Chapter 2—Parapraxis
Author's note: parapraxis is a term used in psychology to describe a slip of the tongue which is thought to reveal secret desires or unconscious opinions. It is more commonly called a Freudian slip.
Rye and Peeta looked at each other for a moment. Peeta let out a breath that he wasn't even aware he had been holding and said, "It could have gone worse."
Rye nodded. Now that the confrontation was over, they both felt drained. Peeta had a headache behind his eyes. But at least there wasn't the awful grimness that used to hang over them when they were smaller and Marigold could really get her hands on them.
Rye pulled a basket out from under his bed. Inside were two wrapped sandwiches, and two large flasks of water. The boys had learned to anticipate their mother's punishments a long time ago. She would not come back upstairs anytime soon; she was going to stand guard in the kitchen to make sure that neither of them tried to sneak the meal she thought she was denying them.
As they ate, Rye told Peeta about the band. Rye was in his last year of school and all the band members were in his class. Rye played guitar, obviously. Marsh Brocket, the butcher's kid, played flatpick guitar (Rye explained that meant Marsh used a pick and steel strings.) Dalton Cartwright played the bass. And Mandor Guy, son of the grocer, played both banjo and mandolin. They hadn't picked a name yet but they had started rehearsing a few weeks back. They knew a lot of bluegrass and district standards. Rye hoped to be playing by the Spring Festival, which was still several weeks away.
"Who sings?" Peeta asked.
Rye looked a little embarrassed. "Well…none of us, really. Marsh and Dalton can at least carry a tune, but their voices aren't strong. And Mandor is as bad as I am." Peeta grinned at that. Rye had a truly awful singing voice. "I don't suppose you know any really good singers?" Rye asked, only half-joking.
Without thinking, Peeta said, "Katniss Everdeen has a beautiful voice." Then his eyes widened in horror over what he'd just said.
Katniss Everdeen was going to kill him. She was intensely private. He didn't think she'd be too happy with him for bringing her to Rye's attention.
Rye looked at him like he was waiting for the punch line. Right around the time that Rye realized that Peeta was serious, Peeta tried to backtrack. "Forget it, though, seriously, Rye. She's got her little sister to take care of. Besides, I don't know if she'd be comfortable on stage, she'd just, you know…"
"Glare at people? Skin a squirrel? Field dress a deer?" Rye chortled. "Anyway, how on earth would you even know that Katniss Everdeen can sing?"
So, Peeta told Rye about his very first day of school. How their dad had pointed Katniss out and said he had wanted to marry her mother, but instead she' d run off with a coal miner with the beautiful voice. And how when Katniss sang for the school assembly later that day, the birds had stopped to listen. Peeta tried to relate this in a very bored, nonchalant sort of voice. Rye was having exactly none of it.
"Wait wait waaaaaaaaaait," he gasped with a look of pure glee on his face as he pointed at Peeta. "You like her! You have a crush on Katniss Everdeen! Oh my god, Peet—you're blushing!" Rye then laughed himself hoarse while Peeta hissed at him to shut it. His laughter finally faded off with a "…of all the girls in the District…" Then he suddenly sat up straight, all business and said, "Seriously, though, she can sing?" Peeta nodded. "OK," said Rye. "I'm going to ask her."
Peeta spent the rest of the night trying to talk Rye out of it but Rye wasn't fazed by any of it. Defeated, Peeta finally made one last request, "Look, Rye. Just…keep my name out of it, OK?"
Rye smiled and said, "Wear something nice tomorrow. You're gonna help me."