Disclaimer: The Hunger Games do not belong to me, I simply borrow the characters.

Contains: Smut and use of language. Proceed knowingly.

He's been having trouble being around people. Gale and the Star Squad leave bright and early tomorrow for their mission into the Capitol and his mom keeps looking at him with these big sad eyes. Hazelle is proud of her son of course but she's also terrified for him. Everyone is scared. The war is really starting.

So instead of sitting around his moping siblings and immature friends Gale's gone to the meeting room early. There's a sectional meeting for the men of the squad, reminders on how to behave around the women of the squad while they're out on the mission and how to carry themselves in general. The meeting room is large, almost like a board room. There's a long table with many chairs and a backroom that has a couch and a water cooler – a break room. He's at the table now with his head in his hands, thinking about how important this mission is. He hates the glamour of it, the fact that it'll be filmed and broadcasted, but he has to fight anyway.

Suddenly there's a quiet knock on the door. He lifts his head and turns to find Madge Undersee, of all people, in the doorway. She blinks a few time when she sees him. "Gale?" she pokes her head into the room. "Can I come in?" Startled to see her, yet somehow relieved, he dips his head. She enters the room and quietly shuts the door behind her.

Though he struggles with admitting it, seeing Madge Undersee is the biggest breath of fresh air. She almost didn't make it out of District 12 when the bombs started falling. In fact, she wouldn't if Gale hadn't gone back for her. Every time he sees her golden hair or her bright blue eyes he's reminded that she almost died, he's reminded that she's still alive.

Why did he save her? It was the question many people asked when he showed up in the meadow with her in his arms. Was it the morphling? Maybe slightly. But there was more to it.

"Big day tomorrow," she says, stepping into the room. She can't believe that he's off, leaving with the Star Squad to fight the Capitol. Maybe never to return. It doesn't sit well in her stomach despite the fact that she knows he's ready.

"Yeah," he nods, spinning his chair to see her. She's stopped by the wall, resting backwards against it, almost too scared to come all the way into the room. "How'd you know I was in here?"

She scratches her forehead awkwardly. "Asked your mom."

"Come to send me off?" he murmurs. "Say goodbye?"

"I, um," she fidgets. "I had a question. Actually. And some things to say before you went. So yes, I guess that's what I'm doing, sort of." He cocks an eyebrow at her. Madge's hands are sweating. "This is ridiculous," she murmurs to herself.

All the years Gale has known Madge he's never known her to be nervous. She's always been a bit quiet but when she speaks she's witty and sharp, her voice is strong. Moving in with Haymitch when they got to District 13 might've helped a bit, she's had to argue with him about this or that, about his safety, etc. So seeing her all shy unsettles him.

Gale coughs awkwardly and she lets out a short breath. "Why did you save me?" she asks. The question throws him off kilter. Everyone else has wanted to know, of course she would want to know as well. Madge stares at him, waiting for him to respond, but he doesn't. He can't. "During the bombings. You came all the way back to my house. You dug under the wreckage to get me instead of just letting me die…" she waits for him to answer and still, he doesn't. "I-I just want to know why."

"Why does it matter?" Gale mutters. "You're alive. That's in the past."

"There had to have been some… some reason for doing so." Gale lifts his shoulders unenthusiastically. Nothing that concerns her. "Oh. Okay." Her heart is somewhere in her stomach but she swore to herself that she would go through with this. Madge takes a few steps toward him and away from the wall. "Well I… I wanted to come tell you good luck on your mission." Her hands are still sweating and she's sure her cheeks are pale. Gale has never seen her look so… scared. "I always… you're going to think I'm ridiculous but I always… I had… feelings for you," she says.

Gale lifts his eyebrows. "What?"

"I know it's stupid. You always had ten thousand girls after you all the time. But I found you to be the least boring person I ever knew." Madge wipes her hands on her gray District 13 pants and clears her throat. "You liked to argue with me, no one else would. And you were so brave." She licks her lips and looks away. "I just… I just wanted to tell you before you left. That you'll always have a piece of my heart."

