Chapter 24: The Spirit of Competition Part II

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Clove:

Breathe in, breathe out. Goodness, how long was this headache going to last?

Clove was seeking refuge from the heat inside her car. She'd be back on the track in time for the winner announcement, but for now, she needed peace. The tap on her car window told her she wouldn't have it.

Clove opened her eyes and saw who it was. Not the person she wanted to see. He was saying something. Asking that she roll down her window. She pressed the button and down it went.

"What?" She said, her tone full of annoyance.

"You okay?" Cato asked.

"Yes, why do you care?"

"You left before they announced the winners. I thought maybe you weren't feeling well."

Clove sighed and got out of her car.

"Its nothing. Go back to watching Delly." She said.

"Clove, you're jealous of Delly?" She could hear the smirk. Yes, hear it.

"No. I'm just saying, you're here to see her, so go."

"Right. Okay. I don't see Thresh anywhere around, I thought he'd be here for you."
Clove rolled her eyes in an exaggerated manner. "If that's your way of asking if he asked me to prom, then I'll tell you, yes he did. As friends."

It wasn't a big deal, Thresh wasn't dating anyone, neither was Clove and prom tickets for couples were cheaper. End of story.

"It's none of your business, anyway." She said.

Cato nodded. "True." There was a long pause as they both just stood in the parking lot.

"So you and Thresh..."

Clove groaned. "Yes, me and Thresh are going to prom! Okay. So are you and Delly. What does it matter?"

"It doesn't." Cato replied. "I was clarifying."

"Awesome." She said flatly.

"You did good out there, by the way. You, uh, run fast."

"Wow. Thanks." Clove said.

"Attention participants of the 4x400m relay, the event will begin in 7 minutes! 7 minutes!" The announcement was loud enough to be heard even away from the track.

"You should go."Clove said. Cato didn't move.

"That's Delly's event, you won't want to miss that." She added.

"Oh, right."

Clove tilted her head in confusion. "You didn't know? You're here with her, how did you not know?"

He shrugged.

"Cato!" Delly ran over to them. "Oh, hey Clove! How are you feeling?"

Suddenly, she remembered her failed attempt at insulting Delly. The blonde was just too sweet to understand what an insult was. Her concern was sincere.

"I'm good. Had to come out here and get some shade." Clove explained.

"Great. I came to find Cato, he said he wanted to watch." She laughed. "Maybe you wanna come, too?"

"Nah, I'll pass. I'll be there when they give us the trophy. Good luck, Delly." Clove tried to be as nice as possible. For some reason, she hated this girl. Hate.

"Well, thanks. Hey, I heard you and Thresh are going to prom! He's so much fun. Isn't it great, every girl on the team has a date!" Delly said cheerfully.

"They're going as friends, Dell." Cato told her.

Dell. He calls her Dell, how freaking adorable. Why the hell does she care that we're going as friends?

"Yeah, but it counts. We're going as friends and that counts as a prom date. Doing my cousin here a favor." Delly told Clove with a smile. "You better be glad I saved you from Bonnie."

Clove let her gaze fall on Cato, who was completely mesmerized by the yellow parking stripes. He didn't tell her that. He was going to prom with Delly because they were cousins. He let Clove think otherwise because he thought it upset her. That prick!

I was not upset. I didn't mind one bit!

"Delly, you two should get going. You'll be late for your race." Clove said. Her mood considerably lighter than earlier. Both blondes left her alone in parking.

Clove went back inside her car and turned on the radio.

"I wasn't jealous." She told herself. "It's really hot. Heat makes people moody. Stupid heat."

No jealousy there.

Katniss:

"I uh, sort of thought you weren't speaking to me.."

"Peeta, I want to say that I...overreacted. You know, when I tripped and messed up my ankle. I was very rude to you and it was wrong to be when all you did was try to help." Katniss said.

"I get why you were so upset. And I really am sorry that I couldn't go through with what I promised." He replied.

"Don't be."

Glimmer was the talk of the school along with the Sinclaire divorce scandal. Her dad was all over the gossip magazines, labeled a cheater. It was like the people at school expected Glimmer to fall apart because of it. As though that would somehow be entertaining, watching someone be in pain.

The only one who did anything to stand up for Glimmer was Peeta. And Katniss admired that. But she still needed an explanation.

"I don't get why you didn't tell me. I would have kept it all quiet." Katniss said.

Peeta sighed, understanding what she meant. "I didn't want to be the one who betrayed her. Everyone knows now."

"So you're dating Glimmer because..."

"Because she has no one else. Who am I to just leave her there?"

"Is that really doing her a kindness? You're lying to her." Katniss countered. If she were in Glimmer's place, she'd be angry.

"I am." He confessed. "But I don't think she's completely unaware of it. I'm trying to let her realize that it's not working. Its better she come to terms with it on her own."

"And you didn't think of telling me? You just let me believe that you had lied? I thought we were going to have something and then I stood by and watched you go back to Glimmer. I hated that." Katniss said. "And I hated you for it. I still don't get it, how did you know about her dad before it even came out? You knew to be there."

"She told me." Peeta was beginning to look uncomfortable. "That mystery woman, it's my mother. And she found them. She told me and that's how we became close."

Katniss felt awful. Here she thought that some high school romance was the biggest of problems, other people were dealing with incredibly real family matters. One of them was Peeta, someone she cared for deeply.

"Peeta, you could have told me all this and I would have understood." Katniss said earnestly. "I would have. I wish I had been there for you."

"I know you do. But in case I was never free of Glimmer, I wanted you to have a reason to forget me. It was easy to hate me and I wanted you to move on."

Katniss shook her head. He was almost looking out for her.

"Peeta, I don't know what to do with you." Katniss had small smile on her face. "Are you still going to stay with her?"

"I guess. I want this to be over, Katniss. I'd rather it be you."

"Me too. But I get it. Be there. She'll let you go, even Glimmer isn't that horrid." Anyone related to Annie would eventually see reason.

"Are we back to being friends?" Peeta asked.

"Yeah. I want to change my schedule back. Rich is getting really annoying." They shared a laugh over the silly employee. That guy never missed an opportunity to ask her out. Not a great working environment.

Peeta stayed for the rest of the competition. Katniss was relieved that she knew what was going on. It was messy, but at least she knew that Peeta never meant for her to get hurt. He was trying to save everyone, but he couldn't. Katniss didn't need saving and Peeta understood that about her. She'd be strong and face it. If it was meant to happen, it would. Overall, Katniss had an excellent day. She even got to take home a first-in-state ribbon. Another win for Panem Academy!

Okay. Everlark is getting closer and closer. Because Everlark is coming up, next chapter will be something else. Maybe some Fannie, because they are awesome and I love them. Thank you all for reading and reviewing, I really appreciate it! :)

SlySlytherinITA: Thanks for the review!

Guest: Clove isn't going for a sports scholarship, but I like the cheerleading idea, maybe I'll work that in somewhere! Thanks for reviewing!