Her arrival at the Capitol was vaguely familiar. As had been the case last time, she was taken under careful preparation by a prep team. Her frizzy hair was tamed, her burned skin treated so that it was as smooth as a newborn's. Something different happened after she had been redone that caught her completely by surprise.
"Roll onto your side, please," the doctor smiled. He lifted her gown a bit and he stuck a needle into the flesh of her rear end, making her gasp.
"What are you doing?" she exclaimed, looking over her shoulder at him with wide eyes.
"It's only a shot," he reassured her, replacing her gown and standing up. "Just to take precautions, you see."
"Precautions for what?" Renata swallowed, watching him go to the foot of the table she was laying on.
He only gave her a small smile before patting her knee. "Lie on your back, and open your legs. Come on, it's only an exam, miss."
She bit her lip and slowly lay down. Her heart was beating so quickly, and her cheeks flushed redder than ever as she opened her legs to the doctor. She nearly jumped off the table when she felt him begin to prod at her most private area with cold metal tools.
"Are you a virgin, miss Kelde?" he asked casually, having examined many of the victors that came back to the Capitol.
"Y-yes," she whispered, clenching her hands into fists to keep them from shaking. She was so embarrassed, and she tried to focus on something other than his examination. It was over in a matter of minutes, after he had asked her a few more personal questions that she answered in whispers. Although they were alone, she had the awful feeling that she was being watched by someone else.
From the doctor's building, she was carted to a boutique. The shop was closed to the public since the hour was so late, but the owner seemed to expect that she was coming and they dressed her in a black silk number that could barely be classified as clothing. She looked at herself in the mirror, hardly able to recognize herself. She didn't look like the meek seventeen-year-old she was; she looked much older and very provocative. Her escorts hurried her into a car and they drove further into the Capitol, where there were people out in the late night. Why did it seem like there was always a party of some sort going on?
Her heart sank as she exited the car and was ushered into a very familiar building. Her chest began to rise and fall quicker as they neared the 30th floor of the expensive apartment building, and she swallowed when the doors opened. Her escorts didn't follow her out, and she was forced to knock on the door herself.
"There you are," Seneca answered, his eyes widening at the sight of her. "Come in, please..." He gave the escorts in the elevator a smile and a friendly wave before he shut the door and locked it.
Renata stared around the large, open apartment floor with wide, panicked eyes, and she jumped when she felt Seneca's hands on her shoulders. "Wh-what?"
"I said, can I offer you something to eat? I haven't eaten all day, and I'm starving…" He raised an eyebrow at her and frowned at the fear stricken look on her face. "I'm not going to hurt you," he said in a much softer voice. "I only want to have dinner with you, Renata…that's it." He motioned for her to go to the glass-top table, helping her sit down in a chair. He sat down across from her and began to serve them both helping of the roast pig, stopping when she sucked in a breath. "What is it?"
Renata couldn't calm herself down. She was absolutely terrified. Her eyes darted around in every direction, to the pig, to Seneca, to the windows that overlooked the mass of buildings in the Capitol. She blurted out a whimper and put a hand to her mouth, but that didn't help much. Her breaths became short and choppy and she broke down in violent sobs, the makeup that had been so expertly applied running down her cheeks. "I-I want to go h-h-home!" she wailed, covering her face.
Seneca bit his lip and he stood up from the table, going over to her. "Renata…" He pursed his lips as she coughed and choked on her tears. "Don't cry…I don't want to see you like this. I don't want you to be sad, darling. You should be happy, I'm happy. Because you're here with me."
She whimpered and peeked out of her hands at him, sniffling.
"Nothing bad is going to happen to you, I only want to sit with you and talk. Is that alright?"
Renata swallowed and wiped her face with a napkin before she gave a feeble nod.
"Do you want to eat? You should try a strawberry. They're delicious. They remind me of you." He chuckled and grabbed a plate that was full of strawberries that were as big as his fist. He gently played with a strand of her hair as she reached forward, took one of the fruits, and took a cautious bite. He smiled when she murmured in approval and took another bite, and soon she'd devoured it. "What did I tell you?" he laughed as she reached for another. "Take as many as you like."
The redhead sniffled quietly and she looked at him with teary blue eyes. She bit into the strawberry and the sweet taste flooded her mouth. This wasn't what she had expected at all. Her eyes followed him as he walked back to his seat and began to eat his own meal.
"Wh-why am I here?" she asked after a moment, reaching for her third strawberry. Her mind flashed back to their first encounter and she felt her chest tighten. "Am I…your prostitute now?"
Seneca set down his fork and he finished chewing what food he had in his mouth. "Don't call yourself that, darling… I'm just looking for your company, you see…I'm a lonely man."
Renata blinked at him, tears clinging to her eyelashes. "What do I have to do?"
He smiled and stood up from the table and went to her side, taking her hand in his. "Come sit with me, please." His eyes were such a brilliant and vibrant shade of blue and she found herself staring up into them before she let him lead her over to the sofa. "I thought you were the most beautiful young lady I'd ever seen," he said quietly, gently grazing his fingertips down her cheek. He licked his lips as he stared into her wide eyes, feeling his heart skip a beat. "I watched you while you were training, I couldn't take my eyes off of you. I wanted to know you, I wanted to see you in private and keep you all to myself."
Renata swallowed as he continued, her heart pounding in her ears. A soft whimper escaped her parted lips as he grazed his thumb along her lower lip, which was stained red from the strawberries. "Why?" she whispered.
