"Where mom?" I say to dad softly. He finishes taking a sip of his drink and then says, "I let her sleep in, she needed the rest." Mom did use all her energy yesterday crying, between the reaping and my secret. I'm suddenly thinking of Will, I don't know how he got into my head, but I'm picturing him back in 12, watching my face on the TV. Tonight will be the first he sees of me on the television.
I start eating because I don't really want to think right now. I rather stuff my face with the deliciously smelling food. Halfway through the meal we see mom behind us, more relaxed and put together that she was yesterday. Which is good, since she is going to be filmed a lot today. She sits next to dad and kisses his cheek as he is chewing a piece of toast. Were all eating in silence, while Effie is jabbering on about our plans for the day.
"You two should get dressed, I put decent clothes in your dressers, and you will find them easily." Effie is talking directly to me and Nick, while mom and dad are talking about something else. Nick and I finish our meals and walk down the hall together. We turn down the corner where my door is. I stop at my door and turn the knob. Behind me is Nick, walking casually into my room. I full with wonder with why he followed me, but I sort of already know. He sits on my bed as I walk to the mirror over my dresser. I'm stroking a brush through my hair, trying to act just as causal as Nick was. But my curiosity couldn't tolerate staying in any longer.
"What are you doing Nick?" I say. He answers quickly
"What was your dream about last night?" I feel his eyes on me while I am staring into my own eyes in my reflection of the mirror. "It's not that important" I don't want to tell him, because I will have to tell him about the Cave and how we cuddled. I don't want to let Nick know he has the power to make me weak.
"It just sounded like a weird dream, one second you were all happy and giggling, saying 'oh, Nick I love you too.' And the next you were screaming."
I snap my head towards him sitting on my bed feeling the blush rise to my cheeks. I tried to forget about that. The words I spoke to him in the cave. But I remember now, we were sitting together when Nick told me he loved me and I remember happily replying that I loved him too. I turn back not wanting him to see my blush.
"You and I were teamed up; Cato found us and killed you. That's all." I say rushing my words out of my mouth, embarrassed by my dream.
"What does that have to do with you loving me?" he is smirking now, he is just doing this for enjoyment. He wants to make my cheeks burst up in flames with the heat my blushing is creating.
"Nothing, absolutely nothing Nick." I say getting angered. He laughs softly.
"Your dad didn't hear you, if that's what your worried about," his smile stops abruptly. "He would have killed me by now." But I'm not worried that my dad heard I was worried if Nick heard and he did. But I smile after he says that, Dad sure did hate Nick. He's made it clear.
"I'm glad you find your father hating me funny, he is my mentor, you know? Being hated by your mentor isn't the best thing ever." He gets up from my bed to leave the room, so I can finally get ready.
When he opens the door, mom is standing outside with her hands raised like she was about to open the door. Nick's face is priceless because he probably expects dad to be there, but he isn't. Nick whispers sorry and darts out of the room, I can't help but laugh.
Mom walks in with her eyebrows raised, and I laugh because mom knows if we were doing anything embarrassing I would be blushing. I obviously have a low tolerance for blushing. Mom gets the clothes Effie was talking about.
After I change, mom does my hair, she puts my hair in a braid and I pull it over my shoulder. I look at the mirror. I'm not wearing anything spectacular; mom says that they're going to put me into the remake center right away. I'm wearing a light blue dress it goes midway to my calf and black flats on my feet. It's not like I never dressed up before, but I'm not used to looking like this. It's weird seeing my hair perfectly together, no missing strands fleeing from my braid.
Effie comes in telling us that they are about to show all the reapings on the TV. I didn't really want to watch all of them. It would bring me back to reality that those normal people will be trying to kill me soon.
We all sit in front of the TV, watching Districts 1, 2 and 3 tributes getting chosen. I forget their faces and names quickly as soon as new faces are introduced.
In District 4 though I notice a girl with dark hair and green eyes, standing were mentors usually stand. She wasn't the prettiest girl, but she had a natural beauty to her. She looks frightened like she is holding in a scream. I feel like I know her face. I look at my parents; they are glaring at each other as if talking through each other minds.
