drapetomonia - the overwhelming urge to run away.
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When Junia Beaumont, her brother and their classmates get a last assignment before the end of the school year, she doesn't know just how quickly things will change for her.
Who would have thought t...
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38. a deal with a snake
June is caught off guard by the sound of her own footsteps echoing through the halls. They’re firm, fast, and still don’t convey half of the anger that’s rushing through her veins at the moment. She's absolutely furious that she even has to do this.
Coriolanus is fast. But not fast enough.
“Coriolanus!” She finally calls out when she makes it across the corner. “Where are you going? We’re not supposed to leave unless our tribute dies!”
Coriolanus stops in his tracks. He knows he walked too far to lie and tell the girl that he just needed to use the restroom. He passed those long ago. Deep down, he might already have an idea of where this is headed, but that doesn’t mean that he has time for it.
This entire time, ever since the beginning of the mentorship, she has been his most annoying competition. There are some other mentors that don’t have bad odds at getting the Plinth Prize, but out of all of them, June has been getting on his nerves the most.
Every single time he thought he had the upper hand, she somehow managed to be there, too. It started at the train station when they greeted the tributes, stretching to her being at the zoo almost every single time he was there and over to her being the only one to fill out the necessary paperwork alongside him. And then, if it weren’t for the guitar he managed to get his hands on at the last minute, she would’ve almost beaten him at the interview as well.
It’s sickening, her sudden stubbornness. He has known her since they were little, and she was always someone who preferred being in the background more than anything, so why the change of heart? Is it her tribute? No matter what it is, it leaves a bitter taste in his mouth.
He thought he had the upper hand regarding the snakes, but now he knows she knows too. And with her mother working for Dr. Gaul, it wouldn’t surprise him if she knew even more.
He turns around and rolls his shoulder in the most convincing way he can muster, his eyes widening slightly at the tense posture of the girl in front of him. He’s used to her tensing up when she’s anxious, but this? There is not one sliver of anxiety inside of her.
This is anger, and it's directed at him.
“I wanted Dr. Gaul to fix my stitches. I think I tore some earlier,” he lies unashamedly. He’s about to turn away, but her next words make him stop.
“Always with the convenient timing,” June says so coolly, his eyes widening before he squints at her, trying to look confused. “Like with the drones yesterday, you just so happened to send them when Lucy Gray was surrounded.”
