XXX

i awake to soft sheets, and the morning light trickling in through the blinds. shedding myself of the remaining glimpses of a dream, my eyes are still shut as i soak in the warmth of the covers before letting my green eyes see the sun's rays.

i freeze, suddenly remembering where i am. "theron?" i call out. i sit up, drag my feet off the bed, and rub my knuckles onto my eyes. i stretch my arms above my head and yawn.  that's when i see him. he's asleep on the white polyester carpet beside the bed.

when he's sleeping he lays as still as a brick. the only movement is the slight rise and fall of his chest. in sleep he is angelic, making gentle snuffling noises as he breathes. i feel bad for waking him up but it's already 7am and i needed to get back to my floor before anyone wakes up and notices i'm gone.

i kneel down beside him and start gently shaking is shoulder. he stirs awake and his blue eyes find mine. "you didn't have to sleep on the floor," i say. "you could've woken me up and i would've went to my own room."

"i could've," he yawns. "but i've never been one to kick a girl out of my bed."

i roll my eyes and stand up. "what did you do to turn off the elevator camera? i need you to do it again so i can get back."

he stands up too and slips on a sweater. "it's still off," he grins mischievously. "let's just say i know a little bit about cameras and what i did last night will take a days to fix. it's something i picked up back in district 1."

i smile and grab the book he told me to read off his bed. "i'll be sure to read this, and thank you for everything. you didn't have to stay awake all night training me but you did anyways and i want you to know that i appreciate it, so much."

he looks surprised by me thanking him, maybe because the tributes he mentors never appreciate his input. "i'd walk you back but we can't risk anyone seeing us together. they'll know i'm mentoring you and there'll be hell to pay."

"it's okay," i say. "you don't have to. you've already done so much."

i'm halfway out the door when he asks, "same time tonight?"

"yes." i don't have to think about it. last nights training session only confirmed what i already knew, i'm weak and need all the help i can get before the games. i close his door behind me and make sure no one else is out of their rooms before running as quickly and quietly as i can to the elevator.

once i'm safely inside and the doors are shut i let myself breathe. i lean against the wall and feel the sudden weight of exhaustion. i only slept for 2 hours and so did theron, or maybe even less.

i make it back to my floor and go straight to my room. i jump into my bed and immediately fall asleep.

-

this time i wake up to a knock at my door. i sat up and rubbed my eyes before going to open the door. it was kit. his hair is sleep-mussed; he's wearing a dark T-shirt and black pants, "hey," he said. the shadows i had almost grown used to seeing under his eyes are gone. "it's almost time to go train with the other tributes."

"okay," i say wearily. i hated how awkward it was between us after he admitted that he was going to try and save me in the arena because losing me scared him. and after i cried in frustration because he told me after i had already planned to save him. it just made everything more confusing for me.

"you're wearing the same clothes you wore yesterday," he said, confused.

"oh, uh, yeah," i stammer. "i was too tired to change out of them last night." it technically wasn't a lie. i just left out the part where i was training all night with theron. "i'll be down in a minute."

he doesn't look convinced but he leaves anyway. i close the door and quickly hop in the shower, hoping it wakes me up. once i'm out and my hair is brushed and dried, i find clothes to wear — jeans, a grey shirt and a black sweater. once i'm done, i finally emerge from my room and find vivian, haymitch and kit sitting at the table eating.

i sit down next to haymitch and search the large heaps of food until i find something that i know i won't be able to throw up later, a bowl of blueberries. kit is sitting across from me, munching down eggs and potatoes. haymitch is done eating and is now drinking coffee. vivian is sipping her soup, pretending we're not even there.

normally during this time haymitch would be mentoring us, but now that we have theron, there's not much he can do. "do you have any skills?" he asks us instead.

kit looks at me expectantly so i put down the blueberries in my hand and say, " i read a reference book for plants and herbs the night before the reaping. i don't know how to use a weapon but i've read about them and how they work, what kind of damage they do. i'm not strong, but i'm book smart. not sure how handy that could be but it's something..."

haymitch smiled. "that's a skill that not many other tributes have. in the arena you need to know what things are dangerous and what things are beneficial. it could get you far in the games knowing those things. what about you, kit?"

he leans back on his chair. "i'm a hunter," he says, a smirk playing on his lips. "i know a few basic snares. i know how to use an axe, a knife and a bow and arrow."

"good. you go to group training. spend the time trying to learn something you don't know. davina, throw a spear. swing a mace. learn to tie a decent knot. kit, stay clear of those things, learn things that don't involve weapons. save showing what you're best at until your private sessions. are we clear?" says haymitch.

we nod.

one last thing. in public, i want you by each other's side every minute," says haymitch. "you will be together, you will appear amiable to each other."

my lips parted in surprise and i look at kit, he was looking right at me, the side of his narrow mouth quirked in amusement. i didn't mind being with him, but now i have to hide everything i learned from theron last night.

