"How's he doing, sir?" He felt his mother's hand grasp his own as he tried to grasp reality. Where was he? what had happened? Why couldn't he move? He was terrified, not that he would ever show it. That is, if he could avoid it. "Shhh, baby...you're okay...Mommy's here..." He felt her stroking his hair, her hands gentle and soothingly cold- familiar. However, something had given away his panic...
Slowly it came to him. He had won the games. He had been injured...he had thought he was going to die. He was probably in the hospital...and was probably hooked up to god knows how many machines. Pain shot up from his abdomen and he couldn't help but grimace. He'd never had pain like this in his life. Nothing had ever been so sharp and so throbbing, so downright awful.
"Baby?" He felt his mother's lithe fingers on his face again, and he forced himself to open his eyes.
There she was, long strawberry blonde hair pulled into a neat bun like always, her blue eyes filled with worry and sadness. He tried to smile at her, anything to get that look off her face, but as he did, the oxygen mask restricted him.
"Mom...?" His voice didn't sound at all like he had intended- he didn't even recognize it, really. He sounded scared and weak, like he did when he was a child.
"Hi, baby..." She stroked his hair gently, as a tear glided down her cheek. "You made it, Mitchie...You won."
"May..."
The gentle smile faded from her face. "I know, baby...I know..." He heard a rustling about from behind him, and stiffened. "Shh...you're alright now...nothing's going to hurt you..." She smiled slightly again, then. "Look who else came to see you." Hayden, still looking eerily like him, even for a six year old, stepped beside his mother. He looked at Haymitch warily, about to burst into tears. "Go say hi to your brother, Hayden. It's okay...He's okay..."
"Can I give him a hug?"
"I'd be careful, sweetie...His belly still hurts, okay?" She stroked his hair. "If you want to hug him, go around to the other side. But be careful, okay?"
"okay..." He tottered around to the other side of the bed, hopped up into the chair beside the bed, and clambered into bed with Haymitch, wrapping his arms around his neck. Haymitch slowly brought his arm up to wrap around him, as he felt Hayden start to sob. "Haymitch...i missed you!...I thought I'd never see you again!" He sobbed uncontrollably, his entire body shaking.
"Hayden...it's...sokay..."
"Hayden, I told you he'd be okay." Her voice made him stiffen in surprise and excitement at the same time. He'd been dreaming about her ever since he left. He'd been waiting for her. Rina came from the same place Hayden did, her confident gait now hesitant, wary. Her auburn hair hung gracefully in long waves almost to her waist, and her green eyes shone on from behind her long lashes. She sat on the edge of his bed carefully, and gently stroked his hair away from his face. "Hey, Mitchie...How're you feeling, babe?" She stroked his cheek gently. "I know you must hurt..."
"Yeah...It hurts..."
Tears welled up in her eyes, as well. "We saw you...we saw you win...Haymitch...I'm so glad you made it...I...i thought for a minute..."
"I know..." he croaked. "She got you good, too, Mitchie..."
"Rina..." His mother scolded, but not harshly. "He should know...shouldn't he?"
"Know what..?"
"Haymitch you have a big cut on your belly."
"I know, buddy..." Haymitch stroked Hayden's back. "But...what should I know..?"
"You...were in surgery for ten hours baby..." His mother fidgeted in her seat. "They think you're okay now...but...they...aren't really sure...there...was a lot of damage to your organs..."
"and...?"
"They might have to do surgery again...just...to fix a few things that might still not be right..."
"It's okay haymitch! We'll be here!" Hayden hugged Haymitch around the neck tightly and snuggled him. "I love you, Haymitch."
Haymitch smiled wryly. "Love you too, buddy." The doctors decided to expidite his healing to get him back home and injected something into Haymitch's veins he would later refer to as fire It made his skin crawl and ache, and his wound throb hard enough to make him writhe in pain and cry out in protest when it came crashing through his veins. While he was semi-conscious, however, he swoe he felt them doing something to him every now and then...Every so often his side would ache more...every so often he would jolt.
Within a week, haymitch was healed enough to survive the train ride home. Although, in his oppinion, it was a term to be used very lightly. He still had immense pain in his abdomen, and had to hunch a little when he walked, at the fear that his stitches would come busting open. He was simply happy to be home..Well, not home, really, but in a brand-new, spacious home in Victor's village. The night that he came home, his mother had prepared a lavish meal- Well, lavish for District 12, and they had all seemed so happy...that Haymitch was almost okay with the fact that he had killed someone else's son and daughter...and that he was the only one to come home out of four...
The next night, Rina snuck into his bedroom through the window and sat down on his bed. He moved to sit up slowly, trying not to jar himself, but Rina pushed him back down to the bed. "Baby...?" He questioned, a bit startled when she straddled him on the bed. He smirked then, chuckling a little. "oh.."
"Oh?" she kissed him. "That's all I get is an 'Oh'?" She laughed. "I love you Mitchie...You're so cute when you're confuzed. she reached to pull his pajamas down. "Did you miss me?"
He found himself breathless, just as he had the times before. "Yeah..." He gulped. "Yes I did...so much, baby...So much..."
She kissed his neck, smirking. "Yeah..?"
"Oh god..."
Haymitch didn't worry about his wound...He didn't worry about his stitches popping, and he certainly didn't worry about the games in that instance...for those moments he felt normal.
