My face grew hot as I processed the words coming from the television. I began to realize that my darkest nightmare had become a reality.
"The Quarter Quell reaping will take place this Thursday," President Snow announced, a twisted smile pasted to his mouth. "As I said before, one female and one male from the past victors will be chosen to compete."
Peeta vaulted himself off of the couch and turned the television off. He tensely stood with his back towards Prim and me. He was clearly shaken, although he was standing perfectly still. I looked over a Prim, who was staring at me with a look of shock on her delicate face. She attempted to mask the horror that pervaded her blue eyes, but failed miserably. I lost my ability to speak for a few seconds.
"We have to see Haymitch," I finally choked out. "He'll know what to do."
"Let's go," Peeta commanded, turning to face me. "Prim, stay here."
I stood up slowly, finding it difficult to find my balance. I padded over to the front door, Peeta following me out. As I twisted the doorknob, I glanced back at Peeta. His eyes met mine, boring into me with an intense look. I tore my eyes away from his and opened the door, stepping through the threshold onto my lawn. We quickly strode over to Haymitch's house, not wasting any of our precious time. Without any warning, Peeta suddenly grabbed my hand with his, pulling me to a stop. I turned to him, annoyed that he was squandering time. I studied his intense face, confused by his action. He softened his grip on my hand, gently stroking his thumb across the back of my hand. He pulled me closer to him, taking my other hand in his. His lips curled into a smile.
"What are you doing?" I asked, a smile creeping up onto my mouth also. "We don't have that much time…"
"Yeah, I know," He countered, his eyes burning into mine. "That's the point."
He released my hands and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me against him. I wanted to protest but instead allowed myself to wrap my arms around his neck. He hugged me tightly, nuzzling his face into the curve between my neck and the top of my shoulder. I sighed, giving into his embrace and resting my head on his shoulder. I did have feelings for Peeta, but they honestly were nothing compared to the feelings I had for my best friend. My mind wandered to him; I imagined that he was holding me, his strong arms wrapped around me. Suddenly I was forced from my daydream back to reality.
"We should probably go now," Peeta murmured disappointedly, releasing me from his arms.
I nodded, pulling my arms away from his neck. He grasped my hand and we resumed our journey to Haymitch's house. I looked up at the horizon, realizing that the sun was going down quickly. The falling sun cast an orange glow its surroundings. We finally rounded Haymitch's driveway and walked up to his front door. I knocked loudly, hoping that he wasn't passed out on his couch as usual. The door slowly opened, bringing Haymitch into view.
"Well I figured that you two would be coming to see me," he began, forcing a weak smile. "Come in, come in."
Haymitch stepped aside, gesturing us in. We stepped into his front room, carefully weaving our way through the trash strewn throughout his floor. We finally arrived at his kitchen and sat down at his table. We sat in silence for a few minutes, each of us unable to find anything to say. Finally, an idea came to me.
"Haymitch, can I have a drink?" I asked, hoping that he would oblige. "Just because I really cannot think of anything better to do right now."
"I thought you'd never ask!" He replied, drunkenly hopping off of his chair and making his way over to the pantry. He searched through his countless bottles, finally settling on one filled with a type of clear liquid that I did not recognize. He collected three glasses from inside a cupboard and placed them on the table, along with the alcohol.
"I don't want any," Peeta snapped angrily, getting up from his chair and pacing across the kitchen. "If you two want to get drunk, go ahead, but I don't want any part in it."
I glanced up at Haymitch and held my hand out. He nodded, filling my glass with the mysterious clear liquid. He placed it in my hand and I held it under my nose, giving it a sniff. I winced as it burned my nostrils but decided to go against my best judgment and take a sip. I plugged my nose with my spare hand and brought the glass up to my lips, tilting my head back and swallowing the foul alcohol. I gagged, almost vomiting from the awful drink. I brought the glass back up to my mouth, downing the rest of the liquid as quickly as possible. I forced it down and handed the glass back to Haymitch.
"Fill it up." I commanded, wincing as I felt the alcohol fill my stomach.
