ᵗʳⁱᵇᵘᵗᵉ

‧₊˚🏹✩ ₊˚⊹

[ star-crossed lovers ]

𝐒𝐨𝐛𝐬 𝐰𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐚𝐬 𝐈 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐰𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐫. This caused my attention to go to my hands, which were still covered in the paste Rue had concocted to help heal the Tracker Jacker stings.

I desperately rubbed it off, swiping my palm against my tongue to help clean it off. Any memory of her made me want to scream out.

"Don't kill her. You'll just create a martyr," Haymitch told Seneca. 

"Well, it seems we've already got one," the Gamemaker rebuked.

"I hear these rumors of District 11. This could get get away from you."

"What do you want?"

"You have a lot of anger out there. I know you know how to handle a mob. You've done it before. If you can't scare them, give them something to root for," Haymitch reasoned. 

"Such as?"

The blonde smiled, gesturing his hands out, before leaning in closer to Seneca and whispering, "Young love."

I blankly stared at the ground, my hands red from the constant scrubbing. 

"Attention, Tributes. Attention," Claudius' voice sounded. "The regulations requiring a single victor have been...suspended. From now on, two victors may be crowned, if both originate from the same district. This will be the only announcement."

"Peeta," I whispered. Immediately, I grabbed my bow and hiked the strap of the quiver over my shoulder before breaking off into a run.

I remembered Rue telling me that she thought he was down by the river, so that was my first destination. 

The rushing water took over my hearing as I arrived at the stream. On the flat stone, I looked around, hoping to find any sign of him. For a moment, I sighed, thinking there was nothing and I would have to continue searching, but then my eyes caught onto something. A small pool of red. 

I leaned down, brushing my fingers through it, confirming it to be blood. I stood back up, looking around urgently as I continued walking, discovering another splash of blood and a branch broken. 

I ran through the patch of woods separating the other stream to the main river, quickly running across the smooth, rocky terrain. 

It was almost like a scavenger hunt as I followed the droplets of blood. But then, they suddenly stopped, and as I observed the forest and waterfall around me, I suddenly gasped at the feeling of something gripping my leg. 

Wrenching my leg away, I looked down, and I saw him. Peeta. His face was covered in something that perfectly resembled the stone he was lying on.

"Oh, my God, Peeta! Peeta!" I cried, clawing at the moss he had stuck to himself.

"Hi," he softly greeted as I fished the rocks off of him.

He raised his head from its spot, and I pulled him close, almost not believing that I had found him. "It's okay."

I had propped Peeta against a fallen tree trunk, inspecting the large gash on his leg. He hissed whenever my fingers brushed it, and I asked, "What was it?"

"A sword," he answered. Cato. "It's bad, huh?"

"It's gonna be fine," I said. I reached for my cannister, finding a little amount of water, and pouring the rest of it on the wound. Then, I grabbed the bundle of thread and the needle Rue had given me from the pack she had stolen. 

As I threaded it through the cut, he moaned in pain, "Ah!" I grimaced. "Y/N-."

"Shhhh!"

"Y/N-."

"No!" I interrupted, staring at him. "I'm not gonna leave you. I'm not gonna do that."

He flinched again when I continued, watching my focused expression. "Why not?" I raised my gaze to his again but didn't answer.

After a few moments, I had finished, and helped Peeta to stand, before we started our journey to find a safe place for the night. I had his arm around my shoulder as he limped, and I had to slow down for him. Our hands were locked, and I found myself focusing on the way he would squeeze my fingers when his leg would hurt, almost like it helped lull the pain for him. 

We soon came across a low cave, and it was a struggle, but I managed to safely get him inside. Leaning him down against one of the rocks, I murmured, "Nobody's gonna find you in here."

"They already found me," Peeta said. 

"We'll just get you some medicine," I said after I glanced at his wound again. 

"Y/N, I don't get many parachutes," he chuckled dryly. 

"We'll figure something out."

"Like what?"

"Something." I stared down at him, and, acting on impulse, I leaned down, kissing his cheek. Pulling away, Peeta gazed at me, almost in awe. 

About an hour later, I continued to watch over Peeta as he pitifully slept. Suddenly, I heard the familiar chiming of a parachute, and I grabbed my bow, climbing out of the cave.

With the arrow against the string, I stepped out, analyzing the woods around me for any threats. Finding none, I ventured towards the beeping sound, spotting the parachute.

Unhooking the box and clicking it open, I read the small letter on top of the metal can. 

You call that a kiss? -H

I rolled my eyes, walking back towards the cave. Inside, I gently shook Peeta from his sleep. I showcased the can, and he mumbled, "Medicine?"

"No. Soup." As he reached for it, I pulled back slightly. "I'll do it." He leaned upwards as I raised the spoon to his lips, and he drank the warm broth.

"That's nice," he smiled.

"Well, you fed me once," I reminded.

As I lifted the spoon forward again, he spoke again, "I think about that all the time." I paused, placing the can and spoon down as I listened. "How I tossed you that bread."

"Peeta-."

"I should have gone to you," he said, voice cracking. "I should have just gone out in the rain and..."

"Shh," I softly stopped, caressing my hand against his forehead. "You feel hot," I changed the subject.

"I remember the first time I saw you." His laugh was gentle and croaky, and I quite enjoyed the sound. "Your hair was in two braids instead of one. And I remember when you sang in the music assembly."

"Shh-."

"The teacher said, 'Who knows the Valley Song?' and your hand shot straight up."

"Stop."

