A/N : This is my first fanfic in a long time, so I apologize in advance if it's not good. I don't really know where I'm going with this story, so bear with me. All recommendations are accepted :)

My story takes place between Catching Fire and Mockingjay, but I changed it up, Peeta dosen't get hijacked in Catching Fire.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the Hunger Games

Breath. I told myself.

I took a few steps forward. There was deer that was about 30 yards away. I let myself relax as I brought back the shaft. I had forgotten what it was like to hunt by myself. No distractions. Just the hunter and it's prey. It was a little

past noon, the sunlight shone through the dense canopy above my head. The ground was still a bit mucky from last night's rainfall. The smell of wet grass still lingered the air. I locked in on the deer now about 20ft away.

3...2...1...

As I let go of the string a strong gust of wind streamed in from the east, lodging my arrow in a nearby tree. I curse under my breath as I reluctantly begin to head home. What was wrong with me? Had I lost my form? No. I couldn't have. But these past

few days have made me tiresome. Long days followed by short nights. I barley got 5 hours if sleep a night, and Peeta was beginning to worry about me. Truthfully, I was worried about myself too.

"What's wrong, Catnip? Lose your edge?" calls a familiar voice booming from behind me.

I smile, bubbling with happiness. The voice sent butterflies swarming through my stomach and I turn around in that same moment.

"Shut up, Gale" I jokingly sulk at him as I walk towards him and nudge his shoulder "What are you doing here anyway? I thought you bailed this old place." I paused, remembering the conversation we had over the phone a little over a

week ago.

The phone began to ring and I raced downstairs to pick it up, rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand.

"Hello, whoever this is you just interrupted my day to sleep in, so this better be good."

"Hey Catnip" Gale says, his voice muffled by the cheap wiring and the poor

signal.

"Hey" my heart beat picks up double time.

"Where have you been, I've been looking for your ass all week, what's wrong with

you? You've got me worried sick." It was true, but I also needed to find him for

Hazel, she was just as worried as I was. Gale could handle himself. But still,

anxiety rush through me, and it was soon overridden by relief from the sound of

his voice.

He chuckled lightly but there was a tone in it I did not like.

"Everyone needs a break every once and a while."

"Yeah.." I replied halfheartedly. Our district was still overflowing with

goodies from the capitol, so there was really no reason to hunt everyday, but he

wasn't referring to that. I stared at the hardwood floor of my victor house and

took a seat. My mind raced, still contemplating his words.

"Katniss, that's not why I called." His voice was now urgent, it made me grip my

seat.

There was a pause. It was maybe a few minutes but it felt like hours. I felt my

pupils dilate, anticipating his reply. A million different answers flooded my

head. Every possibility clouded my mind, and this made me feel jittery.

"Why then?" I spat out, through my teeth.

He sighed and there was another pause, which only made me even more anxious.

"Katniss...I'm not coming back to district 12."

Not coming back? What did he mean Not Coming Back?

"Don't be stupid, Gale. You've got your mother, who loves you and is still

wondering where you are and your brothers ask me everyday if I've found you

yet."

"I don't want to stay in that place anymore. It's... it's too much."

"What's too much?" I didn't understand, our miscommunication infuriated me.

He grumbled and said "I don't want to talk about this over the phone."

I heard rustling in the background. Then someone called his name.

"Listen, I've got to go. I'll keep in touch."

And he hung up the phone. That was it. I was as frozen as a statue, with the

phone still glued to my ear, hoping his voice would come back, but it didn't. I

wasn't going to see Gale for a while. It didn't hurt at first but then I began

to feel the ache. He was my best friend. We had gone though so much and now he'd

left.

He left me.

Was I the reason why? I had given all my time and loveto Peeta, and I barley met

with Gale an hour a week. He felt like a stranger, walking by my side as we went

to hunt. I had felt his eyes wipe over my whole body as a shot my arrows. I

never looked up to meet his gaze, knowing he wanted to talk about us. I could

not deny the electricity between us as we accidentally touch. His hand and mine

when I had dropped my arrow, and our hips touching as we walk back to District

12. I knew he felt it too, I saw his body tence, but I just shook it off at the

time. The ache grew larger by the second, and I rushed to my bed, letting the

emotion overcome me. I didn't feel like going on, I barley continued on with my

day. I didn't even meet Peeta for dinner that night.

I was suddenly caught up in the great memories we shared. I was absolutely in love with the idea of Gale and I spending a whole day together, to make up for his absence. Then I remembered why he had left in the first place, and this

brought back the raw emotion I had felt before.

"Well, " he continued, pulling me out of my trance. "I thought that a phone call wasn't the best way to say good-bye." he took a step towards me, his eyes twinkling in the afternoon sun.

