Chapter 6 – The Games
Peeta and I watch the bloodbath in horror. Jake manages to escape., but Molly is trapped in the middle of the tributes from 1,2 and 4. Her only aim and wish were to get a backpack. Unfortunately, the backpack becomes her death. I cry my out when the girl from district 4 throws a knife at her. She bleeds, and I have seen and experienced enough of the Hunger Games to know Molly won't see her home again. She takes her final breath in the grass next to Cornucopia. She is only one of the many victims of this horrible game. I realize that this is ten times worse than to only watch it from home, or even being one of the tributes. I know her, I trained her, and she was my responsibility. Jake, on the other hand, runs and climbs a tree to stay safe. He is unarmed, and he does not have a thing from Cornucopia. If we do not see his face in the sky tonight it is a miracle. "I cannot watch this anymore," I tell Peeta. I cry and escape the room.
A few days later Jake is still alive. In the morning we go to watch the games. After an hour or so I feel sick, and I need some air. I go to the roof to fill my lungs with new oxygen and find myself puking up my breakfast all over the floor. I have never puked up without a reason before. Peeta comes after me and seems really worried when he sees my breakfast on the floor. "How are you, love?" he asks, and I hear how worried he is. He embraces me and leads me out from the roof into the apartment. "I do not feel very well." I cry, and he takes my hand to guide me to our bedroom. He puts me to bed and talks calmly to me. "Try to get some rest. I'll ask Haymitch to help us with the games and I'll get someone to tidy up the roof." He leaves me alone for a few minutes, but only to tell Haymitch to take over and to get someone to tidy up the roof. He then comes back with a glass of water and sits next to me in the bed. An hour later I feel much better and we manage to take over our responsibilities against Jake again. Even Haymitch looks like he is worried about me, and he decides es that he will stay to help us. To be able to help Peeta if I get sick again. This means I can rest and just watch, Peeta and Haymitch do all the work we have to do. I get hungry and we order lunch early. I puked up everything I had in my belly this morning and I eat lamb stew to compensate for the missing breakfast. But I only eat a little at the time, to see I won't puke up again. I do not. But I am left with a heavy headache in the afternoon. Peeta tells me to go to bed and says he will come later to watch on me. He must make the work we should have done together, but he is left with Haymitch instead of me. I feel awful for leaving him with all the work, but I do as Peeta told me. I find some sleepwear and go to rest in bed, but a headache won't go away. It ends with a call for a doctor since Haymitch and Peeta are worried. The doctor comes, and she researches for any flaws in my systems. "I just do not want to pass anything over to Peeta or Haymitch. Someone must do the work, and if we are all ill, we cannot help Jake." I tell her. She smiles at me and says it is going to be alright. She just needs to find the reason I feel sick. She takes some samples and tells me to wait in bed until she analyzed the tests. Peeta comes when the doctor is gone. He smiles and tells me Jake is doing fine. He has teamed up with the girl from district five. When the doctor returns he says he should go to help Haymitch. But Dr. Sullivan tells him to stay. "I think this has an impact on you both." She tells us. "Is it serious? Is, it contagious?" Peeta asks her and is very eager to know. She just laughs and says "I do not think pregnancy is very contagious, Mr. Mellark. And no, it is nothing serious. Some people get sick easily at the beginning of the pregnancy and Ms. Eve,green seems to be one of them." We look at each other. We have told Panem we do not want children yet all week. What a timing. "And through our advanced technology, we know it is not an ordinary pregnancy. You are waiting for twins, Ms. Everdeen." The doctor reveals. Even better. It happened this week, and they can already tell it is twins. At home, it would take several weeks. "Thank you for helping us, Dr. Sullivan," Peeta says and she just smiles and tells us it is alright. Before she leaves we beg her not to tell the media. She just smiles and says she will not. When we are alone we talk about what to do. "What are we going to do?" Peeta asks me. We cannot do anything than wait and hope Dr. Sullivan does not go to media in this second. "It is already done, and we cannot make it disappear. In nine months you are the father of two little children. I just hope Dr. Sullivan does not tell the media right now." I say. Inside I am freaked out, but at the outside, I am entirely calm. Peeta freaks out a bit, it was a shock to us both and he needs to melt what the doctor said as much as I do. But he also has other's reactions on his mind. "Your mother will kill me when she finds out. Not to mention what Gale will do when he finds out. He will torture me, drown me and then shoot me with an arrow." Peeta says. "You are probably right." I laugh at him and tell him to keep calm. "We won't tell media, we don't tell anyone until we get home," I say. We want our families to be the first to know. We only trust Haymitch with the news, since the old man is worried sick about me.
