thick skin.

( * && evie, d8. "why does your heart beat so? you knew you were never meant for fairytales."

[evieavina]

“That was a disaster,” Evie sighed, dropping into the chair. Her costume was large and uncomfortable, but she didn’t feel like moving, “Why did I get picked? I don’t want to die.” 

[senthereforareason]

Accidents happen all the time.

Send one of the following for my muse’s response.

☹ For yours to accidentally hit mine in the face with the door. ↘ For yours to accidentally make mine trip on the stairs. ♨ For mine to accidentally burn yours with coffee.  ✄ For mine to accidentally break a glass and get yours cut.  ♥ For mine to accidentally bite yours too hard while kissing. ♕ For yours to accidentally hit their head with mine’s head. ❊  both of them to accidentally fall right into a thorn bush. ☄ For both of them to accidentally get bitten by a furious dog. ✚ For both of them to accidentally get food poisoned. ⊙⊙ For yours to accidentally get soap in mine’s eyes.  ✗ For mine to accidentally cause an allergic reaction to yours.

[flaxoro-deactivated20160116]

Wrinkling his brow, Flax found himself at odds with Evie’s sudden rebellious side.

“I don’t care, it was a suggestion, not an order,” he retorted, lying through his teeth. She was right, how she spent her time at the party was solely up to her, and it wasn’t his call to scold her—except that it was, and he was willing to chastise her until she set the bottle down. While he wasn’t up-to-date to the Capitol alcohol, he was familiar with the local rotgut back at Eight.

( The party was a presage, he could tell, and he glowered when an array of possibilities fluttered around on how this night would disastrously end for the both of them. )

“You’re going to get sick,” he remarked, voice dripping with venom. “In ten minutes, you’re going to hurl, and regret drinking, because everyone is going to see.”

[evieavina]

“Well... good,” Evie lamely responded, the bottle in her hand starting to feel heavier. Knowing he was still looking at her, waiting for her to do something, she took another swig. This one went down easier than the last. 

She had never drank before. They couldn’t afford alcohol at home (not when there’s two younger ones to care for, and not enough hands bring in money), and the stuff you found on the streets and at parties was absolutely horrible, or so she heard. Partying had never been an interest for her, or so she told herself. It wasn’t like she was ever invited to any. 

“Four people have hurled already,” she argued sweetly, a smile on her face. “I don’t care who sees. They aren’t paying attention to me. Besides, I’m not going to get sick. I’m fine, so stop talking to me.” Her third sip, pointedly the largest one she had decided to take, did not go down the easiest as she had hoped. She had to choke it down, coughing as it burned her throat, but still, holding her head high. 

[amity--horrorgames]

“I wouldn’t.”  Amity responded immediately, stopping himself when he realized that it might have came out a little more impolite than he had intended for.  “Not in this sort of crowd anyway.  Besides, I’m a master at embarrassing myself without the help of any of that dreadful stuff’s help.”

At the mention of the other’s escort, he couldn’t help but to laugh.  “Yeah, I think my mentor’s just amused that I actually showed up to the party in the first place.  District 3′s kinda just like that though.”  He paused for a moment before bringing himself to ask, “Where are you from anyway?”

[evieavina]

“Definitely not in this crowd,” she agreed, looking up the boy she was talking to. He seemed nice enough; at least, more than some of the other tributes she had run into during the night. 

“My mentor doesn’t care enough to even ask where I go. But my escort... she’s absolutely insane,” Evie laughed, “But I’m pretty sure all of them are like that. Me? I’m from District 8.” 

[buzzbennett]

Flux wished he could enjoy the party. Everyone was so relaxed, so much of the tension between them all was gone, at least between all of those who were drunk. It wouldn’t take a lot to get information from all either, it would be like taking candy from a baby. After all, a drunk man’s words were a sober’s man’s thought. But he didn’t have in him.

