(Katniss' POV.)
My entire body goes numb. The sound of Finnius' screams are heart wrenching, the thought just making me want to kill Gale even more. This is not the Gale I loved. This is a blood thirsty maniac.
I force myself to crawl across the blood soaked pavement, every movement making pain rip through my swollen ankle. Bones are definitely broken, but there's nothing I can do about it. There's no reason for me to even care about it. Finnius is who's important. Not me.
"Finnius!" I yell out in a hoarse voice.
"I'm bleeding!" He screams back, the dark red liquid now pooling around him.
If we don't get him to a doctor quick, I know he won't make it. I can't afford to lose someone else. I begin dragging myself faster, my arms instinctively latching onto Finnius once I finally reach him.
He tilts his head slightly to the side, his bright blue eyes now colored red from the tears.
"Am I gonna die, mommy?" He whispers, his lower lip beginning to tremble. Hot tears run down my face as I hold onto him, his chest rising and falling quickly against mine.
"You're fine, Finn. Everything's going to be okay." I struggle to get out, the words tasting like venom. I know everything isn't going to be okay. It will never be okay.
His body suddenly jolts forward, the movement making blood run down the back of his neck.
"It hurts!" He screams, his eyes beginning to let out another stream of tears.
I cautiously cup the back of his head with my palm, my fingers tightly wrapping around the large gash.
He screams louder, the touch of my hand making him jolt forward again.
"Don't move!" I hiss, the sound of him crying only making me cry harder. A loud noise suddenly catches my attention.
My head quickly twists to the side, Gale's body now resting far off to the right of me. His chest rises and falls very slowly, each breath seeming to be a struggle for him. That should keep him down for a good amount of time.
(Peeta's POV.)
Black dots litter my vision, everything inside of me now now overwhelmingly weak. I can't give up this fight. I'm not going to give Gale that satisfaction.
I force myself over to Katniss and Finnius, the sight of him immediately bringing me to tears.
"Oh my god." I whisper to myself, my fingers automatically sliding into Finnius' hand. He grips onto me tightly, his lip trembling as he speaks.
"I tried to save you, daddy." He whispers, each word sounding more painful than the one before. His breathing grows short and fast, a sweat beginning to break out on his forehead.
"You're my hero, little guy." I whisper back, my voice growing more and more hoarse.
Finnius' face grows whiter by the second, his blood now running down Katniss' arms.
"Katniss, we need to go now!" I say loudly, my voice cutting off at the end as the tears begin to flow faster.
She nods quickly, both of us not willing to waste anymore time. I cautiously scoop Finnius into my arms, his head violently bobbing at the quick movement.
I nearly collapse right then and there, my arms too weak to even hold him. There's no way Katniss can hold him with her bad ankle, so I know it has to be me. I'm not letting my son die. I will make sure of that, no matter what it takes.
"Someone get Meddy!" I desperately scream, my hand quickly clutching onto Finnius' wound the same way Katniss did.
A woman dressed in a white blouse immediately comes running out of her small shop, her tiny legs rushing her over to me.
"You don't have much time," She hisses at me in a low whisper, her fingers immediately going to work as he remains in my arms.
The woman pulls out a brown cloth from her pant pocket, her hands cautiously tying it around Finnius' head.
"That should hold off the blood for a brief period of time," she says quickly, her shaky fingers examining the rest of his head.
The District's doctor, Meddy, is soon rushing out of the same building, her gloved hands dragging a stretcher behind her back.
She nearly falls over once she reaches us, her arms immediately pulling Finnius free from my arms. The two women quickly begin strapping him down on the stretcher, their eyes not leaving him for an instant.
"Hurry! He's not going to make it much longer!" Meddy screams into the other woman's face. The woman immediately springs into action, her hands latched tightly onto the edge of the stretcher as she drags it along.
Katniss grabs onto me for support as we both begin to follow close behind, each step shooting pain throughout my entire body. The image of Finnius pushes me to keep going, nothing stopping me.
Rose begins to catch up, her cries of worry echoing around us. I try my best to ignore it in attempt to hold back my own tears, the plan only lasting momentarily.
I explode into a sob as we finally reach the entrance to the small building, Katniss and I both on the verge of passing out.
(Katniss' POV.)
