DRESS, coriolanus snow

13, the other woman.

DRESS.
( chase two girls, lose the one. )
▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅▅

THAT MORNING, CHARLOTTE woke up, a giddy feeling in the pit of her stomach. 

She laid in her bed awake, the corner of her lips turned up into a smile. The events of last night kept replaying in her head; as she fell asleep, as she entered her subconscious state and as she arose. She couldn't get the feeling of his lips on hers out of her mind. It consumed her whole, and she had an overwhelming desire to repeat it again. 

She looked at the clock at her bedside table. 1pm. She didn't know how long she and Coriolanus had spent up on the roof exactly, but knew it was long, for the slightest rays of sunshine could be spotted peeking through the dark and heavy clouds of the night.

Today, the mentors had their day off, but were encouraged to go down to the zoo to visit their tributes for the last time. Charlotte, on the other hand, would be busy with preparations for the long-awaited ball that would take place tomorrow, the night before the 10th Annual Hunger Games, since her mother was the head of the board. Plus, she thought it would be a good distraction.

She wore a black backless top with jeans and paired it with a pair of sneakers, since her mother told her she'd be doing a lot of heavy-lifting. She tied her hair into a lose messy bun, and put on the jacket Coriolanus had given her from the night before. She snuggled into the jacket that still reeked of his cologne, like a warm embrace on a cold, winter day. 

Her mother called out her name from the hallway, and she shoved the remaining of her things inside a tote bag. She rushed out of her room and immediately made her way to the doorway, where her mother had been waiting for her for the past fifteen minutes. Brielle only sighed at her daughters promptness, unlocking the front door and holding it open for Charlotte to pass through.

As usual, the car and driver were waiting outside the apartment lobby for the two girls. The driver opened the door when he noticed them arriving, and Charlotte slid into the further end of the car. The drive to the ballroom was quiet, only the sounds of her mothers pen scribbling on paper could be heard. 

When they arrived, there were already a myriad of people unpacking boxes and hanging up decorations. She guessed the theme would be some Winter Wonderland theme, like the Yule Ball in Harry Potter, with the amount of snowflakes and fake snow packed in the boxes. 

Charlotte followed her mother around the hall like a lost puppy, watching as she gave out instructions and tasks to the helpers. Finally, her mother assigned her with blowing up balloons, and stationed her in the corner of the room, accompanied by a box filled with balloons and a gas tank.

She sighed helplessly, taking a seat on the floor and digging through the box to pull out a balloon. She filled it with helium gas that was in the tank and tied it up with a ribbon, attaching a magnet at the end to prevent it from floating up. Throughout her job, she was being fed food testers by her mother, who was having a hard time deciding what meal course to choose. Charlotte, who had skipped both lunch and breakfast happily obliged to this. 

Once she was done filling up all the balloons, she tied a few together to create a sort of balloon bouquet to be hung on the pillars in the room. As she did the balloons, a few of the helpers took the ones already finished to be hung. By then, the room was really starting to come together, the only exception of the fake snow that they would place once everything was done.

The hall was decorated with blue, white and gray, definitely confirming her Winter Wonderland theory. There were balloons, snowflakes and specks of glitter scattered amongst the hall, giving it a sort of magical feel. When the helpers were done assembling the balloons on the pillars, fake snow was thrown everywhere, in all directions, to complete the winter look.