𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲.Cato Hadley

32.

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𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫
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I barely manage to open my eyes, but when I do, the first thing I see is Cato, who looks at me with a worried, yet happy expression. Where the hell am I? My whole body hurts, and I can't even stand up.

"Melanie," He says relieved, his eyes full of tears. "You're awake. Thank God."

What happened? Why is Cato crying and why does he look so tired? I'm trying to remember what happened last before I passed out. It's hard for me to judge whether this is real now. But for the first time in all the nightmares I've had lately, I don't feel like I'm going to die.

"What happened?" I ask and then try to shift, but a sharp pain shoots through me, forcing a groan from my lips. Cato grabs my hand and squeezes it tightly.

"There was an explosion," He explains. "You got caught in it. You've been unconscious for a week." All week. The shock hits me hard when I realize how much time that is.

His words start to bring back fragments of memory. The mission, the explosion, it all comes rushing back. Immediately, his image comes to mind. It was the last thing I saw before the parachutes exploded. Thank God he is fine. I also remember the pain that ran through my body and the fire that tried to consume me. After that, all was an agonizing darkness.

"I'll leave you two alone," Haymitch says and I see him leave the room. I hadn't even noticed he was here.

"How bad is it?" I ask, feeling pain in at least five places on my body without even moving.

"Pretty bad. For a moment we wondered if you'd even wake up," He admits, his eyes never leaving mine. Oh, God. Now I realize where that sadness written on Cato's face came from.

I swallow hard, trying to process everything. The pain, the fear, and the uncertainty - it all feels overwhelming. He must be devastated. I know because not long ago I was in his shoes. Seeing him like this breaks my heart.

"Cato," I whisper, my voice quivering. "Are you okay?"

"I am now," He says, his voice softening. "You just really scared us."

I want to hug him and tell him I won't make him feel this way again. It's the first time I've seen Cato so broken. Yes, when he came back from the Capitol, he was quite emotional. But now it seems to be something different. It seems that this sadness of his is real and not prompted by the Capitol.

"Cato," I barely utter. "Come here." With great effort, I lift my arm and wrap it around him, pulling him into a gentle hug. In our embrace, he kisses my forehead, sending butterflies to my stomach.

"I know you love it when I do that," He says with a soft chuckle, and I smile.

"I do," I admit. "Now what's next from here? Will Snow live or-"