Haymitch followed my order and handed me back the full glass. I glanced over at Peeta, who had a disgusted look on his face. He shook his head, visibly angry with Haymitch and me. I turned away from him, holding my glass out to Haymitch.
"Cheers!" I exclaimed, clinking glasses with him and taking another swig.
Haymitch grinned at me, surprised at my rebellion. I grinned back at him, feeling my brain becoming fuzzy from the alcohol. Suddenly, we noticed a knocking at the front door. I got up and strode over to answer the door. I twisted the doorknob and yanked the heavy door open, stunned as I realized that Gale was standing outside Haymitch's house. He was standing with his hands in his pockets, a sad look on his face.
"Prim told me that you would be here," he muttered, attempting to smile. "I thought that you might need some support."
"Thanks," I countered, stepping aside so he could come in. "Come on in, everyone is in the kitchen."
He trudged in, reaching out and touching my shoulder as he passed me. I shut the door and followed him into the kitchen, feeling flushed from his soft touch.
"Hey, there!" Haymitch called, waving Gale over to the table.
Gale smiled and sat down in the chair next to mine. He eyed the bottle and my glass, a confused look on his face.
"Want a drink?" I asked, raising my eyebrows at him.
"Sure." He replied, looking over at Peeta.
Peeta glared at Gale and stopped pacing. He took a seat at the table, crossing his arms and sighing. Haymitch poured the liquid into the glass he had gotten for Peeta and placed it in front of Gale. I noticed Gale winced a little as he took a sip. The three of us continued to drink in silence for a while. Things began to become less tense as the alcohol began to cloud our minds, forcing us to forget about the Quarter Quell. Gale and I told Peeta and Haymitch stories about our experiences in the woods. We all laughed together and felt some relief from our sadness. A few hours passed, I couldn't figure out how many due to my drunkenness, and Peeta finally announced that he was tired and wanted to go home.
"Katniss, do you want me to walk you home?" he asked, a pleading look on his face.
"No, it's okay." I slurred. "I'm going to stay a while longer."
He said goodbye and left, a little deflated at my rejection of his proposal. I felt bad, but quickly forgot about Peeta as I looked over at Gale. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes were glassy from drinking. I looked down at his full lips, wishing I could reach out and touch them. He caught me looking at his mouth and reached out to grasp my hand. I looked over at Haymitch, who had fallen asleep on the couch.
"God," I exclaimed, hiccupping loudly. "I can't believe that we got this drunk."
"Me either!" Gale said, laughing at my drunkenness. "Listen, I know that the last time that I told you that I love you, you rejected me. But I think…I think that you didn't mean it. You won't admit it, but I know that you really do love me back. I can…well…I can just feel it."
"I think I want to go home." I muttered, unable to resist him any longer.
He nodded and stood up, pulling me up with him. We made our way out of the house, shutting the door behind us. I started to stumble a little and Gale wrapped his arm around my waist, steadying me so that I wouldn't fall. We finally made it to my house. He stopped outside my front door.
"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow," He said.
"Would you mind coming in for a little bit?" I asked, hoping he would take the hint.
He nodded and stepped into my house. I walked upstairs and he followed me. Once we were in my room, I quietly shut the door, careful not to wake Prim. He stood by my bed, awkwardly glancing over at me. I sauntered over to him, feeling a little dizzy from walking too quickly in my drunken state. I shut my eyes and rubbed my forehead, unable to concentrate. Suddenly, I felt Gale's arms wrap around me.
"Are you okay?" He asked, looking down at me.
"Yeah," I began, smiling at him and pulling myself against his warm body. I pressed my face against his broad chest and breathed in his musky scent; he smelled like the forest and the coalmines, all at once. He placed his hand under my chin and pulled my face close to his. I closed the gap between us, pressing my lips to his. He kissed me back, a rush of emotion coming over us. Years of repressed passion flooded out of us into this one kiss. I reached my hands up to his face, touching his stubbly chin and jaw. He lifted me up, wrapping my legs around his waist. I moved my hands to the back of his neck, forcing him even closer to me. He moved his hands down past my waist to my butt and squeezed it roughly. He walked closer to my bed and laid me onto it. I sat up as he kneeled in front of me and pulled him to me by the collar of his shirt. He pushed me on my back and hovered over me, pressing his lips to mine once again. I moved my mouth down past his jaw, down to his neck, and then back up to his soft lips. He slid his hand between my legs and rubbed me through my pants. My breathing grew more rapid as he pressed harder into me.
