A/n- Thank you to Clato27 for reviewing, and to everyone who read the last chapter. I'm going to stick with my current core characters for right now, so I hope that's okay with everyone. Tell me when you're ready for a change. I'm open to any character, OC's included.
Chapter five
Cato's point of view
Clove continues to smile down at me, looking more excited than she has in a while. "You're doing so much better." She grins. "And they said you'll probably be out soon, okay? But do you- do you remember anything about-" there is an awkward pause where she blushes and I look away. "Do you remember anything about what happened that last night? In the arena?"
How could I possibly forget? Every time I see myself, the fresh scar tissue burns, and with my eyes closed, I'm reliving it all. But I can't tell her any of that. Not yet. It's not time. But she deserves the truth...
"Yeah," I nod. "I do. But you're right, it's better now. What about you?"
She thinks for a moment, choosing her words carefully. "Not really. Not all of it, anyway. Bits and pieces. I don't remember what happened within about the hour before, but I remember some sensations. Pressure, weird lights, something about being hit by Thresh? I saw it all on video, but it didn't seem right, somehow. It didn't seem real, in a way. I don't really know how to put it. But you were there. I remember that..."
It really is an awkward thing to discuss. By the way that she's drawing out of reality and staring off at the wall, I can tell that this topic is too sensitive and too soon. Wordlessly, we hold each other for a while. There's a burning, but a pleasant one unconnected to the lingering bites, as Clove tilts her head back and kisses my jawline. "Do you want to see the others?" Her lips still tickle my face, she's so wonderfully close.
"Maybe in a while. Right now, I just want you. Is that okay?"
She giggles. "Perfect."
We roll over on our sides to face each other. Our fingers tangle up in one another's hair. Mines grown longer since the Games, but it seems that Clove likes it by the way she smiles and nods while she plays with the strands. Hers, as usual, is perfect. It's shorter on the left underside from where I guess they had to do whatever it was to get her skull aligned, but there isn't any sort of visible scar. In fact, there is only a very slight roughness when I touch it out of curiosity. "I'm sorry," I whisper, drawing back. "I shouldn't have done that."
She rolls her eyes a bit, adding the defiance back to their hazel depths. "It's fine, really. It doesn't hurt, or anything. What about you? How are yours doing?"
"Still sting a bit. Okay, maybe a lot sometimes. But I'll be fine in a few days. When can I get out of here, anyway?"
She sighs, shaking her head slowly. "I'm not sure. Not exactly, anyway. But like a said, soon. Maybe a week? No more than ten days, probably. And for the millionth time, stop playing with that!"
My fingers freeze. Lately, I'd started messing around with the persistent IV lines. This time, it's the one in my elbow. "Then they can take them out. I don't need these anymore, anyway."
Once again, I become a witness of the famous Clove Hadley eye roll. "You're rediculous. You're keeping that in, and that's that." Several minutes pass with just the two of us staring into each others eyes. "I'm going to go get the others now, okay?"
I nod slightly, watching her go.
"Don't even think about trying to take those lines out while I'm gone!"
For the first time in a while, I grin. But she was right, my fingers are already hovering over that spot. Clove knows me so well...
