The Price of Champions and Crowns (Hunger Games)

20

I felt my back rest against the side of the cubicle. My eyes narrowing at her's. "You going to ellaborate at all?. Or just going to leave that hanging for me to deal with for my non-existent therapy sessions?".

I waited. She didn't talk. Nope, she had the audacity to tusk and avoid eye contact.  

I felt myself crack at that. A life of silence and I'm finally done with it. I'm done with her. I scoffed. "Fuck you, Johanna".

I was up and out. Slamming the door of the bathroom in my wake.

I could hear her scream behind me, the angry footsteps clip clopping towards me. It only drove me to walk faster, dashing between people and through doors. 

Until I was on the steps of the balcony, the garden lit up in fairy lights and...no.

Sea green eyes.

I blinked but they were gone. My eyes darted from corner to corner, until I noticed a silhouette that could be his hidden behind a golden curtain.

"Victroia!".

Ignoring her, I made a bee-line for it. Going as far to yell "Move!" to hundreds of people that dared blocked my way. 

Until I whipped the curtain behind me angirly only to find myself surrounded by Victors. It might as well have been a special room dedicated to them. But what do I care, I'm one too now. Again, my eyes darted from person to person. Katniss, Peeta, Annie, Cashmere, Cecilia, Beetee and in the corner....Haymitch, Finnick and the back of someone with the same hair as hi-

He turned slightly at the sound of someone clearing their throat. His eyes, still the same as all those months ago stared back at me. 

Wide eyed and full of disbelief. 

The staggered footsteps, the way his face contorted into pain before it erupted into the biggest smile.

And I stood still, because how...?

He's not real...this isn't real.

Even watching him rip his arm out of Finnick's hold and running towards me. I still chanted in my head that this isn't real. Can't be real. I was instantly in his arms. He'd spun me around in the air and for a moment I could feel it. That love I tried so hard to bury. I sniffed. "I'm dreaming".

I felt his forehead on mine, his shaky exhale. "Then I never want to wake up".

He leant back slightly and held my cheek. And as I stared into those eyes, I realised I didn't care. Didn't care that he's probably an illusion from whatever Blight gave. Don't care that I'm probbably tripping hard infront of about fifty or so victors.

Because even if this isn't real,

He's here.

It's why when I felt his lips on my mine I didn't hesitate. I kissed him back just as passionately. As if to tell him everything in one kiss. Hurt, loss and most importantly love.

Until we were both breathless and resting our foreheads together. Just the two us, consumed by the other. That is until reality hit us like a slap in the fac-

"Just so beautiful. Liam, tell us how you're feeling right now?"

He instantly frowned and I blinked. Together we turned to the left to find Caesar in a green suit, wide cat-like grin and microphone pointed to the both of us. 

I took a slight step back and felt Liam's hand instantly latch onto mine. His eyes stared me down with slight hurt as he whispered. "I'm never letting go again, I promise".

I opened my mouth to reply only to be cut off by Caesar. "Just so sweet, are you crying my dear?".

I sniffed. "N-no".

I wanted to scream at him to go away. To leave us alone. That I need to ask a thousand questions that don't involve all of Panem. But that camera man next to him certainly didn't escape my notice.

Liam on the otherhand, seemed to have other ideas because he'd spun me away from Caesar so I was now facing him instead.  "How are you alive?".

I opened and closed my mouth. "I drowned but I came back, I guess?".

I don't think my doubtful answer helped him figure out if I was really real or not. Honestly up until this point I'd hardly questioned it. I was revived and they told me he was dead. Guess I only focused on the latter, it was the only part that mattered to me. I exhaled. "Were you able to out swim it?".

He nodded slightly. Obviously, Victoria. 

I heard an excited sequel causing me to turn to Caesar with a glare. "Just so much love in this room!. Tell me how you guys are feeling right now".

Behind Caesar, I think I took in the room for the very first time since being in here. Or more so, the mood of the room.

Its tense.

Very tense. 

All fifty something victors are staring us dead on. Most of them with glares or with tense faces. This isn't a happy affair, not for them. It took me a minute to realise that we're making them tense. 

We're ignoring Caesar or in my case, glaring the fuck out of him. My eyes met my mother's across the room. Lips pursed and eyes narrowing at me in a clear 'drop it'.

I shivered and turned to Ceasar with a fake smile instead. "Sorry, what was the question? I think I'm still in shock".

I could feel the weight lift in the room now that finally one of us understood. This is still an interview. This is being filmed. 

This. Is .Still. A. Game.

Liam, I still don't think is on the same page yet. So to save him, I smiled and cupped his cheek. My eyes staring into those gorgeous sea green ones I thought would only be reserved for my dreams. I whispered loudly enough for the camera's to pick it up. "Tell me what's going through your head right now?".

"You're alive". It was a whisper, but also like a plea. And so I nodded while he cupped my cheeks and whispered it again, and again.

I think am crying. I definitely am because he's kissing my tears away. And I realised then that we were so intimate. Like that time in the arena before we killed off District eight. Just the two of us and the world has disappeared. 

Unnerving in the way we're able to ignore the world and fall compeletely into the other. One body, one love or as the Capitol views us, one killing machine. 

As beautiful as we are deadly.