September, Senior Year of High School

"You better bring her back in one piece, mister." Prim stated, crossing her tiny arms over her chest. She was being as threatening as a 12-year-old could, and it was taking all of Katniss' strength not to laugh at the picture.

"I will," Gale promised, crossing a finger over his chest, "I promise not to let any harm come to your sister."

"Bye, Prim!" She called out over her shoulder as she shut the door behind them. Gale broke out into a wide grin as soon as they were out of sight, and Katniss shook her head and let out a laugh.

"She's been getting really protective lately."

Gale shrugged, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as they walked to his truck parked across the street. "I think it's adorable. After all, you'll be doing the same thing once she starts dating boys." He shot her a knowing look, and she snorted.

"Right, like that's happening anytime soon."

She couldn't even picture her sister dating anyone, it just wasn't physically possible. She still slept with stuffed animals and tied her hair in ribbons. A boyfriend? Unheard of.

She was still pondering the fact as she climbed into the passenger side of the beat up Chevy, and Gale pressed a kiss to her temple to bring her back to reality.

"Catnip, come on. Don't worry about it. When Prim finds a boyfriend, however long that may take, I have no doubts that you'll find a way to keep him in line."

Katniss found herself nodding in agreement, and Gale started the truck. Just as they were about to back up, Katniss stopped him.

"She doesn't have to keep you in line, right?" She asked, the statement coming out more serious than she'd intended, "You'd never hurt me."

"Of course not." He replied, no hesitation in his tone.

She believed him. She was seventeen, and in love with a boy that she believed loved her as much as she loved him.

Little did she know, their relationship would have a devastating end.

September, Freshman Year of University

It was impossible. He shouldn't have been there.

But there he was, his dark eyes locking hers in an intense gaze from the other side of the table. The table fell silent as the tension grew, not even Johanna daring to break it in fear of one of them snapping.

She held eye contact for another moment before nodding curtly in his direction. She refused to let any emotion seep into her voice.

"Hello, Gale."

She saw the remorse that hid in his eyes, and looked down at her plate, at her lap, everywhere that didn't hold reminders of what happened last spring.

"Katniss, I'm sorry—"

That was her breaking point.

"Excuse me," She said as she stood abruptly, nearly knocking over her glass in the process, though she was far past caring. Without looking back, she pushed past two boys standing at the entrance and ran to the exit.

Madge found her a few minutes later staring at the blank wall across from her bed. The mattress squeaked as she sat down at the edge, and she placed a hand on Katniss' arm.

"You want to talk about what happened in there?" She asked. Though she wasn't expecting much to come from the conversation, she wanted to at least try to get her to open up.

"Glimmer and Clove seem very nice." Katniss stated, her eyes not moving from the spot on the white space. Madge sighed, at least she responded, which was more than she was expecting.

"Everyone down there is worried about you, you know."

"Why should they be? I'm fine."

Madge frowned, and stood in front of her, forcing Katniss to look at her. "When people can't even stand to be in a room with someone, obviously they are not 'fine'."

Katniss blinked. "I was just surprised to see him, is all."

Madge knew she was lying, but didn't want to cross a line on their second day of living together.

So she nodded, and let it slide.

"Okay," She said, standing up from the bed and giving Katniss' arm a pat. After giving her another once over quietly closed the door behind her and walked into the living room where the other girls were waiting anxiously.

"Well? How is she?" Annie asked, her eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"Five bucks says they had a messy breakup." Johanna grinned as she leaned back into the couch.

"She's fine, but she doesn't want to talk about it." Madge sighed, pointedly ignoring Jo's comment. "But I'm not giving up. I'm getting to the bottom of this."

Clove raised an eyebrow. "And how may I ask are you going to accomplish such a feat?"

Madge straightened tilted her chin up and flashed them a smile.

"I'm going to talk to Gale."

"Madge, you're here!" Finnick yelled, pulling the blond into a hug. She let out a squeak as she was lifted off the ground, and he chuckled before placing her down on the ground. "What brings you here, Miss Undersee?"

She rolled her eyes and pushed past him to the couch where Peeta was on his laptop. She closed it without hesitation, and pointed to the door.

"I need to talk to Gale." She ordered, leaving no room for argument in her tone. "You and Peeta need to get out."

"Is this about what happened at dinner? Because I thought some shit would go down—"

He grin faded when he saw the glare from Madge, and cleared his throat before nodding to the door. "I guess we'll just hang out with Cato. Shall we, Peeta?"

The boy in question spluttered out his objection, but after seeing the look from Madge quickly ducked his head and exited the dorm.

"He's in his room, good luck!" he called out over his shoulder, closing the door behind him. The sound echoed for a moment as she stood in the middle of the empty living room, psyching herself up.

Once she was confident enough, she knocked on the door marked with a G and put on her sternest face.

"Come in," he called out. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and let herself into his bedroom.

He was sitting at his desk, shirtless. Her eyes lingered for a moment too long, and she had to shake her head to keep herself on track.

"What happened between you and Katniss?"

He frowned. "What did she tell you?"

She hesitated. "Well, nothing."

"Then nothing."

She huffed in annoyance. Talking with this boy wasn't getting any easier.

"Look, Gale, I want to set things right between you two. Can't you just tell me what happened and—"

"You can't fix this, okay?" He interrupted angrily, "I fucked everything up that day with Katniss, and we're never going to be the same. So back off, alright?"

He stood up and attempted to close the door on her, but she refused to leave without some kind of answer.

"What did you do? Lie? Cheat? There has to be something you can do or say."

He chuckled darkly. "What I did was so much worse. Trust me when I say you don't want to get involved."

Against her protests, he shut the door and she was left more confused than when she first arrived.

"Do you think I'm being too nosy?" She asked Peeta later on that night.

They were sitting in her bedroom, him on the beanbag and her on her bed.

He chuckled. "You're always too nosy."

She rolled her eyes and threw a pillow at him. "I meant about this whole Gale and Katniss thing. Am I really supposed to just leave this be?"

He shrugged, leaning back and placing his hands behind his head.

"But don't you want her happy, Peeta?"

This comment caught him off guard, and he sat himself up on his elbows.

"Of course I want her to be happy," he said taking a deep breath, "But I think what's best for both of them right now is just to let them be."

She frowned, that was not the answer she was expecting from her best friend.

"Let them be?" she repeated, still unsure of the message.

He let out a yawn and nodded.

"Let them be."

Thanks for reading!

So now we know that something happened between Gale and Katniss, but what was it? How does Peeta feel about Katniss? Will Madge leave it alone, or will curiousity get the best of her?

Leave some of your ideas in a review or pm, and maybe I'll let you in on some hints :)

Till next time,

~FourofSpades