Disclaimer: All stories are individuals of themselves and are unrelated to each other.

Madge groans, rolling on her side and groaning loudly at the throbbing in her head. The last thing she remembers is sitting out in the common room arguing with some boy down the hall because he was having extremely loud sex which was very distracting considering she was trying to get drunk to forget about couples.

Today is Valentine's Day. She's had a lot of wine, even if she's not supposed to have it in her dorm.

Madge shifts and realizes that she's not in her own room. She sits up straight and lifts her head to her forehead, squinting into the bright room.

"All right there, Sleeping Beauty?" Her eyes dart until they find the source of the voice. He's sitting at his desk with a book open. Gale Hawthorne moves his bookmark to hold is place and closes the book, turning to Madge entirely. "How's your head?"

"Am I in your room?" she asks, ignoring his question. Out of everyone she could've hooked up with while drunk…

"I found you passed out in the common room," Gale says, tipping his head forward. "I'm not allowed in the girl's quad so I couldn't take you back to your own, and I didn't want you getting in trouble for drinking. You've been sleeping a few hours." She frowns, rubbing her forehead, yet still equally relieved she didn't miss making out with Gale Hawthorne. "Want some water?"

"Yes, please," she nods.

Gale reaches down under his desk and pulls a water bottle out from the pack, tossing it beside her on the bed. He reopens his book as she screws off the lid to the water bottle and begins to drink it down quickly. She studies Gale as she drinks, the way his eyes dart back and forth the page as he reads. Of course he would be the one to find her slumped, drunk out of her mind. Madge has been crushing on Gale Hawthorne since the first day they moved into their dorms. His room is right down the hall, and he and Katniss are friends meaning he's over all the time.

"Thanks," Madge finally says. His eyes lift over to her and his mouth curves into a slight smile. "For not leaving me out there."

"Yeah, well," he nods. "Don't worry about it." Now instead of closing his book completely he just rests his finger where he left off. "Surprised you're not out on some date," Gale says. "It's Valentine's Day. Didn't you get the memo?"

"Singles Awareness Day," Madge corrects him. "Isn't it S.A.D.?" Gale snorts, shaking his head, as she curls her legs under her. "I decided to get very drunk on wine instead and forget the entire notion of couples." Madge looks toward his book. "You're always out with a girl. Surprised you aren't tonight."

"Valentine's Day is different," Gale says. "It's for couples. And love. And the girls I'm with are just… quick." Madge shifts uneasily, looking down at the bed. Gale chuckles loudly and shakes his head. "Don't worry, Undersee, I never bring them home. My bed is clean." That eases her slightly. Gale looks toward the clock. "It's eleven," he tells her. "When did you start drinking?"

"Mm…" Madge wrinkles her nose and shrugs. "Right after Katniss left with Peeta."

"That was at, like, noon."

"Two thirty," Madge corrects sharply. She didn't even go in the common room until at least seven, meaning Gale couldn't have even found her until at least eight. She fiddles with the water bottle in her hands and sucks her teeth. "I hate Valentine's Day," she says. "I know it's stupid. I should be happy that people are happy but I'm just bitter that no one ever wants to be happy with me." Gale slips the bookmark back into his book and closes it entirely. "I'm 18 years old and have never had a valentine, unless you count those ones in elementary school where the whole class got them, but I don't, so…"

"Why do you need a valentine?" he asks. "The whole holiday is commercialized."

"I know it is," Madge sighs. "And I don't need a valentine. It'd be nice, though, you know? Having someone to just be with."

"Is my company not good enough for you?" he asks. Madge laughs once, very loudly, and smiles as he does. They're silent for a moment, Gale just watching her with a content smile on his face. "I haven't had one either," he says. "A valentine."

"That's surprising."

He lifts his eyebrows. "How is that surprising?"

"Because you're Gale Hawthorne," Madge says. She leans backwards onto his bed, enjoying how comfortable it is, and shrugs. "Girls talk about you like you're the messiah." His lips curl upward into the most adorable smile. "If you didn't want to be alone on Valentine's Day you wouldn't have to be. You could find some random girl on the street and ask her out to dinner and she'd say yes."

"Like I said," he murmurs, his smile falling, "Valentine's Day is for couples. Not hookups." He scratches his forehead. "Besides, I was going to ask someone to do something but I thought she was busy." He looks back toward his book. "Never mind."

"Aww," Madge swallows back the disappointment that's in her chest and forces a smile. "Does Gale Hawthorne have a crush?"

"Oh, fuck off, Undersee," he scowls. She laughs loudly at the annoyance on his face. It's annoying how cute he can be. Gale's around enough for Madge to consider him a friend. He wonders if he considers her one, too. "She's different."

"Ah, different," she smirks. "That's what they all say. How is she different?"

"Forget it," Gale frowns. He looks back down at his book. "You should probably go."

