The Capitol Games

Chapter 2- Just how different?

We drop Addie to her home and head to the Victor's Village, after receiving two flasks of herb tea from Evelyn, and Finnick taking an extra scone. Evelyn and Peter, Addie's adoptive parents, own a café. It's a cute little thing with vintage white chairs, cupcakes with bright colored icing, sandwiches, and coffee. They bake pretty well, though not as good as dad. The frappes and sandwiches are their specialty. Addie promises to drop by later on, as this is mom's day to make dinner.

When we reach home, we are greeted by the smell of katniss tubers. Mom's signature dish. Or rather, one of the few she can make. Dad sits at the table, talking to someone over the phone.

"Hey mom. Hey dad" I chime as I remove my boots.

Dad, smiles and raises his eyebrows in greeting. Mom looks behind her shoulder, and her sweaty look of concentration melts into one of welcome.

"Hi Lian, hi Finnick."

Finnick is like a son to mom. Because of Annie's condition, he spent a lot of time growing up in our house, and mom and dad spent a lot of time taking care of him along with Sam and I. I remember countless lunches, dinners and trips to the meadow where it was the four of us Mellarks and Finnick sitting around the table, across a deck of card, sprawled on a picnic blanket. I also remember mom holding him in the night when he used to cry over Annie. Sometimes over the father he never met.

Finnick gives mom a grin in greeting, and we climb the stairs to our room. On the way, Finnick pauses and asks mom, "I can call up my mom after bath?"

"Sure." she replies. "I was speaking to her in the morning, after you left."

"Thanks, Katniss."

Mom smiles and goes back to the dinner on the stove.

As we reach the first floor, Finnick heads off to his room [yeah, his room, he is like some frequently visiting cousin.] and I crack my brother's room door open, to see what he is painting today.

"Hey Sam. What's up?"

"Painting," Sam replies not taking his eyes off the canvas.

"Still working on the same one?" I ask.

"Yeah," says another person in the room. Nate. Sam's friend.

Nate has what my mother calls 'the seam look'. Black hair, olive skin and grey eyes. Being around Nate is still a bit weird. We were dating for six months, and broke up two months ago. Well, I wouldn't call it a break up, exactly.

When I think of break ups, what comes to my mind is hysteria, tears, depression, weeks of not being seen, life-wreck for a month.

Me and Nate just sort of fizzled out. He was nice, alright. Good looking too. Not as much as Finnick, but nice. I knew him, and respected him because he was Sam's friend, so when he asked me out and then to be his girlfriend, I said yes. He was fun to be with, and honestly he was one out of the few people I actually liked. We kissed a couple of times, and I'm going to be honest, the first kiss we ever had was beyond exhilarating. But after that, stuff just kinna died off. His kisses were... alright I guess, not as awkward like the one with Finnick but I didn't feel anything too special after that first few ones. I didn't stay up all night thinking about him and smiling to myself. My spirits didn't go sky high when he took my hand. Those stuff probably only happen in books. Or only with my mom and dad. Not me for sure, and I haven't yet come across a sane person of my age who feels all these stuff for real.

I felt so awkward and also a little sad telling him about how things were going. He agreed and also admitted that he liked Lyn, a girl in a grade below us. I didn't feel bad at all, which was another factor why we shouldn't be together. I told him that that was awesome, and I would watch out for Lyn now. He laughed.