"You! I'm going to fucking kill you, Gloss!" Cato shouts as he locks two very brawny fists into the smaller adolescent's collar, tugging him inside the house and shoving him against the crème-colored wall. Gloss holds onto Cato's balled fists, struggling to get out of his grasp as he's thrown into the wall over and over again, his back, head, and elbows smacking against the divider with staggering force.
"Ca- stop- please-" he pleads through clattering teeth between every smack of his backside against the wall. He's about to lose consciousness when Marvel sprints into the room, heaving his body into Cato's, successfully pushing him off and away from the battered blonde. Gloss falls to his knees and touches the back of his head, blood staining his golden curls. "What the fuck, Cato?"
Instantly standing from the ground, Cato lifts Marvel to his feet by his medium-dark brown hair and punches him straight in the nose, re-breaking it. The blood immediately pours down his face in two crimson rivers as he clutches his wounded face in agony. He falls back to the ground, squeezing his green eyes shut, and desperately tries not to think of the pain. Cato's attention goes back to Gloss and he starts stomping his way over when Marvel shakily lifts himself from the floor and wraps his arms around his best friend, trying to stop him from hurting a barely conscious Gloss.
Big mistake. An infuriated Cato elbows him in the cheek, his rage deciding this brunette was now his enemy and he can't control himself. He thrusts Marvel against the wall and his fists begin to take over, battering every inch of skin it can manage to bite at. Soon, the exhaustion washes over Marvel and he gives up, letting the fists collide with every part of his body until Gloss gains enough energy to yell, "Stop! Cato, stop! You're killing him!"
But he doesn't stop. He can't see anything but red, can't hear anything but the blood pounding in his ears. He'll kill anyone who gets in his way. He'd have fought Gloss too, but instead of trying to force him to stop his actions, Gloss simply slides his body between them, protectively wrapping his arms around Marvel. It's as if Cato wakes from a dream, and he stops, steps back. He looks at the two bloody forms in front of him, huddled together on the floor. It confuses him.
"Marvel!" Gloss shouts, "Marvel, stay with me. Please don't fall asleep. Fuck!" He looks over his shoulder at Cato, glaring at him. "If he dies, I swear I'll kill you, Cato. You swore this wouldn't happen again!"
Looking down at his own, bloody hands, realization strikes him hard. "I… I didn't-" but there's nothing more to say. He lost control again. He broke his promise. "Marvel?"
"Just call a fucking ambulance, Cato!" Gloss shouts in disgust. He's tired of this.
Not knowing what else to do, Cato shakily nods his head and picks up the nearest phone. He stares at the phone in disbelief for a moment before he looks back at Marvel, who's squirming and moaning in pain. He dials 9-1-1 and waits. "There's, um… there's been an accident."
It doesn't take long for the ambulance to show. They race to the broken boy on the ground and immediately get started on their work. "What happened here?" a man dressed in white asks. The three teenagers look at one another, not knowing how to answer.
Marvel pitifully manages to moan something out. "They were- in the house. They left when- Cato came downstairs…"
The man looks at Gloss then Cato for confirmation. They hastily nod in agreement, happy to go along with anything but the truth. "Alright. We'll be taking you two to Panem Hospital." He looks up at Cato. "Were you injured?"
Hiding his bloody fists in his pockets, Cato shakes his head. "No. They left before I got downstairs. I didn't see them."
"Did they steal anything? We'll contact the police for you." The man insists.
Marvel instantly stops him. "No! Don't…" he winces. "Don't call the police. I- know them. It was…" he groans in pain. "I know them. It was- a misunderstanding."
The man looks from Marvel to Gloss, who shrugs his shoulders. "I'm with Marvel on this," he says. "You guys don't have to report this, right? It's not like there were any gunshots or anything."
"You do understand that you have a concussion and your friend was almost killed, right?" the man asks incredulously.
"It was a- misunderstanding. I would- have done- the same thing if I were in their- shoes. Please, sir, don't call- the police." Marvel begs between short breaths. He's about to pass out.
