Forbearance • A Cato Hadley Story

2.28

The sun was finally starting to set in the arena, signaling one of the last nights the remaining victors would be together. No one was ready to say goodbye. Whether or not any of them would actually admit it, they had all grown to love each other. And even though no one could flat out say it, they all knew it. To them it was too early. But it didn't matter if they were ready or not. A goodbye was coming either way. There was no avoiding it and they knew that. Now was the time that each member of the group took to say their farewells.

Eliza and Beetee, who had created a sort of father-daughter relationship with each other, sat together on the sand as the young girl cried beside him. The man had his arm wrapped around the girl comfortingly, knowing how she felt about what was soon to come. Johanna, Lennox sat together a few feet away from the other two in the sand, just by the water. Lennox's hand was linked with Johanna's while her head rested upon the man's shoulder.

Livia felt bad for the girl, knowing that if she lived she would lose the two people she cared for most of all. And she would lose them knowing that she would never get to live happily ever after with one of them. Quite a ways away from the five was Livia and Cato. The pair had barely spoken since the group had finished creating a plan for that night. The teens were hurting. Both of them had waited their whole life to find someone so perfect for them.

But when they finally found each other the universe denied their right to happiness. They had only gotten a little over a year to experience something that most don't get to experience at all. Now that was all coming to an end. All because the Capitol wished to kindle fear in the Districts. They couldn't take two sixteen year old's cheating their system kindly. The blonde wondered what Cato was thinking amongst all the silence lingering around them.

Her small hand had taken a hold of his slightly larger one and she couldn't help but wonder if this would be the last time she held his hand. In the back of her head, she attempted to remember each small detail she could about her lover. How his blue eyes looked at their hands so lovingly, how his blonde locks swayed in the barely noticeable breeze passing by, how his thumb brushed the back of her hand ever so gently.

It was moments like these that made all of the pain and suffering she went through. And they were down to possibly their last few hours together, meaning that these moments now meant a hell of a lot more. As the sound of the waves crashing onto the shore echoed around them the girl looked to the boy, catching his attention. "I think we need to go." she told him. Cato stared at his girlfriend sadly. He knew exactly what was going through her mind.

He was thinking the exact same things. He doubted every person in that group. Any one of them could strike at any moment. But staying with them and carrying out the plan was the only real chance that either of them had at leaving the arena and going home. "This plan's gonna work." he reassured her, giving her hand a small squeeze.

Though her heart rate still felt as if it was through the roof, the simple gesture made her feel loads better. It was the little things he did that would calm her down. Even now he managed to keep her calm and collected. "I think so too. And once the two from Nine are dead we both know what happens next. I don't want to be the one that shoots first." Livia pushed.

She didn't know how the others felt but she truly cared for the rest of the group now that they had gotten to know each other better. The idea of ending someone's life on it's own was terrifying to Livia, let alone someone she was close to. After the first games she had tortured herself for months on end for killing Thresh. The blonde had only spoken to him once.