Chapter 5: The Cafeteria

Cato's POV:

Peeta stumbles for a moment before steadying himself and then teleporting us in front of Katniss's dorm room. He quickly knocks on the door before I even have a chance to compliment his spell casting skills, which have definitely improved over time. It used to take Peeta 5 minutes to cast a teleportation spell, and now he can do it in 5 seconds. The sound of rushed footsteps quickly fills my ears. Katniss soon roughly opens the door while letting out a sigh of relief. Joy and thankfulness rolls off her in strong waves. "THANK GOD YOU'RE BOTH HERE. SHE'S BEEN HOGGING THE BATHROOM FOR 2 HOURS NOW!", Katniss exclaims before pulling Peeta into her dorm room. I walk in after them, slowly shutting the door behind me. Peeta pulls Katniss into a comforting hug. It looks like Katniss hasn't had a chance to change out of her pajamas, let alone brush her hair. "Who in their right mind would get up at 5 am just to get dressed for school?", I scoff. Katniss pulls away before rolling her eyes in a dramatic manner. "Apparently princess Audrey.", Katniss grumbles out as irritation flows from her. Peeta shoots her a sympathetic look. I'm honestly surprised Katniss didn't yank Audrey out of the bathroom after 30 minutes. "IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT THEN GO USE SOMEONE ELSE'S BATHROOM!", Audrey yells from the bathroom. I'm surprised her dull human ears could hear us from here. "MAYBE I WILL!", Katniss screams back. Peeta cringes due to how close he is in proximity. Katniss immediately shoots him an apologetic look. "It's okay, come here.", Peeta says while motioning for Katniss to step closer.

Mei's POV:

I wake up to my alarm ringing. I lightly rub my eyes before reaching over and turning my alarm off. I already know Lonnie's at Swords And Shields practice before I even look over at her side of the room. She's hardly ever around, and for once I'm kinda grateful for it. I'm not ready to face her just yet after our fight last night. I know I'll end up apologizing as soon as I see her, even though it seems like she's in no rush to apologize herself. I sigh before pushing my blankets back, and sliding out of bed. I pad over to the bathroom to clean myself up a bit before getting dressed. "I shouldn't let my argument with Lonnie put a damper on my day.", I say to myself while looking in the mirror. I quickly brush my teeth, wash my face, and leave the bathroom with a renewed determination. I'm going to prove to Lonnie, and everyone else, that shapeshifters are just like us. They shouldn't be treated any differently than everyone else. I walk over to my dresser, and take out a navy blue bra with matching underwear. I strip off my pjs, then toss them into my hamper. I slip on my undergarments, then retrieve my dress from it's hanger. I don my dress, then sit on the edge of my bed to slide on the socks. I skip back over to my closet door to grab my shoes. I can't help but let out a giddy squeal as I slip them on. I can't remember the last time I truly looked forward to lunchtime. I walk over to my vanity, and promptly sit down. I brush my hair out, and pull it into a ponytail. I put on some light nude makeup on, then set it in place with some setting spray.

Cato's POV:

Peeta places both his pointer and middle fingers of each hand on Katniss's temples. They both close their eyes as an orange aura emits from Peeta's hands. This same aura quickly envelops Katniss's body before fading away a moment later. Revealing a fully groomed and dressed Katniss. "Thank God I don't have to look at your unkempt appearance anymore.", I joke. Peeta lowers his hands as Katniss lets out a snort before playfully rolling her eyes. Katniss quickly strides over to what I'm assuming is her bed, since I can't really see her sleeping on a pink bed covered in fluffy pillows. She grabs her hiking backpack and class schedule. "Come on, let's get out of here. I want a different room before the day's over.", Katniss says while quickly striding pass us. Peeta rushes after her while I once again trail behind. I close the door behind us. "Did you really bring your hiking backpack to school?", I tease Katniss as I soon fall into step with both her and Peeta. I can already feel Katniss starting to get defensive before she even retorts something. Katniss's always been the adventurist outdoorsy type, as a lot of us shapeshifters are, but Katniss is exceedingly so. She spends most of her time outdoors, and is only inside buildings when it's absolutely necessary. When you're mostly outdoors, comfort and sensibility in clothing and accessories is a must. A regular backpack for students don't have nearly as many components to it, and not to mention it's a lot less durable. I honestly couldn't see Katniss using a regular backpack, but that doesn't mean I can't tease her for using her hiking one.

