You Only Live Once

Chapter 23

Being stuck in a mini van for hours with the rest of my friends kind of feels like the ride to the school in the yellow bus back when I was in the elementary. Everyone sings the song on the radio, even if they don't know the lyrics, and fights over who sits where. The major difference is that this ride is taking hours, Finnick and Annie are making out and Glimmer is having a cigarette.

"Want one, Kat?" Marvel asks, handing me a can of beer. Gale is the one taking the wheel right now, and in about an hour it'll be my turn to drive, so I decide against taking on Marvel's offer. The last time I got wasted, I ended up sleeping with Gale, which partly lead to the mess I am in right now. At the moment, the last thing I need is surely get into an accident because I was too drunk to drive. "You know having a beer won't kill you, or get the slightest drunk, right?" Marvel insists.

"I'm not really in the mood right now." I tell him.

Marvel shruggs "If you say so. I still think you need to cheer up a little." he states. Afterwards he turns around, where Annie and Finnick are feriociously eating each other's faces while Cato is slipping next to them. "Oh, come on guys! Can you keep it down? Poor Cato can barely sleep with you guys moaning right next to him." This statement generates a discussion that lasts for the next hour, when Gale stops to refill the van and for us to switch places.

As soon as the car stops and immediatly jump out of the van, streching my legs. I breath in the air, which isn't as fresh as I had hoped, due to the fact we are in a gas station. Almost everyone follows my lead, taking this stop to either go to the bathroom and freshen up. I decide to just walk around, until Johanna appears again and we both go to the small convenience store to get breakfast for everyone. It is currently 5 in the morning, and the sun has yet to make an appearance for the day.

"Should we just get baggels for everyone?" I ask Johanna, looking through the shelves of food.

She shruggs "Sure, why not? If they want something else then come get it themselves." She states. "I'll go get a cartoon of juice and a few plastic cups. Meet you up in the register when you're done." Then she turns around and walks to the next corridor.

I keep staring at the racks, my mind constantly wondering off back to Peeta. What could he be doing right now? Is he scared? Or maybe missing me. The simple idea of Peeta missing me is so appealling that I feel my heart flutter at the thought. Of course he misses me, because we're friends. And friends tend to miss each other's presence often. I keep telling myself this, hoping that soon I'll be able to believe it. The more I realize I have to break up with Gale soon, the more I try to avoid doing so, therefor trying to convince myself that there is nothing like that between me and Peeta. So far, it's not really working. Everytime I tell myself that Peeta and I are only friends, I remember that kiss we shared after we arrived from our adventure. It was just a kiss, a simple quick kiss that happened in the middle of the night months ago. Nothing more, there were no words shared on regard of that, Peeta completely erased it from his memories, and so should I. But I can't. I cannot forget about that kiss, I cannot ignore it, because I felt something. Because I liked it. And because it was Peeta Mellark who was kissing me. And now I feel terrible with myself for thinking of that right when Peeta is probably scared to death with the surgery he is about to have.

I flinch the moment I feel someone wrapp their arms around me.

"A little jumpy, are we?" Gale asks, his warm minty breath hitting my ear.

"You scared me for a second." I state, letting myself melt in his embrace, in desperate need to have someone hold me.

"What are you doing?"

"Just getting breakfast for the inner circle." I tell Gale jokingly.

He chuckles. "Just take the bagels. Everyone likes bagels."
he suggests.