Here is the chapter. Hope you like it
Ch. 14
The arena is so quiet at night. Almost too quiet. Every step I make seems to echo through the trees. I don't hear any other sounds except for the occasional gust of wind.
Even with the wind the air in the arena is warm and wet. I feel as I do the first day I got here. Sweaty and no way to wash off. I remember what Farrah told me before the launch about the weather probably being warm which seems laughable now. This weather is unbearable. I'm done an entire bottle by the time I get to the opening to the cornucopia. I wonder if anyone else is here.
The big metal cornucopia in the centre. It looks different in the light of the moon, more ominous and creepy. I bet the careers were staying here, nothing is left scattered around it. The small body of water is still there. I'm tempted to fill my water but decide against it. I still have another one and I doubt I'll use my second. I have a feeling that this is going to be it. The game makers seem to want this over with for some reason.
I make myself comfortable just alone the tree line out of sight. There are still a couple hours until dawn.
As the sun rises I prepare myself. I put my back pack in a bush. If I survive this and it's not over I'll need it. But I don't need it right now. With trident in hand and knives in my pockets I'm ready. I remove the night vision glasses and get ready for what could be my very last day.
"I love you mom." I under my breath to no one.
Just as the sun peaks over the horizon the ground in front of the cornucopia opens up and a table rises out of the ground. It's covered in food. All types of food. It looks like Capitol food but I see some things from my district too and others that I don't recognize. My district bread is there. Before I can move someone else bolts out of the trees on the other side of the table. She's quick I almost can't tell who it is so I get ready to throw. When she reaches the table my trident drops down beside my arm.
"Gemma." Her name escapes my lips before I can stop them. Thankfully not loud enough for anyone to hear.
I watch her open her pack and stuff as much food in as she can. But I also notice that she is prepared for anyone to come up with her knife in her other hand. Unfortunately it can't help her as as spear impales her lower back.
Her knees give out from under her and she curls up, but is still breathing. I couldn't quite see where it came from but it was somewhere behind her. I don't need to think for long because Atara comes charging towards her small body, probably to finish her off and retrieve her spear before someone else comes. Then I realize I'm the only other person here. Before I can even think my legs take me as fast as they can towards the district 2 girl.
I was closer to the table so I get to Gemma first but I don't stop. I run straight for Atara and tackle her to the ground. She is just as big as I am and maybe even stronger so before I can end her life she knocks the trident out of my hand about 5 feet away just out of reach. Her muscular body pushes me over so that she is on top of me and starts to throw punches. I jerk my head to the side just in time to dodge her first punch which seemed to have a lot of power behind it. I can see her wince as she hits the ground beside me. I remember the first day I saw her on tv at the reapings. Her dark shoulder length hair and brown eyes. When she smiled at the camera it seemed as though it was meant for me. Which doesn't make sense because she hasn't seen me yet but there is something in her eye that terrifies me and makes me believe that this could be my last day.
"I'm gonna mess up that pretty little face of yours golden boy." And with that she punches me right in the jaw also hitting my nose. I try not to scream but a sound does escape my mouth. Pretty sure my jaw is broken or at the very least incredibly bruised. Blood floods out of my nose and I can taste it in the back of my throat. That's probably broken too.
She smiles that menacing smile at my pain. She enjoys this. That's disgusting. A person like her does not deserve to win these. I use all of my body strength, which is noticeably less than before these games started, to throw her off me. She is unprepared and flies to the side hitting the ground. I quickly roll over and grab the trident and with out getting up I thrust it into her chest as she lunges at me.
An eery sound escapes her lips along with some of her own blood and the life leaves her eyes. Cannon.
I support her weight as she leans against the trident and then push her to the side leaving it buried in her chest.
I lay there for a moment but only a moment before I realize only one cannon went off. But there were two girls here.
