Hello my darling Gally shippers, come hither and read my filler chapter. I despise fillers, but this one has important stuff in it. You'll see...
Disclaimer: I don't own The Hunger Games; if I did, Gally wouldn't be a crackship, it would be a cannon.
"Please
I know that we're different
But we were one cell in the sea in the beginning
And what were made of,
Was all the same once
We're not that different after all"
A Fine Frenzy, The Minnow & the Trout
Chapter 10- Delly's Confession
Showering is something I used to take for granted. Not anymore. I can't use up too much hot water, and I need to leave enough shampoo for others. When my parents come back, the first thing I'm doing when I get home, is taking a long hot shower. My showers at the Hawthrones' have been short and lukewarm. If I want a hot shower, I have to wake up at 6:00 sharp and be in the bathroom by 6:05. While everyone is still asleep, my alarm goes off at six. I head straight into the bathroom, strip down, and turn the water as hot as it goes. Gale and I have group therapy 10-11:30 and then I have play practice from noon until Clove decides we've done enough. I sigh for a long time and let my breath intermingle with the steam rising from the water. I turn my head down and watch peach-scented bubbles go down the drain. Then I tip my head back and close my eyes. At least Peeta's coming back on Sunday. I shut the water off and grab my towel wrapping it over my chest. It barely comes above my knees. I run a comb through my hair and fend off gingivitis with my magic toothbrush. I blowout my hair, I haven't worn it straight in awhile. What the heck? I walk out into the hallway. Gale's door opens and he rubs his eyes.
"Morning." I say causally. He looks up and does a double-take.
"You're naked under that towel." He says.
"You're naked under your clothes." I say. Gale shrugs and I walk into my room. I find a pair of jeans, once skinny. I tuck an over-sized shirt into it hoping that it helps fill out where my waist used to. It's not that I want to get rid of my clothes, I just don't want to spend a ton of money on clothes that might not fit after my next workout. I slip a belt through my pants so they don't fall down. Gale's making coffee in the kitchen when I enter.
"You want any?" He asks. I shrug.
"Sure." I say. He adds an extra scoop of coffee to the filter. "Wait, pour the creamer into the bottom of the pot instead of mixing it in later." I say. Gale looks at me strangely, but obeys. When it's finished brewing and he takes a sip.
"Wow." He says. "Where'd you pick the trick up?"
"Peeta." I say. "We took cooking classes together and I learned a lot of little quirks from him."
"Cool." Gale says. He glances at the clock. "We have to go."
"Already?" I ask setting down my mug. He nods gulping the rest of his coffee. I walk to the door and Gale stops me. We're in the exact spot we were yesterday.
"I believe this is where we left off." He says quietly. I look down awkwardly. Gale tilts my chin up again. "No, this is where we were yesterday." I blink at him.
"Yeah." I say stupidly.
"You have really pretty eyes." Gale says.
"Thanks." I say numbly. He wraps one arm around my waist, then the other. He presses into me again. Why am I so Goddamn short compared to him? I'm basically looking straight up just to see his eyes. My spine hits the wall but Gale still moves forward, closing off the almost-non-existent space that separated us. He's just using you. I tell myself. He admitted it. You're nothing more than a sex doll. But part of me wants it to be real. Gale's hand touches the small of my back and I involuntarily lean into him. Taking the opportunity , Gale slides his hands into the back pockets of my jeans. Then just as quickly, pulls them out. Gale dangles the keys to the truck in front of my face.
"I'm driving." He says with a smirk. I blink, still trying to process what just happened. "Didn't think I go to such lengths to pull the keys out of your back pocket, did you Cartwright?"
"You're such a player." I grumble. "Don't make me convince Madge you're no good."
"That's fair game." Gale says. "But I'm still driving." He takes my hand and leads me out to the truck slamming the door after I hop in. He gets in and starts driving. Gale grips the steering wheel tightly and his eyes lock on the road. Even when he's just driving, the man looks gorgeous. I play around with the radio until Gale grabs my hand stopping me. He adjusts until coming across a station playing The Lumineers.
"What happened to The Black Keys?" I ask.
"They're good." Gale says. "But I mostly prefer slightly country-rock groups. Lumineers, Mumford and Sons, Civil Wars."
"Cool." I say. Gale pulls into the community center and we head to room 223. Everyone else is there. Gale goes and talks to Chaff and Haymitch. Johanna motions me over towards her and Seneca.
"Hey there Delilah." She says. "Has Lt. Hottie-Thorne tapped that yet?" She points my butt.
"He's a sergeant." I say. Seneca raises an eyebrow. "Well, he kind of did this morning." I explain the situation to them. I feel like I can trust Johanna, there's a raw goodness to her. She's blunt, but has personality.
"So you're his dildo now?" Johanna asks.
"I guess so." I say.
"What does he see in Madge though?" Seneca asks. Johanna and I are both shocked to hear him actually speaking.
