This takes place right after Katniss has volunteered to take Prim's place as tribute, right as the male tribute is about to be called.
I watch Effie as she swirls her hand through the papers, she grasps one and pulls it out. She takes a deep excited breath before calling out the fate of one male, "Gale Hawthorne!" It takes a second for the name to register in my mind, the rush of my sister's name being called and then me volunteering is still running through my blood. As the name sinks in, everything freezes. My heart nearly stops and I feel a lump in my throat, I look out into the pool of people and I spot the movement of Gale making his somber way up to the stage and next to me.
I look at Gale and he looks at me, we both have the same expressions of hatred and sorrow. Hatred for the Capitol for putting us in this awful situation, and sadness to know that at least one of us will not be returning to our district.
"Any volunteers?" Effie's voice breaks through my thoughts, and I hopefully look into the crowd to see if anyone will take Gale's place, though I know deep down no one would do that. "Oh well, we have one volunteer for District 12, Katniss Everdeen, and Gale Hawthorne!" Again she expects an applause, but nobody says a thing. I look into the crowd and the usual appearance of relief on the faces of the youth is not found among any of them. They all know how close me and Gale are, and I can tell how badly they feel for us. Among some girls, I see them weeping for us, and even a few boys have tears running down their faces. I try to ignore this whole scene as I am told to shake Gale's hand. As our hands touch, he jerks me towards him and embraces me, he's strong arms around me make me feel as though I'm protected, but I know I'm not. I wrap my arms around his waist and hold him until the peacekeepers tear us apart and take us into the Justice Building.
I look at Gale as they take me farther down the hall and before I am put into a room by myself I see him mouth to me "It will be okay, I'll see you soon," I just nod at him as they throw me into a room to wait for my family.
My mother and sister come and go, as does Gale's mother. She only came in briefly, tears running down her cheeks as she gave me a huge hug. She only said one thing before she left, but I'll never forget it "One of you need to come home, and for your mothers sake, I hope it is you." With that she left me alone in the room, waiting to be taken to the Capitol.
The door opened again and I stood up and was ready to leave, when I saw his face and stopped dead in my tracks. Peeta Mellark, was standing at the door, looking shaky and pale. I noticed him before to be one of the few boys with tears streaming down his face, but I tried to push it out of my mind, but now the image rushes back into my head. Why had he been crying? Was it happiness that he had not been chosen? Sadness that two friends were going to have to battle to the death? Had he remembered that night so many years ago when he saved my life? And now, what was he doing here?
"Peeta?" I ask him hesitantly, he looks at my shocked as if he hadn't expected me to know his name. He hesitates slightly then takes a couple steps towards me.
"I'm sorry Katniss, I am so sorry," I begins to apoligise, but I have no idea what for.
"What are you sorry about Peeta? You didn't do anything," I try and make sense of his reaction, but I can't.
"I should have volunteered for Gale, I was stunned in the moment seeing you up there, I'm so sorry," He says this like he owes me something, nothing I can think of would make him owe me anything, quite the opposite really.
"You don't have anything to be sorry for," I try to calm him down, though I'm not sure why I have to.
"Damn it Katniss!" He's screaming now, I'm taken aback "I should have volunteered to save you again!" As he says this, I know he remembers. He remembers the day he gave me the bread, and saved mine and my family's lives. I don't know why I do it, but I walk forward and I take his hands and look into his eyes.
"You've kept me alive this long, it's more than I could have ever asked for from a boy I've never talked to," at first I was saying this just to calm him down, but as the words come out of my mouth I realize just how true they are. "You truly are a wonderful man, and I'm sorry I never got the chance to thank you before now. Thank you for saving my life, my sister's life, and my mother's life. You owe me absolutely nothing, but I want to ask you a favor Peeta."
"Anything," He replies looking me dead in the eye, and I know he means he'd do anything for me. I don't understand why, but I'll take it.
"If my sister, is ever in the position I was in, I ask that you please do the same for her that you did for me," I know he knows what I mean, and he nods. I don't know why I do it, but he doesn't fight it. I stand on my tiptoes and kiss him lightly on the mouth. Before I have a chance to process what I've done, the peacekeepers come in and grab him and drag him out of the room, I catch one last glimpse of his face and see a sad smile vanishing just as he does.
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