Grant shows me around his apartment. It's not as big as the one in the training center, but it's not supposed to be. This is a one-bedroom, and it's meant for one person. Back at home, one-bedroom means exactly that. But here, it's a different story. There's maybe ten rooms – a kitchen, a living room, a bathroom, a room with machines that wash clothes (laundry, he calls it), a 'library', a gigantic bedroom with it's own terrace, a "guest room" (which looks like a second bedroom to me) and a room with a warm pool. Grant calls that one a hot tub. There's a large panel by the door where he can call one of the building's many Capitol attendants to bring him anything he needs. It's extremely Capitol, but better than going to other people's homes. "Not everyone comes here." Grant tells me, "Just the famous people, who you'd like people to know you fucked." I stare at him for a minute. "You're a sex symbol, and you're what, fifteen?When you're legal, that's not gonna change. It's gonna get a lot worse."
"Good to know, I guess." I say. We just hang there for a little, before I have to go. I sleep with three more women, and head back to the training center apartments.
When I get back, Natalie's in her room. She's on the phone, yelling at someone, so I just go to take a shower without saying hi. I'm excited. Johanna will be here in less than an hour. I get to see her soon. I get dressed, and try to make myself look nice. I look out the window, and hear shouts from the streets. Johanna is here. She gets out of a car, and walks into the building followed by Blight. I can't wait to see her. I realize I need to calm down. While I was fawning over her, she was in a televised fight to the death. She's had a rough time, and I need to be sympathetic. I need to, for lack of a better word, keep it in my pants.
I wonder what Johanna's fate will be like now. Will she go home and return to some variation of her normal District 7 life? Or will she have to be a whore like some of the other victors and myself? She's hot. If I think she is, the Capitol must recognize it, and want her to sleep around for their profit. I don't want that for her. I wouldn't wish this life on my worst enemy. Living in constant fear that my family could die and a moment's notice, and the nightmares that eliminate sleep as an escape. It's not an enjoyable way to live in the slightest.
I pick at my dinner, since I really don't have an appetite. The food is delicious, and I manage to eat my fare share of the cooked meat with noodles in a cream sauce. It's delicious. We're eating a few trays of chocolate covered strawberries – Natalie's favorite – when the elevator dings, and the doors open. It's not Johanna though, it's Blight. "You got strawberries and didn't invite me?" He asks, pretending to be deeply offended. He sits down next to her and eats three of them in only a few bites. "Wanna watch her interview? The escort took her down. It's on in five."
All four of us (Grant's back) sit on the couch, watching the interview that's about to start. Caesar Flickerman in his sparkling blue suit welcomes Johanna on the stage. She looks a lot different. She's wearing a lot of smoky makeup, but her lips are pink. They look very kissable. She's wearing a long, dark green gown that shows off her curves, and her hair looks curlier. She lost a lot of weight in the arena. She was by no means overweight before her games, but now she looks like one of the Capitol models – almost as skinny as the kids we see pictures of from District 8. She still is very muscular and tanned. Grant's words take me out of my Johanna-induced daydream. "Stop drooling and sit up." He tells me. I shoot him a nasty look.
First, they play clips from Johanna's game. They show all of her kills, and the moment where she first threw the axe, and revealed her talents. Then, they show her interviews. The District 7 Mayor and his family are labeled as their family, and that she was adopted. That's not true. Grant told me her family died a year or so back. Then, they show a little kid. He's not of reaping age, and maybe is seven or eight. He has the same eyes and hair as Johanna. He's introduced as her little brother, Josh Mason. I can tell they're related. At least she has somebody she cares about left.
Caesar asks her about why Johanna chose her tactic. She raises an eyebrow, smirks and rolls her eyes, as if the reason is obvious. "Well, District 7 doesn't win much. We're not considered a threat. This helps me look harmless, so everyone will leave me alone, and they won't expect me to kill them, except for right before I do." The crowd cheers at the mention of death. Typical.
She talks a little about her time in the arena, and then Caesar asks her what's next. "Well I'm gonna take a nap." She shrugs. The crowd laughs. "But after that, I'm just gonna go home. I miss my kid brother." The crowd goes aww. They talk for a little more, and then the seal shows and the anthem plays. She's done.
Blight stands up, and fixes his pants. "Come up in ten minutes," he tells us, and then takes the elevator up to the 7th floor. I'm excited, to say the least. I don't know what to expect. I'm jumpy with anticipation. So luckily, the ten minutes of waiting I have to endure are over very quickly, and Natalie goes with me up three flights.