"Gale...you can't be seriously doing this. Com'mon, no one just decides to move out of nowhe-"

He interrupted me, "Actually, the capitol offered me a job. It pays well and I could visit whenever I want to." I thought about it. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. He was getting on with his life. I couldn't let my selfishness get the best of me and force him to stay,

but I don't think Hazelle would so lenient. He looked at me and seemed to read my mind.

"I already told my family. They're excited for me . But Posy's going to miss me the most." He leaned up against a nearby tree and sighed. He loved his sister more than anything. She resembled him in almost every way. I remember the days

we spent, the three of us playing childhood games, enjoying each others company and laughing effortlessly. I couldn't help but feel like we were a family; Gale, Posy and I.

"And," Gale walked toward me again. His eyes turned grave as he pressed on. "I don't want to get in your way anymore. I wouldn't want to bother you and your new cozy life with him. I don't want to be the third wheel, Katniss. Because

that's what I've been feeling like these past few months." There was a deep sadness in his eyes that made my heart drop. I knew there were more things he had wanted to say at that moment but he also wanted to hear what I had to say.

"Please don't feel like that Gale. You know there's nothing I can do now. I am in love with him. He makes me happy. I don-"

"Save me the lovey-dovey speech Kat. I'm tired of all of that shit. It's not fair. It really isn't." His eyes dark, pleading for me to understand. "Katniss, I loved you first, it's not fair that we thew that all away after..after he came along." His face cringed at the mention of Peeta.

"HEY, don't talk about him like that." He didn't have the right to talk about him like that. I stepped closer. Now we were talking face to face, only inches away from each other.

"It's true, if you weren't picked for the 74th Hunger Games, we'd probably be together." I knew deep down that he was right, but I had made my decision already, there was no changing it. He saw that I was thinking over his words and

he took advantage of the moment and hesitantly put his hands on my hips. I suddenly realized what he was doing and stumbled back. I raised my hands up, signaling him to stop.

"Backoff" I hissed , my hips still burned where he had touched me. I felt my lips quickly twist into a smile.

I liked his touch.

"Katniss, all I'm asking is that you... rethink your options." He spoke slowly, not wanting to alarm me. Now his body radiated with grief, I could feel it from where I was standing. This feature of him struck something in him that I hadn't seen before.

He loved me.

All those days we spent together. He was always right there with me for a reason. He was there for me when my father died. He was there when both our families were on the verge of dying of hunger. He was

there to comfort my sister as I volunteered to be tribute, in her place. And he was there to witness every moment that Peeta and I shared, along with the rest of Panem. He couldn't turn away, everywhere Gale went he was probably flooded by news of

the star-crossed lovers everyday. Reminding him of what could have been.

I was suddenly overwhelmed with guilt and pity for my best friend. I wanted to reach out and pull him into a tight embrace and never let go, but instead I kept my hands in fists, resting at my sides. I thought about how it made his feel seeing me kiss Peeta over and over, realizing I would have been undoubtedly furious with him if the tables were turned.

"I'm sorry, Gale. I - I didn't know. I didn't think about it like ... that." I didn't know what to say to him to make it better, but I knew nothing would.

All of a sudden his expression became unreadable and his eyes cloudy, there was an emotion in them that I didn't recognize which surged through them. His gaze refused to break from mine, I realized this was the way he looked at me as I shot my arrows. He looked at me this way countless times before but I had could not bare looking back at him; afraid of I don't know what.

"Don't be sorry," He whispered faintly. He lifted his hands, and carefully caressed my hair. I did not break his gaze either, it was impossible, he had me under his spell. I really wanted to say something now, give him an idea of what was going on in my head now. I felt like it was the least I could do, in exchange for all he's done for me. I wanted to tell him that I needed him in my life almost much as I needed Peeta. As much as I desperately wanted to tell him, I had no words. I had nowhere to start. Too many topics, and things I've done wrong. I opened my mouth, hoping for the words to just fly out.

His eyes darted across my face, searching. I had to give him answer. Why couldn't I be like Peeta; flawless grammer, and always knew what to say at pressured moments.

The emotion grew stronger on Gale's face.

Then all of a sudden he slid his fingers along my jaw and pulled me into a kiss. His lips were soft, and warm. It's abruptness made me fall back onto a tree. I put my hands on his neck about to shove his weight off of my body until he pulled away momentarily, just to breath. He opened his eyes, and his grey eyes turned hard black, his hands toughened against my head, now ruffling my hair out of it's braid. He leaned back in and this time I kissed him back. I loosened my grip on his neck and intertwined them in his brown hair. His hands were rough from all the hunting, yet they seemed to set my body on fire. They slid under my shirt and traced my back lifting it up. A shot of adrenaline rushed through me. I greedily pulled off his shirt kissed his neck and wrapped my legs around his torso; the hunger blazed stronger within my chest.

What was going on with me?