Life became better for me and Gale as we settled into a more modern District 12 that had been rebuilt fully. Gale had gotten a steady job and I had done the same. I was more than happy to discover my father had fallen in love with Effie and in a way, it was most certainly unexpected. It was even more unexpected when Effie began to trade in her high rated Capitol clothes for the more subtle look of our clothes.
It was strange at first to realize that we no longer had to fear the reaping or the shadows that followed as those chosen were sent away, dying so brutally. Now, we were free from the past and ready to rebuild our lives and a lot of the citizens had finally found their happiness when they no longer had to fear for their children.
Around the start of fall, I foud out I was pregnant with mine and Gale's first baby and we were both thrilled. As medical care became better, I wasn't quite as scared about having the baby. Gale loved being able to come home, take care of me as needed, rub my stomach, and holding me. It sort of struck me weird that we were this happy especially because when I first met Gale years ago, I didn't envision him as being this happy. Now, here we were.
When summer came, I finally gave birth to a healthy baby girl that I named Lilly Elizabeth Hawthorne. As I looked into our daughter's eyes, I realized that my life was perfect and there was no way I could ask for anything better.