I push through the crowd looking for a face. Any face that I can remember from her description. Someone elbows me in the face and bruises my cheek.
“Damn” I say under my breath. How am I going to convince them if it looks like I’ve been a fight?
I see a glimpse of red curly hair. A wide grin. White uniform. A Peacekeeper. Darius. I know who each character and where normally are. Any way I had to study all three books to get here in the first place. I fight my way to Darius, not caring about the people around me. But I should. I have to keep a low profile.
I walk slowly over to him. He’s chatting with a girl. I’m guessing around sixteen. Definitely Seam. Dark hair. Grey hair. She could be Katniss. I’m lucky Gale’s not around. That is if it is Katniss. For all I know she might not even be real. I’m almost an arm’s length away from them now. The conversation stops dead.
“Hey.”The words feel weird and foreign. They told me to talk in an American accent. “You Darius?”
He nods and says “how d’ya know?”
I smile. “Who couldn’t know you?”
He laughs.
I nod towards the girl “Who’s with you?”
Darius grins “Katniss, know her?”
I act shocked and then I start laughing “You’re meant to be Katniss?!”
She jumps to her feet and glares at me “What am I meant to be?”
“Little taller, stronger.” I tell her, teasing a little. I shrug my shoulders “Powerful”
Darius cuts in. “Katniss is a hunter”
I raise an eyebrow “I need to talk” I look at Katniss proper. She’s got a braid down her head. Fierce eyes. Distrustful eyes. “In private”
Darius gets the message. He stands to leave. “Bye Ladies” He looks at Katniss as if trying to figure something out. He saunters off.
Katniss goes back to her bowl of stew. “What do you want?”
“I’ll meet you in the woods” She spoons down the stew, not listening to me “With Gale”
The spoon stops moving “You know him?”She says quietly. I realise she thinks that something’s up between me and Gale. I decide to use her suspicions.
“We’re friends”
I turn on my heel and walk out. But not before I see Katniss’s face. It looks hurt. Betrayed. Angry. I know I shouldn’t have said that but it might make her come.
As soon as I am outside I whip out my GPS. I don’t know how to get anywhere without this thing. Before long I arrive at the bakery. There’s a baker at the front. Peeta’s father. Katniss is right. He is huge. I order a bun so I don’t look suspicious. I ask if Peeta is in while I’m handing over the money. He looks at me thinking about something. I can’t read his expression. He goes out the back door. Before long he returns.
For the first time he makes eye contact “He’s coming”
I go outside waiting. I realise that I have to be out front. Find out all the information about him before he does about me.
Peeta is also different from the way I imagined him. Completely different. I watch him as he comes out the bakery. He’s strong and stocky, but his face looks kind. But right now it’s confused. He looks up and down the street. Looks at me. He turns to go back into the bakery.
“Peeta, right?” I ask, even though I already know the answer.
He turns back, surprised “Yeah”
My voice sounds urgent. Too urgent. “You’ve got to trust me Peeta. Just answer my questions.” Well done I think to myself. You’ve probably scared him to death now.
I remember my manners “Please?” My voice goes high at the end. As if I am asking a question.
He looks at me suspiciously. “Do I know you?”
He should know me. “No, you don’t” I lie. He can’t remember. He mustn’t. “But I need to talk to you.”
He stares at my face. As if he remembers me from somewhere. I hope he doesn’t. But if he does...
I’m dead.
