'I'll never let you go' Chapter 7

The morning of the 74th Reaping dawned bright and clear, the sun streaming through my bedroom window. I moaned and rubbed my eyes. Then, catching a glimpse of the clock, I sprung from my bed and began to pull on clothes as quickly as I could, making a quick dash to the bathroom on my way. I was late to meet Clove.
Running down the stairs two at a time, I mentally calculated how much time we would have together. It was eight o'clock now, and the reaping wasn't until twelve. Mum and Dad would want me home for an early lunch with the boys, as it was Aiden's first Reaping year. At best we'd have two hours. I grabbed a roll from the kitchen on my way out and munched it as I jogged down the street and out to the Hideout. It wasn't a hideout as such; just a secluded part of the river that ran at the back of our neighbourhood with a large beech tree hanging over the water, but it was our special place where we could be ourselves, not the ruthless dictators of the training centre.
I approached the Hideout, but Clove was nowhere in sight. I frowned and skidded down the small slope to stand at the base of the tree.
'Whoa!' Something shoved me strongly in the back and I lost my footing, slamming hard onto the grass. I was about to leap up and fight when Clove's laugh reached my ears and the knot of adrenaline eased in my stomach. I twisted around and looked up to her.
'Dammit, Clove, what was that for?'
'Rule no. 5, Cato,' She chided, a mischievous grin that only I ever got to see on her face, 'Expect the unexpected.'
'Rule no. 13, Clove,' I said, mimicking her tone, 'Don't take risks where you could get hurt.'
She was sitting on the branch directly above my head, swinging her long, pale legs. She was wearing shorts and a white vest top and her hair was down, blowing freely in the breeze. I could tell she'd just washed it as it was slick and light.
'Ah, but I wasn't.' She grinned down at me. 'You could never hurt me.' I had to admit, she had me there. Clove held out her arms to me. 'Come on then, help me down.'
I reached out to her and she grabbed my upper arms, propelling herself into the air. She felt as light as a feather and twice as delicate but there was strength to her grip that reminded me of how looks could be deceiving.
Clove planted her feet firmly on the ground and beamed up at me. 'Right then. Show me what you've got.'
For the past six months, ever since we watched the footage of the 48th Hunger Games where the area was a forest of tall pine trees and the only safe place was up them due to the wild mutts roaming the forest floors, Clove had been teaching me to climb trees. It sounds stupid, I know, but I'd never had a reason to climb before. I'd only ever been taught to kill. But now I wanted to win more than anything and the only way to do that was to be prepared for whatever the Gamemakers choose to throw at me. I'll admit it, climbing was not my strong suit. I was too big, too awkward and heavy to scale a tree as gracefully and effortlessly as Clove.
I turned resolutely to face my opponent. I had not, as yet, managed to climb the beech tree but I was determined to do it that day. Grabbing on to the first branch, I found a foot hole in the bark and, gritting my teeth, I pulled myself up so that I was secure then continued. I nearly slipped halfway up, but clung on tightly. I wasn't going to fall again, not while she was watching me. With a final push of strength, I hauled my body up onto the most secure looking branch and sat there.
'You see me?' I called down to her, delighted. 'You see me, Clove?'
'Yeah, I see you!' She shaded her eyes from the sun and squinted up at me. 'Get you, Mr Monkey.' I laughed and gave her a monkey noise, which made her roll her eyes. 'Are you coming down now, then?'
'Nah.' I leant back against the tree. 'I like the view up here.'
'Fine.' Clove pulled a bag out from behind her and shook it. 'I'll just eat these grapes on my own then.'
Grapes. My favourite food. Before she knew what was happening, I had jumped from the tree and was standing over her. 'Mind you,' I reflected, taking the bag from her, 'view's pretty good from down here too.'
'Creep,' she said rolling her eyes, then darted out her hand to snatch a grape from the bag. We settle down on the grass and begin to talk. Don't ask me what about, because I honestly couldn't tell you. Once we get going, Clove and I will talk about everything and anything. That day especially, we did everything we could to avoid talking about the Games. I remember that I told her about the incident at school the day before, where I had managed to break a dude's shoulder when I rammed him into a wall.
'Whatever possessed you do that anyway?' Clove asked me, a tiny frown creasing her forehead.
He called you a freakish little psycho. 'He was just pissing me off,' I shrugged.
'Oh.' She picked up a stick and began to dig in the ground with it, her hair falling into her face. Somehow, it made her all the more adorable. 'So, um, how's Aiden doing? Y'know, with it being his first time and all.'
'Cool, I guess.' To be honest, I hadn't really talked to him about it. It didn't really seem that significant. 'There are loads of boys from Training who want to volunteer. Besides, he's only in there once.'
She nodded, as if satisfied, and then threw her stick at a passing goose, floating past on the river. As usual, she had perfect aim and the goose gave a surprised squawk. I snorted and she smirked.
'Are you planning on volunteering?' She whispered.
'Clove, we've been through this. No way. Two more years, then yeah. Not now.'
'You're so bad at lying.'
I am as well. Spike had told me that I was capable of volunteering that year and I'd seriously been considering it. After all, I was the biggest and best at the Centre. Why shouldn't I? But the look of concern on her face made me realise that whatever happened, I wasn't going to volunteer. Not yet anyway.
'Okay, so maybe I was,' I said to her, softly, leaning closer and brushing her hair behind her ear. 'But trust me, when I do I will always come home to you. I promise.'
She raised her head to look me dead in the eye. 'And you're still keeping the other promise?'
'I am.'
We sat in silence for a few minutes, each mulling over their own thoughts. I couldn't stop watching one strand of her hair that danced in the breeze. Her hands ran over her bare arms and she sighed. Far in the distance, the ominous sound of hammering told me that the platform the Reaping took place on was being reassembled in the square. In my mind, it mutated into the sound of a gallows being erected. I felt a sudden urge to lighten the mood.
'So,' I turned to Clove, giving her a cheeky grin, 'what are you planning on wearing to this fine shindig today?' It's a little game we played, each year. We both knew what she would be wearing; she only owned one dress, once she out-grew the clover dress and the blue one. It was similar though, white, with little red dots on the hems. It was pretty worn too, as it was a hand-me-down from Juniper. I had sworn that the second I won the Games I'd go with her to the dress shop and let her buy her own dress, colour, style, whatever. Oh, don't be so shocked. Clove may be ruthless but she's still a girl. This way, Clove had a chance to imagine her dream dress and I had a chance to imagine her in it. Win win, really.
'Well, it's purple…'
'Obviously.' Purple's her favourite colour. 'What shade?'
'Light. Pale violet. And its short-'
'Short?!' Usually it was floor length, a princess dress.
'What?' She scowled at me. 'It can be short if I want it to be.'
'Oh, sure. Anything else?'
'Yeah. There's lace on the sleeves, silver lace, and the skirt flies out when I spin around.'
'Wow. I'll bet you look pretty.'
She punched me on the arm. 'And again I say, creep!' She glanced at her watch. 'We'd better get going. I may not be the belle of the ball, but I do want to wash.' She wrinkled her nose at me. 'And you should do too.'
'Thanks, Clovely.'
'No prob.' I watched her jog away, smiling.