Sitting on the side, with the glass of champagne he had been drinking for the better part of an hour, he watches everyone goof around, still awkward around each other, but more relaxed. He couldn’t relax for the life of him, no matter how much he wished he could. Pulling an electronic trinket from his pocket, he fiddles with him, staring down at it, not noticing the people around him.

[evieavina]

Evie had been fluttering about the party, not drinking, of course, but just watching. The people she was to be thrown into the arena with in a few days were so interesting, especially when intoxicated. However, it did become boring after a while, especially when the people around her fell into patterns. 

She noticed the little boy from district 5 across the room, tinkering with something. What’s the harm, Evie? Just go say hi. 

“What’cha doing?” she asked as she approached him, not getting too close. “Crazy party, right?” 

[mcximilian-blog]

If Max hadn’t been in a mood that night, he might feel bad for yelling at Evie like that. He’d never been the nicest person, but he was able to feel compassion–especially for those younger and more helpless than him. Tonight, though, he felt no compassion. “’I…I-I…,” he mocked, “You…forgot how to get the fuck out of people’s way? You…are ready to clean the glass off the ground?”

[evieavina]

Sure, a few tributes had scared her, even threatened her life, but none had been like this. Those she could handle; those she had expected. But, someone just being this mean? When he spoke, and when he kept speaking, saying those things - oh what horrible things - she started to see them. Evie started to remember how it felt to be tormented by the brothers. 

Evie didn’t want to start crying, but she couldn’t stop herself. Over the last couple days, she had been bottling it up, and he was sending her over the edge by reminding her of the horrible things that were a part of her past. Pushing herself up, and him to the side as hard as she could, Evie tried to escape. Unfortunately, she didn’t get far before she stepped in the glass Max was blaming her for dropping, falling to the floor with a yelp. 

[flaxoro-deactivated20160116]

Flax glistened, his skin sheer gloss rather than waxy; his health was at its prime, the nap prior temporarily rejuvenating him. His body was prepared to withstand the party—no, soirée, as the escorts exclaimed—but mentally, he felt disconnected. He was the boy that preferred to stay at home, sitting in his room accompanied by numbing silence. Back home, when he had engaged in school events, he was the wallflower that fled the social scene after a hour.

He had no recollection how the frigid glass got in his hand, nor had he a clue of what the liquor in it was. His automatic response was to set it back on the bar counter. Alcohol wasn’t meant for his body; it was a taboo, as far as he was concerned. He hadn’t the stomach to hold it.

“This is bad,” he proclaimed, still in proximity of the bar. “You shouldn’t be drinking.”

[evieavina]

After staring at the bottle of alcohol at length, Evie had decided there was no way she was actually going to drink any. She had now attempted twice, and both times she had nearly spat it out simply out of hatred of the taste. So, she got up to put it back where she found it. If she wasn’t going to drink it, why should she take it away from everyone else? The more drunk they got, the more fun she could have watching them. If she couldn’t participate in the partying, the least she could do was enjoy it from afar. 

At the sound of Flax’s voice, Evie jumped, nearly dropping the bottle in the process. 

“I wasn-” she naturally started defending herself. But, she caught herself mid-sentence, realizing this was Flax. “Why do you care? It’s none of your business.” Evie didn’t know where this bravery- where this anger- was coming from. Perhaps it was the party atmosphere; perhaps it was the fact that an Oro was trying to tell her what to do. She couldn’t stop herself as she opened the bottle in her hands, taking a large sip quickly. Evie winced as it went down her throat, although she tried to pretend like it didn’t. 

[amity--horrorgames]

It wasn’t that Amity had been speaking to anyone in general, but when the smaller tribute responded he was more than okay with turning his attention to her.  “I’m sure that didn’t make it taste any better.”  He couldn’t help but to laugh, shaking his head in amusement.  “Please, tell me you found a better alternative?”

[evieavina]

“I don’t know if I want to be acting like that anyway,” she looked out at the crowd, dancing and screaming wildly. “I found some water, but nothing any tastier. I’m scared to leave to go look. I don’t want my escort to find me- I’ll never escape her again.” 