He stands abruptly, unknown feelings coursing through his veins. "Why would you tell me that?" he asks. Gale strides toward her and she backs up, shocked at his sudden intensity. "Why would you tell me that now?"

"Just in case," she forces out. He still moves toward her and she moves back until she reaches the wall and has nowhere else to go. "If something happened to you I needed you to know, I needed—"

Gale reaches her and pins her to the wall, leaning down and forcefully pressing his lips to hers. She gasps into his mouth but he doesn't relent, one of his hands resting over her and the other holding firm to her hip. Finally Madge begins to respond, her lips move in time with his. When they part he doesn't go far, he rests his forehead against hers and listens to her pant.

"That's why," he murmurs. "That's why I saved you." Madge arches herself up so their lips brush and he smiles against her mouth. There's the girl he fell for, the one not afraid to match him. Not the scared girl that walked in. That's a side of Madge he had never seen before and he didn't like it. Gale presses into her and revels in her soft groan. "Fuck," he pulls away but her hands cling to his shirt. "You had to tell me that the day before I left?"

"I didn't—" he kisses her again and she laughs, sliding her hands under his shirt and around his hips. Her hands are warm. "I didn't think you would respond this enthusiastically," she admits when Gale pulls away. He reaches up and brushes her golden hair from her face. "That's really why you saved me?" Madge asks.

"Why else?"

She leans into his hand and he presses against her even more, really pinning her to the wall. He couldn't bear the thought of her dying. Suffocating under all of that burning debris. She saved his life once, she opened his eyes as to what it really meant to care for someone. How could he not save her? She was beautiful, is beautiful. Bright, smart, kind. Brave in her own ways, even if that doesn't include fighting in combat for the war.

Not wanting to waste any more time Gale leans down to kiss her again. If only she had said something earlier, if only he had said something. Madge tastes so sweet, almost like a forbidden fruit he never thought he'd get the chance to enjoy. A lifetime ago he wouldn't have been able to – he was a boy from the Seam with no hope of a future. Now… now he's going to fight with the Star Squad. He's going to be a well-known soldier. He's going places in life.

And it's not as though he saved her from the bombing and then they never spoke. District 13 has been a chance for them to get to know each other in bits and pieces. She would murmur things under her breath and he would laugh. Their eyes would seek out one another's in crowds, sometimes migrating to one another's side just for sake of being by someone familiar. Madge would spend time at his home with his family, playing with Posy or talking to Hazelle about life.

They're not strangers, but they've always been something more than friends.

Content to just kiss her for the rest of the day Gale is surprised when her hands start tracing up his spine. He knew she was daring, but daring enough to already start working off his shirt? He's not going to complain. When she fingers the hem he helps her peel it off. Madge's hands dance up his chest and he groans into her mouth.

"Madge," he parts, gasping for air. Her eyes innocently find his and she says nothing, she just licks her lips. Madge reaches down for her own shirt and pulls it over her head, revealing her gray bra underneath. Fuck, Gale hates how everything in this place is gray, but she pulls it off well. "What are you—"

"I want to give you something to remember me with," she cuts him off. It takes him a while to pull his eyes up from her breasts but when their eyes meet he has never seen her look more sure. "If you want it." He dives in immediately, capturing her lips quickly and reaching behind her to undo the straps of her bra. "Eager," she laughs as he kisses down her throat. Gale nibbles on her collarbone and elicits a needy noise from her, and he smiles into her skin.

"Eager," he echoes softly. She drops her head backwards against the wall and he finally gets the hooks undone. Her bra slides from her body and his breath catches in his throat. "Have you ever…" he trails off.

"Once," she nods. He pulls away, surprised. "Don't give me that look," Madge laughs, pulling his hands so they're around her waist. "I was curious and was tired of feeling so… unexperienced." He should've known she's been with someone before by the way she arches against him. "Have you?" Gale rolls his eyes at her and she laughs again. "Alright, King of the Slagheap."

