Chapter Twenty-Three
An owl hooted in the distance and as the night grew, the surrounding air became much cooler. Effie pulled her cardigan tighter around her and wheezed a step behind Haymitch. She knew she was slowing him down and if he was alone, he would have reached the resort long ago.
Still, he kept his mouth shut and walked with her at her pace. The resort wasn't that far but he noticed how as her pregnancy progress, she became breathless rather easily and took double the time to travel anywhere by foot.
"Do you want me to carry you?" he asked, deadpanned. "Wait - how heavy are you?"
Effie blinked owlishly up at him. She swung the purse in her hand as Haymitch ducked just in time, laughing quietly to himself.
"I'm sure you can carry me quite easily, Haymitch," she responded, "but thank you for the offer. I'm fine."
"You shouldn't have exerted yourself. The swimming this morning and then this festival. Too much standing on your feet. If I wasn't there to keep an eye on things, you would have danced all night. I've watched you at those Capitol parties long enough to know you enjoy these sort of – "
"Haymitch…"
"- social functions. You gotta remember that you're now -
"Haymitch, stop! Are you lecturing me?" Effie grumbled. "You're giving me a headache. Please, just… just be quiet."
Haymitch snapped his mouth shut. Usually it was him who would be grumbling for Effie to stop nagging and for to shut up but … Shit, I am turning into Effie.
"Are you coming or are you just going to stand there?" she called over her shoulders.
It was with a measure of relief that they finally made their way back to their room some thirty minutes later. Effie announced that she needed a shower and beat him to it. Sighing, Haymitch flopped on the bed, staring up at the ceiling as he waited for her
He had been waiting close to an hour to use the bathroom and Effie was still not done. Haymitch was tired and frustrated, and growing increasingly impatient as he paced the room.
"Have you drowned in there?" he pounded on the door.
There was the sound of bottles falling to the floor and a muffled reply from behind the door. He rolled his eyes.
"I'm coming in," Haymitch announced before he turned the knob and peered inside the mist covered bathroom. As if soaking in the ocean earlier wasn't enough, he found her in the half-filled tub, her hand clutching the edge of it in an attempt to push herself up when he walked in. She looked at him like a deer caught in the headlights.
"Sorry, were you waiting for me?" she asked.
"What do you think? You're not the only one here who needs a shower."
"It's just… My back's aching," she admitted reluctantly.
He narrowed his eyes at her and tilted his head to the side.
"No, don't start about how I shouldn't exert myself," Effie warned. "The warm water actually helps to soothe the pain. I guess I lost track of time."
Haymitch dipped a finger into the tub, the water rippling at the movement and arched a questioning eyebrow.
"Well… It was warm enough," Effie shrugged.
The water was no longer warm and had gone to room temperature so he really had no clue what she meant when she said it was helping. Sighing, Haymitch turned on the tap and waited for the other half of the tub to be filled with warm water. The sooner he rendered his assistance, the faster he could clean himself and adjourn to the balcony with his liquor. Effie watched him curiously, pressing her fingers gently over her lower back in an attempt to relief the ache. When the tub was sufficiently filled, Haymitch stripped his clothes off and stepped in.
"What are you doing?" Effie asked in alarm.
"I would rather not be doing this, sweetheart and I don't want you to take this as precedent for future deed," he replied, settling in behind her. "But waiting for you is like waiting for Felix to find a nice young woman to marry, so I think that I must do this for my own sake."
He saw the fleeting confusion passed across her face but the moment she felt his large, calloused hands on her back, applying just the right amount of pressure to loosen the taut muscles, her face relaxed as his intentions became clear. Her eyes fluttered close as her head drooped forward in a clear sign of contentment.
"Here?" his asked gruffly.
"Slightly lower."
He worked quietly; his long fingers expertly massaging her lower back to release the tension. Haymitch moved his way upwards, rubbing his hands in circles on her shoulder blades to the base of her neck. Effie had gone strangely quiet during that time. Fearing that she might have fallen asleep, Haymitch splashed a handful of water on her face. She jerked upright and sputtered incoherently, suddenly very alert. His own muscles were aching and he really did not want to carry a pregnant Effie to bed.
"You! You –" she stuttered hopelessly, trying but failing to string a proper sentence together. "I don't understand how you can be so endearing - lulling me into a false sense of comfort – only to be so extremely rude the next."
"It's an acquired skill," he replied smoothly. "Something I doubt you'd ever master. I take it you feel better?"
Effie nodded. In one fluid motion, Haymitch stood up and held out his hand for her.
"Now get out. I need to shower."
XxX
Effie had somehow managed to fall asleep when he emerged from the bathroom. A heat pack she was using before she fell asleep laid forgotten on the bed. Drying his wet hair with a towel, Haymitch picked the heat pack and threw it carelessly on the sofa. He poured himself a drink and settled down on the armchair next to the bed, watching her quietly while his mind raged with a million thoughts.
You have no claim over her. Her best interest…
Why couldn't he be her interest?
The more he drank, the more his thoughts turned bitter and angry but he answered his own question with relative ease which only made him feel even worse. How was he supposed to be her best interest when he was the one who was actively trying to end their marriage?
Effie had not once mentioned that she wanted their marriage to end. She may have implied it before her pregnancy but if their argument over the nursery was anything to go by, it almost appeared as though Effie wanted them to be together – him, Effie and his children – to be a family. But he dare not let his thoughts to even consider that possibility.
His hand hovered on the air, hesitating briefly before he rested it on her belly. Haymitch watched her face, not wanting it to disrupt her sleep but he had nothing to worry about. Effie was snoring lightly, oblivious to the world. The twins must be asleep too if babies actually sleep in the womb. There were no movements; no kicking, no odd little flutter that he felt on the boat. Nothing that will disturb their mother's sleep.
