Breaking Down Bridges ▸ Hunger Games

Chapter Six: Cyra Merison

Chapter Six:

Cyra's POV

Don't you worry your pretty little mind

People throw rocks at things that shine

But they can't take what's ours

No, they can't take what's ours

—Taylor Swift, "Ours"

Seeing Casey's family in District Eleven was one of the hardest moments of my life.

As terrible as I felt, they didn't blame me for her death like I felt they would. I was instead welcomed with open arms, like a hero, to be exact.

After the meeting was over, I carried on, feeling a bit more confident than I had before.

As the train pulled forward from the station in District Six, I relaxed a bit, closing my eyes to drift off to sleep for the long journey to District Five.

"Sleeping beauty is finally awake..." someone laughed

My eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the light. "Gale..." I laughed.

"It's not Gale," the voice growled, suddenly filled with anger.

I blinked rapidly and looked up at a figure, with sparkling ocean green eyes, and white blond hair. His smile was wide, but his fists were clenched tightly, and hung beside his waist.

Shawn.

"What are you doing here?" I snapped at him, half confused and half angry.

Shawn laughed in reply, and took my hand. I shoved him away and he rolled his eyes.

"Frost let me come and visit my future wife... And you're going to have to take my hand at some point. We ARE getting married, you know..."

Frost had planned for me to announce the wedding at the end of the Victory Tour, in District One... We would be married in the Capitol the following morning. At least, that's what I had been told on the phone when they called me that night.

I stood up from the chair on my own, and rose to stand next to him. "I don't want to talk to you."

Shawn growled and reached for my arm, stopping me from walking out of the room. "No. You're going to sit and stay for a while."

I glared at him, and shoved his hand off my arm. "I won the Hunger Games. I can kill you," I said, my words coming out shakier than expected.

Shawn simply laughed. "Try me."

The anger built inside me as I whipped around and grabbed the knife I had been keeping underneath my pillow, and held it at his face. "No. You try me."

At that moment, Shawn pulled me close to him, and kissed me. He pulled the knife from my hand, and dropped it to the floor.

As the clank of the knife on the floor rang around the compartment, the door slid open, and Cato was walking with Gale. Gale spotted Shawn, and instantly his eyes fired up as he charged at him.

Gale cursed violently, as Cato grabbed him by the arms and held him back from Shawn.

"I'LL KILL YOU!!" Gale shouted, as Cato held him tighter.

"YOU CAN'T WIN, COAL BOY!" Shawn shouted back.

"BECAUSE AUTHORITY ALWAYS RULES OUT MAJORITY!! I have what's needed, and you don't. So get over it!"

Get over it... Get over it... Get over it...

~

And that's when I woke up.

I shook my head like crazy, and noticed that the sunlight was sweeping through the windows, on some food that had been brought to me. Shrimp salad, and a lime yogurt. My favorite food from District Four. As I breathed gently, there was a tap on my window

"Can I come in?" Alia asked gently.

I replied with a curt nod, as she sat on the corner of my bed.

"You slept through District Five," Alia laughed, "Effie was so mad, but you were screaming and running a fever, so we made her let you be."

I smiled gently, but then paused for a moment. "So... Where are we, then?"

Alia paused, and rubbed her hands together uncomfortably. "District Four. Cyra, you don't have to go out there, there's no one there, but they're just having us walk around for a bit so that we get to District Three on time tomorrow, and not too early."

I shook my head, and shoved the blankets off my body. "I want to."

Alia nodded and opened the door for me and she followed me out of my compartment.

As I stepped into the lounge of the train, I noticed Gale and Cato sitting still on the velvet sofa.

Gale glanced at me, and I jumped up and ran to him, I hugged him tightly, showing that I was sorry for all that had happened. Gale stared at me in shock, and pulled away from me, and walked outside into District Four's ruins.

As he walked out, I followed him silently. He was kicking the pebbles that loomed on the ruins.  I glanced down at where the school used to stand, and my eyes followed to the place Gale was walking to.

He stood on the spot where I had met him all those years ago.

"It was different then..." Gale said suddenly, reading my mind, as his eyes followed the ocean tide.

I grinned softly and walked up behind him, sitting down and swinging my legs over the side of the cliff. Strangely, we were in the same spots we sat in when we came down here originally.

"I know," I sighed, tossing a pebble down at the clear, blue ocean water.

Gale tossed a rock, following mine and they both skipped over the waters surface for a moment before sinking down to the bottom.

"I'm sorry," I suddenly started, playing with my pinky finger, and then my ring finger, knowing how soon a promise would sit gleaming on my finger. Representing Frost's total control of everything, and everyone, for that matter.

 Gale breathed deeply, but turned to face me anyway. "It's not your fault. I overreacted..." he paused, and for a moment his fingers brushed mine. "I just don't want to lose you."

I smiled at him, and then grabbed his hand. "You won't lose me. It's not their choice, it's ours. They aren't getting married, I am. This is coming from some stupid authority." I paused to laugh for a moment. "And we both know how much I  love  authority."

Gale smiles and turns out to face the ocean.

I think for a moment, and remembered a song my mother used to sing when I came home crying and upset when people were mean to me at school.

"Don't you worry your pretty little mind / People throw rocks at things that shine. / And life makes love look hard. / The stakes are high, the water's rough...." I smiled and paused for a moment, as I moved closer to him. "But this love is ours."

As we locked eyes for the first time in weeks, it was almost like I could feel the spark burning inside me.

Kiss him, I screamed internally.  Kiss him now.

I breathed in deeply, and tilted my head to the right, as he followed.

I kissed him. It was a kiss I had been waiting for, with the one I missed.

Did this count as cheating on Shawn?  I wondered.  I haven't seen him in years, but I'm expected to marry him... and I don't love him. I love Gale Hawthorne.

As I pulled away from Gale, I met his eyes once more, all my emotions coming over me, like waves on a shore. "I love you."

"I love you, too," he replied.

And just for a brief moment in time,  everything was perfect.