Chapter 3: Smooched Unexpectedly
The bag of game lies heavy on my shoulders as I keep pace with Gale through the woods. We got a good haul today. It should make for a decent trade in the Hob.
We finally emerge from the treeline and approach the fence that marks the official border of District 12. It is supposed to be electrified 24/7, but the power has not run through it in years. Crawling under the barbed wire has been a piece of cake since I was a pre-teen.
I set the bag down to prepare to crawl under the fence now.
"I can take over the daily snare run, Gale. Perhaps we'll catch some rabbits. And then -" I am cut off as Gale suddenly takes my face in his hands and kisses me firmly on the mouth.
I am completely unprepared. You would think that, after listening to Gale and his teachings for so long, I would know everything there was to know about his lips - which I now register taste like sweet oranges. Or how his hands, which can complete even the most complicated of snares, could so easily entrap me, as he winds them about my waist.
"Uhhhmmmmmmm..." I think I make this sort of choked squeak in the back of my throat, but I do not pull away. Curious, I close my eyes and kiss him back. After a long moment, he draws away.
"I had to do that. At least once." And then he is gone.
I stay sitting in the meadow for a good while afterwards, pondering over how I feel about Gale's kiss, whether I liked it or resented it. Another thought strikes me: can I imagine myself as the wife of a miner? Gale is already working there part-time, and when he comes of age, he will have to work even deeper underground, as did his father before him. Could I be married to him - my best friend - as he puts himself in danger every day; have his children and raise them as I wait to see if he comes home, having survived the mines for another work shift?
I don't know. I just don't know...