Fanfic: Shoe with laces Part 1

Hello… this is my very first fanfic and since I’m a newbie writer, it’s still very far from any form of perfection. So please spare me. :)

I published it on fanfiction.net of course, I just republish it here to enlarge the possibility of being read. LOL

I own nothing, The Hunger Games and all of its awesomeness belongs to Suzanne Collin. She is the REAL genius, never me (sigh).

Too bad, I know. But, I enjoy writing it SO MUCH… that is why I hope that you'll enjoy reading it too. :)

Well… I'm done blabbering. Enjoy!

==000==

I look at my new shoes. It’s Pink and blue colored. Granma Effie sent it all the way from Capitol especially for me and I like it. I love it very much. But I’m terrified when I see it has laces.

I want to wear it for my first day at school tomorrow but I have no idea how to tie the laces. I never tie shoelaces before and I’m very upset about it.

“Don’t worry about it, sweetie. I’ll teach you how to tie it tonight,” my father says.

“But I want to do it right now, daddy,” I complain. “What if I still can’t do it properly after several times of trial? Tonight is not enough.”

“Well… I doubt it,” my mother nudges my cheeks gently. “You never fail at anything more than the fourth try, right??”

“I guess so.”

“Then, you don’t need to worry about it,” my father smiles.

“Why can’t you teach me how to tie it right now?? It’s Sunday, the bakery supposes to be closed,” I ask.

“We understand that you want to tie it right away, but daddy got a special wedding cake order,” my mother smiles. “It’s so huge even daddy need my help with it. You’ll understand, right, Willow??”

 I sigh. “Yes I will.” 

“That’s my girl,” my father smiles. “Now let’s go to grandpa Haymitch.”

“Come on, Caleb, “my mother lifts and carries my brother through the door.

 “Off we go,” my father grabs my hand.

We walk slowly, my father squeezes my hand gently. I smile at him and put down my gaze. My eyes catch my father’s shoelaces, they are tied neatly. I give the pink and blue colored shoes at my clasp a sad glance.

“Tonight...” I whisper sadly.

Grandpa Hacmitch’s house is not far, it still located at Victor Village just like ours. It even has the same shape; the differences are only the color and the looks of it. Our home is freshly green painted, warm and clean but grandpa Hacmitch’s house looks vile.

But it's just the looks of it, inside, it’s as warm, safe and comfortable as our home. It’s my fourth favorite place after our home, meadow and forest.

My mother knocks three times before she opens the door; grandpa Haymitch never locks the door.

We walk straight toward the kitchen. There grandpa Haymicth is sleeping; his head lays flat on the counter. Or at least I thought so, before he suddenly sits straight on the stool.

“Good morning, grandpa Haymitch,” Caleb and I say it in perfect unison.

“I’m surprised. You look sober today,” my mother puts Caleb down on a stool in front of grandpa Haymitch. Her eyebrow knits together. “Did it run out already?? The train just arrived Last Saturday.”

“I know when the train comes, sweetheart,” grandpa Haymitch frowns. “And yes I’m sober. Since Peeta said that you need me to babysit Willow and Caleb today, I need to. Have to. So you better put your best charming personality and smile. Impress me.”

We all laugh, but my mother of course. She smiles, well… half smile half grimace actually.

“We brought you some muffins,” my father says. 

He put a large brown paper bag on the counter. It smells yummy.

“Thank you,” grandpa Haymitch reaches a muffin and start chewing it.

I climb my stool and set my brand new shoes on the counter then reach for a muffin too.

“Look what you got there, Willow,” grandpa Haymitch nods toward my shoes. “They are pretty shoes, aren’t they??”

“Yes, they are."

“She got it from Effie,” my father tells grandpa Haymitch.

“Well… now I know why you resent it,” grandpa Haymitch chuckles.

“That’s not the reason Haymitch,” my mother says. “She wants to know how to tie the laces. But since Peeta and I have to make the cake, we can’t teach her until tonight.”

“Well… in that case, let me teach you then,” grandpa Haymitch picks my shoes up.

“You can teach me how to tie the laces??” My face lights up.

“I don’t see any reason not to,” he smiles.

“I want to learn too, but my shoes don’t have any laces yet.” Caleb pouts.

“You can practice with my shoe for now, but you need to give it back to me when I have done it right with my pair,” I offer my brother.

“Okay,” he smiles. 

“Mommy and daddy leave both of you to grandpa Haymitch then, have fun you two,” my father kisses me and Caleb light on the cheek.

“We’ll be back at five,” my mother smiles. “Thank you, Haymitch.”

“You owe me big time, sweetheart,” grandpa Haymitch chuckles.

My parents go and when we hear the door close, grandpa Haymitch guides us to the back porch.

We sit on the bench and grandpa Haymitch shows us how to tie the laces step by step. I ended up tangle the lashes at the first try so grandpa Haymitch needs about fifteen minutes to untangle it.

When Caleb surprisingly manages to tie his own fingers inside the mess he created with the laces from my left pair of pink and blue colored shoe, he cries his eyes out. Grandpa Haymitch releases his finger as fast as possible, but we still have to quit for a while.

 

“Alright come on inside, we have some cookies first to light up the mood,” grandpa Haymitch says.

“But I still have to learn how to tie it, grandpa, “I insist.

“You will, Willow. But first thing first, Caleb has to stop crying before we start again or your mother will shoot me if she sees your brother’s swollen eyes.”

“You better stop soon Caleb,” I sigh.

To Be Continued…