Mei's POV:

I stand up then push my chair in before walking over to my nightstand to get my phone and charger. I grab those then walk around my bed to my backpack. I place my phone and charger inside my bag before grabbing my keys and slinging my bag onto my shoulders. I take a quick look around to make sure I haven't forgotten anything, then I head out. After double checking that I've locked the door behind me, I slip my keys back into my bag before walking down the hallway. I wave at a few people I walk by before coming to the staircase. I start to walk down the staircase, and about halfway down Chad barrels past me while shoving me out of his way. My shoulder hits the wall, and I let out a faint groan of pain. "Watch it, loser! Audrey texted me saying she wants a double chocolate chip muffin before they're gone!", Chad screams as he runs out of the building. I slowly peel myself off the wall, and lightly rub my now sore shoulder. I'm sure he didn't mean to push me that hard, he was just in a hurry. I hear 2 pairs of rapidly approaching footsteps. I cringe and stiffen, not bothering to look up in case it's Ally and Jordan. "Mei, are you okay?", I hear Peeta ask me. Wait, Peeta? I look up, and Peeta and Katniss are standing in front of me with concerned looks on their faces. Cato's standing behind them with a bored look on his face. I immediately relax as I shoot them a smile. "Oh, good morning Peeta, Katniss, and Cato. I didn't expect to run into all of you this early. I'm fine, Chad was just in a hurry is all.", I greet.

Cato's POV:

We reach the top of the staircase just in time to see Mei get shoved into the wall and called a loser, by who I'm assuming is Audrey's boyfriend. Concern immediately rolls off Peeta, and I fight the urge to roll my eyes. I know humans are fragile, but I don't think that little shove to the wall and name call did that much damage. Annoyance and a little bit of anger rolls off Katniss. I'm not at all surprised she's annoyed, but I didn't expect her to be angry over a girl she hardly even knows. Peeta bounds down the stairs with Katniss while I trail after them. Oh boy, I would've asked Peeta to conjure me up a cup of coffee if I knew I'd have to deal with her THIS EARLY in the morning. She cringes and stiffens once she hears Peeta and Katniss approach her. I'm assuming she hasn't realized it's them yet since her head's bowed, and humans don't exactly have the strongest sense of smell either. Does EVERYONE at this school bully this girl? I can feel anxiety and fear roll off the girl in strong waves. She's actually terrified of her own classmates? Once she realizes it's Peeta asking if she's okay, she visibly relaxes as relief and happiness washes over her. Why on Earth would SHE be happy to see US? Suppose it's since Peeta's actually nice to her, but she should still be leery of Katniss, and logically FEAR me. She greets us, even me for some reason, good morning before dismissing Chad's rude behavior. "Even if he was just 'in a hurry', he still shouldn't have pushed you like that.", Katniss tells her.

Mei's POV:

"I agree with Katniss, and he shouldn't have called you a loser either. That was uncalled for and rude, not that pushing you wasn't uncalled for and rude as well.", Peeta adds. I softly smile at them. I appreciate their concern, no one's really ever cared enough to ask me that and truly mean it, except Lonnie of course. People would just usually ask me that to be nice I suppose, and only if they knew I was aware that they were standing nearby to witness everything. Cato and his friends could've easily backed away, or pretended come down the stairs after Chad left. They didn't have to check on me, yet they did. I knew they were good people. "Thank you both, I really do appreciate your concern, but I'm sure he didn't mean it.", I say to them. Katniss crosses her arms while quirking a brow at me. "Really? You REALLY think he didn't mean it?", she asks me. I hear Cato deeply sigh behind them. I glance over at him, and we make eye contact. I quickly look back over at Katniss before my face has a chance to heat up. "Well of course. I don't think he'd have a reason to mean it, I've never been mean or rude to him before.", I reply. Peeta lays a hand on my shoulder. "Sometimes, bullies don't have a reason besides taking out their own personal problems on others.", Peeta tells me. Chad isn't a bully, and he doesn't bully me! He's surely just under a lot of stress from Audrey, she is pretty high maintenance. I know Chad struggles with his studies a lot, that must have him on edge as well. Besides, I'm that weak that'd I'd get picked on by so many people I'm on good terms with. Peeta's wrong, and so is Lonnie..

