THE DYSTOPIAN GAMES // A HUNGER GAMES FANFICTION

Not All Who Are Lost Want To Be Found

"What are you doing out here?" Lea spoke as soon as I strode through the doorway. I didn't even look at her before I started to quicken my pace and walk down the hallway.

"Hey!" Gaemontry shouted, but now, I was falling into a flat out sprint. The blood was coursing around my bones and my heart beat was dancing in the air and not once, did I look behind me.

I guess If I did I would've seen Gaemontry tackle me.

His whole body slammed into me, making me collapse onto the floor with his body on top.

I started screaming again.

Gaemontry's hand twisted towards the front of me and clamped down on my mouth.

My lungs ceased.

My heart kicked.

My ears roared.

"Get off her," a voice said. Only it wasn't Cayson or Eboni or Gaemontry or Lea or Tyler.

It was Archer's.

I looked up just in time to see him standing at the end of the hall with curled fists and furious eyes that were directed at Gaemontry.

Gaemontry looked up and hissed at Archer. Then he dropped his head down next to mine and whispered in my ear, "You are ruining everything. We're not done with you."

I struggled underneath him but in the next second he was gone.

I looked up to see Archer shoving Gaemontry off me and then offering me his hand. I grabbed his it and he heaved me up until I was standing at his side. He looked at me worriedly and pushed back a piece of sweat soaked hair from my forehead. Then he turned to stand in front of me and stared the six pair of psycho's down, his hand slipping into mine and holding it softly.

"Care to explain what has been going on here?" Archer said.

I moved my gaze away from him enough to see Eboni, Lea, Gaemontry, Tyler and the other dude who hadn't spoke a word stand in a line. Of course, the one leading the pack was Cayson. Dead Centre. Electric eyes staring straight at Archer and I's hands that were clasped together.

"We don't deal with you folk," Gaemontry growled.

"I don't know what makes me any different to you, but you are about to deal with me if you think it's okay to tackle Willa like you just did," Archer said back, his voice arching over and standing fierce. Archer was a good couple of inches taller and broader than Cayson, but Cayson didn't wave.

Almost like he knew I was thinking about him, Cayson's eyes flashed on to mine. I narrowed them into slits and turned away. Then I looked up to Archer and tugged at his hand.

"Let's just go Archer, " I said. "I'm fine and I'm too tired for this."

Archer looked at me briefly and nodded; although it was obvious he wasn't comfortable with letting this go.

Then he turned back and looked Cayson directly in the eye, "If I ever see you near her, I will make sure you don't see again."

Cayson, whose eyes were still directly glued on mine, laughed.

A dry sick laugh.

Then he smiled this gorgeously malicious smile, "You mistake being possessive as a charming quality. I advise you not to think it as so."

Archer stiffened, "I am not possessive and I surely do not need advice from somebody who refuses to communicate with everyone else in this building. I think this is the first time I've ever heard you talk. You should keep to not talking, it makes you more charming."

"Communicate but not talk? You sure are filled with a lot of impossibilities," Cayson said, his eyes flashing into mine when he emphasized the last word.

Archer stepped forward but I pulled him back. "I don't know what you are getting at."

Cayson's amused looked died off and the intense look he wore so well fell back on, "Don't you have somewhere to be? Someone to lose?"

It felt like I could feel Archer's blood freeze just through the tension pulsating through his hand.

He stepped forward, accidently dragging me forward.

"How dare you?"Archer shouted.

"What?" Lea spoke. Lea laughed. "Is it not true? Everyone you ever cared about has gone. Died. You could have saved them. You should've saved them but you were always ever so late. Bad timing you think, I think it's fate. And I find this part hilarious because you and Willa? Why do you even attempt to care about Willa when she'll probably end up dead like all your other lovers? You don't even look like you care to love her. You look like you care to keep someone alive.  You look like you care not to be alone. I never liked you. You were always so selfish. But everyone liked you. Everyone else liked yo-"

Cayson grabbed Lea's hand and hissed, "Lea. Stop."

Cayson looked furious. Lea cowered away she Cayson took one look at me, turned around and stormed down the hall.

I lurched forward, being tugged by Archer. I looked up to see the storm that had fell onto Archer's beautiful face and I guess that is when I realized that this wouldn't end well.

"Archer, stop!"I shouted. Archer stopped abruptly and turned to me, his face a shade of red fury. Then he turned back towards Cayson but the were all gone. An empty hall was all that was left.

Archer released my hand and walked towards the wall.

I followed him and reached out to touch his shoulder. "Don't listen to th-"

"No, Willa," Archer said to me. "What if they are right?"

"You are not allowed to think like that," I said.

Archer turned to face me. He placed his hands on my shoulders. His expression was fierce and undying and everything.

"You are right. I won't. Because I'm going to do everything I can to keep you here with me, okay? I'll teach you how to fight. I'll get Maxon and America to teach you how to dance at Hunger Games charity ball. I'll get Peeta to teach you how to paint yourself the shade of a tree. I'll get Peter to teach you how to torch ants. I'll get Warner to teach you how to lead a country and have impeccable fashion sense if that is what you want. You'll survive it. I swear," Archer said, his breath increasing after each word. Then he slowly pulled me towards him until my head was resting on his chest in a hug. His hands wrapped around me and his chin fell down on to the top of my head.

I don't want to tell him that I won't survive it.

That I've accepted it.

That sure, a girl from a young adult book could survive it. But I was just a girl who sat at home, read books, hated outside, lost friends, forgot that everything but the world inside my head existed.

Maybe this was my punishment.

To lose it.

To lose all sense of sanity and bring about false hope to the only people I care about. Because I don't think I get it. I don't think I've learned to stop twisting fictional people into real life.

And I don't know what that makes me.

I hug Archer back.

I do it because I love him and I know that the love I have for him can never really be real because he isn't real. But then again, I could make this my reality. I could be the opposite to Cayson and his crew. I could live here. Forget about reality and make this my reality.

I won't be like Cayson.

I don't want to find a way back.