PEETA'S POV
Prim entered the room with her sapphire blue eyes gleaming with tears, her little chest slightly rising up and down, with a look on her face that indicated her trying very hard to conceal her emotions. As she turned to face me, her eyebrows lifted and her rosy lips stretched into a forced smile. I smiled back.
"And now! Her dashing district partner, Peeta Mellark! The boy on fire!" bellowed Caesar Flickerman. A lump appeared in my throat, my mucles stiffened, my fingernails began to dig into my palms as I walked out onto the stage as if I were a puppet on strings being controlled by my puppet master. An emormous wave of cheers and claps came crashing towards me as the puppet strings on my mouth were pulled by my master into a large smile.
"Ahaha! Peeta, Peeta please take a seat!" he patted the bizzare, egg shaped chair as I answered with a "Thank you, Caesar." and sat down. The audience fell silent and listened with great intrest.
"So, Peeta." Casear beamed, baring his blindingly white teeth. "I must say the gamemakers were very impressed with your level of strength and power you showed in the training centre! Please, talk us through it." he said slicking his midnight blue hair back and -once again- showing off his pearl white teeth. I opened my mouth to reply, but then I remembered. "What did Haymitch tell you to do? Remember! Err...be, yourself, be charming....be, funny! Be funny!" Ready with an answer, I cleared my throat, raised my eyebrows jokingly with a smile and spoke: "Well Caesar, I'm afraid I'm gonna have to face the audience to answer this one, because your charming smile is way too dazzling for me to look at any longer!" Laughter rose in the crowd, Caesar joined in and chuckled, "Well to be honest, my beautician, Ayenia, is known as the best in Panem! Ahaaha! But, come on, seriously talk us through it!"
"Err, ok. Back home in 12 I live in a bakery, my Father is a baker and so is my Mother. I help them too in the bakery and I guess that's where I get my strength from."Caser Flickerman raised his bright blue eyebrows and pouted his glittering lips in intrest.
"Aaahh!" he replied. "Now are you close with your parents at all?" At this question, my mind travelled back to the time where the Mayor of 12 wanted some of our finest bread. My mother demanded me to bake some ; I did as I was commanded. It was a dark, cold and rainy day. I had just placed the loaf into the blazing oven. As it warmed, cooked and gradually turned into a perfect golden colour, I instantly got distracted by something outside. A young girl dressed in bland clothes, her long dark hair sodden and in a simple braid, lying against a tree - weak, cold and starving. I instantly recognised her as Katniss. Longingly, I looked at her wondering what I could do to help, I had to help. Suddenly, my Mother came storming into the kitchen. Scared, I turned immediately. "Aaaaarrggghhhhhh! YOU DIOT! LOOK AT WHAT YOU HAVE DONE! Do you not realise that that loaf of bread if for the MAYOR! YOU'VE BURNT IT! HE'S EXPECTING IT TO COME RIGHT NOW! Uuuuggghhh!" She grabbed a pair of oven gloves, pulled out the bread which was blackened and burnt all over. I felt so worthless, so helpless, unloved and vulnerable. Mother threw the bread into my arms, pushed me out into the icy, callous rain. With a raging and disgusted look on her face, she raised her hand and slapped me on my cheek - leaving a burning red mark. "You're worthless, no use to anybody and unloved." She slammed the door shut. My heart sank so deep that I thought it wasn't there anymore. My mother, the person who gave me life, the person who is supposed to love, cherish and care for me hates me and wishes I wasn't alive. My father, does nothing to stop her, nothing to help me, nothing to support me. They are all I have in my life, and they don't even want me. Why should I even be alive? Why am I here? I shouldn't be.
Slowly, I begin to walk and Katniss catches my eye again. Starving, poor, cold. An idea came into my head and I look back towards the bakery to make sure my mother isn't there. Anxiously, I walk slightly closer to the shivering girl, and she finally looks up at me. Slowly, I take a deep breath and lift up my right arm which was holding the burnt bread. She began to sit up with more intrest at what I was doing. I gulped and threw the bread nearer towards her. Katniss looked down at it then up at me again, to ask what it meant. Feeling more relaxed, I gave her a warm smile and nodded my head. Cautiously, she moved toward it, picked it up, nodded her head at me (as to say thank you) tucked it into her dripping jacket and ran back home.