Finnius' screams can be heard from the other end of the room, each one only making me cry harder. I rock violently in my seat, Peeta's hold on my arm being the only thing keeping me from exploding into the emergency room.
Meddy and the woman keep yelling things to each other, but they are speaking so fast that it's impossible to understand. I wish I could. Then I'd actually know what's going on back there.
A scream more heart shattering than the last tears through the entire building, the sound making me explode into a hysterical sob. My body thrusts forward in a burst of emotions, everything inside of me growing numb. I can't lose my baby boy. I refuse to lose someone else I love. Gale did this to him. This only makes me cry harder, my shaky hands beginning to claw at the ground.
Peeta's arms grab hold of me like I'm a runaway cat, his hands dragging me back into his lap. His lips trace the edge of my ear as he whispers to me.
"We have to stay calm." He hisses in a shaky voice, his tear filled eyes staring hard into mine. I shake my head quickly, my lip trembling as I try my best to speak.
"He can't die, Peeta. He can't!" I scream out, my breathing growing faster by the second.
The door to the emergency room suddenly swings open, Meddy now inching closer to us.
Her entire face is covered in a thick layer of sweat and tears, her fingers beginning to trace the edge of her pocket as she stares down at us. Sorrow fills her eyes as she scoots closer, her head now leveled to mine.
"I'm so sorry," she begins to say, her voice trailing off at the end. She swallows hard, her face beginning to twist into a look of disappointment.
"H-he's not going to make it any longer. The injury is too severe." Meddy whispers, tears beginning to spill down her face.
I'm up on my feet and crashing through the emergency doors before I know it, the pain ripping through my ankle not important.
The sound of footsteps come from behind me, but I ignore them. I immediately pull Finnius into a tight hug.
"I'm gonna die, aren't I?" He whispers in my ear.
I look deep into his fear filled eyes, his entire body shaking against mine.
He doesn't wait for an answer. "Where do you go when you die?"
I give him a slight smile as the tears continue to run down my cheeks. "An amazing place."
He nods quickly, his facial expression impossible to read. Peeta's hand suddenly grasps onto Finnius.
"It hurts." Finnius whispers.
Peeta pulls him into a light hug, his lips pressing onto his forehead.
"I'm so sorry." He whispers, his shaky hands beginning to run through Finnius' messy blonde hair.
"I'm sorry I can't grow up and be just like you, daddy." He whispers back, the tears beginning to flow faster.
His chest suddenly jolts forward, dark red blood now escaping through the opening between his lips.
He screams out in pain as he coughs out more blood, his body shaking uncontrollably.
Meddy rushes over with a small container, her small hands shoving it in front of his face.
Once he's finished, his body slumps back against the pillow. I can't bear to watch any longer.
Finnius' tiny fingers suddenly grasp onto my cheeks. They gently move across my face to wipe away the tears, his touch sending a warm feeling all over.
"I love you." He whispers in a hoarse voice, the words trailing off at the end.
"I love you too." All three of us whisper back.
His body doubles over again, only this time he begins coughing up twice the amount of blood.
Meddy jabs various tubes into the vein in his arm, the woman assisting her.
"He's not going to make it any longer!" The woman hisses, her voice barely audible.
My fingers curl around Finnius' for dear life, my heart feeling as if it's been ripped into two.
His grasp grows weaker by the second, his chest rising and falling much slower now.
"Can you sing?" Finnius whispers in between screams of pain, his head constantly slamming into the pillow.
An image of Rue burns into my mind. It's her death all over again.
I nod quickly, everything inside of me feeling as if it's shutting down.
I immediately break into a soft voice as I gently sing the words; the same words Rue heard as she died in my arms.
"Deep in the meadow, under the willow."
I picture Finnius when he was born; how happy Peeta and I finally felt. The joy of holding him in my arms for the first time.
"A bed of grass, a soft green pillow. Lay down your head, and close your sleepy eyes."
I still remember the day when he first laid eyes on the oven. The look of excitement that filled his gaze. He would have made an amazing baker. There's no doubt in my mind about that.
I can hardly say the last words, the tears now overwhelming. "And when again they open, the sun will rise."
I watch as Finnius' chest stops moving, his bright blue eyes beginning to close. From this point on, I know that those eyes will never see another day.