Seven days.

One hundred and sixty eight hours.

She could do it.

Right?
Right.

They would be done after they lost the Districtvision Song Contest.

Tuesday May, 10th. 5 Days before the show.

"Katniss, wake up! It's going to be a big, big, big day!"

Effie Trinket, also known as Peeta and Katniss's unofficial nanny/personal assistant/chaperone/pain in the ass, woke her up that fateful Tuesday morning of the first Districtvision semi final.

They didn't even have to perform that night, their district being one of the "Big Four" automatically allowed into the final of the song contest. But they both would have to be there, dress up, smile, chat with the journalists and pretend to be friends ("hint at more than friends if possible" their manager had repeated time and time again), and really, really enjoy themselves while watching other districts perform whatever stupid song they were given that year.

That Tuesday morning though, Katniss really didn't want to get out of bed. The good thing in all this mess was the hotel room she was staying in, so comfortable she was really thinking of stealing the bed and quilts for her own little apartment in Panem where she lived with her mother and sister. That was really the plus of this arrangement, and she would take everything she could for her remaining time in the spotlight.

She didn't want to face the same questions from the journalists, have to repeat the same answers, again and again. Yes, they've known each other for years, having come from the same small town of D12. Yes, they were friends, and not lovers, thank you very much. Of course friendship was possible between a man and a woman. Oh, they enjoyed talking and going to the movies, things like that. His favorite color was orange, no, not like a cone, rather like the sunset. Yes he knew hers is green. He takes his tea without sugar, whereas she has always been a coffee addict.

Things like that, they rehearsed over and over again with their manager, perfecting their stories with enough real details to make it believable, even to their friends home.

Because despite the image thrown in the papers, in the press and on TV, Peeta Mellark, former leader of the group "Rebels" and Katniss Everdeen, indie folk singer, were anything but friends. In fact, they were close to hating each other.

But as Haymitch Abernathy, their mentor, had told them over and over again, "Districtvision is only a television show" in which they had to participate, to wear the colors of their district. Yay.

"Katniss! You have to wake up! Breakfast will be served and Peeta is already waiting for you!"

As if the thought of Peeta waiting for her would make her jump out of bed, dress up and get ready. If Katniss needed a motivation to stay exactly where she was, Effie's words were what was required.

Alas, the bubbly chaperone wasn't in on the charade of the true nature of her relationship with Peeta, leaving Katniss with no choice but to actually pretend to be happy to see him. He had blue eyes she knew were real because he had the same in kindergarten, his blonde hair that always had this out-of-bed look girls drooled over, and his jaw fans were fainting over. Because, apparently, most women found Peeta Mellark attractive

Whatever. She wasn't one of them.

Reluctantly, she left the warmth of the quilt, the comfort of the pillow mumbling a version of "I'll be right there" to the door, loud enough to satisfy Effie, before going to shower. She would have to worry about what to wear later, and that was a problem she didn't want to think about. Because apparently, in the world of Districtvision, old jeans and a tank top weren't fashionable enough.

To be completely honest, Katniss feared this day more than the show that would take place on Saturday. Singing, she knew she could do. But parading in a crazy uniform pretending to be happy with it, that wasn't on her talent palette. And yes, she saw last year's District 12 outfit - it seemed carved in aluminum, giving the band the strange look of robots, 50s style. With purple jackets.

Having seen the rehearsals she knew some groups were terrible, clothing wise. District 47, from a country whose name she couldn't remember, musicians dressed in space blankets - yes, space blankets, under which was a horrible false-leather outfit that made them look like Xena, the Warrior Princess. She didn't want to think about the singers, him in a Count Dracula-like outfit, and the woman, clad in a two-sizes too small red and burgundy dress, showing cleavage down to her navel. It didn't make up for the horrible song and lack of rhythm of the presentation. She had to really bit her lip hard not to laugh.

She might have noticed Peeta did the same.

"Anyways" she sighed, exiting the bathroom, clad in her underwear. "What will His Highness the King of Pop have on today?" Somehow, Portia and Cinna, their designated stylists for this contest, had made both of them a complete wardrobe, fitted for all occasions, each outfit matching the other's. Like a team.

Or something.

She grabbed a pair of dark jeans (how rebellious of her) and an ivory blouse, knowing fully well that by the end of the day she would have been primped, complete with make-up and her braid done, clothed in whatever they had decided.

Sighing heavily, she put on her sneakers and grabbed her jacket on her way out, because there was no way she was showing him more skin that he needed to see. Provided he needed to see any of her skin at all.

She followed the yellow corridor to the little ensuite living-room where the three others waited for her before heading downstairs to the huge dining room where many of the contestants were with their entourage.

"And here she comes!" their manager, said, hiding his flask in the inner pocket of his jacket. As if it was a secret that he was a drunk, mentoring one generation of singers after another - the last success of District 12 in the contest was back in 1976, eons ago. "We almost waited for you!" he added, obviously checking his watch.

"Hey Katniss!" Peeta greeted her, cheery as always, even with his frozen smile on, the one he reserved for her only.

"Well, well, well. I thought you would wear something more … feminine, Katniss dear!" Effie chimed in, having checked her from head to toe, clearly disapproving her look.

"She doesn't need to dress up to be feminine, Effie."

Wait? What? Katniss's brain went on overdrive at Peeta's words. Was he complimenting her? Until it clicked - this was part of the show, the charade they were playing even in front of Effie. She took a small breath, counted to five in her head - yes, she could be an adult - before giving her own fake smile to her partner.

"Thank you, Peeta. I'm sorry I'm late, I wanted to get as much rest as possible." She didn't add that she wanted to stay away from him as long as possible, but work's work, right? Five more days until they could part, go on their merry ways, never to talk to the other again. Ever.

"So now that Sweetheart's here, can we head down? Some of us are hungry!" Haymitch rose from the couch he was lying on, trying to straighten his wrinkled suit before heading straight to the door, closely followed by Effie, on her very high pink glittery heels.