[amity--horrorgames]

Within seconds after his first sip, Amity’s face was scrunching up in displeasure– swallowing hard as he forced himself to finish the drink.  

“Why…  Why does anyone like that?”  The boy demanded, hand coming to his throat as if trying to make up for how he had mistreated it.  “It tastes like death and regret.  Is it supposed to taste like death and regret?”

[evieavina]

Evie watched the boy from 3 drink, and she couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her throat to his reaction. “I don’t know. I feel the same way,” she leaned back against the wall, smiling but not making eye contact. She had assumed he was speaking to her, but was prepared to run away if he wasn’t. “You should’ve seen me. I think I actually did hurl a little.” 

[yoursmarya-deactivated20200517]

                having a party to celebrate who knows what was seemingly deplorable in   willow’s eyes, yet she saw no reason to confine herself within district twelve’s designated   cart forever. besides, no one said she had to enjoy her time out of her shell either. instead   of daring to interrupt the commotion, willow found herself approaching evie, the girl from   district eight who was alone for the most part. ‘ are you gonna drink that ?’

[evieavina]

Evie looked up, surprised that someone had even tried to speak to her. She smiled when she realized it was the girl from District 12 (the girl whom Evie found to be the least scary of all), and shook her head quickly. “Oh, no. You can take it. I tried to drink it, but...” she make a disgusted face. 

[mcximilian-blog]

Max had been standing in the same corner since the start of the party, finishing off one glass of whisky after another. He would’ve stayed there all night, but he caught a flash of red hair that startled him out of his state of comfort. Instinctively, Max rushed to the opposite side of the car to escape Zoe. He was hardly even on his way when his foot caught on the leg of Evie’s chair, causing him to stumble enough to drop his glass. “Fucking–” He looked back at Evie with a sneer, the sound of shattering glass sounding like a soundtrack.

[evieavina]

Evie didn’t notice Max until he was tripping over her chair, his drink falling to the floor and shattering. The noise didn’t seem to phase the rest of the cart (seeing as there had been multiple glasses already dropped), but Evie was wishing it had. Max was staring at her like he was ready to eat her alive, and all she could do was stare back with her eyes wide. “I...” she started, not sure of how to finish. 

[evieavina]

Evie was sitting in a chair in the corner of the room, staring at the scene in front of her. They were laughing and dancing, and all she could do was soak it in. Beside her there was a bottle of alcohol, barely touched (she had found the taste to be quite appalling). Evie had never been in a room like this before in her life, a room full of life, and she wasn’t sure what to do next. 

[flaxoro-deactivated20160116]

“You’re my district partner,” was all he managed to say, as if Evie wasn’t aware of the unfortunate circumstance already.

Flax was one for playing dumb and closing his eyes, wishing away bad blood; ignoring the past would make this more tolerable. It would be easier to cope with her resentment if he could dull out the tension, make to where she would be willing to play along, even the vainest attempt would suffice.

Mustering up courage, he bore his eyes—jagged pieces of cracked glass—at her. Maybe, if things went well enough, if he had some sign, he would partake in a private conversation about, well, the bumps in the past.

( He had never been quite ‘all there’; he was incapable of picking up signs. )

“My name is Flax,” he introduced, “I’m the mayor’s son back from Eight.” He shuffled his feet now, and shot her a more timid glance. “You looked scared back at the Reaping.”

[evieavina]

Was he being serious? Maybe it didn’t matter to him. Maybe he had forgotten everything, or maybe he hadn’t had bothered to remember it in the first place. But, Evie? Evie remembered every second of it. It haunted her; why didn’t it haunt him? He deserved to feel something. 

She couldn’t help but look up at him. She needed to see if he was actually being serious- if there was any way to tell that he was playing dumb. Unfortunately, by looking up, all she did was catch his eye. 

For a moment, she just stared at him through her strands of dark hair, the beginnings of the tears still pricking her eyes and her mouth open in astonishment. What was she supposed to say? Pretend everything was normal just like he was?

