Beauty and The Geek

Food Fight and Dodgeball

Clove

I stand in line, getting my lunch while Annie talks to me about something I'm not listening to. Instead, I stare across the room at Glimmer and Cato while they read their scripts for Romeo and Juliet; I think they're just talking instead of reading, though. I begin to walk over to them when I feel a hand on my shoulder and turn around to see Finnick.

"Hey, Clo." Finnick says, walking with me to my friends.

"Hey, Fin." I smile at him as we walk.

"What are you doing?" He asks.

"Walking to the table Glimmer and I sit at everyday." I say.

"Well," he says. "Looks like you girls have some company." He winks at me, making me blush for an odd reason. Do I like Cato? Maybe. Do I like the fact that's he's sitting with us? Yes.

"Whatever," I roll my eyes and walk faster and sit in front of the two blonds laughing. "Hey, Guys." I say.

"Hey, Clove, I hope it's okay for Cato to sit with us today." Glimmer says. "We have to read this and- ."

"It's okay." I smile and look at Cato. "Howdy, Partner?" I say with a fake, southern accent.

"Pretty good." Cato says with a southern drawl, also. "How 'bout you, Darlin' ?"

"I'm good and gettin' better." I say, making us both laugh.

Glimmer laughs. "Am I interrupting your flirting?" She says.

I gasp and playfully smack her arm. "We're not flirting," I say.

"It sounds like you're flirting to me." She says, smiling.

"No," Cato says. "She's just making fun of where I come from."

"Well," Glimmer says. "Ain't that just peachy?" She mocks a southern accent, as well.

"It sure is, Doll." I say.

"Oh, come on, Y'all." He says.

"That southern drawl, though." She breaks character to laugh.

He winks a blue eye at her, clicking his tongue on the roof of his mouth. "There's plenty more where came from." He takes a bite of his mashed potatoes.

"Hey, Cato?" I say.

"Hm?" He raised his eyebrows.

Glimmer and I smirk at each other, then at Cato. "You have something on your face." Glimmer says.

He shakes his head, smiling. "Nice try, Girls, but I'm not falling for that."

"No, really." I say. "It's right" -I reach across the table and wipe some mashed potatoes on his nose- "there." Glimmer and I giggle.

He laughs, wiping the potatoes off of his face. "Funny." He says. "But not as funny as this," he takes a spoon full of corn and catapults it at Glimmer's face, getting it in her hair.

She gasps. "Oh, it's on, now!" She shouts, throwing her whole plate at him and laughs.

I climb over the table, along with Glimmer, and grab an apple from his plate while Glimmer grabs his milk. "Wow, Girls, spare me." He says as we get ready to throw the items in our hands. "Please? I'm defenseless."

"Nope," Glimmer says, stepping up, like she's going to throw the milk, but trips onto Cato. Both fall to the floor, laughing.

"Hey, Cowboy." I hear Glimmer say.

"Hey, City girl." He says back and they both laugh.

I clear my throat. "Am I interrupting your flirting?" I mock Glimmer.

"We're not flirting," Glimmer says, getting off of Cato.

"It sounded like flirting to me." I laugh.

"Whatever," she playfully rolls her eyes and the bell rings for us the go to gym.

We grab our stuff. "Excuse me?" We hear a voice and turn around to see a lunch lady with a smile on her face and cleaning supplies in her hands. "You three have a mess you should clean up." She shoves the supplies in our hands. "Don't move, Baby," she looks at Cato. "I think there's some clothes that you can wear that my son has in his book-bag." She turns around and starts walking into the kitchen.

***

"Throw the ball, Marvel!" Cato shouts at his brother before catching a ball.

"What?" Marvel shouts out, picking up a ball and throwing it at me. I catch it and get him out.

"Good job, Clove." Glimmer pats me on the back.

"Thanks." I say, picking a ball at my feet up and throwing it at Finnick. He dodges it and throws the ball in his hands at Madge, hitting her in the leg.

"I hate you, Finnick!" She shouts playfully at Finnick, laughing, as she sits on the bench we sit on when we're out.

Only Johanna and I remain in the game, along with Finnick, Cato, and Gale on the boys' side. "Come on, Clove, let's take 'em out" Johanna offers me a fist-bump, which I take, and we both pick up a dodgeball and run towards the center of the court. "Eat balls, Jackasses!" Johanna shouts at them as she throws a ball.

"Wanna see what it looks like when three balls connect?" I say to Johanna.

"Oh yeah." She says and fist-bumps me again. Gale throws a ball at Johanna, hitting her in the stomach. "Asshole!" She screams.

I throw a ball at Cato, he dodges it and the ball hits Finnick in the butt, making me laugh. "Damn it!" Finnick curses aloud as he throws the ball down on the gym floor, then walks to the bench to sit down. I throw another ball, hitting Gale in the chest and he goes and sits down.

"Just you and I, now." I meet Cato at half court.

"Yep," he says and pulls his arm back to throw a ball. I throw the ball I have in my hand, and he catches it, one handedly, making me out.

"Shit!" I shout as I walk to the bench. Coach Brutus, our new physical education coach, blows the whistle, dismissing us from gym class.

"I hate Gale," Johanna says to me on our way to the locker room. "With a burning, fiery, passion." Her words make me chuckle a little bit to myself.

"Whatever, Jo." I say to myself as I roll my eyes.