"She's pretty." I say.
"So are rainbows." Johanna sneers.
"Madge seems like she cares." I say.
"But she acts superior." Johanna says. "She's not trying, but she's too fluffy. Her life is easy. Madge doesn't know shit about hardships." The blonde goddess enters the room dressed like teacher Barbie, complete with a cotton-candy pink button up, a khaki pencil skirt, nude heels, hair pulled back, and "I'm smart and pretty" glasses. She sits and the rest of us do the same, like some silent game of Simon Says. Gale sits next to me again. Madge looks down at her clipboard. She writes something down and then holds it up for us to see.
" 'FAMILY'. " Madge says. "It means something different to all of us, but what does it mean to you?" I think about it. "Would anyone like to start?"
"Both of my parents died when I was twelve. That's when I cut my hair." Johanna says. "I got this the night it happened." She rolls up her sleeve and shows us a tattoo of a tree. "My dad was a lumberjack and The Giving Tree was his favorite book to read to me. My aunt raised me and after I graduated high school she moved to Vegas. I went to a technical college for awhile. That's when I started smoking and giving out one night stands like candy on Halloween. I've just been drifting around I guess. But that's where it started. There's no one left I love."
"I had a regular family." Chaff says. "My life was normal, that's what made me enlist. I wanted to do something special, something different. Now I just push my family away."
"Same here. Single mom, three younger brothers. They think I messed up and they're scared of me." Haymitch says. "After my girl left me, I figured that I did something wrong. So I started drinking to drown my sorrows. How 'bout you Pretty Boy?" He asks Gale.
"Gale?" Madge asks. He says nothing. Just stares into space. "Please, you're the only one-"
"I know that I'm not really addicted to anything like you guys are, but I can still relate." I interrupt. Gale looks at me. "My dad took my younger brother and left my mom and me when I was twelve. He never really paid attention to me anyways... My mom remarried and I got the best step brother in the world. He's getting married in August and I couldn't be more happy for him. My dad never does anything to stay in contact with us. He's got a twenty-something year old wife now, he's replaced us."
"How do you know if he doesn't keep in contact?" Haymitch asks. I look down.
"There's this thing..." I mumble.
"What happens here stays in here." Madge says.
"Tell us." Johanna says.
"My dad sends money." I say. They're all staring at me. "Like, lots of money. I was in my mom's room once and I found a check on her dresser."
"How much?" Gale asks.
"Ten thousand dollars." I say. Johanna whistles. "He sends a check every three months. Four times a year. It keeps us comfortable, I mean, my dad's bakery makes enough for us to live. But my phone, laptop, stuff like that... I don't know if I'd have it without him."
"At least you know he cares." Madge says. I scoff.
"Not really, he's doing it out of pity. Like he can just throw money at his problems and they'll go away. I almost wish he wouldn't send the money. I'd take a letter in the mail or a conversation with him over it any day." I say. "I asked my mom if I could ever talk to him and she bought me an iPhone. I guess it was her way of saying that was the closest I would ever come to talking to him. I love my step dad and brother, but I still wonder." Gale stares at me. Madge adjusts her glasses. "I don know if being raised without a dad effected me, but-"
"I grew up without my dad too." Gale cuts me off. "He was killed by a drunk driver- how pathetically ironic. My mom was a real working class hero. Still is. I joined the army because I knew I couldn't go to college. We weren't rich enough and I'm not smart enough for a scholarship. My mom has trouble knowing how to deal with me; the depression, drinking, crying at night. No one really gets me, not without me telling them what happened." He pauses. "Except her." My eyes go wide as Gale's gaze falls on me.
"What do you mean by that?" Madge says scribbling notes.
"Like last night, Delly was out with friends and came back early so I wouldn't be alone." Gale says. "Then she checked the wine in the fridge to see how much I had, then the trash for any cigarettes. No one else does anything like that."
"So do you feel different about Delly, now that you see she really does care?" Madge asks. I hate how they're talking about me like I'm not here.
"Yeah." Gale says. I look up at him. "I do."
"That's nice." Johanna says. "I wish I had my own Delly."
"I think we can close early today." Madge says. "We'll return to this next week."
"The green eyed monster has latched itself onto Madge." Johanna whispers to Haymitch. He scoffs and gets up to leave.
"Good-bye Delilah." He says to me. "I hope your journey, is... Interesting."
"Let me know when you put a label on it." Johanna says. Gale walks over.
"Should we go now?" He asks.
"Yeah." I say.
"Gale?" Madge says stopping us. "Since you're going through so much, I think you might need personal help." She hands him a slip of paper. "This is my number. Feel free to call if you need anything."
"Thanks Madge." Gale says. We walk out of the room.
"Day-mn." I say in a low tone. "She gave you her number."
"Don't you have play practice?" He asks.
"Smooth topic change. And yes, I do." I say.