Chapter 8

After supper, I excuse myself and head up to the roof. Like always, it's empty. I walk over to the edge and sit down, hanging my legs over the edge. The streets below me are brightly lit. I can see people milling in on the sidewalks and cars speeding down the road. In Twelve, there isn't any light at night, not unless you count the candles, but here everything is bright, even if the sky isn't. It's unsettling.

"You gonna jump?" Someone asks from behind me. I flinch and stand up. Peeta's there. I glare at him, but he starts speaking.

"Look, Katniss. I know I did a dick move back there, but I like you, I really really like you and don't want to spend my last days with your hating me," He says in a rush.

I take a deep breath, with half a mind to yell at him some more, but at the same time I know I'll feel worse, "Fine," I say, reluctantly.
Peeta smiles, "So, are you jumping?" He gestures to the edge I had just been sitting on.

I look back over the edge, "I can't. There's a forcefield and even if there wasn't, I still couldn't because if I die, my family probably goes with me."

"You volunteered for Prim, right?" He asks.

I nod, "She was only twelve, it wasn't fair."

"The Games are never fair," He says, bitterly.

"It doesn't matter. As long as twenty three of us die, the Capitol doesn't have to fear another rebellion," I tell him.

"Guess so. Some of the people in the Seam are always debating about running to the woods and never coming back. They never do it though, always too scared to do anything but dream about it. Looking back, I wish I'd managed to do it," Peeta remarks.

"What's the Seam?" I ask him.

"Part of Twelve. The poor part. Or the poorer part, I guess. There's one guy who had forty two tesserae in it," Peeta says.

"Forty two? That's not possible," I say. There's no way. I know Twelve is poorer than most districts, but even thirty tesserae in Seven is considered a death wish.

"True though," Peeta says. He sounds defeated, like Johanna did when I caught her with the letter the other night.

"Twelve sounds awful," I tell him.

"It is. Just the other month, we lost twenty five men to a mine explosion," Peeta tells me, regretfully.

"Wow."

A cold wind blows past us and I feel myself shivering.

"Do you want to go inside?" He asks.

I shake my head, "Come here," I point to a spot on the edge of the roof next to me. Peeta climbs on it.

"It's nice, isn't it?" I tell him.

Peeta nodded, staring at the ground that was so far away from us.

"Look at all the parties," He points a few of them out. They're bigger than the ones I saw on my first day. Louder too.

"Probably celebrating us," He says.

"That's sick."

"The entire Capitol is sick. They root for their favourites and cheer when they die. They see us as little chess pieces, that they can dress up and force to kill," Peeta explains

"Are we even humans to them? Or just animals? Or even less?" I ask.

"We're human to them, of course. But they like to see themselves as Gods," He responds.

I sigh and lean against him. He begins playing with my braid a bit. I look up at the starless sky.

"The Capitol even managed to ruin the sky," I mutter.

"I hope the games don't change me," Peeta says.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't want to become a killer, Katniss. I don't want them to change me," He tells me, truthfully.

I think about Prim and Mom, who'd probably starve to death unless I get back, "I can't afford to think like that."

Peeta shrug, "I won't let them."

"We should probably get back to bed," I say, but I'm not motivated to move.

"Probably," Peeta agrees, but he doesn't move either. We stay like that, together staring at the starless sky.

I think we fell asleep, because I wake up to yelling.

"Katniss? Katniss!" Johanna screams. I wake up alone. Peeta had probably gotten cold and went inside. I feel a tinge of hurt, but I brush it off.

"The private session starts in an hour!" She yells.

Right, the private session that could decide if I survive or die. Shit. Johanna and I run down to the apartment, where Blight looks ready to blow a gasket.

"Rilien's already down there! Get changed!"

I practically fly to my room, find another training outfit and put it on as quick as I can. I grab some strange bright yellow pastry, before running to the elevator.

Once I reach the waiting room, the voice calls in the fox faced girl from Five. I let out a sigh of relief as I sit next to Rilien.

"Where were you?" He asks, "I thought you might miss your session."

"Doesn't matter," I respond.

"Johanna and Blight were searching the entire centre for you. I could just ask them," Rilien tells me. I felt like slapping him, even if it's explicitly against the rules. Instead, I manage to satisfy myself with glaring at him. I redo my hairdo and watched as the number of tributes slowly dwindled down.

"Katniss Everdeen, District 7," A monotone voice over the intercom announces. I stand up. Peeta shoots me a thumbs up and I walk into the training centre. It's eerie how quiet the centre is without anyone else in it. Every step I take echoes down the room. The only activity is the game makers, who are partying in their small room. I spot the bow and arrow and walk over to them. I wait for the game makers to shut up about their pies and crap, before realizing that they haven't even noticed me walk into the room.

"Katniss Everdeen!" I yell at them, "District 7!" The game makers look at me as I prep the arrow. The string is different from what I'm used to and I pray it won't effect my aim. I draw the string back, aiming for the heart of the dummy. I hold my breath as I let it fly. Seeing where it lands, the game makers begin laughing, turning their attention back to the fat cooked pig that was just brought in. I stare at the arrow. It hadn't even hit the cutout body. I ready another one and it lands dead centre. I smile victoriously, before turning to look at the game makers, that haven't noticed I had fired another one. They're just crowding around the pig with the apple in it mouth.

It was probably one of the stupidest things I'd ever done, but I'm so full of rage that I aim the arrow and shoot. The apple flies out of the mouth and attaches itself to the wall with an arrow sticking out of it. I remember Johanna's advice on to shock them, but I was pretty sure she didn't want me to do that by shooting at the game makers. I can't help myself from smiling when I see all their faces. They had their mouths open wide and their eyebrows look like they're trying to detach themselves from their faces. I take a mock bow, before leaving the centre.

Hope everyone enjoyed reading!