'Welcome to the 74th Annual Hunger Games!' Lucia Bon-borne, the District 2 escort trilled into the microphone, sending a screech of feedback hurtling towards our ears. 'Oh! So sorry! Someone fire the technician!' She beamed at us. 'Ah, District 2. I do love this District. Always volunteers, always interesting!' I winced at the chirpy sound of her Capitol accent and how she was trying so hard to be upbeat. This wasn't a happy occasion and I hated it when people pretended it was.
Lucia would probably have been quite attractive, if she hadn't been dressed as she was, in the typical attire of Capitol folk. Her hair, plaited and coiled up on the top of her head was dip-dyed a pale shade of the colours of the rainbow: a washed out red, pale yellow, mint green and so on. Keeping in with the theme of rainbows, Lucia's dress had swirls of glitter every colour imaginable stuck on to the short, tight body-con shape with sheer petticoats drifting down to the floor and similar sleeves.
As she droned on about how amazing the Games had been the previous year, I strained my eyes to peer over at the girls. There she was, standing out amongst the flock of tittering doves, my little blackbird. I willed her to look at me, but she didn't. Clove just kept staring straight ahead. As Lucia continued her burbling, I switched my gaze to Aiden, down in front with the little boys. He was looking a bit pale and there were bags under his eyes, which told me he hadn't slept well. He's safe though, I reminded myself. There were so many guys who want to volunteer that year it was ridiculous; I was betting on there being a fight as to who went.
'Right!' Lucia winked down at us. 'Let's start with the girlies this year, hmm?' She tiptoed over to the bowl and rummaged her hand in it. The golden charm-bracelets on her wrist tinkled like bells with the motion. 'Ah, here we are!' With a flourish, she plucked one of the tiny white slips and held it up for us to see. 'Now, shall we see who the lucky girl is?'
There was silence in the square. I swear I could hear the hearts around me beating.
'Clove Nightingale!'

'Look, it's fine! There are always plenty of volunteers, every year! Even if you do get picked, some girl will be desperate to go instead!'
'What if they don't? All the girls hate me. What if they've made a pact not to volunteer if I get reaped, just to watch me die?'
'Clove, that's dumb. The girls are too stupid to think of that and anyway, they're too wrapped up in themselves to bother.'
'I know, I know…I'm just so scared. I shouldn't be, but I am! Oh God, I'm a hopeless Career…'
'You're not. You're just a kid.'
'I'm not! I'm twelve!
'Exactly…oh look, come here, I was only joking.'
'Don't Cato, please…'
'I don't get why you're so worried in the first place. Don't you know that if you get reaped before you're ready I'll volunteer too?'
'You…you'd do what?'
'Volunteer for you.'
Pause.
'What, is that a suggestion?'
'It's a promise.'

No. No. No, no, no, no. No. It can't be. I heard it wrong. I'm paranoid. It's not happening. It can't be. Not to her. Not to me.
But it was. The girls moved to the side as Clove made her way to the platform. She walked lightly, as if in a dream. I half expected her to float off the ground and fly away. Lucia held out her hand to Clove as she stumbled up onto the stage and stared out at the sea of faces watching her with unblinking, unemotional eyes. There were no volunteers.
I wanted to scream. I wanted to run up to the platform and claw at Lucia's smug little face until she picked another slip. I wanted to sweep Clove off that stage and take her somewhere safe, somewhere just for us. I wanted to kill someone.
But I couldn't do any of those things. When one unlucky little girl got reaped a few years ago, her older brother started screaming abuse at the Peacekeepers and started fighting to get to her. He managed to kill three grown men before they knocked him out. His punishment was pretty despicable, even by my standards. They made him watch his sister's death in slow motion, in public, then, at his hanging, shot his other younger sister and their mother.
'Well now,' Lucia patted Clove's hand.  'Congratulations, my dear. Shall we see who's going with you, hmm?' She tottered over to the boy's bowl. Clove's eyes finally found mine. The emotions in them spoke volumes to me. I was ready.
I don't even remember what kid's name was read out. As soon as Lucia opened her mouth, I was off, sprinting towards the stage, ready to shout to the heavens. One guy got there before me and raised his hand, preparing to volunteer, but I got there first. The sound of my hand connecting with his teeth vibrated through my body and he sank to the ground. Silence.
'I volunteer.'