THANKFULLY, WITHIN JUST A FEW MINUTES, a sponsor had sent me enough money to purchase bandages and a bottle of water. Mia had been alive but she kept drifting in and out of consciousness due to her extreme blood loss.

I could no longer stay in my seat, I was standing with my foot tapping against the floor--frantically trying not to begin pacing. 

All I wanted right now was to run into that arena and protect Mia and clean her up myself but I can't and it's killing me.

Within barely a minute, two drones come in through the small box at the bottom of the door and while the glass bottle of water safely rests against the floor, the metal tin holding the bandages is rattling against the floor as it bounces around and I fear I've given their location away.

Lucy Gray is quick to grab it and she opens it without hesitation. Inside remains a thick, off-white roll of bandage wrap and I pray that it works because I used all of the sponsors' donations on it and the water. 

"Come on, come on," I mumble under my breath, watching the scene unfold on the screen in front of me. 

Lucy Gray gently places Mia's head on her lap and begins to carefully wrap the bandages around her head. 

Once using almost half of what's there on the roll, Lucy Gray reaches for the bottle of water and begins to open it. 

I'm not sure what Lucy Gray's current thought process is or what she's trying to accomplish as Mia is currently passed out from lack of blood flow and I don't know what the fuck to do. 

Lucy Gray hasn't even checked her pulse to see whether she's alive or not yet she's still trying to frantically revive her. 

Her brown eyes are wide with worry and I can hear her exhaling deep long breaths with each movement. 

Mia can't die. She has a family--little sisters and parents who love her. 

The water falls upon her face and now we wait. 

I can feel Coriolanus' gaze on me but I don't think twice about it. I'm far too worried and the only thing my mind will fixate on is knowing if Mia is okay or not. 

The silence around me is deafening. The silence on that damned screen is so fucked I can feel a hand grabbing my heart and twisting it inside of me. 

Mia's photo on one of the 24 screens darkens and I feel my entire body go limp. I fall back in my chair with my head in my hands as tears begin to stream down my face, a loud sob being muffled by the palms of my hands. 

I'm wracked with all-consuming guilt and I can't help but let a thousand memories of her and I in our youth flash my mind. 

Her always perfect smile is engraved in my mind and I'll always be envious of her curls. 

I realize what this means for her family--for everyone she's affected in life. She's dead and it's my fault.

"Oh my goodness, it's a miracle!" Lucky announces, and I look up through two tear-filled eyes and see that Mia has opened her eyes. 

She's alive. 

EACH ONE OF MY CLASSMATES HAD SHORTLY BEGUN getting up and going home once the clock hit 11:00 PM and the games had not yet finished. 

I'd prayed that these games would go quickly and I wouldn't have to relish in the fear and the pain and drag out the twisted fact that I was going to be watching children murder one another in volatile methods. 

But we've been here since 9:00 AM and there's still half of the tributes remaining. 

Currently, it's almost one in the morning and it'd only been Coriolanus and I. Coryo has fallen asleep and I'd been too afraid to leave, petrified that if I left then maybe something would happen to Mia and I wouldn't be there to see. 

Sure, it might be better that way, but I don't want to know that I was sleeping in a bed when Mia was barely alive--or maybe if she was killed, there could've been something I could do to prevent it--something to send.

I assume Coryo is here for the same reason as me, and simply couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. 

But I physically cannot bear falling asleep when a demon of anxiety is gnawing on me from the inside out. 

However, I know that if I try in the comfort of my own bed, I'm more likely to. And if I had more sleep in me, the less jittery I'd be. 

I tuck my notebook into my bag and sling it over my shoulder, my heels clicking against the floor as I walk over to Coriolanus' chair. 

He has his cheek rested against the palm of his hand--using it as a substitute for a pillow--and he looks so peaceful I almost don't want to wake him.

I kneel down on my knees and shake his arm gently. 

He jolts awake, his eyes wide and startled. 

I crack a smile and when his eyes meet mine, I watch them soften. "I'm going to go home and try to get some rest. Are you going to be alright?"

He shakes his head. "No, I'll walk you home. It's late and dark." 

My smile widens. "I think I'll be okay."

I stand back on my feet and press a small kiss to his forehead. I'm not exactly sure why, but just seeing him here--alive--I don't want to take anything for granted. I'm grateful to have him and I won't let him slip away the way I've let Mia. 

 I ruffle his hair with a teasing grin, playing off what I've just done entirely. "Just... go back to sleep."

I'D BEEN JUST A FEW STEPS FROM THE DOOR when Dr. Gaul called my name. 

I turned around and sure enough, she was walking toward me with a look of utter displeasantry. 

"Miss Plinth," she says, voice curt and orderly. "when was the last time you saw your brother?" 

My brows furrow in confusion because the only place I've been since she had his tribute murdered was in that classroom. 

I swallow. "At the start of the games. Why?" 

She frowns. "Your brother is in the arena. Somehow." 

"What?" 

"He has bread crumbs and is paying your dead friend from district 2 a visit. I will not have us be made any more fools than we have already been set out to be with the bombing." She spits, absolutely furious. "Felix Ravinstill is fighting for his life in the hospital and they're celebrating it." 

Felix? 

"What--what happened to Felix?" I stammer, barely able to get my words out as fear consumes me. 

"The rebel bombing." She explains simply. 

My lashes flutter as I blink back my tears. "Is he going to be okay--" 

"Get your brother." 

BLAKELY SPEAKS !
so do we want smut or not 😋