Harsh breathes were heard as Heather woke up with a gasp, feeling sweat all over her body. She clawed at her chest, feeling tight all over. As if to mock her, the second she woke up, she forgot what the dream was about. Her heart thumped against her ribcage, as if it was trying to get out. Her breathing was uneven and ragged, as if she just ran a marathon.
Immediately, Haymitch sat up next and rubbed her softly while pulling her closer to her. He wanted to ask her and make sure she was okay, but that'd be stupid. Clearly, she wasn't okay and it didn't look like she'll be anytime soon.
Leaning into him, she grabbed his torso tightly as she began to sob. All he could at that moment was hold her close and comfort her. He wanted to say so many things but he knew that no words could console her at the moment. Only time could soothe her.
The next days passed by a swirl. Katniss and Peeta are more cautious about the way they behave in front of the public, especially at ceremonies. However, during dinner, they put up the act of star-crossed lovers. They kiss, they dance, and they purposely get caught trying to sneak away to be alone.
The display of their love was so sickeningly sweet that Heather found herself annoyed by it. Although that might be due to the fact she's on her menstrual cycle.
Still, the thing that takes the cake during this trip is the sleeping arrangement between Katniss and Peeta. Neither Haymitch and Heather bothered to question them about this. But Heather couldn't help but be curious about it. However, other more urging matters took her mind off that.
By the time they reach the Capitol, Heather doesn't bother to make any public appearances, taking advantage of Katniss and Peeta's popularity. She lays in bed all day and most of the time, Haymitch is the one who delivers food to her. Even when she goes to sit with the other during mealtimes, she doesn't dress up or be her usual optimistic.
To avoid distracting Katniss and Peeta of their goal, Heather told them not to worry about her and go on about their day.
Laying on her bed, Heather does nothing but stare aimlessly at her surroundings. In her mind, she comes up with every possible scenario that could happen and how to solve it. Obsessively, she'd think of those scenarios and excessively create a fool-proof plan for it.
She knew that it wasn't her responsibility to fix everything. Haymitch and her friends never failed to remind her of that. But she couldn't remove the urge to do so. She had the brains, the influence, and the right allies. The real question is why won't she do it?
In her mind, everything fell into her hands.
During the night, Haymitch would always whisper sweet nothings into her ear. He'd tell her to go easy on herself. He'd tell her that she was perfect as she is. He'd tell her that not everything was her responsibility. He'd tell her to be selfish. He'd tell her that he was always going to be there for him.
She'd fall asleep to the words of his love.
It was kind of ironic how months ago, their roles were switched.
One day, in particular, Heather was laying down on her back. Her hair was all over the pillows and bedsheets. She'd been thinking about what Snow would do to Katniss, or worse, District 12, if they failed.
Then, suddenly, the door to her room opened and softly clicked closed. Assuming that it was Haymitch, Heather didn't move from her spot. Only when she caught sight of blonde hair did she sit up.
Peeta, looking quite frustrated, didn't say anything to her and just laid next to her. To her credit, Heather didn't ask him about anything and continued to stare at the ceiling, her mind bustling for solutions.
"It's ironic," Peeta suddenly said after some pure moments of silence.
Heather said nothing but turned to face Peeta as he continued to talk. "You and Haymitch are in love with each other but can't be together. Katniss and I don't love each other but we're forced to be together."
"You don't love Katniss?"
He sighed. "Honestly, I don't know. I thought about what you said to me before, about the possibility that I'm not in love with Katniss but with the idea of her. But at the same time, even if she pushes me away and ignores me, I can't help but… feel for her."
She thought about what he said for a moment before speaking. "Back then, I don't think you were in love with her, but now, it seems like you are, or at least you're starting to."
Peeta said nothing but he glanced at her with hurt eyes.
"She wants me to propose," he said. "Tonight."
Heather pressed her lips tight. Though she didn't expect this, she wasn't surprised. Slowly, she got up and embraced Peeta tightly. Seconds later, her shirt started to get wet as she let him cry.
