I'm really sorry. I realise I might have sounded whiny in the last chapter. I'm really sorry. I just wanted you to tell me how you feel about the story and whether I should continue it.

If you give unnecessary hate like 'I should die for writing Galeniss' 'How can you ship it' etc, I can't do anything about it. I just won't bother with that review so don't waste your time on that. But I'm always up for constructive criticism since I believe that kind helps me to write better.

And to the guest who suggested me the name Chrisa, thank you. It gave me an idea for a new name 'Cheris'.

***...***...***

Today is the day. The day I'll know whether I can go back to 12 or not. In a minute, I have a meeting with the principal Mrs. Cheris.

"Ms. Everdeen, she is ready to see you." Her secretary says to me.

I stand and go into the room.

Mrs Cheris is a small lady. But her eyes are enough to let you know she is not someone you want to mess with in spite of her constant smile.

"Please sit down, Ms Everdeen."

I sit in the chair in front of her.

"I'm sure you already know why you're here so I won't bother going into it" she states. "So, some students have shown an interest for your subject." My heart pummeled at that. I don't want this job. She continued "But it's not enough to offer you a permanent job. We would of course like to have you continue with us but we know it won't be fair on you to force you to continue with us without performing our part of the promise i.e. to give you a permanent job. So, I would like for us to forget the old contract. Will that be alright?"

"Yes." No. I don't know where this is going. But I hope this goes where I want it to go.

"So, now you have two options. Either you leave as was already decided if you weren't offered a permanent job or you can continue with us for 6 more months as a trial like before and then we will see."

I can't believe it. I can leave. I want to jump up and dance but I control myself. I try to put on a somber thinking face like I'm trying to take a decision when inside I have already decided and my heart is doing back flips.

"You don't have to decide now. Take two days and then let me know."

I am tempted to say I have already decided but don't, knowing how it'll sound. I just nod at her and leave.

***…***…***

Coming back, I have to stop myself from skipping home. I'm free, I'm singing to myself. In my own happiness, I don't see where I'm going and I crash into someone.

"I'm so sorry, I-" I stop when I see who I ran into. "Hey, Gale." I say, a little awkwardly. Our last meeting and the kiss is still fresh in my mind.

"Hey, Katniss. You look happy."

"I am. I can leave my job."

"Congratulations."

"I can't wait to go back."

"I'm happy for you."

"Thank You." We stand there in silence not knowing what to say. I want to talk about the kiss but on the other hand, I want to forget it ever happened. The kiss still confused me just as much as it had when it happened. After it had happened, we had just stood there looking at each other until Gale had decided to awkwardly say goodbye. I was grateful. At least then. Because I had figured that once I was alone I could figure out what had happened and how to deal with it. But still, I had no idea.

"Katniss, we have to talk."

"Yes. But not here. Can you come to my house?"

"Not right now. But I'll come in an hour."

"Okay, see you then."

***…***…***

It's 45 minutes since I ran into Gale. I can't help but feel anxious about the talk we were going to have. I still hadn't decided what the kiss meant. It was just so unexpected yet something I didn't know I was waiting for. I needed to sort out my feelings for it and for Gale but I couldn't. I was so confused. I thought I had gotten over my feelings for Gale long ago yet here I was kissing him and I'm pretty sure, a part of me enjoyed it.

I don't know what to think or what to feel.

And then, I hear a knock on my door. Gale. The time has come.

***…***…***

"So….." I say when he is sitting on the couch beside me.

"So…." He replies.

"What was that?" I ask with a sudden burst of courage.

"I don't know. I thought I had moved on. That the only feelings I had for you where of old friends. But now…."

"Now?" I ask.

"Now, I don't know. Obviously, that kiss wouldn't have happened if I was over you. Or maybe that's just remnants of old feelings that we both ran away from and maybe now we are finally over it and we can move on."

"Do you believe that?" I don't know why but I didn't want Gale's theory to be true.

"No? I don't know." he says frustration evident in his voice. "What about you?"

"I'm confused too. We were both supposed to be over it but now I don't know what to do."

"What do you feel…. about the, uhm, the kiss?"

"That I had somehow been anticipating it even though I was surprised by it." I say. Gale doesn't look too surprised at that and I wonder if he had thought that too.

"What do we do now?" he asks me.

"I don't think we can do anything. I'm going back to 12 in 3 days. So you can't drop in on me when you visit your siblings. Unless, of course, you especially visit me."

"Yeah, Peeta would love that."

"He's actually no longer in 12. That's why I'm now going back."

"Oh."

"So what do we do now? Was the kiss about the past or about something else?" I ask. And suddenly, I know what my answer is going to be.

"Katniss, I did once love you. I don't know about now. We both have changed since then. What if what we really felt for each other has no place now?"

I nod at him. But still, a part of me wants to take a chance. "What if it has? I mean, yes we both have changed but what if it is for the better? Maybe we couldn't work back then because we weren't ready yet."

"So you want to try? What if it ends like before? Us not talking to each other for about a decade?"

"Us not being in touch had nothing to do with that. It was more along the lines that I needed you to go away because -" I stop myself.

"Because you still blamed me for Prim's death." He finishes for me. He continues "I know that. That's why I went away. Because I knew as long as you blamed me, you won't ever heal with me by your side."

"But that can't happen now." I try to reason with him.

"Don't you get it? I knew that you will one day forgive me but I was scared to face you. I was scared that you will still hate me. That if you were with Peeta or someone else, you would never want something to do with me, even being my friend, all because once, I had more than friendly feelings for you."

"So, are you going to be scared now or are you going to take a chance? It's up to you now." In that moment I know what he must have felt like in the past. To give me a choice where I could choose him or someone else. He had given me a key to his heart then but I had rejected it. Rejected him. Now I was in his position. I was giving him a chance to choose me or go away. And he probably had more than enough reason to go away. He could now reject me.

He opens his mouth. And suddenly, I'm afraid. Afraid he'll go away. Afraid he'll do what I did. Reject him.

"I'll take that chance." He says finally.

***...***...***

Review and let me know what you thought.

Now time for a kind of poll. Do you want me to end soon or continue like I had planned? I realise I'm not updating as quick as I would have liked. So I could continue the way I had planed but it will be slow. Or I could end it way before I had planned. I would have liked to continue like I had planned because I feel Galeniss still have a lot of things to sort out. But forcing you to wait a long time is not nice either. So you choose.