Prompt: I love your writing so much! I hope you'll continue for as long as possible. I also have an idea for a chapter. Chaff is always trying to touch or touching Effie could maybe write something where Effie gets scarred that he'll actually do something and he realises that it's not just "fooling around" for Effie. Or Effie snaps at him because she has had enough?

Hello, lovelies! Just a bit of warning that Chaff is his best asshole for a good part of this one ;)

Meetings In Dark Rooms

That birthday party had been a total waste of time and Effie deeply regretted making the choice of attending rather than going to the official Games party at the Center. She had thought with that many sponsors in attendance they would have a shot at convincing a few but nobody wanted to hear about their tributes and it infuriated her so much…

Not only that but, she mused, with the birthday girl owning such a huge penthouse in one of the tallest buildings in the city, couldn't the woman have thought about organizing a coatroom with tickets?

Effie studied the lumpy heap of coats, jackets, purses and clutches tossed haphazardly on the bed of one of the guest rooms and she had to make an effort not to burst into tears. She was tired, that was the thing. She was tired because her tributes were thirteen and fourteen respectively and had not one little chance in hell of surviving past the first day. She was tired because, even though she kept the cheerful pretense that odds were fair and Twelve had as much of a shot as anyone else, she knew that it was just another act for her put on. She was tired because she was getting attached, like every year, and she knew she would get her heart broken again and she wondered just how many more years of this she had in her. She was tired because Haymitch didn't want to hear that she was growing weary, was terrified of her quitting even if he would never admit it, and it didn't seem fair of her to put that weight on him when he had been dealing with this alone for more than a decade before she had come along.

She was tired, in short, for more reasons than she could count and it wasn't really the lack of care shown to haute-couture items that angered her at that moment.

She took a deep breath and started rummaging through the pile, looking for her purple wrap and the suit jacket Haymitch had discarded when they had arrived because it was too hot inside and the birthday girl had invited them not to stand on ceremony.

She wanted to leave.

She wanted to leave and go back to the penthouse, take a bath or take Haymitch, do anything that would get her mind off…

"Fancy that, meeting you in a dark bedroom."

She startled badly and whirled around, only too aware of the view he must have had of her, given that she had had a knee on the bed and was bent over a little to better look through the heap of clothes.

Chaff was casually leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed and a smirk on his lips she didn't like.

It was dark. Because she hadn't bothered flicking the switch, because the city's nightlights had been spilling through the bay windows and she was so tired she could feel the stress headache starting behind her eyes and…

She licked her lips, willing her voice not to shake. "Chaff."

She had caught glimpses of him around the party but she had made an extra effort to keep her distance, not in the mood to get taunted or insulted. Haymitch had been with a victor from Five when she had approached him a few minutes earlier to see if he wanted to leave, Chaff hadn't been in sight.

It took her only a glance to conclude Eleven's victor was drunk as a skunk.

She cursed herself for an idiot.

She had always been so careful not to find herself alone with him. Never mind alone in a dark room.

There were vibes coming from him she didn't like. And it wasn't just the way he would always try to grope a feel or say inappropriate things… She had seen the murderous look on Viola's face one time or two. Eleven's escort could take care of herself – and so could she – but there was a vibe and Effie knew they both thought it wasn't out of the question for him to cross a line someday. They had never discussed it, naturally, but she and Eleven's escort had known each other since they were out of adolescence. As much as they hated each other, they were also very good at reading each other. And for the two of them to agree on something…

"Never took you for a thief, love." he asked, taking a curious step forward to look at the heap of coats. "Or maybe you're a spy?"

Every word was slurred and she took a step aside, intending to either walk around him to the exit – damn the wrap, the clutch and the jacket, she would send for them the next day – or step back and put the bed between them, but he sidestepped her, blocking her retreat. He was swifter than she had given him credits for given how drunk he looked but, she reminded herself, one should never underestimate a victor, even a washed-out one like Chaff. She knew better. Nobody ever suspected Haymitch was as swift and strong as he actually was either.

Damn it, she knew better…

"I was simply looking for my things." she replied, as calm as she could make herself sound. "Haymitch is waiting for me."

She had intended to scare him off with that, to remind him that his best friend would come looking for her sooner rather than later, but it had the opposite effect. His chuckles were dark and a little angry.

"Got a hot date planned, the two of you?" he mocked, his good hand falling on her waist. She immediately grabbed his wrist to try to remove it but he wouldn't move and she couldn't step back without falling on the bed – which she would not make the mistake of doing for fear he mistook it as an invitation. "Dance with me."

He was far too drunk. Far too drunk.

