She leaves me in the penthouse alone. Deciding to go to bed, I walk to my room, lay down and fall asleep.
When I walk into the penthouse the next day Effie is sitting alone at the table silently eating her pink fruity cereal. She sits perfectly with her legs crossed. Her hair is a deep shade of magenta, one of her favorite colors. She glances up at me but then looks away, reading the paper. I sit down across from her.
"Good Morning." She says nervously.
"Mornin' sweetheart." I say while the avoxes set down a plate of fried eggs in front of me.
She finished her first and only bowl and gives the empty bowl to the avoxes and they carry it off to be cleaned. "Can I have some orange juice?" She asks them and they nod. Soon they come back with a glass of orange juice and hand it to her. "Thank you." They walk out of the room and leave us alone.
"So are you going to talk to me?" I say finally. "Or just act like nothing happened...?"
"What do you mean? We are talking..." She says still not making eye contact with me.
"You know what I'm talking about, we kissed don't ignore it." I retort.
"Fine Haymitch! You want me to discuss our kiss? Fine I will! I thought it was amazing and I loved it! But it was also a MISTAKE!" She screams while looking into my seam gray eyes with her beautiful blue eyes.
"Why was it a mistake?!" I scream back, now standing. "Was it because it was beautiful? Or maybe because it's not how men usually kiss you? They give you drinks and flirt and tell you you're beautiful don't they?! Well I don't need to tell you you're beautiful because I already say it to myself without having to tell you!"
She looks at me, surprised that I raised my voice at her. Tears start to stream down her perfect skin. She runs off and into her room, slamming the door behind her. I feel bad for yelling at her so I go over to her door and knock.
"Effie...please... Let me in." I say to the door.
No answer. Of course.
I go to the screening area where all the escorts and mentors watch the games on a giant screen. "Hey! How's the mentor of the loosing district?!" A gamemaker screams at me.
"Shut up Morty, just because you cause half the deaths in my district every year doesn't mean we will never win. We won last year." I retort.
"Whatever asshole." He says. That pisses me off.
I sit down and act like he said nothing. Katniss and Peeta are with the Odair boy and Johanna Mason. Soon Effie walks in and sits right beside a gamemaker and he puts his arm around her.
Shes flaunting herself right in front of me. Trying to make me jealous or mad, like a moth to a flame I'll fall into it and get all pissed. No. I'll just leave.
I walk out of the room and I feel Effie's eyes staring hard at me. She'll follow me, I know it. Soon I hear the click of heels behind me in the hall.
"Haymitch!" Effie yells. "Wait up!"
I stop. Turn around. Face her. "What?" I say.
"Why did you leave?" She ask, looking into my eyes.
"I left because I didn't want to see a gamemaker touching you all over." I say angrily.
"What do you mean?!" She yells. "I would never let him do that!"
"Oh yeah right!" I yell back. "I don't like being teased with something I like!"
"You...like...me?" She mumbles.
"Yes sweetheart, that's why I didn't pull away when we kissed!" I say arrogantly.
"I don't know why, " She says sadly. "It always seems like you are completely disgusted by me and my people." She starts to cry. "I know I'm disgusting, I hide behind five fucking layers of makeup!" She sobs. "I'm sorry...sorry about what my people did you, sorry that I haven't tried to help. I know I should but I just don't know how to... I'm sorry." She sobs, now in my arms.
"Effie, its how you where raised. I am disgusted by your people but you are beautiful." I say before taking her wig off and letting her blond curls flow down on her shoulders. "You're perfect, I wouldn't want you any other way."
I place a sweet gentle kiss on her perfectly pink lips and then kiss the tears off of her beautiful skin.