Peeta's Story- The Hunger Games

Chapter 32

if you are on ipod touch and.or cannot see italics, this chapter will be really confusing.....i hightly recommend going on the computer to read this one...

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They say when you're dying, your life flashes before your eyes.
A young boy pedals across the rickety streets, his blonde hair blowing in the wind. It feels so strange that I am watching this happen, as if I'm an intruder in my own life. The bicycle suddenly hits a stone jutting out from the street and he yells out a shriek of surprise before being launched off the bike and falling with a loud thud on the ground. "Peeta!" A shrill voice screams, and the boy looks up, tears spilling out from his eyes. A young girl with braided brunette hair runs out of the butcher shop, the doorbells jingling. She runs up to the crying boy and pats him softly. "Shh, shh. Don't cry," she says, patting his leg lightly. He winces, but looks up at her with admiration in his eyes.
My mind jolts awake, as if shocked by electricity. Serenie. Despite being 8 years older than me, I thought I had a huge crush on her. My mind tingles as I struggle to make another connection. She reminds me of someone, though I can't remember who.
As Serenie hushes the injured boy, she begins to sing a soothing song. He stares up at her, entranced by the musical sound of her voice. A boy appears from inside the shop, licking a lollipop contently. He waddles over to where the 3-year old me is sitting and squats down. The girl looks over at him. "Brayden, get Peeta a lollipop," she says and he nods his head, complying. She closes her eyes and starts singing the sweet lullaby again.
And suddenly, I know who she reminds me of. Katniss.
It is my fourth birthday now; the snow is falling outside the window, settling on the ground in a thick, white blanket. The lights are turned off and although it is pitch black, I can make out a few faint outlines in the darkness. A light appears in the doorway, and my mom's face is illuminated by the flickering candles on the cake. She looks a lot younger than I remember, without the numerous wrinkles and worry lines lining her face. She sets the cake down and a blonde boy smiles hugely and leans over the cake. A hand reaches over and pushes him back into his seat. "Not now, Peeta," Serenie says gently. "Wait til we're done singing." The party is a joyous affair, the adults singing and dancing while Serenie watches over the two boys with an amused expression on her face. The blonde boy smears cake all over Brayden's face and Brayden retaliates by spilling soda on the blonde boy's head.
The trickling water of the stream is but background noise, accompanying this flow of old memories. I hear a familiar voice talking. "We need to hunt!" Cato insists loudly. I hear crashing through the trees and I warily register that I should probably conceal myself more throughly. However, my head hurts too much and frankly, right now I'd rather dwell in the past.
"No, we need to find a good place to rest," Cato snaps, sounding annoyed.
He is talking too loud and all the confusion is making my head throb and pound dangerously. I breathe deeply, counting slowly to ten, and tune them out.
Katniss sings quietly, then walks hurriedly down the stage. Everyone, including the blonde boy in the middle of the second row, stares at her, enraptured. She ducks her head, her cheeks turning a furious red, and refuses to meet anyone's eyes. Even the teacher is in a trance, finally jolting herself awake. She pushes her chair back and stands up, the legs of the chair scratching against the ground loudly. Suddenly, the spell is broken and people start chattering. The little blonde boy looks at the teacher menacingly, angry at her for bringing him back to reality. He glances swiftly at Katniss, her braid shielding her face from view. And from that moment on, he realized he loved her.
I feel a strong pull in my chest, full of sadness and longing. Years and years of unrequited love have gone by, yet I still don't know where I stand in her heart. Am I just another pawn she is using for her survival?
Somewhere in the depths of my mind, I hear the booming voice of Caesar Flickerman announcing something. I push it further into the back of my mind, doggedly trying to pursue the train of thought I had before.

The television is on- showing a gruesome scene. The 68th Annual Hunger Games. Two families sit huddled together in front of it, some of them weeping, some of them staring at the screen in horror. On the screen, a brunette girl with wild, tangled hair is attempting to fight a monster- a cruel, genetically engineered animal made to end people's lives. Serenie has lost all of her beauty; her cheeks are hollow and her eyes haunted, starvation ripping all the life out of her. Though she tries to put up a fight, we all know she is doomed. Blood streaks across her face as the animal lashes out at her, its claws ripping three long gashes into her cheek. She feebly attempts to stab the monster with her knife, but it defeats her quickly, ripping her apart as her anguished scream fills the air.
And then there I am, blonde, about eleven years old, standing in front of an oven, looking deep in thought. The fire lights brighter and the smell of burnt bread fills the air. With the unerring skill of someone who has done this for awhile, this younger version of me whips out a metal sheet and extracts the charred remains of a bun out of the oven. He has a grim expression on his face as his mother yells at him for being so careless and he stoically walks upstairs. As his mom scolds him, he bites his upper lip as if about to cry. He runs upstairs, to the window, and stares out at the pitiful creature standing, shivering in the winter cold. She glares at him resentfully as he cautiously looks behind him. Pretending to feed the pigs, he throws the bread out to her and she catches it gratefully, her expression turning from that of surprise to suspicion. She scurries away and the boy sighs, his hand resting on the window. And then Katniss does something entirely unexpected- she calls his name. "Peeta?" Her voice rings out clearly, but tentatively.
What is happening? This isn't how the memory goes. Even after I gave her the bread, all she ever did was smile at me once in awhile. But then I hear it again. "Peeta!" Her voice is getting closer.
I want to call back, but I can't muster the strength. I finally manage to pull myself away from my subconscious and focus on what is actually happening around me.
"Peeta, where are you?" She sounds almost right next to me now. I feel splatters of mud land on my face as the sound of feet sloshing around in water surrounds me.
"Hey, sweetheart. Come back to kill me?" I joke weakly.

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hey guys, sorry for the wait! i'm dead tired now so i'm gonna go nappy even though it's only 6. xoxoxoxox

SORRY!

if this sucks, it's cuz i'm braindead

so let me know!

btw, check out iluvfanfics, (click the dedicaton) good stories there

also, i'll read all those stories i'm supposed to tomorrow -_- or tonight..