The Hunger Games: Camden Shepard

Chapter 5

I made my way back to my room. The adrenaline I'd felt from the fight with Daryl and my stage fright was slowly fading away, leaving a crushing exhaustion and hurt across my whole body. I had questions, ones that probably wouldn't be important after tomorrow. Why had Daryl attacked me, what was the point if I would be dead soon anyway? I knew he was odd, but trying to attack me seemed out of character even for him. My mind raced and I suddenly found myself on the elevator headed to the fourth floor. Finnick was waiting for me when the doors opened. Catrina and Lea stared at me from across the room, their eyes darted from Finnick to me. They had all seen the interview. They all knew who I had been taking about. I ran to Finnick and he met me half way, his strong arms catching me as my feet left the ground. Our lips met without hesitation and he carried me back to my room. We ignored Lea's disapproving screeching voice as she yelled after us. The last thing I saw before Finnick slammed my door shut was Catrina smiling and shaking her head.
I woke up at midnight next to Finnick, his blonde hair tousled in every direction. I let myself stare at his face, sound asleep, he looked so peaceful, as if sleep washed away all the pain he had felt. As if everything was alright. I watched his chest rise and fall as he breathed in the chilly night air. It would probably be the last time I saw him happy. It might be the last time I ever saw him. Then I remembered Jack's letter, that I was only supposed to read if I never saw him again. I slid out of bed and onto the cold floor of my room. I tiptoed over to my dresser and pulled out Jack's letter and ripped the envelope open.
Cam,
If you're reading this it means that you won, so congratulations! It also means that I'm dead. So that's a bummer, but know that there was nothing you could do to save me, and that I trusted you and considered you my friend and ally. Because I trust you I want to ask you to do something for me. I need you to take care of my family for me. They are going to need help without me. My mother will be a mess and she will need help taking care of my sister and brothers. Help her, please. You know that I took care of them and I just hope that you can take over for me since I'm going. I have one more favor to ask of you if you're reading this, thank Charlie for me. He did a good job protecting you, and I hope that I can do my best to get you back to him while we're in the arena. Without him you might not have met me, and that would have sucked for you. But thank him for me because I'm glad that I got to know you for the short time that we will know each other, and know that you gave me the will to fight on. So thank him for me. I love you Cam, you are my friend and I won't forget that in the arena.
Jack

Inside the envelope was another letter meant for his family. Jack was going to protect me, I ran my thumb over the letter for his family, apparently even if it killed him. He wanted me to give his family his letter because he wanted me to live. He expected me to live. I tucked Jack's letter back into the drawer. Jack was onto something with the letters. I searched through the desk until I found a pen and paper, then I began writing. First to Jack, then Finnick, then Charlie. I found envelopes and sealed the letters, scrawling the names of the three people I cared about on each respective envelope. I looked at the names. Seventeen years and I had three people that I cared about, two of which I had known for less than a month. It wasn't the amount of time I'd known them, I realized, it was about how I felt about them in the time I had known them. Jack's had been difficult to write, making me question if he deserved to live more than I did. Finnick's brought tears to my eyes as I asked him to be happy and that I was sorry that we hadn't had more time together. Charlie's was unbearable. I found myself lost in pools of thought as I tried to write everything that I needed to. How he didn't need to blame himself for my death, there was nothing he could do. How I would see him when his time came and not a second sooner. How I would say hi to his sister if there was a place beyond death. How much I loved him and was grateful for him. I wrote about Finnick and Jack. I wrote about the Capitol. I told him about Daryl and how I knew that Charlie would have killed him if he had been there. I wrote pages, my last words to my best friend. Finally I ran out of words to say. I tucked each of the letters into envelopes, sealed them, and wrote names on them. Then I slid them into Finnick's pocket, crawled back into bed and tucked myself under Finnick's arms until I fell asleep.