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silasmadams · 4 years

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💔💝❤️A Mild Defense of Love Triangles 🚶‍♂️👫

INTRO

As the title indicates I want to offer my defense of the love triangle. In my opinion, shitting on the love triangle is the equivalent of beating a dead horse and if you want to continue beating said dead horse, go right ahead. Who am I to stop you? But that being said, I think love triangles get a bad rap. I will say that a lot of the criticism of love triangles, especially in more recent works, is fair. A lot of the criticisms bring up important points and shine lights on the overuse of this trope, to the point that when it’s used well people still decide to shit on it or call it out. Now, the YA genre especially can do this poorly. I love YA, for the uninitiated that just means Young Adult. I think YA is a fantastic genre and there are hundreds of gems within it but again there’s a lot of overuse of the love triangle and when it’s used well, even within the YA genre, it’s still seen as bad because people have decided that using the love triangle is automatically only for cheap romance or unneeded drama or what have you. And this is true in certain cases but not all.

As such it’s unfair to dismiss this trope so easily. I mean I get it, we’ve all got tropes we hate, I absolutely despise the constant setting of fantasy within a medieval England type sphere or the trope of when there’s one female character in a group whose sole purpose is to be the love interest OR the dark brooding bad boy who’s an absolute asshole but we’re expected to like him and be into his bastardry because of his tragic backstory, and so on. Suffice to say I’ve got my fair share of issues about tropes in the literature world but as a whole, love triangles aren’t my top priority among them, hence the title.

I’m going to discuss three books/series that I feel do the love triangle justice. Regardless of the book’s own merit, I feel this aspect of them was done well. I believe there are two main ways that the love triangle can be done right. The first is pure emotions where the characters bounce off each other perfectly and make you invested in all the involved parties. That is to say, not a love vector, not a love segment with an additional point on the periphery, but an actual triangle where all three characters have some relationship with one another be it romantic, platonic, or hate-filled. The second is by having the love interests double as different ideologies/beliefs that the main person must choose. These two types can and often do overlap which only further adds to the strength of the love triangle that’s depicted.

Fair warning, there will be spoilers (mild or otherwise) for the following: The Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare, The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, and My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante (the first book only).

EXAMPLE 1: THE INFERNAL DEVICES BY CASSANDRA CLARE

The Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare. I have long since fallen out of love with her books, but I feel as though this series is a good example of the love triangle based on pure emotions done right. Whatever opinions you may have of this author it’s important to give credit where credit is due.

Within the Infernal Devices, there is the main love triangle between Will, Tessa, and Jem. Will is your typical bad boy with a heart of gold except in Victorian England, Jem is a kind-hearted musician with a drug addiction. Tessa is the newcomer to the magical world that the boys know and she is an avid reader who constantly talks about the books she's read or would like to read. Now the reason this love triangle works as well as it does is because each party, in their own way, is in love with the other person. Will loves Tessa and the reader sees that through their escapades, their secret romances, their longing gazes and what not. Jem also loves Tessa and the reader similarly sees that through their shared conversations and affectionate moments. Tessa loves both of these boys which is evident through her internal dialogue that we as the reader are able to peer into, and if Clare had stopped there then this would be a poor love triangle, however, she doesn’t. She instead chooses to establish a strong and clear relationship between Will and Jem that showcases their own love for each other. They have a connection that is incredibly strong and goes beyond the terms of simple ‘bromance’ if you will. Jem, as someone who was forced to take a life altering drug and then became addicted to it, is an individual that is constantly in poor health and Will constantly cares for and protects him. He’s worried for him and tries to keep him safe and happy as best he can. They are the link in the love triangle that allows it to be as engaging as it is. They are not merely two boys fighting over a prize, they are two people that love each other and also happen to love the same girl. When Jem and Tessa become engaged, Will is heartbroken but it comes off as a heartbreak from both sides, he’s hurt by both Jem and Tessa choosing each other and leaving him. Tessa herself is unsure of the match because she continues to harbor feelings for Will while also being in love with Jem.

Within the series, it’s not just one side you care about. Sure, there were people who were rooting for Will over Jem or Jem over Will but the vast majority didn’t want anyone hurt, they were invested and they wanted a solution that would end with neither one of them upset. I, as a reader, cared for these characters and not just in the sense of who Tessa would choose but in the sense of the boy’s relationship with each other. Was this something they could move past, were they strong enough to get through these emotions and come out stronger on the other side? When reading it myself I clearly remember that tension and that desire for these characters to be happy.

In this sense, the emotions drive the series and even as I was starting to lose interest in Clare’s writing style and her books, I stuck around to see the conclusion of this romance. I’ll admit I was upset and am still somewhat bitter about the ending. You had all the chances to make it an excellent Polyamory ship, Clare but you didn’t! Regardless of the lackluster ending of this love triangle, I’d still put this as a great example of the emotional aspect in a love triangle done right, due in part to the lasting impact it has. Because, even years after finishing the series I still think about it and I still hope to write a relationship like that in my own stories, one that sticks with the reader long after they’ve finished the series or even have fallen out of love with the authors books.

EXAMPLE 2: THE HUNGER GAMES BY SUZANNE COLLINS

When I talk about this series I am specifically talking about the books, not the movies. The movies are well done, don’t get me wrong and they stick close to the series but the marketing of the movies and the desire to push the whole “Team Peeta” or “Team Gale” is something that muddies the movies for me. I know this is something that was present in the books as well but I wasn’t too active online when I first read them so I never had that aspect of the books in my head. I also want to note that the romance isn’t the main focus of this series but the love triangle in it serves a good example of a well done love triangle based on equating the individual to an identity/belief system.

