Chapter 49

"I wish you could spend the night every night." I say as I lay in the comfort of Gale's arms.

"Me too." He says as he nuzzles his face in my hair.

"I have something to ask you and you just have to say yes, okay?"

"Well, now's a pretty good time to ask me for something."

I roll over to face him and give him my best pleading smile. "I have something for Posy. My old dolls, three of them. And I really, really want her to have them so please say it's okay for me to give them to her. Please."

"I don't know Madge."

"Please! There my old ones, I didn't even spend any money on them. They're just hand me downs really." I chime in before he can spend too much time hesitating.

"I don't think she needs three dolls Madge."

"But Gale, every little girl deserves to have a doll. The eggplant is cute and all but think how much ore fun she could have with a doll that didn't start to rot after a week. Please Gale, it would mean just as much to me as it would to Posy."

"Fine, you win. But only on compromise. You have to make her help you in the garden one day to earn them. I want her to know that to get things you have to work for them, okay?"

"Deal. I'll come kidnap her tomorrow then!" I say with a giddy grin.

He just smiles and kisses my forehead. We fall asleep in each others arms and the next thing I know, Gale's waking me up to say goodbye. We may not be hiding our relationship anymore but he still has to be out of here before Mabel arrives. I'm pretty sure I don't want to hear the lecture that comes when you get caught having a sleepover with your boyfriend. I kiss him goodbye and roll back over for a little more sleep.

By the time I'm up and dressed, the smell of breakfast is wafting up the stairs. In the kitchen I find that Mabel has made quite the spread this morning. Blueberry pancakes with freshly churned butter she gets at the Creamery and fresh squeezed orange juice. And she's already set my plate on the little bistro table out back. I'm glad I don't feel like there's a rift between us anymore. I still can't say that I agree with the way she and my parents handled this marriage mess but I can at least forgive her at this point. And forgiving her means I can truly enjoy this breakfast.

"Do you know when my father will be back home?" I ask her in the most unladylike fashion with a mouth full of pancakes.

"Not sure dear. Do you want me to come back after the viewing this evening and make you some dinner?" She replies while handing me a napkin to wipe the crumbs from my face.

"No, you don't have to do that. I can just heat up a plate if you leave one for me or I can order from the café."

"I'll leave you a plate. Any requests?"

"No, just whatever is fine. Thanks for this breakfast though, it was delicious!" I say as I stand up from the table having completely devoured my meal.

"My pleasure dear, have a good day." She says with a smile as I grab my book bag to leave. I think she can tell I've forgiven her and it makes her happy which of course makes me happy too.

I'm just barely out my front door when I see Gale waiting at the end of our front walk, wildflower in hand. I smile and practically run to greet him.

"Good morning again." I say with a silly girl grin as I take the flower from him. I only just saw him 2 hours ago but I guess when you love someone this much you're always thrilled to see them.

"Are you trying to torture me? Is that your plan?"

"What?"

"Again with the ruffles? You do realize you've now made it incredibly difficult for me to focus on anything school related today, right?"

I look down to see my outfit having not intentionally worn ruffles but since almost all my new parcel contained was ruffles it was inevitable I guess. Sure enough, my dress has a ruffle along the neckline and the hem. It's long though, not short or flirty like the one I wore yesterday.

"It wasn't intentional but good to know I'll be on your mind today." I say teasingly as I begin walking towards the school.

"You're always on my mind but it'll be in a much different way today." He whispers as he wraps his arm around my shoulder and kisses my earlobe.

We get even more looks today than we did at the viewing yesterday. I suppose we're a little more obvious now. The Gale Hawthorne fan club of girls shoots glares my way when he plants a kiss on my lips and his hands clutch just above my hips outside the hallway of my first class. He smirks and I know it's because he sees them giving me the evil eye. I think he's enjoying this attention and I just roll my eyes at his smirk.

I manage to pay a satisfactory amount of attention during my classes and I survive the gossip and glares that float around us during lunchtime. By the time the afternoon classes are finished I'm aching to get out of here. I can't wait to go get Posy and take her back to my house. I know she's going to be so surprised and so excited. Gale meets me outside after my last class of the day.

"Ready to go get Posy?" He asks kissing me on the forehead.

"Yes! I can't wait to see how excited she is to have the dolls!"