"How can she walk on those?" she heard Peeta ask as he watched her leave, never losing her balance on such precarious shoes.

"I have no clue, I just hope they don't put me in that kind of thing Saturday." Katniss muttered under her breath, hoping she wasn't loud enough to be heard by him.

"I won't let you fall, you know that?"

She didn't know.

"Why?" she asked, surprised.

"Why what?"

"Why wouldn't you let me fall?"

"That's not what we do. We should protect each other. We're a team, right?" Peeta had turned to look at her, a question in his eyes.

"Are we really? Aren't you here to restart your career?"

"Is that what you think Katniss? That I'm only here to boost my career?"

"Well, why else would you come?"

"To help yours, maybe? Now, shall we?" He was now holding the door open for her, as she remained frozen, struck by his words.

"Katniss, we have to go, or else they will start to wonder where we are."

"You're really not doing this for you?" Katniss asked, not bothering to hide the disbelief in her voice.

"You can ask Haymitch. I'm quitting show business when this is over." Peeta's voice was definitive.

"Really?" What was he doing here, then?

"My Swan Song?" He smirked.

Yup she had said it out loud. "But why?"

"There are things I'm better at than singing. I have enough money for a lifetime, now I want to do what I want," he answered simply.

He looked at his watch before running his hand through his blonde hair. "Look, we can talk about it later today if you want? We have to go now, or Effie will go mad at how not on schedule we are…"

Too many thoughts were in her mind right now for Katniss to be able to sort them all. She would need time and coffee to process all he had told her over the span of five minutes.

"Right. Okay. Yeah. We'll do that." She was so articulate she thought, internally sighing, wondering sometimes how in hell she could actually write songs.

She nodded, finally moving to join him on the doorstep of their ensuite, her mind still full of confused thoughts about what Peeta had just told her - only to feel his hand on the small of her back, like he almost always did when they walked side by side.

Only this time, his hand wasn't as unwelcome.

The day went by as any other one in the whirlwind of Districtvision. Phone interviews with radios stations at home, asking for their prediction on the upcoming semi-finals, who their biggest adversaries would be, when they would rehearse, how confident they were for the win. Apparently, their odds bookmaker-wise were more than good, the media displaying pictures of them together, photoshoots wisely organized by Effie and her team to show their friendship, all the while hinting at a bit more - the bit they kept on denying day after day, saying they were "just friends".

As if.

One question took Katniss by surprise, during the recording of a TV interview, when a crazy journalist asked them what their ringtones for each other were. How could she tell this guy she didn't even have Peeta's phone number without blowing their charade?

But Peeta had an answer to everything, apparently, even to this question. "Oh, it's a stupid thing, really." She looked at him, question on her mind, eyes wide opened in surprise at his apparent answer, before being able to pull herself together, stealing a glance at the journalist who luckily was focused on Peeta. "We had a joke about this, telling ourselves we would find the craziest Districtvision music for each other. So Katniss's ringtone is The Penguin Song and I'm pretty sure I am the hard-rock music of 2007? Unless you changed it?" She could have kissed him right now, giving her the perfect answer.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" She smiled, following his lead, but falling into the trap she opened herself.

"Well, Peeta, maybe you could call Katniss, so we would know?" the journalist asked, jumping in.

Damn him. Damn clever guys.

"We can't, Claudius." Again, Peeta came to the rescue. "Effie took our phones!"

"That's too bad!"

"Right? But I'll tell you as soon as I find out. Deal?"

"Deal! Thank you Katniss, thank you Peeta, for taking the time to answer our questions".

"You're welcome, Claudius."

Peeta rose from his seat to shake the journalist's hand, Katniss following suit, smiling her best at the guy, whose hand felt sleazy and oily in hers, resisting the urge to wipe her own on her jeans. She could hang on for a little bit now, his was the last interviewer of the day. Soon, they would get a complete hour of nothing to do before being rushed off to be groomed again for the first semi-final.

Katniss felt her simple life had turned into a whirlwind of makeup, costumes, interviews and enough smiles for a lifetime. And she couldn't say she liked it.

Right now, she was looking forward to a full hour of not doing anything, of relaxing on her comfy bed, and maybe catch up with Prim if she was home from school.

She made sure Temple-something was out of the room before she grabbed her bottle of water, took off her heels to give her feet a well deserved rest and headed towards the doors of the room, intent on enjoying her hour of rest. Alone.

"Um, Katniss?"

She closed her eyes at her partner's voice, hoping it wouldn't be what she feared he wanted to talk about.

"We should talk, maybe?"

Here's to hoping. She closed her eyes, taking a small deep breath.

"Yeah, maybe."

"You know where we could go?"

He's asking her? She hadn't been out of the hotel since they arrived, as paparazzi were lining the entrances to get the best shot at whoever was coming in or out - it felt safer to stay inside. The only time they were out was on photo shoots or when they were needed to film the short presentation that would come just before their number on stage.

"I have no clue … your room or mine?"

She saw him blush at her words, wondering why it would make him react this way until it clicked in her brain.

"Well, maybe not, we don't want to sell that idea, right?" Peeta finally said.

"Haymitch would love this."

"Would you?"

She wanted to scream a resounding "No", but was too afraid to actually do it, in fear some security men would come into the ensuite.

"Guess that answers that." He replied, a small smile on his lips. "Wanna sneak out of here?"

"And how would we do that with all the paps outside? Do you know how to fly?"

"No. I was a wrestler, don't you remember? But we can trick them."

"So you turned into David Copperfield too?"

"Too? What do you mean?"

"Nothing, Mellark, nothing. So, how do we go out?"

He frowned, creasing his forehead as he answered.

"We throw them a bone."

"And how would we do that?"

Peeta chuckled.

"We we'll need reinforcements."

They were still laughing as they sat on a bench in the park on the other side of the Bellevue hotel Entrance.

"I can't believe you know Finnick Odair!"

