Chapter 10 - Week 2


She hated him.

She hated every fiber of his being.

The fact that she'd caved that one lonely night weeks ago and actually stooped low enough to have dinner with him still ate at her. Judging a person's character had never been difficult for her. In fact, she prided herself on her ability to shut up, hang back, and assess people before they usually even knew she was paying attention. It had saved her many times.

So the fact that Cato had slipped by her radar made her angrier than she cared to admit. She felt like she'd let herself down.

Scowling at him as he walked off, she pictured shooting the back of his head with something sharp and pointy. No, that was mean…maybe not to kill, just to…maim. Turning her thoughts back to Peeta, she felt her scowl lighten slightly. He was sitting on the mat, clutching his water bottle and the look on his face told her he'd observed her hostile encounter. His blue eyes were hard again as they followed Cato out of the room.

Don't pay any attention to him Peeta. He doesn't matter, she silently pleaded.

It didn't take a mind reader to know that her client was silently comparing himself to the tightly clad, muscled men that frequented Panem Fitness. It also didn't take a mind reader to tell that it was hard on him.

Katniss made her way back to the mat and let the medicine ball slam onto the floor harder than she'd intended. Peeta's voice cut through her cloud of irritated mortification.

"You okay?"

She couldn't help but snort and open her big mouth. "Yeah, just….never date your coworker."

Peeta's eyebrows shot up, but he didn't look surprised….just…interested. "You uh…dated him?"

She shook her head and sat down on the mat. "We should stretch."

She avoided his question and shouldn't have been surprised when he didn't press the issue. Instead, she led Peeta through some yoga-like stretches to help relax his core as her thoughts drifted. As a woman, she'd been hit on numerous times, most of it uninvited. It came with the territory of being of the female sex and it sucked when guys thought she was inviting it by just being nice, smiling, or even just wearing her tight work uniform. It sickened her when a man would look at her and their expression would change as they thought of whatever silver tongued phrase they thought might get her attention and into her pants.

She could always tell, too. Their eyes would shift, sometimes drifting over her body, and they would get a thoughtful look and maybe even smile coyly. Then it would come. The compliment, the invite, the attempt at persuasion.

And that night, she'd been lonely and hungry and she'd let Cato take her out. He'd maybe sensed her weakness and preyed on it. In her mind she deserved to feel as stupid as she felt. Now she had to deal with him every day they appeared on the schedule together and it wasn't getting any easier. His comments had been friendly and playfully chiding at first as to why she hadn't agreed to a second date. Then they'd gotten demanding, indignant, and overtly sexual.

Gale had offered to step in once after witnessing the tail end of it. She'd defiantly turned her best friend down.

"Normally I'm okay with you helping me clean up my messes Gale, but the day I need your help to deck that asshat in the face is the day the sun sets in the east."

She could handle herself – her father had taught her how. Cato wasn't enough to make her afraid, just…simply aggravated.

Peeta was quiet as they started a new set with the heavier ball, taking turns twisting to the side and passing it back and forth. His wide shoulders brushed with the back of hers several times, and she felt him lean forward to avoid touching her.

That's sweet, she thought. The fact that she made Peeta a little nervous didn't escape her.

Her eyes drifted down over the steel railing of the balcony overlooking the main gym. Cato was down there, flexing in front of a mirror and taking selfies. She watched until her rage and annoyance bubbled up inside of her and she couldn't take it.

Stopping the exercise, she turned to face Peeta. He'd been quiet since her comment, somehow sensing that now wasn't the time to ask for more details. Of course he wanted to know more about how Katniss had dated that guy, but he had the sense not to push it. It was like asking his brother's wife, Delly, what was wrong when she was upset. She would hide her tears of frustration and wave you off until it all came bursting out in a loud, wailing mess of tears and flailing hands. Then she'd yell about her makeup being ruined for the rest of the day. No, he'd certainly learned to keep his mouth shut when a woman didn't want to talk about it.

Katniss sighed heavily, her eyes unfocused. "It was just once."

He raised his eyebrows. "Once?"

She toyed with the end of her braid that he loved. While most girls opted for a messy bun or a ponytail at the gym, Katniss always had her hair woven into an intricate yet somehow sloppy looking braid with a few tendrils of her chocolate hair dripping out. They would curl slightly when she sweat. Peeta swallowed hard.

"Yeah, he….asked me out and like a dumbass I agreed. I mean…I'll give anyone a shot once, you know?"

Oh.

"Um…"

Waving her hands, she dropped her braid and sighed again. "I…this is so inappropriate for me to be bitching to you-sorry, griping to you about. I'm about as unprofessional as they get, aren't I?" she did that laugh that was somehow throaty and adorable at the same time and he offered her a crooked smile.

"I don't care. Delly says I'm a good listener."

She looked interested.

