THE ENTIRE RIDE HOME, ALL I COULD THINK OF was how the hell was I going to raise a damn baby on my own. I physically couldn't.

Now that I was back at the edge of my bed, I couldn't stop my mind from running through a thousand different thoughts and scenarios at once.

My eyes are still bloodshot from crying so much as I said goodbye to Sejanus and gave him the last hug I'll likely get from him for a long while. Unless I leave now.

I have probably about twenty minutes before my parents are on their way back from the train station and I need to act fast.

I'm pregnant and there's nothing I can do about it now except for decide how I want to live with the consequences.

My parents don't know—I don't want them to know. I don't want to be shamefully bashed or given a lecture about protection and contraception and—

I need to go.

I can't stay put here. On this bed—in these lavender shaded walls.

The man I love—who loves me—is being banished to the districts for twenty years and if I don't go now he'll never see his child growing up.

I jump up from my bed and go toward my closet, i tug out the largest black-matte suitcase I can find and I begin piling clothes inside of it.

My hand traces across the red trimmed uniforms I'd wear every day not so long ago, and I can't help but feel a punch in my stomach.

It feels like I'm leaving behind something unfinished—like... like I'm leaving Mia and all of those other dead tributes behind.

But I have to overcome the guilty sensation spiraling up my body. I'm running away from everything bad in my life.

The capitol, the nightmares, that damned academy.

I'm leaving and I'm going to start a new life.

Maybe I'll purchase a blue-colored cottage in the middle of the woods. Quiet where no one can hear me, just far enough from all the chaos and where I can enjoy nature. I'd be able to enjoy life, and my newborn baby, and I'd get to be with Coriolanus.

I DIDN'T LEAVE A NOTE. I didn't leave a note and I feel fucking terrible about it.

My parents will arrive home any minute now and they'll see my drawers empty and my bed unmade.

They won't know where I've gone off to or why I left.

They'll carry a guilt indescribable because of me.

Because I was too impulsive to leave a goddamn note.

"Next!" A woman's voice says, cutting me out of my angered thoughts entirely.

I look up and the man that stood before me was no longer there and it was now my turn to purchase my train ticket.

"Uh, one ticket to District 12 please." The words sound so odd rolling off my tongue as I reach into my handbag for a $10 bill. They almost scorch my throat and burn my tongue. I could've never imagined myself saying I'd voluntarily wanted to purchase a ticket to District 12.

She tugs a piece of paper out of some sort of printer and presses a black stamp against it before sliding it over the countertop to me.

"Better hurry, boarding is in five." She warns me, pushing her purple-framed glasses back up the ridge of her nose.

I blow out a shaky breath, nodding as I pick up the ticket in between my fingers.

It doesn't feel real. In fact, it feels like I'm in this nonstop nightmare and I'm going to wake up soon.

"Mari!" Sejanus. He's standing before me with a beaming smile that's infectious and I have no choice but to copy it as I run toward him. He arms wrap around me and I feel suddenly safe. "What—what are you doing here?"

I offer him a half-smile. "I couldn't let you have all the fun, could I?"

He lets a loose laugh slip past his lips and I don't think I've seen him this happy since before this all begun. Maybe even since before this semester.

"So, what did the doctor say?"

I knew he would ask but I was hoping it wouldn't be so soon. I don't want him to know so soon but I also don't want to lie.

I inhale a small breath, as if I'm trying to hold in the lie that's about to escape my mouth. "Just a stomach bug."

He smiles a little, but I can tell he's still worried. "How long is the healing process?"

Shit. Another lie I have to come up with.

"He said it should be gone in the next two weeks." I swallow.

He nods, humming in understanding. Then, he sees the heavy-weight suitcase I've packed my wardrobe in following behind me and a lightbulb flashes in his eyes. "Oh! Let me take that for you."

I smile at him, releasing the handle of the luggage and turn forward. 

Directly in front of me, just a few yards ahead, stands Coriolanus Snow and all my worries are suddenly wiped away. 

I'm only looking at the side of his face. He's shaved his head and he is wearing a dark blue tracksuit like Sejanus is but I could recognize him anywhere. 

His blue eyes meet my dark ones and the rest of the world drifts away. The crowd of people surrounding us suddenly a blur and the train's loud whistle is nothing but a muffled hum now. 

My feet take off before my mind do, and I'm running toward him against the train track. 

My body clashes with his and he lifts me up off the ground, spinning me in the air just like he did the day he won the Plinth Prize. 

I can feel him exhale a deep sigh of relief against me and it brings a smile to my face. 

I'm safe in his arms, consumed by his scent and it's worth all the pain, all the hassle I've gone through this week. 

He pulls away from me, breathless as he sets me on my feet. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm coming with you. To District 12." I beam back at him. 

Something soft brushes his face and it's so clear he's refreshed at the sight of me. 

His hands meet the sides of my face and he leans down to kiss me. "I love you, Mare."