We walk over and meet Prim and then the tree of us head to the Seam for little Posy. We find he rocking her eggplant to sleep on the front step of their house.

"You have to be quiet. My baby is sleeping." She warns us as we approach her.

"Well, I'm glad she's asleep because we need your help this afternoon. Do you want to come help in my garden?" I ask her as I kneel down to her eye level.

The little girl smiles and her eyes look immediately to Gale as if to ask permission before answering me. He laughs and in one fail swoop swings the tiny girl up onto his shoulders and we head off towards my house. Posy babbles the whole way there about what an adventure this is to get to come to my house and how she just knew that she'd get to have an adventure today from the minute she woke up. It's cute how such little things excite her.

Once we're at my house Prim gets to work on weeding and Gale starts watering for me while I show Posy how to tell if vegetables are ready to be picked. Between the four of us we're finished in no time flat. A little dirty, especially since I didn't change into my overalls but a little dirt never hurt anyone and I certainly have more dresses where this one came from. Mabel greets us on the back porch with glasses of lemonade and a plate of cookies. Posy's eyes nearly pop out of her head when Gale hands her a cookie. It makes me both happy and a little sad. Happy that I can so easily bring her such joy but sad in knowing that picking vegetables and getting a cookie are such a rare treat for her. I wonder if Gale and I do end up getting married if our children will be so deprived on a daily basis that such simple things as cookies bring such pleasure. I hope no matter what, that I get to marry Gale. I already know that I want to be with him forever. My stomach churns as my marriage contract seeps into my mind. I frown and try my best to push it back out of my thoughts. I'm enjoying today far too much to damper it with worries about Mr. Crane. Gale must see me frowning to myself because he reaches over and takes my hand and his eyes look at me as if to ask what's going on. I just smile and shake my head a tiny bit. Once we polish off the cookies, sans the two Posy saved for Vick and Rory, I tell Posy that as payment for help today, I have a gift for her upstairs in my room. She again looks to Gale who nods in approval before she takes my outstretched hand and lets me lead her upstairs to my room.

The mere sight of my fancy, overdone Capitol pink covered room makes her squeal with delight and we all laugh as she spins around trying to look at everything all at once. I waste no time in retrieving the three dolls from my closet and hold them out for her. Her mouth drops open and her eyes flash in excitement as her tiny arms embrace the dolls.

"I can play with these?" She asks in amazement.

"You can do whatever you want with them. They're for you, for helping me today."

"Gale? Can I please keep em? Please?" Her little voice pleads with Gale.

He sits down and pulls her into his lap. "Of course you can keep them. You earned them by working hard this afternoon. But isn't there something you should still say to Miss Madge?"

"Thank You Miss Madge! And thank you Gale!" She cries out in delight as she hugs each of our necks.

We all sit in the floor of my room while Prim and Posy play with the dolls for awhile.

"I thought you said they were your old dolls? Those dolls look practically brand new." He whispers to me.

'Can I help it if I was a super careful kid who never messed up her toys?" I say with a shrug of my shoulders.

He playfully lunges for me and tackles me to the ground before planting a kiss on my lips quickly. I let him pin me to the carpet for only a moment. I know if we stay like this longer, we'll forget ourselves and the fact that we have other people in our midst.

By the time we head over to the viewing, Gale is having to carry Posy. She's worked and played so hard that she's practically falling asleep though her prized new dolls are tucked tightly in her arms. Prim carries the cookies for the boys who gobble them up in delight. I see Tripp over a few rows with his friends and I suddenly remember the chicken kiev from last night. I need to talk to him and make sure he doesn't do that again. I don't want to hurt his feelings but I also don't want to allow him any kind of false hope. I nudge Gale and tell him I'll be right back and I head over to Tripp.

"Hey, do you have a minute?" I ask wanting to speak to him without all his friends listening in on our conversation.

"Always." He says with a smile and we walk a few steps away out of earshot.

"I wanted to know what your reasoning was with the whole dinner switch-a-roo thing you pulled last night."

"The kiev? Nothing. I just thought you liked it." He shrugs.

"Tripp, I did like it and I appreciate the gesture but I need to be certain you didn't have any other intentions or hopes." I say with a sigh.

"No, I was just being nice. Kinda felt I owed you that much what with all the trouble you went to helping me concoct the fake story about my eye and not making me the laughing stock of the school."

