Chapter Six

Cato's point of view

Clove runs back in a few minutes later. But for the first time in a while, she isn't alone. Glimmer and Marvel, our allies from District One, are close behind her. But that doesn't stop Clove from acting as if we are alone. In fact, she goes crazier than she has since the first day.

The other two stay awkwardly to the side as Clove takes a flying leap on top of me. The jolt sends a faint sting through some of the bites, but it's okay. Still, she pulls away.

"It's fine, really. Don't worry about it, Clove. I'm okay." At my word, she continues. Soon, she is laying on top of me, kissing every inch of my face as I hold her close. One would think it would be embarrassing, seeing that there were others in the room, but it really didn't matter to either of us. In fact, in this moment, we are wrapped up in a world of our own. She grabs my hand, presses it to the small of her back, and stops moving her lips around. They stay still long enough for mine to clash against hers. It doesn't matter where we are, or why we're here. It is really a moment of bliss.

We break for air and smile. Her nose crinkles in the most adorable way, like it does during all of her genuine smiles. But we then hear an awkward noise of protest and disgust from the back of the room.

Marvel never was the most mature person. But honestly, I thought he could learn to pull it together. But no, evidently not. He's staring at us, cringing, and blushing bright red. We exchange a look for a moment before he turns to leave.

Clove has always had extremely fast instincts, so it doesn't surprise me at all when she darts underneath his legs and blocks the door in a split second. "Just where do you think you're going? And couldn't you at least pull it together for two seconds? You don't have to ham it up for the cameras anymore! Seriously, it was annoying then, but it's worse now. If you think for one second that I'm going to be soft on you just because we're out of the arena, think again!"

Its not a good idea, most likely, but I try to push myself up, just to get over to her. I doubt that I'll need to protect her, but knowing Clove, I may need to hold her back.

"No, Cato, don't get up." Glimmer rushes over to me, holding me down softly. "I'll take care of Clove."

"Glimmer, I have to be the one, you don't understand." I continue pushing myself up, ready to get over to Clove, who is by now arguing in full-swing. But as soon as one foot hits the floor, I fall. There is a more intense burning in my left knee, one that I've felt off and on since I woke up here.

'Breathe,' I think for a moment. Slowly, it subsides into a dull ache. Clove is back over here, helping me get back into the original position.

"What happened?" she asks, apparently shaken. Whether its from her fight with Marvel, who must have left when the rest of us were distracted, or from the fact that I collapsed, I'm not sure. But her breathing is shallow and rapid, and her cheeks are flushed pink.

"Are you okay?" The three of us all ask the same question at once. Clove nods, but I wait.

"I don't know." My confession comes after a minute, when I see a dark, raised extremely jagged mass of scar tissue wrap around the knee. "It's feeling okay now, but I can't bend it."

They both nod. I remember that Glimmer mentioned having some basic training in this sort of thing from back when she was planning on working for her districts training center. She takes a deep breath and looks down at me. "I know you're not going to like this, but I think we need to go get someone with more training to take care of this. It doesn't seem too bad, it's just a lot of built up scar tissue. But it would be a good idea to get it minimized as soon as possible."

Clove and I both nod, looking at each other. "I'll go get someone," Clove volunteers, squeezing my hand. "Be right back."

"No, Clove." I jump a bit. Her tone stayed gentle, but I've never heard Glimmer argue with us before. "You stay here. I'll do it. Besides, I think I need to havea little chat with Marvel..."