CHAPTER 17, TORMENT

❝ARE WE THE HUNTERS, OR ARE WE THE PREYS❞

-

THE NEWS SINKS IN and my breath catches in my throat. I'm too shocked to formulate a coherent thought at first. It's as if a new silence emerges through the arena, every tribute starstruck at this unexpected rule change. 

The purpose of it stays unknown, which angers me entirely. Throughout the entire saga of the hunger games, a single victor had always been the expected ending. What led them to change their mind?

I think of the remaining survivors. Cato and Clove is the only pair whose alliance could possibly be appreciated, protected by the Game makers, or the Capitol. 

The Careers were always somehow privileged, put on a pedestal. Yet, when he saved me, the absence of his district partner didn't seem to worry him at all. Otherwise, there was still Tresh and Foxface, but I doubt that they would be the cause for the intervention.

I think back at Haymitch's message. You're doing great. Was there an underlying meaning at this simple phrase? Could this smoothly mention the ephemeral alliance that had occurred between Cato and I? 

It was a long shot, but also one of the most logical conclusions. Moreover, my mentor had been the first one to introduce the entire concept of star-crossed lovers, though it was originally meant for Peeta and I.

The only reason that then came to mind was that some watchers must have been rooting for our dynamic, leading to the possibility of there being two victors. If that's the case, I should find the boy from District 2, and soon. Before Clove or anyone else could reach him.

I grab my things, take a last sip of my water and get ready to exit the stream, a place considerable popular amongst tributes. My boots sink into the mud at my feet, and I had underestimated the transe of fatigue that my body was stuck in, dancing around constant straining and effort.

Before I can stop myself, I call out Cato's name.

-

I know I probably shouldn't look for the boy, unaware of his opinion on the situation. Yet, I was still blindly following my instinct, that was trying to lead me to him.

I run towards his previous location, the cave. Even though our last encounter was days ago, I remember the path we went through before saying goodbye. The amount of time I spent in the woods back home allow me to have a sense of orientation and navigate through the similar trunks of wood.

The constant repetition of the swirl of green and brown from the forest calm me, as does the sweet smell of wood that remind me so much of hunting, Gale at my side. During all of this, I barely had time to even ponder about how he must be feeling. 

I think about the last moments we shared together. I wonder what he makes out of the whole star-crossed lovers theory, how he would be when he welcomed me back home. If I made it.

I think of my little sister, who must be watching this, anxious and eager for my survival. I couldn't wait to have her squeeze my waist again as she hugs me, salty tears of relief staining my dress. If I made it.

I think of Peeta's family in 12, how they must feel when they see my face every day, who failed to rescue their dying son, or their dying brother.

As I jog between the trees, I fail to see a pointy rock at my feet, and a few seconds later, I inevitably trip. However, instead of collapsing against the soft grass, I collide with a strong, wall-like body, sending both of us to the ground.

Unfortunately for us, a steep hill accompanies our fall, our bodies forcibly intertwined. At the end of our short descent, I wince in shock at the blurry seconds that just flew past, thrusting my mind out my previous thoughts. 

I slowly open my eyes, praying that the person I landed on wasn't planning my murder right the second.

I try not to seem too relieved when I recognise Cato's striking, cerulean iris' and usual smile. It's as if time stops for a second, and nothing apart from us being united is happening in the world. 

We aren't in a deadly arena, but just two teenagers who happen to appreciate each other's presence. I can't decipher why I'm finding myself to feel so lightheaded when I look at the boy.

At first, I despised him so much. Him and his whole Career pack. Yet, something else also blossomed inside of me, that I continuously ignored, overtaken by the determination of winning. 

But now, something in the midst of the games was undeniably different. I could win with him. In such a short amount of time, the boy brought me familiarity and comfort.

"You here to make a move sweetheart?" he asks, cockiness drooping in his voice as he taunts me the second we've acknowledged each other. 

I wonder if he was looking for me too as he made his way though the woods, approaching my own placement. I snicker at his vague sentence, never really knowing what he meant, as butterflies violently erupt in my stomach, against my will.

"How come we always find ourselves in this position?" I answer, dodging his question. I arch my eyebrows, getting deja-vu from the cave where I was straddling the boy, ready to kill him if I had to with my knife scorching his skin. 

To my surprise, he doesn't try to throw me off him, but continues smiling mischievously.

