Disclaimer: All stories are individuals of themselves and are unrelated to each other.
"Come on, Gale. People kiss all the time. It's not like it actually means anything." Madge sits at her kitchen table as they glance toward the TV screen. Gale's jaw is locked, his lips taut. She can't help but smile at how agitated he is by this.
"It means something to her," he says, unable to look away from the replays. It looks so real to him, so caring, so protective, like Katniss had never been more happy in her life. "Just look at them," he spits.
"She's just trying to keep him alive," she soothes, but he still doesn't budge, his arms cross across his chest. "It's like if you and me kissed. It wouldn't mean anything. It's just a kiss." His head snaps to look at her and he squints his eyes.
"Wanna bet?" he offers, and she smirks. "Because I don't think a kiss can't mean anything." His feet start pulling him in her direction and she locks her gaze with his, blue and gray fight for dominance, but he wins when she glances away embarrassed by their sudden closeness.
Then, slowly, he reaches down and tips her chin up at the perfect angle. His lips graze across hers for a moment. It doesn't mean anything, she reminds herself, but something in her chest swirls. He can taste it too, the sudden interest, because he leans down to deepen the kiss, intrigued by the feeling she's ignited. But she pulls away, her hand gently stopping him at where he stands.
"See," she says faintly as he drops his hand. Her voice betrays her true thoughts as she utters the word, "Nothing." Nothing more than a bet to him. And that's all it'd ever be.
A/N: Inspired by a queeneverdeen photoset on Tumblr