"Perks of being in the business. God, he was better than I thought ."

Odair was the Districtvision Song Contest international star who was asked to sing his new hit on the show, and somehow Peeta had his number. Having him come to the hotel to distract the paps only took a phone call.

They didn't expect Finnick to get out of the limo shirtless, his upper body glittering in the afternoon sun.

Which did distract the paps, allowing Peeta and Katniss to sneak out of the hotel, unnoticed.

They laughed when they saw Finnick putting a show on, posing shirtless on the hood of his limo, under the flashes of the paps.

It took them a few minutes to stop laughing, to catch their breath and realize how close they were on that bench, their thighs pressing against the other. Maybe for the first time, Katniss had to remind herself how much she disliked Peeta, making her stop laughing completely, and moving to the other side of the bench.

The spell they were under was broken.

She started fidgeting, unsure of what they were really doing there. They could have talked in one of their rooms, but apparently he didn't want that, didn't want the chance of Effie interrupting them and starting to spread crazy rumors around.

"You wanted to talk." Katniss started, not looking at him. "So talk."

He sighed, shifting in their shared seat.

"You never make things easy, do you?"

"I never make things easy? You're kidding me, right? I never make things easy! Best joke of the year, no! Of the decade!"

Suddenly the words were too much for her to bear. Who did he think he was, the Golden Boy of showbiz, having sold hundreds of thousands records over the years, when it should have been her at the top of the charts

"Are you losing your mind here Katniss? What are you talking about?"

She took a deep breath.

"You stole my contract, asshole!"

"I did what?"

"My contract!"

"I never stole anything from you!"

"You did! After the talent show!"

"I never wanted that contract ! I pleaded with them to give it to you!"

"Of course you did! That's why I'm at the top of the charts, asshole!"

She was pretty sure her cheeks were flaming, as she took a step back from the bench, looking at Peeta rising up from his place, his own face turning an interesting shade of dark pink, eyes gone from their usual sea blue to a deeper color. He would have been intimidating, if Katniss hadn't been on such an adrenaline rush, she couldn't care less.

"I never ever wanted to be at the top of the charts, Everdeen!"

"Of course you didn't! Let me pity you for a second!"

But he surprised her by grabbing her arm, forcing her to stay in place as he stepped in closer.

"I will never want your pity. Give me your hate, but never your pity. If you don't believe me, that's okay, ask my brothers, ask Haymitch, ask anyone who knew me. I never wanted to be on the top. That's not my place. It had always been yours."

"Then why did you steal my contract!"

"I didn't steal it. They didn't want you to have it."

"What! I'm a better singer than you could ever think of being!"

"Not denying that, Sweetheart. You'll have to ask them. Because of course, you never thought of asking THEM why they picked me? Easier to lay all the blame on me, right? Don't you think you should start there? Ask them why they didn't pick you?"

She was struck by his words. She couldn't process everything he had told her, always thinking he took the contract to annoy her, to make her struggle her way into the music industry. She never stopped to think that maybe she wasn't good enough.

"Then why did you take the contract, if you didn't want to go into the industry?"

Her voice was broken, coming out only as a whisper, a desperation.

He took his hand from her arm, turning a bit to loose his sight on the pond in front of him, avoiding her silver eyes.

"Because I thought I could help you make a name for yourself if I was in it. Look how good it turned out." His laugh was anything but happy, too old for such a young man, too sad for such a happy guy. "This is your chance, Katniss. Here, this week. This contest. We win and your career is on. And I have every intent to win."

"But why? You hate me!"

"I've never hated you. Never. I don't think I could."

"I don't need your pity either."

"It's not pity." He whispered.

"Then what is it?"

What could it be? She had no clue why he would do such a thing for her.

"I know what you did when we were younger." he whispered, his voice barely audible.

"What do you mean?"

"After the bread. I know what you saw."

She looked away from his eyes, back to their usual blue, trying to pierce a hole in her soul.

"I didn't do anything."

"You were the one who set everything in motion. You saved me, Katniss, you saved me from my mother. Your phone call saved me."

Katniss felt like her jaw had hit the floor, as surprise took her completely off guard.

"I … wow.. No.."

"I know it was you, Katniss." He shrugged, as if not knowing what to do with his body, hands, or just with himself. "It's okay. You saved my life."

"How..?"

"How do I know it was you?" He chuckled sadly. "When the cops came, they went directly to the rolling pin and they asked my ex-mother to bring me into the room with them. Not Alec or Tom. Me."

Peeta lifted his gaze directly to hers. "Only one person could have seen what happened so precisely."

"I'm so sorry, Peeta… I didn't want you to know."

"No, please, don't be. You did what nobody else ever did for me, for us. You saved us all." He suddenly lowered his eyes, his cheeks blushing a little as he went on. "And I've never thanked you for that. Never. That's why I took the deal when they didn't hand it to you. To try to help you rise in music, like you deserved. And I failed, again. You obviously don't want to be here."

The wind decided it was time to start playing around them, shuffling through Peeta's hair, moving his blonde curls around his head, as he shifted awkwardly in front of her, while Katniss was struggling hard to connect the dots.

"Oh my god, Peeta…. What do you mean?"

"Nothing. We should go inside, Effie must be nuts looking for us."

"Peeta…."

"Can we go back, please, Katniss?"

He wasn't even looking at her anymore.

But it was too late. Katniss had finally dotted the I's. Peeta was the one who asked for her in the competition, the one behind the mysterious call to her manager.

"And what exactly is that?" Haymitch asked, turning his tablet to the pair coming into the suite, to show them a picture, that had been taken a few minutes ago, when Peeta had his hand on Katniss's arm. They were clearly arguing.

"Where did this come from?" Katniss asked, astonished. They never saw the photographer. "How could they take this picture?"

"Lenses, sweetheart, they call them lenses. Brand new technology, you'll see. Now, two questions. What were you doing out, and why were you arguing?"

"We needed a bit of air." Peeta answered, never looking at Katniss.