Cato's POV:

This girl's either extremely stupid, or in denial about her current situation. Right off the bat she defended Chad and justified his actions, further enabling this toxic behavior. Anguish and hopelessness fills the air, and it doesn't take a genius to figure out where it's coming from. Mei looks like she's fighting back tears at this point. Peeta's still got his hand on her shoulder, and Katniss's moved to lightly rub her back. They're both radiating the same emotion, pity. I scoff and roll my eyes. I really doubt this girl wants their pity, and I seriously doubt she's ready to deal with whatever trama she's experienced at this very moment. Don't they realize, no matter how good their intentions are, they're not helping at the moment? I'm sure she'd much rather cry about it alone in her dorm than on a staircase where anyone could see her. Besides, we've all got things to do. I let out a sigh before stepping forward, and staring Mei down for a moment. I need to give her something else to focus on, and I need these two to stop trying to comfort her right now, it's not very effective. I grab Mei's wrist and yank her towards me. She lets out a yelp as she stumbles down a couple stairs. Right, humans aren't as coordinated, especially not this one. I let go of her wrist and grab her shoulders to help balance her. Anxiety and nervousness soon replace her anguish. She looks away as I let go of her. Katniss immediately descends a step, clearly ready to stop me if I try anything. Peeta obviously follows suit, ha, typical omega.

Mei's POV:

Cato's hands felt so warm, and strong.. "Mind showing us the cafeteria? You pointed out the building yesterday, but never showed us the layout of the inside.", Cato asks me. He's, actually being nice to me! I didn't think we'd make this much progress so soon! EEEEEPPPP. THIS IS SO EXCITING! I beam at Cato. "Of course! I was actually just heading over there myself before classes start.", I tell him. Katniss and Peeta walk down the remaining steps with me before I take the lead and walk a few steps in front of them. We're greeted by singing birds and warm sunlight as we step outside of the dorm building. "So how've you 3 been settling into your dorms so far?", I turn my head back to ask. Gosh, walking ahead of them makes me feel like the tour guide again. Which I suppose I still am, but I don't want them to see me as just that. I guess it is my fault for walking ahead of them, it's just what I've always done whenever I've had to show a fellow student where something is. I catch movement near me out of the right corner of my eye. I look over and Cato's now walking in step with me. Oh, that was sweet of him.. Katniss and Peeta soon flank the other side of me. "Peeta and I are settling in as you'd expect, our dorm is sufficient. Katniss on the other hand..", Cato trails off. I immediately look over at Katniss. Oh no, I guess Audrey is giving her a hard time after all. Audrey's 1 of the few people who've managed to get away with not having a roommate for a while, she's doesn't really like to share.

Cato's POV:

Concern shoots out of Mei as she looks at Katniss for an explanation. "Leave it Cato. I'm fine, really.", Katniss groans. I let out a snort. "You'd still be in your pjs sporting a severe case of bed head if Peeta and I hadn't have stopped by.", I retort. Katniss shoots me a glare, silently challenging me to drop the subject. I chuckle. "You'll have to forgive Audrey, she's not really used to sharing.", Mei says at Katniss. Katniss drops her glare and looks back ahead. "Why is that not surprising?", Katniss rhetorically asks. Mei surprisingly giggles at this. I would've assumed she'd defend Audrey and attempt to justify her behavior again. I also didn't expect her laugh to sound so, cute.. I IMMEDIATELY shake my head to clear THAT train of thought. We soon reach the building in which the cafeteria in located. Peeta, Katniss, and I fall back slightly so Mei can take the lead. She holds open the door for us. "Thank you.", Peeta brightly chirps. "Thank you", Katniss says as she's stepping into the building after Peeta. I stop in the middle of the doorway, and give Mei a short nod of acknowledgment. I hear her heartbeat increases the tiniest bit as she smiles at me in response. I furrow my brow at her before walking inside. I hear her walking behind me as we catch up with Katniss and Peeta. I didn't feel a nervous energy emanate from her, I just felt happiness. So why would her heart rate increase?

