"Damn it," Acton muttered.

He and Anja were huddled in front of a fire they had managed to get going after countless tries to ignite a spark. They had grabbed weapons from the cornucopia—a sword and a dagger—but they didn't get any supplies. Sponsors had sent each of them a jacket with dried meat in the pockets, but that was it. It was still freezing cold out, and Acton's hands were so cold he could hardly bend his fingers. He stuffed them back into his pockets.

"I hate snow," Anja complained. Their fire was beginning to extinguish as the snow picked up a bit. The area that they had dug out in front of their shelter was beginning to fill up with snow again.

The two had gone south. After clearing the band of trees that encircled the cornucopia, they had walked for most of the day across a plain that was dotted with boulders and stout trees. They had eventually reached another forest that eventually ended in massive nine foot tall rose bushes that hugged a sheer cliff face. Using Anja's dagger, they had carved a shelter out of the rose bushes. They hollowed out a section between the stems of two of them and used the excess branches to create outer walls and a bit more of a roof. They had to be careful not to snag their clothes on the thorns and it wasn't very comfortable to lean against the mountainside, but it was dry and vaguely warmer than outside, and that was what they needed.

"I didn't think I did, but I definitely do," Acton sympathized.

Acton had been in favor of building their fire inside, but Anja had been adamantly against it. "One spark and our shelter catches on fire. Our shelter catches on fire, all these bushes catch on fire. The snow won't be able to put that shit out." Acton still wanted to at least have a tiny flame going to keep his hands warm, but he didn't want to be shot down by Anja again.

"Should we give up?" Acton asked after a period of morose silence. Anja shook her head.

"I want to get as much warmth out of this thing as I can."

Acton slid his hands out from his sleeves and cupped them over the dying flames. He felt a strong desire to slap his palms directly on the hot coals, but he figured that that would do more harm than good. A shiver ran through his body, causing him to jump slightly with its power. Anja looked up from the orange light and smiled at him, chuckling a bit. He shut his eyes, contracted his lips, and shook his head at her, like a child. She lifted a finger and batted him on the nose. Her finger was smooth and warm despite the conditions.

They stayed there, crowded around the remnants of their fire, until a layer of snow managed to cover the ashes without melting. It was then that they each unfurled themselves from the positions they had been sitting in and moved into their shelter. Acton flexed his fingers and toes, but no matter how many times he did so he couldn't bring feeling into them for more than a moment.

"This is dumb," Acton sighed.

"What is?" Anja asked, shivering as she leaned against the icy cold stone.

"This arena. We're all just going to freeze to death. Where's the fun in that?"

Anja leaned forward slightly, partly to get away from the rock face and partly because the conversation suddenly interested her. "I've actually been thinking about it quite a bit," she said in a hushed tone. Acton didn't know why she spoke so quietly. So the Capitol wouldn't hear her? They probably would be able to no matter what. "I think…I don't know, it sounds idiotic."

"It's me you're talking to," Acton pointed out. Anja smiled a little. "Just tell me."

"Well…the temperature has been dropping ever since we got here. And I've been thinking about it, and I think the Gamemakers might be trying to see how far they can go."

Acton looked at her blankly.

"I mean maybe they're seeing how cold it can get before the last person dies."

Neither of them spoke for a minute. Anja had said what she had meant to, and Acton was attempting to process it. He stared off into space, but he quickly got distracted by the girl sitting so close to him. Her skin was smooth and pale, rather like marble. In contrast, her eyes were a deep, mysterious blue. Her stylist had stained her lips red. She looked absolutely perfect, sitting there in the cold. Her thick jacket covered up her body, which Acton was truthfully disappointed about.

He shook his head. Focus. "Why would they do that?" he finally asked.

Anja shrugged. "No idea. I've been trying to work it out, but it doesn't make sense to me. They could easily just do this in a lab, with animals or avoxes or something. Not even to mention the fact that freezing to death isn't entertaining at all. I mean, I'm of the opinion that watching children die on television is never entertaining, but from a Capitol standpoint I don't see how this year's Games will be very interesting."

"God, you're smart."

"Is that all you got out of that?" Anja chided with a flattered smile.

"I'm not as smart as you. I just assume what you're saying is right," Acton replied. Anja chuckled and scooted a little closer to him.

"You're hopeless," she laughed.

