Tangled in the Great Escape (a clato fan fiction)

What are you afraid of?

"I kissed the scars on her skin 

I still think you're beautiful 

And I don't ever want to lose my best friend. 

I screamed out, "God, you vulture, 

Bring her back or take me with her"

Tear it down, break the barricade 

I want to see what sound it makes 

I hate this flavor with a passion and I fucking hate the aftertaste" 

-Pierce the Veil (A Match into Water)

The once vicious and blood thirsty duo form district two sit like that for a couple of minutes not needing words but only each others presence. Then suddenly Clove looks up at the big blond boy with the baby blue eyes and says softly "Are you hungry?" He smiles and replies "A little." With that Clove kisses his cheek and walks into the kitchen. And the phone rings.

Cato sighs and walks over to the telephone that never gets used while he's there. Clove only uses it to talk to Cato while he's gone, if she's had a problem. "Hello" Cato says into the phone. The exact voice he dreading to hear responds "Hello Cato, we will need you here in two days." Cato sighs as silently as possible and responds "Mr. President, I just got home. I need to spend time with Clove, she's doing much better and she needs me now. I can come in two weeks; when I'm scheduled to come." President snow replies in a stern voice, as if he were talking to a trouble making child. "Mr. Kentwell, I don't think this is something we can argue about. The exact girl that you say is doing better could easily be knocked off her happy train by a trip to district twelve or even more easily killed. Or if you preferred we could tell her why you come to the Capitol. Your choice, she is your..." He pauses as if he's surveying her looking for the correct term for the broken girl. "...Property, right?" By this point Cato is completely infuriated but is hiding his anger well "When does the train leave?" Cato can practically hear the grin on the presidents face as he responds "ten o clock on Sunday." The next words leave Catos mouth before he realizes how childish and winey they sound "But that's in two days" "Exactly as I said before, you do know the way out." Present Snow says as if he's talking to the trouble making child again. "But she's barley sixteen, I can't do that to her, not yet." Cato says growing irritated. "Well it is your decision. Goodbye Mr. Kentwell, I'll be seeing you soon, right?" President Snow says as calm as possible "Yes, goodbye" Cato says with irritation dripping from his words and hangs up the phone.

Cato ran the words over and over again in his head "You do know the way out." He does know the way out, but he can't do this to Clove. But the only way out is to get Clove pregnant. That would be hard considering that the farthest they've gone since the games have been over is a kiss on the lips; no parting of the lips or tongue involved. Just a kiss. He's not even sure he wants kids. Hell, he's only 19 Clove is just 16, to make her take care of a baby when she is barely capable of taking care of herself would be too much for her. And she's still just a kid. She shouldn't have been reaped (the girl who was suppose to volunteer didn't because she hated Clove for being with Cato. Ria -the girl who had to volunteer- thought it would be great revenge after Cato volunteered for the boys -in the career districts they do male then female- and Clove got drawn.) Clove shouldn't hate herself to the point of harming herself, and she sure as hell shouldn't have to take care of a baby.

Cato brushes it off for now and walks into the kitchen where Clove is standing over the stove cooking eggs in one of Cato's old plad button up shirt, but no pants. Her hair cascades in dark raven waves down to her waist. He walks right behind her and wraps his arms around her waist underneath the baggy shirt so he's touching her soft warm skin. He rests his chin on her shoulder and whispers sweet nothing's into her ear. Clove smiles not wanting this to end, he never knew how much she craved this kind of contact, the kind that sends chills down her spine and make her smile uncontrollably. But she would never tell him that, she can't. She can't go any further than this -touching wise- one of the reasons she hates herself is because she can't give him what she used to be able to. Before the games they did have sex more than a few times but after something changed in Clove that made her not want sex. She couldn't figure it out. Cato never tried to do anything like that with her because he's waiting for her to make a move and she knows it but she can't and she doesn't know why.  

She turns her head to look at him an smiles and says "I love you, you know that right?" "Of course I do. Do you know that I'm in love with the most beautiful girl alive?" He responds. She smiles and looks down at the pan with the scrambled eggs in it. She'll never believe that she's beautiful. She doesn't think she can be after killing people for the entertainment of cake-faced slobs. As she is thinking this the toast pops up out of the toaster and Cato moves form her leaving her cold where he was and where his hands were. He comes back with two plates one with one pice of toast, the other with two. She shovels 3/4 of the eggs on Catos plate and puts the rest on hers. They sit at the table and eat in silence.  

After awhile Cato breaks the science by asking "Clover?" She looks up from her food that she's barely eating; mostly just playing with it. "Hmm?" "What are you afraid of?" He asks his voice full of concern. "It's stupid." She replies. He takes his hand in hers and looks in her big emerald eyes and says "Clover, it's not going to be stupid, just tell me, please?" She sighs and says "I just keep having these nightmares of you being fucked by some Capitol women and then realizing that they can give you anything you want while I can hardly make you breakfast." She gestures towards the eggs and toast. "Hell, even my own father knows I'm not good enough. Cato I have no family." He's surprised by the change from the cake-faces to her father. Her father was her only family. Her mother left them when Clove was seven and turned to alcohol to drowns his sorrows. By the time she was thirteen he became abusive drunk and forced her into training. Where she met Cato. She caught his eye with her knife throwing skills and the fact that she would come to training with cuts and bruises and yet she never participated in hand-to-hand combat. So he did what every other curious fifteen year old would do and he asked her. They became friends then about six months later started dating. "But that doesn't even matter, right?" She says with a sad smile on her face. That breaks Cato out of his thoughts and he says "No, Clove, it does." She gives him a confused look. "Clover, I'll be your family now." She smiles with a tear escaping her eye and says " I love you." He frowns at her "Say it again." "I love you." He kisses her right above the collar bone, kisses her neck, kisses her cheek then her lips "I love you too. But I have to leave early this time." "Why?" She asks "I don't know, the president called and didn't tell me why."

The next two days fly by faster than both of them wanted and it's the night before he leaves again. Both settle into bed and fall asleep. But shortly after Clove starts screaming in her sleep and Cato wakes her and coos her back to sleep but he never returns to sleep; instead he just watches her perfection.

A/N: This looks wrong. What's wrong with it? I can't figure out exactly what it is. Will someone tell me if you see anything? I'll love you forever. Byeeeee