Mei's POV:

I'm not sure why Cato's acting kinder towards me today. Maybe it's because I apologized last night? Whatever the reason, it's definitely made today even better than it would've been otherwise. I follow him as we join Peeta and Katniss at the double doors of the cafeteria entrance. "Did all of you bring any money with you?", I ask them. Peeta's eyes slightly widen. "Were we supposed to?", he asks. Cato scoffs next to me. "Do you think she would've asked that if we weren't supposed to bring money?", Cato asks him. Katniss steps in front of Peeta. Um, maybe I shouldn't have asked that. "I think SOMEONE needs their morning coffee.", Katniss snaps. "It's completely fine if you didn't bring money, just remember to next time please.", I quickly say while wedging myself between Katniss and Cato. Katniss backs up, but Cato holds his ground. I place a hand on his chest. "Let's go inside, hopefully they'll still have some double chocolate chip muffins left. They're really tasty, you should definitely try 1, if you want to that is.", say while looking at Cato. I'm trying my hardest not to blush at the fact that my hand's resting on his very firm chest. He looks down at my hand for a moment. Maybe putting my hand on him was a bit too much? I hope not, I just wanted him to remain calm. I feel myself start to freeze up. No no no no no, this is not the time be nervous! I have to move my hand before he thinks I'm weird and hates me again!

Cato's POV:

I look down at her hand resting on my chest. I'm oddly not entirely disgusted by this small show of physical contact. I can tell she's attempting to diffuse the situation to prevent things from escalating any further. I can't believe she thinks Katniss and I would seriously fight. We do trade verbal blows quite often, and things can get tense, but we never seriously fight. We're both pretty stubborn and don't really back down, it's only natural for us to clash at times. Mei follows my gaze to her hand. I can feel her starting to tense up and freeze. Embarrassment and nervousness emanates off her. With her actually touching me I can sense all of her emotions much more easily. She's, concerned and worried. She must think I'll lash out at her for touching me. I normally wouldn't have hesitated, but I am trying to act somewhat decently towards her, and she has been through a lot. That's been made pretty clear since this morning. I sense Katniss and Peeta's uneasiness, they're clearly once again ready to step in if something were to go wrong. I let out a sigh before lightly grabbing her wrist. She stiffens even more and sucks in a breath. She slowly looks up at me. "I'm not going to hurt you.", I state. A blush soon spreads across her cheeks. A burst of caringness spreads through her, as her body temperature slightly rises and her heartbeat quickens. "I know.", she breathes out. OH GOD, she has feelings for me..

Mei's POV:

Cato slowly pulls my hand away from his chest, and sets it back down. He takes a slight step back. "Okay then, let's go get some of those muffins you were talking about, I'm hungry.", Cato says. I open my mouth before immediately closing it. I'll probably end up stuttering out something stupid. I nod instead and turn around to see confused expressions on Katniss and Peeta's faces. I step around them and hold open 1 of the doors. Cato brushes past them and walks into the cafeteria. They quickly follow after a moment. I let the door shut, and walk over to the breakfast line as the trio silently follows me. I can feel everyone's eyes on us as soon as we start moving. I look at the ground as I make my way to the end of the line. I don't like being looked at like this, it makes me so uncomfortable. I'm guessing the trio must be feeling the same thing. Cato stands in line a couple feet away from me, so Katniss and Peeta fall in line behind him. I look back at him in confusion. Why's he so far back? I wonder if he noticed how uncomfortable I was. Oh no, I don't want him to think that's his fault. I walk over to him and lightly grab his wrist like he did mine earlier. "Don't worry about everyone else, they're just not used to seeing you around here. ", I say before dragging Cato back to where I was in line. He surprisingly lets me, even though he could easily yank his wrist free or plant his feet firmly on the ground. I drop his wrist, then slide my backpack off to fish out my wallet.