"Take off my clothes," I ordered, unable to stop myself.
"Only if you ask nicely," He replied, chuckling softly.
"Please!" I sighed, brushing my fingers across the crotch of his pants.
He smiled and quickly pulled my shirt over my head. He then pulled back from me and unbuttoned my pants, tugging them off and tossing them onto the floor. He lifted my pelvis off the bed and nuzzled his face between my legs. I moaned loudly, reaching down to pull my panties off. He stopped me, grabbing my hands and placing them onto the bed. He kissed my lower stomach, moving his mouth to the elastic band of my panties and grabbing a hold of it with his teeth. He finally peeled off my underwear, exposing me completely.
"You're so beautiful." Gale whispered as he gazed down at me.
I smiled and sat up, moving my hands up to his shirt and attempting to drunkenly unbutton it as quickly as possible. I finally undid the last button, looking down at his sculpted chest and abdomen. I ran my fingers through his sprinkling of chest hair and I stroked down his happy trail. A growl escaped his mouth, causing me to pull his shirt off and begin unbuttoning and unzipping his pants. He pulled them down his muscular legs and I crawled closer to him. I slid my hand into his boxers, slowly exploring his large member with my fingers. I removed my hand, placing it on top of his and guiding it down between my legs. I shivered as he gently stroked my clitoris. I pushed his hand back farther and he thrust his middle finger deep inside of my vagina, moving it in and out of me. I kissed him frantically, shoving my tongue into his mouth and massaging his tongue. He became excited and pulled away from my lips, moving down so that his head was between my legs. He pressed his lips to my labia, gently kissing it. He then licked up from the bottom of my lips to my clitoris and began to suck on it. He stuck his tongue into my opening and swirled it around. I cried out, snapping myself back to reality. I pulled myself away from his mouth and pushed him onto his back. I pulled his boxers off assertively. I looked down at his member; it stood up straight and was extremely hard.
"Do you have a…uh…you know?" I asked, my cheeks flushing red.
"Yes," he began, becoming rather flustered, "not because I knew this would happen…I mean, I hoped it would…but…"
"Just get it, already!" I exclaimed, laughing at his sudden breach of confidence.
He glared at me and moved to the edge of the bed, searching for his pants. He pulled a small square package from his pocket. He opened the square and rolled the condom onto himself. Finally, he climbed on top of me and savagely pulled my legs apart. He settled in and I spread my lips apart as he glided his penis into me, being careful not to push in too fast. I felt a rush of pain inside me and gritted my teeth, trying to forget about the tearing feeling. Gale placed his hand on my cheek, forcing me to look at him.
"Are you okay?" He asked, his eyes pleading.
"Yes, just keep going." I whispered, placing my mouth to his.
He kissed me back passionately and trailed kisses down my cheek and jaw to my neck. He sucked on my skin hard and I began to feel more pleasure than pain in my center. He thrust faster in me as I felt my muscles relax slightly, deeper and deeper.
"Ohhhhh…" I moaned, running my fingers through his hair and down to the back of his neck. "Harder!"
He obliged, removing his mouth from my neck and plunging his penis into me more swiftly. I placed my hands on his back, digging my nails into him. He moaned loudly and began roughly kneading my breast with his free hand. He tweaked my nipple between his fingers and then placed his mouth on my other breast. He sucked my nipple hard, occasionally stopping to flick it with his tongue. He stopped suddenly and brought his face up to mine. I began to feel a head growing inside me, tickling me from within. It built up until I couldn't contain it any longer, causing me to orgasm. My muscles contracted, squeezing him tightly as he thrust into me a final time, reaching orgasm also. He collapsed on top of me, unable to move. Once I finally caught my breath, I kissed his forehead and wrapped my arms around him. He rolled off of me, pulling me so that my head was resting on his chest. He pulled my face up to his and pressed his lips to mine one last time before we fell asleep.