Safe and Sound || Hunger Games

Chapter Twenty Eight - To Save and to be Saved

Chapter Twenty Eight - To Save and to be Saved

Throughout the rest of that day, Grayson and I feasted on some of the chocolate that Grayson had been given. It made him about a hundred times more happy than usual and it was quite adorable, the way he got excited over it. We had just literally escaped death and he was too busy being excited over his gift from Haymitch. I supposed it was fair that he got a personal gift, seeing as I had received a birthday cake not that long ago. I had given Grayson the last slice, so I guessed it was fair the way he insisted on sharing his chocolate with me. I didn't mind, though. It was good.

His gift had made Grayson seem so much lighter and happier, and it was nice to watch him as we climbed a tree and settled down for the night. Only Lenna's face looked down upon us as we set out our sleeping bag. We also used the blanket, which was very warm, but not too hot. It was pleasant and it almost felt as if we were in a bed. But we weren't in a bed. We were belted onto a branch, hiding away from the death that would await us if we had both camped out on the forest floor down below us.

I stayed snuggled into Grayson's chest, his warm arms wrapped around me as we breathed more or less at the same time. His forehead was pressed against the top of my forehead and I could feel his soft hair tickling at any exposed skin. With Grayson, it was warm and peaceful. It felt right even though it wasn't. It was only going to end in pain, whatever 'it' was, but for now, it almost felt as though it was going to be worth it. Of course, I naturally didn't want to lose Grayson. That would be very painful and I had no idea how I would recover if I did. I wondered if he would feel the same way if he lost me. I wanted him to feel that way, but at the same time, I didn't. I didn't want to cause any sort of physical or mental pain for him. That would be painful enough.

"Harper?" Grayson suddenly muttered, his breath causing bits of my hair to blow slightly. I looked up at him. "Harper, are you scared of death?" I did not expect Grayson to ask such a question. "Because if one of us is going to die, then we're going to have to get used to that idea."

"Don't say that." I scolded, keeping my voice as soft as possible. But I supposed Grayson did have a point. We couldn't ignore the matter forever, one of us was going to die in the end. Grayson loosened his grip on me slightly and looked down at me.

"You didn't answer my question." He asked. He seemed deadly serious. This was just a small flaw in having Grayson as my ally. He could be loving, kind and someone that could make you smile within seconds of crying, but he was also to the point and actually quite serious.

"Well...death is inevitable. But we're just scared because we're going to die young, aren't we? I don't think death is something to be feared, but something we should try and push away from us as much as we can. I guess many people fear death and pain because look at all the medicines and cures the human race has created. If we didn't fear death, humans would be stuck in the stone age." I answered. Grayson nodded slowly, but he didn't seem convinced.

"Very true. But that still doesn't answer my question. Do you fear death as an individual?" He asked. I shrugged and looked up at the star filled sky.

"I guess I'm scared about how I'm going to die. Death is the aftermath, but the way you die is more important I think. I just want to die in the comfort of my own home, in a warm bed with someone I love, who will be there until the end. Not being slaughtered and dying painfully and slowly. But we can't all get what we want in this world." I replied. I looked back over to Grayson. "What about you, do you fear death?" 

"I suppose I do." He sighed, "But not as much when I'm with you. I know you'd make me comfortable, you'd wipe the fear away with a simple touch of your hand and the flames from your fingertips would warm me up, push the cold away. Because death may be inevitable, but it doesn't have to be painful."