They could barely hear the music from the guest room, the low thud of those upbeat songs Haymitch hated…

"Chaff, please." she snapped, as the stump came to rest on her lower back. She struggled but he had her in a firm embrace in a matter of seconds and he made them sway… It was just an excuse to rub himself against her and she could feel him getting interested… His hand traveled lower, squeezed her ass…

She kept wriggling to escape him but it seemed to make the matter worse. Either he thought she was actually dancing or he was enjoying her efforts…

"You must be something…" he mumbled in her neck, his hot breath rolling against her sensitive skin in a way it had no right to. It had been so long since a man who wasn't Haymitch had nuzzled her neck like he was doing… "You know, I don't think my boy has touched another woman in three fucking years… You must be one fine piece…"

"Chaff." she insisted, pushing on his chest. He squeezed her ass again and, this time, she slapped him.

She had a mean slap or Haymitch kept telling her.

Chaff's head rolled to the side and, in his surprise, his grip slackened enough that she managed to slip out and run for the door. She barely made it halfway there.

Now, she was used to being slammed against a wall.

She and Haymitch liked it rough and they weren't always careful. Yes, she was used to it. But at no point had she ever been that terrified with Haymitch, not even in the beginning when it had all been hateful angry sex that had them leaving as many bruises and scratches as possible on the other's body.

"Let me go!" she demanded, rising her voice in hope someone would hear. She battled his chest with her fists and he growled in annoyance up until his good hand closed on her throat and she went completely rigid.

"What's your fucking problem?" he spat. "I'm just being nice."

Tears escaped her.

The lump in her throat coupled with the hand that was admittedly not really choking her made it hard for her to breathe.

She couldn't help it. She just hated hands around her throat. She just hated the mere thought of being strangled. She just…

"Shit… Shit, you're actually scared." A flash of something passed on Chaff's face and he immediately took his hand off, lifting it in the air along with his stump. He didn't step back and he was still too close but their bodies weren't touching anymore. "Come on, Trinket… Was just fooling around… Wouldn't…"

Once she had recovered her breath enough, she pushed him away. He stumbled back, batted his arms for balance but ended up falling in the pile of coat.

She took her chance and dashed out of the room only to crash into something hard, bounce back and end up sprawled on the floor herself. The light was flicked on and Haymitch looked down at her, his face bewildered.

"The fuck's going on?" he asked, his speech just slow enough to tell her he was beyond buzzed but not quite into drunk. "You're okay, sweetheart?"

He held out his hand and she took it gratefully, letting him haul her up to her feet. She briefly leaned against his chest, resting her forehead on his shoulder, taking deep breaths to jugulate the panic, to suppress the fight-or-flight instinct…

"I am fine." she lied eventually, while Chaff tried and failed to extricate himself from the pile of coats.

Haymitch looked completely lost but a slow suspicious frown appeared on his face and he gave his friend a challenging nod. "What happened to you, then?"

Eleven's victor gave up on trying to stand and sat up in the middle of the coats. He shrugged. "Was having some fun…"

"Yeah?" Haymitch sneered, his voice hardening. "Doing what?"

"It's fine." she said quickly. "I just want to leave. Please."

Haymitch's hand fell on her shoulder, protective and possessive all at once, and he looked at her, really looked at her, and a glint of fury flashed in his grey eyes. She supposed even though she was trying to hide behind her usual cheerful mask, there was no hiding the tears tracks on her cheeks or the wild spooked look in her eyes.

"She just can't take a joke." Chaff argued preemptively, probably because he saw the exact same thing she did: punches were about to be thrown. "She thought… I don't know…"

"She thought what, Chaff? And why would she think that?" Haymitch snarled.

"It's fine." she insisted, wrapping her hands around his forearm, just in case. "He is right. I was being stupid. I just… I have a headache. Please, let's go home."

His grey eyes darted from her to him and she could see just how torn he was. On one hand, Chaff was his mentor, his best friend, his brother in more ways than one… On the other, he had a tendency to be overprotective of people he called friends and, for all the weirdness of their relationship, she was his friend. More than that, he hated it when women or children got bullied and, for that alone, he probably wanted to hit Chaff.

"Fine." he agreed, reluctantly. "Get your ass off here so I can get my fucking jacket."

The last part was barked at Chaff who made another effort to extricate himself from the heap. He managed this time and, while Haymitch looked around for their stuff, he sneaked closer to her.

Effie hadn't realized she was hugging herself until he was close enough to touch and her fingers dug in the flesh of her arms.

"I'm really sorry." Chaff said in a low tone. The attempt at discretion was stupid. The room was silent enough that Haymitch would hear anyway. "Wouldn't hurt you. Never. I ain't… I ain't like that. Wouldn't hurt you, love."

He tossed that last sentence in a way that told her he thought her stupid for even entertaining that he would. As if it truly was all a good joke she was too dumb or too stuck-up to understand.

"It's fine." she repeated again.

He had the graciousness to wince. "No… No, don't think it is, but… I really didn't mean…"

"I said, it's fine." she snapped, stepping away from him.

Haymitch emerged triumphant just a moment later. He handed her the wrap and the clutch and guided her out of the room with a hand on her lower back and a last hard glance at his best friend.

She didn't breathe easy until they were in the car and, even then, the silence was so oppressive she had to make a conscious effort to keep her breaths regular.

