𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐔𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄; The Hunger Games

Finding Cupid (Day 4 pt.1)

         I hear buzzing with the disgusting noise of flies swarming around me. I shoo them away. I slowly open my eyes, as I squint them from the bright sun being in my eyes. I use my hands to feel the ground, making sure I could move. The feeling of stones, pebbles, rocks and mud. I can feel that I'm on the shore of the river. I turn my head slowly as it still hurts from spinning around underwater. I look next to me to see Omani's body lying next to me with flies, worms and other mutated insects swarming around his body.

    A shiver comes across my body, as I hold myself, I notice I must've lost my jacket among the riverbed. I notice a bolder next to me, I slowly move my body up with my arms, sitting-up against it. I unzip my pant-leg, revealing my wound from Omani's ax. I'm not sure how long I've been knocking out, but it appears to be infected or something. I try to lift my leg up. "Fuck!". I anguished as I then wrap my leg with the unzipped pant-leg. I then unzip my other pant-leg to make to where I'm now wearing shorts. I use the other pant-leg to to tie tighter around my wounded calve. I then stand up on my non-wounded leg. I take a look at my surroundings, making sure where I was, and if it's safe for me to walk. I look around, this place is very unfamiliar.

     The sun is shining bright as there's a rainbow coming from the end of the river stream, birds chirp, flying through the rainbow, something seemed odd, the birds would fall to the ground, dead once they hit the rainbow, must be poison.

I then look straight ahead, noticing the Cornucopia shimmering in the distance. I'd say I'm about 30 miles from the Cornucopia.

    I'm sure Stout made it back alright, probably told the others I'm missing.

     Hopefully Nikki doesn't think it was his fault, he was truly trying to keep me alive. I'm not sure why. I realize all my supplies are gone. My backpack must've got lost during the storm. I see a shining piece of metal glistening near me...It's my sword. I hobble over, bending down to grab my sword as I make my ways into the woods, making my way towards the Cornucopia, I cut through throne bushes, and tall grass, hiding between trees to ever noise I hear. Being alone really humbles me, it's scary but I know I truly-only have myself to protect me.

       A couple hours pass as I realize I'm lost in the forest, probably miles away from the nearest tribute. I sit down, taking a break from hobbling, giving my injured leg some rest. I lean up against a dead  tree. My nostrils fiddle as I smell smoke, possibly coming from a fire. My killing instincts kick in, but I must hold my ground since my leg to fucked up. I slightly move my leg to move over to have a closer look, I peak behind the dead tree. My foot then breaks a stick that was on the ground. I see 2 tributes turn their head. they quickly putting out the fire. I ready my sword.

      Knowing I blew my cover away, they might come after me. I hold my sword close, quietly stepping over from the tree. I take a closer look at their faces...It's Tate and Nykoya! They quickly grab their closest supplies. Seems like I spooked them. They're about to take off deeper into the woods. "Tate". I say excitingly, but as quietly as I could, but not too quiet so I can get his attention. He looks over at me, noticing that it's me. "Dom?". He questions me with a bright smile on his face, running up to me as he jumps in my arms. I release him, looking down at him with a smile. "I'm so happy to see you". Tate says smiling while looking up at me.

    He then wraps his arms around my neck as I wrap my arms around his waist, hugging him. He accidentally leans against my leg as I let out a painful grunt. "I'm sorry!". He says, panicking. "You're fine". I say as I lean against a tree. Nykoya slowly walks up to us. "We have medicine...". Nykoya says softly. Tate then wraps one of my arms around his shoulder. Helping me walk over to their campsite. Nykoya sits down on some dead tree log in front of me.

     Tate carefully places me on the damp-soft ground, sitting next to me. Nykoya goes through Tate's backpack, looking for this so called 'medicine'. The pain in my leg worsens at I grind my teeth together. Tate tries to comfort me the best he can. "Ah ha..." Nykoya says. She's holding the healing ointment Gliseen was talking about. "Can I see your wound?". Nykoya asks me shyly. "Yeah". I say as I unwrap my leg, revealing my wound. She stares at my leg, Tate gasps, scared to even glance at my wound.

    She squeezes it as dark blood oozes out. I make a agonizing screech as Tate holds my hand tightly. "Yeah, it's infected". She confirms as she gently applies the ointment on my leg, I squeeze my eyelids together, grinding my teeth as she smooths the ointment, patting my leg to let me know she's done. "Thank you". I say softly as I breathe heavily. She softly smiles at me, putting the ointment away in her bag.

"Are you hungry?". Tate asks me. My stomach growls as I look at him laughing. "I guess I am". I say jokingly as he laughs. I stare at his dimples, mesmerized by his smile. "I like it when you smile". I say to him as he looks at me, his face turning red as smirks at me, trying to hide his smile. I must've made him insecure or something. "Don't stop smiling, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you...". I say to him, staring into his beautiful, glistening eyes. "I just don't like my smile, but I do like it when you make me laugh, you make me feel safe during all this chaos". He tells me as I give him a slight smile.

     I can't help but to lean in for a kiss. He eyes hint over to Nykoya as I stop. He doesn't want her to see us kiss, I kind of forgot she was here, I mean she wasn't paying attention but damn. "Right uh, so who's hungry? You're hungry?- I mean I'm hungry, I think...anyway food?". I say nervously, scratching the back of my head as face turns bright red. He giggles. "You're cute". He says, smiling at me as I smile back. "But yeah, we thought you were someone else, so we stopped the fire, but we toasted some loris' before putting the fire out". Tate says as Nykoya reaches inside a satchel, grabbing the cooked animal, handing him a grilled loris. "What's a loris?". I ask him while examining the poor animal. "It's similar to a lemur, or a monkey, but they live in Vietnam many years before Panem". Tate explains as I slowly take a bite off it. As I begin to chew I realize it taste similar to chicken so I eat more. "Vietnam?" I question with a mouth full of roasted Vietnam loris thigh in my mouth. Tate and Nykoya giggle. "This arena, based on Vietnam?". I ask them. Tate jesters over to Nykoya to educate me. "Yeah, It's set up to be like Vietnam rice-fields along the mountains sides, the Cornucopia being on of one of the rice-fields, in the center of the arena of course". Nykoya explains as I look at her, I'm interested in what she's knows about the arena. "Each level is like a staircase". She explains as I look around the forest, realizing this arena has a bigger meaning than it seems. Nykoya then stands up. "I'm going to put out the fire so we can all get some rest". She says softly as she walks over to where the fire was.

      "Is she always this shy?". I ask Tate as he leans his head onto my shoulder as we both look at each other. The smoke from the 'put-out' fire was blocking our view of her. "She's not, but you being a Career worries her". He'd say as I feel offended, but also it's understandable. "She's scared of me? I'm scared of her, she's one smart girl". I say with a chuckle. "Yeah, she is smart, back home I'd see her playing at school with her friends, some brain-smarts game they made up, but she'd win each time". He tells me.

    A couple of minutes pass, I'm exhausted from almost drowning, fighting and having my leg sliced open. I look down at him, slowly holding his hand. I see that he notices the blood in my fingernails. "Did you kill anyone?". He curiously asks me as I hesitate to answer.

      I don't want him to think of me any differently, especially if he finds out what I did to Teijo. "No". I simply say, hoping he'd believe me. He looks up at me, looking me in the eyes. "So you weren't the one who killed Omani, even tho you told me he attacked you?". He confronts me with one of his eyebrows raised up. "Well I..." my voice shakes as I try to finish.

Tate and I suddenly hear a terrifying scream coming from the campfire as a cannon follows shortly after.