"Not a king," he says, bowing to kiss across her chin. "Maybe a knight. Thom definitely took more girls there than I did."

She snorts and it warms his skin. "Reassuring." He pulls her up by the rear and she latches onto him. This new height gives him better access to her breasts. "How many?" she asks as one of his hands trails up her side before cupping her. "Oh."

"Doesn't matter anymore," he says. They were distractions. She arches into him and he rubs his thumb over her nipple which hardens at his touch. "Three."

"A lot less than expected," she exhales. Her hands latch behind his neck and he move her to the backroom with the couch. "I don't mind."

He chuckles, "I didn't think you would." Gale lays her down on the beat up couch and studies her face. "This isn't ideal," he murmurs. A couch in some back room of a meeting room. If it were up to him they'd have a nice comfy bed all to themselves. Madge shrugs, she doesn't mind. "We could go to yours? If you'd prefer."

"Haymitch," she says, shaking her head. He would absolutely explode if he knew this were happening.

"I've got my mom and the kids," Gale counters.

Madge wiggles a bit, "I think here is just fine." Her hands reach for the button on his pants and Gale kicks off his shoes as she fiddles with it. She forces her shoes off as well as Gale shimmies from his gray jeans. He presses into her throat and burns kisses to her skin, leaving marks that will be around even after he goes on his mission. "Gale," she gasps, feeling his length pressing into her. "Can I…"

"Please." She grabs his cock through his boxers, tugging with just the right amount of pressure. "Oh, Christ," he groans. Her touch leaves him unable to hold himself up, he sinks onto the side of the couch while she presses upwards and hovers over him. Madge releases his dick and reaches for the elastic of his boxers, pulling them down his thighs. Gale works to get them off the rest of the way. "Madge—"

"Shh," she lowers herself down and he feels her tongue swirl across the tip of his cock. Gale hisses through his teeth and claws at the couch.

Gale's cock hardens between her lips as Madge moans, bobbing up and down. He lifts himself on his elbows to watch and nearly dies. Madge Undersee is sucking his dick. And she's good at it. It's like a dream come true. Her tongue slides around his shaft, she reaches up and strokes his balls gently.

"Fuck, that's good," Gale sighs, dropping his head back down. Madge can't fit his whole cock in her mouth but she tries, sucking slowly to try and make up for it. Eventually Gale's hands lift to her head to keep her on him and she moans louder. Her breasts are pressed against his legs as she gets him off. Gale bucks his hips and Madge pulls up with a pop. "Sorry," he croaks. "You should probably stop, though." Madge wipes at her chin as he sits up, rolling them again so she has her back on the couch again. "Who was the guy?" Gale asks as her hands continue to tug on his cock. "The one before me."

"I hardly think now is the time to be talking about him," she says.

"Mm," he leans over her and works his way down her throat. Gale reaches her breasts and sucks on one of her nipples, stimulating the other with his hand. "I want you to forget all about him. Forever." Her chest rises and falls rapidly as his teeth graze her nipple, she lets out a sigh and arches into him. Gale switches his mouth, rubbing her other tit roughly.

"Gale," she's gripping the couch like he was, her eyes tightly closed.

"Only think of me," he says.

"You," she echoes breathily. Gale noses his way between her breasts and kisses down her stomach. He helps her pull her pants off and slides his hands up her legs. "I want you," she whispers. Gale kisses from her knee to her inner thigh, removing her underwear as he does so. Madge shudders when she feels his breath on her slit, his fingers tracing it.

"How long?"

In the haze of her mind she hears his question and answers, "Years." Gale kisses the inside of her thighs and her hips spin. "Don't tease me…" she whines. He chuckles and she feels it deep inside. Gale licks the juices that are already flowing and listens to her mew. "Yes." She reaches up and grabs her breasts, Gale nearly does a double take before sliding a finger into her wet cunt. "Oh!"

