Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Here is my gift to you...another update!


Chapter 16

When I wake up the next morning, Katniss is still nestled next to me, her head still resting on my chest. An overwhelming joy grows in my heart as I hold her, giving me a taste of what it could be like if I can finally muster up some strength to tell her how I really feel. I've never had a problem putting myself out there but she is different. She's not some girl at the slagheap. To be honest, I'm not even sure what she would even look for in a member of the opposite sex. Most girls like me but she's not like most girls.

I push the worries out of my head and instead brush her silky hair with my fingertips. The repetitive movement calms me. I'm almost to the point of lulling off until I feel her body shift.

"Catnip?" I murmur, unsure if she is really awake.

"Hmm?" she hums softly.

"We're free." I whisper. Her arm wraps tighter around my waist as she shows me her appreciation with a hug. "Want to go hunting?"

"Not yet." she says contently. I continue to stroke her hair surprised she's allowing herself to be so close to me and for me to touch her in this way. After a few minutes, I can feel her breathing has slowed, alerting me that she has drifted off again. I resolve to do the hunting by myself. Our families will be up soon and the children are sure to be hungry. I slowly turn over, cradling her head as I lower her to the ground. I locate my boots, put them on, and tie them.

"Where are you going?" Katniss asks. I look down at her, lying there with her messy hair. She's never looked sexier to me. It takes most of my self-control not to jump on top of her. I then realize that she's waiting for an answer.

"To get breakfast." I say after clearing my throat.

"Without me?"

"I thought you might need the sleep. We have a long day ahead of us."

"I want to come with you." she says wobbling to her feet. She grabs her boot and quickly readies herself. While she fixes her braid, I grad our gear and we exit the cabin. I check the few snares I set last night while we were collecting pine needles and am happy to find a rabbit caught in one. As I get closer, it sees me and struggles to escapes. I quickly put it out of its misery and deposit it inside the cabin. We then make our way further into the woods. We work together to help target our prey. Even after all these years of doing this, it still amazes me how in sync we are with one another. I wonder if other hunting partners have this same connection or if it some rare, unique thing that only we possess. We manage to shoot 4 squirrels and 2 birds before deciding to make our way back.

She stops by the edge of the lake and looks out at the span of water.

"I'm going to miss this place." she says quietly. She doesn't have to say anything else to let me know what she really means. She's told me stories about her and her father coming to this lake. This is where she learned to swim and where they would go fishing together. When I look over at her, I watch as she quickly wipes the tears away with her sleeves with embarrassment that I've witnessed them. She's not a sentimental person. She doesn't show her hurt to others. The last time I saw her cry, she was 11 and had just lost her father.

I'm not really sure not to react. I don't want to make her feel weak. That would only make her feel worse. I reach my hand towards hers and lace my fingers between hers. I feel her finger slowly bend, making contact with my knuckles. We both remain quiet. I begin to think about my father. While he never brought me to this lake, he did take me out into these woods to learn the trade. Without that, I wouldn't be here today.

"They'd be proud of us…that we're doing this." I say.

"I wish we could stay here." she comments.

"It's too close." I reply. Peacekeepers could easily find us here if they looked. We need to be further from District 12.

"I know." she mumbles.

"We should get back." I say, releasing my grip on her hand. She lets her hand drop to her side and nods. When we reach the cabin, I find Rory and Vick outside gathering sticks and twigs off the ground.

"We're helping." Vick says with a smile.

"For the fire." Rory clarifies.

"Good." I praise them before going inside. My mother is already cleaning the rabbit, readying it for cook.

"Few more to add to the pile." I say, hoisting up the game we shot. My mother smiles at me. The boys bring in the firewood and I show them how to organize it in the fireplace. I then grab the fishing rods and tell them to follow me. If we are going to make a fire, we better get good use of it. I can feel the excitement from the two of them. They've always wanted to go into the woods with me and this is their first taste of it. I show them the proper technique and then let them try with their own poles. Rory is the first one to get a bite. He's quite proud of that. I show them how to get the hook out and then place it in the bucket. While they continue to catch fish, I clean them and gut them with the pocketknife that has been passed down from Hawthorne to Hawthorne. When I finish the last one, I tell my brothers to take the fish to Mom. I linger behind, striping off my clothes and jump into the lake to rid the smell of fish from my skin. When I'm confident that I'm clean, I emerge from the lake and dry myself off with my shirt before putting on my underwear and pants. I lay my shirt in a sunny spot near the cabin to dry before entering.

"Where's Katniss?" I ask my mother, immediately noticing her absence.

"She took the girls for a walk." my mother says with a knowing smile. I can't stop myself from blushing. She knows how I feel about Katniss and I have made my affection known again with my eagerness to know where she is. A few minutes later, the girls return, singing a song with crowns of flowers in their hair. Katniss has a basket full of strawberries in her hand, probably that last that will grow this year.

"Gale you have to try one of these!" Posy says as she grabs a berry and runs towards me. I pick her up and she pushes it into my mouth. I can't help but laugh at my little sister and her excitement. I bite off the red fruit and discard the green, leafy top of it. I feel a little guilt of depriving her of them but we had to trade them with the mayor. I still should have brought some home. After all, Katniss and I would eat them in the woods.

"Mmm, good." I say to appease her.

"Katniss dig out a plant to take with us. We can have strawberries in our new home." she informs me.

"That was smart of her." I say with a smile as I look over to Katniss, who has been watching our exchange. I put Posy down when my mother announces the food is ready. We eat up, enjoying the large meal in front of us. The boys tell about how they caught the fish while the girls tell stories of things they saw on their walk. Our little conversations make me feel better about brining my family with us, that they could be happy out here. When we have had our fill, we pack up the leftovers for later and are ready to start our journey. We walk away from our woods into the great unknown, where anything can happen.


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