❝FIRE ON FIRE WOULD NORMALLY
KILL US, BUT THIS MUCH DESIRE,
TOGETHER WE'RE WINNERS❞
in which a girl from district 4
meets a boy from district 2
during the 74th annual
hunger games.
[the hunge...
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THE TRIBUTE CENTER felt like a whole different world to Lilia Conway as she entered the grand, opulent atmosphere. There was something different about it, something emptier. The girl followed the Capitol attendants through the halls, leading her up to the fourth floor. To the place that had been hers and Adrian's just two weeks ago.
Lilia's stomach grew nauseous as she stepped inside. The common room felt empty without him.
"Lilia," Finnick's voice called softly from the balcony. She turned to see him standing outside, his expression serious. "Come here."
Nodding, Lilia made her way across the room, moving through the glass doors and stepping out onto the balcony. The fresh air seemed to calm her nerves, which she was grateful for.
"Out here, they can't hear us," Finnick said, turning to face the girl. "I need you to tell me everything you remember about what happened in the arena."
Lilia took a deep breath, her mind flashing back to those final moments in the Games.
"While we were up on the Cornucopia, the mutts...they started...flickering," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "Then they started attacking everything, and the structure was about to collapse. It felt like we were all going to die right then and there. Then, the Capitol intervened."
Lilia paused for a moment, then finished, "It all happened so fast, Finnick."
The boy nodded, his jaw clenched.
"There was a malfunction," he spoke quietly. "Something went wrong with the system. The mutts, the force fields, even the cameras...they all went down. When we were watching, the screens just went static. The last thing we saw were you four standing on the Cornucopia."
Lilia's eyes grew wide, trying to process what this meant. A malfunction had never happened before. Not one big enough to stop the Games, anyway.
"Snow's trying to cover it up," Finnick continued. "He's telling everyone that it was his plan all along to have four victors for the 74th Hunger Games."
"Why?" Lilia asked. "Why would he do that?"
"Control," Finnick replied simply. "Snow can't afford to let anyone know that his precious Hunger Games went haywire. Especially the rebels. If word gets out that the Capitol lost control, it's an open invitation for another war."
Lilia's mind raced as she listed closely to Finnick's words.
"So what do I do?" Lilia asked. "During the interview...what do I say?"
"You act completely clueless. You play along. You thank the Capitol, you thank Snow, and you pretend you're grateful for everything they've done," Finnick answered.