That night, Katniss and Peeta have an interview with Caesar on the stage before the Training Center. With no excuse, Heather had to dress up for the event, sporting a gold and black outfit. She forced herself to smile and have small talks with some Capitol citizens. Fortunately, thanks to Haymitch's reputation, no one questioned her when they sat together in a deserted area.
Katniss and Peeta answer every one of Caesar's questions with grace and charm. When he asked them about the future, Peeta got down on one knee, proclaimed a romantic speech to Katniss, and begged her to marry him. Of course, Katniss accepted.
The crowd went so wild and hysterical, Heather seeked refuge in Haymitch's hold as she tried to deafen the noises they made. Her sensitive ears will probably ring for the next couple of hours because of this commotion.
Minutes later, Heather was shocked to see that Snow came to congratulate Katniss and Peeta himself. She knew he didn't just come for that and she was positive there was a superior motive towards his actions. She got even more suspicious when he said to hold the wedding in the Capitol.
Seeing Snow added more flame to Heather so she didn't have a hard time pulling off her cheerful act during the celebration banquet held for Katniss and Peeta' engagement. She danced around with a smile and kept a joyful face as she chatted with endless Capitol citizens.
Feeling a tap on her bare shoulder, Heather turned around to find Plutarch standing behind her. "May I have this dance?"
Heather smiled and excused herself, accepting Plutarch's outstretched hand. Instantly, he swept her onto the dance floor. They both danced graciously to the rhythm of the music played. An unspoken agreement was between them as they looked at the people around them to make sure no one was listening to them.
"How are you?" Heather asked, noticing the makeup he has on. Usually, Plutarch never wore it unless he's trying to hide something. She hadn't known him nor spent time with him for a long time but she was observant like that.
He sighed, "I've had better days."
"Any meetings I should know of?" Heather asked as he twirled her.
"Related to what we're involved with? No."
"Such a shame I'd have to leave immediately after this, I wanted to talk to you about something important."
"I understand. If you want, I can buy your, uh, time for the next auction," Plutarch proposed.
Right, the auction where the Capitol decides who gets which victor for the month.
"I'd really appreciate that."
When the song came to an end, the two stopped dancing and exchanged farewells. Heather inwardly frowned as she didn't want to go back to mingle with people. Spending the past days all in bed took most of her social energy.
Looking at the musicians that floated around the room in stage clouds, Heather got an idea. She went to talk to the conductor of the orchestra. After hearing her idea, he nodded and he gestured for the music to cease.
Guests immediately noticed the lack of music and turned to see what the problem was. They were greeted by the sight of Heather climbing onto the stage with her hand grasping onto the violin given to her.
Adjusting the microphone on her face, Heather smiled at the crowd, who were anticipating her next course of action, and said. "For beloved Katniss and Peeta."
Heather placed the bow on the violin's strings and began to play. Melodic sounds came out of her violin as she craftily moved the bow on the strings. She closed her eyes, letting herself get lost in the beautiful music she was making. Though she couldn't see them, she knew that everyone was looking at her. She was in the spotlight after all. She was the centre of attention.
After she was done performing her piece, the crowd quickly began to clap and whistle, making noises enough to rival thunders. Heather smiled and laughed, waiting for the people to calm down.
"Thank you, thank you," she said when they had yet to cease clapping. "This performance was fully dedicated to Katniss and Peeta. Even though I think you two are too young to get married," that received a couple of laughs, "I'm truly happy for the both of you, and know that I'll always be there for you, no matter what."
The crowd cooed at her last part and clapped for her once again when she moved to leave the stage. A couple of men were there to help her down and as soon as she placed her feet on the ground, she was showered by compliments.
She tried to not feel overwhelmed by all the people surrounding her and invading her personal space. But they just kept coming at her and speaking in her face, the rope of her patience on the verge of breaking.
Luckily, Haymitch came to her rescue. He pulled through the crowd with polite 'excuse me's and when he reached her, he pulled her away with no explanation. Heather sighed in relief as she followed him.
