Chapter 10

"That's good. You should go to bed now."

I've been training with Finnick for a couple of hours. Covered with sweat, I accept the water bottle Finnick hands me.

"Remember, when you're in the arena, look for an axe. That's your only chance. If you can't find it, then run away as soon as the game starts."

"And if there is one, go for it?"

"Depends."

"On what?"

"I'll leave that to your own judgement. Come on. You should probably rest. Good luck."

"Wait. Is this our last chance to see each other?" I ask, eliciting a laugh from Finnick.

"Oh, Hanny. I know you're gonna miss me."

I glare at him, but I know I'm going to miss him. His intelligent eyes, bronze hair, tan skin, contagious smile...

"Will you miss me?" I inquire, this time more seriously.

"Though I'll be seeing you everyday through the cameras, yes, I'll miss you. A lot."

With a sharp intake of the air, I hug him.

I inhale his sea like scent, trying to forget about the games tomorrow.

"I should probably go to my room. Bye."

"And may the odds be ever in your favor," he says playfully in that wierd Capitol accent.

"Is that the last thing you're going to say to me?"

"I love you. Even though we've met for only a few days."

My breath hitching, I say the words back.

...

Of course he meant it as friends. I'm lying on my bed, constantly sighing. Okay, enough of pining over him. Concentrate on the games.

I knock on Linden's door to ask him if it's likely to find an axe. When he doesn't answer, I open the door slightly. And I see him. But not just him. He's with someone else. A girl. Kissing. Eyes. Odd eyes. Rhine. Tribute.

Stumbling, I shut the door quickly, but it makes a loud noise in my shock.

"Johanna?"

"I'm... I'm sorry," I yell so he can hear me even with the door closed.

"Johanna, wait!"

He soon comes out of the room.

"I'm sorry you had to see that."

"So Marcie wasn't enough for you?"

"Marcie? Who's Marcie?" The poor girl asks.

"Johanna, please. It's nothing like that. She's not that kind of a girl. I think... I think I'm in love with her."

"Oh joy! So you're in love with a girl who'll be killing me soon."

"Johanna, I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry? You shouldn't be sorry. Because you do anything you want to do."

"Look, I know that you fancy me, but-"

"Fancy you? What? I don't like you that way. I don't like you, period. Do you think that's the reason I'm mad at you?"

"Look."

"You want me to die in the games. Me and Lucas."

"No. I want her to win, but I don't want you to die."

"Don't see the difference. Tell me, if her and I am fighting, would you want me to win?"

"Johanna-"

"Be honest, Linden."

He doesn't answer, so I know what his answer is.

"I knew that."

And before he can say anything, I stomp back into my room.

I don't need him to survive. I don't need anyone.

...

Ten.

It's a ruined city.

Nine.

I can see it.

Eight.

It's mine.

Seven.

Della glares at a sword.

Six.

Lucas stares at me.

Five.

I stare back.

Four.

Rhine looks tired.

Three.

Sebastian looks confident.

Two.

I can do this.

One.

I'm going to win.

Bong.

I run as fast as I can toward the axe. Mine. Mine. Mine.

If I don't get it first, I have no hope at all in this game. Finnick taught me a little about knife throwning, but it figured I'm not good at it.

No one attacks me yet, probably because they believed my little act. I reach forward and grab the weapon. I run away from the cornucopia as soon as I have it in my grip tightly. Adrenaline pumps through my veins as my feet continuously hit the ground. Constantly looking back, I find the boy from nine chasing me with a sword. Without thinking, I throw the axe, and it strikes the boy's skull. Blood everywhere. Trying my best not to faint, I retrieve my now bloodied weapon, and sprint out of the clearing.

There are ruined cottages everywhere. I look behind me at the cornucopia and realize no one's paying attention to me. But I still run until they're out of my sight. A few dead trees and buildings are all I can see. I find a decent shelter in a half-broken house that covers me pretty well. I go underneath the shade provided by a remaining part of the roof. Catching my breath, I look at my axe. It's covered with fresh blood. Crying out loud involuntarily, I wipe it with a dead leaf from the ground. I killed a boy. He was probably thirteen or so. He should've been climbing trees, goofing out wih his friends, reading books, singing songs, riding bicycles, not being killed by an axe throuh his head.

Okay, stop. Keep it together. This is Hunger Games. He would've died sooner or later. I did him a favor. The careers would kill him painfully. What I need to do is to survive. But still, these thoughts don't stop my tears from flowing.

Enough! I yell at myself mentally. I take deep breath, trying to concentrate on the games. Lucas. I need to find him. Right now. Is he all right? He couldn't be dead, right? As soon as the last thought hit my brain, a canon booms, representing a tribute's death. Another boom. And another. I keep counting until it stops. 14 death. Could Lucas be one of those? Or Rhine? I wonder what Linden will be like if she's dead.

The wierd thing about this arena is that the temperature is mild. It's very unlikely because it will be no fun to people. I guess I'll have to wait and see.

When I am full of energy again, I continue to walk away from the cornucopia. The ground is mostly covered with sand for where I am right now. After hours of walking, I realize that I'm thirsty. I look at the sky, wondering if any parachutes will come down, but no. No parachutes.

Then, I hear a shrill scream. The careers must be somewhere near. Panicking, I quietly fast walk away from the sound. The shrieking continues until it is replaced by a boom of canon. Controlling my breath, I walk as fast as I can without making any noise. The landscape is now mostly rocky instead of sandy, but I still can't seem to find any hint of water. Sighing, I slow down fromspeed walk to my ordinary pace.

Soon, the sun is out of the sight. I choose a three floor building that is barely damaged as my shelter. I slowly walk up the stairs, and stay on the third floor. There are a few old furnitures like a small sofa and a table. I push some tables and an empty bookshelf against the door to prevent any intruders from coming in. Though I do know that careers will still manage to come inside, I want to be able to hear them. Then, I'll break the window and jump out.

I look around the room, searching for anything useful. So far, I've found a 30m nylon rope, a shaving mirror, and some crackers. Thinking that the rope will help me with my emergency escape, I tie it around the curtain pole tightly, using the knots I've learned from a certain boy.

When I finally have nothing to do, I draw the curtain, preventing anyone outside from seeing me, and lie down on the sofa.

A beam of moonlight comes in from a big hole on the roof, bothering my sleep. But it's not just the light. Thirst, hunger, and fear are other major factors. I am very tempted to eat the crackers, but I firmly tell myself not to.

I want Lucas to be here with me. Is he alright? I fall asleep, waiting for the anthemn to sound so I will know for sure.

Well, Linden and Rhine... I'm assuming some of the chemical garden trilogy fans might have been able to guess. I hope Johanna can find Lucas fast. Oh wait, that depends on me. Yay!