“So did you,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper, after those few minutes of awkward silence. “Flax.” 

[evieavina]

MOOBOARD - EVIE AVINA FEAT. @flaxoro. 

[wydmattheo-deactivated20170717]

Elijah went straight for the bar and poured himself a glass of whiskey. He would drink it slowly, considering that this would be one of his last glasses. He also didn’t want to impair himself – he was on a train filled with teenage killers, after all. He stood against the wall, taking small swigs of whiskey, observing everyone in the room. He took notice to weird habits, the way they sat, the way they stood, the way they spoke, the words they chose. However, he saw someone walking towards him and his eyes then trailed to the person walking forward. “You’re a bit ballsy approaching a career like that on the first day, yeah?” he spoke to them, immediately turning to the role he was supposed to play.

[evieavina]

When Evie saw the tall boy she recognized as the one from 2 walk into the room, her eyes immediately went wide. Sure, she could take the couple people in the same room as her- most of them were similar to her. But, Evie had heard the rumors about the upper districts. They trained and volunteered for glory, and she wasn’t interested in messing with them. But, as she got up to leave, he happened to block her only exit. When he spoke to her, thinking she was trying to approach him, Evie froze. “No, I... I’m just trying to leave,” she said, looking at the ground. Why was everyone here terrifying? 

[returning-blackwell]

This lady just doesn’t quit, does she?

Pluto sat looking out the window of the train, trying to gather his thoughts, as the Capitol representative from his district continued to fuss over him. She scrubbed at his cheeks and combed at his hair, which made little to no sense to the boy. Who was going to care if his hair was a mess? They had no public appearances to make. As far as he knew, it was time to rest.

“My dear boy, you look like an absolute mess.” The lady heaved in exasperation, for near the hundredth time. “What am I ever supposed to do with you? If you would just-”

Pluto was quick to cut her off, swatting away the woman’s slender hand yet again. “How about you leave me alone? You can play dress up with me all you want later, but for now, I’d appreciate it if you just left me alone.”

The woman spluttered for a few moments before reluctantly storming off– all the while complaining very loudly to a few of her own companions.

Pluto had only just heaved a sigh of relief, relaxing back into his ridiculously comfy chair, when he realized he still wasn’t alone in the room. There was another tribute standing along the wall, who was giving him an odd sort of look. Pluto could only assume it was for his recent outburst.

“Oh, don’t look at me like that. I haven’t even done anything yet.”

[evieavina]

Evie had watched the entire scene in absolutely amusement. Although her own escort seemed to be leaving her alone, she did have to admit that she was purposely avoiding the woman. And after seeing the scene in front of her, she was now sure it was for a good reason. When she realized that the boy was staring at her, though, she froze, mid-smile. 

“No, I... I just thought it was funny,” she giggled, “Sorry.” 

[orixnmaximoff-blog]

“Yeah, my daughter,” he confirmed, not for one second thinking her reaction was odd. He usually got something like ‘but you’re -like- twelve years old!’ thrown at his head. He didn’t mind the comments, though this one stung a bit. “And yes, I’m a tribute. It’s kind of a shame, really, got picked in my last year. I get why you’d feel like her mom. If she’s about Ellie’s age, she’s around two, right? Two’s the worst age,” he chuckled. “But Gia? Nice name she’s got there. Names are difficult, really. I come across so many better names than Elise nowadays, I think I should apologise to the kid for naming her that.”

[evieavina]

“It’s a shame?” she repeated, wondering how he could seem so calm after all that had happened. Evie felt guilty for leaving behind her sisters; she couldn’t imagine leaving behind her own child. “Yeah, two is definitely the worst. Oh, well I didn’t name her, but thanks. I like Elise. But then again, I guess I just like names that start with E.” Her body started to relax into the chair. “My name is Evie. What’s yours?” Evie couldn’t help but feel like she was being awkward, but it was nice to be around someone who was actually being kind to her.