Stay with me, always.

Chapter 69. Sacrifices

July

"By bringing on Mentors to the Games, we could increase the Tribute's marketability by tenfold."

I put down the proposal Arthus sent me. It's not a bad idea. In fact, it's a good idea. I think back to the interviews all the Tributes had and how almost all of them were terrible. Soarynn obviously had the upper hand considering how familiar she is with Lucky, but the rest have been amateurs.

I glance at the photos on my desk, there are quite a few that have appeared over the past few months. Most are of Soarynn. There are a few of the two of us, and a few are of her latest maternity photos. Eudora has been working overtime to get as many photos of Soarynn pregnant as possible. It's safe to say our little girl is already a star.

My mind drifts back to the proposal, how it would benefit us in so many ways, and get more people engaged. We'd have to shoot for next year, the Games start today after all. The Reaping was back to its original date, the Fourth of July. We reached record temperatures in the Capitol this summer. It's been so hot lately that we had to have the baby shower inside, how else would all the ice sculptures survive?

The past few months have been a blur. Soarynn's birthday on the first of May came and went, she didn't want a huge celebration and I think it was partly because of the memories it brought back from last year. So we didn't fight with her to have a huge party. The citizens of the Capitol still took to the streets and had their week-long celebrations, but we had a small gathering.

Besides, the last thing any of us wanted to do was stress Soarynn out.

She's been handling this pregnancy better than I have, our obstetrician must hate me considering the amount of times I call her. Anytime Soarynn experiences the slightest amount of discomfort, I'm calling Dr. Kyte. It's gotten to the point where she already knows it's me on the other end of the line. Which is both comforting and concerning.

But our baby girl has been growing safely inside of Soarynn's stomach. I still remember when she first kicked. I had been in my study at home when I heard a crash. I immediately went to find the source of the noise and found Soarynn standing in the living room, a broken glass of water on the floor.

I had taken a hesitant step towards her, "Are you alright?" I asked. She looked over at me, excitement in her eyes, "She just kicked Coryo! I felt the baby kick!"

So much pride swelled in my heart when she told me that. I spent a good hour with my hands on Soarynn's stomach, waiting for our little girl to kick. Mother and Eudora were over the moon when we told them, both praising Soarynn for being such a good mother. Not to be ironic, but it really was a kick at the baby shower we threw in June.

Everyone wanted to feel the baby kick and Soarynn let them of course. Later that night once everyone had gone home she confessed to me that she felt like an animal at a petting zoo. After that, I became very adamant about protecting her personal space, especially because Soarynn is far too polite to deny anyone the chance to feel the baby kick. But I have no qualms about being rude.

That's one of the reasons she married me.

A knock on the door brought me back to reality, "Come in," I said, watching as Quintus walked into my office. "President Snow," he greeted, bowing at the waist, "I've brought the new blueprints for the new branch division."

I waved him in, "Have a seat Quintus, I have some ideas to bounce off of you while you're here."

I took the blueprints from him after he sat down, glazing over them quickly. The Peace Corps was extending our facilities. We would be building an entirely new branch, the War Department. It would be right across the street, and we would be able to increase our militia by seventy percent. Once I approved the blueprints, construction would be underway.