Now Madge frowns. "Is my company not good enough for you?" she asks, echoing his words from minutes before. Finally, he smiles again, tilting his head in her direction. "Neither of us are doing anything." She scans his room. "Got any wine?"

Gale doesn't have any wine, but Madge does. She slips back to her room to retrieve it and sneaks it over to Gale's room in her backpack. "You've been drinking this all day?" he asks, taking a swig from the bottle. She nods and shrugs, accepting it from him as he passes it back. "It's pretty good," he tells her.

"I don't drink cheap wine," she responds with a smile, taking a swig. He moves over to the bed as well so they're sitting next to each other, passing off the bottle of wine until it's empty. By then they're giggling together over things that don't make any sense. "Hey," Madge looks toward the bed on the other side of the room where Gale's roommate should be. "Where's Thom?"

"On a date, obviously," Gale mutters. "You're right. Valentine's Day sucks. Everyone's happy together."

"Mm," Madge lifts the empty bottle and passes it back to him. "Clearly we're just too good of people for anyone else."

He laughs, nudging her side. "You're drunk."

"Yeah, so?" she giggles again, pushing him aside. "I mean it. We must be too good at everything ever that people are intimidated to be committed to us." Gale cocks an eyebrow at her. "I happen to be," Madge says, leaning toward him, "the best kisser on the planet."

The laugh that escapes Gale is loud and booming. It makes her grin. "You're wrong. I am."

"Doubt it."

"Doubt it?" he repeats. "Madge Undersee I have never in my entire life ever seen you kiss someone."

"Because I'm too good at it," she says. "After one little peck boys are like holy shit this is too much for me and I'm left with pouty kissable lips." Gale laughs again, shaking his head. "I can prove it."

"You can prove it? You can prove that you're a better kisser than me?"

"Mm-hm." Madge nods her head. "Want me to?"

"How do you plan to prove something like that?" Gale asks.

"It's simple." Madge clambers over to him, swinging her legs over his hips so she's straddling Gale. He's frozen, watching the movement. "I bet I'm a better kisser than you."

"Deal," he croaks instantly.

Madge dips down and crashes their lips together. Gale's mouth is warm and soft, he tastes like fine wine and candy hearts. His hands travel down her sides soothingly, pushing up the hem of her shirt so his thumbs can rub circles over her skin. Madge pulls his bottom lip into her mouth and Gale groans in the back of his throat. He shifts the two of them so he has the advantage, leaning over her.

"You're too good at this," she moans, dropping her head backwards against the pillows. Gale grins, burning kisses down her throat, slowly inching her shirt up more. Madge's hands snake up his shirt, her nails grazing over his chest lightly. She arches into him and forces his mouth back up to hers so they can kiss again. Madge tightens her hold around his hips and grinds into him, causing him to groan again.

"Fuck, Madge," he sighs. Her nails dig into his shoulders. "Fuck," he says again. She kisses his chin and revels in the way he pants. "Okay, okay," he exhales, pulling away only slightly. "You're a good kisser, you're right."

She presses a light kiss to his upper lip. "Do I win the bet?"

"Yes you win the bet," he breathes. Gale's mouth is back on hers, desperate and needy. "You win." Another kiss, another. Madge has no plans to stop any time soon, running her hands up and down over his body. "What do you win?"

"More kisses," she pleads.

"Can do." Gale runs his tongue over her lips until she lets him in. Electric hums through Madge's entire core as she pulls his shirt up and over his head. They only break the kiss when they have to. "You were the girl," Gale rasps as they're parted. "The one I was talking about earlier." Madge pulls away from him immediately, narrowing her eyes at him. "I was going to ask you to do something tonight," Gale says, a lot less frantic than before.

"What?"

"I thought you were going out with Darius," Gale says. "You know. That guy on the third floor."

Madge laughs loudly and collapses backwards onto the bed. "You're kidding."

"I'm not kidding," Gale shakes his head. He eases into the stop next to her and grins as she lifts her hands to her face, covering her cheeks to stop him from seeing her blush. "So yes," he finally says. "Gale Hawthorne has a crush."

"Oh my God," Madge laughs and shakes her head. She looks toward the clock, finding that it's a little past twelve thirty. "It's not even Valentine's Day anymore," she tells him. "You can't be my valentine now."

"Mm," Gale props himself up on his elbow so he can stare down at her. "Everything's always booked on Valentine's Day anyway. No places to go." His grin widens as she licks her lips, removing her hands from her face and looking up at him. "We could go somewhere tonight, if you want."

"If I want?" she asks. "Yes I want." Gale dips down with a grin. "But," she stops him before he gets too close. "This isn't part of that bet, is it? Not a prize?"

"I mean I think I'm a prize," he hums. She giggles, arching up to throw her hands around his neck before kissing him again. "Not part of the bet. I just really like you. Unfortunately."

"Unfortunately," she echoes with a smile.

Maybe Valentine's Day really isn't that bad.