Hello everybody! I would just like to say that I am deeply sorry about how long it took me to update this story. I am working on some different stories that i might put out soon. I hope that you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games, that's Suzanne Collins job.
With only three words Gale has changed my whole perception of their relationship. Did she know about his feelings? Were they together before and I didn't know? I rule out that possibility because Katniss would have told me if it was the case. But I guess he really does love her.
"Woah," I whisper without realizing it.
I feel Madge's arm around me slide off and I see her looking like she saw a ghost. Her face is white and her jaw is open ever so slightly. She notices me watching her and composes herself so it seems like nothing even happened. I don't know why she reacted this way and I don't want to ask, but it makes me wonder if she maybe feels something for Gale. Although, I don't really want to ask because I already know more than I'd like about peoples feelings for eachother.
Gale walks back solemnly and slumps into the chair on the other side of Madge's. She quickly looks away from him, her cheeks slowly turning redder and redder. I watch Madge fiddle with a golden pin in her hands until her name is called and she's taken to Katniss's room.
"How long have you...you know...loved her?" I ask Gale, breaking the silence.
He looks over at me and shrugs before saying, "I don't know when exactly, it just...crept up on me I guess."
"Did she know?"
"No. I doubt she even heard though," he answers with a frown.
I don't argue because it's probably true, you can't hear anything through the door. My mother and I couldn't hear the peacekeepers until they were in the room.
"You know, I don't think that I'd be able to survive without her," he says suddenly.
I jerk my head to face him, "She won't die in there, Gale. She promised."
"I know, Prim. I know," he says, putting his face into his hands.
I look over at my mother who is just staring at our joined hands that rest on the armrest of her chair.
"She's going to come home, Mom," I say, squeezing her hand.
She looks me in the eyes and says, "Prim, I think that you should know the odds are that Katniss probably…" she pauses, taking a shaky breath before continuing, "she probably won't be coming home."
The tears threaten fall but I hold them in and firmly tell my mother, "Don't say that. She can do it. She can win. Katniss is stronger than either of us will ever be and she is probably smarter than most of the other tributes will be."
I stand up and pull my mother into a hug, "I'm so, so sorry that you have to watch this happen to her, Prim," she whispers in my ear.
We stand in each other's embrace until Madge rushes back from Katniss's room saying that she is going to head home. I give her a hug and she gives me a quick kiss on the cheek before telling me that if I need anything I can go and find her.
She says goodbye to Gale and he responds with a polite "Goodbye, Madge," and goes back to fiddling with his thumbs. Her cheeks turn pink and she runs out the Justice Building's doors before anyone else could notice.
I sit back down in my seat and actually get a good look at Peeta's family. His mother and father are seated directly across from my mother and I. Mrs. Mellark's actions really stand out to me, the way she constantly checks her watch (a luxury that many in the Seam can't afford) and the way she leans back in her chair like she doesn't have a care in the world. It's almost as if she is just itching to leave her son and go home. Her husband on the other hand is slumped over in his seat and is just staring at a package of cookies in his hands. He at least seems very worried about his son.
My mother breaks the silence by asking, "Are you ready to go home, Prim?"
"Not quite," I reply quickly.
I don't know what I'm waiting for but I don't want to leave. For some weird reason I feel like if I leave now I'm abandoning Katniss, even though she probably has no clue I'm still here.
"Christopher Mellark please report to Katniss Everdeen," blasts over the speakers in the waiting room, interrupting my thoughts.
I look up and see the broad shouldered man whose name was just called, get up out of his chair quickly and walk swiftly down the hallway. Mrs. Mellark's facial expression to the announcement is a mix between shock, disgust, and anger. It seems odd that she didn't know that he would go visit Katniss, but if he had told her sooner it probably wouldn't have played out as well. She has made it known to the whole district that she despises the Seam, so she would probably be mortified knowing that her own husband was going to visit a girl from the Seam.
My own mother looks nervous at the fact that he is visiting her, which of course makes my jitters rise. Townspeople and people from the Seam don't mix often, and when they do it's talked about all over. Most people from the town would be embarrassed to be seen with anybody from the Seam. That's what made the case of my mom leaving the town to marry a coal miner, unfathomable to my grandparents.
I watch as Mrs. Mellark glares at my mother as if she had something to do with her husband visiting Katniss, which makes me uneasy because my mother didn't do anything. Luckily my mom doesn't seem to notice the glares, but if she does she doesn't make it known. The oldest Mellark brother gives me a look of sympathy when he notices me looking at his mother with worry.
Soon enough Mr. Mellark is back with his family and everyone is being told to leave and go home. The Peacekeepers tell us that the tributes are going to be loaded onto a train and sent to the Capital. They also tell us that it would be no use to try and see them when they get on the train because they set up boundaries.
I grab onto my mother's sleeve as if I'm a small child again, because in some ways it feels like I am. It feels like when my dad died and I felt so alone and afraid. But I don't have Katniss anymore to comfort me when the grief gets almost unbearable or when I just need someone to tell me things are going to be alright. My mother already lost her husband and barely got through it, so if she loses her daughter too then I can hardly imagine how she would feel.
I'm brought out of my thoughts when Gale comes up next to us and asks if we would like him to walk us home.
Before I have a chance to answer my mom says, "I think we are just going to have the two of us for tonight, but thank you Gale."
He nods and proceeds to leave the Justice Building. I move my hand from my mom's sleeve and grab her hand instead. We don't speak but instead walk in silence out of the building where we may have seen my sister for the last time.
The walk home is quiet with no words being spoken between my mother and I. The moment I'm able to see our house is when the dread starts to seep in. This will be the first night in my entire life where I wont be able to count on my sister being home for dinner. Sometimes she stays out late with Gale but we always wait at home for her anyways. So this will be the first night without my sister here to wrap her arms around me when the nightmares come.
I suddenly don't want to go home because it's almost as if it's solidifying the fact that my sister, who I love with my entire being, might never set foot in it again.
When we finally reach the front door I let my mother go first and I go in shortly after. We both directly go to close the shutters throughout the house, without even having to discuss it. My mom then asks if I want dinner and I immediately decline saying that I'm going to bed.
After I have stripped off my reaping clothes I change into a nightgown and slip into the bed that me and Katniss share. My cat, Buttercup comes up to me and nuzzles my cheek. I grab him and pull him into my chest as I let the events of the day take over my mind.
I sob into Buttercup's coat as he just stays in my arms and doesn't struggle. He lets me cry about how I can't survive without her. And He lets me howl into his muddy coat about my sister's uncertain future.
The last thing I think before the darkness takes over is "It should have been me."
I hope you all are okay with what I made Mr. Mellark's name. I would like to say thank you so much for those who left a review on the last chapters, those absolutely made my day. I really enjoy hearing what you all have to say about my story. Hope everybody is staying safe and healthy! :)