Thanks to all who reviewed. Here's another chapter...I think you'll like this one ;)

Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or any of its characters.

Chapter 9

I spend the next few days hunting with Gale. Since I have no time constraints, we venture deeper into the woods to hunt. I try to hide what I'm feeling about Merrick leaving early but I think he knows that something is up. He doesn't ask me about it though. He knows I wouldn't want to talk about it. Instead he does little things to try to cheer me up. I really am lucky to have him.

It doesn't stop the hurting though. I try to reason with myself that it wouldn't have mattered. Merrick had to leave here eventually. A few more weeks wouldn't mean anything in the long run. It was wrong of me to think we could even be friends at all. We come from such different worlds. Then I think about how well we were together and that all that stuff didn't matter. He never cared that I was a poor girl from the Seam. My feeling go back and forth about him. One minute I am so angry at him for leaving and the next I want nothing more for him to be holding me in his arms. It's very confusing.

It's been five days since he's left. Gale and I are walking back from town, after dropping off strawberries to the Mayor and a turkey to Cray. As we cross the square, I see a tall blonde approaching us. I first I think my eyes are deceiving me but then I see Merrick walking straight towards me.

"Katniss." he says to catch my attention. Gale shoots me a look, questioning if I know him. He can sense that I want him to give us some space so he walks away.

"I thought you were gone." I say to him.

"I was."

"And you're back now." I say crossing my arms.

"Can we talk later?" he asks me. I almost tell him no but I can see the hurt in his eyes.

"Meet me by the tree around 9." I tell him before walk to meet Gale.

"Who was that?" Gale asks me, clearly perturbed.

"Just a friend." I say.

"Merchant?" he asks.

"Yes." I reply.

"Which shop?"

"What?" I asked confused.

"Which shop does his parents own?"

'Shoot.' I think to myself. I quickly think something to say. "The shoe shop."

"The Cartwrights don't have a son that age." he tells me. "Who is he really?" I know I'm busted but I decide to remain quiet, at least until we reach the Seam. "Katniss who is he?"

"His name is Merrick."

"I didn't ask for his name. I asked whom he was." he clarified.

"He's not from around here." I say with a sigh. Gale shakes his head as he realizes what this means.

"Since when were you friends with the son of a Peacekeeper?"

"Since I was eleven."

"Eleven!" he says in shock. I explain to him everything as we continue on our way home, about how I first met Merrick and how he found me when he came back. "You really think it's a good idea, for you to be around him."

"He's nice Gale."

"What if someone finds out about the two of you? What do you think would happen?"

"We're careful." I say.

"What if he found out about what you do…about what we do?" he asks.

"He already knows." I blurt out. When Gale stops me, I know I shouldn't have said that.

"What do you mean he knows?" Gale growls. "Katniss, what we do isn't exactly legal, in case you have forgotten."

"I know."

"And what if he tells his father. Do you know what he'd do to us? He'd turn us in for sure."

"He's not going to." I assure him.

"He better not or else our families are as good as dead."

"He's a good guy, Gale. Trust me." I tell him. "It doesn't matter anyway, he'll be gone in two weeks."

"Good." he says before walking off towards his house. As I continue home, I think about our conversation. Gale is right to be angry with me. Maybe I shouldn't have told Merrick about the hunting but I could never see him telling anyone. He's too nice a person. He wouldn't even say it if he was mad at me. When I get home, I spend time with Prim whom I feel I have neglected over the past few weeks. With trying to juggle things with Gale and Merrick, I don't have much time with her. She tells me it's fine and that mother has been there for her, but I'm not sure I believe it.

After Prim goes to sleep, I walk to our tree to talk with Merrick. I know an apology is in order, but I have no idea whether or not I will accept it. I'm still angry with him for leaving me like that. I find him waiting for me at the tree looking awfully worrisome. I can't help but feel that something is wrong. When I finally catch his eye, he starts to cry. Something is very wrong. I wrap my arms around him.

"Katniss, I'm sorry. I never should have left." he admits. "I found out what happened…to Galen." he says with despair in his voice.

"What was it?"

"I was talking to my friends when I got back. They put his name in there Katniss. They snuck his name into the Reaping. That's why he looked so shocked. He didn't even know what was going on."

"Merrick…" I utter as I stroke his cheek.

"They killed him Katniss. They did that to him and they didn't even care. You know what they said, they said they were just joking." he wails. I can't help but feel hatred for those boys and for District 2. What is wrong with them? Galen never should have been there in the first place.

"When did you get back here?" I ask him.

"Yesterday." He pulls away from me so he can see my face. "It was wrong of me to leave you like that. You are right. This is the last time we may ever have together."