What I mean by the boys representing a belief system/different life/identity is this; I mean that someone like Gale is the old world belief, the more stringent, masculine, and typical. He is attractive and he is familiar, he is something that Katniss has known her whole life and as such he’s the obvious choice. It’s something expected, they’re not only from the same class but they share a similar backstory. Gale is the type of person Katniss would be expected to go with. They are the perfect pair because they are not a change from the status quo they are acceptable. Peeta, on the other hand, is from a different class than Katniss, a higher class. He is not the traditionally masculine option, he’s not a miner or a hunter but a baker. He doesn’t have the same views as Gale and is seen as the gentler of the two boys. Where Gale is strength, Peeta is kindness, where Gale is anger, Peeta is forgiveness, and so on. These two are diametric opposites even in terms of their physical appearances. Gale looks like Katniss, that is brown skin, dark hair, dark eyes because that is what the lower classes look like, that is how the reader is meant to initially discern from poor and rich with the exception of Prim and Katniss’s mother. Her mother having married lower than her class and her sister having the resemblance of their mother, subtly insinuating that Prim is the sister meant for greater things. Typically the higher classes, like the one Peeta is a part of, are light-skinned with light hair, light eyes, they are the merchants and local politicians, etc. Therefore they, the boys, not only represent different beliefs but different life-styles all together. When the third book in the trilogy comes around and Katniss is given a choice of mercy or revenge, Gale stands on the side of revenge, on the side that says they should take the children of the capitol and have them fight each other, Hunger Games style. Peeta on the other hand stands on the side of mercy where he argues that it is inhumane and cruel and by going forward with the plan for revenge they are no better than the people they took down, they are not saviors but rather they are the people here to replace Snow. When Katniss shoots Coin instead of Snow, she chooses mercy and thus she chooses Peeta, she chooses a quiet and gentle life rather than an extravagant one under cameras. By having the boys be polar opposites in ideological beliefs it makes Katniss’s choice of the two boys not about romance, which seems fitting for her considering she isn’t exactly a romantic and more interested in doing what she believes to be right, but about choosing and sticking with a certain belief/ideology/etc. It explains her waffling between the two boys as well, she is trying to understand her own viewpoints and the flip flopping from one boy to the other allow her to explore said points.

EXAMPLE 3: MY BRILLIANT FRIEND BY ELENA FERRANTE

In all honesty, this book alone deserves its own review and I have been meaning to talk about in detail but I don’t want to start talking about it until I’ve finished the entire series. For now, I’ll be talking about the first book and its use of love triangles, squares, so on. Love shapes if you will. This series follows the friendship of two girls in post-war Italy from childhood to early adulthood. Unlike the other examples, this isn’t a YA book but a Historical Fiction, adult book.

I’ve already discussed the use of emotions and angst as well as belief systems. This book is an example of both being used. The boys in this book are a way to depict how the women are meant to navigate the world they live in while the women themselves, Lila and Elena are a depiction of pure emotion. Each character that shows interest in Lila and to an extent Elena serves as a way to depict different forms of ideologies/government/etc. There is not one love triangle, but multiple love triangles happening at once. As such I can’t touch on every aspect here so I’m going to only give a quick run-down.

The men or boys in question that are after Lila are Stefano (Capitalism), Marcello (Fascism), Pasquale (Communism), while the boys after Elena are Nino (Academia/Education) and Antonio (The Plebs/Common Folk/Poverty). Within this group there are love triangles galore and since I can’t focus on all of them, I’m going to briefly talk about the love triangle of Lila, Pasquale, and Elena. This love triangle is one that’s more towards the beginning of the novel and its set when the girls are beginning to grow out of childhood and into adulthood. Pasquale is the first boy to show interest not in Elena but in Lila. This brings out jealousy in Elena because even though Lila has always been smarter than her, she has always been the more beautiful of the two friends. Once Pasquale starts to show interest in Lila, it becomes a gateway for the other boys to look on and also begin to fawn over Lila. Hence why it goes Pasquale, Marcello, and Stefano, much like the history of Italy itself (though I’ll admit I’m no expert on that). However, whenever the boys do fawn over Lila, Elena is always present. Lila and Elena themselves have deep rivalry and love that goes back years. They are constantly at each other's throats but they are also best friends. Their bond is something that goes unbroken, even when they fight, they obsess over each other and refuse to let the other out of their mind. In all of the love triangles that show up there is always a version that involves the girls in some way. For Example, the love triangle is Lila, Pasquale, and Marcello. There is ofcourse a version of it where Elena is involved, being Lila, Elena, and Marcello. Unlike the other two series examples, this one is more intricate and complex, that by no means takes away from the other two but it shows how the love triangle can be more than what most people give it credit for. It can be a series of interlocking relationships each as convoluted and twisted as our relationships in real life tend to be. When reading all these relationships and love triangles I was never struck with a feeling of boredom and I never felt the urge to roll my eyes. I was invested in the stories and the links, I wanted to know what would happen, I wanted to know where the relationship of Lila and Elena went, I wanted to know who or if they would choose a suitor. I was entrenched in their lives, I cared what happened along with seeing the parallels of ideologies that were offered their way. This is probably one of the best examples of modern love triangles I can think off.

CONCLUSION

I don’t really have a deep thing to say here at the end. I don’t even know if you’re convinced by ramblings or not. I just think people should allow themselves to be more creative with the love triangle trope. A trope is after all, only bad when it's blatantly predictable and doesn’t make the reader feel anything. I think it’s high time we gave the love triangle another go instead of constantly shoving it back in a corner or looking down on it because ‘romance bad’ especially since its purpose isn’t just romance but relationships of various natures. The love triangle deserves far more credit than being relegated to what a lot of people deem a ‘lesser’ genre. So, have I changed your mind? Do you remain steadfast in hating the love triangle? Tell me if you want or go about your day as usual if you’d rather not.

A VIDEO THAT TALKS ABOUT LOVE TRIANGLES THAT YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT:

https://youtu.be/QojOfp8V7rA

I came across this video after having written this but I thought it was also an interesting take on the defense of/falling back in love with the love triangle.

BOOKS MENTIONED:

The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

The Infernal Devices Book Series

The Infernal Devices, the Complete Collection: Clockwork Angel; Clockwork Prince; Clockwork Princess

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games Book Series

The Hunger Games Trilogy Boxed Set (1) (8601400319468): Suzanne Collins: Books

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante

https://www.alibris.com/search/books/isbn/9781609450786?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=NMPi_Smart_Shopping&utm_term=NMPi_Smart_Shopping&ds_rl=1264488&ds_rl=1264488&gclid=Cj0KCQiAnL7yBRD3ARIsAJp_oLanfQZ7YxglG4iP0K1_LaJhsVUDMCH6HJVo_BSrS9IBFCvGe2-r4KkaAtTrEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

My Brilliant Friend: Neapolitan Novels, Book One: Elena Ferrante, Ann Goldstein: 8601400235683

OR get them all at your library, it’s free after all. If your library is closed due to the pandemic, a lot of libraries have ebooks you can borrow. They typically have a large collection online so go ahead and try your luck there, and of course, stay safe and stay inside if you can.