A smile appeared on my face for the first time in (what it felt like) forever. As I stood there, still as a statue, in the freezing rain, I realised something. The only person who can make a smile as real and warm as that appear on my face, is her.
My head remained down, my eyebrows still narrowed, my mind still lost in thought and my body still in the the Capitol being used for inhumane entertainment.
"Peeta? Peeta?" a faint whispering of my name comes and gradually grows louder and louder. Suddenly, the terrifylingly extravagant face of Caesar Flickerman appears and I am zapped out of my own little world. "Are you alright?" he questioned with a concerned look on his orange face. "Oh, yes! I am! I was just...erm having a thought." I answered.
"Oh, revisiting your memories? Perhaps of your parents?" Caesar wore a sympathetic expression.
"Er, yes. I'm extremely close with them, just....just having a little time thinking about how much I care for...for them and how much...th-they care f-for me." I said, forcing the words to pour out and my mind pressuring my face into a small smile.
"Awww," he cried along with the audience - who all seemed to have their shoulders dropped, hands on their chests and their heads at an angle to the left or right. The puppet strings on my mouth were tugged again into a smile. Whispers of "aww!" or "so sweet!" could be heard in the crowd. The interview went on, filled with questions like, "what do you miss most about home" and "what is your favourite thing about the Capitol?" I answered with ease, reminding myself how to play it and to impress the people betting on my life. Suddenly, came this final question. "Ahaha! Isn't he just great?" the interviewer smirked. "Now Peeta, tell me. Is there a special girl back home?" An "ooooooohh!" rose in the audience, the sound getting higher as it went. I chuckled a little and blushed as I thought of Katniss. "Err...ahaha, no Caesar there...there isn't." I answered a little uncomfortably.
"Ooohhh! Come on! A handsome sweet boy like you!"
"Aaahh, you're very kind Caesar, but unfortunately there isn't," The audience replied to this with a disappointed "awww."
“Come on Peeta! Are you sure?” said Caesar Flickerman, raising his midnight blue eyebrows. I heaved a sigh and had a think before I was definite I wanted to.
“It would help me a lot, it would get the people on my side, it’d make them feel sympathy for me, it’d get me more sponsors. And…maybe, it’d help Prim too. After all, she is her sister.”
"Aahh, ok then Caesar you got me!" I laughed.
"Aaaahhh! Yes! I knew it!" The audience cheered in joy at this confession. "Soooo! Come on Peeta, tell all! Who is this lucky lady?" he smirked and made his eyebrows do a weird dance. Nervously, I giggled, my cheeks blushed and I suddenly went a little shy. "Err...aha well,"
"Awww" the crowd answered.
"Well, er she doesn't really er...know that I like her, aha." I take a breath, I had no idea why this was so difficult for me to say. I begin to get a little flustered. "She's great! I've had a crush on her since I was really young and, after all this time she never knew. Untill now...I would do anything for her, anything anyone asks. I'll do it for her."
Slowly, an understanding and sensitive expression grew on Caesar's face whilst he slightly shook his head and clasped my hand in his. Meanwhile, the Capitol crowd let out more cries of "awwww" and "awww so sweet!" or "so romantic!" Gently, Caesar Flickerman stroked my hands with his ( which were surprisingly soft and soothing despite it's thick coating of orange skin dye) and spoke in a compassionate voice, "Well Peeta, I am very sure when I say, that I speak for all of the country, that all our love goes out for you at this moment." I exchange a kind smile with him untill he finally says to me, "So Peeta, are you going to win these games for this special girl of yours and go home to finally greet her?" he questioned. I paused for a moment to think about this comment. Eventually, I say: "Well, I'm not even sure if she likes me back. Probably...p-probably doesn't."
"Awww! Don't think like that Peeta! Any lady would fall for you! Aren't I right audience?" cried Caesar. The crowd roared and cheered in reply as I chuckled nervously.
"No, instead I'm going to give her something better, something I know she'll love,"
"And what's that?" he asked, intrigued. The audience fell silent, eager to hear the end of the sentence. "I'm gonna give her, her sister back."
