Disclaimer: Not mine, not yours, only Suzanne Collins's. Enjoy and once again, thank you for reading & reviewing. I won't update as much as I used to because I'm busy with school, but enjoy this one hehe!
Chapter Seven - Erica
I held the horn by my ear and took a deep breath before I pushed the numbers that created Gale Hawthorne's number. The nervousness was consuming me, I was shaking when I heard the phone going over.
"Hello, you're speaking with Tizen Hawthorne, who's this?" the voice on the other line said.
"Hello, you're speaking with Erica, Erica Mellark. Is Gale Hawthorne there?" I replied nervously and tightened the grip as I was scared I was going to drop the phone.
"Did you just say Mellark?"he replied as she heard him smirk behind the horn.
"Yes, may I please talk to Gale Hawthorne?" she replied, still trying to be polite but the person on the other end annoyed her quite bad.
"Sure, miss Mellark. Father will love to hear it's you!"he said smirking.
"I'm sorry, he knows me?" I replied hesitantly.
How did he know me?
"You're related to the famous boy with the bread. His daughter maybe? Or even better, his wife! Why are you calling anyways? Who is your mother? I bet it's not the famous Katniss Everdeen, is it? Or are you his wife? If you are, ignore the question,"he replied, I noticed the cocky tone he was talking with, making me want to strangle him.
"She is, now please can you hand the phone over to your father?" I sneered back.
"A moment,"he replied, a bit less cocky. I waited and after a few minutes I heard his voice.
"Hello, Gale Hawthorne, who is this?"he said, his voice echoing in my ears. So that's how he sounded like. I took a deep breath and tried to speak, but my throat went dry. I sighed and tried again.
"Hello Mr. Hawthorne, you're speaking with Erica Mellark," she replied softly.
"Mellark?"he replied, just like his son said.
"Yes, yes, Mellark," she replied nervously.
"Pleasure speaking with you Mrs. Mellark, how are you and your husband doing?" Gale replied friendly.
Husband? Who the hell was my husband? Hell I was married, I was only fourteen, why would I marry someone? Was he drunk?
I laughed at his response but then all the puzzle pieces came together. He thought I was married to Father! He thought Father and Mother weren't together anymore.
"No, no, I'm not married. I'm Peeta Mellark's daughter," I replied softly. It felt weird saying Father's first name, I never used it.
"Oh, okay then, if I may ask, why are you calling?"he replied with a slight arrogant sneer in his voice, his son sounded just like him.
"I- I- I was wondering... were you and my Mother good friends?" I replied insecure.
"Who is your mother then? It's not Katniss is it?" he replied.
"Well... she is. And I found your letters to her. And I, I was wondering, were you and Mother good friends?" I replied, this time not trembling, luckily.
"I suggest you read all the letters first, when you do, call me again. I, I honestly thought your Mother and Father had separated,"he replied, his voice softer now.
"I'm sorry bothering you, sir. I- I will call another time then. Goodbye," I replied and threw the phone back in the holder.
I then ran up the stairs and opened another letter.
Catnip!
Congratulations on your 22th birthday. Well, well, who would've thought you'd become so old? No, I'm just kidding!
Why aren't you writing back? It's been two months? Is it because I've been busy? I apologize then, I've been busy with Delly, we're officially girlfriend and boyfriend. Who would've thought that? Me and Delly? No, no one really, but I'm very happy with. I'm just not quite in love with her yet, you could say thats a problem. I just, am, I still have feelings for you. Isn't it weird? I haven't seen you in seventeen years and still I have feelings for you.
It feels weird, confessing my love (again) to you, but this time through a letter. But don't worry about it Catnip, I'm not coming over and my feelings for you are getting less and less because of Delly. I love her, I'm just not IN love with her, yet, it's because you were the first one I fell in love with and you know what they say. You'll never forget your first love.
Please write back, you don't have to confess feelings or anything near that, I just needed to get it out, in order to forget you.
Sincerely, your friend, always,
Gale
My breathe stocked. Gale was in love with Mother! Who knows how long he was in love with her? Is that why Gale didn't want to talk to me? Confused I opened another letter.
Catnip!
Thank you so much for writing back, I didn't expect you would, honestly. You don't know how ecstatic I am. It always takes you a month or two, but I got a letter back, a letter back in two weeks! That must be a record!
Excuse my happiness! It's just that you hadn't written me back for five months. I thought you went back hating me but luckily you didn't!
Vick is now in TSC! I'm so proud of him. He deserves it, he trained hard for this! Not like careers or anything but he really was training very hard. I must be the luckiest brother ever.
Delly and I are already dating for three months. We celebrated it by going to District Four and have some dinner at sea and watch the sun go down, it was probably the most romantic thing I've ever done! Do you believe that? Gale Hawthorne, romantic. And not even to a girl he's in love with. (Don't worry about it, Catnip, I am starting to fall for her actually, she's a great girlfriend and I'm very happy to have ger. I'm a lucky man to find someone that loves me after everything.) But, please don't tell Peeta, I'm afraid he wouldn't understand and I have a feeling you do understand me.
How are you and Peeta? I hope both of you are doing great. I miss you, like I always do.
Sincerely, your friend, always,
Gale
He had been in love with Mother, he was back then still in love with Mother, Mother was his first love. Even when he and Delly were together. He was in love with Mother. He was betraying Delly, well not really, but he had in some way. Even if he loved her, I loved Lucio too, but I wasn't in love with him, so why would I date him if I wasn't in love with him? What was wrong with him?
I sighed and counted the letters I had read. Ten letters. I had read ten letters. In about a year Gale had written her ten letters, he was in love with her. I was shocked, he was in love with Mother. He had killed Mother's sister. He had left her when she needed him the most. And he was rude to me.
I was so confused, all these mixed up feelings. Was Gale in love with Delly now? Were they married like Father and Mother? Or had he realized he only could love Mother, if he even still loved Mother, and left Delly? I had to find out, I needed to read more letters, I was eager to open another one but I realized it was already late and Ophelia was coming over in an hour or so.