"After that, I watched you going home every day. Everyday." I looked away, not wishing to fall into the blue of his eyes. "Well, say something."

I shook my head. "I'm not good at saying something."

"Then come here. Please." Silently, I pushed my bow to the side, and slowly, I slid down beside him. I placed my head and hand on his chest as his arm wrapped around me. "Even if I don't make-."

"Shh!" I pressed my hand deeper to his chest, stopping him, before moving it to his heart, where I could still feel a steady beat. "Stop it."

The next morning, Peeta and I awoke early. It was extra dark as it was lightly raining outside. 

"Attention, Tributes. Attention," Claudius said over the coms. "Commencing at sunrise, there will be a feast tomorrow at the Cornucopia. This will be no ordinary occasion. Each of you needs something desperately. And we plan to be...generous hosts."

"Your medicine," I concluded as I reached for my bow, the announcement ending.

"You're not going alone," Peeta stated.

"Yeah? You need it, and you can't walk," I countered.

"Y/N, you're not gonna risk your life for me. I'm not gonna let you."

As I stood, Peeta gripped my arm. Not to cause pain, but to keep me down. "You would do it for me. Wouldn't you?" I questioned.

"Why are you doing this?" I glanced down at his lips. Before I knew it, I was dropping my supplies and dragging my fingers to the back of Peeta's neck and pulling him into a kiss. Pulling back, he stared up at me, brows furrowed in desperation. "Now there's no way I'm letting you go," he whispered.

"Peeta..."

"Please," he begged. "Stay."

"Okay," I agreed after a moment. "I'll stay." I returned to my original sleeping position, feeling his hand curl around my waist and settle at my arm.

I observed Peeta as he slept, twitching with pain. This fueled my desire to receive the medicine. As quietly as I could, I stood from the ground, already holding or having my supplies strapped to me.

It took me almost an hour to get to the Cornucopia. For a few minutes, I stayed in the tree line, watching for any movement. 

Seeing that no one was there, I stepped out from the bushes, but stopped, eyes going wide as Fox Face dashed out from inside the Cornucopia, grabbing her pack and running to the forest.

I found myself envying the girl. She was very swift, and continued to surprise me, what with her ability to hide in plain sight and her extensive knowledge on plants and greenery.

I decided it was my turn, so I ran towards the table, glancing around with each step. Soon, my fingers came in contact with the District 12 bag. As I ran out the side of the Cornucopia, I gasped at the sight of Clove. And the knife barreling towards me. I was flung to the ground when the knife sliced my forehead. Frantically reaching for an arrow, I shot it, but the girl dodged, running towards me.

She grunted as she tackled me to the ground, the two of us rolling in the grass as we fought. "Get off of me!" I yelped. Clove screamed as she hurdled into me, securing herself on top of me. She caged my legs in so that I could barely move them, retrieving a larger knife from her belt. I wrestled her arms away, desperately trying to avoid the weapon. 

I even shoved her face away, but this angered her as she stabbed at me. But I snapped my head away, the knife plunging into the dirt beside me.

Clove had finally dominated, her foot digging into my wrist as she pressed the knife to my neck. If I made an inch of a movement, I would be dead.

"Where's Lover Boy?" she breathed out. 

"Ugh!"

"Oh, I see. You were gonna help him, right?" she asked tauntingly. "Well, that's sweet. You know, it's too bad that you couldn't help your little friend. That little girl? What was her name again? Rue?" 

"Shut up!" I grunted, but I gasped when the knife pressed deeper, drawing blood.

"Yeah, well, we killed her. And now...we're gonna kill you." Clove pulled out one of her trusty throwing knifes, dragging it along my cheek, when suddenly, she was ripped away from me. 

It was Thresh. And he was beyond angry. He threw Clove against the side of the Cornucopia, earning a painful cry from her. "You kill her?" he questioned.

"No!" she denied. 

"I heard you!" he exclaimed.

"Cato! Cato!" she screamed for her partner. 

"You said her name! You said her name!"

Thresh violently smashed Clove against the side of the Cornucopia. He did it once, and then again, finishing when he heard a crack of her skull and a squish of her brains. He dropped her to the ground like she was nothing, her eyes dull and open.

He backed away, panting, before casting his eyes to me. I scrambled backwards, staring up at him, terrified. He didn't even need a weapon to kill her, just his pure, brute strength. "Just this time, 12," he huffed, pointing at me. "For Rue." Thresh glanced around, before turning and running off.

A canon exploded as I grabbed my bag, signaling Clove's death.

Sliding down the entry of the cave, I walked to Peeta, dropping down beside him, and shaking him awake. "Peeta, I got it. I got the medicine."

"What happened to you?" he immediately asked, reaching forward to touch my neck, then my forehead where Clove had struck.

"I'm fine," I brushed off, opening the cannister.

"No, you're not. What happened?"

"The girl from 2, she threw a knife. I'm okay."

"You shouldn't have gone. You said you weren't gonna go," Peeta frowned.

"You got worse," I stated as I dipped my finger in the gel substance and beginning to rub it into his wound. He grunted, reaching for my hand, but finding it holding the can. "I'm sorry."

"You need some of that too."

"I'm okay," I shook my head.

Peeta let out a shaky sigh, closing his eyes. "That feels better. Okay, now you."

"I'm okay."

"No, come on, you need it too."

"Alright." He took the can, and I leaned close as he raised his finger to my forehead, rubbing in the medicine. Peeta continued to glance from my eyes to the cut which slowed his movements, causing the smallest of smiles to come to my lips.