"What happened?" Haymitch asked, his voice gruff, after two minutes of driving.

She glanced to check the tainted partition window was all the way up even though it always was. Even if it hadn't been… It wasn't like the Avox driver would be telling tales. But you never knew.

"Nothing." she lied.

His big hand fell on her thigh. "You're scared and you don't scare easy. What did he fucking do to you?"

"Nothing." she repeated, forcing her voice to lighten. "It was a misunderstanding."

He stared at her, she could feel his gaze burning on her profile, but she refused to look at him. One look and he would know the lie for what it was.

"There are a lot of misunderstandings around him lately…" he pointed out slowly, almost reluctantly. "Don't know if he's having a mid-life crisis or some shit but… Sometimes I don't think he sees how far off the line he's going…"

She licked her lips, relaxing a little. There had been a time when one word spoken against Chaff would have been a capital crime with him, he used to perceive any criticism against Eleven's victor as a personal attack against him, a betrayal of sort…

She wondered if that was why Chaff hated her so much… Because the tide had turned and, more often than not lately, Haymitch would take her side against his.

"He did not do anything he has not done a thousand times before." she finally confessed with a sigh. "But it was dark and we were alone in a room with a bed and I… I do not trust him. I am sorry. I know it pains you when I say that but…"

"No." he cut her off, waving his hand. Disgust was all over his face but she wasn't sure if it was disgust for what she was saying, the fact that he understood what she wasn't saying or what he would perceive as a betrayal of his best friend. "I get it. He's been… worse than usual with all that shit. It used to be a joke… Now…"

Now, it wasn't anymore.

She wasn't sure she had ever taken it as a joke, to be honest, but she could tolerate some amount of groping and leering comments. Haymitch had a point though, lately, it had grown almost aggressive. Not something he did to get a laugh or a rise out of Twelve's victor but an attempt at intimidating her.

"He hates that I'm lying to him." he sighed. "He knows we're fucking."

"I hate to break it to you, Haymitch, but I do not think there is anyone left in the Games industry who is not aware we are having sex." she pointed out.

He tensed like always when their not-so-secret affair was mentioned. As long as it was just sex, it would be alright though. Nobody would really care because she didn't represent a potential weapon against him. It was if they got tangled in feelings that…

But she didn't want to think about that.

"Yeah, but I keep telling him we ain't." he grumbled.

"Then, tell him the truth." She shrugged. "As long as you do not discuss what we do, I do not care if he knows we are sleeping together."

"That's a dangerous slope." he dismissed. "You admit it to one person and then it gets real. Then, they're gonna think it's…" He shook his head. "Nothing's happening, sweetheart. We're just having some fun. It's easier to keep denying with everyone than risk a Gamemaker getting ideas."

"Ludicrous ideas." she hummed, testing the water.

He squeezed her thigh. "Yeah."

"I do not think it is just that you are lying to him, though." she argued. "He knows. And he knows you know he knows." He made a face but she dismissed that with a wave of her hand. "You get the point. Anyway… I think it is me he disapproves of. He thinks you deserve better."

"He thinks you're dangerous." he scoffed. "He's half convinced they picked you to be my escort cause they knew I'd… He thinks you're gonna ruin me one way or another."

She rested her head on his shoulder and let out a long sigh. "I rather think it will be the other way around…"

He flinched.

She hadn't meant it like that but trust him to always think the worst, trust him to believe himself cursed or something alike… Although… Anyone he had ever gotten close to had died, had been killed. It was understandable he was reluctant to let anyone close…

"Look…" he hesitated.

"I am fine, Haymitch." she cut him off before he could say something they would both regret. "I am simply tired. I just want to go to bed."

"Alright…" he sighed.

He didn't ask if she wanted to go to bed alone and that was what she liked about him, the fact that he never insisted when she made it clear she didn't want sex. His hand was rubbing her thigh in a soothing fashion and it lulled her to sleep a little.

Eventually, she felt his head drop against hers.

"I'm gonna have a talk with him tomorrow." he mumbled awkwardly. "Make it clear you're off limits. If he ever tries to touch you again…" He paused, licked his lips. "I don't think he'd hurt you, sweetheart… Not really… But I don't like that he gets off on scaring you… That ain't right."

"It will only make it worse." she argued, snuggling a little more into his side because he was warm and she was recovering from her scare. "Let it go. I can defend myself."

He snorted. "I know."

"But?" she prompted because, clearly, there was a but hanging at the end of that sentence.

"But when I'm around you shouldn't have to." He winced, obviously feeling embarrassed. "I know you do things differently in the Capitol but… In Twelve, guys take care of their…"

He stopped short of the word girl, closed his mouth with an audible snap.

She drew back, cupped his cheek and planted a passionate kiss on his lips, as much because she was pleased as to distract him of what he had almost said. It was rare for him to acknowledge she might be more than just a convenient body to use…

It almost made the whole incident worth it.