The 55th Hunger Games

Chapter 26

       That night I sleep soundly, more content than I have ever been in this arena. The end is drawing near. Soon we will know exactly what will become of us. Aponi and I do not bother setting up watches during the night. We will die soon enough anyway. It might even be easier if we died in our sleep. We are so tired as well, and if we are going to fight for our lives soon, it's better to be well rested.

        I do not dream in the night, or if I did, I do not remember, because when I wake when the sun is just beginning to rise. My mind is at complete ease and Aponi is still beside me. I sit beside her and wait for her to wake up. I am not waiting long before her eyes open, and when they do they come to rest on me.

        "You ready to get out of here?" I ask.

        She smiles weakly. "Are you?"

        I grin at her and she sits up.

        "Hungry?" I ask, digging into the bag for the bread and cheese.

        She nods and I busy myself in tearing off chunks of the bread.

        "Will we eat it all now?" She asks.

        "Most of it." I reply. "We should save some bread for later though, because for all we know, we might be in here another night, or at least one of us might."

        She nods grimly and I hand her a chunk of bread and some cheese which she spreads on top of her bread. I do the same, and soon we are immersed in what is probably our last meal.

        When we are finished eating we refill our water bag, in no hurry to get going. We repack the bag in a tidier manner. And finally, we have no excuse but to begin walking towards our destination towards the Heartrees.

        We both feel sure that the gamemakers have already devised a way to draw us together, so we do not bother trying to figure out how we will find the others. Also, now that we are not so afraid, we do not trouble to lower our voices when we talk. Our topics of conversation are very broad. We will not be together for much longer, and in the little time we have left together, I want to find out as much about Aponi as I can.

        I tell Aponi everything about my life back home, quite confident that the gamemakers will edit most of our discussion out. I tell her about my family and friends, about my school, about our district's trade, and about funny stories that have occurred during my life.

        Aponi cannot tell me about her family, but she tells me of her life as an orphan and amuses me with stories of how she cunningly avoided the nurses who tried to force her to take medicines. And with every story she tells, I learn a little more about her character, and I find myself growing even more attached to her.

        I even find myself telling her a story of how Kerry and I had fooled Josh's uncle when we were young. Josh had been grounded, and under his instruction Kerry and I had told his uncle his wife needed him at the market where she worked. He had then locked Josh in the house and left. But Kerry and I stole the extra house key which was left inside an old plant pot at the door and let Josh out.

        Aponi laughs when I tell her of how his uncle had never in fact been fooled by our act and had captured us as soon as we stepped out of the gate. Kerry and I had been punished then as well, and had bitterly resented it then, but now only found the stupidity of the plan amusing. It seemed foolish to believe Josh's uncle would have been deceived by his nephew's two young friends.

        Though Aponi and I are both enjoying ourselves now, our deaths are both hanging over our heads. But there is nothing that can be done about it, so it is better to keep it from our minds.