Highway to hell

10. Private Session Gone Wrong

Mara's POV:

I wake up in my plush bed to the sound of Cyra's voice coming from the corridor, singsonging the usual sentence: "Wake up, kids. Today will be a big, big day!" Today we don't have training, well at least not the one that I like.

From the babbling that Cyra gave us during breakfast, this is what I got; today we do a really important thing, that is, our private sessions with the gamemakers. We have to show our skills to a bunch of capitolians and then, they evaluate us.

Enobaria takes me with her to a different room, she sits me on a chair and she takes her place in front of me. "What do you plan to do?" She asks.

"What?" I asks back.

"For the gamemakers!" She responds. "What are you going to do for them?"

"Well I guess I'll throw some knives around." I say. That's what I'll do, I mean it's nothing special but it's the only thing I can do to actually impress someone.

"No." She says sternly. What does she mean no? I think. It's literally the only thing I know how to do. What am I supposed to do then? "You want them to remember you, you'll have to do something more than throw a bunch of knives. You have to do something that will make you shine out." She says.

"Like what?" I ask.

"You'll have to figure that out." She says. She leaves the room, and I'm left alone, with no answers, only more questions. Something that makes me shine out? What's that supposed to mean? What will I do? All these questions and more round my mind when I decide to take a walk in the tribute garden.

I leave my room and head to the lift, ignoring everyone on my way there. I get in the elevator and press the button with a 0 marked on it. After the short ride, I step out the claustrophobic room and make my way to the garden.

It's filled with beautiful plants, flowers and trees that become distinguished by every color imaginable, a soft breeze caresses my skin and lightly lifts my long hair, making it feel like a perfect wave from the ocean I've never been able to see.

I'm immersed in my own thoughts, imagining that I'm not here, in the Capitol, but back in Two, as a victor, a survivor and not some girl who might die in the next week. A sound distracts me of my thoughts, then I hear the voice I least expected to hear.

"I didn't think I'd find you here." The District One boy's voice echoes in my ears.

"Marvel?" I ask. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing." He replies. I look at him with curiosity and turn my attention back to the roses. He approaches me calmly and gently picks a red one. "For you." He says as he hands me the rose.

"Oh, look, red. Like the blood we'll be pouring." I say, grabbing the flower. "Thanks." I say softly.

"You're really optimistic." He smiles, a hint of sarcasm coming from his sentence. So simple, yet so enervating. "So what's with you and Hadley?" He inquires.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I say. Of course I know what he's talking about. The flirting, the nicknames, the competitive nature. All that.

"Don't act dumb, sweetheart." He says. The mention of Cato's nickname sends shivers down my spine and I send a look that makes him take a step back. "Well I'll leave you to it, seems like your sweetheart is coming." And with that he walks away.

"What an idiot." I say to myself. I take a closer look at the beautiful flower, with its red petals and green thorns that pierce through the skin of my hand it has a deadly touch to it, being, at the same time, stunning.