Jake survives for a few days more. He gets troubles after a while, and Peeta and Haymitch send him a backpack with some supplies. A knife, some food, and water. Simple first aid things. Three days later, on the 10th day, it is over. He and the girl from district 5 were trapped and killed by the career-pack. I did not watch it since I do not feel very well in the morning and I did not want to puke up all over Peeta or Haymitch. Peeta says he is happy I did not see it. It was not very pleasant to watch the second tribute we trainedto to die. I can only remember Molly and how she died. "Does that mean we can go home?" I ask Haymitch. He nods. "Yes, I think we could do that. We can excuse it by the wedding plans since you are getting married on the first of August." He says. It is only three weeks left. We get permission to leave earlier by the president himself. I just want to go home, and we sit on the train back that evening. When we wake up the next morning we will be at home. I cannot wait to see Prim and my mother. And Madge and Gale. But I am a little nervous about meeting Gale again, with that news. Peeta and I get to sleep early, and we wake up, just a few minutes from home. I am happy to be home again. We watch the updates from the games, one of the career tributes died when the boy from 5 and the girl from 11 attacked their camp. When we come home, Peeta and I walk to the bakery to tell his parents we are at home again. And of cause to tell them the news. We go to the café instead of their front door to surprise them. They will think it is their ordinary costumers. Mr. Mellark comes out from the bakery, with flour all over his clothes and his face. He smiles a big smile when he sees us. "Peeta, my boy. Are you home already?" He says and gives his son a big hug, and then he hugs me. "I have missed you too." He says. "I have missed you too, dad," Peeta says and hugs him once again. We go into the bakery, and his brothers are clearly happy to see their little brother again. They hug each other, and I even think I see tears in their eyes. "Hello, Katniss, nice to see you," Sky says. The sky is Peeta's youngest bigger brother, and he is the only one living with their parents. "Nice to see you too, Sky," I say, and he grins. "Have you behaved well, brother?" he asks Peeta. "Of cause, I have, Sky," Peeta says and hugs him once again. "Katniss, can you verify he was behaving well?" Sky asks me. "I can verify your little brother did not embarrass himself, and yes, he was very well-behaved all along." I laugh. Their relationship is cute. They love to joke around and annoy each other. "Even when your assistants caught you in your room?" Sky jokes. Oh crap, the whole nation knows what we did that morning. "Of cause, he was. It actually was my assistants who are not very well-behaved. They just walked in without knocking on the door." I defend Peeta, and we laugh. "We actually have something to tell you, guys," Peeta says. "Then tell us!" Skye says. "Katniss had to see the doctor in the capital" Peeta begins. "Are you sick, love?" Mr. Mellark asks me. I shake my head. "And Dr. Sullivan told us it is not contagious, and that she will be cured in nine months" Peeta continues. "In nine months. Why is that? Why not earlier?" Sky Wonders. "You obviously did not take the hint, Sky. Your little brother won't be here to help you bake bread. He will be home taking care of Katniss, and probably a little one as well." Peeta's older brother Uriah says to him. "Two," I say. Peeta's family just watch me. "He will take care of two little ones," I explain. Mr. Mellark laughs and congratulates us. He took it very well, and so did Peeta's mother when we told her. When we are about to leave, Sky comes to lock the door and say goodbye. He grins and says, "Goodbye, little brother." And then he looks at me. "And goodbye, Katniss, I hope he takes good care of you."
When we get home to our houses in the victor's village we see the ugly cat. It is Buttercup, my sister's cat. He hisses us "Welcome home" and then he runs away. His memories of me trying to drown him in a bucket are probably why he hisses at me when he sees me. "Wonder if my little duck is at home or still in school," I say as I knock on my own door since I did not bring any keys to the capital. My mother opens the door and when she sees us she jumps of joy. "Prim. Come and see who just came!" Prim comes running in the hallway and she screams "Katniss! Peeta! I have missed you so much." She hugs us, and we smile at her and tell her how much we missed them. "Mrs. Everdeen. I have to tell you I have done something you might not like very much." Peeta begins. I hold his hand and I try to calm him down as he speaks to his soon mother in law. "And I do not want you to be angry with Katniss since this is completely my fault." Peeta continues. "Just tell me what you have done, Peeta." My mother says and tells him. I just hope she won't be too angry. "I am marrying your daughter in three weeks, you know, and with marriage comes children. And we will have not one, but two in nine months" Peeta blushes and looks at his shoes. "PEETA MELLARK!" My mother shouts at him. She looks really scary. But then she starts to laugh. "Who am I trying to fool? I am just happy if my daughter is happy. You are both very young, but I can see you are very happy together and I know you will be good parents." She says and hugs him. "Mom, can I ask you something?" I say. "I know you do not like the thought of me and Peeta sleeping together, and I think we all knew the reason why, but it already happened. So, can Peeta sleep with me? I am pregnant anyway, and he can't make me more pregnant than I already am." She just laughs at me and tells me I can do as I like, that I always do whatever she says anyway.