"Delly is my sister in law. She uh, comes and helps at the bakery when we have a big order, a wedding cake or something. She talks a lot," he chuckled. "And I guess I have to listen."

Katniss grinned. "Ah. Well, she's right, you are a good listener. Listening to your trainer ramble unprofessionally about her personal life and questionable life choices."

"Questionable?"

"Yeah that guys a dumbass," she stated matter of factly. The snort she added was enough to get him.

Peeta couldn't help but burst out laughing. "What makes you say that?"

Katniss led him down the steps to a treadmill, motioning for him to get on and walk for his cool down. He would never admit it, but their cool downs were his least favorite part of the day. It signified the end of their time together.

"I just….I shouldn't have said yes to him. But I figured…it was one dinner, one time…what could it hurt?" her voice dropped slightly as she picked at her cuticle. "I'm not so good and like…high and mighty that I'm too good to go out with him. I knew him from work or whatever," she mumbled. "I'm nothing special. I didn't have a reason not to other than I didn't want to. But what could I say?"

"That seems like a pretty good reason to me," he offered.

She didn't reply. She just chewed her lip and stared at the numbers on the treadmill.

Peeta watched her face turn slightly dark again as he walked. He swallowed hard. He'd had very few candid, revealing conversations like this with girls and he knew he needed to tread lightly. But…it was too much to hold his tongue hearing the way she said, 'I'm nothing special.' He had to speak his mind. Just pretend its Delly. She always says you give good advice. And you can talk to her. Just pretend it's her.

He cleared his throat and had to look away as he walked. He couldn't look at her and say it. "There's nothing wrong with having standards."

"Yeah, like being picky."

"Maybe, but that's not the word I'd use. 'Picky' makes it sound like you're just doing yourself a favor, but if you look at it as like…having high standards, that's…that's more to do with your character. And what you deserve. That's not….that's not bad to have high standards."

Her expression lightened as she looked up at him. "I've never thought about it that way."

"Well…you should. If he doesn't live up to the person you think you should be dating then…then that's his tough lukk. I don't think there's anything wrong with a girl being selective. Hell, it would make the guy she does end up with feel pretty neat, right? That he made the cut?" he chuckled. She smiled, doing that lip chewing thing again.

"I guess you're right…I just feel crappy though. He just keeps asking and I'm very honest that there will not, now or ever…be a second date. Once was quite enough," she stated sourly.

"Don't. Don't…feel like that. You said no, he should…take that. Accept it. Any…decent guy would accept that."

"Yeah, well…the fact that he doesn't speaks volumes about him, doesn't it?"

Peeta was careful with his response. "I think so, anyway."

So Katniss had clearly told him she wasn't interested and he kept asking? The guy was an even bigger tool than he'd thought. His thoughts went back to Glimmer and the way she'd shot him down when he'd asked her for a date. It wouldn't have even dawned on him to actually pressure Glimmer a second time after being shot down once. Granted, he was probabally not dealing with the same level of self-esteem that guy was. Peeta had seen him numerous times. Strutting around like he was doing the world a favor by getting out of bed. By breathing. This Cato guy was the type who Peeta had silently envied for years from afar but now suddenly made his blood absolutely boil.

If I had a body like that, I would be so happy. Why does he have to ruin it by being such a dick? If you looked like that, shouldn't you be in a good mood? I don't get people sometimes, he thought.

They were quiet as he finished his cool down. The silence wasn't uncomfortable, at least not to him. Katniss was clearly mulling things over in her head as he finished and dutifully wiped down the machine as she'd instructed. He was so busy with the task and thinking about Cato that he almost missed her next question.

"What about you then? Are you…pretty selective?"

He choked on his water. "What do you mean?"

She noted the way his blue eyes widened and she panicked that she'd crossed her another boundary with her shy, kind, client.

"Oh, uh…nevermind."

He ignored her. His heart was racing but he was too intrigued to be sensible and shut up. "You mean with like…girls? Erm, women?"

She nodded casually. "Maybe I need advice on it." Her tone was playful, but her body language suggested otherwise. She walked him to the front with her arms crossed in front of her, he noticed. She looked like she wanted to collapse in on herself; this was not an easy topic for her to discuss.

He swallowed again. "I uh…." He chuckled nervously, not sure how to answer her.

Katniss held up her hand. "You don't have to answer. Gosh, me and my stupid mouth. Forgive me for being just a crass, unprofessional grump today, yeah?"

He bobbed his head as he adjusted his gym bag on his shoulder as she playfully smacked his arm.

"Yes."

She gave another one of her throaty laughs that he loved and her silver eyes flashed as she turned around and headed back towards the double doors leading to the gym.

"See you Thursday!" she called.

