Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
I won the 74th, and the 75th Hunger Games actually.
____________________
"I think you're ready kid," Those were the words I didn't expect coming out of Mr. Hadley's mouth. A smile lit up my face, for the first time in months. A real, genuine smile.
Mr. Hadley and I have gotten very close to one another since we've been spending most of our nights in the training center. He's helped me not only train, but get through a lot of things mentally. He allows me to see things in a certain way, to make me stronger.
"Do you think that the others will still look at me funny?" I ask him truthfully.
"What do you mean?" I grab my water bottle off the bench and unscrewed the lid.
"They look at me like I'm still the crazy patient from the hospital wing," I tell him. I take a sip of my water and chew on my lip. "Everyone just stares at me around here."
"I'm assuming it's because you're a two time victor from the Hunger Games," he says. He puts his hands on my shoulders. "You need more confidence Katalina. You do well in a lot of the things you do." I shrug in response.
"I just don't like when people stare," I tell him. "Cato did all of the talking on our Victory tour." He nods. "I'm just not used to the attention, especially by myself."
"I get it, and I miss him too. But you'll have to get used to it. People talk around here, that's the only sort of thing that keeps people going, other people's business." I nod as we walk out. He patted my shoulder as we walked into a different room. There was a whole bunch of people crowded around a ring. Great, now I'm late and there's people staring.
"Excuse her, she was with me," Mr. Hadley says excusing me from any bullshit Rodgers was going to put me through.
"That's fine, she'll just have to go first in the ring," Rodgers says with a smirk. I look at Mr. Hadley and he just gives me a nod.
"Go for the throat, works every time. You've got this Katalina, confidence," he whispers to me. I sigh as I step into the small matted ring.
"Who wants to go up against Katalina? Any volunteers?" Rodgers asks. No one steps forward, I look at Rolland and he just keeps his eyes glued to the floor, afraid he'll pick him. "Really? No one here that wants to take on the Victor of the 74th Hunger Games?"
"I'll do it," A voice says. My head picks up and I immediately wished it didn't. I gritted my teeth as the girl stepped into the ring.
Terra Harper. The girl that used to be Cato's girlfriend back in two.
"Long time no see huh?" she says as she sends me a quick smirk. "Funny how we both end up here." She's the last person I had expected to see here in thirteen.