"Gemma," I yell as I run as fast as I can to her side. She is laying on her side with the spear sticking out if her back. She is breathing but only slightly. Tears full my eyes and I can't stop them from rolling down my cheeks. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. You don't deserve this." I tell her.
She just looks up at me and smiles the most beautiful smile I've seen. She really is beautiful. I can't help but give a sad smile back.
"I didn't want it to come down to just the two of us. But I'm glad that I have you by my side. Hold my hand? I'm cold." With that simple request I hold her hand as she struggles to breathe. "Can you tell me about the ocean again? It... Sounds... So beautiful. Like a song."
I look into her eyes and she looks into mine. Calming my soul. Telling me it's ok. That it is going to be ok. But this isn't ok. She doesn't deserve to die like this. At the hands of the Capitol. With a spear in her back. It's unfair. The Capitol will have to pay for this someday. But I don't tell her this because it is not what she asked for. Still looking in her eyes I describe the ocean some more. She stares deep into my eyes. As if she can see the ocean inside of me. But her eyes, those eye that I will never forget, the eyes that bring light to the world start to loose theirs. As her eyes close and her breathing stops the cannon goes off. Right as it does I lean down to her ear and whisper "goodbye" and give her a small kiss on her cheek. I keep holding her hand for a few moments but then let go and walk away tears still in my eyes.
Trumpets go off and Claudius is back. "Ladies and gentlemen, I present the victor of the 65th hunger games, from district 4, Finnick Odair!" And the sounds from the Capitol are broadcast live through the arena. I just stand there. Not sure what to do. All I know is as sad as I am I am also happy. I get to go home and see my mother. Oh how I miss her so much. I've never gone this long without seeing her.
A moment later a hovercraft flies over me and a ladder, identical to the one on the first day, drops down and as the other freezes me when I grab it. I am pulled into the hover craft and immediately I am stuck with a needle and the world disappears.
All I see is darkness. But I can smell something. It's so familiar, it's salty, and I can hear rushing water crashing against the rocks. The rocking of a boat under my feet. A boat! The ocean. My eyes immediately fly open and the light of the sun over takes me.
Then reality sets in. What I thought to be a sun is actually a light shingling down on my face. I'm lying in a hospital bed in a solid white room that doesn't appear to have any doors or windows. I look around and see a small table beside me and tubes running into my arms. I look down at myself in just a plain pair of white pants. My chest is exposed and I can see what the games have done to me. I have bruises on my abdomen from where Atara sat on me and I can almost feel her knees digging into my sides. My ribs are protruding significantly. I've never been very wide but I've never looked like this. I look like I'm from an outlying district. I reach my arm that isn't attached to tubing and feel my jaw. The moment my fingers make connect I wince. Very bruised. I hear a sound and look at the wall that now has an opening in it. An avox walks in with some food. A small bowl of soup and some district 4 bread with a glass if water to drink. It's not much but I'm not that hungry anyways. I dip the salty bread in the soup which is almost sweet. It's a weird reddish colour, and it's only broth, no other ingredients. But it compliments the saltiness of the bread nicely. I down the water, salt makes me thirsty. I thank the avox and he takes the tray and exits through the wall which then closes. I turn my head to see some liquid pouring through the tube into my arm and then the world disappears again.
This happens a few more times. I wake up to eat and then knocked back out, but each time I wake up I notice the bruises disappearing and my ribs become less an less apparent. My jaw no longer hurts and the meals get bigger. The only person I've seen since I left the arena is the avox. I can't ask him anything because he can answer. I wonder what he did. That's all I can do, wonder about what's happening, how much time has gone by, what my mother is doing, and what happened to Aerona in the arena and where she and Gemma are right now. What happens after you die? I don't like being alone this much, my thoughts are becoming scary things to think about. I try to think of my mother and of home but can't stay on it. Then the only thought that can distract me from myself is a memory. A memory of Gemma talking about her life and her neighbour and her younger brother and sister. The way she smiled.
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