❛ 𝑻𝑯𝑰𝑺 𝑳𝑶𝑽𝑬- 𝘵𝘩𝘨

CHAPTER 5

Arya didn't follow Johanna's orders about getting some sleep, instead, she stared out her window in thought. She didn't want to face Johanna again today, so she was debating ordering dinner to be delivered to her room.

Eventually, she got up and forced herself to get dressed into something nicer. Arya pulled on a maroon sweater, a black skirt and black tights, completing the look with nude colored flats, and let her hair tumble gently down her shoulders.

She made her way to the dining hall cautiously. The closer she got to the cabin, the more she had the urge to run back to her room and hide under her covers. The expression on Johanna's face kept playing over and over in her head, the cold voice she used, and the way she said her name.

And did Johanna really care that much about Arya that she'd volunteer for her, and risk her life for Arya's?

That thought alone was the thing that scared Arya the most. Arya had never really thought that Johanna could ever be more than just a friend, but as she thought more about it, the more confused she got.

And then, there was Kinsley. Arya still ached for her, and missed her dearly. She was partly afraid that Kinsley would hate her if they ever met again when Arya died.

When Arya finally went inside, much to her relief, she found that Johanna had ordered her dinner to be delivered to her room. She sat down and stared at the shining plate that sat in front of her, tuning out any of the noise around her.

When the food arrived, she stared at it. Even though she had seen it all before, she still wasn't quite used to it.

There were piles of ribs, mocktails along with other non-alcoholic drinks. Arya assumed they wanted to keep the tributes not drunk, for whatever reason- she didn't know why. She heard Blight mutter when he saw the drink situation. "Great..."

There were bowls of soup the color of beige, salads with green, leafy lettuce and juice tomatoes with an unknown dressing that smelled like a tangerine.

Arya grabbed a plate of ribs and a light purple mocktail, but rather than eating/drinking them, sat there, staring at her plate and picking at the kale on the side of her ribs.

She didn't think she could stomach down an actual meal, so instead she grabbed a bowl of soup and excused herself from the table.

Arya didn't know where she was going, but she knew that she had to get away from the hot, stuffy dining cabin, so she went to the roof to cool down. When she got up there, she leaned over the railing, taking a deep and slow breath.

Suddenly, she heard a quiet noise behind her. It was the noise of crying.

She whirled around, but stood there in shock.

Because, there in front of her, was her life-long best friend, who was tough as nails, breaking down in front of her, curled up in a ball.

For a couple of seconds, she stood there, completely frozen in shock, but then forced herself to go sit next to her.

Arya placed a gentle arm around her, and pulled Johanna into a hug. The latter girl seemed to be whispering the same thing over and over again.

"Why...? Why...? Why...?"

Arya rubbed her back while asking softly, "Why what?"

While she thought she already knew the answer, Johanna's answer surprised her.

"Why do I have to be falling so deeply in love with you?"

Johanna looked up and stared deeply into Arya's eyes.

Arya felt like she was breaking inside. She couldn't do this. It was too soon after Kinsley's death, Arya thought. But in reality, it had been seven years, yet nightmares still haunted her.

And so with Arya's thoughts still extremely jumbled up, she cupped Johanna's face, and pressed her lips against hers.