The countdown has already started.
They just don't know it.
12.
If he could, Finnick would never step foot in the Capitol again. But he can't, and each night he ends up with someone different. President Snow gives him the night off this time though. He spends the unlikely free time pacing in his room, wishing that his Annie was there to soothe the pain.
11.
Cato and Clove tear into each other, desperate to prove to each other something they can't place. It's not the first time, and it's not the last, but it's different this time. Afterwards they just lie together quietly, feeling the weight of their breaths together and letting themselves wonder. And for the first time, they feel like children.
10.
Peeta waits for Katniss, and sure enough, there she is, walking down the stairs, her hair out of its traditional messy yet perfect braid and flowing down her back. All he can think about as they study the celebration outside is how he may never see those waves cascading down her back ever again.
9.
Silent tears stream down Rue's face as she imagines scenarios of the next day, and worse than those, her family. She wishes for a companion, and there he is, knocking quietly on her door. Thresh sits by her bed and holds her hand until she falls asleep, her tears sinking into her skin.
8.
Annie sits in her room and puts her hands on her ears, but she can't block out the screams that infiltrate her brain. She never could.
7.
Seneca sleeps, his slumber never disturbed by dreams.
6.
Desperate to be children again (although neither will admit it to the other), Glimmer and Marvel sneak into the dining room and take all the dessert they can find back to his room.
5.
Foxface dreams of berries and their properties she knows by heart.
4.
The only noise is the ice cubes Haymitch swirls around in his glass of water, and it's a soothing rhythm both for him and for Effie. They sit side by side, not talking, not touching, just listening to the ice cubes and the muffled celebrations they're both accustomed to.
3.
President Snow has never, and will never sleep.
2.
Gale stays up as late as he possibly can with Prim before they both give up and let sleep take them over.
1.
Mr. Mellark bakes.
