I have to admit, it's extremely relaxing laying next to Adam in bed. We aren't doing anything, save for occasionally kissing or making out to distract ourselves from the anxiety, but it still just feels nice. He's very warm and has one arm wrapped around me loosely, which doesn't freak me out. I know I can get out easily should I need to. I'm trying to make my breathing seem even so it looks like I'm asleep, but I don't think it matters. I'm pretty sure Adam beat me to it.
"Hey, you up?" oh, I guess he's not asleep. I shift to my side so that I'm facing him.
"No, of course not. I'll be surprised if I sleep at all tonight," I notice he's crying. "What's wrong?" I wipe at his tears, not entirely sure what to do. I've never been good with crying.
"I'm going to die tomorrow," Adams states simply, his voice surprisingly steady. "I know I will, I'm sure they'll get me in the blood bath. Maybe I'll be the first to go. And 12… They may have stolen sponsors that could've been yours. Who wouldn't want to sponsor them? Gorgeous, clearly talented, and now unforgettable! I want you to win, to survive, to live. You deserve it, you need it. Please, try, try hard. For me, once I'm gone," he starts silently sobbing. I'm bewildered, not sure what to do.
"I will, I promise. Now, hush. I'll be fine, I'll win it for us," I refuse to lie to him, tell him he'll make it out. He's not particularly strong, can't use weapons, is completely clueless about survival, and he honestly just isn't very smart. Still, he's upset and with me, and I can only think of one way to calm him down. I kiss him lightly. He kisses me back, slowly stopping crying. When he's calmed down, we go back to being side by side on our backs, his arm around me. He quickly falls asleep, but I don't. I think about Peeta's proclamation of love. It seemed genuine on his part but on hers… I'm not so sure. She was blushing, but maybe not out of love. It'll be interesting to see whether or not they'll ally in the arena. Eventually I drift off to sleep, having nightmares about my aunt killing me in the arena.
"Oh, I didn't realize how hard this would be!" Fire is crying, hugging me. Apparently she's gotten attached. I hug her back.
"You were the best stylist I could've asked for. Thank you, so much. Hopefully I'll see you again in a few weeks," she nods and lets me go, dabbing at her eyes and nose with a tissue.
"It's just... What if you don't? I knew there was a possibility of my tributes dying when I took this job... But I didn't understnad the possibility of attachment..." She trails off as she brushes my hair. I sigh.
"Listen to me. I'm going to try my absolute hardest to win. I'm quiet, I'm smart, and I'm good at survival. I'll wait it out, then throw a knife at the last person standing. It'll be easy. Well, maybe not easy, but I'll be able to do it. Now, calm down. You'll see me in a few weeks," I attempt to reassure her. "And by the way, you're the best stylist I could've possibly asked for. You're amazing, and you've made plain old me look stunning. That's some feat. Thank you, so much," This starts Fire sobbing again, so that she can't answer. I give her a long, tight hug before I step back into the glass tube. As the glass sheet covers me, Fire waves and blows a kiss at me. I wave and smile, and it lifts me up.
I get to the top and the count down starts. The golden cornucopia stands in front of me, enormous, with all the good stuff at the mouth. I look around me. There's a field with grass taller than I am on one side, a forest on the other. Near the grass there's a decent sized lake. I have to stay away from it, I can't swim. 40, 39, 38… I have to think of a plan. I look around me. A few feet in front of me there's a small backpack. Beyond that, there's a larger pack with a knife right next to it. I'm a fast runner. I'll grab those and clear out. That's my plan. 15, 14, 13… I position myself, getting ready to run. I have to get there as quickly as possible. 5, 4, 3, 2 ,1 DING! The gong sounds and I take off. I grab both packs and the knife and quickly turn around, bee lining for the forest. A poorly thrown spear lands next to me, and I don't even look at it. When I reach the edge of the forest, I irrationally look behind me. I see Adam, holding a spear, looking around frantically. I try to catch his eye, wave for him to follow me. Just as he sees me and starts towards me, I see a sword go through him. He falls, and I see the wide-eyed male from 4 standing with the bloody sword. As he stands there in shock, Cato spears him and takes away his sword. I swallow hard and keep running, away from the bloodbath, away from the fights, away. I'm trying not to cry, trying not to think. Just running away as fast as I can.
When I finally feel I've gotten far enough away from the cornucopia, I sit down to rest. Panting, I open up the bigger pack. It has a sleeping bag, a decent pack of dried fruit, and a small canteen. I lift it and am surprised to find it's filled. I wouldn't have expected that, but I'm glad for it. I take a tiny sip, not wanting to use up too much. The bigger pack also has some iodine tablets, rope and dried beef. I look in the smaller pack. More iodine tablets, an empty water skin, crackers, and some strange glasses. Thinking they're sunglasses, I put them on. They make everything look blurry and strange, so I take them off. They must be for something else. I decide I'm not particularly hungry and stand up, determined to find water. I start walking in a slightly different direction than I had been heading, singing a song to myself as I go.
At nightfall, I decide to try and make camp. I attempt to climb a tree, but when I get high I get really dizzy again. Afraid I'll fall out, I make my way carefully back down. I walk a while farther and see a tree with enormous roots that jut out of the ground really high. They're high and wide enough for me to even sit up in. Grinning, I start trying to fill the cracks with leaves. It's here that my hair is a detriment. Being bright red, it's too easy for others to see it. Since it's getting cold out I quickly take it out of its ponytail, braid it, and put the hood of my jacket up. That'll keep it concealed for the night at least. I finally finish the camouflage and crawl in my little cave. Like a fox's den, I think to myself bitterly. Will I ever outgrow that nickname? I hear the anthem and peek out of my shelter. The screen is in the sky, showing us who died that day. I know there are 11 from the cannons earlier. The first is the girl from 3, then the boy from 4. Then Adam. At Adam, I start crying a bit, the tears blurring the screen. I stop in time to see the girl from 10, then the anthem stops and the screen goes to black. So 11 and 12 are all still alive. I crawl back into my den and curl up in my sleeping bag. It's starting to get really cold, I'm glad I went for the bigger pack as well. I toss and turn for a few hours, then finally drift into an anxious, restless sleep, seeing Adam's death over and over again.
A/N: I'm so sorry it's been so long since I updated! I had an insane week, I honestly just didn't have time. And it's not even that great a chapter :( I might redo it at some point, depending on how you guys take it. Don't be afraid to tell me it's not that good, I really want constructive criticism! Just let me know. I'll try to get some chapters up ASAP, I'll probably update a lot more right around Christmas, when I'll have nothing to do haha. Anyhow, I'm sorry, I hope this chapter isn't too much of a disappointment. Thank you, everyone who reads and super thank you to reviewers!