Greetings, fellow Tributes! Before anything else, I'd like to thank dkygirl for my first review! *District 12 salute* Unfortunately, it was too late for me to post the next chapter... but here it is! Hope you enjoy!
*Peeta Mellark*
I sat in a hard chair in the hospital waiting room, my head in my hands, nursing the headache I had from when Haymitch smashed one of the chair legs over my head, successfully knocking me out until the episode ended. Once I had woken up in the emergency room, I refused all pain medicine and demanded to know where my family was. My heart dropped when I heard that Flora was in the Intensive Care unit. I had run to the waiting room and stopped when I saw Katniss in a chair, sobbing, a doctor standing over her with a grim expression. "No… no no no no!" I fell to my knees as Katniss and the doctor realized I was there and rushed over to me. "Peeta… oh, Peeta, thank God you're back! I was so scared for you-" Her gush of joy was interrupted by my heartbroken sobs. "How could I do this to her?! My sweet little girl… I KILLED HER!" I was nearly hysterical as Katniss grabbed my face and forced me to look at her; I vaguely remembered her doing the same thing earlier, when I was fighting for control, before I- "STOP IT, PEETA! YOU DIDN'T KILL HER!"
The fog in my brain cleared a bit as I struggled to see through my tears. "Mr. Mellark," the doctor in the room with Katniss spoke up, a worried tone in his voice. "Mr. Mellark, your daughter has a serious head injury. She's unconscious, and will probably remain that way for some time while her brain tries to recuperate from the shock. Otherwise, she's fine." At the sight of hope in my eyes, he was quick to add: "We're not sure if there has been any permanent brain damage. We've examined her, and we're hoping for the best, but… only time will tell." With that note, he stepped out of the room, leaving us crying in each other's arms on the floor…
That was hours ago; hell, it could be days, I don't know. In spite of all this, Katniss has risen to the challenge: comforting me when more episodes creep in, calling Haymitch to give him an update and to make sure he's watching Finn, talking to every doctor and nurse on the floor to know what's going on with Flora… at the thought of her sweet face, her smile, so much like her mother's, her bright blue eyes… my eyes… I can't take it anymore. I look over at Katniss, who's finally fallen asleep in her chair. I gently move the hair out of her face and kiss her cheek. "I'm sorry… I'll never hurt any of you again." And with that, I eased out of the chair, my head pounding with the slightest movement, and walked away.
You like? Hope so, because unfortunately, my computer committed tech suicide and DIED on me, so it'll be a while before I can get the next chapter up. Don't worry, it should only be a few days, so stay tuned; and as always, *Mock Bow* "Thank you... for your consideration."