do not disturb . |ems|

He pushed open a cold metal door, revealing perhaps the only place in the entire Training Center that he could just take a moment to breathe in. Of course, it was not the ideal place to exactly breathe, given the location and the diet of the Capitol. But nonetheless, the white walls and stalls, the sink and the mirrors, and even the loud machines that screamed hot air into your hands, gave him a sense of temporary peace.

Ironic that the one place where Gabriel Alexander-Laws could be in a state of serenity was a bathroom in the Capitol.

His bladder didn’t seek desire to relieve itself, but regardless, he walked in, opened one of the stall doors, shut it and locked it up.

His birth father’s words repeated like a broken record player, over and over, each time the phrase piercing his brain and his heart a little bit more.

You’re our little boy. We own you. Come home.

Gabriel was nobody’s possession, nobody’s child. Abandoned and alone, confused and conflicted, even when he stayed with the Laws family, Gabriel did not know the true meaning of home. For years, he either lived in an unhappy home, on the streets, or in a place full of kids that did not truly belong.

He let his head rest upon the corner of the stall, slowly letting himself drop nearly all the way on the ground. Perhaps he would have laid there, if it weren’t for the fact that even in the Capitol, the sanitation in a bathroom was worse than any other place.

He volunteered for this. He gave himself a less-than four percent chance of survival. To escape his returning family, to escape the demons of District Twelve. Tears began to fall down his eyes as regret sunk deep into his stomach.

You basically killed yourself, Gabriel. You know that, don’t you?

The decision he made to volunteer for Riley was not one he would let haunt him forever. What is done is done, and pondering upon the opposite is a waste of time.

He sniffled once or twice, letting his eyes finish pumping out the majority of the tears. They trickled down into his Training Center uniform, but slowly drifted away and it returned to its normal color. Things will get better, they can always get better and return to normal.

Gabriel rose to his feet and unlocked the stall door. Taking a deep breath, he opened it, and saw another person through the reflection of the mirror. A guy with nice hair, he noted.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to disturb your business,” his words screamed embarrassment, but his heart still screamed pain.

gabriel alexander-laws