"We needed a bit of air," mimicked Haymitch, clearly mocking them now. "Seriously. You two are the best shot at a win we've had in what, twenty years? So you'd better tell me what happened out there, and if the damage can be mended?" He gave Katniss the tablet, clearly expecting her to answer.

"Nothing happened. We talked."

"You .. talked? Does this look like talking to you, Sweetheart? I know this is all a charade, but can you please try to like this man here until Saturday?"

"We had things to discuss, Haymitch. And this charade is over." She could see two pair of eyes looking straight at her, but only focused on the blue ones across the table. "We're friends. We've been friends for years, but I was too stupid to see it."

"What?" Haymitch was looking between the two of them questioning. "Wait, when did this happen? When did you go from 'We hate each other' to 'We're best pals in the world?' Did I miss an episode?"

"I never hated her!"

"We're not best pals!"

They answered their mentor at the same time, in the same breath.

"You never hated me?" Katniss asked, turning to her new friend.

"How could I? But I'm surprised we're not best friends yet!"

She chuckled. "Yeah, we'll wait until tomorrow for that, right?"

"Right."

"Well, if you guys could come up with an explanation for these pictures that - do I need to remind you - are now all over the internet? How do I sell the fact you're friends to the press?"

Peeta looked at Katniss, as if silently asking for her permission to talk.

"That's what friends do. Sometimes we fight. We do not live in the Kingdom of Caring, you know? This is real life."

"And how exactly did you become friends?"

This time, it was Katniss who sought Peeta's approval.

"That's the magic of Districtvision, right?"

The now familiar clatter of heels preceded Effie in the room, her thin arms full of colored clothes and bags matching the very colorful dress she was wearing.

"Magic? Did I hear right? Look at this, lovelies, I ordered these for Saturday. Much better than the boring outfits Cinna and Portia designed. It's Districtvision, we need color and glitter!"

The three other people in the room exchanged horrified looks. Of course they knew about the "tradition" in Districtvision, an unspoken rule allowing the contestant to wear anything from a silver star on their head to their district traditional clothing, but Effie taking charge of clothing might be too much, even for the contest.

"There was nothing wrong with Cinna and Portia's designs. The gowns are beautiful and classy." Haymitch said as he walked towards the pile of clothes bags now piled on the couch

Effie distinctly tsked at the old mentor's answer

"Why do you think we didn't win the previous years? Too classy! All black and sad. We need to color this song!"

"As long as I'm not in a nightgown, I guess everything's fine".

Three pair of eyes turned to Katniss, making her realize she had spoken her mind out loud.

"That's the spirit!" Effie chimed in, clearly happy at Katniss's enthusiasm- or lack of not enthusiasm, really depending on the point of view. "Go try these on and let's see how you look.."

"Effie, really, Cinna's drawings were great…" Haymitch tried to intervene, obviously very aware of the kind of clothes Effie would bring in. "Of course they were, they are, it's CiPo Couture! You know how hard we worked to have them, Effie!"

"Yeah, yeah, but still, I think we should give these outfits a go, you know? As a comparison."

Katniss grabbed the bags Effie handed her, peeking inside, her hands moving the clothes around the silk paper they were wrapped in.

She was pretty sure the woman was completely crazy. There was no way she was going on stage with these outfits. She took the sweater out of the first bag, holding it at arm's length to be sure it was what she had seen.

Alas, it was.

"Effie, i'm not wearing a violet sweatshirt and .." Katniss grabbed something else from the bag "And yellow shorts? Are you colorblind?"

"Katniss, darling, it's not violet, it's lavender. And see how it glitters under the lights?" The older woman took the horrendous sweatshirt, positioning it under the chandelier hanging in the living room, to reveal that indeed, it glittered.

"It's Districtvision, it has to glitter a little."

Katniss moved her head to look at her partner. If she had been surprised at her outfit, a sweatshirt, a pair of tiny yellow shorts with assorted gloves, what was etched on Peeta's face was pure disgust. He slowly took out of the bag a matching ensemble, only with reversed colors. The shorts were violet, and the top a bright yellow.

Effie could be proud of something. She had rendered Peeta Mellark, golden music phenomenon and known for his words, speechless.

"Effie, it's yellow…." he finally muttered, his eyes pleading for help that wouldn't come. Katniss and Haymitch were both too busy trying not to burst out of laughter.

"Peeta, dear, it's not yellow. The color's called dandelion. We wouldn't put you in plain yellow, see. It matches Katniss's outfit so well. And it glitters too!"

"But the socks and sneakers are white! You know? Because we don't need for you to look like clowns! We have to win this thing!" Effie added, handing them both another bag.

"Effie …" Katniss started, unable to go any further with the silliness of the whole thing. There was no way she was wearing that on stage. Their song was crazy enough without needing to put on outfits making them look like lamp posts.

"Yes, please Effie" Peeta chimed in, apparently unable to express to the older woman his disagreement with words. He was holding the clothes with as few fingers as required, as if fearing he would be contaminated by the insanity of them.

"Effie, dear" Haymitch came close to the woman, throwing his arm around her shoulders. "I have always appreciated your fashion sense, you know that? I have supported you every year when you were the D12 stylist."

Peeta and Katniss exchanged a look, frightened beyond words at what was about to come.

"Yes, well, of course, Haymitch, you have absolutely no sense of style!"

"I know, I know. That's why I trust others to dress me up. But do you remember the mean articles from last year? About the twins?"

Katniss slowly put back the offending clothes into their bags, dropping them down on the ground. She could see Peeta doing the same, only to take the bag away from Effie's view.

"Well, the press was horrendous, remember?"

"Oh, I do. They were lovely though, in their red glittering jackets!"

Katniss remembered the two boys, in red suits, jumping all around, all crazy moves and completely off tune.

"Well, what do you say we surprise them? They're expecting us to go all glitter again, but I think we should mix things up Go sober!"

"But, Haymitch, sober is not Districtvision!"