Cato's POV:

I- this has never happened to me before, someone having a crush on me. My packmates don't look at me in that sort of way, for good reasons of course. There would be no point of a Beta or Omega having feelings for me since I'm destined to marry the top female Alpha. The other female Alphas knew from pretty early on who the top female Alpha was, so there was no point in trying. I never expected a human to have feelings for me, especially Mei of all people. We're complete opposites for Gods sake. I can feel the confusion radiating off Katniss and Peeta as they stand in line behind me. They've been bewildered ever since I asked Mei to show us where the cafeteria was. I'll of course explain my reasoning behind that to them later, when Mei isn't around. The line moves up as Chad starts to walk away with two muffins, most likely those chocolate ones he was screaming about as he ran out of the dorm building earlier. He somehow manages to spot us out of his very dull and limited peripheral vision. He whips his head in our direction entirely, and shoots us a glare before marching over to us. Katniss stiffens and slightly shifts herself in front of Peeta. Peeta grabs her hand, and intertwines his fingers with hers while sending her a wave of calming energy. Mei's eyes widen as she sees him coming, extremely nervous and almost fearful energy radiates from her being. "What're THEY doing in OUR cafeteria?", Chad snaps at Mei while jabbing a finger in my direction.

Mei's POV:

I visibly flinch at the harness in Chad's voice, and Cato starts to growl. OH NO, this is Family Day all over again. I can't let this happen again, everyone else hasn't even gotten a chance to warm up to Cato, Katniss, and Peeta yet. "Getting breakfast just like everyone else, and this is their cafeteria too now.", I say to Chad. Chad takes a step towards me, and it takes all my willpower not to shrink back. I try to avoid conflict as much as possible, but I can't back down on this. "You did tell them that the lunch ladies don't serve dog food here, right?", Chad sneers. Katniss takes a step forward and lets go of Peeta's hand. "Katniss, don't. It's not worth it.", Peeta says. "You better listen to your little bitch there, Lassie.", Chad says. I jump in front of Chad before any of them has a chance to punch him in the face. I'm pretty sure everyone here's looking at us and waiting for a fight to break out, but I can't worry about who might be watching right now. I have to stop this from escalating any further. "They're regular people just like us! I don't know what your problem is, but they never done anything to you!", I defend. Chad gets in my face, and I feel Cato grab my arm. "They're anything BUT regular people, and the sooner you realize what freaks they are, the better. Walk away now before they use you as a chew toy.", Chad threatens. Cato pulls me away from Chad, and hides me behind him. "Are you really so insecure about yourself, that you feel the need to belittle others so they feel just as insignificant as you do?", Cato asks.

Cato's POV:

Chad should count himself lucky I can't mangle his fragile human carcass right now. Katniss and Peeta are pissed, I can feel it shooting off them. While Mei on the other hand is terrified and protective at the same time. She's concerned a fight will break out, which honestly might've happened if she weren't here right now. I'd be lying if I didn't admit I'm surprised she wants to protect us instead of Chad, seeing as how he's a fellow Auradonian. Chad blinks his eyes a few times in surprise. I hear a few 'oooh's and laughs throughout the cafeteria. Anger and embarrassment surges off Chad as he glares at me. He steps up to me, proceeding to invade my personal space and getting in my face. I growl at him and his glare intensifies. "Yoooo are they really 'bout ta throw hands?", I hear some random guy ask someone else. "I don't know bro, but I'm sure as Hell getting it on video if they do.", the guy's friend replies. I feel Mei yank her arm out of my grasp. "Chad, stop this!", Mei shouts at Chad. He glances in her direction. "Or what?", he snaps before shoving me. I stumble back a step. Before I get a chance to tackle him to the ground Mei jumps in front of me and shoves Chad back. "I said STOP IT!", Mei snaps. He's sways a bit but doesn't actually budge. I'm guessing Mei doesn't work out much. I'm impressed by her determination and ability to put her fear aside to think fairly clearly. He stares Mei down, and quickly lifts a hand up to slap her. Mei flinches and I rush up to hopefully intercept the slap, but Katniss thankfully blocks his hand before I can. I don't like Mei, but she doesn't deserve to be struck for sticking up for us. I'd feel guilty if Chad had succeeded in striking her.