"It's ok Merrick. We still have time." I say. I help him up and walk him back towards his house. He must be drained from all the emotions he's been experiencing in the past few days. He takes my hand and leads me up the back steps. He opens the door and walks forward. "Merrick, no, your parents." I remind him.

"Who cares Katniss? What's the worst they can do, kick you out?" he says. He must be so numb that he isn't thinking. Before I know it we are inside his house walking towards the stairs. I feel my heart start to race as I hear the sounds of other people in the house. It almost sounds like there is a party. As we pass the kitchen, I see people working on preparing a meal. When we reach the stairs, I can hear chatter and laughter coming from the dining room. I hold my breath and hope that we don't get caught. Once we are in his room, I slide my back against the wall as I let out a long breath.

"Merrick, never do that again." I say into the darkness. I don't get a response. I don't even see him in the room. I walk to his bed but he's not there. I then hear the toilet flush, followed by running water. He then emerges from the bathroom and shuts off the light. I watch as he pulls off his shirt by the collar. He then kicks off his shoes and let his pants fall to the floor. He's about to remove his underwear when I place my hand on his waistband. "Don't." I murmur. He pulls me closer to him, my face resting again his naked chest.

"Don't leave me Katniss." he says. At this point I don't know what to think except that he's drugged or drunk. I've never seen him like this.

"Don't worry, I'm right here. Let's get you under the covers." He releases me from him and I go to his side of the bed to pull back the covers. He climbs in and I tuck him in. I walk over to the other side of the bed and lay on top of the covers. This isn't sufficient enough for him. He wants me underneath them, with him. Tonight, I don't argue with him. He's already upset enough. We can talk about it tomorrow.

I am the first to wake in the morning. Merrick is still sound asleep. I do not wake him. I lean on my arm to scan the room. My eyes go immediately to the tented area of the blanket near Merrick's crotch. I remember learning about this in health class but I had never actually seen it before. I continue to look at it until I hear a laugh erupt from beside me. I look over and find Merrick looking up at me.

"Didn't your mother ever tell you that it's not polite to stare?" he says wittily. I immediately can feel my cheeks burn with embarrassment. I don't say anything. I see him move his hand under the covers to adjust himself before he gets out from under the covers and makes his way to the bathroom. I lie down on my side facing towards the window and hear the shower click on. When I hear the bathroom door open I close my eyes and pretend to be asleep. I'm still too embarrassed about what had happened earlier. I can hear some of the drawers of his dresser open and close as he picks out his outfit for the day. I few minutes later, I feel the bed shift as he climbs back onto the bed.

"Katniss." he says in a gentle voice. I do not move. "Katniss, I know you're not really sleeping." I turn over and find him lying beside me. "I'm sorry if I embarrassed you earlier. That's not what I was trying to do." I nod my head. "What do you feel like doing today?" he asks me.

"I don't know." I say meekly.

"How about you get in the shower while I make us some lunch and they we can decide."

"Lunch?" I ask him.

"Yes, it's already 11. We slept in late today."

"Ok." I say as I get out of bed. He shows me how to work the shower before leaving the room. I lock the bathroom door before stripping off my clothes. I walk into the glass shower and press the buttons he showed me. The warm water flowing down my body feels amazing. We don't have showers in the Seam, and the only way we have warm water is if we warm it on the stove. I take my time washing my hair and body, enjoying this experience.

"Hey Katniss, you almost done in there?" I hear Merrick ask after his knocks on the door.

"Almost done!" I call out to him. I turn off the water and dry off my body before putting my clothes back on. I emerge from the bathroom and find Merrick sitting on the edge of the bed with a basket in his lap. "I thought you were making lunch."

"I did. I was thinking we could go to the meadow and eat it there…like a picnic."

"I'd like that." I say with a smile.

We have the meadow all to ourselves. It's a wonder why more people aren't out here today. It's a gorgeous day with not a cloud in the sky. The sun is shining brightly. The heat of the sun on my skin is intense but it feels kind of good. Merrick looks as if it's a little too much for him; he's probably used to much cooler summers in the mountains. When we finish our lunch, I lead him to the only tree around to provide him with a little shade. I lean with my back against it, contemplating whether I should rest at its base or climb its branches. It might be nice up there with the warm summer breeze that is running through its leaves. I lower my gaze to Merrick to ask him what he thinks we should do but I can tell his mind is somewhere else as he stares at me. I can't help but wonder what he's thinking.

