Hi guys, I really haven't been updating as often as I'd like but this new year is really wearing me out, and my workload has just been really high. Finally managed to find some spare time so here it is. Also I just wanted to say that I don't exactly have the whole story planned out, I'm planning as I go, so if you guys have any suggestions or anything please tell me.

And I know some of these parts are a bit repetitive, but that's how they're thinking right now, overthinking and doubting their feelings

Madge feels as if she has lost the ability to move, so she just stands there, and gazes at the direction where Gale Hawthorne had gone, even though his figure has long gone past her line of sight. Her forehead was burning, and she slowly lifts her hand and place it where the lips of the infamous war hero has just touched.

Gale wasn't supposed to have this much of an effect on her, what was she doing? Was she trying to dig herself an even deeper whole? But Gale had admitted to messing up, and told her over and over again that he had always cared about her. Despite everything that she tried to tell herself, Madge believed him. She has always been able to read him so clearly, and he is not that good of an actor.

But it still doesn't shake the fact that he had stopped talking to her without any forms of explanation, and the fact that he had obviously seen her as a replacement for his best friend Katniss.

And what was so special about Katniss anyways that made her outshine Madge in every way? Sure, Katniss won a hunger game and survived a second, and she was probably one of the bravest people Madge knows; but everyone has to fight their own battle, battles that most people can't even come close to imagine. The difference here is that Katniss' problems are broadcasted right into everyone's faces. Madge almost feels guilty for thinking like this, but maybe she's only having these thoughts because she's tired of losing out, tired of never being the number one choice.

She thought that with Gale it was different. He was the first one to ever know so much about her, and the first person to ever spend so much time on her. She thought that because of this, he would finally understand enough of her to actually know her and who she was on the inside. She thought that because of this, he would care enough to choose her, even if it's only as friends, she thought that at least he would stand by her side. But of course she was wrong, just like she is so often, because no one can truly understand the complicated things that she's tried so hard to hide, and Gale Hawthorne certainly did not seem to have come close to seeing them. He had used her to fill a void in his heart, and when he no longer needed her, he just tossed her aside.

She had every reason to hate him, but she just doesn't. All the bad stuff almost didn't matter because the Gale she really knew just seems to make her forget everything else whenever it appears.

She remains like that for what seems like forever, even though it was probably only a few minutes in reality. She finally grabs her things and makes her way home, her bag weighing heavily on her shoulders. The little piece of paper sitting in the corner of it, seeming to multiply in weight with each small step she took.

Gale doesn't know why he was putting so much effort on Madge Undersee, he doesn't understand why it drove him crazy when she rejected his offer of friendship, he doesn't understand why his heart aches when he hears the pain and sadness in her voice, and he definitely doesn't understand why he hasn't been able to get her off his mind.

He can't seem to remember if she use to consume his mind like this in the past, maybe he had been to caught up in the games and Katniss to notice. The war has definitely changed him, it probably changed his view upon things, made him realize what he valued or didn't. Or maybe it was because of how clear he is about how he feels about Katniss now. He knew now that he didn't love Katniss the way he thought he did, he still loved her, but just as a sister. Maybe it was the fact that everyone had just expected them to be married, or the fact that he wanted to believe he was capable of loving and to be loved; he let these things make him believe in a love story that never really even started. His mind had been so clouded before, all he could think about was Katniss, and as he looked back, he could barely remember why.

Just then he hears a familiar ringing, he quickly reaches over to his desk to grab the communication device, clicking the button to accept the call.

"Hey ma," he greeted, as his mother's face appeared on the screen. Gale put in the effort to call his mom at least once a week, and he made sure that she was able to reach his at any time if she missed or needed him. It was the one thing Gale did consistently other than work, it was the last piece of his past that he was still able to hold on to. His mom still viewed him the same way, and he loved her so, so much for that, because it seems like she is the only one who still does.

"Hello Gale," Hazelle replies with a smile. "How have you been dear?" The two of them try and keep the conversations light, not wanting to step into those dangerous territories and bring up the memories that no one wanted to relive. Hazelle would always try to fill Gale in on the rest of the family, seeing as they rarely speak to him anymore. She'd talk about Posy's first days at school, how Vick got into the school track team, little things. Sometimes the two younger siblings would join the chat, grinning as they saw their brother through the screen. They're both still so young, but their eyes are missing the innocence that children are supposed to have, and it kills Gale. She talks about Rory too, but there's always that heavy atmosphere that appears whenever the second Hawthorne brother is mentioned. Rory has every reason to never speak with him again, that's what Gale thinks, no matter how many times his mother claims that Rory missed him, Gale can't find himself to believe it. How could he when his own brother killed the girl he loved? Gale will never forget the look Rory gave him the last time he saw him, he couldn't.