"Or we can ask Cinna to add a bit of glitter on the outfits?"

" But, I bought these outfits specifically for Saturday…"

"Listen, we'll talk about it more tomorrow? Now the kids need to get ready for tonight's show, right? And if we chose these new …. Disguises, we won't want to ruin the surprise, right? So let's stick with CiPo designs for tonight?"

"Yes, you're right! No spoiling! I have to call Cinna now!" Effie exclaimed.

"That you do…" Haymitch added, watching Effie leave the room, her phone already on her ear.

He made sure they couldn't hear the clattering of heels before he turned to the pair in front of him.

"I'll take care of her. You go dress as planned and leave the bags here. I'll take care of them too."

"How will you do that?" Peeta asked, too happy to hand their mentor the colorful bags.

"The less you know the better. I know a man…" the older man finished with a smirk, pointing them in the direction of their rooms.

"We should go get ready", Peeta whispered as he passed in front of Katniss. "We don't need to see what happens to dandelion and lavender here."

"You're right. See you in a bit?"

"Make it five minutes," he winked.

"Yeah, you don't have to zip yourself up, lucky you. But the lavender shorts… I guess lots of your fans would have loved to see you wiggle in those booty shorts."

"Well, maybe, but I bet you would gain a lot of fans by showing your legs in those yellow shorts of yours, you know?"

"Dandelion, Peeta dear." Katniss mimicked Effie, eliciting a roar of laughter from Peeta. "I'll see you in a bit."

"Sure thing. And Katniss?" She turned to him before entering her bedroom. "If you need someone to zip you up, just ask. I'll be next door."

"Thank you, Peeta."

"Anytime. That's what friends are for."Without another word, he left, leaving Katniss to her thoughts. How could she have come from disliking Peeta Mellark so much, to find herself friends with him tonight? How did this happen ?

She started to unpack her dress from the black garment bag hanging on the door of the dresser. This wasn't the piece she would wear on Saturday, rather an elegant red dress with a beautiful purple orchid drawn on it, no glitter, no sequins. She would have to put this piece of couture on soon enough, and it frightened her a little. She wasn't used at all to wearing this kind of gown, custom-made with taste and class, having spent her life in worn out jeans and sweatshirts, indulging in one of her friend Madge's dresses only every once in awhile.

She thought the dress would take her mind away from her relationship with Peeta. She only realized it this afternoon, despite everything she thought, that they had been connected for years. He gave her the bread that saved her family's lives. She made the call that ended his relationship with his mother - the abusive bitch everybody knew about in their little town of Panem, but nobody never acted on it.

She realized she had kept tracks of him throughout school, high school and after he won that stupid contest. She was the first to listen to his songs, to criticize them as soon as they were out on the radio, even if she knew it wasn't really deserved.

She suddenly remembered what Peeta told her. That they didn't want her to win.

Katniss grabbed her phone, dialing her agent's number. "Plutarch," The quiet voice answered.

"It's Katniss."

"Oh, the soon to be star. What can I do for you?"

"Why didn't they pick me to win the contest?"

"What are you talking about?"

"The talent show? In Panem? When you signed me in?" She took a deep breath. "Why didn't I win?"

Katniss head the heavy sigh on the other side of the line, as well as the creak of leather telling her her agent was leaning back into his large desk chair.

"Because you weren't ready then."

"I was. I sing with the same voice."

"It's not always about the voice. It's about what's beneath it. The meaning. The maturity. You sounded empty."

"And I don't sound empty anymore?"

"We'll see on Saturday."

"Why didn't you tell me Peeta Mellark asked for me?"

"Does it matter?" Plutarch answered.

Katniss thought for a bit. Did it matter that he was the one giving her a chance now? It did. But for reasons between Peeta and herself, not for anyone else to know. And certainly not for Plutarch, if she didn't want this bit of information to end up in every news outlet he could find.

"No, it doesn't. Thank you Plutarch."

She understood better now. She had been empty at the time of the contest, so empty because of what life had thrown her way, that she reacted the only way she knew. Closed herself off, blamed the others for something that she had no power over at the time.

Time had its effects. She was stronger now, readier.

And she had her chance at shining, finally. All thanks to Peeta.

She had been so mistaken about him. There were really truly kind people in this word. He was one of them.

"This is crazy. Can we run away back to some kind of sanity?"

Katniss was happy she didn't have to perform tonight. She usually didn't know how she could have focused on the song they had to sing after seeing the complete madness that took place in front of them. Women playing cellos in space blankets - she had seen it already. But what was happening right now in front of her, a woman dressed in traffic gown, shining in the dark, half her head shaved, screaming in the mic, that was beyond weird.

The only good thing coming out of that evening were the hosts, who not only could sing and dance, but were also hilarious in their speeches. Nevermind how handsome they both were.

"Stop ogling Mans like that, Katniss. He will notice, you know," Peeta whispered in her ear.

They had spent the evening so far talking about everything and nothing. Chatting about the performances they saw - Katniss barely masking her surprise at the dancing robots while Peeta laughed at her expression, or simply talking about the years they had spent ignoring each other.

Of course, there had been questions when they came into the Snow Center, the image that caught them arguing having made the Districtvision news. They had brushed it away, laughing at it, dismissing it as nothing, their chemistry so evident nobody questioned them.

The woman from District 33 left the stage, while a clip from the next candidate was shown on the screen.

"Oh he looks like Legolas!" Katniss said, pointing at the man on the screen.

"You're going to root for him then if he's an archer!"

"I'm sure I can beat him."

"Of course you can." Peeta said

"But he has better hair than - OH MY GOD PEETA HE IS NAKED!"

Katniss put her hand in front of her mouth, trying to prevent her scream to escape her, averting her eyes from the screen, where indeed the man was naked, petting a wolf.

"Is he going to sing naked?" she asked Peeta, not daring looking at the scene again.

