GUYS OH MY GOD I'M SO SORRY I KNOW - YOU ALL HATE ME. I HAVEN'T UPLOADED IN SOSOSOSO LONG AND I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND. Buuttttt here's Chapter 13 now and I hope you guys like it. Now I'm going to give you my feeble excuses as to why I couldn't update...

Well firstly I've been away almost constantly...And secondly during the few days that I have been back I haven't been able to write due to writers block and stupid things like that. I finally decided to buckle down and write this today and it somewhat killed me inside. You'll see my friends.

I'm going away for two weeks again (leaving tomorrow) but I promise I will try to write more when I get back.

So sorry for the delay and I hope you'll all forgive me.

(Don't forget to R and R!)

Chapter 13

CLOVE

Days go by where Cato and I have barely enough time to say a word to one another, let alone talk to each other about what's going to happen. The last morning of training finishes in a blur and Cato and I put down our bows and arrows. We walk with the other tributes to lunch where we're called down for our sessions with the Gamemakers one by one. I go fourth, and Cato third as we're District 2.

Soon Cato is called and I don't need to wish him luck as he exits, as we both know that he'll do well. He gives me a forced smile that contrasts greatly with the emotions I see swimming in his eyes. I push my curiosity to the back of my mind for now though, as I can only think about getting a good score so that I can get sponsors.

"Clove Williams," Is called and I walk forward – ready to impress the Gamemakers. I enter the gymnasium and I look towards the judges; making sure to capture all their eyes in what they expect to be a spectacular performance after what they must have just witnessed with Cato. Well I won't let them down, I think to myself as I head towards the knives.

Some time later I enter back into our flat on the second floor and since we still have quite some time before dinner (the scores are announced afterwards), I look for Cato. I quickly find him sitting on the couch leisurely, obviously happy about his recent performance. But as he notices me approaching he visibly stiffens. I see thoughts flying through his mind as his fists clench and his lips turn downwards in a frown. His brows furrow as if they're in pain, and I look into his eyes where I notice that they're lacking their usual gleam. I give him a worried look.

"Cato – " I start, but am interrupted by him.

"Clove can we talk?" He starts, glancing around the room. "Somewhere…private?"

I nod, understanding him to mean 'where we can't be overheard by prying cameras', and I lead him towards the stairs, intending to take him to the roof of the Centre.

We enter the roof to a gentle breeze that makes my hair blow away from my face, and we walk over to the garden where we won't be overheard. I sit on a bench before looking up at him expectantly.

"Well?" I ask, desperate to know what could possibly be hurting him, knowing that it can't be his performance before the Gamemakers as it was clearly just as good as mine; if not better.

He gives me a pained look before answering.

"Clove look. I - " He pauses. "I don't think that we should 'publicize' whatever it is that we have for the world to see…" He stops again as if in search of words.

"I really care about you Clover, and I don't want that to make us easy targets for the rest of the tributes and the capitol." His eyes search mine for emotions but I keep my face blank.

"They'll tear us apart Clove, you have to understand that. If anyone finds out what we have – what I feel for you then we'll look weak; the capitol will try to break us apart in any means possible. I – I'm sorry."

He casts his eyes downwards and refuses to meet my gaze. It may be my imagination but for a second I see a shiny glint on his face that looks similar to a tear. I ignore it though, as Cato doesn't cry. Not the big strong Cato that I grew up with who constantly beat me in training. Finally, I find the strength inside of me to reply. I keep my jaw clenched and eyes hard so as to not let my inner feelings show – which currently include an ear piercing scream and knives being thrown at every single person in the vicinity.

"Fine." I struggle to keep my face impassive while tears threaten my eyelids from saying that one word. I take a deep breath and continue, knowing that we have separate fates and one or both of us could die in the next few days.

"I understand. There's only one victor and we can't get close to one another. Everything we had before the Games is in the past and we can only look into our separate futures." Try as I might to avoid it, my voice weakens at the end and water fills my eyes. Cato tilts his head up to look at me and our eyes connect in a swirl of emotions. Before either of us can stop ourselves, our faces inch together and our lips lock in a passionate but brief kiss. The tears threaten to overflow as I pull away.

