Scars Of Our Love | Cato Hadley X Male Reader | Vol. 1

11 ~ Ranked

The skin beneath my eyes tingled from the tears that once fell down them. My stomach felt all sorts of nerves and butterflies, mostly because of the punch, but I couldn't help but wonder if something else was happening. Although I hated him I still felt my heart skip a beat, the feeling of him holding me in his arms and comforting me just felt right.

My body leans into the large metal door, pushing it open with a slight struggle. As I take a look around I quickly realize I was the only tribute there, everyone else was either a peacekeeper or trainer.

"Hey 7," a trainer says while coming close to me. I turn toward him, his baton swinging low at his side.

"You're being ranked in 30 minutes. I suggest you go to your room like the other tributes," he says, deep voice slightly muffled by the mask he wore. I thought for a second, I still held a slight grudge toward Johanna for the fight, even if she was right I couldn't let her know. Plus I thought Jenna could use some more time with Johanna since she seemed to only be training me.

"Is there anywhere to go aside from my room?" I ask, the man made an irritated noise.  "You're welcome to stay here or wait in the waiting room down the hall."

I quickly turn and walk down the hallway, head down, looking at the clean concrete floor. There weren't many doors so It was easy to find the waiting room. The door slid open without a touch, and I was met with an empty hallway, benches lined the walls and there was another entry at the other end.

It was dimly lit, but the ceiling lights flickered on as I walked through. Motion detected.

My chest heaves a bit as I let out a sigh, taking a seat on one of the empty benches. The whole time here I barely had time to think of my strategy. My mind had been racing with thoughts of my family and Cato. And with all my training and physical work, I hadn't taken the time to focus on myself.

Was I going to show them my best, or follow in Johanna's footsteps, play it weak, play it strong, or be smart? I didn't know, part of me was just hoping that it would all figure itself out once I got in there. I just couldn't let anything or anyone distract me.

As that thought had just left my mind the door suddenly opened, the last person I wished to see standing there. He looked at me like an animal who has just realized it was being hunted.

"Y/n I-I," he pauses, his hands fidgeting at his side. I only steal a glance at him before turning away, not wanting to deal with him on top of my nerves. 

His footsteps slowly crept closer, the shadow of his figure cast over me. I feel a hand on my shoulder, "Please I just wanna talk." My arm jerks forward attempting to push his hand off but his grip only tightens. "Well, I don't," I say coldly. His face came into view as he moved to the other side. "Look, I'm sorry," he lets out.

"What!" I yell, causing him to jump back, "You're sorry. For what, training with me just to use me for my skills then leaving me the next day." He tried to interrupt but couldn't think of the words. My lips let a small giggle escape, "Then to top it all off you hit me right below the rib. You know you can kill someone if you hit them hard enough there right?"

Once again I felt my tears fall. I couldn't bear being there with him any longer. Back home the only other time I cried this much was when my mom died, after that, I swore I would never let my emotions get the better of me. But here, I did. He brought out something in me, and I had no clue what it was. All I knew was he made me hurt, but he also made me long for something more.

My body flinches as I feel him make contact, his arms wrapping around me providing a soothing warmth. This time I didn't pull away, something about him made me feel like everything would be ok.