"It's good ma, you know, the same old." There's been a decreasing number of things that Gale was able to talk about lately. At first Gale was able to talk about his new life, his job, the people he met. But as more timed passed, things have settled into such a routine that it was so hard to find anything new to fill her in about. Well, there is that thing about Madge, but he didn't know how to talk about yet. So he just goes to make small talk about the new recruits he received this week, and how they're different from the last batch. He leaves out the part about his injury, of course, so that she doesn't have to worry.

"Alright Gale, just spill it out," Hazelle suddenly says after a few minutes.

"What do you mean?" he asks.

"Gale, I'm your mother, been your mother for the past 20 years, do you really think I can't tell tell when something is bothering your?" Gale signs, he can't hide anything from her. It's always been something that's made him frustrated, but also relieved. He was glad sometimes that she was able to see things when he wasn't able to find the words to express them. In this situation though, he still didn't know what to say, so he decided to just be honest.

"Fine," he says, giving up, "Do you remember Undersee? Madge Undersee?"

"That nice girl who use to come over to our house? The mayor's daughter Madge Undersee? Oh yes, of course I remember her. What about her?" Gale feels some kind of unexpected comfort when his mom refers to her as not only "the mayor's daughter".

"She's here, in district 2, I saw her the other day."

"What? That's great dear!" Hazelle exclaims, "I thought you said that she was dead? I mean, the mayor's whole house was burnt down! They're still rebuilding it right now. How is the girl?"

The sudden enthusiasm in her voice is somewhat of a welcoming change. "She's good, she's alive, well, working at the central hospital here, that's where I bumped into her." He pauses as he finds the right words, "I mean, physically she's great, but I feel like it's not her y'know."

Hazelle's face grows with concern, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, she's just different. Remember how cheerful she use to be? How annoying I found it when she'd play with Posy and Vick because they would worship her? Well that girl's like gone, she's so empty and broken, she wouldn't even speak to me. I just, I just don't know what to do."

"Well, of course she's hurt Gale, the poor girl lost everything. Her family, her lifestyle. I was probably much harder for her to adapt during the war when she's grown up in wealth her whole life." Gale nods, registering what she is saying. "You should check on her though Gale, talk to her. Maybe what she needs is a piece of the past, maybe reminding her of the past will bring her back too.

"What happened between you two anyways? She just stopped coming over after a while. I didn't want to bring it up back then because I thought you guys got into some sort of a fight. But since we're talking about her, what did happen?"

"I don't really know," I admit, because that part is true, "I just didn't see the friendship going anywhere, I was from the seam, she was the mayor's daughter. I just figured it's best to stop whatever friendship we were forming. I don't know it's kind of stupid now that I think about it."

"Gale Hawthorne, that's terrible of you. She was such a nice girl, and she obviously didn't care about where our family comes from. Y'know I never understood what you had against the town people Gale."

"I don't know alright ma? Like I said, it was stupid."

Hazelle studies her son's expression a little longer, "Why does it seem to me that there were other things going on?"

"What? Nothing else went on," I tell her, she was insane for suggesting this.

"Well, that's not how it seemed like to me, with the way that she use to look at you." a smirk is on her face as she says this.

"What no, a girl like her wouldn't like me like that, no, she wouldn't." Gale's heart is pounding a little faster. Was what Hazelle suggesting true? Did Madge actually like him? No way.

"Or maybe you have feelings for her then," she suggests, chuckling louder.

"Ma! Honestly? It wasn't like that okay? We were just friends."

"Alright, alright." Gale rolls his eyes at how big her smirk is, "Well I got to go Gale, the kids are coming home soon and I still need to finish making dinner. I talk to you soon."

"Okay, bye ma, I love you."

"I love you too. And don't forget to talk to Madge, tell her I said hello!" And with that the screen turns back, and Gale goes to lie back down on his bed.

Had Hazelle really noticed the changing dynamics between them? Had it been that obvious to her that Madge had feelings towards him, because if so why hadn't he ever noticed? There were just so many questions. He had thought that he knew her, but maybe there's still a lot left of Madge Undersee that he had failed to see before.

A bit of a shortie but I guess I'll just leave it off here. I love Hazelle and basically the whole Hawthorne family. What did you guys think of the whole interaction? Was is a bit cheezy? I dunno, this chapters a bit light than the last few, but I thought this story needed it because it had been pretty heavy and sad. You'll see Gale try and rebuild his relationship not only with Madge but his family too. I think it's great that Hazelle still fills him in on stuff though, because he can't just forget all about home right?

Not a lot of Gadge interaction but the next chapter.

And a lot of you seem to like kissing scenes, haha, you'll just have to wait for those.

Review pls