GAMES
"Do you know what the reason for these games even is?"
"Of course I do. To punish us for the Dark Days. The war."
"Exactly. And do you know what that means?"
"What?"
"No one wins when it comes to the Games. Twenty-three tributes lose their liv...
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***
A FEW WEEKS LATER
For the first time in a while, there had been a change to their schedules. Their days were no longer segmented into training in the morning and apprenticeships in the afternoon. Instead, Cato and Shay were now headed to one of the usually unoccupied conference rooms. They didn't know why, just that it was where they were to spend this allotment of time.
It was deep into winter now, just having moved into the new year from what Dalton told her. Shay knew that if she were to see the surface that there might be a coating of gleaming snow, largely undisturbed aside from a spattering of animal tracks.
She might not be able to see the change of seasons, but she could feel it. The bunker that was District 13 was always on the cold side, the chill of the concrete walls around them only blocked by the rough sleeves of their jumpsuits. But now, the chill dug deeper despite her thick clothing, reaching to her bones and sending shivers up her spine. Not to mention that her ever-present pain had increased as her joints grew stiff in the cooler temperatures.
There was a lot of movement on this floor though, people coming and going. The increase of bodies moving through the hallway helped to ward off the cold some, but no one helped more than Cato did. His close proximity offered Shay the warmth and comfort she craved.
Eventually, the couple came to a halt in front of an open door, the door to the room at which they were told to meet. Shay cautiously poked her head in, afraid that there had been an error and this was not the room. But, when she saw Thresh sitting inside her worries were quelled.
"They told you to come here too, huh?" the District 11 boy asked, his voice as deep as she remembered. They didn't make a habit of speaking to each other. In fact, Shay hadn't spoken to him since the summer when they were in the arena. They were quite successful in their avoidance of each other.
Shay nodded, "Um, yeah." She stepped into the room, Cato trailing behind. The two newcomers took a seat at the table across from Thresh.
That was when the awkward tension set in, no one knowing quite what to say to each other or if they should say anything. Shay's eye flittered up to meet Cato's, both filled with uncertainty.
"How long have you been here?" Shay tried, wanting the tension to disperse if possible.
The dark-skinned boy shrugged. "Not too long." His answers were short, curt even. He wouldn't ignore them, but he gave only the bare minimum. There was no questioning that they weren't friends, but all three of them could understand why.