"Goodbye Cato." I say, before rushing downstairs and locking myself in my room so that no one will see how his words affected me. A single tear slips down my cheek and I quickly grab a hold of my knives, letting one after another hurtle into the wall across from me. I pretend it's the other tributes, the Capitol, President Snow and finally Cato – my sadness transforming into rage at everyone that caused this; allowing me to handle it in the only way that I know how.

Finally, once the wall is covered in knife holes, I sink onto my bed and let sleep engulf me, tiredness finally taking over my body.

I wake to pounding at my door as Enobaria calls me for dinner. I slowly get up and refuse to think about the past few hours. I think only of what is ahead; the scores. I chance a glance in the mirror and see that my hair is a mess and my shirt has pieces of dry wall all over it that must have fallen off of the knives. I quickly change into a tight black shirt and I brush my hair and pull it back into a ponytail. I splash my face with water to get my senses straight before opening the door and walking into the dining room.

Cato and I sit in stony silence as we eat our meals, neither of us bothering to enlighten our mentors on how we did in our sessions with the Gamemakers. We finish our dinner and go to the sitting room to view our scores, and the TV flickers to life showing a picture of the 'Marvel' boy from District 1 before flashing the number 9. He and 'Glimmer' – I shudder – will be two of our allies so we pay close attention to their scores. Glimmer scores an 8 and I wonder what on earth the blonde brat could have done to score that without breaking a nail.

Suddenly it's Cato's face on the screen and the number 10 flashes before us. Brutus slaps him on the back and I subconsciously grin, before remembering the moment's that occurred mere hours before. My grin falls and I watch on as my face appears on the screen. A 10 flashes after my name as well, and our mentors and stylists congratulate me. Cato even mumbles a 'good job' before turning his head back to the TV.

The rest of the tribute's faces and scores pass by, a few standing out in our minds. Our other allies, the tributes from District 4 score a 7 and an 8 (the boy scoring lower), and the District 11 boy scores a 10, meaning that we should watch out for him and take him out early on in the Games. Then the small girl from District 11 scores a 7 and I see Cato twitch slightly out of the corner of my eye. She must remind him of his sister, I think, and I feel his pain as I realize that he must be thinking that there's a chance he might not ever see her again.

Finally the girl from District 12 pops up and I expect her to score a 7 tops, as she can't possibly have done that well; being from District 12. When a silver 11 flashes onto the screen, my whole body tenses and I growl subconsciously. How on earth could she have done better than Cato and I? A District 12 tribute beating out District 2 tributes? Unheard of. I put her on my list to take down at the beginning and I storm into my room, my mood having not improved slightly from the incidents earlier on today.

I organize the things that are making me mad into a list in my mind, and I number them off so that I can focus on one at a time.

1. Cato is in the Hunger Games with me.

2. We can't be together as at least one of us is going to die.

3. I will never see Cato again after the Games (either by dying or him dying).

4. I don't want to go back to District 2 without Cato. Nothing will be left for me there without him.

5. Some stupid District 12 did better than me.

6. Cato isn't even letting us enjoy each other in the last few days we have together.

7. HE KISSED ME.

8. WHY WOULD HE DO THAT AFTER TELLING ME WE CAN'T BE TOGETHER?

9. I love the feeling of his lips on mine.

10. WHY CAN'T I GET CATO OUT OF MY HEAD!

My mind flashes images of us in the Training Centre at home where we first kissed, and then the forest during our picnic, and me lying in bed with him and staying at his house for all those weeks, before replaying all of our happy moments. Thereby torturing me.

I let out a loud scream and bury my face in my pillow. I fiercely tell myself that Cato and I can't ever be together and that those moments were the past and I have to let go of them if I want to live through these Games. That's the problem though, I realize. I don't know if I want to live through them or not if Cato's not there to accompany me.

I hope you all liked this chapter! Sorry if it made you as sad as it made me - but I had to write it like this. I'm trying to tell the Hunger Games from their point of views, and I want it to be like the book... I'm not giving anything else away though! You'll see what happens *mwahaha* Please please please review and tell me what you think as it REALLY helps me write the next chapters.

Thanks to all of you that have stuck with me and put up with my lack of updates.

Love you all! xoxo