A/N: Okay so I got 5 reviews for the last chapter! Much better than the first chapter! I try to reply to each review but if I missed you I'm so sorry! To my anonymous reviewer KatoorClato thank you for your review, and I love suggestions! Any time you have one feel tree to put it in a review or just pm me! I actually wasn't going to do that but when I read your review I just had to for you, and I'm so glad I did! The chapter turned out much better than I had planned!
DISCLAMER: I do not own The Hunger Games. But I would love to own Cato, he's yummy ;)
As lunch comes to a close we all head back into the training center, I notice Peeta glaring at me out of the corner of my eye and change direction so I'm walking towards him. "Okay Peeta, what's your problem?" Getting in his way so he can't pass me I demand his attention. "Just because you don't want to get to know me doesn't mean you have to treat me like I'm the black plague."
"Look Katniss, you're a nice girl... but I'm not looking for a romance to bloom out of these games, besides, you're not really my type." I look at him like he grew a second head.
"What makes you think I have even considered that!" I glare at him.
He shifts uncomfortably and refuses to meet my eyes. "The district 2 boy mentioned something about you being in love with me."
"Well don't flatter yourself Peeta; I don't fall for guys that treat me like something they scrapped off the bottom of their shoe." I spit out at him and turn to go find Cato.
"Katniss, wait!" I stop and turn my head slightly back to see him. "Please don't hate me, I didn't mean to hurt you..."
I let out a humorless laugh. "Peeta I'm not mad that you don't like me. Hell, I don't like you in a romantic way either. In fact I don't like you at all. I'm mad at you because you would handle the situation that way, and you believed a career without even talking to me to see if it was true or not."
"I don't mean just about this." Peeta mumbles.
"Neither do I." I turn away from him and continue down the hall to the training center. I immediately spot Cato and see he's with the tributes from district 1 and 4 as well as his own district partner. My assumption is that they are forming an alliance, and sense I'm not stupid enough to piss off all the careers I decide to wait and talk to Cato when he is alone.
I make my way to the Gauntlet; an obstacle course consisting of ascending platforms that rise up to a landing. Tributes must jump from platform to platform to finish in the fastest time possible. To make it even more difficult, trainers swing padded clubs at the tributes to try and make them fall. I get in line behind the male from district 10 and watch as the kids in front of me make their way across, struggling to stay on while trying to avoid the trainer's swings.
As it comes up to my turn I hear the careers get in line behind me. "I bet she falls at the first trainer." Marvel laughs. Glimmer giggles and speaks up.
"No way, she won't make it past the first three jumps." I ball my fists up and clench my jaw. Haymitch said not to show off any of my strengths and this is definitely a strength of mine. Years of hunting with Gale have made me quick and agile; sitting on tree branches, swinging threw the trees and moving without making a sound has made my balance incredible. I decide as I walk onto the course that I won't hold back, I plan on giving it everything I have and prove the careers wrong. I turn and give Clove and Glimmer a sweet smile before taking the first jump. I see a trainer out of the corner of my eye and before he has a chance to swing at me I have jumped to the next on, ducking as a second trainer swings a club at my head. I recover quickly and leap over the gap to a platform a foot and a half higher than the last, hardly a challenge seeing as the platforms are much wider than the branches I'm used to jumping onto. I make it to the second last platform when a club comes swinging towards my feet, with a last second jump I miss the club and make it onto the last platform. I jump to the ground and without looking back move to the snares station with a satisfied smirk on my face.
Training ends and the tributes place their weapons, ropes, books or whatever else they are using back and slowly make way to the elevator. I take my time untying the snare I was practicing so that I will have the elevator to myself, or even better with Cato. My hands clench into a fist thinking about that arrogant jerk, how dare he tell Peeta that I have a crush on him! If he wanted to piss me off he succeeded, probably better than he thought he would. A slight noise alerts me that someone is behind me, when I turn I find Cato so close to me I'm looking at his chest.
Backing a step away from him my look of shock turns to one of anger. "What the hell is your problem?"
"I have no problem. But by the look on your face I assume you have one with me." He lifts one eyebrow and gives me a crooked smile.
