a soft side [anika, jb oneshot]

You were very expectant of visitors in the Justice Building. You were popular enough and wealthy enough that people would surely come to say goodbye. Whether they were coming to say they'd miss you while you were gone, to wish you well, to beg for forgiveness for treating you like shit, or something else, surely they'd show up.

You were right, too. Lots of people showed up to say goodbye to you. You wouldn't have been surprised if the Peacekeepers actually had to cut off a line of some sort at some point in time. As soon as you got into the Justice Building, you barely had the chance to catch your breath when the first wave of people came in. As was to be expected, the first people were your parents and your siblings. They came as a group. Admittedly, you'd wished you could've had time with Abha on your own, as there were things you wanted to talk to her about, but you supposed you'd just have to do that in front of everyone.

The first to speak up was your twin brother, Arnav. He looked very upset over the situation. That much was clear. Although, he was definitely trying his best to keep it together and not cry in front of you. He knew that would end in relentless teasing or some sort of criticism. You hated when people cried. It seemed to pointless to you.

"Anika, do you think you're ready?" he asked you. You nodded.

"Of course," you laughed. What a dumb question. How could you not be ready? You'd been waiting for this day your whole life.

"I just mean... you're going to have to kill people to come home. Just your survival skills that you've read in books won't get you through it. You'll actually have to kill to survive."

You nodded again.

"I know that," you told him. "I'll be okay, trust me." You weren't usually the consoling type, aiming to make people feel better, but his lack of faith in you made you feel the need to reassure him for some reason.

Your mother immediately enveloped you in a hug, quietly crying as tears came down from her eyes and landed on your shoulder. She's and your father were the only people you couldn't demand stop crying. That simply wouldn't end well. Luckily, your father wasn't crying. He didn't even look upset. He looked proud, which was exactly what you'd been hoping for.

When your mother released you from the hug, you father was the next to speak.

"Anika, I'm proud of you," he said. "I know you can do this. It's what you've always wanted to do, and you deserve the chance to follow your ambitions."

You nodded at him with a smile now plastered across your face.

"Thank you." You take his words graciously, appreciative that he's supportive of your excitement for the situation at hand.

Your mother continues to cry, standing next to Arnav and leaning on his shoulder for support. He rubs her shoulder to try to console her, a disappointed look on his face when he makes eye contact with you. He clearly doesn't think you should be happy right now.

After a few more moments of conversation with your father, you tell everyone there that you need to speak to Abha for a moment. Respecting your wishes, the rest of your family steps off to the side and speaks among themselves, worried tones coming from Arnav and mother while father tries to calm them down.

"Abha," you start. "I need you to do something for me while I'm gone, just until I come home, okay?"

Abha lets out a nervous laugh, like she's not so sure of the 'coming home' part, but you ignore it.

"Okay," Abha agrees. "What is it?"

"I need you to look after Rafe and Rohan. Rafe's going to be really broken up with me not being home, and might have trouble looking after Rohan. I can't have that. I love them both, and I know how they are. They'll need your help until I get back. Okay?"

Abha nods. Rafe, your boyfriend, was an anxious mess whenever something even remotely dangerous or even just a little bit out of place happened. So, he'd definitely have trouble taking care of your son, Rohan.

The reason you hadn't wanted to talk about this in front of the rest of the family was because they weren't supportive of your situation. Mother was furious when you got pregnant at fifteen years old, and no matter how much you begged for her and father to allow Rafe and Rohan to move in with the family, they refused, and they wouldn't let you move out to live with Rafe and his family, either. Sometimes, there were things you and your parents just didn't see eye to eye on. You just wished they were less important things.

Arnav wasn't very supportive of your situation, either. He shamed you for having a child so young, even though it was an accident. He told you that you should've been more responsible— that you shouldn't have been having relationships like that at such a young age. You and he had been on somewhat rocky terms since then as a result.

You were determined to show your family that you were mature enough to make your own decisions.

Luckily, Abha was rather supportive, at least. She always made sure you, Rafe and Rohan were doing okay. Thankfully money was never an issue for the three of you, due to your family's wealth that you chose to share with them, but if you weren't there, there was a solid chance that Rafe and Rohan wouldn't be able to get by without your financial help. They also needed the emotional support. So, that's why you came to Abha. You knew she'd help them, no matter what. She wouldn't let them starve or suffer.

"Okay," Abha agreed. "You can trust me. I'll make sure they can get through it. I promise."

Immediately, you wrapped your sister in a hug, and she returned the favor.

Moments later, Peacekeepers came to tell your family that it was time for them to leave, as the next people needed their turn with you. Reluctantly, your family left. You got one last hug from Abha before they all left.

---

You were in the room for only a few moments by yourself before Rafe came rushing in with Rohan.

Immediately, you scooped Rohan up into your arms and gave him a kiss on the forehead. You held him for a few moments before setting him down at Rafe's side, and pulling Rafe into a kiss right on the lips. The two of you hold the kiss for a few moments before Rohan is tugging at your dress, and you stop to look down at him.

"Hi, sweetie," you say to him with a smile. Rafe and Rohan are the two people in the world who actually bring out your soft side. You love them so much that you just can't help it.

Rohan doesn't quite understand what's going on, and just starts fiddling with the hem of his shirt with you and Rafe talk to one another.

"Will you be okay in there?" Rafe asks.

"As long as you promise me that you'll be okay here at home while I'm gone. I'm going to come back for you guys," you counter.

He nods.

"I'm just worried about—"

You cut him off when he starts expressing his worries that you know will be related to the money you'd been bringing in.

"Abha's going to help you both," you explain.

"I— she said she would?" he asks, wanting that true confirmation.

"Yes," you confirm for him. "She promised."

He nods, and the two of you hold each other in a hug for a few more moments. After your hug, you pick up Rohan again and hold him for a minute or so, talking to him to tell him how much you love him.

You were really going to miss these two. At this point, you didn't care if anyone else even came to visit. You just wanted to spend the rest of the time you had with Rafe and Rohan.

---

Rafe and Rohan's time in the room felt like it flew by, and before you knew it, they had to leave. You had a few more visitors after them, including a childhood rival of yours who decided to apologize for "all the shit" she'd caused for you over the years. It was like she was afraid you'd die hating her or something.

You never hated her, though. You'd always competed with her, but not out of distaste for who she was. It was just a bit of a competition for the two of you. You'd actually always enjoyed it. In the end, the two of you made a bet as to if you'd win or not. If you came home a victor, she owed you the gold bracelet she was wearing. She always wore it and really loved it, so it'd be a big risk for her to wager it. If you died? Well, she would get to take the diamond necklace you wore from your lifeless body later.

You were going to win the Games, win that bracelet, come home to Rafe and Rohan, and get all the fame and glory you could ever want.