CHECK OUT MY BLOG:

https://silasmadams.home.blog/2020/04/09/%f0%9f%92%94%f0%9f%92%9d%e2%9d%a4%ef%b8%8fa-mild-defense-of-love-triangles-%f0%9f%9a%b6%e2%80%8d%e2%99%82%ef%b8%8f%f0%9f%91%ab/

#love triangle #books #elena ferrante #suzanne collins #cassandra clare #trilog #the infernal devices #the hunger games #my brilliant friend #defense #blog #book blog post

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everlarkficexchange · 7 years

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Tripple Dog Date Him!

Written by: @alliswell21

Prompt #57: Katniss is dared to ask nerdy!Peeta out on a date, she ends up actually enjoying her time with him. By: Anonymous.

Rated: T for some language.

Triggers: None

Word Count: Around 7500

Summary: Katniss has known of Peeta Mellark since they were little, but not until her roommate Johanna decides Katniss has had a too long hiatus from the dating scene, she dares speak to the boy.

This piece has not been betaed. All mistakes are mine.

I make my way to Greasy Sae’s, the diner I work at five days a week; I get a discount on my bill if I eat here… the life of a college student doesn’t support luxuries, like passing up ‘discounted prices’ on hearty meals and if Old Sae, the owner of the diner, is here without her watchful granddaughter, my meals become free, which is an even better value for my wallet.

My friend and roommate, Johanna, is already seated at our usual booth, so I make my way towards her and slide in on my side of the bench. We don’t speak, merely grunting our greetings to each other and burying our noses on the sticky menu we already know by heart. Jo introduced me to Sae, that’s how I got the job of waitress at her fine establishment, which means, Jo gets free meals too, making Sae’s diner our favorite place to eat.

The old woman comes herself to our table and sits a mug of mint tea in front of me and a cherry Coke in front of Jo.

“You girls need a second to peruse the menu, or should I just go ahead and bring out your usual?”

We both look at old Sea’s smirking face, and say “Usual” at the same time, which causes the old lady to guffaw all the way back to the kitchen.

Having nothing better to do, we go back at staring at the menu.

Johanna and I had a little impasse this morning, and we are giving the cold shoulder to each other. Or at least I thought we were.

“Was the night you went out with Gale, the last time you went out on a date?” She asks breaking the icy standoff.

I scrunch up my face, “Nah. I went to that frat party with Darius. A big, fat waste of my time.” I sigh remembering the disaster that date was.

“Mhmm.” She’s frowning at the chili section of the menu, then she clears her throat, “Fine, then it’s high time you went out on a date. That debacle with Darius was almost four months ago.”

“I don’t wanna go on a date!” I protest slapping the menu onto the table.

“Why not? You go on a date, I get the dorm to myself for a few hours where I can invite some willing guy, to get me off this dry spell… both figuratively and literally!” she places her own menu down delicately, staring me down.

“No!” I cross my arms over my chest like a brat.

“Why?”

“There aren’t any guys I’d like to go out with!” I say harshly.

“Then try a girl. I’ve always say, there’s fun in diversity,”

“I’m not attracted to girls, Johanna,”

“Then I’ll choose a dude for you, Brainless. What do you say?” She grins deviously.

“I said no!” I stomp my foot under the table, but she’s on a mission.

Johanna scoots upwards in her bench, and her eyes make a wide scan of the place. Is a Sunday evening, and the diner offers student specials when the cafeteria at campus is close on the weekends. The place is packed with kids from every year.

“Aha!” Johanna shouts delighted, “Him!”

I turn, only because of morbid curiosity forces my head, but once I locate the guy she’s pointing at, I snort derisively.

“Big fat no!” I tell her.

“What’s wrong with Jack Marvel?” She asks arching an eyebrow.

“Ugh! No. He was in my literature class freshmen year, he’s got two cockroaches playing ping-pong in his head instead of brains. Pass!”

“O-kaaaay…” she looks around the room. “Ooh! I got it!”

I look again, and this time it takes me a second longer to shut down her candidate.

“I’m not going out with Alexander Cato. He’s a misogynistic pig! He got offended because I got top marks on our last math test. He called me a cheat, even though he was the one asking every soul in the room, what they had answered on number four. Parasite!”

“But you looked at him. That means we are on the right track,” Jo says shrugging one shoulder.

“He’s okay looking, if you ignore what a big jerk he actually is.”

“So, you like blondes now?”

I scowl at her teasing tone and roll my eyes. “I don’t really have a type per say… I actually thought it was someone else until I realized his shoulders weren’t the right breadth,”

“What does that even mean?” She asks arching a brow, and I know I’ve said too much.

“Nothing. It means nothing.”

“Fine, how about…” she pauses for a moment.

I don’t like how easily she’s dropped the subject. She’s never this easy. Then, I see a broad smile form on her lips before she looks back at me.

“I found the perfect guy,” she mock whispers.

I’m scrambling up, trying to twist all the way around to see who she’s talking about, then I cackle at her choice.

“Puh-lease!” I chant, “Odair? Are you serious? Get real, Johanna! What makes you think I’ll even try it?”

“Okay, now what’s wrong with Finnick?” She actually looks indignant. “I’ll have you know, Finn and I go way back, and he’s an alright dude!”

I roll my eyes, “If you must know, Finnick Odair is too pretty. He knows he’s pretty and takes advantage of it. I wouldn’t touch his narcissistic ass with a ten foot pole, even if he was the last guy left in school. He’s too easy to get, or maybe too easy to lose… I haven’t decided which is worse yet.”

“You’re wrong about Finn,” Johanna says annoyedly, “He’s engaged to his high school sweetheart. He might be a big flirt, but he’s no cheater.”

