Fiery Payback

Chapter 48

Peeta's P.O.V

I watch the lightning strike the same tree over and over again. Finnick woke up when the two cannons went off. I wonder who died. Then, the clock-like sounds started up. I counted twelve. Once the lightning stopped, rain started up. It is far, but yet not far from where we are. This is more like the 75th Hunger Games than the 74th.

A cannon fires during the rain storm. This is making me anxious. I want to know who died.

"You should get some sleep." Finnick suggests. Sleep. The word makes me want to sleep.

"Okay. Wake me up if anything happens." I say. And with that, I fall asleep.

******************
I heard him scream out in pain before I felt the pain myself. I immediately get up and look around. It's the fog.

"Come on! We got to get out of here!" I shout to Finnick. We both run away from the fog.

The fog seems to be quicker than in the 75th Hunger Games. It keeps getting at our feet and lower legs.

I trip over a tree root and fall to the ground. The fog immediately comes to me. Half of my body gets stung by the fog. I scream out in pain and pull myself to my feet.

I try to run as fast as I can. The fog keeps covering me up more and more though. I am in extreme pain and agony. And I am not the only one.

Finnick is in the same position that I am. Mostly covered in the fog. He is barely jogging, let alone running. Without any sign, he just stops moving. He lets the fog consume him. A cannon fires.

Finnick! I scream in my head. Why did you give up?! I feel like giving up myself. My whole body is screaming in pain, telling me to just give up. But I won't give up without a fight. Even if I die trying.

But my limbs are turning limp. My right arm won't move, nor my mouth. My right leg is starting to grow stiff. There's no use. I am done for.

I trip over something and fall. I end up rolling down a little hill thing. I stop rolling and breath heavily. But I am barely getting any air.

Then, the most wonderful happened. The fog stopped coming at me. It started to disappear. Then, it is gone. And so is Finnick.

I can't move. If I move, I might die. From the pain, anyways. I just lay there, in my back. I hope death is not so bad. I hope it is quick.

I hear voices coming from my right.

"This way! I heard screaming!"

"Hurry up, Diamond! Or we will lose them!"

"I'm running, so shut up!"

Then, the group comes into view. They notice me on the ground.

"Look at this. Who wants to kill him?" A guy says.

"I will." Another voice says. The owner of the voice steps forward. It is the one kid from District 1. What is his name?

"You got this, Jem. Kill him for your mom." A woman says.

Jem steps forward and crouches down to me. "Hope you have enjoyed your life. Cause this is the end of it."

I feel something go through my chest. A knife. He stabbed me just long enough so that I can feel more pain before I die. The last thing I will ever think is this.

**************

"Do you have a girlfriend back home?" Caesar asks.

I hesitate, then give a shake of my head.

"Handsome lad like you. There must be some special girl. Come on, what's her name?" says Caesar.

I sigh. "Well, there is this one girl. I've had a crush on her ever since I can remember. But I'm pretty sure she didn't know I was alive until the reaping."

Sounds of sympathy from the crowd. Unrequited love they can relate to.

"She has another fellow?" asks Caesar.

"I don't know, but a lot of boys like her," I say.

"So, here's what you do. You win, you go home. She can't turn you down then, eh?" says Caesar encouragingly.

"I don't think it's going to work out. Winning... won't help in my case," I say.

"Why ever not?" says Caesar, mystified.

I stammer out. "Because... because... she came here with me."