As soon as I step out of the elevator, I'm bombarded by a green-haired woman. Everything about her screams Capitol, so I assume she's the District 7 Escort. She's drooling over me, and making it very obvious. I fidget uncomfortably, as I look around. "Is this really Finnick Odair?" She asks out loud. I nod slowly, trying not to roll my eyes. "Oh my God. It's so nice to meet you! I'm a huge fan of yours. You know, ever since you were reaped, I just knew you were gonna win, everything about you makes it clear you're a -"
"Calm down, he's not legal yet." Blight calls, cutting her off. I can tell he doesn't like her very much. I wonder how Haymitch treats his escorts. I almost feel bad for them, the district escorts really don't do anything wrong that requires the maltreatment they get from the mentors. Then again, they do call the names of the people who are sent to die, so I understand the resentment. The increasingly large part of me that hates the Capitol reminds me that they're one of them, the pathetic, ignorant bunch who find entertainment in teenagers killing each other on television. Blight calls Natalie and I over, and we sit down. "I'll get you two drinks or something."
He returns a few minutes later with a beer for Natalie, and a soda for me. Johanna comes out of her room. She's changed out of that mouth-watering dress, and into what looks like the under slip for her dress. It's a short green body-hugging fabric, that just covers her. She still looks ravishing, maybe even more so. I'd like to ravish her. "Let me know when you're gonna stop drooling." Johanna quips, pulling me out of my thoughts.
"Nice to see you too." I smirk cockily. "Besides, what makes you think I'm even interested? Maybe I like Capitol girls." Natalie makes a choking noise in response.
"Hm. Sure." Johanna shrugs, sounding unconvinced. She sits down next to me, and crosses her legs, revealing even more of her soft, tanned skin. I'd love to feel it- I need to stop. She tucks a loose piece of her hair behind her hair, and leans into me, so her lips are hovering by my ear. She whispers, "Don't act like you don't want me. You're not fooling anyone."
Damn, so she knows. That's not good. Then again, I've never been that subtle about it. I'm pretty sure everyone knows. I'm pretty sure being a prostitute hasn't helped me become more discreet about anything. It's really done the opposite. I decide to keep up with my Capitol attitude. "So what? Maybe I do want you?" I ask back quietly.
Johanna laughs loudly, and then smirks. Her lips are on my ear. "Well Finnick, I hate to break it to you, since this is probably going to be a first. But you can't always get what you want." Tease.
"Say it. Say that you don't want me." I dare her. She shrugs. "And you have to mean it." I add.
"Do you know what you need? A fucking reality check. You're not some fucking sex god." Johanna snarks quietly, rolling her eyes. "Sure, you're hot and all-"
"So you think I'm hot?" I ask, cutting her off. She thinks I'm hot! I think she's hot. It's a sign.
"Not the point." She shrugs it off, her cheeks tinging a pale pink, "I'm not just some random whore that you can get with whenever you get bored with whatever Capitol girl you're fucking next." I smirk a little, since I'm usually the whore that the Capitol people get with.
"I never said you were." I point out. I hate when girls make assumptions based on absolutely nothing. Maybe I wanted to ask her on a date or something. I didn't, but that's not the point. I'm kind of glad she didn't ask me what I want, since I don't even know. I love girls, but they are way too crazy. Assuming this and that and getting angry over absolutely nothing. I wonder if Johanna and Enobaria would get along.
"This conversation is over." Johanna stands up, smooths out her skirt, and walks to her room, slamming the door behind her. Blight and Natalie stare at me for a few seconds, and then return to their conversation. I sigh, and run a hand through my hair. That did not go nearly as well as expected. At least she thinks I'm hot. But then again, most of the female population in the Capitol does. And over the next few years, a lot more of them will. Sadly, that means more buisness. Fantastic, that's just what I need. More people to sleep with, like I haven't slept with enough. I'm fifteen years old, and I've fucked twenty-four women and four men. It was only meaningful with one of them, Lily. And now Lily's dead. So, my love life is obviously not going too well.
I'm still intrigued by Johanna. I just want to talk to her, to find out what she likes, what makes her tick, what makes her sad. I just want to know everything about her, and I'm not quite sure why. I follow her into her room. She opens her mouth to say something, but I cut her off, "Before you tell me to get out, please just hear me out."
"I'm listening," Johanna says, folding her arms over her chest. It makes her breasts almost pop out of her dress. "Up here, Odair. I'm gonna hear you out, you better start talking before I change my mind."
I frown and look up. "Okay. Johanna-"
"Jo. Call me Jo. Please." She corrects me.
