Here's another chapter. I wasn't sure if I wanted to name it C Chapter 7 or District 4... and I decided with District 4 because they're there longer. Hope you're not confused about location.
Rory and Nixie walked into Madge's shop, laughing. Madge looked up from her papers smiling. Rory raised his eyebrows at her and glanced at the girl besides her. Madge regarded her; she was quite beautiful but had the same bone structure of someone she once knew.
"Madge- this is Nixie McGrey. Nixie this is my brother's fiancée" Madge smiled but inside she was sweating. McGrey.
"Nice to meet you" the girl's voice rang out like a song and Madge was surprised by the charm
"Nice to meet you as well… do you happen to know Peter McGrey?"
"He's my older brother" she grinned, "How do you know him?" Madge's smile faltered and she gained a pounding headache
"I used to date him" she giggled nervously, and Rory gave her a worried look, he knew there was more to this story
"Oh!" Nixie laughed, "How did you guys meet?"
"I used to live in District 2… and we met and dated for a couple months but Gale came and swept me off my feet"
"My brother is hard to live" Nixie said her smile fading her shoulders shrugging, "I'm not surprised" Madge relaxed and wiped her hands on her corduroys.
"You have no idea" Madge laughed and walked around the counter. Nixie giggled and Madge made note of all the things Rory talked about, "Does your family live here or in District 2?"
"My family actually live in 4. My father was from 4 and my mom was from the capitol. They're divorced. I'm here with my mom right now" Rory winked at Madge
"I was wondering if you would mind if my date to your wedding was Nix"
"Absolutely!" Madge laughed, "It would be wonderful to have such a nice addition" That night Madge and Gale were packing for 4, "Gale… you know Rory's girl?"
"Yeah what about her?" Gale asked looking up from folding shirts.
"She's Peter's sister" Gale stopped and dropped the shirt into his suitcase
"You have to be kidding"
"I'm not… Rory intruded her as Nixie McGrey. And I found out through simple questions that she was his sister"
"Small world" he mumbled. Then Madge froze, "What?" Gale asked
"Gale… I told her that I dated him but she only knows me as Madge soon to be Hawthorne"
"And Peter knows you as Clara soon to be Hawthorne" Gale said after a while, "That's not good" he said laughing awkwardly
"No not good at all" This time the three were taking a jet to District 4. Nixie sat between Madge and Rory in the middle of the plane and Gale sat to the right of Madge, next to an older man with a light purple beard. In the isle separating them a middle aged women was bringing around drinks. Madge passed Gale her napkin with the words I love you scribbled out and he laughed stuffing it into his carryon bag with a wink.
They landed quickly and retrieved their bags from the baggage claim. Mrs. Hawthorne met them at the revolving doors with Vick and Posy. Rory introduced them all to Nixie and together they took a tram around the bay and into the downtown.
"It's so beautiful" Madge whispered to Gale
"It really is" he whispered back and squeezed her hand. Soon Nixie said her goodbyes and left the tram at station 2, it was a small community of tall brightly colored row houses overlooking the commercial docks. She handed Rory her home number and kissed his cheek. Then they passed station 3 which was the town central with little skinny shops and a couple cafes.
Madge bit her lip maybe they should stay here and have a family. Gale said he could live anywhere and still work for the same company and have the same salary. She wasn't sure if she wanted to get rid of her dream living where they both grew up. Station 4 was Victor's Village which was tucked back down by the beach and dunes, each house looked larger than the next but they were nothing like the houses in District 1 and 2.
Station 5 was the boat docks that housed tall sail boats to small fishing vessels. Yet Madge thought they all had charm if not beauty. Station 6 was once the slums but now looked like a nice little community of houses separated by board walks. Station 7 was forest houses and few more shops they buzzed through it into the next station where Hazelle and the kids started to rise to.
Gale took her elbow and led her to the train doors when the vehicle started to slow. Together they got out in the middle of nowhere. A few more people got off and wandered in towards the other direction of large beautiful houses. Gale, Hazelle, Madge, Rory, Vick, and Posy made their way down the dark stained boardwalk, the sounds of seagulls and lapping water not far away brought smiles to their faces.
The air was inviting enough and with the cool breeze hitting their faces it was heaven, Madge was sure of it. They turned onto a narrower boardwalk surrounded by short palm trees. It was exotic and tempting to follow the wide trails through them but they stayed on the path. They went over a bridge that looked like it was going over tide pools and the boardwalk changed to having railings on either side. Every so often there was a lantern and they approached the back of the house.
"Isn't it just magical?" Hazelle laughed and held her hands together with pride. The house was white and had light blue shutters over storm windows the house had a dark red pagoda roof. It was a real sight to see. It had a white picket fence around the wrap-around porch also. The family made its way inside and Madge was surprised at the classic and sophisticated pieces that Hazelle had picked.
Later that night Madge and Gale were taken down to the beach by Vick and the three of them walked along the wet sand and felt their toes sink in every time they stepped with enough pressure. Gale looked over at Madge and kissed her forehead.
"I could live here" Madge smiled and winked
"Yeah?" Gale laughed and took her hand. As they made their way back into the house, Posy came to greet them.
"Was the water warm?" She asked
"Yes Posy" Madge said getting down to her level. The young girl squeaked with delight
"I love it here" she said to the family and went into her room for bed. Gale and Madge announced their moving plans then to Hazelle and Rory who were both enjoying iced tea. Hazelle was extremely happy but Rory looked worried
"Why don't you want to live in the Cap?" he asked, "It's so great there!" Madge bit her lip and looked at Gale
"Because Rory you can't properly raise children in the Capitol" he said, "you need a backyard and things to do and people to see and a community" Rory wasn't buying it
"You won't have children for a while" Madge bit her lip harder and looked at Hazelle for help
"It's true Ro- you can't really raise children in the Capitol. And maybe Gale and Madge want to start having kids early" Madge blushed and held onto Gale's arm. Rory couldn't argue with his mother so he went in for bed.
"Thanks Ma" Gale said slumping onto the huge coral sectional next to her. Madge sat down on the oversized square ottoman in front of them
"You should probably start looking for houses tomorrow" Hazelle said, "If you're serious about this move you have to be serious about the market. It's going fast everyone wants a piece of the luxury going up"
"Then we'll start looking tomorrow" Gale shrugged but Madge still wasn't convinced about the move. Her dreams of living in District 12 were looking out of the question with Gale.
Review it up!
Erin