"See you Thursday," he echoed, watching her leave. Turning slowly, he made his way out the front doors and into the spring air. It chilled the sweat on his body, but he barely noticed. Katniss had given him a lot to think about without even meaning to.

Kpkpkpkpkpkp

The lenolium tiles stuck to her feet as she walked across the kitchen later that night. It was still spring, but the weather had been unseasonable warm and humid and she was enjoying getting to walk around for once without socks. It had felt like an impossibly cold winter with temperatures so nasty it made your skin ache just to go outside. Spring had been a welcomed change and she would gladly take whatever heat the new season threw at her. Ambling to the fridge, she pried it open and studied the meager contents with a pensive look, her eyes seeing but not really comprehending. She was too busy thinking about what Peeta had said about her being picky with men. Or 'selective' as he'd put it. Was that really a thing, or was he just being nice? Peeta didn't seem like a liar, however, he did strike her as the type of person who would say something to spare her feelings.

Prim shifted on the rickety stool where she was studying, making Katniss jump.

"Shit, you scared me," she exhaled. Prim gave her a 'really' look at and popped her back. Katniss hadn't even noticed her sitting there when she walked into their small kitchen. She had her laptop open, a book propped up against the wall, and endless notecards strewn all around her on the tiny counter.

"Bad day?" her sister questioned, putting her pen down.

Katniss' face brightened, her thoughtful scowl disappearing. "No, actually….it was a good day."

Prim broke into a beaming grin. "This mean you aren't getting fired?"

She snorted. "There's still a very realistic possibility of that, don't count your chickens. But no, it wasn't today. Hey, I'm gonna grab a beer from Haymitch and sit outside. Study break?"

Prim shook her head mournfully, "No, I can't. I'm almost done making flashcards for this chapter and I still have a paper to write. How am I going to do all of this on top of clinicals?"

Prim was a good student – she knew how hard Katniss had to work to put her through school and the effort wasn't wasted. Her sister was either babysitting for extra money, studying, or in school. Like her sister she didn't have much of a social life.

"You'll do just fine. It's okay to get a 'B' every once in awhile, yeah?" she playfully mussed Prim's messy bun before opening the door leading down the rickety steps to the basement apartment. Haymitch's missing truck out front signified he was either still at work or at the bar at the end of the street, so she only waited a beat after knocking and calling for him.

"Ulgh," she grimaced at the smell that hit her nose when the door opened. It smelled like whiskey, unwashed clothes, and aftershave. Whiskey because he was a drunk, unwashed clothes from being nothing but drunk, and the aftershave to help cover up the fact that he was a drunk. What a pig, she thought as she navigated her way through the dingy apartment to where the fridge was.

"Bingo," she muttered, hastily grabbing the remaining half of a six pack off the top shelf. Milwaukee's Best wasn't her first choice, but it was cold and would do in a pinch. She had a lot to mull over and her budget didn't support alcohol purchases at the moment and besides, Haymitch wouldn't mind. Guilt made her pause and look around after cracking open the first beer. It was shitty basement apartment, but he didn't exactly do anything to help improve the state of things. Heaving a sigh, she put the beers down and figured she could at least work off her stolen beer. She did the dishes in his sink, wiped his counters down with some watered down bleach, and managed to gather up a load of his laundry and get it started in the communal washer and dryer they shared with Effie. Heading back upstairs, she nabbed an old quilt off the back of the couch and settled into a chair on the porch with her beers just as the sun was doing down and the crickets were starting.

She'd had a good day. Not great, but…good. Crane had backed off her a little and she felt like she was finally maybe getting the hang of things at work. Cleaning up sweat sucked and she loathed dealing with Cato, but things weren't overall that bad. Her thoughts shifted to her one and only client, Peeta. If she did a good job with him that would mean more clients. More clients meant more income and some stability at work. That would be nice. After more than one job not working out for her it was nice to start going to the same place every day and fall into somewhat of a routine. It had been a long time since she'd had a routine at work. She's never stayed anywhere long enough to have a routine.

She sighed, taking a long drag of her beer. She was getting ahead of herself. First she'd need for Peeta to succeed. Her heart had broken for him when he'd stepped onto that scale. Of course there were reasons why he hadn't lost weight, but the first time back on the scale it would have been great to have a victory. He was so kind and determined. Katniss thought about the look on his face when he'd realized the ugly truth of it. He'd looked shattered but so utterly determined not to show it. Of all the people she'd seen coming and going at that stupid, trendy gym the past few months, Peeta was the first one she genuinely hoped made it. It was hard to care about the people who only wore their skimpy outfits and posed for gym selfies all day long, scoffing at anyone who had less than a certain percentage of body fat. They'd giggle and point at anyone they deemed less perfect and it sickened her.

I hope you make it Peeta.

