3

The following morning, Gale and I wake up to Haymitch-vomit all over the floor. It's red and green and some other color I don't want to look at. I can tell it's his because he's slouched over it, his face red, his eyes bloodshot. I call Effie's name, and she runs into the scene, her eyes flaming with anger.

"Haymitch!" she snaps. "How dare you vomit all over this beautifully polished mahogany floor?"

Haymitch doesn't respond, but he does moan and cover his face, looking as if he is ready to pass out. I look away. Nothing is going to help him in this moment. And I certainly don't want to get vomited on. So I don't say a word.

Looking irritated, Haymitch turns and returns to his quarters, which just so happen to be right by the bar car. I laugh to myself at the irony.

"What's funny?" Gale demands.

"Nothing," I tell him, pressing my lips together to keep another laugh from spilling out.

Effie fumes, rocking back on her heels and vaulting out of the room. Her plans have been destroyed, and all her work has been vanquished. She's not happy. And that is one of the first moments in this experience I feel pleasure.

I laugh again, this time aloud, and Gale joins in, knowing what I'm laughing at. We can't stop laughing, and eventually have to sit down, our faces red and our bodies aching. When we finally stop and catch our breaths, Gale grins at me. His eyes are full of happiness, even though he shouldn't be happy. We're going into an arena to die soon and only one of us can survive.

As he realizes my train of thoughts, his smile fades. We are not to be happy; we are to be depressed. Cold. Calculating. Preparing to say our goodbyes to this earth. Willing to go, but also willing to fight. Not happy. And far from it.

"So this is it then." Gale's voice is so low I barely catch the words, but I do. Of course I do.

I nod almost imperceptibly, but Gale sees it. "Well, then I want to say something. Something I've been meaning to tell you since that day I met you in the woods. Something that's been bugging me a lot recently, Catnip."

"What is it?" I ask, not looking directly at him. But Gale is not one for beating around the bush. He takes my chin and lifts my face so that I have to look directly in his eyes. When I'm staring deep into the Seam-grey, he speaks.

"I love you." The words ring with sincerity. "I'm in love with you, Katniss. I've been in love with you since the day I met you, even though I've only recently realized it. I want you to survive the arena. To go home and tell everyone how much I loved you. That will be the true victory in my eyes. Because if I go home without you, there will be no point in me winning."

"Gale..." I whisper, staring into his eyes and unable to feel anything but what I feel in this moment. That Gale does love me. That he is willing to die to protect me. This simple notion moves me, and tears are running down my cheeks. Gale will not be a piece in the Capitol's Games, and he will not let me be one either.

"I... I love you too." The words spill out before I can stop them, but the more I think about it, the more they make sense. Gale has been one of my only friends since I've grown up. He understands the pain and the hardship I've had to suffer in District 12, and he knows just how terrible we've all had it—hell, he's had it bad himself. Gale is the fire I need to keep me alive. The assurance that, no matter how bad it is, the sun can rise again and fight against the dark clouds.

So of course I kiss him. I must kiss him.

My lips brush against his lightly at first, but as the emotion charges within me, I press my lips closer to his with a vengeance. My eyes close as our lips finally meet, and I kiss him with a passion I never knew I could withstand. Gale's warm breath blows when the kiss breaks, and it feels good against my still-outstretched lip. I sit that way for a long time, my lip extended, waiting for Gale to say something. When he doesn't, I open my eyes.

Gale is sitting there. He stares at my face with a look that's not far from insanity. He moans softly as he bites his lip.

"What is it?" I ask him, because it's so obvious he's in pain.

"I don't want to lose you," he admits, his face flushing red. "I know one of us is going to die in these Games. But I have a terrible feeling it's going to be you. And I don't want to lose you, Katniss."

I've never seen him this way. So emotional. So in pain. So unsure of himself. Frankly, it's not a vision I like. The strong, powerful Gale I've grown used to over the years has faded, and there is only this. "You won't," I assure him, even though it breaks my heart to say so. "I'll live, and I'll go home and be with my mother and Prim."

"Please," he whispers, his voice breaking.

Just at that moment, Effie barges into the room, her eyes on the mess of vomit on the floor. "Clean!" she shouts, and a Capitol maid rushes from one of the cars I didn't see and begins to clean up the mess almost instantly. She looks at us. "We'll be arriving in the Capitol in about thirty minutes." She sees the disconcertion in our eyes, the pain. "What... what happened?"

"Long story, Effie," Gale says coldly. I'm sure he doesn't mean to be mean. Wait, scratch that—of course he means to be mean. She's a servant of the Capitol, the enemy in his eyes. Why should he care about her feelings?

"Emotion. So raw and pure. Keep that on your face. The Capitol crowd will just love it!" Effie gushes, smiling and turning from the room. In that moment, I hate her. She is nothing but a mutt with a Capitol pedigree. She cares nothing for our lives, only to how we make her look in the Capitol. And that means she cares nothing about us.

I hate them. I hate them. I realize I'm saying the words aloud, loud enough for Gale to hear me but not the Capitol maid, who's almost done cleaning up the mess. "I do, too," he whispers. "But now's not the time to voice that. Come on."

I understand what he means. We're on a Capitol train, which is surely bugged. Now is not the time to be openly speaking of rebellion against them. I nod.

Gale and I stare into each other's eyes for a long moment. For the six years I have known him, not once has his expression changed, even though the face around it has grown. Now, it has. His eyes look fiercely at me, longingly. He wants to protect me, now more than anything. I blush at the notion.

Gale blinks. "I guess we wait."

"We wait," I agree.

We sit down at the table and continue to stare into each other's eyes. As I did earlier, I imagine a beautiful world. A world where Gale and I could lie, his arms wrapped around me. Concealed from the Games. Gone from the pain that has stolen us since our birth. Away from the darkness that shrouds our society. Free.

I think about how I would never have kids, not in the current society at least. How having kids would be a desperate move at this point. I do not want any child of mine to be in the Games. But if I had to have kids, I would have them with Gale. We could teach them to hunt. Prepare them for what may be their inevitable future. Coerce them into their destiny.

I stare into Gale's worn face, wondering if what I said earlier was true. Do I truly love him? If so, do I love him enough to let him go? If this is what he truly wants, how can I not give it to him? For him? For my mother and Prim?

I hold out my hand, a silent message that even if the plan to keep me alive does not work, we will always be together. Gale stares at it for a moment before his fingers twine through mine. He smiles, though it doesn't reach his eyes, and recites: "And may the odds—"

"Be ever in your favor," I finish.

...

I'm so excited that I finally got the chance to update this story! I'm sorry that the chapters are so short, but it's the best way to write with the Hunger Games. This chapter didn't have much story development, but it did have emotional development, between Katniss/Gale. I'm thinking of redoing the entire trilogy from this storyline, but I don't know for sure yet.

What got me motivated to continue is seeing The Hunger Games movie again. After writing the second chapter, I went into my House of Night phase, which is why I updated only Battled for a long time. If you guys are tiring of my long-time for updates—I'm sorry, but it takes a while to write chapters, and then to edit them so my mistakes aren't too terrible.

I'm a Peeniss shipper, but I love the idea of Gale going in, so expect an update on this one soon. Next chapter, we should see the Capitol. Love you guys!

XOXO,

Casey