Uncertain but knowing there's not much else they can do because guns were not involved, the EMT crew escorts Marvel and Gloss into the ambulance where they are taken to the hospital, leaving Cato alone in the big home. Looking down at the floor, he sees spots of blood spattered all along the tile and wall. The sight churns his stomach. He can't believe he did this again. Gloss deserved it, and he sure as hell wasn't done with him, but Marvel… Marvel had been there with him since the beginning. He always had his back, always stayed by his side. He still is. Even after nearly killing him for a second time, he still has Cato's back and he's still by his side, lying to protect him. Cato didn't deserve his loyalty or his friendship.
Why did he lose control like this? He can't seem to remember when it all began, but he knew it hadn't always been this way. He thinks about how badly he wanted to hurt Gloss, to really hurt him. He wanted to see the boy with the curly blonde hair suffer under his hands, bloody and bruised, but why? Was his family's secret that important?
Maybe there was more to it. Gloss was just trying to get back at the boy that stole his crush's heart. He wanted to break Gale's heart like his heart had been broken. He had no intention of hurting Cato or his family. Why would he? They'd been friends for years.
Then something starts to bother him. Gloss got those photos from his uncle's computer, but why were they even on there? Gale had seduced him, tricked him into thinking it was okay because he was lonely. He missed his wife, but couldn't see her because she was in jail. Maybe he kept the photos as a reminder, or maybe he kept them as blackmail. He wouldn't purposely keep those photos unless they were meant to protect him or hurt Gale, right?
Finding himself confused, he decides the only way he'll understand this is if he calls his uncle. He takes a seat on his plush, warm bed and stares at the ceiling before dialing the numbers on his phone. It rings three times before someone answers.
"Hello?" a smooth, velvet voice speaks.
He smiles at the familiar voice. "Hey, Uncle Gem. It's Cato."
"Cato, my boy! How are you doing? Not getting into too much trouble, are we?" he jokes.
"You know me." Cato chuckles.
"Oh, I do!" the man starts laughing. "Well I hope you're not in any trouble right now. Is that why you're calling? Are you alright, son?"
"I'm fine, Uncle Gem. I just… I was hoping I could ask you about something." Better now than never…
"Of course! What's troubling you, my boy?" the man asks with concern.
Cato hesitates. "Well, um… Gloss and I were hanging out at your place and he found some photos… of Gale."
"What exactly are you trying to say, Cato?" the man asks sternly.
"Well, Gale was my best friend, and I-"
His uncle scoffs in disgust. "He wasn't your friend, Cato. He used you. Gale was a bad kid with a lot of issues. I could see that in him every time you brought him over. But I felt sorry for him, and you seemed very close. I tried to help him, but those were hard times with your aunt in jail and I was very lonely. I drank a lot. And when he came over that day, I wasn't myself. I wasn't in control. I didn't even know it was him. All I could see was your aunt. You know me. I'm a junior school coach and I love kids. I want to help them all, but I just wasn't me that day. I kept those photos to remind myself to never be that man again. To never let the booze control me. Alright?"
Cato feels ashamed for even asking. "Yes, sir. I'm sorry. I guess I'm just upset. I trusted him and I thought he was my friend."
"I know, son. But you know now and you did the right thing by getting rid of him. You know that, right?" he presses.
"Yes, sir. I do." Cato says.
Nodding in approval, Gem encourages his nephew. "Good. I love you, Cato. And you know you're more than welcome to call or visit whenever you want. This is your home too, and I want you to remember that. In fact, you should come by more often. I miss having you around. You've still got a room and a party spot for your friends."
Cato smiles at the gesture. "Marvel's girlfriend is having a party on Saturday. I'll crash at your place. I might be bringing a friend with me."
"Oh?" Gem asks in interest. "Which friend?"
"A new friend of mine. His name is Peeta."
"How about we get the crew together and do another movie night?"
Smiling at the text message, Peeta appreciates Katniss for her brilliant plan, loving the idea of a movie night with his friends. Her message alone made him feel better. No doubt, he was still extremely apprehensive and scared of what the outcome might be between himself and Cato. He hated when he didn't get a clear message. For all he knew, Cato could be plotting some big scene where he'd publicly humiliate Peeta. But that didn't make sense when he thought about it, because Cato was the one that initiated the kiss in the first place.