"Damn right I have a problem with you. You told Peeta I'm in love with him!" Cato looks shocked for a moment before bursting into laughter.
"That's what this is about? I was just trying to get under bread boys skin; I didn't think he actually believed me."
"How would telling him that get under his skin?"
"I told him you trust me more than him, so much so that you confided your deepest secrets to me." He shrugs his shoulders like it's no big deal, but I'm fuming.
"You want to get under his skin you do it in a way that doesn't involve me." I poke him in the chest and turn on my toes. "I won't be a part of your games Cato." I make for the elevator when Cato grabs my arm and spins me to face him.
"He's the only one I'm playing games with. Not you." His eyes are hard and piercing, like he's trying to look into my soul. Releasing my arm he walks to the elevator and presses the button.
I glare at the back of his head. "And what does that mean?" I step into the elevator next to him, crossing my arms and leaning against the wall.
"It means I don't want to see you dead, so I won't play games with your head."
"Why don't I believe you? Brutal Bloody Cato doesn't want someone to die?" I snap. "This right here is a game to mess with my head."
Cato's expression goes from amusement to annoyed as soon as the words leave my mouth. The doors open to his floor and he storms out muttering something about this conversation not being over.
I drop my arms when the door closes and take a deep breath. What if he isn't trying to play games with me? What if he really doesn't want me to die? Can I trust him? Can I- No. No, no, no. I shake the thoughts from my mind as I run a hand threw my hair. This is Cato, he's a killing machine; it's what he has been trained for his whole life. But the doubt lingers in the back of my mind.
"What took you so long?" Effie's shrill voice shakes me from my thoughts.
"I was just taking my time."
"Where is Peeta?" Haymitch asked, knocking back a glass of clear liquid.
"How should I know? I'm not his damn babysitter." Haymitch looks slightly shocked at my outburst.
"Katniss, snapping at your mentor is hardly polite!" I send a glare at Effie, effectively silencing the scolding she so desperately wants to give me about my manners.
"Alright, what happened between you too?" Haymitch gives me a knowing look and I sit down across from him as an Avox brings my dinner. I think about ignoring his question but decide it might help to talk about it.
"Peeta and I used to be friends when we were younger." I pause a moment to take a spoon full of lamb stew. "We did everything together; it was like we were joined at the hip." I smile remembering the fun we had when we were kids. "When we were fourteen Peeta asked me out, I said yes and relationship lasted for all of four days. If you can even call that a relationship. His mom found out and demanded we end things; she said I am beneath Peeta and he shouldn't associate himself with seam scum like me. I thought Peeta would stand up for me, I thought he actually cared about me; but I was young and naive." Tears begin to form in the corner of my eyes and I blink them back.
"He listened to his mother and I didn't hear from him again. He didn't even have the balls to say it to my face, he just stopped talking to me like I didn't exist and all the years we were friends never happened. I tried to talk to him but he told me I'm like gum stuck to the bottom of his shoe, he doesn't want me there but can't seem to get rid of me. I never tried to speak to him again, and he never tried to contact me."
"Well that's just rude!" I smile at Effie's remark and let out a little laugh.
"Yeah, it is." I look to Haymitch, whose eyes are trained on something behind me. I turn to see what has his attention and hear his voice before I see him.
"And I regret it more than anything." Peeta sounds almost...broken.
"It's too late to realise that now." I get up and go to my room, it shouldn't have taken him this long and the fact than one of us or both of us could die to realise he treated me badly. I strip down and crawl into bed. It has only been one day of training and my mind is already spinning with new information.
A/N: So... Review and let me know what you guys thought! Just a side note, my 'M' button and a couple other buttons don't actually work right (my laptop is 6 years old) so if you notice a missing letter please let me know so I can fix it! Who would like to see a chapter from Cato's POV? I thought about doing one but I can't decide if that would interrupt the flow of the story too much. Thoughts? My mom has my son for the night so I plan on using this free time to write as much as I possibly can without my writing slipping so I hope to have chapter 4 up maybe later tonight, or tomorrow. Reviews help me write faster!
