hope | c. snow

5

WHEN GAHEL WOKE, HE WAS IN A HOSPITAL BED.

He knew that for sure. He knew the stale mattress, the stench of medicine, the hospital gown on him, and the curtain around him. 

And Arthur Moon's face right in front of him.

Gahel twisted his face as soon as he saw him, not liking how the man was a spitting image of him if he was older and angrier. "... Father."

"Moon Gunwoo," Arthur Moon snarled. "What were you thinking?"

"I wasn't."

Arthur looked at him with a twisted expression, his lips upturned and his face distorted. It looked too much like Gahel's own. "That's your response?"

"Then how did you expect me to respond? Be like, 'Oh, I'm sorry. I just was being stupid and thought stupidly at that moment?'" Gahel retorted. "And it's Gahel. Not fucking Gunwoo."

"Gunwoo's the name I gave you; you will treat it as so."

Gahel scoffed, before noticing the huge pain in his back as he did. "Fuck. What the hell even ..."

"It was a rebel bombing. Your back's burned," said Arthur. "And you will not speak like that in front of me, young man."

"Like what?" demanded Gahel. "Cursing? As if you don't? Pops, stop acting so fucking Capitol. Everyone knows we didn't come to this place because we acted polite."

"We are going to erase that from our history, Moon Gunwoo," his father hissed in a tongue that only existed in their family. 

"Like you erased Jason?" Gahel sneered. Gahel felt stinging on his cheek and blinked before realizing that his father had hit his face. He laughed, spitting out blood. He knew the hit had probably made a bruise on his face. "What, now you're going back to your old ways?"

"No. It's to make you quit your hissy fit and mature," Arthur growled. "And the Games are continuing. I will be expecting much from you, Moon Gunwoo. Understood?"

Gahel glared at Arthur but reluctantly nodded.

"Good," said Arthur.

Gahel sighed and tried to lay on his back, thinking the conversation was over, only to notice the immense pain coming from it.

"What the—"

"You're not supposed to be moving," a dark voice said. Gahel jerked his head back to see Coriolanus Snow staring at him. The boy smiled and looked apologetically at Arthur. "My apologies, Mr. Moon. I wanted to see Gahel after hearing that he woke up."

Arthur scoffed. "Of course."

Gahel ignored Arthur. "I thought you were supposed to be with your tribute."

"Well, prep time's over, and I thought I'd stop by since you did save my life."

"That, I did," Gahel agreed. "I reckon the interviews are over, then?"

"No, it's not," Arthur answered instead. He stood up from his chair and straightened the tie around his neck. "I will get going. You better ... catch up with your classmate."

"I will. Don't worry about it," Gahel snarked.

Arthur glared at him before huffing and promptly leaving, and Gahel, checking that his father was gone, looked at Coriolanus with expectant eyes.

"Well? Why are you here? Came to gloat at this?" Gahel pointed to the bruise forming on his cheek. "Can't you tell me now since my father's gone?"

Coriolanus frowned. "I don't care about that. I meant what I said."