"I have no clue?" The young man watched again, as the music started to get louder. "It's safe now, he put his clothes on. You can watch,"he chuckled as Katniss peeked from between her hands, looking at the stage in front of them. Feeling safe enough, she finally watched the performance, still tense, expecting the man to get rid of his shirt at any moment.

"This is crazy." She said. "He was naked, Peeta, NAKED on the stage in front of shitzillion people!"

"You're so pure…"

"I'm not! I'll let you know I am not pure!"

"I mean for the industry. For me you're perfect." His hand fell on her knee, squeezing it kindly before he replaced it on his lap. "And you seemed to kind of like that guy from 24. Tall, dark and handsome is your type apparently?"

"He reminds me of Gale. Remember him?"

"Hawthorne? Yeah, I think my brother still has a scar from one of their fights."

"Boys and their fights…"

"Hey, I'm a boy, and I fought! I should be offended!"

"And here we are with our lovely duo from D12! Remember, they don't have to perform tonight, they are directly qualified for the final. So Peeta and Katniss? Are you having a good evening so far?"

One of the host of the evening, Mans whateverhisnamewas, stood in front of them both, completely naked but for a wolf toy in front of his private parts.

The audience went wild at the sight, allowing Katniss to hide her face in Peeta's shoulder. She didn't want to see that much of skin from that man, not here, not like that. This contest was pure silliness and she was contemplating the thought of running away in a galaxy far far away, for her own sanity.

"Mans!" The hostess shouted at the man. "Will you leave Everlark alone?"

The naked man reluctantly moved away from Katniss and Peeta, while Petra, the hostess came by.

"Apparently, Ivan set up a trend here. So how's our favorite duo doing?" she asked the duo.

Katniss had regained a bit of countenance after the man left, but her hand was still clutching Peeta's shirt, as if for dear life.

"How did you call us?" Katniss asked, frowning.

"Everlark. Can you believe it's trending worldwide?"

"Everlark?" Peeta asked."Oh, I get it, Everdeen and Mellark. Fun!"

"So, Peeta, enjoying your evening?"

"It's full of surprises, Petra!" the young man answered, a smile on his face.

"That's Districtvision! And now up to the next five candidates!"

Petra left the green room, heading to the backstage, leaving Peeta and Katniss alone on their designated couch.

"Everlark? What the hell? We have a nickname?"

"Apparently, Katniss. What can I say? I didn't know either"

"And we're trending? Like really?"

"We'll have to wait until the show ends, I don't have my phone…"

"I have mine…"

"What? How did you?"

"Effie asked for yours, not mine. I didn't volunteer to let her take it."

"Katniss, you are a little devil."

"What can I say, I forgot. It's such a big big day!" Katniss smirked, mimicking Effie again.

"Can we look at it?" Peeta asked, looking around them. The focus was on the performance on stage, a woman screaming for Dona or for donuts, he couldn't be sure.

Katniss nodded, before grabbing her phone, hidden in the inner pocket of her black jacket and quickly launching the twitter app.

"What do we search for?" she wondered, not knowing what to type.

"Districtvision maybe?"

"Let's try."

She quickly put the word in the search bar.

"Wow. There's a ton of them! People really like this thing…" she said, amazement in her voice.

"It's been on for 60 years Katniss, must mean something to them, yeah."

"Oh look! They talk about us! We have a hashtag!"

"Show me ?"

She clicked again quickly, while Peeta was looking around checking if someone was paying attention to them.

"Oh, god. People wonder if the picture shows the end of Everlark! How do they come with such names?"

"Well, it's better than Peeniss, right?"

"Peeta!" she slammed his chest, laughing. "Don't let Effie ear you! She would lose her corset!"

"Now, Miss Everdeen, you're going too far." He started laughing, before the lights came up again, as the candidate from D14 joined the rest of the crew in the Green Room.

"We should do something to prove them we're not angry at each other, what do you think?" Peeta asked, running a hand through his blonde hair, a sure sign he was embarrassed.

"Yeah, but what can we do? The press is outside, we have to wait until we go out?"

"We take a picture of the both of us and share it on social media?"

Katniss paused a second, thinking about the consequences this act could have, besides Effie's wrath that they brought a phone inside the Snow Center. Truly, nothing came to her mind.

"Okay. Let's do it."

She quickly clicked on the icon on the phone, reversing the camera so they would both appear on the picture.

"I guess I have to come closer?" Peeta asked as he moved towards Katniss, to appear into the frame. He was soon leaning against her, his head almost on her shoulder, as they both looked at the camera, smiling.

She clicked on the green button, taking the pic.

"What do you think?" Katniss asked, quickly pushing the buttons to show the picture.

"Not bad…."

"But?"

"No but, really, Katniss."

"Peeta Mellark you have that look in your eyes…"

"Which look?"

"The one you had at school before going head into a passionate debate. So, but what?"

"But as in the conjunction, right? You're not talking about my beautiful backside?'

"Peeta ! Stop it!"

He chuckled, turning his head as the lights around them went down again, a sure signal for another candidate to come onto stage.

"So, will you let me try something?"

"Depends on the something, I guess." Katniss answered him carefully. She wasn't about to agree to anything he asked. They were only new friends. There were limits.

"You'll see. Nothing bad. And Effie will be over the moon. She might even be happy you forgot to give her your phone."

"And you plan on doing this how?"

"Put the phone on picture mode. It's nothing bad, I swear."

"Okay." She put the phone on them, leaning against him this time, surprised when he took the phone out of her hands.

"Let me take this one. If you don't like it, we'll use the first one."

She nodded, although in the almost dark of the Green Room, now only lit by the lamps on the tables, she was pretty sure he couldn't see her move her head, but somehow, maybe he felt it.

He grabbed the phone.

They leaned into each other.

She smiled, her usual picture smile, the one she reserved for the press interviews.

Until she sensed his lips on her cheek, feeling herself relax slightly at the warmth coming from the place where they connected.

She should have been uncomfortable about it, but really wasn't. She could feel herself getting lost in this feeling, like nothing else she had known before. Lips had never felt so good on her skin.