She drained the last of the can and opened a new one, pulling the quilt around her tighter. The clocks had only been pushed forward for less than a month now and she was determined to enjoy her slightly longer days, even if she was a little chilly as the sun set on her front porch. It felt nice to sit and think. She hadn't been out there long when Effie ambled out, a half-drunk wine cooler dangling from her hand. Her bright, albeit slightly glassy eyes scanned the cement-cracked driveway and alleyway beside their house before even glancing in Katniss' direction.

"Oh…hello dear," she sighed, flopping down into the lawn chair beside her. They didn't have many options for seating – there was a wooden Adirondack chair that pinched when you got up, a lawn chair, and a lounge chair that looked like it had been stolen from beside a swimming pool in the 80s. Katniss had it, so Effie's choices were limited.

"And what are you doing out there on this fiiine evening?"

Katniss tried not to laugh. Effie was clearly a few into her cups. "Just sitting. Drinking. Thinking."

"That's nice," her neighbor replied, taking a long swig of her wine cooler. "Have you seen-"

"He's not home yet. I stole his beers," she cut her off, holding up the remaining can.

Effie nodded nonchalantly, gazing off into the street. "I worry about him you know, Katniss dear, I worry that he's not taking care of himself-"

"I should go switch his laundry over," Katniss muttered. "I washed his dishes and started a load for him. Place reeked."

"It always does."

"Why do you like him, exactly?"

It was no secret Effie was trying to woo their basement neighbor. The thought made Katniss shudder, but Effie obviously saw something in him. Her attempts had gone unreciprocated thus far, however, Effie wasn't one to give up easily.

"Haymitch? Oh, our dear old Haymitch…what would we do without him?"

Katniss looked into the yard they hadn't mown yet and wrinkled her nose. "Fix our own pipes and not have as much recycling, that's for sure."

"He does enjoy his drinks. But he's good. I've gotten so good at looking at people and determining their true character. It's in the eyes, you know," Effie rambled on and on about how she knew a good person when she saw them and how it was all about the eyes.

Katniss thought of Peeta's soft blues. They were so expressive and tended to give away his feelings.

"Do you think…uhm, do you think it's good for a girl to be picky? Like, about…who she dates?"

Effie paused her babbling for a moment, rolling her head over to look at Katniss.

"What brought all this up?"

Katniss fiddled with the top of her beer can, twisting the tab until it popped off and bounced on the wooden porch. "I don't date a lot and…it's been pointed out to me that I'm maybe…picky."

The older woman thought a moment, her eyes bleary but thoughtful. "Well…but suppose that isn't bad?"

"You think so?"

"I don't think so."

"It just seems….like I'm putting too much thought into it. Like maybe I shouldn't…I don't know, be the way I am."

Effie sat up in her chair and looked Katniss square in the eye. "Do you remember what I looked like when I moved into this place?"

"Yes," Katniss replied quietly. She'd never forget the way Effie's makeup had failed to hide the red-rimmed eyes and fresh bruises on her face and the red marks on her neck shaped like fingerprints. She's been a shell of a person who for all intents and purposes looked like she'd given up. Fresh out of an abusive marriage and messy divorce, she hadn't even wanted her name on the mailbox for fear he'd come looking for round two. Katniss shuddered at the memory.

"Suppose I had been a bit pickier. Would that be so bad? I could have saved myself the…" she trailed off, her eyes distant. It was strange to see her normally jovial and breezy neighbor look suddenly grim as she spoke. "I could have saved myself a lot. Do you know why I think I'm so good at sorting out the, the good and the bad in this world? Do you know how I learned that?"

"How?" Katniss asked softly.

Effie remained solemn. "Because dear," her voice cracked slightly, "Because I have looked into the eyes of someone of the worst sort. And you never, you never forget that look. There's a blackness there, a void. It's there. And you never forget that. It stays with you always. And after that happens," she licked her lips, "after that happens, it changes you. And you look at everyone you meet and you look for that blackness in their eyes. It's a cold sort of hate, so hard to miss once you've seen it. And hopefully you never miss it again."


Happy Monday! I figured this might help you start the week...

Oh Effie! She was so fun to write - it's my first attempt at really writing her as a main supporting character and I hope I've done her justice. So fun to try someone new! A lot going on in this chapter and I so HOPE you all enjoyed reading it. I'll be back soon with more!

I love hearing your comments and feedback. Please remember - I'm not a professional in this field of any sort. It's all purely fictional and I'm not a trainer, a dietician, a nutritionist, etc...I've done some research but this is all just for the sake of the story. I welcome and love your constructive feedback around these things.

Another note- Katniss was only irritated about people taking gym selfies because she was in a bad mood. It's not a personal peeve of mine or anything, just noted for the sake of the story - be proud of your workout and document your progress! Nothing wrong with that. She was just being moody and irritating when she griped about it. Take your selfies and never be sorry! :)

Please review!