Author's Note: Hello, everyone! How are we all doing this evening? I'm stressing out so much now that spring break is over and my school work is piling up again. I'm really happy that I have my stories though and my fellow fans who support them. Thank you all so much :)


All of us have pieces of cake and depart to the sitting room to catch a repeat broadcast of the opening ceremonies. I sit in between Haymitch and Katniss. It's a surreal feeling to watch yourself living out something, as opposed to actually experiencing it on a first hand account. I can pinpoint back to the nerve wracking anxiety of being put out for display, but once I watch the play back, I see nothing but confidence displayed on my face. Katniss and I present ourselves as a strong front. We're united and poised to go up against anything that the Capitol happens to throw our way.

"Whose idea was the hand holding?" Haymitch asks.

"Cinna's," Portia reports.

"Just the perfect touch of rebellion."

Rebellion? The thought stirs something inside of me, and I'm intrigued at the idea of defying the Capitol.

"Tomorrow morning is the first training session. Meet me for breakfast and I'll tell you exactly how to play it," Haymitch announces to both Katniss and myself without looking at us. "Now go get some sleep while the grown ups talk."

I scoff, feeling insulted. Apparently being eighteen and a part of this ridiculous tirade means nothing.

Katniss begins to stand up, but I don't budge. Instead, I glower at Haymitch and say, "If you're going to talk about us, I think we have a right to stay and listen."

Haymitch grunts. "Remind me, who's the mentor here?"

I grit my teeth. "You are."

"Right. I'm going to discuss what attributes we can play out for your interview. When we decide on something, I'll inform you when the time is right. Now, don't make me tell you again. Go to sleep. I don't want to have to drag you out of bed tomorrrow."

"Fine," I growl before getting up.

Katniss and I walk down the corridor to our rooms.

"You remembered the girl, too," Katniss remarks once we're alone in the hallway.

"Yeah," I confirm. "I remember."

"We should have saved her."

"I know, but we couldn't have. We would've exposed ourselves. We would've ended up the same way."

Katniss doesn't contradict me because she knows I'm right. We couldn't have afforded to take strangers into our homes. And if anyone found out, the Capitol would make sure our punishment was some excruciating death. I suppose this was like some deranged form of karma since we were enforced to undergo the Games. It all seemed a bit suspicious, but I'm sure I'm being paranoid. Nothing more than a coincidence...

"I was thinking about how that could've been us if... If we had left."

I hadn't considered that. What would it have been like if the roles had been reversed and we were the ones begging for help?

"We can't think about the past. We can't change anything besides the future now." I say in a cold voice, balling my hands into fists and stuffing them inside of my pockets.

I don't know what's angered me so suddenly. The fact that we can't fix our selfish mistake or that I have no idea how to cope with the unknown?

"How do you plan on changing the future then?" Katniss ventures, staring at me with uncertainty.

"I'm not sure yet,"

"Let me know when you figure something out."

I crack a grin. "I will," I swoop my head down a bit for a mock bow. "Goodnight, Katniss."

"Goodnight, Gale."

I won't admit this, but I fear of what will happen in the training session. The Games may not have officially begun, but training is where we make impressions with the other tributes. How can I upstage them?

...