I don't understand her. How can someone be so serious and controlled in one moment and then joking and making me laugh like I haven't in years?
God, I can't even remember the last time I laughed or smiled genuinely but she does something.
When she said her goodbyes I could see the way Clove was looking at her and how Finnick hugged her and I heard him whispering that when she got back she could explain everything. She gets to people.
Working this op may be harder for me than I thought. Sharing a bed, especially when you are being surveillanced by the guy you're meant to bring down, comes with a few responsibilities. For one, making him believe it. We have to go the whole nine yards which means kissing and other activities. All fake of course but still.
If I'm affected by her when we are separated by a glass wall I can only imagine when we share a bed. I hope nothing embarrassing happens.
To make him buy it we are really going to have to step up the whole affections level, meaning that while we're in public is hand-holding, kissing and whispering in each other's ear and since we're being surveillenced in the room we're going to have to pretend to do several activities beneath the sheets if you know what I mean. I've done a lot of missions, some even involving some actual beneath the sheets action to get to a target but I never cared. I heard that Finnick does them a lot, seduction to get to a target is not such a unsual thing but with Finnick I think there's more to that. But still on those missions I did what had to be done and am by no means an over hormonal teenager but this girl. I'm scared something may happen with her.
The only rest we'll have from this is in the bathroom and on an open area like a park where there is noise and it's entirely too hard to try and listen in on what anyone could be saying.
Alexandra helper and defender of mankind. Seems fitting.
She had a beautiful smile on her face and I knew that she was thinking about her family. Happy memories that were now only that, memories.
I wonder how she would react if she knew about the Career's families. We, unlike everyone else in Division, still have our family and visit them from time to time. I still have both my parents and my younger brother and they're all good people.
Her offer of a talk that would stick between the two of us was tempting to say the least. All I talk about with people these days are ops or training and that's usually with my mentors.
I search the room for any listening devices and when I turn around Katniss is no longer behind me but in the king sized bed curled up in one of the corners and after arguing with her and her mocking me I actually lay down on the bed. I roughly admit that it is indeed comfy.
Comfier that any bed I've slept in. I can hear her chuckle and it makes me smile a bit but after a little while I have to ask something that has been plaguing my mind.
She tells me I grew on her, that she doesn't hate me and I feel my chest swell a bit at the confession but when I ask her if she trusts me she full on stops. She says she doesn't know and asks me if I trust her so I say the same thing she said to me. I don't know.
And I don't to be honest. I have no idea what to think of this girl, woman, lying beside me on the stupidly comfortable bed. If I trust her she could betray me and escape, she's done so before, but something always stops me from making that assumption because I now know why she did it.
She loved and lost but she's still here, she's still fighting and I can't help but admire that. Loverboy was probably the only thing that still felt like family and she lost him because of Division, because of Snow and Alma.
No matter how I try to see it from a different angle she always looks brave because she didn't give up.
She wants to order in. When I'm taking a shower I can't help but think that letting her wasn't my greatest idea. And I'm proven right when I get out of the shower and there are at least ten separate dishes on the room and more coming.
I laugh. I laugh like I haven't laughed in such a long time that my stomach hurts from it and it feels good. Feels good to laugh freely with someone. Especially if that someone is Katniss Everdeen.
We eat, laugh, and eat again and I keep noticing that whenever she doesn't like something she lets me try and if I don't like it she'll put it in a tray of the far end of the room. Must be for it to be easier for whoever picks up the plates.
"You know its nice being like this, outside of Division without being, you know, hunted down and all."
I chuckle. "I'm sure it is."
She gets the weird mix of serious and joking on her face when she starts talking.
"No, I'm serious. I know you're Division and all, I know they're 'always watching' but here is doesn't seem like it. I can be me not the Girl on Fire or the rebel just 21 year-old Katniss Everdeen just as much as you can be the 23 year-old Cato Steele which by the way is a ridiculously cool name. "
"So you think I'm cool?"
"No, I said your name is cool, not you."
"So you think I'm hot? That's cool." My usual smirk is on my face and she is laughing.
"Ha ha you can shut up now."
"Oh just admit it, you find me to be an extremely attractive young man." I flex my muscle a bit and she bursts out laughing but stops when an employee of the hotel comes to pick up the plates of food but when he gets to the tray on the corner of the room she stops him.
"Hey, could you do me a favor?"
"Of course mam' what may I help you with?"
"One, don't call me mam' call me Katniss and secondly I would like it if you could put that food in to go bags and put a couple of rolls of bread in the bags too, some water bottles and soup if you could. I can pay you if need be."
