Since I've made plans with Delly on Saturday, and have nothing else to do, I spend the next two days catching up with Rory, getting to know Angela, or traveling around town looking at the renovation, or trying to find people I know. There aren't many left. Almost everyone here is from another district. Finally, on Friday, I run into Thom, a miner I worked with for a short period of time, who helped me when I was whipped.
"Thom?" I ask, running up to him. He's looking over blue prints, standing in front of a building that hasn't been renovated yet. He turns to see who called him, and squints at me in confusion as a come closer.
"Gale. Gale...Hawthorne?" he asks.
"The one and only" I respond, now directly in front of him.
"I thought you were in Two. 'Changing the government, one step at a time." He says jokingly, using our old motto. He raises his eyebrows at the end, questioning why I'm here.
"They couldn't keep me away from 12 forever. Meanwhile, what are you doing? Sketching out buildings?"
"Hey, it beats working below ground. You see this?" He asks, pointing around town. "All me."
"Impressive" I say. "So," I don't really know where to go with the conversation now. "You have a family?" I ask awkwardly.
"No. Seeing someone." He says, looking back at his blueprints. I raise my eyebrows, but he doesn't seem to notice.
"Anyone I know?" I ask.
"Yes. You know her." I wait for him to continue. "Delly." He finally gets out.
I'm shocked to hear this. Delly Cartwright and Thom Galon? "Delly? And she didn't tell you I was here? I'm going to lunch with her tomorrow." I tell him.
Now it's his turn to look shocked. "No, I've barely seen her the last couple of days. She's got her own business now, just starting out. A restaurant, well, a really small one."
"That's great, Thom." I know Delly's parents always wanted her to inherit their shoe shop, but she hated working there as a teenager. It's nice to hear she's doing something for herself, rather than making everyone happy.
"Thanks. I better get back to work, though. You should come help, we need more strong men that have roughed it in the mines. How long are you staying?" He asks.
"I'm not sure. Like a couple of weeks, a month maybe." I say. "But sure, I'd like to occupy my time doing something."
"Good, we need all the help we can get. See you around, man." he says.
"See you around." I say. I turn at that, going back to Rory's house, excited for tomorrow already.
When I get home, I don't know what to do. I decide to call Clementine. Rory has a phone in his house, though I'm not sure why. I dial her number, memorized by heart. While it rings, I think of her tan skin, her chocolate eyes, her jet black hair, until I finally hear a voice on the other end.
"Hello?" The sound of her voice makes me realize how much I've missed her, how much I missed our home.
"Clementine!" I exclaim. "It's me, Gale."
"Oh, Gale? I miss you! How's it going? Have you seen her yet?" She asks. I know who she's referring to.
"I miss you too. It's okay, catching up with my brother and some old friends. As for Katniss..." I go off, wanting to hold off on that for as long as I can. She won't allow it.
"Gale? Come on, tell me." I sigh, as I explain to her the whole story from the beginning. About the girl I thought was Katniss, who she turned out to be. About Peeta coming to the woods to get her, and me being left there alone.
"I think this was a bad idea." I tell her.
"No, Gale. It wasn't. You have to face her, fix things with her. I promise you'll feel so much better when you do."
"But...you're all I need now. I can go on without a friend." Could I? I had a few in 2, but none were extremely close, since I traveled around a lot.
"No, you can't! Please promise that you'll try to fix things again. For me?" She pleads.
"Fine." I give in, deciding she's right, I shouldn't give up after I made a stupid choice.
"Good. Well, I better go. It's getting late. Love you."
"I love you too." I say as I hang up the phone. Right as I do, Rory and Angela come in, back with groceries. How long had I been on the phone? I look at the time, and it turns out it's already nighttime. Rory asks me how my day was, what happened. I tell him abut Thom, and my talk with Clementine. I've already told him about her yesterday.
Soon, Angela comes back, telling us dinner is ready. We eat a quick meal, and I go to bed. Tomorrow is Saturday, where I'll get to see Delly. If I know her, she'll still be friends with Peeta. I can finally get some closure on what I've missed the past 20 years, all tomorrow.