"Must be fate. I'm not complaining though." he replies, placing his hand on my knee. I could tell by the expressions on his face that he revelled in the aspect of making people nervous under his touch. 

Yet, that had led to the possibility of the two of us surviving, so I couldn't complain ( plus, it wasn't like I hated it ... ).

"Me neither." I whisper, approaching my face a little towards his, our attitudes matching. 

"What were you doing, running like that?" he articulates, as if he wanted to hear that I was trying to find him, as if he needed the reassurance.

"Guess I just missed you" I tease, irony clear in my tone, even though it was a little true. I had missed his presence, but I wasn't going to admit that.

"Could say the same about you." Cato replies, coking his head to the side. 

His response is convincing, and is translating the fact that he was searching for me as well. I get up as he ends his sentence, the dangerous tingles surging into my body distracting me too much. He follows my movement, standing up, terribly closer to me. 

Due to our proximity, I could easily count the freckles dotted on his face, the specks of golden in his blue orbs. I wanted to draw my finger against his cracked lips, against his purplish, dark eye bags. 

His burning gaze sends my heart into a delirious frenzy, and I hope he can't hear the pounding of it against my chest.

I wonder if this dynamic between him and I will indeed lead to us being favoured by the Capitol, consequently bringing us more sponsors, and Game makers optimising our survival. All we needed to do was orchestrate the viewer's emotions and toy with them, making them fall for our 'love' strategy.

Smiling at this, I know that I could reverse my role in the games, turning them into my own pawns, instead of the other way around. Moreover, there wasn't anyone else I would do it with than Cato. For some reason, it wasn't that hard portraying attraction towards him. I wanted to feel close to him, and the simple thought of interacting with him made me a little giddy.

Sure of the success of my plan, I lean in towards Cato slowly, building the tension. When our faces are just breaths apart, our lips a second before brushing against each other's, I change my direction, and I know my breath tingles against his skin as I whisper in his ear.

"You know, I think the rule change was made for us. Maybe we should give the Capitol a little show. To convince them, to get an advantage."

He places his hand onto my lower back, and I attempt to shrug off the spread of rosy blush on my cheeks.

"What d'you mean by that, 12?" he says, and I can tell he's teasing me, trying to make me say it.

Instead of answering, I smile innocently, looking up at the smiling boy. To put the odds in our favour, we just needed to put on a sweetening act that would take over the watchers' heart.

This time, he's the one that leans down to mutter at a close distance "I think you're right. We could try winning the Capitol over, not like we haven't already." He says so quietly, making it impossible for any cameras to possibly pick up what we are saying, or else the whole thing would be ruined. I nod, grinning. However, a question plops in my mind. Why me?

"Hey, what about Clove?" I add warily, not meeting his eyes.

"Doesn't compare to you. Nobody does." he replies, and his words turn my whole body into water. For a second I believe them, but immediately after, a voice in my head reminds me this is just a game, to make sure we survived.

So, I place my arms around his neck and smile at the boy as genuinely as I can, even though faking my affection towards him doesn't seem difficult at all. It's natural, like the flow of a river, or the curve of a blade.

A pause follows, where we just look at each other and grin, like two children trying to fool people watching. He puts his two hands on my hips, and I don't let my smile falter at the surprising action. 

Was he trying to throw me off? I freeze when his eyes flicker down at my lips for an instant. Million of questions run in my mind about what would follow the next seconds.

"Is this the part where we kiss?" Cato quietly asks, dangerously and tauntingly approaching his head towards mine. Sure, we were playing a game, but I wasn't going to let him win that easily.

"Guess you'll just have to wait for that." I reply, toying with a strand of his blond hair, having gone incredibly messy in the last few days. A flash of disappointment, nearly unnoticeable, joins his demeanour when I say that, and I'm satisfied that I'm not the only one finding myself incredibly drawn to the other.

"Want to go back to the cave for today?" he asks, smirking down at me. I nod, smiling too as he links my pinkie with his, and we head back to the hiding spot.

𝔞𝔲𝔱𝔥𝔬𝔯'𝔰 𝔫𝔬𝔱𝔢

THEY'RE BACK!!!!!     my babies i acc ship them so so much omg, their chemistry is just undeniable !!! i hesitated so much with the kind of fake dating / fake love trope but i think it's such a good idea that will defo bring them closer. they're both so so whipped but don't realise it yet !! thank u so so much for everyone voting and liking my book, means the world to me.