Flooding Panem: The Hunger Games

Chapter Seventeen

 I stand still, hugging my jacket around me as the sun continues to make it's way across the sky. Rosalina lies on the ground, her hair still. Her cobalt tinted lips sit open slightly, but no breath hangs in front of her. 

"I came here as quickly as I could," says Parox as he hears me approaching. I can hear his voice shaking; he's having a hard time holding it together. "But she was so cold. I couldn't do anything."   I walk forward to stand next to him and look at the girl on the ground in front of us. It was her cannon we heard. "She saved me," I say, my voice clear and empty. "Even when she was dying- she saved me." 

"I'm sorry Lilia," Parox whispers. He looks up at me- and jumps. "Lilia- what happened?"  

"Edraw happened. Now he's dead."

"No, Lilia, your arm, what happened to your arm?"

Only now do I feel the pain in my left arm. I glance down at it, and see that both my arms are drenched in blood that slowly drips onto the snow. Crimson rain stains the snow. "It's not mine. Well, some of it is I guess." Even staring at my sleeves, I can't feel the wetness on my skin. I drop the swords in my hands and run my fingertips over the fabric on my arms, letting the blood stain my skin. 

What's wrong with me? I just killed a man. A boy. Am I supposed to not care? I sit down on the snow and stroke Rosalina's hair back when I remember.

"I never asked her."

"What?" 

I look up, and I finally feel the tears in my eyes. "I-I told myself that I'd ask her how heavy it was. Her dress. For the interview."  

I let the tears fall, and my emotions come back, piece by piece. Confusion. Understanding. Upset. Sadness. Heartache, hysterics, anger, fury. I break down in tears, curling up on the ground next to Rosalina's cold body. "Why… why…" I hear a voice saying. My voice.  

I hear Parox kneeling down next to me, and he puts his hand on my shoulder. "Lilia-"  

"Are you happy now?" I say harshly. "She's dead, you can go."  

"Lilia!" Parox's tone of voice prompts me to sit up. His eyes are glistening with tears. "I don't want to go, Lilia. I'm staying here."  

I frown at him. I can hardly make out what I'm feeling now, my heart pounding and my eyes burning. How could I understand him? "Parox, what-"  

He kisses me. Gently, softly. I don't pull away for a moment. I stay still for half a moment from the shock, and I move in slightly. It's nice. Wet, but nice.

After a few seconds, we both pull away. I stare into the green eyes that keep a grip on me. 

"You have no idea how much I've wanted to do that," Parox breathes at last.  

"How lo... How? Why?" I whisper. 

"I didn't want to, really. It's just- you were amazing."

"Parox-"  

"I can't explain it Lilia, so don't ask."

"No- Parox," I say, and sigh. "Why did you have to do that? Why did you have to make everything so complicated?"

"Because I love you."

I stare at him. He can't be serious. "Parox, I met you a month ago."

"Have you ever read Romeo and Juliet?"

"What?"

"Romeo and Juliet. It's a play." 

"What about it?"