Enjoy!
After talking to Madge, Gale put in an honest effort with Haymitch. It wasn't really that horrible working the mornings before school, if he ignored the eccentric townspeople. There was Beetee who would return his plate if his eggs touched his pancakes. Plutarch wanted his coffee brewed in a French press. Gale couldn't help but roll his eyes when he saw the man approach the diner, swearing under his breath as he poured the hot water into the glass French press.
But he had always been an early riser, waking up early to help his mother get his siblings ready for school. Working in the morning with Haymitch helped keep him occupied so he didn't have to worry how his family was doing without him. Was Posy being fussy about her braids like she was with him? Was Vick remembering his inhaler? Rory was there, he reminded himself. At thirteen, he was old enough to help with his younger siblings. Maybe he couldn't braid their little sister's hair, but he could put her hair into ponytails; that much Gale was certain he could do.
He had taken the time after the diner closed to fix the broken toaster. There wasn't a reason to make a big deal about it, so he hadn't said anything about it. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Madge had begun looking up when Haymitch asked if he had anything to do with the toaster appearing in working order again; he denied touching it.
On his way out, he noticed Madge's pink lips curled in a soft smile, her eyes on his back as he walked toward school.
xx
That afternoon Haymitch had walked into the apartment above the diner, a scowl on his face like every other day, Gale thought nothing of it.
"I don't know how I get roped into these things so often…" Haymitch stormed through the apartment, muttering underneath his breath.
Gale didn't bother to ask who he was complaining about or what he was being forced to do against his will. He wasn't even interested. Haymitch was involved in so many things around this stupid town that Gale couldn't wrap his head around all of it, or even begin to understand why he did any of it in the first place.
"And now both of us have to go to that freak show," he slammed the door of the refrigerator, taking a swig of beer.
That got Gale's attention away from the book in his hand. "Wait, what?"
"Madeline and Cinna! We have to go to this Bracebridge dinner they're having at the inn with the entire town."
"Ahh jeez. Couldn't you have just said no?"
Haymitch sent a glare his way, taking another drink from his beer. "You try and say no to them!" Another gulp of beer. "It won't be that bad," he attempted to reassure both of them. "It's free food and free," he grimaced before he moaned, "entertainment."
Gale groaned, pressing his face into his book. "You have got to be kidding me! Why can't people just enjoy the simple things in life? Like food! That's your entertainment right there!"
"You're not telling me anything new, alright kid? I hate this kind of thing."
"This better be worth it!" He called out to his uncle's retreating back.
It would be horrible. That much was a given. On the bright side, Madge would be there, or at least he assumed she would be. It was the inn her mother ran and since it was a town get-together he would bet everything he had, which at this point was in a duffle bag in the corner of the apartment, that Madge wouldn't miss a town gathering for anything.
So long as he maybe had a few moments with a particular blonde, then he could sit through whatever bullshit entertainment was bound to ruin his meal.
xx
There weren't many people in this town that he outright hated, it was a strong word and his father had taught him not to use it lightly, but he fucking hated Cato.
He didn't know if it was an alpha male thing or whatever, but Cato had made it his mission to piss him off. Gale was trying not to completely fly off the handle as quickly as the New York version of himself would have. He was making an effort, or he was trying to.
But Gale saw red when Cato mentioned his father.
If memory served him right his exact words were, "I heard he's here because of his deadbeat father." Unlike the other times, the words weren't pointed at him directly. Cato had been talking to someone else loudly enough for Gale to hear him.
So he punched him. Cato had assumed he was a pushover because he was a loner and liked reading, but he knew how to defend himself.
Gale wasn't above sucker punching someone, not if they were running their mouth. He couldn't ignore or turn the other cheek this time. He'd apologize to Haymitch if need be.
He had ducked a slow punch Cato sent his way. Cato was a lot heavier than he was, but far less experienced in fighting than he. Gale was in the middle of tackling him when he felt himself being pulled away.
He could see Beau Mellark, a heroic glint in his eyes, "Hey! Gale, he's not worth it." That sentence alone was enough reason for Gale to send a punch his way. He didn't hear what he said about his father.
"Hey!" Beau called out. "Gale! Cut it out! I'm not going to fight you!"
Gale pushed him away. It wasn't like they knew each other and in the few classes they did share they never spoke. He didn't ask for him to step in and he was livid that he did. Beau deserved more than a black eye.
"You knew it was me! Why'd you keep swinging?"
Shrugging his shoulders, he replied, "What can I say? I had momentum."
"I was trying to help you!"
Gale grabbed his jacket from the snow-covered ground. "No one asked you to." He threw his backpack over his shoulder and started his trek toward the diner. His shift started in fifteen minutes.
xx
Watching Beau Mellark talk shit about him to Madge should not have amused him, but it did. He should not have sent a playful wave in his direction, but it was worth it to see the vein in his forehead pulse.
Dinner was as shitty as he had expected, but at least Haymitch hated the fancy 18th century inspired food as much as he did. Solidarity meant a lot to him.
Horse-drawn carriages were not something Gale had ever been interested in short of reading them in a Dickens or Austen novel. Animals were cool and all, but this tiny ass town was not going to look any different from a carriage then it did on foot.
