A/N: this is actually a kinda long chapter. I like it though. I'm not doing a day to day story, it's just going to be like little drabbles of their relationship as it progresses. So that's my reason for skipping the whole interview, training, etc. process and just going straight to the Games.
Chapter Four: Dealing with Innocent Deaths
I clutch Haymitch's arm, digging my manicured nails into his skin. We're sitting on a couch, watching the first day of the Games. He doesn't seem to notice nor care, so I dig in harder, screaming at every blow a tribute makes.
"Show Mila and Guron already!" I scream at the TV, wanting to know how they did. I glance at Haymitch to see him chugging a bottle of Whiskey, not even bothering to look at the TV.
"They'll die soon enough, Princess." he says when the bottle is empty.
"Did you really just drink all that in one minute?" I say incredulously. He gives me a crooked grin. "You're already half way drunk and they're still at the Cornucopia!" Making an aggravated noise, I let go of his arm and get up to get him more alcohol. I've gotten used to his drunkenness over this years preparations for the Games enough to enable it just so I could do my work instead of dealing with him.
"She's dead!" Haymitch calls as I'm gathering different bottles of alcohol all at once, just so I won't have to get up later.
"What?" I yell, hurrying back with all the alcohol in my hands. Haymitch makes a "mmm" noise when he sees the bottles and I put them down on the table in front of the couch. I sit down quickly and look at the screen to see the Cornucopia battle has ended, leaving 7 tributes dead. One of them being the girl from 12. I sigh, knowing this would happen. I feel a tiny tinge of pain, and maybe that's because I knew her and how hopeless she was.
"The boy's still alive, though." I say proudly.
"For now!" Haymitch laughs, slapping his knee.
"Ugh, you're not funny." I tell him. Watching the screen, I hook Haymitch's drunk arm into mine again.
"Are you always so touchy?" Haymitch yells, trying to pull his arm away. I smile arrogantly and pat his arm with my other hand, not letting him pull away. I hear him grunt loudly and feel him trying to pull away again, so I reach for the remote to turn the TV up. It's currently on the Career pack, the tributes from Districts 1, 2 and 4. The boy tribute from 4 is getting rather hot headed during an argument with the boy from 1, and it quickly turns into a fight. The fight lasts for about 10 minutes and I'm completely into it, then the boy from 1 beheads the boy from 4 swiftly. I gasp and squeeze Haymitch's arm with my other hand. By now, he's completely drunk and out of it. I turn my attention from Haymitch to the screen when I hear a piercing, bloodcurdling scream come from the TV. It's the girl tribute from 4, and she's losing it.
"She's dead meat!" I say to him, although I know he isn't listening. I watch as the girl scrambles away from the pack in hysterics, clawing at her face, and the pack starts throwing spears and knives in her direction. She manages to escape, though, and the camera shuts off to a boy from 3 and a girl from 5 fighting.
"Oh my word," I say with a hand over my heart, "this year's Games are so intense!"
"Kids dying's never nots 'tense," Haymitch slurs. I roll my eyes.
The next day, we meet back up in the same room as yesterday to watch the Games. I don't know why he comes back after yesterday, but he does and we sit on the same couch, me hooking arms with him again. I watch as Guron is killed slowly by the Career Pack, and I can't help but feel a little sad. I turn to Haymitch with a few tears in my eyes, seeing what his reaction is. Guron's screams are filling the room as I hear a girl's laughter. Haymitch refuses to look at the screen, instead drinking furiously. He unhooks his arm from mine and I don't bother taking it back.
"I've gotta go to the bathroom," Haymitch says as he gets up. I sigh.
"The brown door on the right." I tell him, but it's too late. Haymitch has already puked on the floor. The smell of it fills the air along with Guron's screams in the background and for a second, I see nothing but chaos. Then, I plug my nose with my fingers and go to the phone, sending cleaners. I instruct Haymitch to go get in the shower, but he just stands there with a confused look. While standing there he looks like a lost school boy and for a second I think it's adorable until I realize that it's really Haymitch Abernathy, and he is anything but adorable. I walk over to him and help him to the shower.
"Now, undress and clean yourself up." I say. He doesn't respond, just looks around the room with downcast eyes, and for a minute I'm pretty sure he's going to pass out. He doesn't, though, and I walk out the room as soon as he starts taking his shirt off.
I thank the cleaners as they leave 20 minutes later when I hear a bang come from the bathroom. I run to the bathroom door and yell at him.
"Haymitch! Are you alright in there?" There's no answer, not even a slurred one. "Haymitch? You better not have passed out in there, because I have no interest in seeing you naked." A blush creeps onto my face as I shake the mental image from my head. There's still no answer, so I pound on the door a few times. I start to get worried, because even though I dislike him greatly, I don't think I could handle him dying on my watch. I open the door slowly, to see he did just what I expected – he's passed out. I close my eyes and hurriedly turn off the water, then run out the room to get a towel. Coming back to the shower, I close my eyes again and screech when I put the towel down to cover his lower body.
"Haymitch!" I scream in anger. I am completely done with this man, he is the most disgusting and crude man in all of Panem. I don't deserve having to put up with him. I look at the position he's in and reason in my head that it's a good enough position to leave him in, just so I don't have to drag him to his room. Besides, if he's sore and bruised tomorrow when he wakes up from being in that position, I won't care.
"Hmmph." I say, walking out the bathroom and slamming the door behind me.
The next day, I decide to stay in my hotel room and watch the Games. Then, seeing as how my tributes are already dead, I decide to treat myself to a manicure and pedicure when things get boring. I absolutely refuse to watch the Games with Haymitch any longer. I take my time getting ready to go out, the Games on my TV in the background. I watch for 30 minutes, wondering how the girl tribute from 4 isn't dead yet. While watching, there's a knock on my door. I get up to go answer it, only wishing immediately that I hadn't.
"Princess, I don't appreciate getting stood up." I sigh and roll my eyes.
"When did I ever stand you up? There was no requirement saying I had to watch the Games with you, so why should I?" He doesn't seem to know what to say to that, so I put my hands on my hips. He stares me down, taking in my full appearance. My glitter pink wig, my seafoam green blazer and pencil skirt, my hot pink heels. This time, I won't stand here and be self-conscious. I stare him down right back, taking in his appearance as well. His 5 o'clock shadow, his simple white shirt and fitted jeans, his sneakers and disheveled hair. I decide that for an alcoholic, he's not bad looking.
"Do you mind?" I say, motioning for him to get out my doorway. He raises an eyebrow. He backs into the hallway and lets me pass him. I walk with my head high down the hallway towards the elevator. Pressing the button for it to go down, I turn around to see him standing there, watching me with his eyebrow still raised. He looks amused and unimpressed, but I don't let that phase me. I flash him an 'I'm better than you' smile and turn around. Only a couple more days, I tell myself, then I won't have to deal with him for another year. I might get lucky and be promoted, but I doubt it by the way my tributes performed this year. I walk into the elevator when the doors open and when I turn around, I see that he has already left without me noticing. A little part of me deep down is hurt, but the rest of me doesn't even care.