“Then why did you pointed him out as an option?” I ask aggravated.

“I didn’t.” She hisses, “I was pointed at the guy sitting with him.” And like that, the smirk is back on her face.

I turn in my seat, straining my neck to see who’s she talking about.

I freeze.

Then just as fast as I turned to look, I drop into my bench and try to shrink myself as small as I can.

I can’t believe Johanna!

She starts chuckling quietly, no doubt laughing at my discomfort.

“So? What do you think of my pick, Kitty Kat?” She asks.

I glare at her. “No.” I grit between my teeth.

She whines, “Awww. Why? He’s got everything you kind of like,” she says smirking, “actual brains in his head, sparkling baby blue eyes, muscles that go on forever, a boyish smile, and that wavy ashy mop of blonde hair covering his nerdy brain!” She laughs full on, “He’s perfect!”

I turn back to spy on him and make sure he’s not aware we’re talking about him. Lousy Johanna is right. He is pretty perfect, and completely out of the question, don’t get me started on how out my league he is.

“That is an absolute ‘hell no!’” I say through gritted teeth.

To my horror, Johanna waves.

“What are you doing?” I screech trying and failing to lunge myself across the table to stop her.

“What? Stop!” She snaps. “I’m just trying to get Sae’s attention you maniac!”

I cover my face with my hands in embarrassment, and plop sideways into the bench.

“Jeez! If I knew little baker boy had your panties in such a tight knot I would’ve made you talk to him sooner.” She bites, not one bit amused.

“I- he- is not that. He’s out of bounds.” I say lamely.

“Out of bounds?” She repeats staring at me as if I’ve sprouted a second head, “what are you talking about?”

I take a deep breath to calm myself. “My friend Delly, she’s always had her eye on him. They were next door neighbors growing up, their parents still live next to each other. They were very good friends. She always got invited to his place to play with his action figures. They used to exchange comic books, even though Delly couldn’t care less about them, her brother used to tell her all she needed to know to get by.”

Johanna is still staring at me as if I just said the stupidest thing ever. Which she promptly voices after I’ve finally gone mute.

“That’s ridiculous, Brainless. You won’t ask a guy out because a girl you knew in elementary school had a crush on him?” Her tone is disbelieving. “Isn’t Delly the one girl with the humongous boobs?” She asks.

“Yeah, so?”

“Last time we went to your house, she was talking non stop about this Thom guy she met at work. She sounded pretty serious about him, Katniss.” She says in a patronizing tone I hate.

“Jo, you don’t understand. Peeta Mellark and I have nothing in common, other than we come from the same town. But I grew up on the wrong side of the tracks so to speak, while he was the rare, golden boy, who could be both a brainiac- debate club president- and a jock- wrestling champ- at the same time, and everyone loved. Me– I wasn’t popular. Hell, I would’ve believed I was unlikable, if it hadn’t been for Gale, Delly and Madge insisting on sitting with me at lunch all through high school. I have no business messing with that boy.” I deflate.

Sae places our food in front of us, and I smile at her gratefully, because Johanna is nothing but a one mind track sort of being, she’ll drop the whole thing once she starts eating, and then she’ll concentrate in the next thing that happens, except, she doesn’t.

Johanna finishes her greasy double steakburger with cheese, sucking a stranded piece of finely sliced onion into her mouth as if it was a single spaghetti noodle with a pop at the end.

I try not watch her disgusting eating habits while I try to finish up with my bowl of lamb stew over rice, poking around for a plum. I believe I may be the only patron under sixty to ever order the stew, but it just reminds me of home in rainy days, but my peace is disturbed when my dinner mate starts slurping obnoxiously the last dregs of her soda through her chewed up straw.

I glare at her, she knows I hate it when she does that, but she smirks, letting me know every nasty sound she’s made in the last five minutes were all for my benefit. Sometimes is easy to for me to see Johanna as the annoying older sister I’m grateful I never had.

“So,” she says smacking her lips loudly, “I’ve been thinking.”

I groan, sliding my food away from me. It’s never a good thing when Johanna’s sentences start with ‘I’ve been thinking’, so I brace myself for whatever crazy idea has been floating around her idle mind.

“I believe is time for you to go on a date, so I can go forth and get laid.”

“Oh please, Johanna, don’t be crass–”

“No, no! Hear me out.” She toots haughtily rising her hand. “I know you don’t believe in casual sex- hell, I know you didn’t give it up to Gale, and he’s been after that shit since he could jerk off–”

“JOHANNA! Good grief.” I hiss, “I don’t think the people in the table across the diner heard you! Could you, please, mind your words?” I shake my head, because she looks too gleeful when she shrugs.

“Fine, have it your way Mother Teresa. As I was saying, it is my expert opinion, that is in both our best interests if you went out on a date. I seriously don’t care who you go out with, as long as you let me have the dorm to myself for a couple of hours.” And then, she pulls her big guns against me: her huge, brown puppy dog eyes! “Pretty please with a cherry on top?” she sounds pitiful.

I rub my face with both my hands, and finally acquiesce to her pleads. I hate the smug, pleased smile she throws at me right after, but I figure she’s right. I haven’t been out on a date since forever, not that I date much, but nothing can go as wrong as Darius puking on me- twice- in less than thirty minutes, which was how long it took me to drop him off at the Campus infirmary after confirming his food poisoning. I shudder at the memory.

We leave our booth, and shuffle behind a group of giggling sorority girls trying to skip on their meal check, but Sae fixes them with her deadly accurate impersonation of a neapolitan mastiff- the breed is truly harmless, but so intimidating. When she sees us standing there, she waves us off smiling and saying we our dinner was on the house, causing the sorority sister to glare daggers at us and a male full laugh to bubble up behind us.

I turn around to see who’s the idiot that actually dares to piggyback a laugh on our moment, and I’m surprised to find myself face to face with the most stunning ocean green eyes I’ve ever seen in my life, accompanied by the whitest, sparkliest perfect row of teeth, in the history of the world. Damn that Finnick Odair is unreal.

“Great! Good going Finn! You broke my roommate!” says Jo next to me, except her voice is too full of mirth to be a tell off.

