"Throw the bouquet, Kat!"
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Seventeen-year-old Primrose Everdeen pulled at her older sister's hand, blonde ringlets bobbing against her shoulders and flowery giggles blossoming from her painted lips. The freshly married Katniss Mellark gave a soft laugh, standing from her seat, shooting a wink at her husband, and latching her slender fingers around the beautifully arranged bouquet.
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"I suppose..."
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Prim gave a squeal of excitement and clapped her hands, trailing behind her sister to the center of the crowded room, soon joined by Rue, whose face shimmered with the same childlike thrill as Prim's did, Madge, Glimmer, Finch, and Johanna, who claimed she was only joining the others to supervise the situation, to which Katniss scoffed, and Clove rolled her eyes from her spot across the room, where she sat beside Cato, piece of half-finished red velvet cake left upon the china plate before her. She'd kicked off her strappy heels beneath the table thirty minutes before, leaving her tiny feet bare, much to Glimmer's obvious disdain, though Clove couldn't care less the thought others had about her, much less those of her tactless best friend.
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Her boyfriend's warm fingers stopped the lazy circles they'd been tracing against the bare of her back, his palm pressing to her skin as he tilted over, breath hot against her earlobe.
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"You should probably go join the others before Sergeant Johanna 'I don't do love' Mason comes over here and drags you by your hair."
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Clove groaned, getting to her feet and shaking her head in her boyfriend's overall direction. Her bare feet lugged her forward, the lavender trim of her bridesmaid dress grazing her toes as her eyes narrowed in on the bouncing form of the youngest Everdeen sister, who turned to seize her wrist and yank her forward, depositing her between Madge and Glimmer.
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"This is dumb," Clove moaned, propping her hands on her hips, watching as Katniss adjusted her full tulle skirt, lifting her head to pin her with a playful glare.
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"Dumb or not, it's my wedding; therefore, as a member of my wedding party, you have to listen to what I say," she gave a smirk, adjusting the clutch of flowers in her hands. "Alright, is everyone over here who wants to be?"
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A few girls nodded assent from the multitude of dresses and hairsprayed hair as Katniss turned her back to her group of friends.
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"Ok, I'll count backward from three." Katniss lifted the flowers above her head. "Three, two, one..."
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Instead of tossing it into the mob of girls, she twisted on the ball of her foot, taking three steps forward and shoving it into the unprepared hands of the barefoot bridesmaid behind her.
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Clove's nose scrunched in confusion, her eyes raising to Katniss's as the bride smirked, nodding her head behind the perplexed brunette before her.
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Clove's eyes widened, the pieces connecting within her head as she pivoted on her heel, gaze landing on her boyfriend, who had at some point during her utter confusion dropped down to one knee, black box balanced within his hands.
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No words left his smirking mouth, no time for him to utter even a syllable, for Clove had concealed her face in her hands and turned from him, taking maybe a step before she sank to the floor, one hand leaving her face to prop against the floor, the other dropping to cover her mouth, displaying the tears springing up in her wide hazel eyes.
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Cato opened his mouth but again was left in silence as Clove's face twisted in a sob, her entire dress-clad body trembling.
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"Clover," Cato started, letting out a slight laugh at her crumpled form. "Will you marry me?"
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Clove's lower lip trembled, and she hardly gave a tiny nod before springing forward on her knees, flinging herself into Cato's arms, her own locking around his neck as he lowered himself completely to the floor.
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"O-oh, I lo-love you..." Her voice slipped her lips as a whimper, muffled against the collar of his crisp white button-up as his hand ran up her back.
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"I love you too, baby," he pressed his lips to the side of her head, his fingers sliding along the seams of her lavender dress.
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Clove extracted her face from the crook of his neck, tears glistening along her flushed cheeks, her baby-pink lips spreading into a grin as her boyfriend-turned-fiance refocused his attention to the box in his hand, his fingers latching around the silver band and withdrawing it from its plush home.
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His fingers found her left hand, drawing it up and sliding the ring over her ring finger, fixing the small diamond over her milky skin.
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Clove stared at it for hardly a moment before she turned to him again, lips stretching wider and countering the tears upon her cheeks as she settled her hands on the sides of her new fiance's face and tilted forward, instilling a firm kiss upon his lips.
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When she drew back, fingers still settled over the golden stubble of his jaw, he grinned at her.
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"Still dumb now?" Clove turned her head, her dark tear-filled eyes meeting Katniss Everdeen's mischievous gray ones.
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"All of you assholes knew about this?" Clove raised her fingers to her cheek, swiping at the damp trails and fixing the bride with a playful eye roll.
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"All of us assholes helped plan your engagement...you're welcome, by the way," Johanna sneered, propping her fists on her hips, head cocked to the side.
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Clove rolled her eyes yet again, though her lips remained in a perfect grin.
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"Thank you, I suppose,"
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"You're welcome, I suppose, Clove Hadley,"
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Clove shook her head but tightened her arms around the neck of the chuckling blonde, her mind lost in thoughts about the ring on her finger, the multicolored bouquet at her side, and the boy holding her in his lap, whose last name and life she'd take forever.
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As dumb as she thought the bouquet toss was, she had to admit she was pretty damn glad she had agreed to take part in this one.
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