"Good. That's what I'd hoped you'd say."

"Trust me, I got it. You're in love and not with me. I'm not planning on trying to mess with that, okay?" He says with a touch of sadness in his voice.

"I don't mean to rub salt in a wound or anything. I'm sorry if I did. I just needed to be certain we were on the same page. I did enjoy my dinner though, just for the record." I tell him, hoping to lighten the mood.

He nods with a smile and we both head back to our respective groups. Gale's jaw is clenched tight and I can tell he didn't like me talking to Tripp. I sit down next to him and lean over to whisper in his ear.

"It isn't anything to worry about. I needed to make sure he knew to never try and steal me from you. I needed him to know that I love you."

"Seems I remember making it pretty clear to him myself. Why did you have to do that now? Did he do something again?"

"It was nothing Gale. He upgraded my dinner order last night without my knowledge. But it's okay. He said it was just to thank me for covering for him about why his face was all busted up."

"Well, if he ever expects it to heal he better not pull any crap like that again, even if it is just to say thanks."

"Gale." I say with a warning glance. He needs to control his temper on this.

"I don't like him Madge. Never have, never will."

"You don't have to like him. Not one bit. But you do have to trust that if he's ever a problem for me, in any way at all, that I'll come to you and let you know. In the meantime, I just need you to ignore him, okay?"

"Fine. And I love you." He says as he throws his arm around me and I snuggle closer.

The screen flickers and the anthem plays. Today's viewing is much of nothing, just Katniss and Peeta hunting and gathering food. It's honestly kind of boring. Until the very end where the lovely capitol editors have cut the viewing just as Katniss hears a cannon nearby. She screams for Peeta and then the screen goes blank. It's impossible to know who the cannon sounded for. As close as it seemed to be to where Katniss was, it likely could be for Peeta. And if someone killed him, they definitely heard Katniss scream just then and they'll definitely be after her in minutes. And the Capitol has managed to leave us all to wonder if one of our tributes died and if the other is about too. I hate how they do this. It's just one more way that they manage to manipulate us. To torture us.

I reach up to kiss Gale goodbye and whisper to him "Do you want to spend the night?"

He smirks down at me and whispers "Every night." Before he picks up a completely knocked out Posy and blows me a kiss.

I walk all the way back to my house with my dumb silly girl smile plastered across my face. If I had known how wonderful being in love made you feel I'd have started vying for Gale's attention years ago.

I find my dinner plate in the kitchen and lift the lid. Linguine and chicken breast with roasted veggies from my garden in a garlic and black pepper cream sauce with a slice of toasted garlic bread. For desert I have a giant slice of lemon crème cake dusted with powdered sugar. I eat the dinner and save the dessert for when Gale arrives. He'd never admit it but I know he has a major sweet tooth and I love being able to share such decadent desserts with him.

I go upstairs and shower. Having not cleaned up after my gardening today, the warm water of the shower feels marvelous as it washes away all the dirt. I put on one of my new ruffled nightgowns. It's peach colored with satin ribbons that tie as straps and has layers of organza ruffles from top to bottom and falls just below my hips. I know I'm terrible for teasing Gale like this but I can't help it. It's so easy and so much fun. And he loves it. I for one intend to send a thank you note to my Capitol shopper for a job well done on this month's clothing parcel. I can't recall a time in my life when I've ever had so much fun with my clothing.

I've just applied a peachy gloss to my lips when the doorbell rings. I fly down the stairs so fast that I end up skipping a few, almost causing myself to stumble. I steady myself and slow my pace the rest of the way to the door. I open it just enough to peek out and see that it is in fact Gale before I pull it open enough for him to enter. He shuts the door behind him and stares at me before shaking his head.

"What?" I ask in my most innocent of voices. I know full well what though. He's dying over my nightgown. I don't wait for him to answer and instead head casually up the stairs to my room. He follows me but doesn't say a word.

Once we're in my room, he grabs my hips from behind and pulls against him and immediately begins kissing my ear and neck. His hands travel over my body but keep me pressed against him at the same time. Between his touch and his lips I'm instantly in the blissful, swirly place that I love so much. He guides me to the bed and eases me onto it. It isn't long before the ruffled gown that started it all is on the floor along with his clothing. When our desires are satiated and we lay breathless, tangled in the sheets of my bed he finally speaks for the first time.