“Hey Jo! How’s it going sweetums?” He asks allowing his lips to fall into an easy smile, framed by dimpled cheeks.

He reaches an arm past me, and I freeze, his eyes honed on mine, which may be the size of flying saucers judging by how dry they feel right now.

“Hi there, roommate. Although I rather call you by your real name, Katniss?”

Okay. Now I’m officially in shock, the most gorgeous man on earth knows my name somehow, but we’ve never been introduced before. Who cares if he just dragged the ss at the end of my name in the most obnoxious manner ever!

He finally pulls his arm back to himself, and I see he’s got a small pile of sugar cubes on his hand. He pops a cube into his mouth and asks me in the smoothest voice I’ve ever heard directed at me, “Want a sugar cube, Katniss?”

The crunching sound he makes while chewing, finally brings me back to earth. I frown at the noise and take a step back.

“Leave her alone, would you?” says another voice, male, deep, not truly harsh, but still rings like a command.

Finnick’s megawatt smile dims immediately, his eyes do a quick take of who spoke and then turns back to me, with a friendly grin. He step back, popping another sugar cube into his mouth he most likely stole from the counter behind me.

But I’m back to catatonic state, staring at my knight in shining armour, giving his friend a stern look before facing me, but as usual, Jo has to be the one to open her loud mouth.

“Hey there, handsome,” She says in a sugary tone. When Peeta ‘freaking’ Mellark doesn’t answer, she turns to his companion, “Hey Finn, does your friend have a name?” she asks coyly.

Finnick laughs, “Of course, Jo!” He obliges before I can turn to give Jo a searing glare of death.

She knows full well who Finnick’s friend is.

“This is Peeta Mellark. Outstanding dude, my best friend, second only to Annie herself, and my roommate.” He turns to Peeta, who’s eyes keep flicking back and forth between me and Finnick. “Peet, this Johanna Mason a long time friend of mine, and you know this lovely lady standing next to Jo is–”

“Katniss Everdeen.” Peeta finishes the sentence apparently out of breath, while Finnick’s lips lift on a devilish grin he can’t quite hide fast enough. But Peeta keeps talking, bringing my spasmic attention back to him. “Very nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard many great things about you from Dells.”

My response is to nod followed by a very pitiful “Likewise,” that comes out as strained and congested. It’s not my fault, really. He’s taken my hand in his to shake, and I’m overwhelmed by how warm and big it feels around my own. As soon as he lets go of it, I wipe it on my pant leg because suddenly my palms are sweating uncontrollably immediately regret my action, because I don’t want to wipe away the feeling of his touch just yet.

“So, tonight is Peet’s turn to pick up the check, and I figured I’d ask if we could take yours as well, lovely ladies… but I see Old Sae beat me to the punch,” Finnick says sending a smile to Sae still sitting behind the register.

The old woman, cackles mirthfully, “You can still do the gentlemanly thing and pay for the girls’ grub, you know.” But since she’s still laughing when Peeta passes her his credit card, we all know she wont charge him for our food.

Jo thanks Finnick and Peeta anyway for their offer, which I would’ve refused anyway if it came down to it. I like free meals and all, but a girl has to have some dignity.

Jo and Finn truly are friends, and for some crazy reason decide on staying in the middle of the diner lobby catching up. I catch Peeta’s eyes several time, but he averts his eyes so fast is a wonder he hasn’t lost one those baby-blues so far. My face starts to feel warm with his confusing attention, and I start to squirm as sweat starts to bead on my forehead and around the collar of my shirt. I need to get out of this place quickly, before I do something stupid, like tell Peeta Mellark I used to have a crush on him almost my whole childhood.

I’m grateful when we finally part ways after an awkward goodbye exchange between me and everyone else. I practically run in the direction of campus, listening how Johanna turns down Finnick’s offer to drive us back to our dorm. Apparently Finnick Odair and Peeta Mellark are living in a rented house with two more guys somewhere close by, I just don’t sit there long enough to learn any details.

Johanna finally catches up with me, and while I try to ignore her pointed stares, I know that sooner or later she’s gonna open her mouth to say whatever crazy thing she thinks she just saw, so I don’t give her a chance.

“I’m not gonna ask him out on a date, if that’s what you are thinking about.” I say firmly.

“Oh come on! The guy couldn’t keep his eyes off you, as if you were Gal Gadot in your skimpy Wonder Woman costume straight out of the big screen. Plus I didn’t say anything.” she counters nonchalantly. “Not yet at least.”

“Well, you’re wasting your time, Jo. I won’t ask him out. If he was staring at me, was probably wondering why I was staring at him like an idiot”

“You are an idiot, brainless! But fine!” she snaps grabbing my arm and forcing me to stop mid step. “Lets fix old school.” She says flatly.

“What do you mean ‘old school’?” I ask dubiously.

“You’ll see as soon as we are back in our room. And since it’s old school, there’s no ‘givesis backsis’ and no double crossing the deal. You can’t back out!” she says.

For some reason this whole conversation is so childish and immature, I chuckle, and like a chump, I agree to her ludicrous terms. Because that’s what I am: a chump.

We finally arrive home, and that’s when everything goes downhill for me.

“Sit!” Johanna commands.

I make to sit on my desk chair, while she goes shifting stuff behind her bed, where I know she keep her hidden booze- we aren’t allowed alcohol in the dorms, but that doesn’t mean people don’t have a secret stash somewhere.

“On the floor, Brainless!” she growls at me as soon as my ass touches the chair, making me jump startled.

Once again, I do as she says, and slide on my butt on to the gross carpet, we try to avoid by placing our own area rugs everywhere we think we will be barefooted.

Soon, Johanna is joining me on the floor with a bottle of something amber that’s only a third full. “Pass your laptop here.” She demands unscrewing the bottle open.

“What do you want my laptop for?” I ask. “I thought you were solving this old school. A computer is not very old school, in case you didn’t know.” I snort a little, thinking up something clever, “I thought we were gonna play spin the bottle or something,”

“Shut up, Brainless. We can’t play spin the bottle just the two of us, that’ll be stupid!” She chugs a generous pull of whatever liquor she’s got and passes the bottle to me, taking the computer in turn.

