"Good morning, sweetheart." I groaned as Tannin rolled me over.
"Is Katniss crying?"
"Yes, but that's not why I'm waking you up. I'm heading out today with John, we're taking the kids to the forest around the Hawthornes house. Hazelle might bring Gale out too. But you're staying here, sleeping in, and when you get up, there's a stack of pancakes downstairs for you to heat up and have for breakfast. I'll see you later." He kisses my forehead and starts to leave, but I grab his hand.
"Thank you, honey, have fun with Katniss and the boys, say hi to everyone for me." I pucker my lips up and Tannin leans down to smooch them. I hear Katniss stops crying and I hear the front door latch behind him shortly after. I smile and roll over.
Having a toddler is more work that I thought it would be. Taking care of someone else's kids is one thing, I don't have them at night so mornings were never a problem, but once Katniss was born, I've had all kinds of highly unhealthy sleeping habits. Like now, going back to sleep despite it being close to noon. Moms sleep when they can because they never know when they'll have another opportunity.
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I hear the phone ring as my head is wrapped in a towel and I'm trying to find something to wear.
"Hello?"
"Good morning, Sage."
"Uh, hi Lily, how are you doing?"
"I'm fine, thank you. I was wondering if I could come over, with John and the kids gone, I have a disturbingly nonexistent list of things I need to do. I'm going a bit stir crazy."
"Yeah, That's fine, I just got out of the shower, maybe in half an hour?"
"Alright, see you then." I hang up and return to my closet.
Lily hasn't been herself in a long time, that conversation is the closest I've heard in years. I wonder what she wants to come here for, she's never had problems amusing herself, and it's not like she has the boys home much anyway, so it really wouldn't be that different.
I dress quickly and dry my hair, braiding it back and out of the way. Looking in the mirror, I feel suddenly old. I've basically singlehandedly raised three boys and a girl, and although they're all still children, I feel like I've been raising kids for a lifetime. I stand up straighter. I'm not even 30, I'm not as worldly wise as I sometimes think I am. I jump when I hear the doorbell. Has it been half an hour already?
"Hi, Lily, come on in." I greet my friend, holding the door open.
"Tannin let you sleep in?" She guesses, looking at my still damp hair.
"Yeah, he told me his plans right before he left around noon I think, I didn't even hear Katniss crying until he woke me up, I was completely out." She nods.
"Me too. John woke me up this morning to tell me his plans, and then I fell back asleep while he took care of the kids."
"So you have the day off at the bakery then?"
"Yeah, they'll be fine without the two of us for the day."
I nod. Conversation with Lily used to be so easy, but now it's just stilted and uncomfortable.
"I'm just going to do some cooking and cleaning things, I don't have a whole lot but you can just do whatever..."
"Give me a job, I'll help." She suggests. I shrug.
"You wanna... help me clean the kitchen?" I offer. She smiles.
"Yeah, let's get started."
We worked quietly for a while, and the kitchen was spotless. I wiped some wisps of hair off my forehead and Lily leaned against the counter.
"That didn't take long."
"No, it went faster than I thought." I reply. We were silent for a couple more minutes before she stood up straight and checked her phone.
"I still have twenty minutes before I need to leave, do you have another job?"
"Um... yeah, Katniss's room could stand to be tidied I guess."
We head up the stairs and I catch Lily touching a few of the girlier things here and there from the corner of my eye.
"Katniss has never really been fond of the pink and frilly things people have gotten her, she's very much a daddy's girl." I tell her. Lily nods.
"Tomboy. Good thing too since she has so many boys to play with, what with her cousins and my kids."
"Yes, she certainly won't be lonely. Are... are you and John - I can take those," she passes me a heap of clothes. "Are you and John planning on having any more kids?"
Lily shrugs.
"I'm headed from here to an appointment to see if I can, you know about the complications with Peeta's birth. I may not be able to."
I give her hand a squeeze like I did when we were younger. She blinks a couple times and keeps her eyes on the socks she's sorting into pairs.
"I hope it works out for you." I say. She nods and starts talking about the latest project Noethe has gotten himself into.