Rina woke up in his arms the next day, and snuck out before his mother could discover she was there, the ring haymitch had proposed to her with and had made himself still cold on her finger.. It wasn't odd to either of them. they took turns sneaking into each other's homes at night since they had been together. At first it had been just talking...then kissing...thencuddling...and then escalated more when Haymitch turned 16. Haymitch carefully walked down the stairs that morning, unaware that his mother was waiting for him, breakfast cooking, but with a mother's scorn.
"Haymitch? Come here, honey." Her tone wasn't warming, and he knew that he was in trouble by the urgent note in her voice. He stood at the island in the kitchen, mentally preparing himself. "Haymitch. Why was Rina here last night?"
He sputtered a moment. "M...mom...I..."
"You two had...You two..." she sighed, frustrated. "You two...m..made love last night."
Haymitch's face turned hot, dread flushing down his spine. "M...mom..."
"You know I don't...agree with that, Haymitch." "M...mom..."
She sighed. "Haymitch...I can't tell you what to do...because you lived through something terrible for us...and I think you're adult enough to understand where I'm coming from that. But...I...You...You're my son...and...can you understand...?"
He smiled a little. "Yeah, mom."
"Haymiiiitch!" Hayden thudded down the stairs and slid in his socks on the hardwood floor. "Haymitch! Do you feel better today!?"
He chuckled. "Yeah, buddy. Why?"
"You said you'd take me to the candy store when you felt better! Mommy can we go?!"
She smiled, beaming at the idea of her two boys being able to simply walk down the street to get candy together. "I don't know." she teased.
"Haymitch you promised that when we got some money that we would go to the candy store! We have money now! Please mommm!"
His mother smiled and stroked Hayden's hair. "After we eat breakfast, if Haymitch feels well enough he can take you to the candy store." Hayden squeeled with joya nd ran off to play with his new toys. Haymitch kept his promise, and after they had eaten and cleaned up, he and Hayden walked to the sweets shop in town, right beside the bakery. Hayden had picked his fill, delighted at the treats and the colors in the shop. On their way home, Haymitch found it odd that there was no one else in the street. Dismissing the thought, he kept his hand on his brother's shoulder, keeping him restrained from running off.
"Haymitch-?" A gunshot sounded through the air, and Haymitch startled. Hayden fell to the ground, unmoving.
Haymitch screamed and knelt as his brother's side, watching the light drain out of his eyes as the bullet wound in his head sprayed blood. He wasn't sure how long he kneeled there, screaming and hysterical, before he picked his body up, ignoring the popping and pulling of his wound, and carried him home, sprinting through the streets, ignoring his own aching body's protests.
When he burst through the door of his home, Hayden's body in his arms, he was immediately restrained by peacekeepers, who threw Hayden to the side.
"WHAT?! WHAT'S GOING ON! NO! HAYDEN! HAYDEN!" He struggled against them, to no avail.
"Haymitch. How pleasant to see you again. How's your stomach doing, boy?" Snow smirked as he appeared from Haymitch's kitchen. Haymitch froze in horror, knowing that Hayden's death was not about to be the end of this nightmare. Dazed and unaware, Haymitch found himself tied to one of the sturdy oak kitchen chairs tied at the hands and feet.
"You know you caused a lot of trouble using that force field to win." He smirked, toying with a rose he had produced from his pocket. "well. We're going to compensate for that today. How's your brother?" His smirk took on a much crueler aspect then, and the peacekeeper grabbed his head and held it in place, as another pair of them escorted his mother and Rina into the room.
"No...NO NO NO-" The peacekeeper holding Haymitch's head gagged him, then returned to holding his head. Haymitch tried to turn his head, tried to close his eyes...anything to not be witness to what he knew was inevitable now. The peacekeeper would not give him that comfort, though. He forced his eyes open, prying his lids, and held his head.
He watched as Rina was raped by another peacekeeper, screaming in protest, calling his name for help. He then watched as they were tortured to death. Whipped, beaten, cut, and finally their throats slit. Blood stained the hardwood floors and trickled in the cracks.
Haymitch somehow ended up on the floor, unsure of how he had gotten there. He was alone, now, and the bodies of his loved ones stared back at him, lifeless and cold. He mourned loudly, screaming, sobbing and using his energy until he found himself unconscious in pools of their blood. When he awoke, he gathered them in blankets and sheets and carried them to the meadow he, Rina and Hayden had frequented. He buried them numbly, piling rocks as a headstone, and walked back to his house in solace, where he cleaned the blood from the floor and himself. He allowed himself to mourn again that night, but then found himself in a state of numbness and emptiness. It must have been days since he moved from his position on the couch, his knees tucked to his chest, but he hadn't noticed. "Haymitch?" a familiar voice chirped from the door. He didn't move.
"Haymitch where've you been? Nobody's seen you around town, and nobody's seen your mother or brother...We're worried..." She suddenly appeared in his vision, and he recognized her as Maverick Everdeen's girlfriend, a friend of his in school, as well. "Haymitch..." She rested a hand on his shoulder. "what happened?"
He didnt' have the heart to tell this innocent girl the horrors he had experienced. He didn't have the heart to tell her that they had killed them- one, two three- like a child's game. Gone. One two three.