"Mam'" Katniss gives him one of her looks and he instantly corrects himself. "I mean Katniss. May I ask why?"
"So that I could give them to some homeless people and children I saw on the street earlier, I may not like this food but I'm sure they would appreciate it."
"If those people were bothering you I could have something done about it."
"No, they weren't bothering me I just thought they could use the food."
"Oh, that's very noble of you."
"Not really, if I have the money better as well use it for something." She gives the employee a small smile as he leaves to do what he was told.
"He was right you know, what you did was very noble and nice of you."
I never thought she was like this, charity and helpfulness didn't even cross my mind but seeing it now I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner.
"It was nothing really, if being doing this for a long time. I always try to help these people because I know what it's like, I myself have lived on the streets for a year and a half when I was younger."
"You did?"
"Yeah, it's a long story. Don't worry about it but do get dressed though if you want to come with me."
"Go with you where?"
"To give the food to the homeless. You're welcome to stay but if you want to go it'll be better if you go with more than a robe."
She eyes me up and down, smiles and goes into the bathroom with a spare change of clothes.
The guy from before comes back five minutes later when Katniss has just stepped out of the bathroom. The guy is holding a lot of plastic bags that are filled with food and water so I take them from him. Katniss comes over and gives about eighty dollars to the employee something for which he thanks her immensely.
"Thank you for your services, if I need anything else I'll call you."
"Yes mam'. Katniss. Sorry."
"It's fine. You're free to go."
"Thank you again for the money and all."
"No problem."
He goes and shuts the door on his way out leaving us alone.
"You know you could have just been a normal person and tipped him like twenty or thirty bucks, you didn't need to give him eighty."
"Why not? We have more money then we'll ever use in this op, why not use it to make people happy? His job probably doesn't pay much and he could've just said no to my request but he did everything as I asked."
I see her taking more money out of her wallet but she makes a face at it before putting it down.
"We need to go to the ATM."
"Let me just get dressed so we can go."
As I go into the bathroom I can't help but think why we're going to the ATM she must have at least two-hundred dollars in her wallet but who knows, I mean she just tipped the employee eighty dollars so she's kind of a wild card.
I walk out of the bathroom and see her sitting on the bed waiting for me.
"Shall we?"
"Sure."
She picks up a huge black bag filled with all the bags of food and goes out the door but not before I take the bag from her.
"You don't need to do that Cato."
"I know, I want to."
She looks up at me as we are waiting for the elevator and gives me a genuine smile.
"Thank you."
I knew what she wasn't just talking about the bag she was talking about everything. The promise to not tell things about her to Alma, the niceness and the willingness to go with her so I give her one of my few genuine smiles something that I think will become a regular with this girl.
"You're welcome."
We walk out of the hotel holding hands and go to the closest ATM where she gets nearly two thousand dollars in twenty dollar bills and when she sees my look she just shrugs her shoulders.
"What? It's not like anyone is going to rob me with you there. Besides if they tried they wouldn't get very far." She gives me a smirk and keeps walking.
I don't know where she is going but still I follow questioning nothing and I find that I have no reason to because after ten to fifteen minutes of walking I can see a lot of people in a alley around a lighted trashcan trying to stay warm. She goes over there with no fear, no nothing and she smiles at them.
"Hi. I know that what I'm about to offer only helps a bit but for now I hope that is enough. I have here food and water for all of you."
She beckons me closer and starts taking the things from the bag handing water bolls and rolls of bread to everyone.
People are thanking her for her gratitude when she holds up a hand.
"There is no need for thank you's all I want is to help and I also have some money here to help you get through some time."
She starts by giving everyone twenty dollars and goes around the circle a few times until everyone on it has to have at least hundred dollars each.
I stay off into the sidelines just watching. Watching her interact with these people, seeing the gentle smile on her face and the looks of adoration from every single one of them.
She is amazing. I know it, these people know it and even the guy at the hotel knew it.
She is a truly good person and I can't help but feel something for her.
A/N: Sorry for the long wait guys, 16hours of volunteer work kicked my ass and I couldn't update sooner.
I know this is a bit of a filler but it's told the things they will have to do in the mission and the feelings Cato is starting to realize he has.
As always I'd like to thank Lux'.'Nox.512, HeyoMyFellowReaders and Life's Whisper for reviewing!
And would also like to thank everyone who gave their opinion on what Cato's last name should be.
Thank you all so much :)
R&R my dears!