Sorry I haven't updated sooner. My life's been a bit of a mess lately. If you're curious, Nahla mentions it in this chapter.

Chapter 28

I look over Nahla's bewildered face. I wonder for a second if she's choking on the apple she's eating but she starts breathing again, "What do you mean you fixed my reaping?"

I feel awful. I never had a chance really but she didn't have to be put in these games. It was really all my fault. If I could just keep things to myself, this wouldn't have happened. "Nahla, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to…"

Her face turns a pale white. It looks strange compared to her regular dark tone. "You mean I'm going to die? That's what you're saying?"

I try my best to appear optimistic, "Well, you could always win."

Her faces flashes bright red in anger, "I'm not stupid. I've heard what those games are like. There pretty much is no chance of winning. I'm going to die. You're going to die. Even your precious Prim. We're all dead!"

I hold my tongue and let her get her frustration out. "I really am sorry."

"No. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gotten angry. You didn't mean to. It's just… This sucks you know?" She wipes away a tear and stares at it on her finger tip, "You know, I've never cried before. Not even when my friend killed himself. It's not that I wasn't sad, I just couldn't cry. I even tried to make myself, but it just didn't come. Made me feel like crap too. It's like if I don't cry, people just think I'm this cold person that doesn't care about anyone or anything but me."

"Well aren't you crying because you're going to die?" I didn't mean it in a mean way, but I grew afraid that that's the way it came out as.

"No, that's not why I'm crying. Don't get me wrong, dieing sucks and it scares me like hell, but that's not the thought that made me cry."

My natural curiosity gets the better of me, "Then what is?"

She blushes, "It's kind of corny, but I think it's really sad you and Prim will never really be able to be together. Only one of you, if either, can come out alive. And I don't know… dieing sucks but that, that really sucks."

I hang on to every word she says. My mind agrees with her but my mouth can't form words. If Prim were dead, how would I go on? I let a tear roll down my cheek and I finally find words, "We really never will be together." The truth sucks.

Nahla looks down at her hands. "I'm going to go home and spend some time with my family." I don't say a word as she gets up and leaves.

I don't sleep that night. I don't even go to bed. I just sit at the kitchen counter and think about Prim. I can't help but be grateful for the moments we've shared together. From eating Prim's chicken flavored cake in cooking to the wild look in her eye as she takes the wheel of the car as we kidnap Lucy. It all boils down to that first kiss. I close my eyes and my mind brings me back to the pond. Prim is ranting on and on about how tired she is of living a double life. Her subject abruptly changes to me. She can't stop talking about how worried she is that I'll be taken from her world and how she can't stop thinking about me. I flinch as I recall not kissing her right away but delaying. She thought I didn't feel the same way back. I melt as the waiting was finally over and our lips meet. I'm stuck in this one moment of time. I play it over and over again in my head.

My alarm clock sounds from inside my room. I open my eyes and frown. I had almost convinced myself it was real; that I really was kissing Prim again. I think about this Friday. Yes, Prim and I will both be sent into the Hunger Games. But Prim and I will also see each other again. Suddenly, I can't wait for Friday.

I skip breakfast and head straight for school. I am here early. I notice several people point at me and whisper. I finger the ring uncomfortably. For years I had managed to avoid being the center of people's talk. That all ended now.

Lucy comes up to me. "So I hear you've been sleeping around." I stay silent, "Why not me?"

"Lucy, you already know how I feel about Prim…"

"And obviously a bunch of other girls."

She turns and walks away. "Hey whore." Some one in the distance shouts. I get major déjà vu of the first day Prim came to 4. I expect them to be talking to Lucy but they're not. They mean me.

I turn to see who it is. Kristina. She walks up to me. She stares at my ring and smiles, "I figured it out."

I nod. I try to be nice. My life is going to be over soon anyways so I decided not to waste any time being angry at people, "Yeah, I've heard some things."

She looks up at my eyes, "Did I get it right?"

I let out a low chuckle, "Yeah, actually you did."

She does a little fist pump, "So my record stands."

"What record is that?"

"Always getting the truth when the truth isn't told. I've never been wrong."

"Well I'm really… happy you figured it out." I have to force the happy from my lips. I more of feel numb. "But if we could tone down the gossip just a little bit?"

She rolls her eyes, "I hardly told anyone."

I continue to hold back my anger. I just nod and go to my locker. She follows and fills my head with meaningless stories and rumors of other people. I try to tune her out but it proves impossible.

Nahla walks up from behind. "Kristina, can you go? I need to talk to Nick for a sec alone."

Kristina looks really hurt inside but leaves.

I look at Nahla, "So what do you need to talk about?"

She shrugs her shoulders, "Nothing really. I just figured… well who wants to spend their last days surrounded by people like that?"

I laugh, "Yeah she's a bit of a handful."

All of my classes pass slowly. Nahla and I form a new friendship and eat lunch together. Neither of us talk much because right now the only thing we have in common is our upcoming death.

The rest of the week passes like this. Rumors, Kristina, Nahla to the rescue, lunch, go home, think of Prim. Then it's Friday.

I'll really try to stay on it and update sooner. Like I said, I don't give up on my stories but the time between updates is a bit longer than I'd ever expected.

I need some input. This is for if you think it would be better written this way, not a happier way for the story. Should I do traditional one-winner games or make something happen so more than one gets out?