The Untold Story of Cato and Clove

Chapter 4

Cato's POV

When my eyes open I panick a little forgetting where I am. I realize that I'm still holding Clove. I lay next to Clove hoping I never have to leave her. She looks younger when she's sleeping. Kind of like that girl I met seven years ago.

I was ten and Clove was nine. My mom left the year before and my dad was always at work, so I was left to take care of five year old Cameron and eight year old Caleb.

Caleb and I were walking home from school that day.

"Hey I'll meet you at home," I told Caleb, heading in the other direction.

"Ok, is Cameron still at Macey's house?"

"Yeah. Make sure she gets home before dad." Caleb nodded.

Sometimes I like to sneak off to the woods to think. No one knows I come here except for Caleb. I crawl under the fence and start walking towards the waterfall. My mom used to take me there when I was little. She taught me how to swim there and climb trees.

"You never know what they're going to throw at you in the arena." she used to say. "Always be prepared."

I'm almost there when a knife whizzes past my head and into a near by tree. I cautiously take a few more steps and then I see her for the first time. Our eyes lock and we stand there looking at each other for what seems like a thousand years.

She's the first to break the silence. "Sorry. I didn't mean to almost hit you."

"I'm sure you meant for it to actually hit my head and not almost hit it."

"Yeah because I love killing random people in the woods," she says sarcastically.

"Doesn't everyone?"

That was the first time I ever saw her smile.

"What are you doing out here anyways?"

"I think the question is what are you doing out here throwing knives at a handsome boy?"

She blushes then answers, "Obviously I was practicing throwing knives."

"I guess that was a stupid question then. Cut me some slack. My life just flashed before my eyes."

She walks over to the tree and pulls her knife out. "I should probably get going."

"Wait let me walk you home."

"It's okay."

"Come on. These woods can be very dangerous. I can protect you."

"Says the boy that almost got stabbed by a little girl."

"Ouch!" I said, acting like she hurt me. "I guess you're right though."

"See you around."

"Wait what's your name?"

"Clove Tettleton. What about you?"

"Cato Hadley."

"See you around, Cato."

After that I went back to the woods every day hoping to see her again. It wasn't until a week later that I saw Clove. I was walking through the woods when I saw her throwing knives at a tree.

"Hey, Clove."

"Sorry. I was just leaving." she says, not even turning around. I picked up a knife from the ground and handed it to her. "Thanks," she mutters.

When she looks up I see the huge bruise on her cheek. Like any normal person I asked, "What happened?"

"Oh....I....uh....I fell and hit my cheek on a....um....floor..."she lied. I could tell she was lying because 1) It shouldn't have taken her that long to answer and 2) Girls like Clove don't just fall onto the floor.