100 Miles [Wattys2016]

Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8: INEVITABLE

"You are my god today Annie."

I grab the coffee out of an amused Annie's hands and take a huge gulp, savoring the bitter liquid. I sit on the side of her desk and catch up with her before the clock hits nine. Our usual routine. I'm also trying to convince myself I'm not hung over.

"You look like you had a big night last night." She grins.

"You could say that." I say less enthusiastically.

"What happened?"

"Gale happened." I mutter. "Pretty much I got wasted, fought with Gale, Thresh took me home and I fucking fell asleep on Peeta in some weird friend slash couple kind of thing that I still don't know what to make of."

I'd woken this morning to a warm and cotton clad pillow which turned out to be Peeta's chest. We were entangled on the couch under the blanket and my half full cup of tea sat abandoned on the coffee table. Despite my headache I had carefully broken free of Peeta's grasp hoping he wouldn't mention the incident. I was confused what the hell had happened between us the previous night.

And just when I thought I was safe I had opened my phone to two texts. One from Johanna: Finally took my advice, huh? You're not socially inept after all! And good fucking choice. And Finn: You better know what you're doing Kit-Kat ;)

I spent the rest of the morning trying to apply concealer to hide the bags under my eyes.

I turn back to Annie to see her process what I just said about Peeta. Her face forms a frown. "Is that your new roommate you didn't like?"

Fuck.

"Yeah. He's not so bad anymore." I start to ramble trying to divert her attention. Hoping with all my heart she will not connect what I just said to our client's son. "Apparently he's into me or something but I don't know. We're just friends. I don't know how it happened last night but suddenly I wake up in his arms. How fucked up is that?"

"Do you like him?"

I think it over. "No."

It's obviously an unconvincing answer for Annie's standards. "Whatever Katniss. When you put the 'just' in front of 'friends' it means you like him. Come on, let's get started. This is so going to do your head in today."

She isn't looking at me strangely so I sit back relieved that she hadn't put the pieces together.

000

"Hey, where are you?" I speak into my phone.

I lean against the brick wall watching the shoppers come and go behind my sunglasses. A small boy and his mother pass holding hands. I remember when Prim was that young.

"Uh, just finished class. Why?"

"I'm at the coffee house, meet me there." I snap the phone shut and enter the café. It was one of my favorites. They knew me by name along with a whole slew of regular students. It was a brick renovation from on old building and the inside was rustic, reminding me of home in State 12.

I take a table by the window with two seats and wait. The problems we discussed today about the case invade my mind. Go away, I think.

Within two minutes I hear the high-pitched voice of Delly Cartwright. Blonde and bubbly as always. "Hey Katniss! How are you?"

I smile as genuinely as I can. "Good Dell, how are you?"

"I'm great! What could I get you?" She holds out her pen and paper. I swear she had the enthusiasm of a five year old.