~Peeta~

Eventually, Mother and I had made our way to the top deck. The wind was chilly but the sun was warm. I took a deep breath of the fresh ocean air. The open sea seemed to take away my problems for the moment. Then all of my problems came crashing back upon me as I felt Mother slip her arm through mine.

We strolled along the deck, never getting too close to the railing. I desperately wanted to lean over it and feel the sea breeze tug at my coat and ruffle my hair. But Mother was afraid. When I mentioned approaching the railing, she said, "One could too easily fall over, Peeta. What if the ship jolted or you lost your balance?"

Even though I found her fear irrational, I didn't mention it again. Perhaps I would come back tonight.

Suddenly loud, quick footsteps pounded by me accompanied by a rush of laughter. Mother gasped but I stared at the pair who had run by us curiously.

It was a man and a woman, probably around my age. Both had dark hair and appeared to be of the lower class. The man was dressed in loose brown pants and an old white button-down shirt. The woman was wearing a faded green dress that hugged her waist in a way that immediately made me blush.

I continued to watch them as they leaned over the railing at the back of the ship, holding out their arms and letting the wind blow through their hair and clothes. I had the strong urge to join them, but Mother's voice chirped beside me, "What ill manners the lower class possesses. No regard for their superiors or for elegance."

I discreetly rolled my eyes. We had only recently become a part of the upper class. It astonished me how quickly Mother had seemed to forget that – maybe that wasn't so astonishing.

I looked over at the pair again just as the woman turned around. She was smiling the most brilliant smile I had ever seen. It made her eyes shine. Silver eyes that nearly knocked me off my feet. Her dark hair, which was pulled back in a braid, complemented her olive-toned skin. I felt my pulse quicken.

Suddenly those silver eyes met mine and that brilliant smile that had so beautifully graced her face melted away into a scowl. Her brows knitted together, her eyes narrowed, and her nose that was lightly spotted with freckles slightly wrinkled.

I quickly turned away, feeling as though I would be caught as the man that had destroyed such a beautiful sight. Why had she looked at me that way? Then it donned on me. The way I was dressed, the way my Mother was dressed, and the way my Mother was probably looking at this woman right now. She felt that I was looking down on her.

I chanced a look again, hoping that the look on my face was apologetic but she had already directed her attention back to her companion who seemed to be making some sort of joke. I realized as he gestured at me that I must be the brunt of the joke. The woman laughed and I sighed inwardly. If only they knew how desperately I wished to be like them. Carefree.

My Mother cleared her throat, directing my attention back to her. Her eyes flitted quickly between me and the pair I had been observing.

Suddenly a bugle began playing further down the deck, signaling that supper began in 45 minutes.

"Let us get ready for supper, darling," Mother said smoothing her dress and sticking her nose up ever so slightly.

I escorted her back to our suite, with the image of the woman smiling burned in my mind.

~Katniss~

After Gale and I had left the top deck to see what else we could discover on the ship, my mind kept flitting back to that man I saw with who looked to be his mother. Those crystal blue eyes and dark blonde hair. His strong jaw and broad shoulders.

I'm not exactly sure why I scowled at him. While his mother was clearly expressing disdain for me, that wasn't what bothered me. It was the look of longing and hopelessness in his eyes. He looked so sad, but looked as if he wanted to join me as well.

Gale suddenly nudged me, breaking me from my thoughts. "You alright there, Catnip?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," I smiled at him to reassure him. I wasn't going to let the thought of this sad man ruin my joy.

While we explored the ship, we discovered a lift, a heated pool, and a gymnasium, all reserved for the upper class. We were quickly redirected to a lower-class area, but we continued our exploration once out of sight of the crew workers. We found the third-class Dining Saloons, the General Room, and the Smoking Room. Eventually we found ourselves back in our cabins.

When we reached mine, I noticed my cabin-mates had arrived. Both were about my size in stature and size, but one had brown hair and the other had auburn hair. The one with auburn hair smiled warmly at me when she saw me hesitating in the doorway.

She approached me and stuck out her hand. "Hello. I'm Annie. I guess we are going to be staying in here together during this voyage. Isn't it exciting?" she said as I gingerly shook her hand.

"I'm Johanna," the brunette said without even looking toward me as she continued to unpack her things.

"Katniss," I replied quietly. "I'm Katniss."

"It's nice to meet you, Katniss. Have you explored any of the ship yet?"

I nodded. "I have actually. With my cousin Gale."

Johanna suddenly turned to me. "You might have to introduce us to this cousin of yours," she said without batting an eye.

Shocked at her forwardness I stumbled over my words, "I – um…I – "

Johanna laughed. "Well, come on. Are you going to show us the ship?"

I smiled. "Follow me."