I take a deep breath and start, "Alright. Jo it is. Look, I do think you're attractive, I'm not gonna lie. But I don't think I want or could handle a relationship right now, and I don't want to start anything like that with you, honestly. I do, however, want to be your friend or something. You're just a really cool person and I like you."
Johanna, I mean Jo flops down on her bed, and smiles a little. "Sounds good. You can stay here." Success. "So, tell me Finnick, what do you do in your spare time?" I'm really happy. She seems open to being friends, which is a good start, I guess. I do want to touch her, kiss her, dare I say I want to fuck her? But we've really just met, and not every girl is some one night stand, or some paid fuck. I have to treat Jo better than that.
"At home? Well I have a lot of spare time. You don't have to go to school, and you don't need a job. I like to run, and I swim a lot. I help down at the school, where we train careers. It sounds really bad, turning these kids into killing machines. But on the other hand, we also teach them survival skills and how defend themselves, so maybe, we can bring a few more of them back home. And we're nowhere near as harsh about it as District 1 and 2. Um, I hang out with my best friend Annie, but I've been so busy lately. It's so scary, because she could reaped any day, and it would kill me if I couldn't bring her home. Well, what about you"
"Ah. This is kind of weird, you always seem to come off as a shallow prick, but I guess you're not that bad." She says, nodding and smiling a little. "Well, I don't have a lot of free time. I usually am at school, or taking care of my little brother. After school, I work at the publishing factory. A lot of people don't know that District 7 makes all the books for all of Panem, but it makes sense, since we have a lot of trees."
"Publishing? That sounds really cool. I'm guessing you like books?" I assume. "I picked up a bunch of books from a bookstore here for my family, but really, the only books back in 4 are in the educational ones in our schools."
"Yeah, I love reading. But I don't have a lot of time to read. Luckily, I guess I will now. And my brother will never have to sign up for tessarae. I had my name in there thirty-two times this year."
"How old is he?" I ask her.
"He just turned twelve yesterday." She says, sighing. "I feel like to some degree, he's pretty safe since he has me for a sister, and if he were to be reaped, I'd be able to protect him. How old is your friend, Annie?" Do I detect the slightest bit of jealousy in her voice? I sure hope so.
"Thirteen. It sounds pretty weird, since she's two years younger than me, but it's never really bothered either of us."
"Do you like her?" There it is. The one question I honestly can't answer.
"I don't know. It's complicated, you know." I say. It's an honest answer; I don't know. "Sometimes Annie does these things, and I think I'm in love with her or something. And other times, I love her like a little sister."
Johanna shrugs. I'm not sure if wants to know simply because she's curious on how I feel, or because she wants me. The former is more likely. Then again, she did say that she thinks I'm hot. So who knows? She yawns a little, and stretches her arms. "You should leave. I'm gonna go to bed." I look over at the modern-looking clock on her nightstand. It's a little before ten. Who goes to bed this early, especially in the Capitol? I remember that she was in the Arena of all places, so she's probably exhausted.
"Night." I say, closing the door to her room behind me. Hopefully, she's so tired that she won't have nightmares. I walk back into the living room, and tell Blight and Natalie. "Jo went to bed. I'm going downstairs. See you in the morning."
I get off the elevator at the fourth floor, and find Grant sitting on the couch, eating ice cream out of the container, and watching something on the television. "Hey there." I say, and plop down next to him on the couch, kicking off my shoes unceremoniously. Grant looks up from his ice cream, and nods at me.
"Did you fuck her?" Grant asks me bluntly. I just stare at him. "Johanna Mason. Did you or did you not have sexual relations with her tonight?" I throw a pillow at him, and he drops his container of ice cream, cursing me out. It fell on its side, and luckily, none of it spilled out.
"No. I didn't. She's not like that. I care about her. Besides, I almost have too much sex. The district slut sleeps with what, maybe five people? I've slept with twenty-eight!"
"There's no such thing as too much sex. And you're counting the wrong times. You only count it when it's with somebody you care about. If you're getting paid, it definitely doesn't count. That's a shame. She's pretty cute." I shoot him a look, and Grant raises his hands defensively. "Chill. I'm just saying. I have Nat, remember?" Grant opens two beer bottles with his teeth. He hands me one, and gently hits our glasses together.
"I care about her. She's not just some random fuck. Besides, she might not have to deal with the shit we do if she's lucky."
