I'm trying to be nice with a quick(ish) update. I'm wondering if I should do all three books, or just the first one?
I forgot to do a disclaimer last time. I don't own the Hunger Games or any of its characters.
Chapter 19
We lie there in silence for a while. I listen to my breathing, and notice that it is much quicker than Gale's, which I guess might be a part of the shock that I think I'm in. I decide to try to match my breathing with his, taking deep, even breaths. It feels forced, but eventually it becomes more natural and I don't have to copy him anymore.
It seems that Gale was listening to my breathing too. As soon as I feel myself relax, he shifts his weight around and pulls me closer against him. My back is to him, and his arms are around my waist.
"Madge." He whispers after a few moments of silence. "Madge, I'm so sorry." He sounds so sad, and I'm surprised how much it hurts to hear it. I want to say something, tell him he has nothing to be sorry for, that it was my fault - but something holds me back. The words get caught in my throat, and instead I start to cry quietly. Gale's arms tighten around me.
"Please don't cry, Madge. Please." He whispers. His voice is truly broken now. I start to shuffle round weakly, so that I can face him. When I become still again, Gale raises one hand and very slowly touches my cheek. I try to stop from flinching, but I can't help it. Every touch reminds me of how Zach touched me, and it brings back a ghost of the panic I felt in that moment. Gale's eyes mirror the pain in mine, and I wish that I could be okay for him. I can't bear hurting him like this.
Gale tries again, moving his hand even slower this time. Gently, he rests his palm against my cheek, watching me closely to see how I react. My breathing accelerates, but other than that, nothing happens. Slowly, Gale moves his thumb across my cheek and wipes a tear away.
"I hate to see you hurting like this." He whispers. "I'm so sorry I couldn't be there, I should've been able to stop him, I-"
"Don't." I manage to croak. "Don't, Gale. You have nothing to be sorry for." He tenses when I say this, and frowns.
"You might think otherwise," my voice gathers strength as I continue, "but it's not true. Without you, I don't know what would have happened to me..." I trail off, trying not to think about what Zach would have done to me, had Prim not walked onto that street. Gale shudders slightly, and pulls me closer to him again.
"Did he hurt you?" He asks quietly.
"No, I..." I remember my arm, and lift it up so I can see it. My eyes widen in surprise, and Gale inhales sharply. Black and purple bruises are scattered across my arm from where Zach had held it.
"...Oh..." I say, staring at it. I think I begin to come out of shock, as my arm starts to hurt a lot. It aches from my shoulder to my wrist, and I feel fresh tears begin to form in my eyes. I try to blink them away and move my hand to the back of my head, where Zach had hit it off of the wall. I flinch when I touch there, and feel that I have a lump from where it had been hit. I run my fingers over my hair and realise that there's blood in it.
"My head..." I whisper, pulling my hand away and examining it. A small amount of fresh blood decorates my fingertips, and I stare at them, surprised by the sight of my own blood.
Gale grimaces when he sees this. He shifts around and sits up slowly, so as not to scare me.
"We need to get you to a doctor." He says, no longer sounding sad. Instead, he sounds angry.
"I can't go to the doctor's, they'll tell my father." I say quickly. How could I begin to explain Zach to him? Talking to him about Gale had been hard enough.
"Madge," Gale sighs, running one hand through his already messy hair. "Your father is going to find out about this. He'd notice your arm." I glance at my arm and sigh.
"And anyway," he continues, "I didn't mean the doctor from the Town. I meant Mrs. Everdeen."
"Ah." I say quietly. I had never met Katniss's mother, and I wasn't exactly excited to meet her. I had been friends with her daughter (although I questioned whether this friendship would remain once Katniss came home), but that didn't change the fact that I was from the Town. Many people from the Seam regarded us with hostility, probably because of the Games. Their children were far more likely to be picked than I was, and I wished it wasn't like that. It was unfair, I understood that, but it couldn't be changed.
Gale wraps one arm round my shoulders, and begins to lift me into a sitting position.
"Can you walk?" He asks.
"I don't know..." I say slowly, swinging my feet over the side of the bed, and placing them on the wooden floor. I glance around myself, and take in my surroundings. I assume that this is Gale's bedroom. There's one window, but it's small and the curtains are drawn. There are three pieces of furniture in the room: the bed, an old wardrobe, and a chair in the corner. I can't help but compare it to my room, and shake my head quickly to get rid of the thought. I flinch when I do this, as it hurts my head, and I automatically move my hand to it.
"Are you okay?" Gale asks quickly.
"Yeah, I'm fine." I say, shaking my head slower this time. I push my weight down onto my heels and rise slowly, wondering if my head injury would have an affect on my balance and whether I could walk. I straighten and suddenly my head feels light, and I lose my balance. Gale catches me, his arms fastening round my waist tightly. He picks me up, one arm under my legs, one under my back, where my shoulder blades are.
"You look so pale," he whispers sadly.
"I'm pale anyway." I say, managing a small smile, which he does not return. I guess he isn't in the mood for jokes, even my pathetic ones.
He walks slowly, trying not to jolt me. I'm filled with curiosity to see the rest of his house - after all, I had only been there once before - but I close my eyes and let my neck relax, my head hanging backwards.