He had been glancing at some of the paintings on the walls. They were exactly what he would expect to be hung in the lobby of an inn, but he was bored and maybe there was the off chance that one of them was done by Bob Ross. That could at least be interesting.
Madge was left alone in the lobby, watching her boyfriend get dragged toward the carriages by a blond with a similar build that he could only assume was related to him. Maybe a horse-drawn carriage wouldn't be so bad. He had been patient in waiting for a moment with Madge to arise and it seemed that the universe was rewarding him.
A fur blanket was thrown over her lap to keep her warm in the frigid winter air. Her coat wouldn't have been enough to keep her from freezing since she had only been wearing a party dress underneath. It was silver and brought out the rosy flush on her cheeks. It was modest, right up to her collarbones in the front, but dipped a bit far in the back, far enough that she couldn't be wearing a bra. He wondered what it would be like to kiss the pale delicate that the dress left uncovered.
The horse had just barely taken off when he took off with a running start to climb in. She jumped, her blue eyes flashing toward him.
"You know I never took you for a rule breaker. They clearly said two to a sleigh, no more no less." He clicked his tongue at her.
"What are you thinking? That's dangerous!"
"If you want I can just hop right back out. The snow'll break my fall."
She crossed her arms over her chest, turning her gaze away from him. "Whatever."
He reached into his pockets, grabbing his gloves. It was fucking freezing out here and he was pretty sure if the colder-than-ice attitude Madge was giving him was any indication, she was not willing to share that fur blanket with him. "Are you mad at me or something?"
"What do you think?"
"Well, I can't read your mind."
"You fought Beau."
"Beau?"
"My boyfriend."
Gale smirked. "He still your boyfriend?"
She slumped into her seat. "You can jump out now."
"I wasn't fighting him. I was fighting someone else and he got involved all on his own."
"He was just trying to help you."
"He should take that energy to the local soup kitchen, but me he doesn't need to worry about."
Madge sat up, her hands coming to rest on her lap. "Why were you even fighting in the first place?"
"Because Cato is a dick."
"You were fighting Cato?"
Gale nodded.
"Cato is a jerk."
He smiled to himself that she hadn't said 'dick.' It wasn't like he could really imagine her swearing anyway. It was cute.
"This town is weird and full of jerks."
Her arms came back up across her chest. "Then why are you still here?"
"What do you mean?"
"It's winter break. You're not in school. Why aren't you back in New York if you hate this town so much."
He frowned, the space between his eyebrows crinkling. "My mom didn't want me to come home."
"I don't believe that."
"Haymitch gave it to me straight. Posy, my little sister, had a real tough time getting over the fact that I was leaving. I guess she's been crying all day, sleeping with my Ramones hoodie as a blanket and my ma didn't think it was such a good idea for me to come back just to leave in a week."
Madge's blonde eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "You have a sister?"
"And two younger brothers."
"Really?"
"Why would I lie about that?"
"I'm not saying you're lying I just can't imagine you with siblings, kind of had you pegged as an only child."
"Why? You wanted us to have yet another thing in common?"
She pushed him gently, giggling.
They had a few comfortable moments of silence as they passed his uncle's diner. He noticed that he had left the lights on upstairs. Haymitch was going to give him a mouthful when they got back.
"Hey what do you and Beau talk about?"
"What?"
"I mean, whenever I hear him talking he's always talking about sports and maybe I'm wrong, but I never took you as the kind of girl who was obsessed with hockey and wrestling. Have you ever caught ringworm from him?"
"No I have not! And he doesn't have ringworm!"
"But you talk about it?"
"No! We don't talk about ringworm! We talk about everything! Anything!"
"In the short time I've spent with him when he's not stopping me from giving Cato a well-deserved split lip, he just doesn't really seem like your kind of guy."
Her eyes narrowed at him. "You're wrong. He's exactly my kind of guy." It sounded like she was trying to convince herself more than him.
Gale held up his hands. "Alright, alright. Sorry, I guess I don't know him that well."
"No, you don't know him at all."
xx
This wasn't exactly the weekend he had imagined. For one, he never imagined Johanna Mason try and hit on a man in tights and period clothing, but he had ceased to be surprised at the completely peculiar things he saw in this town. The moment he got comfortable there was something right around the corner to kick him right out of his comfort zone.
He didn't have a completely shitty time at the inn and watching Haymitch roll his eyes in both directions at the waiter's accents and every course, each more ridiculous than the last.
But seeing Madge in that silver dress made it worthwhile, riding in the carriage wasn't half as bad as it could have been too.
And even now in a baggy baseball tee and leggings, Gale couldn't keep his eyes away from her. His gaze bounced between the bellboy who was grabbing their bags and then back at her. He looked away when Beau kissed her goodbye and when he glanced back he found her blue eyes looking right back at him.
He had never been like this over a girl. Girls with boyfriends were too much drama. But judging on the blush covering Madge's cheeks and the way her eyes were fixed on his, he didn't think Beau Mellark would be her boyfriend for much longer.
I hope you liked it! Leave a review if you please! :)