Forgetting The Fire's We've Started

Even The Bees Stopped Buzzing

Chapter 17:
The next day Haymitch was found drunk, which means Effie must have left him, again. Effie always leaves when Haymitch starts to drink too much. She always comes back though. She really does love him. We're all struggling, but we're survivors, and we're trying.

Sometimes I sit and think about my version of true love. It all started with the need to survive— it all began with a loaf of bread. I didn't know it back then, but I loved Peeta Mellark. He gave me life and he made me feel safe. He helped me when I couldn't help myself. 

That evening, Peeta and I decided to sit on our porch swing to watch the sun set. I curled up next to him as he put his arm around me. Peeta always smelled like vanilla and sugar, in which I associated a safe feeling. Johanna and Gale were out in the middle of the square sitting on the edge of the fountain. This was her first night back at home and it seems that her and Gale decided to get some fresh air together. They were having a conversation. I couldn't hear exactly what they were saying. Not that I wanted to eavesdrop, but their murmurs were whispered like the wind. Every now and then, Johanna would laugh, causing Gale to smile. 

Gale's next action had Peeta and I practically jumping off of the swing. We rushed over to the railing of our porch. I was hanging over the side of it as far as my body would allow me. Gale bent down on one knee and pulled out a ring. Johanna was visibly shocked, a reaction she rarely shows.

It was as if everything around us stopped: the whispering wind was silenced, the leaves on the trees no longer rustled, the bees stopped buzzing, and for one minuscule moment the world had stopped moving.

"I know you're pregnant." Gale said. It was not accusatory, but rather overflowing with tenderness.

"Who told you?" she whispered.

"No one. I came back to the hospital last night to check on you. You were sleeping so I didn't wake you up, but you fell asleep with the sonogram picture in your hands." 

Johanna was silent. Her face looked like it was made of stone. Finally she broke the tension, "You don't have to do this." 

"I want to." Gale looked back at me. I almost wished he didn't. With his stares there was usually an awkward tension, but not this time. 

"I love you." He said, grabbing her hands and holding them lightly. 

Gale finally let go of me. He was just my friend. He no longer looked like a lost dog in the woods. Gale had moved on. He finally convinced himself of it. The breeze resumed, as if the earth had resumed its activities. 

"I love you too. Yes, yes. I will marry you, Gale." Johanna had put the ring on and Gale sat back on the ledge of the fountain. They kissed, as Peeta and I cheered.