How considerate, he smiled wryly.
XxX
When the sun began filtering through the crack of the window, Haymitch stirred in his sleep and mumbled sleepily to Effie to draw the curtains close. Instead, he felt her lips on his jaw. Her hand was tracing random pattern on his chest and when she saw him cracked an eye open, Effie smiled.
"Good morning," said, placing a soft kiss at the corner of his mouth.
"Is this for the massage yesterday?" he yawned.
He reached out and in his sleep clouded mind, Haymitch moved to lace their fingers together. Effie's eyes flickered to their hands still resting on his chest and then back up to his face. He could feel her baby bump pressing into his side. Lifting his head slightly from the pillow, Haymitch gaze down at her quizzically when he did not receive a reply.
"Your book mentioned an increase in libido sometime in the second trimester," he recalled, his head sinking back into the pillow. His eyes were close and Effie could tell he was losing the fight to stay awake. It was still far too early and Haymitch usually only wake up much later. "Is this it then? You want to have… to do it?"
Effie pulled away from him with a huff of indignation.
"For the love of -" she broke off, clearly at a loss for words. "You sure know how to kill the mood. Do I want to do it? Really? Really, Haymitch?"
"What?" he blinked his eyes opened.
"You're asking me the same way you'd ask if I want to take a walk," she rambled. "It's ridiculous."
Haymitch pushed himself up and leaned on his elbow, looking at her with confusion. "You expect me to - what? - romance the hell out of you? You married the wrong guy. I'm just being practical. I'm just checking to see if you want to do it or not. If not, then I'm going back to sleep," he said in a matter-of-fact.
Her jaw dropped open. Effie pushed the covers back and swung her legs over the edge of the bed, muttering darkly under her breath about men and their idiosyncrasies.
"Alright, alright," his hand shot out to grab her wrist. "No need to be angry. Come back to bed. Go back to sleep. It's still too early, anyway. If you wake up angry like that you'd be in a terrible mood the entire day and nobody needs that."
Reluctantly, she scooted back and laid down with her back to him. Effie smiled when she felt him cautiously draped an arm over her midsection, as though he was uncertain if it was the right thing to do. When Effie did not react, he pulled her against him and kissed her neck, suckling softly at the smooth skin.
"Now who wants it?" she teased. They were really terrible at this, she thought to herself.
"Does it matter, really? Didn't the law say we have to copulate or something?" he replied cleverly.
"Nice try, Haymitch," she laughed. "You're not that much of a model citizen, you know. Stop trying to abide the law in times like this."
"You're calling me a hypocrite?"
Haymitch trailed his hand over her now slightly tanned leg, inching her nightgown further up as his fingers crept over her inner thigh. He turned her over on her back. Gently, he manoeuvred himself so he was braced against the mattress as he hovered over Effie.
"Careful," she warned, smiling up at him. "Don't crush them."
Haymitch rolled his eyes. Her hands roamed his chest before hooking them around his neck. She tugged him forward, urging him to close the gap between them. Effie scraped her nails against his scalp when he deepened the kiss. He stared into her eyes, his thumb stroking her cheekbones lightly as she gave him a lopsided smile when they pulled away.
"I think this is how a honeymoon should feel like," she whispered.
"This isn't a honeymoon, sweetheart."
Haymitch coaxed a moan out of her when his palm ghosted against her breast. He stooped down to kiss her once again when he felt her stiffened suddenly beneath him. Then her hands were pushing him away.
"Are you okay?" he asked, looking at her uncertainly.
There was a look of surprise on her face. Her eyes were wide with beads of perspiration beginning to form on her forehead and he began to realise that something was wrong when her hand went to her stomach just as her face scrunched in discomfort. Effie waved her hand at him and beckoned him towards her.
He was resting on his knees on the bed, staring at her in an undisguised worry. "Effie? Did I hurt you? Was it my weight?"
She shook her head, taking in deep, shallow breaths. The sheets were clenched in her hand in a tight fist as she bent slightly forward.
"Effie?"
"It's spreading," she breathed slowly, "to the back of my leg. It's just aching."
"What? What's spreading? Talk to me. Come on, what's wrong?"
Haymitch brushed her hair back and rubbed her back, and then her calves hoping that it would help to alleviate her symptoms. It took her several more minutes before she unfurled from her curled position on the bed. Haymitch stacked the pillows against the headboard, urging her to lie back.
"Are you in labour? It's too early, isn't it?" he was beginning to sound hysterical, his voice had gone a pitch higher.
Despite her situation, Effie still managed to give him an incredulous shake of her head and a nervous laugh.
"No, not in labour," she assured him. "It'll pass. Just give me a minute."
"Hang on… This is… You've been in some sort of pain since I got here. I never brought it up before but… this is the same as before?"
She nodded. "I don't know what's wrong. I don't think it's anything serious," she told him. "It'll hurt for a little while, that's all. Just… let me hold your hand."
He extended his hand dutifully and Effie grabbed hold of it, squeezing it tight. It didn't take long for her breathing to return to normal and for her to give him a faint, tired smile.
"I'm okay now."
"I don't think this is normal," he frowned. "There should be a doctor here. We'll ask Annie. Let me call her."
This chapter was a lot longer than this but I cut it in half (again) because I felt that there was so much going on in one chapter. I'll tell you not to worry so much about the twins though. Maybe just Effie. Ehehe. Leave a review!
I am a year older today and never thought I'd still be writing Hayffie stories! (which is not actually a bad thing)