When Gale opens the door, my eyelids are filled with light, and I screw my eyes up against the sudden change. Gale moves quicker now, but he still holds me gently.
After about five minutes, he stops. Unable to knock on the Everdeen's door, he calls out Prim's name. Seconds later, she opens the door. I want to say hello to her, to thank her for getting Gale for me, but I feel completely drained of energy. My head still feels light.
"Could you get your mother for me?" Gale asks quietly. Prim doesn't say anything, so I assume she nods, and I can hear her walk away. Gale enters the house and nudges the door shut with his foot behind him. He walks for a few more seconds, then stops again. This time, a different voice speaks.
"What happened, Gale?" I assume this is Katniss's mother. I feel Gale lower my body onto what feels like a wooden table, and I open my eyes slowly, my vision slightly blurry. A tall woman stands above me, her blonde hair scraped back into a tight bun. I notice that small strands have escaped and trail down the back of her neck. Opposite her stands Gale, who is looking at the woman.
"Zach, he... He corned her, and... He hurt her. She's bashed her head, and her arm..." I watch him indicate towards my arm, which is limp by my side. A few moments later, I feel a pair of cold hands run over my arm, so softly I barely feel it. She turns my arm over and I wince, my shoulder protesting. I remember the way Zach twisted it, and hold back a shudder.
Next, Mrs. Everdeen rolls me onto my side, working silently. I guess she understands that I'm not in the mood for talking right now. She touches the cut on my head, and the coldness of her hands feels good against my skin.
"How long since it happened?" She asks Gale as she rolls me onto my front again.
"About an hour." He says quietly. He's moved out of my vision, and I assume he's leaning against a wall somewhere.
"Her head is swollen, and there's a cut, although it's not too bad. It's too late to use ice to stop the swelling... Your arm has been twisted, correct?" This is the first time she has addressed me.
"Yeah.. I mean yes." I say, trying to be polite. Mrs. Everdeen doesn't seem to notice though, and moves away from the table. I hear her rummaging through a cupboard as she begins to speak to Gale again.
"The swelling is good, it means she's less likely to have any internal damage. I'll clean the cut, but she doesn't need stitches. She'll need to rest for a while, and someone will have to be with her in case she has concussion. I can't do much for her arm... Her shoulder will feel better in a few days, but these bruises..."
I feel some cold water being poured onto my head, and I let out a small gasp in surprise. Mrs. Everdeen doesn't react to this, and moves to my arm. I feel some kind of cream being rubbed into the bruised areas, and I try not to wince when she touches the most painful bits. Finally she takes a bandage and wraps it round my arm, and I can't help but let out a small whimper when she ties it. I hear Gale walk over to me, and then my hand is in his.
"It's okay, Madge. You're gonna be okay." He sounds like he's both reassuring me and him, but I ignore this. I just focus on his face above me, and concentrate on my breathing.
"That's all I can do, Gale. I'm sorry I can't do more." Mrs. Everdeen sounds genuinely apologetic, and I look at her gratefully. It was incredibly generous of her to help me, not only a stranger, but someone from the Town. I begin to sit up, and feel Gale press his hand against my chest, pushing me down again.
"No, it's okay. I can do it." I say, propping myself up on my good elbow. Gale looks worried, but doesn't move to stop me. I turn my gaze to Mrs. Everdeen, who has been watching me quietly.
"Thank you. This is unbelievably generous of you; I'll repay you as soon as I can..." I say, wishing I had brought some money. Then again, I hadn't expected to end up here.
Mrs. Everdeen waved her hand at me in dismissal.
"It's fine." She says quietly. "I only used one strip of bandage and some water, hardly expensive items." I still wished that she hadn't had to use them on me. I knew that even the smallest things were valuable to the people here in the Seam.
"No, I want to repay you." I say firmly. "And I will." She nods gratefully, and I look at Gale.
"Where do we go now?" I ask.
"To your house, I guess," he says, sighing. I sigh too, knowing that I'll have to explain myself to my father when we got there, or at least to Toby. Before I can protest, Gale picks my up again, the same way as he did last time.
"Thank you, Mrs. Everdeen. It means a lot to me that you helped her." He says. He sounds truly grateful, and she smiles slightly at him, eyeing us both with interest. Has she guessed that we're together?
"Don't mention it, Gale. Any friend of yours is a friend of ours." She smiles at me, properly this time, and I return it. "Stay with her if you can, or get someone else to stay with her. If she says she feels dizzy, or her head continues to hurt for at least a day, then bring her back here."
Gale nods, and walks out into the other room. He calls goodbye over his shoulder and leaves quickly.
"How do we explain all this to my father?" I groan.
"I don't know." Gale says, looking at me worriedly. "How do you feel?"
"I feel... Pretty good, actually. I mean my head hurts, but less than before. And my arm and shoulder don't hurt too much unless I move them." I say, looking back up at him. It's in that moment that I realise just how much he cares about me, and I him. There's something about the way he looks at me every minute or so, checking that I'm okay. As he walks, I watch him, studying his features. As we reach my street, my grip on him tightens, desperately hoping that I won't have to let go soon.
I know, crappy ending to the chapter, but whatever. I'm kind of wishing that Zach had been meaner to her, maybe put her in hospital or something, but I don't know if District 12 has a hospital?
Maybe he'll attack her again at some point, I'm not sure.
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