Clicking the buttons on his phone, he sends a message back to Katniss and decides to get dressed.
"Sounds great! 1 of u should bring the movie this time. Ive already seen all of mine."
It was already dark outside, so Peeta assumes the crew would be over very soon. Looking at himself in the mirror, he's semi-happy with the reflection, deciding he didn't need to change out of the tank top, but maybe put on an undergarment and pants as common courtesy when the girls arrive. He rummages through the bottom drawer of his dresser and pulls out a clean pair of jeans then a simple pair of boxer-briefs from the top drawer.
Fifteen minutes later, his father calls out to him. "Peeta, you have company, son."
"Thanks, Dad." Peeta shouts as he hears the crew make their way up the stairs and to his bedroom. Rue instantly runs to him and wraps her arms around his neck, excited to see him. Madge offers a shy smile before they embrace in a hug. And, finally, Katniss lets herself inside with a large grin and a movie in her hand. "I thought it would be fun to do old scary movies tonight! I got Creature from the Lagoon!"
"That sounds perfect, Katniss. Make yourself comfortable, guys. I'll make some popcorn." Peeta says before excusing himself to the kitchen. He puts two popcorn bags in the microwave until they finish popping. Grabbing two large red bowls, he puts a bag in each of them, and decides to put extra butter on one of the popcorn bowls. Delicious.
When he makes it back upstairs, Katniss, Rue, and Madge are already sitting on the bed and giggling. "So one of these has extra butter…"
"Yes! Perfect! I love butter." Katniss shrieks in delight.
He hands her the bowl of popcorn with extra butter. "And this one is regular."
"Oh, great! I don't like a lot of butter." Madge smiles in appreciation. He hands her the second bowl.
"Me neither." Rue pipes in. "Thank you, Peeta."
"That's perfect then. Looks like we're doing two persons a bowl. If you guys want more, I've got plenty in the kitchen that I can pop." He adds in, taking a seat next to Katniss on the bed. "Oh, and there's coke in the fridge over there." He points to a small fridge underneath his computer desk. His father purchased it when he noticed that Peeta was constantly rummaging through the kitchen late at night. He was a midnight snacker, so having a small fridge in the bedroom just seemed more convenient. It was one of his favorite presents.
Rue grabs an orange soda for herself and Peeta, sprite for Katniss and Madge. They munch on the popcorn as the movie starts, excited to be together again until Rue notices something. "Is Gale coming?" she asks with concern. It felt weird when he wasn't there.
Katniss lets out a sigh. "His phone's off. I tried calling him a couple times, but he never called me back or replied to my texts. I don't know what to do anymore. I feel terrible."
"Why would you feel like that, Katniss?" Peeta asks with concern. He wasn't sure he understood her clearly.
"It's my fault," she says, her shoulders slumping as she looks down at her lap.
Peeta shakes his head in shame. "No it's not. I need to tell you all something, and I'll understand if you don't want to be friends anymore after you hear what I have to say."
"What's wrong, Peeta?" Rue asks sadly. He couldn't have possibly done anything wrong. He was too sweet. They all watch him in silence, waiting for him to continue.
"Gale- I mean, um… he- no, wait. I'm…" his words get stuck in his throat. "I'm gay." He finally manages to say the words he'd been dreading to repeat. "I saw Gale after school behind the parking lot, and we were talking… I've kinda had a crush on him for a little while, and after everything that's been going on between Cato and me, I was really confused. When I saw that Facebook page, I thought Gale was gay, too. So… I kinda… kissed him," his fists begin to shake and his eyes water, "and he shoved me into a wall and spit at me saying he wasn't gay. It was so stupid! I'm stupid! I didn't mean to upset him, but I didn't know he was raped! I- I… I don't know what I was thinking."
Fearing the worst, Peeta shamefully looks at his shoes, waiting for the girls to say something nasty or walk out. They don't. Rue is the first one to wrap her arms around him followed by Katniss and Madge, the four embracing in one large group hug. "Peeta, we don't care that you're gay!" Madge smiles. "I'm sorry you've been going through all this. And it's not your fault what happened with Gale. He shouldn't have reacted like that and pushed you."
