Loose Ends

Chapter 14

*please note: this chapter takes place in Peeta's pov*

- "Sir? Your daughter is waking up, come with me right away."

- "Yes of course! Thank you so much doctor!"

- "It's my job, please not that she should stay laying down the entire time, she needs to regain her strength."

I rush over to Willow's room. It's been three full days since Katniss disappeared. Three full days since the explosion. Three full days since I've seen or talked to any of my family members. It's been three full days of me not knowing whether any of my family is going to survive. The news that Willow is waking up gives me a spark of hope.

As I enter the dull, lonely hospital room, my daughter opens her eyes. She is in a frantic state of panic, screaming at everything and everyone that tries to touch her.

- "GET ME OUT OF HERE! HELP ME! SOMEONE! WHO ARE YOU ALL!"

- "Willow sweetie, calm down. You need to regain your strength and rest. It's just me, you're safe."

Her breathing accelerates and Haymitch joins me in the room. The doctors try to run some tests but she refuses to let them get too close to her. I will not give up on my baby girl.

- "Please little lady! You need to cooperate with me sweetie."

- "Who are all you people?!"

As my heart drops to my stomach, Haymitch and I stupidly point to our chests for confirmation that she's talking to us. Her nod of approval is the only thing I need for me to simply fall on my knees in shock

Before I am able to register anything, the monitor starts to beep and I am being dragged out of the room by Haymitch. I yell and scream for him to let me go but the only thing I can understand is the doctor's telling me they need to run tests, and that her memory loss is most likely temporary.

Haymitch brings me into his arms, and I hug him, sobbing out like a lunatic on the hospital floor. I have already lost Effie and Rye, Willow is having memory loss, and Katniss is no where to be found. I don't know how much longer of this I can take. My family is being ripped away from me, at this point, only Haymitch is left, and I have nothing else to live for.

Haymitch brings me food and a spare change of clean clothes to the hospital. I refuse to move without knowing more about Willow's condition. After around three hours of testing, I am told my the doctor's that the memory loss is extremely short term, and it was simply caused by the trauma. She should now know who I am.

- "Willow, sweetie?"

- "Daddy!"

She reaches out to me and I give her a big dad hug. She tells me all that she remembers, and although a big chunk of her recent memory is gone, she seems to have all her longterm memory back. As she falls asleep, I leave her room to let her rest peacefully, and go to sleep on one of the couches in the waiting room.

All of a sudden, I am woken up around 3 AM to a huge, blue siren going off. Indistinct shouting goes off from Willow's room and I feel the hospital's walls closing around me.

- "CODE BLUE! CODE BLUE!"

- "PUMPING ONCE! NOTHING DOCTOR!"

- "STILL NOTHING."

- "We're gonna have to call it..."

- "Doctor Newman?"

- "Time of death, 3:08.23AM"