"Something about you intrigued me. I wanted to see you that night, I wanted to…I don't know. I wanted to be alone in your presence," Seneca continued, still holding her face in his hand. "But instead, Finnick came here. He called me a pervert, and he threatened that if I pursued this infatuation, that he would find a way to hurt me." He paused, and a smirk grew on his face. "I would be lying if I said I didn't like a competition. After all, it's my job to be a strategist."
She remained quiet, those eyes seeming to never blink. Her impression of Seneca had taken a 180 from her encounters with him before. He really felt something more than lust for her?
"President Snow already knew of my feelings toward you, and he agreed to you belonging solely to me, for a high fee. But it's worth it," he murmured, gently tilting her chin up. He furrowed his brow as Renata slowly began to open her robe for him, revealing a great eyeful of her cleavage. He smiled and looked back up to her face, his hand dropping to close the robe back up. "Not just yet, my darling," he whispered before leaning in and kissing her lips.
Kissing Seneca felt so much different than kissing Finnick. His lips felt more experienced, and he led her with confidence rather than letting her take her own time to explore. The hair from his beard tickled her skin and she giggled quietly, blushing when he pulled away with an amused look on his face.
"Tickles," she said softly, looking at her lap shyly.
"Tastes like strawberries," Seneca chuckled deeply, setting his hand on her waist and scooting closer to her. "Are you alright?" He smiled when she nodded and then pressed his lips to hers again, being very careful and very tender. His kisses were so long and deep that Renata was gasping for air when he finally would pull back.
Her breaths were soft, quiet pants and her cheeks were flushed bright red as he moved his lips across her jaw and down the smooth skin of her neck. She murmured and closed her eyes, the feeling of his lips and his stubble grazing her sensitive skin sending shivers down her spine. This wasn't so bad, she had to admit. Maybe she had written him off too quickly. Maybe she just liked to be kissed.
A pinging noise, sounding like an alarm, interrupted them and Seneca pursed his lips, looking towards the sound. "Don't move a muscle," he smiled, kissing her lips softly before standing up and going to a desk. As he touched the surface, it came to life and was alight with many complex-looking things.
Renata watched him stand at the desk, moving things around and sighing every few moments. She got up from the couch and wandered over to him, peering over his shoulder at the console. "What's that?" she asked curiously, the data on the screen not making any sense to her.
"Just technical things for next year's games," Seneca replied with a smile. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close to him, quite fond of how she felt against him. "It's not very interesting right now, would you like to see the plans for last year?"
"Sure," she nodded, watching as he swiped away the things on the screen and brought up new pictures and blueprints. She gasped as he brought up a rendering of a mutt bear and she buried her face in his shoulder. "Make it go away…"
"I'm sorry, Renata," he murmured, swiping it away. "It's gone now, you can look again." He looked down at her and smiled, in awe of how beautiful she was. So young and innocent.
Her wide, curious eyes scanned the blueprints before looking up at his handsome face. "Did you make the bear go away?" she asked very softly. "When it attacked me, it was supposed to kill me, but…"
Seneca gently stroked her cheek with his thumb. "I couldn't let you die," he whispered. "It was dangerous, and I took a lot of heat for it, but it meant that you lived."
Renata felt her heart skip several beats and she wetted her lips, letting out a shaky breath. "You saved my life," she whispered, swallowing.
"I didn't, you fought to survive. I merely gave you a bit of help, that's all," he replied, shrugging.
She stared up at him for a moment longer before leaning up and pressing a soft kiss to his bearded cheek. "Thank you," she said softly, her lips tickling his ear. "I didn't think you'd be so kind to me."
"Has someone been speaking ill about me?" Seneca raised an eyebrow, having a good idea as to who the culprit would be. "I assure you, my dear. My feelings are genuine." He sighed in exasperation as the pinging started up again and he let go of Renata to see what the message was about. "Are you kidding?" he muttered to himself, shaking his head as he bent over the desktop. He stood up straight and turned to the redhead, giving her an apologetic look. "I have to oversee some details happening right now, I'm so sorry. Please, make yourself comfortable, and hopefully this won't take very long. I'm sorry…"
She smiled and shook her head, motioning for him to deal with whatever awaited him. Her cheeks burned as he put both hands to her waist, pulling her close and kissing her quite deeply without warning.
Seneca smiled and released her, watching her retrieve the bowl of strawberries and go back to the couch before he sat in front of the console.
Sometime later, Renata murmured quietly as she felt someone lifting her from the couch. Her lips were bright red from all the strawberries she has consumed, and she whimpered, her eyelids opening a tiny bit. She was laid down in bed, and she snuggled down in the comfy mattress, smiling sleepily as the covers were pulled over her body.
"Finnick?" she asked quietly, feeling fingers brush against her face. When there was no reply, she opened her eyes and saw Seneca's stern face there, his eyebrows furrowed in frustration.
"No. You're mine," he said in a low voice, looking intently into her eyes.
She opened her mouth to reply, but the heaviness in her eyes was so great that she couldn't fight it any longer. The only thing she could think as she drifted off was that she was already had by another. And she had him in return.
Seneca, you sly dog! What do you think, is he worth giving a chance? Find out next week in Undertow! Lol but yes, commercial breaks aside, what did you think? I was excited that this update came so quickly, because I had been super duper excited to write it! And I just want to say a HUUUUUUGE thank you to all the wonderful feedback I have been getting lately! It truly makes me happy and inspired to continue! So from the bottom, sides, and top of my heart, THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! :D You all are the best! I love you!
-Kelsey :3