"Doubtful. I know you don't wanna hear this, but I will always tell you the truth. She's young, pretty, and her games were unforgettable. Also, you see how much she cares about her brother. I'm sure Snow picked that up, and will be eager to use that against her." Grant points out. I hate to admit it, but he's right.
"It's really not right, that they make us do these types of things." I sigh. If I could, I would change so many things about Panem.
"Finnick. You need a reality check. We're in a country where they slaughter children for fun. Do you really think they care about what's right and wrong?" Grant tells me, sipping his drink. His show ends, and he flips through the channels. There's some show that he likes. "This is an award show. You know how when you saw my apartment, I said that tons of celebrities live in there too. Well the people in the television shows and movies, they're famous like us. And they give prizes out to people, for being the best actor or the best movie of the year. It's really cool, since I've seen all these movies. When you live in the Capitol long enough, the culture will rub off on you.
"That terrifies me." I admit.
Grant sighs, and shakes his head, smiling a little. "I don't mean the part with killing kids and being okay with it. I mean with the movies and fashion trends and which celebrity is dating that cute girl. Your step-mother Juliette, was an old television actress."
"Really?" I ask, shocked. She is dramatic, but I thought that was just a Capitol thing. She's never brought it up either.
"Yeah, really. She was pretty good. But maybe ten or fifteen years back, there was a huge sex scandal with her and her married co-worker, and basically, that broke up the most popular marriage in Panem. After that, nobody wanted to hire her, so she moved to the Districts for whatever reason. The word is in the Capitol is that she killed herself."
"What?" I spit. The wheels in my head are turning a mile a minute. Juliette is a home-wrecker. I can so use that against her. "What was her last name?"
"She went by Juliette Lowe." Grant says, standing up. "C'mon." He pulls me into his room, and opens up a computer. Juliette has one, but I only know her as Juliette Odair. Grant goes onto the internet, and goes to the search engine website. He types in Juliette Lowe, and at least a hundred results come up. There's a portrait of her, and an article. I hover over Grants hand and click on the link. I can tell it's Juliette – light brown, wavy hair, pinched nose, pink lipstick smile. She's only in her mid-thirties, but looks like Natalie's age in the photo. A young star falls from grace, how cliché. I read the mini biography:
Juliette Lowe was born on December 5th in the Capitol. Her parents were both from the Capitol as well. She attended East Hills High School, and graduated at the top of her class with honors. She decided on a whim to audition for a small role in the movie The Sponsor, about a sponsor for a tribute that wins the seventy-third Hunger Games. However, she ended up receiving the supporting role of Louisa, and winning multiple awards for the part. After that, she starred in the hit television show Three Saturdays, and the much less popular show Holidays with Matthew Diamond.
Juliette and Matthew's affair was very public and very embarrassing for both of them, especially since Matthew had a newborn son, Thomas with his wife. Many critics criticized the on-stage romance between Matthew and Juliette because of the consequences it had off-stage. Holidays was canceled after three episodes.
After the public divorce of Matthew and Christina Diamond, Panem's (arguably) favorite couple, Juliette Lowe was unable to find work. Nobody would want to hire her, since virtually every since critic hated her, and many people were not fond of her reputation. Juliette went into hiding, and disappeared. Her house was sold a month later. Many people speculate that she committed suicide out of shame, but there is no proof of her whereabouts, if she still is alive.
"Well, shit." I say, taking a deep breath. That was unexpected, to say the least. "What do you think would happen if she came out of hiding?"
"I have no idea. The son, Thomas is your age, and is starting an acting career. He might do a bit better if she pops out, but I'd imagine it would be terrible for her. Hate mail, phone calls, people will literally show up at her house, paparazzi and fans of Matthew and Christina." Grant sighs. I can't help but smile at the idea of terrible things happening to her. Grant's eyes widen as he takes in my expression. "Oh, no. You can't. I've talked to Juliette, and she's kind of – for lack of a better word – a bitch. But it'll look bad for you, your dad, your family."
"Maybe less people will want to sleep with me if my step-mother is a hated, psycho, home-wrecker." I point out.
"No, no no. Finnick, don't you dare do anything stupid." Grant warns me. "I'm your mentor, and I'm here to prevent you from fucking up. Try to help me and don't go out of your way to make Snow hate you."
For some reason, I think that Grant might be right on this one. So, I don't do anything rash, and I don't think I will. But I'm positive that I'll let Juliette know about my new-found knowledge of her past.
A/N: How was that? Sorry, it was kind of a weird way to end it, but I didn't want to end on a cliff-hanger.
Review if you liked it! You can always PM me if you have any questions/comments/ etc. :)