I’m not much of a drinker, so I just hold the bottle for her, while I see her signing in on my facebook account.

“Hey! That’s personal! I could report you for that you know?” I scream at her and try to grab my laptop from her, but in one of her Johanna moves, she holds me away by placing her foot on my chest while stretching away from my reach.

“Stop, Katniss, I’m looking for your friend Delly, so quit being a whiny brat and let a woman work in peace.”

“I don’t know what you want with Delly, but whatever it is, you’re going too far!”

“Aha!” she crows jubilantly, jumping up and keeping the computer away from me still. “Okay, Brainless, time of truth! You said the reason for refusing to talk to Bread Boy, is because Delly used to like him when they were kids.”

“Yes. So?” I grumble and sit back down crossing every limb of my body until I’m a human knot.

“So, this is a modified game of Truth or Dare.”

I shrug. Truth or Dare doesn’t scare me. “Do your worse then,” I taunt.

She sits down across from me sporting a mirror image of my facial expression. I see her eyes go up and down as she scrolls the page currently on display on the screen, and then I see her smug smirk make an appearance.

Jo knows almost everything about me, we managed to stay roommates since my freshman year, she had been in school for a while before I came in, with classes scattered about every semester since she had become an orphan just a month after starting her first year and had to drop off until she got her life back on track. We became reluctant friends after a while, and then I invited her to come home with me during Thanksgiving break, since I thought it sucked she had nobody else to go home to. My family practically adopted her on the spot, despite her potty mouth and boisterous personality. In no time she had met everyone in town, and thanks to my sweet, big mouthed little sister, Prim, that included everything there was to know about one Peeta Mellark, youngest son of the best known baker in my home county.

She deduced pretty quickly I had a schoolgirl crush on the guy growing up, and has never let it down since. I didn’t use to mind her harassing jokes until tonight though.

“What?” I ask loosing patience.

“Truth: Delly Cartwright is madly in love with a Thomas Miner. Both their profiles say they are ‘in a relationship’ with each other, which means is pretty serious. Serious enough to take a nice, long cruise together to the Coast of Mexico as an engagement gift!”

“No way!” I exclaim, climbing on all fours and crawling to her to take a peek at the page she’s looking at. “Holy shit! You’re right!”

It’s true. Delly is somewhere sipping margaritas with Thom in some beach in Mexico, sporting a rock the size of Texas on her ring finger. She looks good!

“She looks very happy,” I say absently.

“She does. Power to her.” says Jo. “Now that we’ve got the truth out of the way, let’s bring in the dare!”

“Hey, I never said this was my truth. If anything it’s Delly’s truth.” I protest.

“No takesis backsis, Brainless. A deal is a deal!” She glares at me. “I never said I was going to ask you any truths. So, listen up, buttercup, here’s your dare:”

“Ugh, please… don’t call me Buttercup. That beast of a cat hates me!”

“That’s because you antagonize him. Prim’s cat is perfectly sweet to me and everyone else.”

I roll my eyes at her, but I’m unable to do anything else, because she goes off stating her Dare:

“I dare you to say hello to Peeta Mellark next time you see him,”

I take a second to think this over, and come to the conclusion than saying hello to Peeta is a perfectly innocent dare, It shouldn’t be that hard now that we got officially introduced to each other. I nod reluctantly, “Fine, dare accepted. I’ll say hi to Peeta next time I see him around.”

“Cool. I’m glad we could come to an understanding, Brainless. Now let’s get ready for bed. I gotta be up at the crack of dawn tomorrow.”

I lift myself off the floor feeling Johanna was oddly easy to appease just now. Usually she’s like a hound with a prey scent in her nose. I don’t know why was she so agreeable and her dare so easy, but I’m not gonna argue about it, specially since she dropped the subject, finally!

————————————————

Two days go by before I see Peeta again, and to my utter horror, he’s chatting with Johanna when I spot him at the library. I try to duck out of sight before they notice me, but as is my luck, his bright blue eyes shift up right into mine at the precise moment I think of my escape route at the other side of the room. Unfortunately for me, Johanna follows his sight and smirks as soon as she sees me, then she squeezes his arm saying something to him, and slinks in my direction like a kitten spying a bowl of cream.

“Hi, Katniss,” she drags the ss like Finnick did the night we met, and I already hate the sound of it.

“Jo,” I deadpan.

“Come on, Brainless. It’s pay-up time!” she links her arm with mine and I swear she skips gleefully the whole way back to Peeta, who’s just watching us interact as if it was the most interesting thing he’s seen all day.

We finally stop in front of him, and I feel my cheeks flame for a second. I hope my tongue decided to cooperate so I can say hello and get Johanna off my back for good, but she starts blabbing about something I can’t quite follow, giving me a chance to find my nerve.

“So, Katniss, Peeta here was telling me about his amazing gaming system collection. He says he’s got one console of every system released–”

“Um, more like I have one of each consoles I could afford with my allowance money starting on seventh grade.” He corrects Jo with an embarrassed chuckle, his cheeks tint a slight pink color that actually suits him pretty nicely.

“Yeah, but didn’t you say some of them are now considered classics?” She prods smiling, twisting my arm in hers painfully.

He chuckles again, averting his eyes to the floor. The pink in his cheeks intensify, and it finally clicks with me, that what Jo is saying is embarrassing him for some reason.

“Hi!” I say too loud and seemingly out of the blue, but I finally get him to look at me and erase a bit of his embarrassment to boot. “H-how are you? I love your buns, I mean, the cheese buns your dad sells, you know? The ones with the gooey cheese on them, those are like my favorite treat ever. My sister is more partial to the cakes, because they’re so pretty and all, but I rather eat something less sugary… not because I’m watching my diet or anything, I hate diets, is more the fact that I enjoy cheese… um… okay, so, I know nothing about video games, but I’m sure you were very popular in school for having all those consoles–”

The only reason my freaky word vomit stops is because Johanna’s nails dig into my forearm viciously. I’ll have a huge, ugly scar there when she finally lets go of it, but right now I’m glad she’s put an end to my running mouth.

