The 67th Annual Hunger Games

Chapter 12

I woke up, surrounded by light and instantly began screaming again and thrashing around in the bed. I fumbled for my mother necklace, but it was gone, making me panic more and start to hyperventilate.

"Shh, you're all right now, sugar." The voice from the hovercraft said. I sat upright, and vomited all over my sheets. I heard a groan from the hovercraft voice, and I fell back asleep again.

I opened my eyes slowly to a dim light glowing somewhere above me, along with a slight buzz of some sort of a machine buzzing to the side. I felt my heart racing, and opened my mouth to scream, when I found my mouth suddenly busy doing something else.

A pair of soft, strawberry tasting lips brushed smoothly against mine, and I shut my eyes, trying to remember were I'd experienced these same lips before. I moved my mouth in sync to his, placing my hand on the side of his mouth, running my fingers along a stubble of beard.

Eventually, I opened my eyes as the pair of lips detached themselves from mine. I groaned in protest, waving my hand out infront of me to find that soft stubble once more.

"Hey, sugar." I heard a whisper say, and I instantly began scream, before the lips clasped back on mine again, but this time for a shorter amount of time. "I will kiss you everytime you scream, sugar."

"Finni-" I said, unable to say the ending as I coughed, feeling like I was going to vomit again.

I laid back into my pillow, feeling his soothing fingers running through my hair, which now instead of going to the length of my bum, it know only just hit my shoulders, as the fire had singed substantial amounts of it off, but I didn't mind. I was safe now.

"Al..." I murmured, wanting to see my brother face again.

"Aubrey..." Finnick whispered. It was the first time I'd ever heard him say my name, and for some reason it made my heart skip a beat.

"Al-bert..." I manger through breaths, and I suddenly burst into tears, Finnicks hands cupping my hair and bringing it into his chest, shh'ing me gentley.

I spent the next two days in this hospital room, Finnick never leaving my side. Whenever a doctor came in, I'd begin to scream again, and Finnick would instantly kiss me. Had I gone insane?

On the third day, Troy and Finnick essentially carried me back to our floor. Everyone except Coral looked genuinely happy to see me, Mags ran up to me and pulled me into a tight hug. I went over to hug coral, after missing her quite dearly in the arena, but when I drew close she just ran out in tears, making me drop to the floor and curl up in a little ball behind the sofa.

"She's..." Jordie began to structure a sentence, but was stopped from a glance from Finnick as he picked me up in his strong arms and carried me into my bedroom, tucking me under the covers and singing to me as I finally fell asleep.

****

The next morning I was woke by Finnick's snores, and smiled as I saw his topless torso poking out of the top of the covers. I hopped out of bed, my burnt body seemed to have vanished, not a flaw on my skin.

I yawned, before looking in the mirror. My eyes looked hollow, with enormous black bags lining them underneath. I could see my ribs glowing under my yellowing skin, and my lips and entire body seemed dry and cracked.

I kept staring at my naked reflection, when another body joined me, running his hands along my waist, and looking at me as if I was the walking dead.

"Someone needs some chocolate cake." he smiled weakily.

"Albert and I can share one, like we do on our birthday." I said, my voice sore and dry.

Finnick smiled, before going to get my things. He slowly dressed us both as I stood stationary looking at my reflection, barely recognising myself, as Finnick pulled my hair into a neat bun, hiding the burnt ends.