"What do you think?" his voice was a bit lower than usual, taking her out of her reverie

"What?' she asked.

"Look at the picture…" he gave her her phone back, letting Katniss look through the picture he had taken.

She had her eyes closed, her face leaning into his lips as he watched her, his baby blues wide open.

They both looked happy, and relaxed.

"You're right, this one is better"

"So will you post it?"

"I will allow it."

She quickly typed a message, adding the picture, before posting it onto infinite land that was the internet.

The internet went crazy. Viral. Effie was on a cloud above the ninth.

Haymitch welcomed them in their ensuite with two thumbs up, a smirk on his face.

"Well done, lovebirds! You're going to have half of the districts voting for you just for this picture.

Great idea, Peeta!"

"How do you know it was Peeta's idea?" Katniss asked, annoyed their mentor could read them so easily.

"Don't tell me it was yours…"

"It wasn't, but still, I could have thought of it!"

"Yeah, maybe in an alternate universe. Still, did you get questions from the press?"

Katniss shrugged, of course there had been questions from the press all the way out of the Snow Center, asking them about the kiss, the infamous picture from before completely forgotten.

"We did. Usual stuff." Peeta answered, raking his hand in his hair, again.

"Nobody asked about the picture?" Haymitch's voice had turned curious.

"They asked about Saturday." The young man sighed, before levelling his eyes with their mentor's.

"Of course they asked. Are we friends or more and so on and so on. Flickerman screamed so loudly I think he might have blown an artery."

"And what did you answer?"

"That we were looking forward to Saturday. Nothing more. We know how to work the press, Haymitch."

"That you do, Kid. She, on the other hand…"

Katniss was about to jump off the couch, because seriously, how could this old man talk about her like that, when she saw Peeta moving in front of her, preventing her from slapping Haymitch.

"She's learning, and is doing really well. So cut her some slack, will you? It's already difficult enough with the pressure they put on without adding the pressure from both of you. I don't recall you having to sing in front of hundreds of thousands people in purple booty shorts, right?"

"Not purple. Lavender, Peeta dear." Effie chimed in.

"Purple or lavender, we're not wearing them, Effie. We stick to what Cinna and Portia made. The song is crazy and stupid enough, we don't need to add another layer of madness."

Shock was dispatched on Effie's face, as if she had been slapped.

"I will have you know I wrote that song, young man!" Haymitch interjected, angry lines showing on his forehead.

"And you're proud of it? I don't know what's worse."

Peeta turned his back to Haymitch, who was clearly fumbling, trying to come up with a reply, and held his hand out to his partner.

"Katniss, I'm going to bed. Good night."

"Yeah, I'll go too." With his help, she rose from the couch and followed Peeta into the corridor that lead to their respective rooms.

It's only when they arrived at the door to hers that she realized she was still holding his hand.

She let go quickly to grab the doorknob, ready to bid him good night when she found herself face to face with him. He obviously made a move to lean in and talk to her, at the same moment she turned to speak to him..

They locked eyes, and for Katniss, time stopped.

She knew Peeta had blue eyes, of course she did. Everybody in their town knew it. It was the Mellark's trademark thing, the three boys sharing the same color but with distinct shades. Quinn, the eldest, who was quieter and wiser, had eyes like the sky just minutes before the sunset, a purplish blue that was darker than Alec's, whose were so blue, they were nearly black. Peeta's were clear and bright, like the sky after the rain when no clouds could be seen, sometimes glittering with a sparkle that made them a beacon, attracting everything towards them.

But seeing them so close to her now made her realize how lost one could get, should they choose to dive into them. It was a highway to his soul that she didn't know whether she should embark on or stay as far away as possible from.

He made the choice for them, leaning forward until his lips grazed her ear, whispering softly.

"I'm here if you need my help to unzip…"

His breath left a trail along her jaw until she felt his lips on her cheek, planting a kiss as light as a rose petal there, before retreating to his room.

It took quite some time before Katniss was able to move from her spot, staring at the door down the corridor, wondering what had just happened.

And they'd only been friends for twelve hours.

Wednesday passed in a heavy mood. Effie was crying every time Katniss or Peeta talked to her, taking a lilac handkerchief out of her sleeve to wipe her tears. The bag full of offending garments was gone into the oblivion of the fashion police, never to be mentioned again. Cinna and Portia came by to make the last changes to the outfits for the Saturday.

Haymitch was pouting somewhere.

Everlark was trending worldwide.

They had become the talk of the town, obliterating the other candidates, even the almost sure winners from D1 and D2. Katniss and Peeta were all the Districtvision sphere was talking about, their suite being the center of the contest show. They had to unplug the phone from the wall to get a bit of rest, and security agents had to come to guard the entry of their suite from fans threatening to break in at any minute.

Katniss and Peeta's phones were also the target of numerous news outlets, asking for all kind of interviews.

The only messages Katniss cared for were the ones coming from her family, and had spent hours literally explaining to her sister that the kiss was only some marketing picture, shot to deflect a negative paparazzi picture taken earlier.

Nothing more, really.

But the teenager had other ideas, ideas she tried to explain to her sister on the phone.

"Come on, Katniss, admit it, Peeta is hot!"

"He's not bad. But there are tons of hot guys around, I don't know why you're focused on him!"

"Do you let the other hot guys kiss you?"

"He didn't kiss me, it was a peck. For the contest."

"If that's what you're telling yourself. You know Everlark is trending, right?"

"And?"

"It's the both of you! Everdeen - Mellark! It's cute!"

"I know what it is, Prim, it's just a word."

"Come on, Kat, you know it's more, you had such a crush on him in high school!"

"I did not! You really have to stop watching your stupid tv shows, you know that?"

"You did! At night you used to say his name!"

"I did what?"

"Some nights, you said his name in your dreams."

"Peeta's?"

"Yes. Peeta's. Who else?"

"I never dreamt about him."

