Chapter Twenty-One

Caught

"Katniss, what's your problem?" Clove walks next to me in the hallway. I have a hoodie on, tank top underneath with gym shorts on. I looked an absolute wreck when I woke up. I skipped out on getting high before school, but I'm sort of regretting it. "You didn't text me back this morning. I just wanted confirmation that we would help Finnick out tonight?"

"Yeah, sure I'll be there." I mumble to her.

"Okay, whatever. You're in a mood." She turns around and walks away from me. I don't bother looking back either. I keep going to my destination, which is the girl's bathroom. Instead of going to class, I'm hiding out in the bathroom. Seeing my friends is starting to stress me out because of my paranoia.

Clove is on to me, Finnick can tell when I'm on it, and Peeta is suspicious of something. I can't put my finger on it, but he's been a little concerned lately. Finnick doesn't think I know this, but he tries to hang out with me as much as possible to prevent me from getting high. I think Peeta doesn't like that.

The cool air in the bathroom brings me relief. I can sit on the counter and play some mobile games to pass the time.

The door flies open, and in walks Glimmer. Just Glimmer, which is somewhat of a rare site. Her eyes brighten up, laced with evil. "Katniss." He addresses me. She walks to the sink and turns on the water. She presses down on the soap dispenser and starts to was her hands.

I don't bother responding to her. She'll never stop talking.

"I have a friend from District 4. He apparently knew you." She tells me.

I shrug my shoulders, not really caring. District 4 is a small area. Everyone knew each other through another.

"He said you were a good lay." She winks at me. My body tenses up which I regretted immediately. It just confirmed it for her. I think I've lost this battle.

Glimmer stops the sink, wiping her hands on a paper towel. She rolls her skirt up another inch. "I know too much about you Everdeen. Don't mess with me." She flips her hair casually and walks out of the bathroom.

I really am screwed.

I decide to suck it up and actually eat at lunch today. I don't want to hear Clove and Johanna mention it nor do I want to see Finnick's stares. Oh yeah, he officially transferred here. He's currently in the same science class as Johanna and I.

"My parents made me apply to the private university in 12." I hear Madge complaining when I approach the table to sit down.

"We knew this was going to happen," Thresh says to her. I don't know how that's going to comfort her. "But, you don't have to go to their school of choice. You'll easily get a scholarship to the public school in 11." Well, that works.

"It's just annoying. They want me to live this picture perfect life and follow their rules. I'm going to be 18 in 2 weeks. I shouldn't have to worry about this!" She crosses her arms and looks away.

Madge does come off from a very high end family. I'm really not surprised that they're controlling.

"You okay Katniss?" Johanna asks me. "You're looking a little pale.

Yeah, well the fact that I'm craving and Glimmer basically threatened to spill out all my secrets this morning has me on edge. I feel like jumping off the edge.

"I'm just thinking about studying for Plutarch's test." I lie to her, stuffing a fry in my mouth.

"It'll be easy. He basically gave us all the questions on the test. Stop worrying so much."

Finnick is staring at me and it's slightly unnerving. Whenever he does this, I just know he sees right through me. That's why I like to change the subject. "Finnick, when are you gonna talk to Annie?" I tilt my head to the side to feign interest.

"What do you think we're doing tonight?" He mocks me, tilting his head as well. I just roll my eyes at him.

"Alright, but can we just address the elephant in the room?" Johanna says loudly. "Peeta, we know you have a crush on Katniss. Katniss, we know you're too chicken to actually do anything about it. Can we get the love story rolling already? I'm getting bored."

Peeta chokes on his bread, which I find a little funny because he's named after bread and he's eating bread. "Jesus, Jo. You sure know how to say everything bluntly."

I might as well confirm it to them. I sit up, move his face so that he's looking at me, and give him a soft kiss. I'm not going to give everyone a big show, but I want them to stop asking.

Clove lets out a loud whistle. Peeta looks a bit flustered, but he smiles at me.

"I hope that answered your question. Now onto the next topic!" I finessed the situation yet again.

"Why are we here again?" I ask Finnick as we walk into the drug store. Clove trails behind me with her attention focused on her phone.

He leads us to the aisle that holds all the supplies. "I want to prove to Annie that I'm not some playboy. Therefore, I'm going to write her a personalized letter everyday."

"You don't think that's a bit creepy?" Clove blurts out. I whip my head around to glare at her, only causing my head to pound even more. "What? I'm just asking."

Finnick shakes his head. "I talked to her today in class, and she wanted me to prove my commitment. Therefore, I will be as extra as possible to let her know that I only have my eyes on her."

"I think it's sweet. I just wanna get this over with because I have homework." I remind him.

"She just wants to make out with Peeta. Just like she did in the caf today." Clove rolls her eyes. I mean she could be right, but I will neither confirm or deny.

