For the record, I don't curse in real life but sometimes I do in my stories because I feel like it is something that some of the characters would do.
Katniss POV
Peeta and I show up on time and set next to each other. It's math class, a class that I am really good in, so I don't pay attention. Instead I massage my forehead. The class goes by quickly. So do my third period and fourth period classes. After fourth period Peeta walks me back to my locker. Along the way a girl trips me. It's the same girl from this morning. I quickly stand up and am ready to throw a punch when Peeta grabs me wrists. "You don't want to do that." I look past him at the group of girls who are now laughing at me. "Don't I?" I ask him. He shakes his head. "Katniss you're better than they are." "What if I don't want to be?" He gives me a look and I sigh. "Fine." I admit in defeat.
He lets go of my wrists. When we get to my locker I drop my books off. "I could walk you to lunch if you wanted…" I look away from my locker and at him. "Peeta, we don't have lunch together. You're eating at the other end of the school." "I can still walk you there." He offers. I shake my head. "I can walk myself." He sighs but grabs my hands. "Fine, just promise me that you won't get yourself into trouble." He looks me right in the eyes, his beautiful blue eyes. Damn… "I promise." He smiles, "Do you want me to meet you here after lunch?" I shake my head, "I'll see you in our next class." He nods and kisses my forehead before walking off in the other direction.
On my walk to the lunch room I stay by the lockers so that I don't have people trying to trip me from both sides of the hallway. I get shoved into the lockers a few times but I don't hit my head like the last time, so I'm fine. I keep my promise to Peeta and don't fight back. I just keep walking.
I get to the lunch room and see what everyone else is eating. The main entrée of today's lunch is grilled cheese and tomato soup. I go through the lunch line and get the main entrée, the lunch lady warns me to let my soup cool off because it just got done cooking, plus a peanut butter cookie. I don't like peanut butter cookies but the lunch lady handing them out always smiles at me when I go through the line so, no matter what she is handing out, I take it on my tray. I also grab a chocolate milk, something Peeta got me to start drinking this weekend. I look around for a place to sit when I see Madge at the other end of the cafeteria with Gale. He has a black eye and I think about trying to find somewhere else to sit but two things stop me. First, I'll have to talk to him sooner or later and second, people have noticed that I am here and are now throwing bits of their peanut butter cookies at me. I start walking over to where they sit when I get tripped. I don't fall over or anything but my extremely hot tomato soup looses its balance and spills, landing on my left calf.
While working at the bakery, Peeta has gotten a lot of burns. He has gotten pretty used to them too. I don't work at the bakery. I'm not used to burns, so this hurts like hell. I gasp for a second and drop my tray on accident. Gale hears it and looks at me. In seconds he is out of his seat and by my side. He helps me over to the table he was just at. He sets me down next to Madge who rolls up my pants leg and starts wiping of the soup with some napkins. "I'll be back. I'm going to go to the bathroom to get some wet paper towels." I nod and look at my leg, it has blisters on it already.
I know Gale is looking at me but I just keep looking at my leg, I really don't want to se his black eye. He talks to me anyway. "Katniss, are you okay?" I laugh a little, "It's nothing that hasn't been happening all day." I look at him and he look really confused. "What do you mean?" I shrug my shoulders. "People have been tripping me, knocking my books out of my hands, and shoving me into lockers all day." "And you let them?" He asks. "That doesn't sound like the Katniss that I know." I look back down at my leg because I don't want to look at him. "I promised Peeta that I wouldn't get into trouble." He laughs at me, "So you're letting all of these people treat you like crap just because you promised Mellark?" I shake my head, "You wouldn't understand, just drop it."
He sighs and lets the conversation drop because Madge has come back. She continues working on my leg. After a few minutes she sighs, "I've done all I can do, I think you should go see the nurse." I shake my head, "I'll be fine, but I think I'm going to go get some fresh air. See you guys later?" Madge smiles and tells me goodbye while all Gale does is nod his head in my direction.
I stand up and carefully make my way to the back of the cafeteria. There is a door at the back that leads to an alley behind the school, the only reason the alley is there is because that is where the school dumpsters are located. I walk outside and let the fresh air hit my burn. It feels really good, and luckily the dumpsters don't smell too bad today either. I start walking around behind the school trying to clear my thoughts of the conversation I had with Gale.
If only there was a way I could listen to both of them. I want to listen to Gale and fight back but I also want to listen to Peeta, who care more about my safety than anything else. I sigh in frustration. Luckily the bell rings signaling it's time for the next class. I turn around to head back inside but the door is blocked but two merchant boys.