fallen ~ 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙤

Fallen

Clove

My father always told me not to be afraid of the dark. I'm not afraid of the dark, I'm afraid of what's inside.

Down in the training academy in District 2 I'd train for hours non-stop, my hands would burn and my arms would sting but I kept training cause that's just who I am. I don't quit, I don't surrender, I win.

I live in a small house on the out skirts of District 2 with my mother. My older sister, Penny who is currently engaged to a wealthier man in our District, lives just a couple houses over. I've never met her fiancé but she talks about him all of the time.
My father is stationed in the Capital, working as a Peacekeeper, he's my best friend. He always encouraged me to pursue my goals. He built me up into the person I am today, I miss him a lot.

One day, I decided to do something about my grief.

"Mom, are women allowed to train as Peacekeepers and eventually move up to the Capital?" I ask. She stands at the kitchen counter, cutting the greyest potato I've ever seen.

"Unfortunately no, only men, Clover." She says. I sigh and start walking out of the kitchen when I hear the door open.

"Mom, I want you to meet someone!" I hear my sister Penny yell. I hurry and hide behind the staircase and watch as she enters. A tall blonde man stands at her side in the doorway, he's facing away from me so I can't see his face. He must be her fiancé that she talks so much about. I lean around the corner on the very tips of my toes, trying to get a closer look when my mother walks up from behind me. I lose my balance as she passes and fall over onto my knees. My boney knees hitting the hard wooden floor makes a huge smack and Penny and her fiancé turn their attention over to me.

"Clover, what are you doing on the floor? I want you to meet my fiancé!" She squeaks. I stand up and wipe off my knees with the hems of my sweater sleeves. "Clover, this is Cato." She says.

"Hi." I say as my eyes meet his, they're so blue I'm instantly hexed by them. He stands about 6'2", a whole foot taller than me. He looks good next to my 5'6" sister. Her long, reddish-brown hair compliments his blue eyes nicely.

"Hello, Clover." He smiles at me, his teeth are so white and well taken care of. I suddenly feel ashamed of my smile.

"It's just Clove, actually. Clover is a nickname." I correct him.

"Oh, well hello, Clove." He greets me. I reach out for a hand shake at the same exact time as he leans in for a hug, I accidentally end up jabbing my fingers into his rib cage.

"Oh geez, I'm so sorry." I apologize, could this get anymore awkward?

"Oh it's fine, let's try that again." He laughs it off. This time, I lean in for a hug and he reaches for a hand shake, hitting my ribs with his fingers this time. Everyone starts laughing at the awkward encounter.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I'm usually not like this, just nervous I guess." He says.

"It's totally fine," I laugh. "Hug?"

"Hug." He agrees. Finally, we both get the hug. He is solid like a rock, pure muscle. I'm so happy for my sister but at the same time, I'm just a little jealous of her. I could never get a man like this, I'm just the ugly little sister of the popular girl.

The hug lasted longer than I expected, it was nice. Finally he lets go and stands beside my sister.

"Mom, we have news." Penny says. I look at my mother, her eyes widen.

"You're not . . . wait, Penny? Really!" She stutters.

"I'm pregnant!" Penny yells in excitement. My mother shrieks in joy and hugs her. Cato's face is straight, but when my sister looks at him, he smiles automatically.

My mother and sister chat for what seems like forever. Penny suggested that Cato and I get to know one another and we didn't object. We sat on the couch and talked about our likes and dislikes and overall everything about each other. Apparently he is 18 and loves the Hunger Games. We have almost everything in common. It was great until my sister interrupted us.

"Come on, Cato, you'll see her tomorrow. We are going to come back for breakfast." She says.

"Oh, okay. Goodbye, Clover, goodbye Mrs. Kentwell!" He tells us. He gets up and is half way out the door when I yell.

"It's just Clove!"

"Whatever!" He yells back sarcastically and shuts the door behind him.

The next day, I make sure to get up earlier than I usually do so I have a chance to get ready before Cato gets here. Even though I think it's wrong for me, the sister of the girl who is getting married to the guy, to dress up just for him. I wear black skinny jeans and a black jacket with the collars up to make me look tough. I don't bother with anything else and I practically run downstairs only to find out that Cato is already here but my sister isn't. He must have heard me coming down because he looks over at me from the kitchen table and smiles.

"Hey, Clover." He says.

"Clove," I correct him again. "Where's Penny?" I ask and sit in the chair across from him.

"I don't know, after we left last night, she said she had something to do and would meet me back home. So I went home and she never came back." He seemed worried. His eyes have dark circles under them like he never slept.

"What? Do you know what she was doing?" I ask.

"No, but I have an idea." He says.

"Really, what is it?" He leans in a little and whispers.

"That baby isn't mine, I think she's been seeing someone else." He looks to the side and takes a sip of his coffee my mother had made.

"What? Isn't yours? You never..." I trail off.

"Nope." He answers. Then he looks me dead in the eyes.

"Clover, this guy she could be seeing, I need your help finding him."

"It's Clove, but what do we do when we find him?" I ask.

"Easy, this is a game. She's the player, and she's cheating. So what would you do to stop this player from cheating?" He asks.

"You confront them?" I answer.

"No, you stop the reason that they're cheating. Tell me, how do we stop that reason?"

"You don't stop it. You execute it." I answer. A crooked smile grows on his face.

"Exactly."