"You only talk when you have something to say that's smart"
"Or to someone I like"
In which the quiet girl from Five finds herself falling for the opinionated girl from Four all while trying to survive the Hunger Games
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A NEVOUS FEELING SPREADS through Raelyn's bones. Social situations were not something she was great at. Raelyn had always been a quiet person. She looks down at her father's watch that lays bound to her wrist, a sad smile forming on her face.
She'd be joining him soon.
"If the wind changes, your face will stay like that," a voice calls out and when Raelyn looks up, she sees it belongs to Hy.
She smiles at him as best she can.
"Hey don't let the situation get you down. At least we get to live longer," Hy tells her.
"Optimistic as ever, "Raelyn says quietly.
Hy laughs to himself as he sits down on the ground next to Raelyn. The pair sit in silence for a moment, just taking in everything that has happened to them.
"Are you okay?" Hy asks gently.
Raelyn sighs deeply. "Could be better".
Hy smiles and places a gentle hand on her knee, causing her to look up at him. "Don't worry, you've got me. I'm going to go mingle with the watchers you want to come?" Hy asks.
"No thanks, I'd just end up making a fool of myself," Raelyn responds quietly.
Hy nods sympathetically before walking off. She watches as he approaches who Raelyn assumes is a mother and daughter; the mother looks at Hy with a disgusted look. The daughter, however, is looking up at him with an aww never having been this close to a Tribute before.
Raelyn's attention is pulled away from Hy as she spots the Rainbow dress girl and the Capitol boy. They are talking to the man with the microphone. The rainbow dress girl now has the white rose placed in her hair, and she has a warm smile on her face as she talks happily to some children.
Jealous consumes Raelyn as she watches this go down. She wishes she could be more like the girl in the rainbow dress; she wishes she was more capable and confident, and she wishes she could talk to people without freezing up.
Sometimes she wished she was someone different.
"If looks could kill, I'm pretty sure we'd have one less Tribute," Coral calls out, causing Raelyn to look up. Coral has her natural smirk on her face as she sits next to Raelyn.
Raelyn looked at her confused, unaware that she had been glaring daggers at the Rainbow Girl for the last five minutes.
A chuckle escapes Coral's lips. "Don't worry too much about it. You aren't the only one who doesn't like her. She's just so pretentious, don't you think?" Coral questions.
Raelyn didn't know how to respond, she wasn't used to talking to Coral in the same way she was with Hy. Having spent time locked up in that office it had allowed her to develop a trust with him making it easier to talk to him.
Raelyn decided to just nod in agreement, causing Coral to look at her with curiosity. It was clear as day that Coral was trying to figure her out, whether she did that because of genuine curiosity or just so she had something to use later, Raelyn didn't know.
"You don't talk much, do you? I guess that's kind of smart means people underestimate you," Coral tells her.
"I guess" Raelyn mumbles. Her words are barely above a whisper, but Coral manages to hear her and a small smile appears on her face.
Before she can continue, a voice interrupts. "Stop hassling her Coral," Hy's voice calls out, causing Raleyn to look up and spot him approaching the pair.
"For your information, Hy I wasn't hassling your friend here, we're just bonding aren't we Raelyn," Coral explains, looking over a Raelyn.
A lump forms in her throat as both their eyes fall on her, but she overcomes it. "It's fine, Hy" Raelyn explains.
Hy looks unconvinced by this but doesn't bring it up for now, he sits down next a Raelyn with a proud smile on his face. Coral, sensing this is supposed to be a private moment, stands up and looks at the pair from Five. "I'm gonna leave you two to it. Was nice talking to you Raelyn. We should do it again sometime"
Coral then walks away with a proud smirk on her face.
"She's something, isn't she? I don't trust her," Hy explains.
Raelyn scoffs. "She's not that bad, Hy".
It's Hy's turn to scoff. "Oh really, she tried to start a fight with Lucy Gray back in the truck"
"Who?" Raelyn questions, confused.
"The girl in the rainbow dress," Hy explains.
A bitter look forms on Raelyn's face. "Oh, her".
Hy sighs, clearly sensing his District partner's lack of love for Lucy Gray, but he decides against commenting on it for now.
"Okay, so changing the subject. Look at what I got from a Capitol woman I was talking to"Hy says before opening up his hands and showing her some walnuts he had been given.
"Nice," Raelyn tells him, taking some from the palm of his hand and placing them inside her mouth. "How much convincing did it take to score these?"
Hy laughs. "Not much. Her kid was happy to throw food at me," Hy explains.
Raelyn scoffs again. "I'm surprised they didn't make you dance or something given how that woman was looking at you like you were dirt stuck on her shoe".
Hy sighs. "Honestly me too," Hy says. "Her kid was very sweet though we're like celebrities or something to those children"
"More like aliens," Raelyn responds bitterly.
"That's one way to look at it, but since we don't know if that Capitol boy was telling the truth. About us all getting Mentors, then the visitors might be the only way we get food before the games start," Hy explains.
Raelyn looks down at the ground and fiddles nervously with her dad's watch. She understands that what Hy is saying may very well be true, but that doesn't leave her with a very high chance of survival. "I don't know if I can talk to them, Hy," Raelyn says quietly.
"You can talk to me, so what's the difference?" Hy questions.
Raelyn sighs deeply. "It's different because I know you. I trust you. I can talk to you and I could talk to my dad because I know you care. I know you can be trusted. You'd never make fun of me of me If I messed up or panicked, I can't say the same for those people," Raelyn explains.
Hy places a reassuring hand on Raelyn's shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll both be with you every step of the way. Just take your time. You seem to be beginning to bond well with Coral, even if I don't trust her. It's good to have more people you feel comfortable talking to," Hy explains.
"Thanks, Hy, I really appreciate you, "Raelyn tells him.
"It's no problem, just make sure you're not just shit-talking Lucy Gray," Hy tells her.
