(Katniss' perspective)
Chapter 8 – The End of everything
I've just had a phone call today… It's a phone call I never expected to get…
Peeta left late last night he refused to stay any longer. I enjoyed yesterday seeing as though I just married my life away, I've never felt closer to Peeta more than I did yesterday and I liked it. At least I'm marrying someone I like. Waking up in my own bed day after day makes me smile; it still hasn't sunk in that I'm home. I head to the bathroom and get myself ready for the day. Water washing over my face is so refreshing. I wonder what the boys are doing. I head downstairs and no one is there, I look in the kitchen and mother is on the phone, Prim must be tending to her goat. Shock is on her face. We never get phone calls.
"And you're sure it's him?"
What is she on about?"
"Right we will be over right away, Katniss is here, would you like to speak to her? Okay here she is"
"Hello?"
"Hello Miss Everdeen, we have some bad news"
"Bad news?"
"I'm afraid your fiancée Mr Mallark has been seriously injured. He's been asking for you.
"Injured!"
"You must stay calm Miss Everdeen, he is fine but is in a critical way, we need you to come down to the hospital"
"I'm on my way"
Injured what does he mean injured? There is no way he is injured he was with me all yesterday. What about the walk home! Was he injured then?
The journey to the Capitol sent me into a horrid dizzy spell and I feel sick. Mother is sat next to me and I can see she is as worried as I am.
"He will be fine won't he?"
"Course he will Katniss"
This response still doesn't rest my mind, my head is everywhere and I can't seem to get to grips about what has happened. How is this even possible? Was it his mother? Please god no not his mother. Things just don't seem to add up, who would want to hurt Peeta? The boy who just proposed to the girl on fire. The star crossed lovers who won the Hunger Games. Nothing is going right. We reach the hospital one hour after we had the phone call, I drive through the big glass doors that are lit up with bright red and green lights and I have to admit it looks pretty but that's not what I'm here for. I head to the front desk desperate to find where he is.
"Peeta Mellark where is he?"
"Ah, Katniss Everdeen I've always wanted to meet you"
"Lovely, nice to meet you, now where's Peeta?"
"He's just down the corridor in the VIP section"
She seems so pleased that he was here and they were 'treating' him right
"He shouldn't be here to use the VIP room"
"Yes, sorry miss"
I head towards the room where he is supposed to be there is another nurse's desk.
"Peeta Mellark"
"Katniss Ever-"
"Where is he?"
"Bed 1 down the corridor and on the right, the first room, you should be able to see him"
"Thanks"
There are too corridors in this place. What is the need? I'm scared to see what Peeta looks like. I stop dead near the door and mother nearly knocks into me.
"What's wrong Katniss?"
She comes round to the front of me and looks me in the eyes.
"Katniss you can do this, do it for Peeta you know he loves you"
Loves me? Okay whatever… 'you know he loves you' this keeps playing round and round in my head. Mother is shaking me and I come back from my daydream.
"Katniss?"
"Okay okay"
I look in the window beside his bed and I see him staring into space, my eyes begin to fill but I take a deep breath and hold it in, I have to be the strong one. I open the door and it squeaks Peeta head turns slowly.
"…Katniss…"
He coughs and I walk to his bedside.
"Hey, don't strain yourself. What happened to you?"
His eyes open wide and it's like someone has just stabbed him. I panic I don't know what to do. He must be remembering what happened and guilt hits me, he is feeling like this because of what I just said, Idiot.
"Sorry"
"Its fine Katniss"
The doctor walks in breaking the awkwardness between us and it relives me.
"You're looking rather pale Peeta, Katniss can I speak to you outside for just a moment?"
The doctor takes me out of the room and he looks serious. I'm scared.
"Katniss Peeta could leave us at any moment; I think its best you stay with him because he is unpredictable with the state he is in. He might not make it to the wedding."
"Not make it to the wedding?! Doctor you have to cure him!"
"Katniss it's not possible, he was badly hurt"
I head back to the room and I look at Peeta he doesn't seem the same person anymore, he's weaker not the man I remember kissing, not the man I remember winning the games with. He's a totally different person now and I regret ever taking advantage of him.
The next couple of days were boring and Peeta just slept, he's so handsome when he sleeps. I hope and pray every morning for him to last just one more day I know it's selfish but I need him. Mother visits me with food even though the Capitol feeds me regularly but I love the thought. Every time a nurse walks in I hope it's Gale but he hasn't been since I found out. It's like he doesn't care. Has he even been told? I head to the hospital phone just a few doors away from Peeta's room, I need to call Gale and tell him about what has happened. I dial his number and wait for him to answer, after a couple of minutes of it ringing I put the phone down. He always answers. What's going on? I hate this it's difficult for us all and we all have a breaking point.
I head back to the room and Peeta is moving in his sleep, not again. I shake him as gently as I can but he isn't waking up like last time. Why isn't he waking up? I run to the nurse's desk.
"Peeta Mellark! He won't wake up. He's not moving."
The nurse's jump from their seats and runs into his room, I head after them they won't let me in the room but I manage to push myself past the other nurses who aren't qualified to help save Peeta. I see them doing CPR on him and my heart officially breaks, I see Peeta move and I lean close to him, he coughs and breath in hopeful it was just a nightmare, he whispers into my ear.
"I love you Katniss"
"I love you too"
"It was him who did this"
"Who? Peeta who?!"
The machines start to go nuts and the nurses and doctors panic. My heart is in my mouth and I'm on the verge of tears, who did it? Who was 'he'? If only I could ask him. One machine is left on and it's the machine that helps him breath. The nurse reaches over and turns it off, I look at the heart rate monitor and it makes a slow patterned noise
*Beep* *Beep*…..*Beep* ….*Beep*…Beeeeeeeeep*.
The green line flattens and I know that this can't be it. I look at the doctor responsible for looking after Peeta.
"Time of death 12:00am"
End
