I do not own Suzanne Collin's The Hunger Games characters.
Chapter 3:
The nurse comes into the room.
"Can you please wait outside?" The nurse asks Cato.
He nods and leaves the room.
"Ms. Whitter, how did you get that cut?" The nurse asks.
My mind scrambles for an explanation and I land quickly on one.
"I fell down the back stairs of my house," I respond.
"The stairs?" The nurse asks skeptically.
"Yes. They are made of concrete and I tripped and fell down them," I say.
"Why did you not come to the hospital right away?" The nurse asks.
"I didn't think that it was a deep as it was."
The nurse nods and writes it down, but I can tell that she doesn't really believe me. She tells me that I had to get sixteen stitches and that I will have to come back to the hospital in two weeks to get them removed. She discharges me and Cato re-enters the room.
"Ready to go?" He asks.
"What do you mean?" I ask coldly, getting out of bed carefully so as not to rip my stitches.
"I'm driving you home, obviously," He says it like it is obvious.
"No. You aren't." The last thing I need is for him to drive me home. I'm not even sure I want to go home right now.
"Yes. I am." He says sternly.
I open my mouth to argue, but he literally puts his hand over my mouth to stop me from speaking. I stare daggers at him but relent. The nurse forces me to sit in a wheelchair even though I insist that I don't need one. When we reach Cato's car he reaches to help me into the car, but I push him away. Pushing myself out of the wheelchair, I walk a few steps before I begin to feel lightheaded. I sway on my feet and Cato is right beside me, his hands gently on my waist, steadying me. I don't shake him off this time, letting him help me into the car. He helps to buckle me in and then goes around to his side.
"Where is your house?" He asks.
I am tempted to ask him to drive me to my car, but with how dizzy and lightheaded I feel, driving probably isn't the best idea. I also am not sure that I want to get home to my parents who literally left me at the police station.
"I don't...I don't know if I want to go home," I say.
"Why not?" He asks.
"Because my parents just left me there. At the police station, I mean. I don't really know what to expect at home and I'm just not ready for that yet," I hardly realize that I am saying it.
"Ok," He says without missing a beat. "I actually have the perfect spot."
Cato buckles his seatbelt and backs out of his parking spot. For a while, we are in an area that I know well, but then he makes a left turn, and then I am completely lost. We drive for nearly an hour when he finally stops. A smile is wide on his face as he runs around the car to my side. He opens the door and pulls me one arm around his neck so I don't have to put to much weight on my hip.
We are surrounded by buildings and the smell of sweet food is all around me. Cato walks me to a building with a pastel front and a sliver awning. The building looks abandoned, with windows that have a black tarp on the inside of them making it so that you can't see the inside. I hear Cato fumble with the door handle and then the door swings open. He helps me through the door and I gasp.
The store is obviously under construction but I can see a counter with glass display cases taking form. Cato pulls me behind the counter and through a door in a large kitchen. It has a large island counter, four ovens, a double stove, and a large pantry full of ingredients and other knicks and knacks.
"Can we be back here?" I ask.
Cato doesn't answer me, he just grabs a large bowl and a bunch of different ingredients. Then, he swiftly picks me up and sets me gently down on the counter. My hip gives a little twinge but I don't say anything. He begins pouring ingredients into the bowl without measuring them at all.
"Can we-" I start to ask again, but Cato cuts me off.
"Yeah, we are good to be here. It's my mom's shop," He says. I let out a large sigh of relief, a bit too loud. Cato gives me a look and then laughs. "I don't break into places."
"Neither do I," I fire back. Cato looks down to the bowl and I realize that he was just making a comment, not trying to insult me. "Sorry," I say.
"It's fine."
We sit in silence and I watch him begin to pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture. He grabs an orange and zests it into the mixture and a slight fruity smell fills the kitchen.
"What are you making?" I ask, beginning to feel awkward.
"Orange Sunshine cupcakes," He says. He mixes the batter for a few more seconds before grabbing a small spoon and dipping it into the batter. "Want a taste?"
I smile and snatch the spoon from his hand so fast he laughs. I open my mouth and taste the batter. A rush of orange and light vanilla swims in my mouth. I close my eyes, enjoying every drop.
"Oh my gosh," I moan in delight. "This is sooooo good."
I open my eyes and see a smiling Cato beginning to scoop the batter into wax paper cups.
"I'm glad you like it. I've been trying to get my mom to stock it but she hasn't relented yet," He sounds slightly sad when he says it, but he doesn't let it show. He just continues to scoop the batter in and then puts it in the oven. Then, he comes back and he makes a joke and I find myself laughing. Thinking about it, this is the first time that I have ever been done something like this, with anyone. And it is really fun.
What did you think of this chapter? Now I honestly really want cupcakes haha. Please feel free to review or comment on what you would like to see during this story, or what you are thinking of it so far.
Stay happy, healthy, and safe,
-Jewel.