This fic is winding down now, there are only a few chapters left! I can't believe it's taken me so long. I don't own The Hunger Games.
It was lunchtime at West Palms High. So far, Clove had bitched out two juniors in the library, a freshman snapping pictures of her in the hallway and a senior in her math class. Being a bitch had never felt so good to her before.
"Do penguins have knees?"
The whole table turned to look at Marvel. They didn't say anything, the just stared.
"What?"
Then they erupted into chaos, each person trying to get in their side of the argument.
"Trust Marvel to start a fucking penguin lunch debate." Cato, who was sitting across the table from Clove, rolled his eyes. She snorted, and Missy grinned from her seat next to Cato.
It was Monday, and spirit week had officially began. The whole group was decked out in purple and black, their school colours. Clove was wearing black jeans, a black leather jacket and a thin purple sweater. The cheerleaders were all wearing their uniforms, and the football players were wearing their jerseys. They were black, with strips of dark purple running down the sides, and their numbers were also in purple. Cato wore the number two, Finnick wore the number four and Peeta wore the twelve. Clove was more focused on the state soccer final she would be playing in in a few days, but she did love spirit week. It was great to see the whole school excited about sports.
"They have knees!" Johanna yelled. "I don't care what any of you say! I'm right!"
"Attention, students of West Palms High."
"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Cashmere and Glimmer yelled at the table. The blonde sisters looked so excited they might explode as the voice came over the speakers.
"The nominations for homecoming king and queen have been collected and counted."
A shortlist of names of around twenty girls and fifteen guys had gone out, and for the last few weeks the students had been voting for who they wanted on homecoming court. After the list had been narrowed down they would have the rest of the week, until the homecoming dance on Friday, to vote for the king and queen. Clove hadn't even gone anywhere near the ballot paper.
"The five male students who have been elected to homecoming court as candidates to be your king are Finnick Odair, Gale Hawthorne, Cato Stone, Brandon McKinnon and Peeta Mellark."
Excited whispers sounded around the cafeteria. The guys never got as excited about their nominations as the girls did- Cashmere and Glimmer were practically salivating at the prospect of being nominated.
"The five female students who have been elected to homecoming court as candidates to be your queen are Johanna Mason, Cashmere Gold, Annie Cresta, Glimmer Gold and Clove Ashlar. Thank you ladies and gentleman. Go Warriors!"
Clove spat her sip of water out all over Cato in an arc of a splutter. He cringed as he wiped his face.
"Who the fuck got me on that fucking list?" Clove hissed at her friends, who fell silent. She was so angry that she didn't notice Johanna fist-bumping Gale and Madge under the table.
"I don't know." Katniss shrugged. "People like you."
"What happened to nice Clove?" Annie blinked at her in surprise.
"Fuck nice Clove!"
Johanna Mason had planned for Clove to gain enough votes to make court herself, once she had gotten her name onto the list. In actual fact Clove had placed sixth, which wasn't too bad for a cranky, bitchy workhorse. Using the power of flirtation, Madge, who had originally been voted in as the fifth placed candidate, had seduced whoever the hell was in charge of these things and managed to switch her name for Clove's.
"Well, they shouldn't. This isn't funny! I wasn't even going to go to homecoming!" Clove snapped.
"What?! We bought dresses!" Missy protested, looking slightly offended.
"I only got one because I didn't want you to know I wasn't going until the last minute." Clove explained. She caught Cato trying to disguise his laughter as Missy glowered at her.
"Well, now you have to go." Johanna shrugged.
That was the true logic behind her homecoming plan. Gale had mentioned homecoming court in passing, and Johanna knew it was the perfect way to make sure Clove had to go. All elected members of homecoming court had to go to the dance. Attendance was mandatory. There was no way she could wiggle out of it, and Johanna had her ways to stop Melissa from making an appearance at the dance.
"Fuck." Clove groaned. Peeta patted her on the back reassuringly as she buried her face in her arms.
Johanna's plans were all coming together.
…
Marvel could hardly breathe. He waited in the same coffee shop he had met Clove in just a few days prior, anxiously tapping on the table. His coffee was decaf- his nerves were on edge enough as it was. He was nervously awaiting Melissa's arrival. He was taking Clove's advice, and soon Missy would be arriving from cheer practice so he could tell her how he felt. He hoped Cato wouldn't be mad.
Missy rapped on the window as she arrived, wearing a stylish black coat buttoned up, white jeans and grey ankle boots. Marvel took a few seconds to admire her appearance before she was inside the coffee shop, in front of him.
"Hey." She greeted him warmly and sat down, grinning as she removed her coat.
"Hey. I ordered for you, I hope you don't mind." Marvel said, gesturing to Frap on the table in front of her. She took a long slurp and sighed in content.
"Marvel Diamond, you are a god." Missy declared. Her hair was in a messy bun and she wore minimal make-up, seeing as she had just has cheer practice.
"How was practice?" Marvel asked. His own brown coat was slung over the back of his chair, leaving him in a black printed t-shirt and dark jeans. Missy's eyes lit up and she started to prattle on about practice. Marvel listened without really listening. He didn't really care about how Glimmer had botched her triple front flip or how Missy has been promoted up a level on the pyramid, one away from the flyer on top. He just like to hear her talk about something she was passionate about. Her eyes were alight and she moved her hands in animated motions, her voice getting faster as she grew more excited. He could have listened to her all day.
"But I know you didn't invite me here so I could talk about acing the scorpion. What's up?" Melissa asked after winding her story down.
"Maybe I just wanted to hang out with you." Marvel teased. He knew he was delaying, but he couldn't help it. Everything was about to change between them.
"We hang out all the time, Marv. You sounded pretty serious on the phone." Missy slurped her Frappuccino noisily through her straw. "You didn't call me down to tell me you love me, did you?"
Marvel felt himself pale. Missy noticed it, and she nearly choked on the frozen coffee.
"I'm sorry." Marvel spoke quickly, too quickly. "I don't want you to be mad, I know you have a boyfriend, it's just that I couldn't keep it to myself any longer and I-"
"Hey!" Missy cut in, her voice taking on a soothing tone. "Slow down. I'm not mad at you."
Marvel took a deep breath. He felt like his insides were about to fall out of his mouth.
"Okay." He looked her calmly in the eye. "The truth is, I've liked you since the first time I met you. It was junior year and you'd just started varsity cheer. You were so excited to be cheering for the basketball game, and it was pretty infectious. I spoke to you afterwards and I realised how amazing you are. We've spoken every day since then and the more I get to know you, the more I fall in love with you. I know that you're with Cato, and I don't expect you do anything about this. We can pretend like I never said anything if that's what you want. I just wanted you to know how much joy you fill me with, and how alive you make me feel. I'm in love with you, Melissa Ashlar."
As he watched her, Marvel was pretty sure that Missy stopped breathing. She tried to say something a few times, her mouth dropping open and closing again like a fish's. A long silence stretched between them, and Marvel shifted uncomfortably in his chair.
"I'm sorry. I have to go." Missy practically jumped to her feet. In the space of five seconds she had grabbed her coat and her bag, thrown a couple dollars on the table and left.
Marvel sighed dejectedly. At least he could say he wouldn't regret not telling her. Instead, he could just regret actually telling her. Everything had changed.