My eyes are watering slightly, and I can see the puzzlement in his face clear as day. Poor guy looks like he’s been hit on the face with a rubber chicken: a mix of disbelief and the same curiosity that forces you to watch a train wreck from beginning to end.

“Excuse us a sec, Blondie?” Johanna pulls me away, but my eyes remain unblinking staring at him in utter horror.

“Shit,” I groan just loud enough for Johanna to hear.

“Shit is right! The hell was that? Is that what nervous-Katniss sounds like? Because it’s absolutely horrible.” She wrinkles her nose, and I finally manage to tear my eyes away from Peeta’s face.

“Thank you, Jo! I hope you’re happy now! I told you I was no good at saying something to people, especially him!”

“Hush, is a good thing he’s got a thing for you, otherwise you would have blown it just now, miss awkward.”

“What are you talking about, Johanna? He doesn’t have a thing for me.”

She rolls her eyes and tells me in her most aggravated voice, “You truly are brainless.” she softens her tone a little after taking a generous breath, “Alright, everything’s not lost. If the way he looks at you is any indication, he doesn’t care one bit how tongue tied you are, so all you have to do now, is go up there and ask him out on a date!” She sounds like she’s been planning this for quite some time now.

“Not gonna happen, Johanna. I can’t ask him out!”

“Why? And please don’t tell me it’s because of Delly, since we’ve already ruled Delly out of the equation.” She glares at me.

“Well, as you clearly see, I scared the daylights out of him. I will not make an even bigger idiot out of myself. We both saw how it was when I tried to say hello. It was supposed to be a simple greeting and it went totally wrong. So it’s not about Delly anymore, but about my inability to act like a normal person when he’s around.”

“Brainless, if you don’t go out there and ask him out this instant… I swear to Jebus I’m gonna make it my life mission to remind you of your yellow belly for the rest of your life.”

“I, dare you!” I retort brattily.

“No! I dare YOU to ask him out. In fact, I call in the yard law, and triple dog dare you!”

I gasp astonished, like the immature idiot I’ve become in the last few days once the challenge has been issued.

“You wouldn’t!” I say lowly.

“Is done!”

“Fine!”

I march back to Peeta, he’s been watching us curiously the whole time. I stand in front of him, crack my neck, square my shoulders and open my mouth. Only a squeak makes it pass my lips, so I clear my throat and lick my lips stealing myself.

“Date. Saturday. Greasy Sae’s. Seven o’clock. You and me. Bye now.” I don’t wait for his response, as my throat kept getting dryer with each word I said, and my voice was coming out as raspy and unattractive as a trucker dude with an allergy. I didn’t want the size of his eyes, that kept getting wider the more he heard me, be an indication of what his answer would be, so I hightailed out of there as fast as could before I started crying and perspiring. No reason to freak him out more than I’ve already have.

My next move is to go send Delly an apologetic message through facebook, for going after the boy she liked back home, but Johanna catches up to me, gasping and holding her sides.

“Can you please stop? I haven’t run this fast since my softball league days!”

“I didn’t know you played softball,”

“Every kid needs some bullcrap sport they can play before they can drive themselves.” She takes a few extra precious gulps of air, before getting on to me. “So, Peeta will be glad to go out with you to Sae’s Saturday, not that you’ll know since you didn’t wait around for him to say anything after that… whatever it was. Very smooth by the way.” now she’s laughing, but when her side starts clamping, I only scowl and start walking faster, leaving behind to hold her aching sides.

Serves her right!

————————————————

When I get to Sae’s on Saturday, I’m surprised to spy Peeta’s mop of blonde hair carefully combed back, already sitting in my regular booth, on Jo’s regular bench. My hands start sweating immediately. I take a step back, and when the panic takes over I turn on my heel ready to make a beeline for the door, but my path is blocked by a very intimidating looking Jo, wearing my server uniform, since I was scheduled to work today, and somehow forgot about it. Jo of course was not gonna let that conveniently forgotten detail derail my date with Peeta, so she cajoled Sae into letting her take my shift at the diner for the night. Of course when Sae heard why Jo was so invested in this, she simply gave us a toothy smile and told her to be there a half hour earlier so she could feed her something before her shift.

Traitors!

“Go to your table, Brainless!” Jo hisses at me.

Without a word, I turn towards the booth, and walk quickly. I practically plop into my seat without much decorum, flinging the purse Prim demanded I used instead of my usual messenger bag, paired with a vintage blue dress that used to be my mother’s when she was single, but still holds its charm and is probably the only girly piece I own in my entire wardrobe.

Peeta tries to stand when I arrive, but he finds himself impeded by the table between us. He plops back down again and gives me a smile, shy and sweet and full of hope I can feel my heart flutter.

“Hi,” he says quietly, “I brought this!” he hands me a small box, and like a little eager child I open it, in the most impolite manner ever.

I gasp when I see four perfectly cheesy cheese buns sitting over a blanket of tissue paper. “Peeta! You shouldn’t have,” I let my voice linger, staring at my favorite treat sitting there in front of me.

“I figured, it was better than bringing you chocolates. I mean, I brought flowers…” he produces a pretty bouquet from next to him and hands them to me. “But you said you didn’t like sweets that much. And I don’t care if you are watching your diet at all. I think you are the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen.”

“Oh… um, thank you.” I say feeling the heat return to my cheeks with a vengeance. I look at him and notice he’s turning lobster red as well, and that’s no good at all, so when I see him try to form words with his mouth, I jump in ahead, “You didn’t have to call home for this, you know.”

“I didn’t,” He says cocking his head curiously.

“Is there a bakery here that serves them? I’ve ever only had them at your dad’s.”

He smiles shyly again, and brings his hand to his hair, pulling it away as suddenly as he remembers he styled it today. “Actually… I baked them.”

“You did?” I sound like an awestruck little girl even to my ears. “Wow. thank you so much for saving me some. That’s awfully nice of you,” I say sincerely.

His deep blue eyes fix on mine, so intensely, I can’t look away. “I made them specially for you, actually. You said they were your favorite, and those, next to the cake decorating your sister loves so much, are my area of expertise at the bakery,”

Johanna comes to take our order, winking at me and giving the thumbs up when Peeta’s eyes are occupied with the menu and I’m glad for the interruption, because this is all too much.

