Tidal ~ Hunger Games [2]

ten

+ one through five +

I pulled myself out of the water, grabbing onto the slippery rocks with my hands, grabbing onto them and holding tightly before pulling my body weight up. I planted my feet flat, standing up and wiping the salty water from my eyes with the back of my hand quickly. I took a deep breath in, trying to fill my lungs, my head whipping around to see a familiar body of water surrounding the cornucopia. I was back in the wetsuit, my body dripping water onto the black rock beneath me. I back in the arena, my breathing was unsteady as I looked down at the trident which was lying in front of me.

I swiped it up quickly, the weapon familiar in my hand as my fingers gripped around the handle so tightly that my knuckles were turning white. Before I could even think I turned on my heel, throwing it at someone trying to sneak up on me. It hit them square in the chest, the sound of their breathing hitching before they slumped to the floor in a heap, no longer moving as blood poured from their chest wound. I didn't relise who it was until it was too late, my little brother Haf lying on the ground, my trident in his chest.

!

I shot up like dart, screamed escaping my mouth before I could stop myself, the shrill sounds bouncing off of the clean walls of my room. My whole body was dripping in sweat, strands of my hair stuck to my neck and the white nightgown I was wearing practically dripping. I let out another scream, my hand flying up to me chest as I gasped in large mouthfuls of air through my mouth, feeling as if I was suffocating. Kai came bursting into the room, a concerned look on his face as he looked over at me, the door slamming against the wall before he could stop it with his hand.

"Are you okay?" Kai asked, running over to me and kneeling beside my bed as I moved away from him, scampering on the mattress as he tried to reach out to me before he retracted his hand, realising I didn't want him to touch me. I placed my hands on the mattress, bowing my head as I closed my eyes, drawing in heavy breaths as Kai placed his elbows on the bed. "Another nightmare?" he asked me, reaching out placing his hand onto my leg, nodding my head at him. I flinched slightly under his touch, but I didn't move away, looking over at him as I stared at his green eyes.

You could see his own pain that was storming in his eyes, his jaw clenched as I looked away from him, squeezing my eyes shut as I tried to push the sight of Haf with a trident in his chest from my mind. "It's okay" he said, trying to calm me down, his voice soft floating over to me like a cloud as ai lifted my head back up. I pushed stray pieces of my face from my forehead, Kai making a hushing noise as I let out a shaky exhale. "I'm okay" I told him through an exhale, Kai simply nodding his head at my statement. I wasn't too sure if I was trying to convince him or myself that I was, but neither of us believed it.

"What have they done to you?" he said, climbing up onto my bed gently, engulfing me into a hug as he wrapped his arms around me tightly. I let out a sob, crying into his chest as he held me, putting his hand on the back of my head as he stroked my hair gently. "I'm fine" I said once more, Kai rocking is back and forth gently as I let out a sob gently, like someone trying to soothe a baby. "I don't think you'll ever be fine, Wave" he said to me, whispering as the sound of my pitiful crying filling the empty space in the room. "1,2,3,4,5" I started counting, my usual routine for when something like this happened, a small trick that Talisa had taught me.