"You are absolutely killing me woman. I'm on the verge of begging for mercy. You have got to stop with the ruffles. I can't take it."

I laugh deviously, knowing I succeeded in driving him crazy yet again.

"Laughter? You're gonna give me laughter?" He runs his hands over my leg and up my thigh. "Seriously, where did all the non-ruffled clothing disappear too? I can't fight my urges when you stir up memories of that night in the meadow."

"Maybe, I like it when you don't fight your urges."

He groans and buries his face in the curve of my neck.

"I saved my dessert for us to split. You hungry?" I say as I get up, slipping my robe on as I do.

"Sure."

We head down to the kitchen and I pull out the plate of cake. I feed him a forkful and smile as I see how much he likes it.

"Hey, I was wondering, if you ever got to see the actual contract your mother signed."

"No. I was so thrown by what they told me that it didn't even occur to me that I should ask to see it."

"I think we should look for it. We should read it and make sure there aren't going to be any other surprises, you know?"

"There's probably a copy in my father's study. We could look if you want."

We put our dish in the sink and head up to the study. We don't have to worry about anyone walking in and catching us here since my father is out of town and Mabel is at home. It's still weird being in here though.

"Make sure that anything you touch goes back to exactly the same way you found it. I don't think my father would appreciate us being in here even if it is about something related to me."

"Got it."

We each pick a file drawer and start thumbing through the files. After half an hour of searching, we still haven't found it and I'm about to suggest we give up and go to bed when Gale finds it.

"Madge, take a look at this." He says as he plops a giant file down in front of me.

It's a whole file on me. My birth certificate, a stack of pictures-one for each year of my life, statements from my instructors attesting to my intelligence, and statements from various Peacekeepers attesting to my actions and attitude towards the Capitol. And a copy of my contract. Signed and dated by my mother, Seneca Crane, and President Snow. Stamped with President Snow's Official Panem Seal.

"Why the file? I wasn't expecting all this." I say as I spread out the contents of the file in front of me.

"I don't know, lets read this contract and see what we're dealing with."

We read together silently over the five page contract that sealed my fate long before I could even talk. It's choc full of rules and stipulations that have to be followed. Every year, it is required that a photo of me, along with letters from my instructors and Peacekeepers, be sent to both Mr. Crane and President Snow. I've been being watched for years. The Capitol has been keeping tabs on me this whole time. They know what I look like, what my grades are, how I act in public, everything. But that isn't all. The contract stipulates that the marriage ceremony must take place on the day of my 18th birthday and will be televised in the Capitol as well as in 12. There will be a one week engagement celebration the week prior to that where we will make appearances and do a televised interview with Ceaser Flickerman and President Snow. Once married, I will be required to consummate the marriage and efforts to conceive a child will immediately ensue.

Tears of anger pour down my cheeks and I don't even bother to wipe them away. How the hell could my mother sign this on my behalf? How could she possibly think this would be a good option? Gale doesn't say anything. He just takes the items and arranges them all back as we found them in the file drawer. Then he picks me up and carries me out of the study and into my room. He lays me on the bed and never takes his arms from around me as he lies down beside me waiting for my tears to stop. He holds me so patiently, so lovingly until my tears dry and no more sobs escape my chest.

"Remember when you said you trusted me with your life? That night at the lake?" He says softly when he finally speaks.

I nod, unable to form words and he continues.

"I need you to do just that. I need you to trust me when I tell you that I will never let that happen to you. I will never let them take you from me."

"And what? We're going to run away together? That won't work Gale. I love that you would do that for me but you have a family that depends on you and I won't let you leave them. This is the Capitol Gale. We can't get around them."

"No Madge. Stop. You let me figure it out. All I need from you is for you to trust me with your life."

"I do Gale. You're the only one I trust with my life."

A/N: A big, big thank you to all of you who took time to vote for me in the Energize WIP Awards this past week! I am proud to announce that I came in 2nd! And thank you to all of my readers, followers and reviewers-you guys are the greatest! I've gotten multiple Guest reviews which I cannot reply to but there was one question about why I never mention Madge and Gale's undergarments. Well, there isn't really a reason, I just left it out not as an oversight but more as I just didn't like how it read when it was mentioned. Anyway, thanks again to whoever nominated me and again to all of my voters-I'm so honored!