Safe and Sound || Hunger Games

Chapter Thirty Two - Alive

NOTE: Still not the end!

DEDICATION: tifeos, for being an amazing person altogether! You hold as much power as the flower, perhaps even more :3 Love you :)

Chapter Thirty Two - Alive

I helped Grayson to his feet and we both limped and staggered over to the ladder, our wounds bleeding and our strength fading. Grayson was still clutching the arrow and feather. As soon as we held onto the ladder, the odd force that kept us attached to it pinned us to the rungs and we were lifted up onto the Hovercraft. As soon as we got inside, we both crumpled to the ground as the fatigue and pain hit us. The adrenaline was gone, now we were going to suffer more than before.

I was then picked up by a doctor in a white coat with a white mask, being forced to let go of Grayson at last, much to my dismay. I was then carried and placed on a bed, put under anesthetic as they set to work on my mauled leg. My vision went blurry and my mind went funny, but eventually I went under.

* * *

When I woke once more, my legs felt odd and new. I looked under the covers to see the skin on my injured leg had been completely replaced. My new skin was as smooth as a new born baby's, and was still pink and rather vulnerable, like a baby bird's. I then looked up completely. It was hard to sit up, but I somehow managed. I looked about. I was in an empty room. Just me and my bed, with the mall machine pumping morphine into my body. Just me and my thoughts.

I looked at my arm that had all the tubes inside, to see that my ribbon was still tied to my wrist. Besides that, I was completely naked. My ribbon was singed and torn, but it was now clean. It no longer had blood on it. Grayson's blood had been scrubbed off of it.

Not only had my ribbon been scrubbed up, but I had been scrubbed up. My hair was silky and thick again, pulled back into a plait going down my back, however I was sad to feel that the feather Grayson had weaved into my plait was no longer in my hair. I smelt of roses and the scars, bruises and burns I had gained weren't as prominent. I ran my hand along the long, thin one on my stomach. Even that one was less noticeable now.

I sank back into the soft mattress of the bed and took a deep breath. I was out of the arena. Even though it was slightly ridiculous to say so, I sort of missed it. It was beautiful in there, even though it was a place of death. It was like a graveyard. It was beautifully made, but it was funny because it wasn't used for its beauty. It was used for its dark, sad purpose. To allow the dead to rest. Plus, I had grown so used to waking up in the arena and surviving that it felt like second nature to me. It was odd to wake up and no longer need to survive. I just had to live now. I was a victor...but was Grayson?

As soon as I thought about Grayson, I immediately regretted it. I didn't know if he had made it. I wasn't quite sure if he was even alive. But there were two victors, if Grayson was alive. What were they going to do? Grayson wasn't even supposed to be a victor. I bet it was a sympathy vote from the people of the Capitol. Maybe our kiss had temporarily warmed their dark hearts. His kiss tingled on my lips as I thought about him.

I thought about the brown haired boy for a long time. When a male Avox walked in and handed me a tray of food, he stayed and looked at me as I stared off into the empty space, not touching my food. The Avox seemed to be worried about me, so he reached out gingerly and put a hand on my shoulder to see what would happen. I flinched, but calmed down when I realised that it was a friendly gesture, a supportive gesture. The Avox then pushed the tray up my body, so it was resting on my stomach. I looked at him and he nodded, before walking out of the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts and my tray of food.