"You like that?" he breathes.

"Yes, yes," Madge pants. His finger curls inside of her as he licks her pussy, careful not to be too rough. "Gale," she cries. Hearing her call his name like this causes his heart to stutter, and hearing it dissolve into a moan, "Oh, God, yes, oh," is even better.

The sensation is too much for her, Madge's body starts to shake and her legs clench around his head. Gale continues to lick her as she cums, tasting Madge with all he's got. She cums harder than she ever has, her back arching and her legs quivering. She calls his name and he groans into her cunt. While her orgasm subsides Gale kisses up her thigh again, up her stomach. She's still lying back panting when she feels the tip of his cock graze her entrance.

"Yes," she forces out. "Gale, yes. I want it." He parts her legs and she complies, spreading herself open for him. "Slow," she adds quickly.

He turns his head to kiss her calf. "Got it." Gale eases into her warmth and lets out a short breath, listening as Madge does the same. He slides his hands up her thighs as he moves into her slowly like she asked and she whines beneath him, one of his hands stays against her hip while the other travels back up to her breasts. Her eyes are closed, her lips parted as though she's dazed. "Madge," he murmurs.

"Mm…"

Gale laughs airily. "You ok?"

"Mm-hm," she nods, her lips curving into a smile. Madge arches slightly into him as he begins to move. "Gale." His thrusting is slow but he fills her incredibly. "Oh God."

"You feel so good," Gale whispers. "Fuck, Madge." She reaches for him and he leans down more, her hands lift to his shoulders and dig in. He drops his mouth to hers and kisses her hungrily, while still thrusting steadily. She moans into his mouth and shifts her hips in his direction. Their tongues meet momentarily but Madge pulls away to catch her breath.

Gale's panting, not wanting to stop but getting tired already from the slow drive. Madge sensing this opens her eyes and pulls herself forward on his arms.

"Let me be on top," she says. His eyebrows shoot to his forehead. "Please?" With a grin Gale pulls himself from her. He readjusts himself on the couch, pumping his cock a few times before Madge straddles him.

"Jesus fucking Christ," he groans as she begins to lower herself onto him. Gale's fingers dig into her hips, his head drops backwards against the couch. "You're going to be the death of me, Undersee. I can feel it already."

"Mm," she sinks onto his dick and leans forward, sucking his throat.

He pushes himself up as she moves down, their panty breath filling the air. "Fuck, why couldn't you have told me this—this a few months ago?" They thrust together and Madge gasps against his neck. "Fucking…"

"You talk a lot," she forces out.

Gale chuckles again, his lips finding her collarbone. "I'll shut up."

"Mm. Say my name."

He licks across her skin and bruises her hips. "Madge," he whispers, sliding his nose up her throat. "Margaret Undersee. So Goddamn beautiful." She sighs and tightens her legs around his waist. "What do you want? I'll do any…" he pants, "anything you want."

She thinks for a moment while rocking on his dick before whispering, "Harder."

"Fuck, you really are gonna kill me." Gale thrusts upwards and she cries out, reaching behind his neck and holding tight. Gale pounds into her as she buries her face into his neck.

"Oh, Gale!" She feels him inside of her, hard and thick, stretching her out. "Yes!" His hips slam into hers and she bounces back, meeting him in his thrusts. "Yes! Yes! Oh-!" Their bodies are covered in sweat, his mind is filled with Madge. Nothing fills the room but the smell of sex and their grunts and gasps. She can feel his cock throbbing inside of her. "I'm gonna, oh God, I'm—"

Madge's pussy tightens around his cock and her juices begin to flow. Her legs hold firm around his waist and Gale continues to pound into her through her orgasm, leaving her crying out his name. She trembles on top of him, holding him close, and slows down as her climax falls back. Gale kisses his way to her mouth and she captures his lips, slowing rocking her hips back in time with his slower thrusts.

