The Hunger Games - The Rise of the Phoenix

Chapter 13

     I here someone yell my name. They catch me right as I fall. I think it's River, but I really can't tell. I know they're holding a knife though. The person pulls me up and gets me onto the ground. They come toward me with the knife in their hand. I have to go. I pull myself up and start to run. My arms and legs are throbbing with pain. The person is still chasing me. I keep running, not fast, but I'm still getting away.
    "Sage! What are you doing?!" They yell. It's definitely River and he's about to kill me. I can't see well enough to get a knife out of my belt. My best bet is to get away by running.
    My head hurts. The world starts to spin. I can't register what's happening. I'm walking now. River has now caught up to me. I feel my eyes close and I hit the ground.

    I wake up. River is standing over me. Why didn't he kill me? I thought I died? I sit up confused and look at him. We make eye contact. He approaches me. Accepting my death I inhale and wait for him to stab me. He doesn't. Instead, he wraps his arms around me. Why is he hugging me? I think back to what happened with the boy from ten. He chased me. I ran toward a cliff with a big tree by it. I jumped and hanged from the tree. The boy fell down the cliff. Before he died he threw an ax at a tracker jacker nest. I got stung in my arms and legs. I let go of the tree. River caught me. He saved me! He wasn't trying to kill me he saved me and happened to be holding a knife!
    "Why did you save me?" I ask.
    "Even though you joined the careers you're still my ally. Allies help each other." He says.
    "Yeah, but I betrayed you! I thought you would want me dead!"
    "Well, I forgave you."
    "It's not that easy to forgive someone! If you did that to me, I would have killed you right then and there!"
    "I couldn't just watch you die! Look, you're my friend. I don't care that you joined the careers. You knew what you were doing. You killed them. That's all that matters."
    "Okay okay." I look down at my arms and legs and notice there's leaves all over the tracker jacker stings. "Why's there leaves on me?"
    "It gets rid of the tracker jacker venom or something like that. Your mom sent me a sponsor gift with the leaves and a note telling me what to do."
    "Well, thanks." That's all I can think to say.