in the honey // tigs x arcadia; brunch buffet

[ines izar d11a 🖤 cait]

arcadia lumiere-fray

It’s giving: YLIP Season 2?!

Seriously, massive déjà vu vibes on this one. Speed dating with a Hunger Games twist? You just know there was a whole ass board meeting about it, run by some adolescent tween trying to become the next Jemima Quartz. Apparently, her name is Bourgeois and she’s even more of a prissy than I am! I respect the hustle though. Not to mention, she has killer taste in buffet food. I’m already on my second plate of hors d'oeuvres and three mimosas deep and damn, it really is a Young Love revival up in here!

I find the seat assigned to me, fashionably late – you gotta keep them on their toes! – and survey the girl in front of me who looks about as pleased to be here as the rest of the room. And I guess, it’s fair enough. They’re probably going to all be dead by this time next week.

So, maybe this isn’t quite the reality TV show vibe we were going for. Not to worry! Nothign a bit of old-fashioned Lumiere-Fray hospitality can't fix!

“Hey!! I’m Arcadia. But you probably knew that already right?” I’m laying it on suuuuper thick, batting my eyelashes and smiling wider than should be humanely possible, but who ever remembered the boring nobody sitting in the corner, keeping to herself?

Except... my partner doesn’t really... say anything to that. If anything, she looks even more concerned than she did thirty seconds ago.

I choose to elaborate.

“You know! Young Love in Panem?! The district-wide phenomenon which was cruelly cancelled after only two episodes??” Honestly, such a shame. I imagine Petelia is still turning in her grave to this day at the low ratings.

“Oh… sorry, but I did not have the time to watch a show like that.”

Oh.

Ouch!

“Ooooookay, well! Not to worry! You didn’t miss out on much.” And honestly, maybe having a clean slate was for the best. No preconceived notions on either end – an even playing field, if you will!

My ego isn’t bruised, I promise!!

“I’m sure we’ll be the best of friends in no time! It’s Tigs, right?” My voice ends on a question, but I know who she is. Making friends to me was as simple as breathing, and the easiest way to know someone was to at least know their first name. It’s not rocket science!

Antigone Jay, District Nine. A famed last name – oh, don’t I know the weight of such a legacy. The poor thing.

I’m the first to lean forward and dip my hand into the glass bowl in front of us, retrieving a tiny slip of paper from its depths. In a voice of spun sugar, charming as anything, I pose a question:

“What’s the one thing you will most the most about being away from home?”

Wow. Yikes. Nothing like brutal honesty to start your morning!

“Feel free to get deep with me. I’m an excellent listener, promise!” I reach across the table and hold out my pinky to her – like we’ve been best friends our entire lives – in what I hope is a reassuring notion.

[Hafen d4 ⚓︎ minie]

a n t i g o n e .

Arcadia looked like she was trying to bat up a storm with her heavily laid on eyelashes. In fact her whole personality was an overwhelming whirlwind that took me a few moments to adjust to in order not be blown away entirely.

My blue eyes turned into question marks as my jaw was left dangling open like a venus fly trap. I’ve encountered girls like her at school, all perky and wanting to be your friend until they find out where you’re from. They were the kind of people that never gave me the time of day, definitely not one of things I missed at all to consider her final question.

“Yeah Tigs is right!” I finally pulled myself together to muster up an answer. Quickly, I had done my best to hide my initial dumbfound reaction. As if a switch in my brain had been turned on, I smiled brightly and straightened up my back. The girl in front of me might have not been my normal choice in a friend but with every breath I took since volunteering, I was quick to learn that I would need people like Arcadia to make it through.

My answers would have to match her questions, I would need to start playing the game now if I was going to win.

There was no doubt that the only thing I missed about district nine was my family. I had spent my entire life working to be able to get the hell out of that place. I had a small taste when I was in six, but that could not compare to the experience that was at the Capitol. Food I had never seen in my entire life. Drinks that tasted as if they were made for the gods themselves. My own team that seemed to make every decision for me in my day to day life.

I hated it.

There was nothing I wished for more than to be wearing my same 3 flannels in rotation and my dark eyeliner to be surrounding my eyes. There was too much comfort in the misery that I knew.

I took Arcadia’s pinky as I smiled once again and leaned in a little closer as if a secret of the highest concern would roll off my tongue.

“The thing I miss the most…” I paused as I let out a little laugh at the absurdity of it all “…is the ability to dress myself and do my own makeup. Yellow is not my colour” I referred to the poofy dress I was stuffed into earlier this morning.

I let go of her pinky and leaned back into my seat as I pulled the next paper from the bowl in front of us and took a sip from the Bloody Mary that was carefully placed in front of me.

“What’s your favourite hobby or activity to do for fun?” I took another sip as I posed the next question.

ELEGANT

[ines izar d11a 🖤 cait]

arcadia lumiere-fray

The shift in her is subtle, but I see it clearly reflected at me. I’ve been studying the human experience since I knew how to string a sentence together. Getting close to people was all about knowing the inner workings of their conscious and subconscious minds – picking up on the little things they didn’t even realise they were giving away. Non-verbal cues hold so much more weight than spoken words, and she’s showing every sign of a girl trying to hide her discomfort so as not to appear weaker.

I could teach her a thing or two about that. Unfortunately, we’re a minute down of our five-minute speed date, so that might have to wait for another day.

It’s not a surprise when she opts for a joke when faced with such a serious question. Whether she’s simply trying to match my breezy energy or just trying to protect herself from her own heavy emotions, her words sound shallow.

On cue, I laugh along with her anyway. Her pinky is clammy against my own, and she’s quick to let go.

She’s guarded. Understandably so. But making connections was all about sincerity. People were more likely to open up to you if you took the lead and gave away a part of yourself to them, like trading secrets in the dark. And I’ve always been the first to do whatever I needed to do in order to get ahead.

I soften my eyes, and it’s not just for show. Because I know how it feels to be molded against your will, to have to conform to someone else’s expectations for you.

“It’s definitely important to feel like yourself. Don’t let them turn you into something you’re not.” I look at her fresh face, free of makeup. Take in the canary yellow of her dress and how it washes out her pale skin, and admire the fact that she still looks lovely regardless. “I think you look beautiful either way, for the record.”

When it’s my turn to open up, I dive in with all the truth in my heart. “I think people tend to see me as a party girl with no ambition. Like, I just want to get drunk all the time and make lots of friends and be famous, but that’s not true. I think I just make the most of the opportunities I’m given, you know?” I’m rambling – can’t help it, I always do it.

I focus back in on her question.

“But actually, I really love fashion. I love the idea of creating new clothes that can make people feel confident. It would be really cool to do something like that one day.” My heart aches a little at my candor, but I hope that Tigs feels the meaning behind my words and trusts in my intentions a little more.

I shrug my shoulders slightly, releasing some of the tension in them, and cough out an awkward laugh. “But enough about me!” I reach into the bowl again, hoping to give her a slightly less intrusive question this time around

“What do you think your biggest strength is?”