure out my secret. "I've got it!" She says.

"Heeeeyyyyy, Summer! Guess what? Lobo ate some birds!" She says. She doesn't know my secret, I decide. I look at her through watery eyes.

"How stupid d-do you think I am?" I say crying even louder. I slowly lower myself down to my knees on the floor and then I curl up in a ball on the floor. Even Lobo appears surprised.

Everyone stares at me, lying on the floor, and then I pretend to fall asleep. I go limp on the floor and start to snore softly. My eyes are shut, not tightly, but enough to make myself to appear to be in a deep sleep.

"Oh, take her to her cabin, please," Effie says to the Avox. He listens to her and slings me over his shoulders.

I let out a loud breath and giggle in my 'sleep'. The Avox dude goes to my room, and plops me down on the bed. He doesn't bother to try and cover me with a blanket or turn off the light, and he leaves. I lay on m bed awake, starring up at the ceiling.

I sense heavy footsteps in the hall and I continue to stare upward. I want to be under the stars. Then the door slides open and Lobo steps in. "Lovely show at dinner," he says to me. I nod. "It was close," he continues. Lobo come and sits by me. "You better give it to the audience to night. Effie received orders to keep your bunk under surveillance," he warns me.

"Yeah, thanks. Wait, who from?" I ask.

"Katniss," he replies.

"Of course," I mutter. He nods.

"They'll be in momentarily, act asleep," he speaks softly. I nod and turn on my side, away from him. He pats my shoulder and I hear him leave.

Now, several minutes past, I hear Effie's heels clonk down the hall. She quietly slides the door aside and I hear her moving around. It was just as Lobo had said. I lay quietly. Oh the audience will have a show tonight, I think to myself. As soon as Effie finishes she clicks off the light. I cuddle into the blankets and wiggle around.

After I doze off for, what several hours? I remember my mission and I start to sleep talk.

"Ohhh… haha… yes the stars are shaped like pies tonight, Barney!" I say, stumbling through. I laugh several moments later and then roll my upper body somewhat off the bed. One hand hangs down and I grin openly. My hair hangs loose and a piece of it brushes my nose when I move and I sneeze, completely falling off the bed. I jump up, 'startled' when my head hits the ground. I look around.

From my knee down, my legs are still clinging to my bed and my arms, bent at the elbow prop me up. I look from side to side and then scramble back on my bed. I settle back down and whisper, "Silly, slippery mattress!" I lay back down and once more I drift off to sleep.

Effie banging on the side of the door awakes me in the morning. I slide it open, smile then raise my arms up and hug her. She clenches her teeth as if its painful and her wig titles to the side. I release her and smile.

"I came to tell you to get ready," she says.

"I am ready," I say.

"No… Sweety, your not, you're in pajamas!" She says in a coaxing tone you might use on a young child, and with my childish cover personality, that's what I was to her.

"Oh Effie, Pajamas are glorious things!" I tell her saying pah-jahm-as instead of, pah-jam-as, as she said it.

She sighs and gives up, turning to leave. We go to breakfast. I eat my breakfast in my pajamas, and I eat waffles while everyone else chows down on eggs. The Avox dude learned his lesson. The waffles taste great.

All of a sudden I sit up straight and flick Peeta who is sitting next to me and across from Katniss. "Does that hurt?" I ask.

"Yes. What was that for?" He asks me. I shrug and look back at my plate. We go back to eating and I poke Peeta. He slowly turns to look at me.

"Ow," he says shrugging. I smile and look back at my plate.

"Are you sure you're not 12?" He asks me, not lifting his gaze.

"Oh, I'm sure! Fourteen and 14/2 all the way!" I say. "Some people think I act childish though… OHMICHEESE! LOOK AT THE CITY!" I say jumping up almost knocking the table over on Lobo and Katniss. Effie stops it just in time.

"All the lights…" I mutter. "They're… SHINY!" I say. I start to sway to the beat of a song that isn't playing.

"Infuriating isn't she?" Katniss asks Peeta taking a bite of her omelet. Peeta doesn't respond.

"I think you are a diseased child," Katniss says to me.

"No, not diseased. Just different! And a little Coocoo!"

"Coocoo? Who says that anymore?" Lobo asks smiling smugly.

"Birds," I blurt. I sit and then I duck under the table and squeeze my way out.

"What…. Areyoudoing?" Peeta asks me as I finish crawling over his feet.

"You mean other than being a creeper?" Katniss suggests. I smile widely at her and Lobo laughs.

"WATCH THIS!" I suddenly shout. I stand up and pretend to stab myself with a butter knife. Then I fall, faking a death, being over dramatic.

"Oh my go- PEETA! She's planning her own death!"

"Too dramatic?" I inquire lifting my head up.

Katniss rolls her eyes. I jump up and sit down at a table across from everyone. I sit quietly and slumped over for a few minutes. Then I unexpectedly get up and pick up a glass of water that was placed at my spot at the table. Then I picked up the jar of sugar and dumped large spoonfuls of it in my water. I got confused, grossed- out, and somewhat fearful stares.

"What?" I say.

"Nothing," Peeta says looking out the window at the capitol.

"You're not going to drink that are you?" Katniss almost begs me to put it down through her pleading eyes.

"Of course… I am. I love sugar water!" Lobo slaps his head as I chug down everything in the glass, including the ice. That's when I have a terrible thought. I have to eat a lot, and usually, even in district 12 it's not a problem for me because of my secret, but in the games, I can't use my secret to hunt. If the Gamemakers know it's me, they'll either: a) Kill me on the spot, b) bring me in for torture, or c) bring me back to the lab for further tests.

I shudder at the thought of more tests. With my secret ability, well it comes with different smaller talents, like abnormal strength, speed, lightness, and extra sensitive senses. I have excellent and almost supernatural hearing, taste, sight, smell, and the worst of those, touch. The pain one might have breaking a rib, would be even worse for me, and there would even be more of it. Thank goodness I heal quickly.

I creep back into reality when the train jerks to a stop. I shake my head to find that Lobo's eyes are on me.

"Ok guys, we're here! Ok, you'll be going right to the stylists. One thing about that, just don't resist."