"You sooo did, Kat!"

"And you're pulling that out why? Is it even true?"

"It is true, I swear on Buttercup!"

"Whatever. We're not dating. We're just friends."

"If you say so. So, how's life in D7 ?"

"Chill. But it's okay, I don't mind. I wish we could go out more frequently, but with the crazy people outside, it's difficult. We only did the customary tours.."

"Then why don't you put on a wig and go out?"

"Because nobody will notice we're gone?"

"Ah, yes, there's that."

"Yup. We're pretty much trapped here until Sunday. I'll be home Monday early morning."

"Why do you have to be so far away, Kat? You know there are journalists at the door asking us about you, and you and Peeta?"

"There are?"

"Yeah, but Plutarch sent men here so we're safe. But we'll be glad when it's all over."

"Me too, little duck, me too."

"I have to go, Kat, school's not waiting for me!"

"Okay. Love you, sis!"

"Love you more!"

Katniss listened to the click of the phone, a sure sign Prim had hung up on the other side of the line. She felt sad and angry at the thought that her being here had indirect implications on her family and their lives. She never imagined that would be the case, that her mother and sister would have to deal with her being in the spotlight. She thought about Peeta, wondering how he had been dealing with fame these last years, being the center of attention every day. She couldn't remember how many times she had snorted at seeing his face on the cover of magazines, "showing off" as she thought.

Maybe she could ask him how he was dealing with all this fame-thingy?

It would just take a phone call, after all.

Just a call, nothing more, really.

Right?

Right.

Without thinking more, she pushed on the Peeta button on her phone (he now even had his own ringtone) hoping for him to answer quickly.

She let it ring, ring until it went to voicemail.

Without another thought, she put her phone on the nightstand. Maybe Peeta was busy or had his phone silenced if he wanted to sleep. Or maybe he was taking care of things, or he could even be in the shower.

Shower. Peeta.

Two words she never associated together, though suddenly a vision of Peeta in the bathroom (which she assumed was the same as hers) appeared in her mind, water dripping from his head onto his chest, creating a whole set of images she never thought of before, images she never thought would come to her.

A knock on the door of her room startled her from her inappropriate thoughts. Getting up from the bed, she went to open it, only to find Peeta on the other side. Hair still wet. Shirt clinging to his shoulders.

"I saw you called?" he asked with a wink.

"And you didn't think to call me back?"

"Better to talk face to face. So, can I come in?"

"Or we can speak here ?"

"As you wish. What did you want to talk about" Peeta asked, leaning on the doorframe.

"How do you handle the fame?"

"I don't. That's why I have a personal assistant, a manager, and security."

"What?"

"You sure I can't come in? This could take a while to explain." He asked.

"Okay. but don't sit on the bed!"

"Why not?"

"I sleep in it!"

He chuckled before coming in, spotting a chair by the window, on which he sat, crossing a leg on his knee.

"Close the door, please, I don't want Haymitch or Effie to hear this." He said quietly.

She complied before climbing onto her large bed, setting herself comfortably against the fluffy pillows lining the headboard.

"So?"

"Fame is a fickle friend, Katniss. A friend I don't want too close to me. Believe it or not, I don't like being in the spotlight, having my face on magazines covers, having to pose half naked for photo shoots."

"Then why do you do it?"

"Because that's the game. To sell record you need to do more than just sing. You have to 'touch the public's heart'. So, since Rebels audience were teenagers, you have to play the game. Pose shirtless on the beach, look out at the horizon wistfully to move the crowds. Give interviews about your fake perfect girlfriend. And what's the result? You have to answer even more questions. Have your family get harassed. You know that my dad had people coming into the bakery just to leave a stack of photos for me to sign? People look at you differently as soon as you've had your ten minutes of glory.

"So you want to know how I handle it? I don't. I created a double, the Peeta that is out there for the crowd and the show. . I drifted, I indulged in all the excesses possible, Katniss. it's so easy to forget who you are, to become what they want to be. You lose yourself in the process." Peeta sighed, leaning forward until his arms were on his knees, his head bowed down. "Giving in to this costs a lot. It costs everything you are. So, please don't lose yourself to fame. Deal with it from afar, keep being who you are Katniss, please. Surround yourself with good people that only have YOUR interests at heart, not the dickheads who only think about how much money you're worth to them."

"Like Plutarch." She said.

"I don't know him. I can't tell."

"And that's why you want to quit?"

"I've had enough of this, Katniss. I'm more than a half-naked man moving my butt on a stage to sell records. I never thought this was what I would have when I took that deal, you know? I wanted to write my songs, to have my words, my music out. Not that crappy thing. So yeah, I'm backing off. You're on the right path, though, cause you are known for your music."

"Yeah, maybe, but well, look where I end up."

"Is it bad?" he asked, and at this very moment he very much looked like the little boy she saw for the first time during their first kindergarten day.

"Not entirely. I mean, now we talk to each other. I know you're not a complete asshole, now." Katniss smirked.

"Thanks, I guess?"

"You're welcome. See, I can be nice, too!"

"You're always nice, Katniss. I-"

The door to the room opened, a completely disheveled Effie barging in.

"We have a terrible problem. The jury wants to exclude us from the final!"

"Why would they do that?" Katniss asked.

"D1 has put a request that Wake Me Up is not an original song. We could be out if they agree!"

Jitterbug, indeed.

End of part 1.

This story was only possible because of the Europe Club ( akai-echo, bandathebillie ombradellaluna joined by two converts ct522 and xerxia)
My deep thanks to akai-echo for the amazing banner, to ombradellaluna for the name of the story, and to ct522 and xerxia for their magic touch, their patience, their talent, their awesomeness, their kindness, at betaing 9800 words full of mistakes.

Thank you all for making this story possible.

Because seriously, an Everlark!Eurovision story, how crazy is this ?

Hope you enjoyed! If so, please leave a small message :)
I'm the girlfromoverthepond on tumblr (yay france:) )