"Haymitch, can you please slow down?" Heather asked him. "I can't walk fast in these heels."
His steps slowed down and he gently led her to a table. She sat down on a chair and instantly, the pressure on her feet relieved. She so wanted to pull her feet out of her heels and rub them. Maybe she can get Haymitch to give her a foot massage later.
"Sorry you had to do that," she looked at him.
"It's okay," he said, taking a sip of his drink. "Why did you do that?"
She shrugged. "It felt right, I guess. I wasn't acting myself so I thought this might help," Heather placed her hand under her chin. "You're so lucky, at least you don't get to hide your true self."
His face softened as he pulled an escaped hair behind her ear. "It's not all that great. Have you eaten yet?"
She shook her head. He was about to lean in to kiss her but remember that they were in public. Instead, he patted her head and left to get her food. As soon as Haymitch walked away from her, a couple of people came to sit next to her. It's as if they're waiting for Haymitch to leave.
In the past, when he was a drunkard, the Capitol saw Haymitch as comedy on legs because of his drunken behaviour. But now they avoid him due to his sour and grumpy attitude.
"Wonderful performance, Heather dear," a woman said as she took a seat next to her. She had light blue skin with bright orange lipstick.
"Yes, thank you," Heather said with a polite tone.
"The piece you played was so lovely," a man with golden eyelashes said.
"Thank you, it's one of my favourites," she smiled.
Heather smiled and made small polite remarks as they continued to talk. It was all the usual, her dress, her makeup, her kindness and basically everything about her that they could talk about.
"And the way Haymitch saved you from that crowd," the orange-skinned woman said. "I never saw him treat someone so kindly like he does to you."
"It's so sweet, it's as if he's your father."
The smile dropped from her face. "I wouldn't think of it like that. Haymitch was in his teens when I was born."
But they paid no attention to her as they continued to converse about how 'fatherly' Haymitch tends to act towards Heather.
"You know what?" Heather said in a loud voice and got their attention. "I forgot to tell Haymitch something, if you'll excuse me."
Heather wrapped her arms around herself. She got chills on her skin from how uncomfortable she felt back at that table. To be honest, this wasn't the first time people commented on her close relationship with Haymitch. She knew people thought they had a father-daughter relationship but this was one of the few times said that to her face.
She then thought back to what Peeta said and chuckled humorlessly. It wasn't just ironic, but it was sad as well.
Reaching where Haymitch was standing, Heather pulled at the tail of his jacket. He raised his head and turned, frowning at the sight of her. "Is something wrong?"
"Not really, these people came to sit with me and I didn't want to deal with them," she explained. She wanted to hug his arm and lean on his shoulder but sadly, they were in public and she didn't want to deal with the new rumours that would form from this little act.
"Well, the good news is that the party is almost over," he pulled her chin to meet her eyes. "And then we'll be back home."
"Okay," she said breathlessly.
"Come on, let's go eat. I've been watching you and I know you haven't eaten much since we came here."
Unable to sleep, Heather took to staring at Haymitch's peaceful sleeping face. Yeah, not creepy at all. She observed every feature of his face, committing them to memory. His forehead was starting to have worry lines. His eyelashes looked long upon close inspection. The stubbled that ran across his prominent cheekbones.
She reached out her hand and ran her finger through his full lips. A chill of pleasure ran through her spine as she remembered the times those lips kissed her passionately. Instinctively, she moved her body closer to him, letting her head rest in his chest.
The desires she held inside of her for so long started to invade her mind. She didn't want their relationship to remain hidden. She wanted people to know about them. She wanted to be able to show affection to him without having to worry about people seeing them.
Most of all, she wanted to marry him. The mere thought of living a peaceful life with Haymitch made the butterflies in her stomach swarm around.
A yawn escaped her as she began to feel sleepy in his warm hold. "I want to marry you," she muttered under her breath as she drifted into the unconscious.
Without realizing that he heard her.