Hopelessly in love with you, he wanted to reply, but that seemed like overdoing it. He could be a cheesy guy, but he didn't want to be that cheesy. That was just a little sickening. Instead, he closed the distance between them and draped his arm over her shoulders. "That's why I have you."

Anja leaned her head on his arm. Her immaculately curled dark brown hair was mostly hidden by the two hoods she had on, but a strand of it fell across her eyes. Acton took his other hand and gently brushed the strand away, tucking it underneath her hood. Anja turned her head slightly to look up at him. He smiled down at her.

I have to pee.

Acton shoved the thought from his head. Anja turned back to stare outside at the falling snow. Acton rested his head on hers, and it was nice even though there were four layers of clothing between their heads. They sat there in silence, watching as the tiny white flakes continued to fall, constantly building up. Acton knew that they'd have to go out and clear the snow again soon, but he didn't want to think about that. He pulled Anja a little closer to him and enjoyed her warmth.

"Hey, Acton?" Anja asked into the air in front of her.

"Yeah?"

"I just…," she trailed off, as though trying to find the right words. Acton didn't interrupt. He squeezed her slightly, a bit like a reassurance. "I really like you," she continued, "like, a whole lot. And it sucks that we're here and that we grew up in different Districts and that we'll probably both die here. And. I just wanted to tell you."

Acton gently placed two fingers under her chin and guided her head to face him. "I know I'm not the smartest tribute, but you definitely are. Not to mention you're badass, and I'm pretty buff myself." Anja giggled a little bit. "I'm also not very good at being romantic, apparently," he joked. "But that's beside the point. Anja, if we try, we'll make it out. And we'll get famous and go places and we'll get our happily ever after."

"Can that happen? Realistically?"

"It's almost happened before. Like with what's-his-face and that girl from like a hundred-and-fifty years ago."

"Katniss and Peeta," Anja supplied. "Bu—"

"Yeah, them!" Acton said enthusiastically. "We'll be like them. They almost made it out together."

"But they didn't. Peeta died. Almost doesn't cut it."

"Well then we'll just have to be better."

Anja smiled weakly. Acton smiled back at her, but something in the back of his mind was bothering him. Holy crap, I have to pee. Oh, just ignore it. You're cuddling with the girl of your dreams. Piss can wait. He focused on her dark blue eyes. They were absolutely gorgeous. Clichéd as it was, it legitimately was like looking at two luminescent sapphires. She was flawless. It was completely unfair that she was in the Games. He wanted her to win. He would die if it meant saving her. He would be her Peeta.

She craned her neck up slightly and closed her eyes. Acton leaned in, but before their lips met, he flinched. My GOD I have to pee.

"I'm so sorry," he said, pulling away," but I need to pee so bad."

"Is that code for something?" Anja asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh god, no," Acton laughed. "I just seriously need to pee. Like, wicked bad. I don't even know why. Okay. I'll be back."

He ducked out of their makeshift shelter, burning with embarrassment. He dearly hoped that there had been no Capitol cameras to witness that exchange. All of Panem would be laughing at him. His brother would be rolling on the floor, cackling so hard his sides hurt. Acton sighed. It didn't even matter, he just really needed to pee.

He briefly worried about getting caught on camera. Would they film that? Is that legal? Who am I kidding, it's the Hunger Games. What the hell are laws? Oh my god I just need to pee fuck it. Oh god what if another tribute is watching me. WHAT IF THEY KILL ME WHILE I'M PEEING? Oh my god I need to calm down. I need to pee.

Eventually, he quit worrying and just hid in a clump of bushes. The air was absolutely frigid and the experience was completely miserable. He returned to the rose cave a few minutes later. Anja smirked at him, blocking the entrance. "Did you wash your hands?"

"Oh my god it's like negative a trillion degrees what do you want from me?"

"Negative a trillion?"

He stuck his tongue out at her. "Fine," he said, smiling a little bit despite his reluctance. He bit his lip and plunged his hands into the snow. He rubbed them around a bit until they felt raw with cold and then wiped them on his pants before hiding them in his sleeves. "Happy?"

"I mean ideally you would have used soap, but I understand, considering the circumstances."

"How noble of you," Acton said sarcastically. She beamed. He looked sternly at her for a minute before cracking. "You're too cute it's not fair."

She smiled at him and grabbed the front of his jacket, pulling him towards her.

AN: This chapter is proof that I have no idea how to write a horny teenage boy. I'm sorry you had to read that, haha. xx