"it's time to leave," vivian says, standing up from her chair.

we follow her to the elevator. the actual training rooms are below ground level of our building. with these elevators, the ride is less than a minute. the doors open into an enormous gymnasium filled with various weapons and obstacle courses. we're one of the few pairs of tributes to arrive and already i can feel my body tense.

the ones present are malorie and mason from district 2, and adonis and astrid from district 7. malorie is young but she has anger in her eyes and if looks could kill, i would be dead. her brother, mason, doesn't leave her side. adonis and astrid are sitting on the floor, whispering things to each other.

they each have a cloth square with their district number on it pinned to their shirts. someone comes up from behind kit and pins the number 12 onto his back. "like being here isn't bad enough we have to be numbered like animals," kit scoffs.

the same woman goes behind me and pins it onto my shirt but she does it so fast that it stabs my skin. i gasp and pull away. kit's eyebrows scrunch up together, "did she hurt you?"

"it just stabbed me a little," i say. "i'm fine."

kit looked at the woman through slitted eyes. his lashes were long, casting shadows down over his angular cheekbones. on someone else it would have been a shy look, even an apologetic one, but on kit it looked narrow and menacing.

i grab his hand, pulling him away. he follows reluctantly and says, "she shouldn't have hurt you."

"she shouldn't have," i agree. "but what were you going to do? yell at her? hurt her back? she's from the capital, which means she's automatically above us and can do anything she wants to us without it being a big deal but if we were to do the same to her, we would be given a death sentence."

"we already have," he scoffs. i don't say anything because he's right. "turn around."

i stare at him confusedly before doing so. he lifts up the back hem of my shirt, slowly at first to make sure i was okay with it. "you're bleeding, davina." the anger in his voice is back.

i shrug away from him and the back of my shirt falls back down. "it's just a little blood, nothing you haven't seen before."

"yeah, animal blood."

"it's no different," i say.

we wait in the centre of the room as more and more tributes arrive until everyone is here and gathered in a tense circle. as soon as everyone is here, the head trainer, a tall, athletic man named titus steps up and begins to explain the training schedule. experts in each skill will remain at their stations. we will be free to travel from area to area as we choose, per our mentor's instructions. some of the stations teach survival skills, others fighting techniques. we are forbidden to engage in any combative exercise with another tribute. there are assistants on hand if we want to practice with a partner.

when titus begins to read down the list of the skill stations, my eyes can't help flitting around to the other tributes. it's the first time we've been assembled, on level ground, in simple clothes. my heart sinks. all of them are bigger than i am. i've always been small but it didn't seem like such a big deal until now. kit is slim but he's muscular and even now it's clear he has a good shot at beating them.

when titus releases us, the careers head straight for the deadliest-looking weapons in the gym and handle them with ease. kit nudges my arm and i jump. he is still beside me, per haymitch's instructions. his expression somber. "you alright?"

"are you?" i ask and i'm reminded of the car ride to the train back in district 12.

"who visited you?" kit asked, his voice laced with curiosity.
"who visited you?" i ask and a small smile plays on his lips.

same thing happens now, a small smile plays on his lips. i look around at the career tributes who are showing off, clearly trying to intimidate the field before saying, "teach me how to tie a knot," i grin and grab his hand, pulling him toward that skill station.

the trainer tries to teach me a trap but i fail over and over again until kit explains it to me and does it with me. his hands guide my hands and when we're done, i've finally mastered the trap that will leave a human competitor dangling by a leg from a tree. i smile, pleased with myself. "thank you," i tell the trainer but if it weren't for kit i wouldn't have been able to do it, so once we're out of ear shot i thank him too.

we find a vacant station, that is actually just a screen with valuable tips. "close your eyes," i tell him and he does. i tap the screen until i find what i'm looking for — plants and herbs. "i'm going to quiz you," i explain. "i'm going to read through this list and you have to tell me if they're safe to eat or not."

we go through the entire list, and i'm slightly proud of myself for knowing exactly which ones are poisonous. isaac always thought that these things weren't useful, but kit never complained, in fact, he was amused and more than interested.

he opened his eyes, "how did i do?" he asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"you-you did good," i say, unable to hide my smile. "actually, no you didn't. you got more than half of them wrong but a+ for effort."

"damn it," he says loudly but a huge smile is on his face. "i guess it's a good thing i have you, right?"

his words stun me, not because i wasn't expecting that we'd be allies in the arena, but because he thought of me as useful, something isaac never did. "you have me," i say breathlessly and that's when titus informs us that the training day is over.

*

that last part is so cute! isaac never deserved davina because he never realized how amazing she is but kit did! *cries*