Then I remember, when I was little maybe 10, Will and I snooping around the house found a scrapbook. It was filled of pictures of people I never met, but knew. There was a lot of Prim, with a goat, and another one with a cat lying on her stomach. I remember this lady because she is Annie Cresta. There was a picture of her and her husband Finnick Odair. I remember the picture so clear now. Annie's hair was in a fancy up do, and she was wearing a beautiful white dress. Next to her was Finnick, who had an attractive looking face, he was wearing a simple black tux and his smile was so big it was hard to look at anything else in the picture. They had a son before Finnick died; I know that because there was a picture of the baby in the scrapbook. Annie's son must be too old for the reaping, or the capitol would make sure it was him who got reaped instead of a tall skinny blond kid, like I got reaped instead of every other girl in district 12.
Then we eventually get to District 12. And there are too many shots of mom and dad, since they are the most known faces in Panem. Then is shows me, my face looks pale but I think I did a good job at hiding my fright. I looked strong, like I accepted my fate. When Will is chosen, I notice the camera lingering on Nick's face. He looked worried, shocked I guess. I was too busy looking at will to even notice Nick at a time like that.
The announcer on the TV is then going on about me of course, telling everyone watching that I am the daughter of Katniss and Peeta Mellark, as if everyone didn't know. They're making comparison to me and my parents faces. There using old pictures of mom and dad from their hunger games. "…And of course the eyes of her father, beautiful girl really, just look at her roots! Two pretty parents and you end up with a beautiful child." The announcer is talking over the clips of my face. This is ridiculous I'm thinking inside my head.
After we watch that the train seems to slow down, were at the Capitol. I look out the train window to see what I've only seen on TV. The buildings here are big and intimidating. There are people pointing to the train, realizing it's from District 12.
Mom was right, the next second I am thrown into the remake center. I am told to tale off my clothes off and put the robe the laid out for me. They lay me down on a hospital-like bed, they're waiting for the stylist to come I think. There are 4 girls, the prep team they call themselves. They are the most bizarre looking people I have ever seen. Its' hard to look at them and call them girls.
They're ripping every hair, besides the ones on my head, off my body. I want to scream, out in pain. The legs are the worst; I began tearing up once they're halfway done. The strange looking group tries to comfort me though. One in particular had yellow hair and a light green skin that made her look like she was sick. I think her name was Avia. She calmed me down a bit, but her purple eyes freaked me out too.
"Don't worry sweetheart, you'll look gorgeous when were done." The girl with the cat like eyes that were colored red says. I'm not even sure I'll have any hair left after they're done.
When they are done waxing all my hair off, I realized I don't like having all my leg hair or any hair off my body. I felt bare, like a doll. How do Capitol people do this?
After a few minutes of sitting in my robe, feeling hairless, a man who doesn't look like a Capitol freak walks in. he has bright yellow eyes, but that's where the weirdness stops. He has a normal bronze hair color, that is natural and a skin tone that didn't look painted. He looks at me looking me up and down. He comes closer extending his hand.
"Hello I'm Evertt, you must be Hailey?" the man says. I take his hand in mine and shake it; I notice how bare my arm looks when I extend it. I nod my head and he rakes a chair nearby and pulls it closer, he sits down.
"If you haven't realized I'm your stylist" I look at him again, how can someone so normal be a capitol stylist. "I don't look like it, do I?" he says as if reading my mind.
"Let me guess? You're going to put me in the same outfit my mom was in?" he laughs as if he was expecting me to say that.
"Well your mother did look stunning in that fire outfit, didn't she?" I nod my head, it's true, mom did look beautiful in it, I'm sure I would too, but I wanted to be more than the girl on fire's daughter. "Nicholas' stylist and I think it's better off not to copy your mothers and fathers outfits"
He looks me in the eye, once again as if reading my mind says, "let's make you more that the daughter of the girl on fire's daughter. Let's make you Hailey Mellark."
I can't help but smile. Finally a sensible person.