I ignore her, and start looking for markers and colored pencils for Finnick. He's going to have to get artistic with this, and that's what he's going to need Peeta's help for.

"Look, make sure you get the poster board, and the printer paper. I'll find the stencils for the board." I tell him so that we can get this all in one trip.

Once we've gathered everything, Clove goes to the register to pay for it. Finnick has to drop Clove off at her house first, then he's gonna bring me home.

"Thanks for coming. I'm probably gonna hit Peeta up and see if he'll help me decorate later." His hands grip the wheel.

"He'll help you. He's a nice dude." I clarify to him. I don't really have to do this because they've known each other, but I still feel like I have to clear things up.

"Hey, Finn?" Clove says, grabbing his attention. "Can you just drop me off at this corner coming up. This is Cato's street. He wants me to come over."

"Are you sure?" He turns his head quickly. She just nods, so he follows her wishes.

"I'll text you tonight," Clove tells me. "See ya tomorrow guys." She shuts the door, and walks off into the neighborhood.

"Your subdivision is close by." He makes a note to himself.

"Yeah, just turn here." Soon enough, we're in front of my door.

Before I leave, Finnick grabs my arm. "Hey, seriously, thanks. I appreciate it. I'm looking out for you too."

"It's no problem Finn. I'll talk to you later." I leave the car and walk up the path to my front door. I unlock the door, but Prim is right behind it. She smiles at me, and I give her a quick hug.

"Katniss, Mom just left to go to work. The food is on the stove!" She plops herself in front of the television after informing me.

I'm halfway up the stairs when I remember. "Hey, lock the door Prim!"

She shouts an okay, so I continue going towards my room. I really need to get high before I explode. I take the book with the supplies in it, and start setting up. I clear my desk to get a flat surface. Wish I could say this would be my last time doing this, but I can't stop now. I sit down on my chair, and lean down to sniff. That's when my door opens, and Finnick just walks in like he owns the place.

I freeze. He freezes. I don't really know what to do now that my friend has literally caught me in the process.

"Shit, Katniss." He runs over to my desk, and grabs my hands. Finnick has always had a playful face, but he's intense right now. Too intense for me. I don't know how to handle this.

He walks me to my bed, and sits me down. "I'm going to take away the bag."

I rush to sit up, but he's quicker than me, pushing me down again and grabbing my wrists. "Katniss, I'm not leaving here without it. Sit down and stay there while I grab the bag and clean off your desk." He commands me. Even if I tried to fight him, he would get his way.

I just lost out on my pack. I'm incredibly pissed at myself. Prim didn't lock the front door back, and I should've locked mine. I'm careless. What if Prim walked in, instead of him?

"I'm getting rid of this stack. And then I'm coming back to make sure it's all gone. I knew you were doing this still, but I had no proof." He says to me, gripping onto the bag. I just want to snatch it from him and run, but I won't.

He gets on one knee in front of me, and looks me in my eye. "I'm not mad at you. I just want you to get better. I don't know what pushed you to this again, but we'll fix it."

"Please don't tell." I just whisper, terrified. I don't want this to get out to our friends, or anybody else like my Mom. I feel like crying.

"I'm not going to. You know this." He gets up. He would've left the room, if it weren't for the fact that I hear Peeta lifting up the window. I also forgot to shut the window all the way down.

I stare at Peeta, scared that he heard the conversation Finnick and I just had, but he looks clueless. "Hey, Katniss. Finnick?"

"I had to give her some of my notes for class. She really doesn't want to fall behind dude." Finnick informs him. "I gotta come back, but I need to hit up Madge at her house for a bit. Talk to you later guys." He exits my room quickly.

"Are you okay?" Peeta asks me, sitting next to me on the bed. I need to get myself together because I don't want him to think anything is out of place.

"I get really stressed sometimes, but since you're here, I already feel better." I lean in to peck him on the lips. Stay strong Katniss. Stay strong.

I wanted to get this out quickly! Ahh, I've been watching my online lectures while writing this at the same time, so sorry if it's a little sloppy, but I know how much you guys have wanted me to updated quickly. I'm appreciative of you guys, like seriously. I love the reviews and to see my followers increase on this story. I do suffer from depression and anxiety, so writing is a side hobby of mine and to see my work being liked is amazing to me.

Anyway, about the story, like I said a few chapters ago, Katniss is going to make a lot of bad choices and it's evidently going to affect her relationships with Peeta. I just want to affirm to you guys that this will always be a Katniss x Peeta story, so no matter what happens, they are end game. I like to give happy endings, but since Katniss struggling is a big plot point in the story, who knows what could happen right now? I think you can already tell that Clove is getting a little fed up with how she's acting. She's going to do a few more stupid things, but in the end all will be resolved. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you have any questions about the story, me, or whatever just ask them in the reviews. I read every single one and I appreciate them so much!