"Madge," he pulls away. "I'm gonna…" it was too much for him, to feel her walls squeezing his cock. "I'm—" she nods wordlessly and they meet in a few more sloppy thrusts. "Madge," he cries into her neck as he cums. "Fuck, fuck, fuck…"

They stay tangled together savoring each other's breath when his orgasm is over, their warm bodies pressed against one another on the couch. Finally she pulls back and grabs his face, tilting her toward him. Gale kisses her gently as he pulls his cock from her, lying Madge down on the couch in the process. He leans over her and deepens the kiss, smiling when another needful noise comes from her throat.

Gale pulls away and props his elbows up so he's not crushing her. "That was…" she starts, and then collapses back onto the couch with a smile. "Unexpected."

"Not the word I would've chosen," Gale admits. Her smile widens. "I would've gone with… worth the wait, maybe."

"Was it?"

"More than you would know," he nods. Madge bites down on her bottom lip. "I've been waiting to go on this mission for months and now it's like I'm second guessing the entire thing," Gale mutters, searching her eyes. "Christ, Undersee."

"Well…" she slides his hands up the front of his chest. "I'll still be here when you get back." They both ignore that he might not get back and let the fantasy live on. "If you'll still want me."

"Is that a joke?" he asks, laughing slightly. Gale dips down to press his lips to hers. "Yeah, I'll still want you." Her hands cup his cheeks now. "Just stay away from these District 13 guys, I don't like them."

"Deal."

"Or the guy from before."

"Who?" she feigns confusion. He smirks. "As long as you come back, Gale."

Gale smiles. "I'll be back." It's not that he didn't have a reason to come before but Madge definitely has provided a new, fresh incentive.

Again they kiss, slow and sweet. He presses her naked body into the couch as his tongue searches her mouth. She digs her hands into his shoulders and leaves marks alongside the hickeys they'll both have for the next few days, like the bruises on her hips to remind her of this time. While they're savoring each other's taste they don't hear the door open, and then suddenly all they can hear is a shit ton of laughter and whistles from the men in his squad.

"Soldier Hawthorne," Boggs says. Gale groans and moves to cover Madge so no one can see her body. "Why is it that I can see your naked ass?"

"Commander Boggs, why is it that you're looking?" he grumbles back.

There's a little more snickering as Boggs shushes everyone and guides the squad from the backroom. "Five minutes," Boggs tells him, tossing the clothes they left in the main room onto the floor before leaving.

"Got it." The door to the backroom shuts and Madge lets out a quite huff of air. Her face is red, her eyes are wide. "Probably should've mentioned that I had a meeting, huh?"

"Probably," she nods. He leans down and gives her another kiss before rolling himself off of her. Gale grabs their clothing from the ground and tosses hers to her. She quickly slides it all on in silence, her cheeks still pink from the interruption. Gale dresses quickly as well and then stands, offering his hand to her to pull her up. "I guess you should get to that meeting," Madge says.

"I should," Gale nods. He pulls her close, wrapping his arms tightly around her. She squeezes him back just as strong. "Will you be at the sendoff tomorrow?" he asks.

"If you want me there," she nods into his chest.

Gale laughs. "I want you there," he says. They pull away and he reaches down, tilting her chin up. "And trust me, there's no chance in hell I'm going to forget about you while I'm away."

"Mm," she laughs too as he leans down and presses his forehead against hers. "Good."

They kiss one last time, short and sweet, before walking to the door that will lead them to the meeting room. It's the only way for Madge to get back out into the District, no matter how awkward it will be. The second the door opens the men burst into cheers and applause, some of them whistle. Thank God this is a sectional meeting and Katniss isn't here, though the side eye Finnick is giving makes up for it.

As Gale curses at the men who whistle, Madge turns pink again. Before she leaves she apologizes for the interruption, even though Gale will argue that the squad was the interruption. Madge lingers by the door and smiles one last time at Gale. They both know that they'll be together again.

AN: This was a request I got! Please review to let me know if you like it!