"Exactly. Gale has a bad temper, but what he did was wrong. It was all just a misunderstanding." Katniss agrees.
Relief showers his nerves, making him feel much better. "Thanks, you guys." They nod and embrace in another group hug.
Then Rue wrinkles her eyebrows in thought. "Peeta, can I ask you something?"
"Yeah, of course." Peeta answers. He's already ripped the band-aid off; everything from here should be a piece of cake.
"What did you mean by what's going on between you and Cato?"
Shit.
Couldn't they just go back to talking about Gale?
Feeling the familiar pain of a headache, Gale stirs from his slumber. Something doesn't feel right. He looks behind him to see Myka sleeping soundly, arm wrapped around Gale's stomach, lips on his shoulder blade. Peeking under the blanket, he notices they're both naked. He jolts from his spot, scooting closer to the edge of the bed and away from Myka. What the hell happened?
"Myka, wake up…" Gale whispers in a panic. But Myka doesn't move. "Myka! Wake up!" he shrieks louder.
Myka groans in annoyance, scrunching his face in distaste. "What?" he asks sleepily, not bothering to open his eyes.
"Wake up! I think something happened." Gale exclaims. Myka's yellow-and-green eyes flutter open and he stares at the panicking gray eyes in boredom, waiting. "I think… um… I think we did it." Gale expects him to jump up, deny it, say something, but he just lay there, staring. "Well say something!"
"So we had sex. So what?" Myka asks, amused.
Gale gapes at him incredulously. "You fucked me while I was drunk?"
Rolling his eyes, Myka scoffs in disbelief. "You weren't that drunk." He turns over, his back facing Gale. "And for the record, I didn't fuck you."
Confused, Gale starts to get the gist of what Myka was inferring. "So… I had you?"
"You're welcome." Myka mutters, trying to fall back asleep. This was such a stupid and unnecessary conversation.
"Did, um… did I rape you?" Gale asks; the guilt plastered all over his face.
Turning back around, Myka looks at him. "You're not going to let me sleep, are you?"
"We need to talk about this. Did I hurt you or not?" Gale demands. He wouldn't be able to handle it if he had hurt his best friend like that.
"I said we had sex. Why is this bothering you so much?" His brows furrow, suddenly becoming concerned.
"I'm not gay." Gale states flatly.
"No shit. Is that what's bothering you? You think because I let you take me once while you're tipsy and out of your mind that it makes you gay? I think we already established you were straight, Gale." A smile appears on his lips, trying hard not to laugh.
Assuming this was his way of trying to make light of the situation, Gale ignores him. But he needs to make this clear. "I don't want a relationship with you."
The look on his face is shear amusement then he bursts out laughing. "Oh, but Gale! What will I do without you? I need you!" The pitch in his voice heightens to something more girly. "Please, oh please, Gale! I need you so bad! Don't you need me? Don't you want my hot, tight, warm-"
"Okay, okay! I get it. Fuck!" Gale rolls his eyes. He didn't have to be so sarcastic. Myka just chuckles at the situation. "I'm sorry."
Myka cocks his left eyebrow. "Don't be. We had sex. Period. No attachments, no weird feelings, no expectations. So don't worry about it anymore."
"Okay… and thanks." Gale responds while scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment. He's thankful that Myka is being so casual with this because the whole thing made him downright uncomfortable.
Looking at the dresser, Myka sees a flashing note on his cell phone that lets him know that he has some unread text messages. He reaches over and picks it up, examining the messages one by one. "Domi text me."
Gale's head snaps up in Myka's direction at the comment. "What did she say?"
"She's jamming with Thresh at her place and wants to know if we want to come. You're invited as well." He says with a smirk on his face.
"Wait, really?" Gale asks incredulously. This was… wow. He was going to go to his crush's home and hang out!
Myka nods. "Let me text her back. She sent this a couple hours ago." He starts tapping the buttons on his phone, quickly responding to the message. His phone beeps after a minute with a reply. "She says to come through. Get dressed."
It doesn't take much convincing. Gale immediately starts throwing his clothes on. When he's dressed, he impatiently watches Myka as he slowly puts on his jeans and black tank top. "Could you be any slower?"