It doesn't look like he's in the mood for climbing so the ground it is. As I begin to lower myself, I feel him stop me. His hands are at my sides as I feel his body make contact. Within seconds, his lips connect with mine. To say I'm shocked is an understatement. Never in a million years did I ever think this would happen. He's my friend. He's been my friend for a long time, but I can't deny the pleasure I'm feeling in this moment. It doesn't feel wrong, even though it should. Friends don't kiss their friends like this.

I feel his lips leave mine, even though I'm not ready for them to stop. I want more. My eyes open and find his. He's looking down at me with the largest smile I've ever seen on him. He presses he forehead against mine as he lets out a lighthearted sigh. I raise myself up on my toes so my lips can find his again. I can feel his lips pull upward before he starts kissing me back. As our lips move in perfect synchronization, I can't help but feel as if nothing else in the world matters but this moment. His tongue flickers against my teeth, requesting permission to enter. I open my mouth, allowing for more than just our lips to touch. I'm glad he knows what he's doing. I've never done anything like this before. I can only hope that he is enjoying this as much as I am.

Suddenly, I feel him being ripped apart from me. My eyes quickly open to take in the scene before me. Merrick is on the ground with Gale towering over him. I'm paralyzed with fear by the fact that Gale of all people has found us. I watch to see what will happen next. Merrick tries to get up but Gale pushes him back to the ground. Gale's eyes tell him to stay down and he does. Gale leaves him when he sees he is no longer a threat and starts towards me. He takes me by the arm and leads me away from the meadow. At first, I think he is going to take me home and reveal to my mother what I had been doing but instead I see we are traveling towards the fence. I know whatever he's about to say to me cannot be good.

He motions towards the ground indicating that I am to crawl under the fence first. I do so and don't even wait for him as I head off to the woods, anger now fueling through me. He had no right to do that. That was my private moment. It was no concern of his. We wait until we are deep in the woods before either of us begins to speak. He starts.

"Are you out of your mind, Katniss?" he shouts at me.

"It's none of your business." I say, trying to control my temper.

"Well maybe I should make it my business since you obviously can't think for yourself."

"What are you going on about?" I huff at him.

"He's a Peacekeeper's son! That should be reason enough for you to stay away." he argues.

"He's different Gale." I say with authority. He runs his fingers through his hair as he paces.

"You know what they are like Katniss, the Peacekeepers…"

"Well good thing he isn't one of them." I quickly add in.

"Yeah, not yet."

"That's not what he wants."

"Why wouldn't he? He'd be set for life. He wouldn't have to worry about working in the stupid mines or spending everyday trying to find enough to keep his family going." Gale says as he kicks the dirt with force. It's then I realize that this goes a lot deeper than me kissing Merrick. I can't help but think that Gale is jealous of him. Jealous of the life he leads. In less than a year, Gale's life will change dramatically. He'll be 18. He'll be out of out of Reaping pool but something just as horrifying will be awaiting him. He'll be forced into the mines, the place where his father died. It wasn't promising at all.

"Gale, what you do is admirable. Not many could do it." I say trying to calm him down.

"I guess what I don't understand is why you chose him." he says, ignoring the flow of our conversation. He wants to talk about what he wants to talk about.

"What do you mean?" I ask him, now confused.

"He'll be gone in a few weeks. I just always thought you might want something more permanent, more practical." he says before letting out a long exhale. I can't help but start to think that he means him.

"Not all Peacekeepers are bad." I say, this time allowing myself to turn the direction of our conversation.

"Yes they are, Katniss. They work for the Capitol. They do horrible things to people."

"If you got to know him, you'd see he's nothing like that." I say gently.

"Why would I want to get to know him?" he asks me and then I realize there is no point for him to do so. In fact, it would probably make Gale hate him even more. "Just be careful, Catnip." he says before walking back, leaving me alone in the woods. I sit down on a tangled root of a nearby tree and give myself a few minutes before walking back to ensure I don't run into Gale. As soon as I am on the other side of the fence, I find myself running back to the meadow. He isn't there of course.

I walk back to my house, still mad at Gale for what he did. I know he cares about me but it wasn't his place to do that. There were times when he did things that I didn't approve of but I never stopped him. When I enter my house, I find it empty. Prim and my mother must have gone somewhere. I go to my room and lay down on my bed. I think about the kiss with Merrick and how good it felt. I wonder what he thought of it. I then think about how I'd like for it to happen again. Thoughts about the kiss float through my head until I fall asleep.

YAY THEY FINALLY KISSED! Thanks for being so patient.

What did you think of the whole kissing scene...didn't expect Gale to show up, did you? (btw, poor Gale) Let me know what you liked or didn't like about this chapter in your reviews :)