Our date goes on inmensibly better after our drinks arrive, he orders a cup of hot tea, no sugar, and I order my regular mint tea with honey. Sometime after our meal sits in front of us, I notice Johanna is talking to Finnick and a pretty redhead two tables away. They’re all looking at us, smiling smugly.

“So, your friend does have a girl?” I ask Peeta, prompting him to look in the direction my eyes are glaring at Jo.

He makes a noise, half growl, half sigh, one hundred percent annoyance. He then gives me an apologetic look, his bright blue eyes full of embarrassment and regret. “I guess, I should inform you that apparently our roommates are a pair of con artists, who think themselves clever and entitled to rule our romantic lives.” He takes a deep breath, and elaborates before my brain can jump to any sort of conclusion, which given the circumstances, I consider a good move for him.

“Johanna and Finnick have been plotting to have either of us ask the other out for weeks.” He says shaking his head, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry they dragged you into this. I should’ve known better, is just… you asking me out was probably the highlight of my life. I like to think that, at some point, I would’ve gathered the courage to ask you out myself without anyoe’s intervention, but now I’ll never know. I’ll go talk to Finn, tell him to leave you alone–”

“So, you did WANT to go out with me?” I cut him off before he can stand up. My mind is swimming, but usually when I let my impulsive nature take over, I achieve better results than when I don’t.

He looks at me with curiosity in his eyes, I can tell he won’t lie to me about this, “I’ve had a crush on you since kindergarten,” he says in a deep voice that cuts through me, “I kept asking Delly to come play with me, in the hopes that she’ll invite you over one day. I had amazing plans of what I would’ve done, if you ever showed up to the playdates. I would’ve given you my Red Power Ranger figurine plus his vehicle. It was my most prized possession at the time. Then I graduated to Pokemon cards, and I had my mint condition Pikachu, all safe for you. Then I realized, that girls didn’t necessarily cared for things I did, and started observing you. You joined the Archery team, then the track team, so I decided I’d join wrestling, I figured we should have something in common to talk about for whenever I stopped being a chicken and said hi to you.” He stops, his eyes finding a home on his fidgeting fingers on the table.

I scowl, “How would joining the wrestling team give us something in common to talk about?” I ask with more curiosity than I would imagine I would have, if a boy practically confessed to semi stalking me all throughout our school careers.

His face snaps up to find mine. His forehead wrinkles for a moment. “Well, you were an athlete. We would’ve had stories about hardass coaches, or rigorous practices. We could’ve trained together after school,” He shrugs, “Wrestling was the no brainer option for me. My brothers had done it and I knew all of their moves since the practiced them on me. I don’t think I could’ve ever master a bow and I’m not physically built for races,” he gives a self deprecating smile that melts my insides.

“I see,” I say finding the grain of the wood under my hands very interesting suddenly. I can feel my cheeks flame, “You seem to have thought of things a lot,” I say quietly.

He releases a choked chuckle, “This must be so creepy for you. I’m sorry. I– I’m gonna just go. Thank you for–”

“I asked Delly to take me with her to your playdates more than once. She had her own crush on you, so she said she couldn’t really woed you, if there were other people around during your play times, so I was never invited.” I chance a glance at him, I can’t read his face at the moment, but I think there’s a slight raise to one of his eyebrows. “My favorite Power Ranger was the green one buy the way.”

“It’s your favorite color.” Is not a statement, but more like he’s fishing for an answer, so I nod.

“Yup. Your’s?”

“Orange,” He says smiling easily, “muted, like the sunset.” He adds when my nose wrinkles.

“I wouldn’t have taken your Pikachu. I would’ve traded you for it. I don’t believe in getting stuff for free. I would have make you a good deal for it.” I say trying to relax with all my might. “I wouldn’t have known anything about comic books though, just like I have no clue about video games or systems.”

He smiles crookedly, “That’s no problem at all. I can teach you everything you need to know… if you teach me how to shoot an arrow.” His eyes are so hopeful.

I pretend to think about it, “I don’t know… maybe we have to talk this a little more, preferably over hot chocolate and more cheese buns,”

He smiles brightly now, nodding happily. “Sounds promising,”

We continue talking about pretty much any and every topic there is to talk about for two people just meeting each other; our banter is easy and comfortable, and when Sae clears her throat, three feet away from our table, we realize is closing time and the place is completely empty.

Peeta walks me back to my dorm, his car is still at the diner’s lot, but he insisted we walked because he figured it made me feel more at ease. By the time we reach my building, we have entered into more personal territory in our conversation. I’ve told Peeta Mellark more things about my late father in fifteen minutes, than what I’ve said to Jo in all the years we’ve known each other, which is quite a lot.

We stop at the front entrance, and stand there awkwardly for a moment.

“Thank you so much for not running away after my creepy story?” he says sighing.

“Have you really had a crush on me all this time?” I ask.

“Yup,” he says nudging a pebble with the toe of his Chucks while staring at his feet, “ever since you sang the valley song for the entire auditorium on our first day of school. You were everything I wasn’t: fearless, pretty, talented and you sounded like an angel.”

He won’t look at me but I can’t stop staring at him. “Hmm… well, you were always everything I wasn’t,” I say. “Smart, well liked, physically strong, and with an endless supply of freshly baked cookies,”

He smiles at that, and lifts his face to look at me. “My mother would only let us eat cookies that had gone too stale to sell, but I know a few recipes I can whip up for you, if you allow me another date,”

Is my turn to smile, I let myself be impulsive again, and surge up on the tip of my toes, plating an awkward kiss square on his unsuspecting lips. As fast as I attacked him, I retreat a foot away from him and virtually jump inside the building, but before the door can close behind me, separating us for the night, I throw him a wink and cheerfully call back, “I’ll allow it! Tomorrow at seven o’clock, pick me up here!”

I get a small glimpse of his face as it goes from shocked, to pleased, to confused, to surprised, back to happy and smiley. Something tells me, this is just the first of many more dates, kisses and fun times with Peeta Mellark.

#Everlark Fic Exchange #Springtime Edition 2017 #submission #alliswell21 #prompt 57

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