Rolling his eyes, Myka replies sarcastically. "So sorry. Guess I'm just not used to rushing after someone's just pounded me like some loose crack whore. Remind me to bottom any chance I get so I can loosen for the mighty Gale and dress faster on command."
Gale instantly drops the attitude, feeling guilty again. "Sorry…"
"Don't be. I'm dressed. Let's go." Myka says as he places his cell phone into his pocket. They leave the apartment and make their way down the stairs. Myka underestimated the pain of descending down those damn steps, his back and stomach feeling as if it were on fire. Feeling terrible, Gale does his best to keep a slow pace and even opens the car door for him.
The car ride is mostly silent save for blasting the radio in order to drown out any awkwardness between them. Myka feeds Gale the directions until they arrive at the house. It's not huge, but it's also not particularly tiny either. In fact, it's a bit similar to Gale's place at his mother's. He should really call her back some time. She must have called at least thirty times since he's left, leaving messages like, "I miss you," and "please let me know how you're doing." He felt slightly guilty, but he was still mad at her and her pathetic boyfriend.
They make their way to the side gate and let themselves in. Domi had told them that it would be left unlocked and to come in through the side door to the garage. They can hear the drums beating quickly in a fast and exciting tempo. When they enter the garage, they watch as she rocks her heart out, hair flying in every direction as she smacks the drums with her sticks. Gale stares in awe, entranced by her movement. Myka, however, freezes in place when he spots Finnick. She hadn't said anything about him being here.
"Hey guys!" she beams with a beautiful smile, happy to see them. "I'm glad you could make it. Thresh had to leave so it's just me and Fin. Make yourselves comfortable! I've got beer, pop, and juice in the fridge."
The brunette teenagers nod and take a seat on two chairs close by Finnick. Myka chooses the one that's furthest from him. He nods in respect, but immediately points his direction back to Domi. "That was really good. Is that one of the pieces you and Thresh have been working on?"
"Yeah! We've got a couple of different ones we want you to hear. We could tell you're more of a bluesy-rock kinda guy, so we've been playing with a lot of melodies and thrifts. Once you come in with the guitar, it's going to sound pretty radical, if you ask me." She looks over at Gale. "I've seen you play the guitar a couple of times in class. You should come and jam with us too some time."
"Yeah, sure. I, uh… just have to get my guitar. It's a long story, but I don't have it with me for a while." Gale explains, not wanting to talk about his situation with his mother. It seemed slightly childish in his head.
"Why would you need to do that? I've got a spare guitar you're more than welcome to borrow. Want to see it? I have it in my room." She suggests.
Gale looks at Myka in shock, silently asking if it's a good idea. Myka raises his eyebrows in amusement, smirking. He nods his head and offers him a wink before Gale looks back at Domi. "Yeah, sure. That'd be great."
They leave the room, leaving Myka and Finnick alone in the garage. The tension grows thick with apprehension. They're both uncomfortable, but they knew ignoring each other was only going to make it worse. Finnick finally breaks the silence, catching Myka off guard. "Can we talk?"
Myka nervously scratches the side of his neck. "Yeah, sure. What's up?"
Not wanting to go straight into the heavy conversation, he starts with something basic. "Um, how are you?"
"Fine." Myka answers simply. "Uh… how are you?"
Letting out a sigh, Finnick decides to just get to the point. "I'm really sorry about what happened earlier. I wasn't trying to come off so strong, I just… I really liked where we started when we went to the beach, and I'd really like to do something like that again. I swear I'm not trying to get in your pants or something. I just… I guess I come across a little strong when I want something, but I'm not trying to use you. I'd really like it if you gave me a chance to prove that to you. Would you consider maybe letting me… take you out some time?"
Shock doesn't even begin to describe what Myka is feeling. He's not sure if he can trust this charismatic playboy, but right now he was something else; more real, and he seems truly genuine. He hesitates before saying anything.
Feeling rejected yet again, Finnick sulks in embarrassment. He should have known Myka would say "no." He nods his head in understanding and stands from his seat, walking towards the side entrance of the garage to leave when Myka stops him.
"Okay… I'll, um… I'll go out with you."