The Hunger Games | Rilaya

The Cave

"I wonder what brought on this storm? I mean, who's the target?" Riley says.

"Cato and Thresh." I say without thinking. "Foxface will be hiding out somewhere and Clove..." My voice trails off as visions of her dead body splayed on the ground flashes through my eyes.

"I know Clove's dead. I saw it in the sky last night." Riley says. She studies my expression carefully before asking "Did you kill her?"

"No, Thresh broke her skull with a rock." I answer.

"It's a good thing he didn't catch you too." Riley says.

"He did. But he let me go." I say, starting to feel sick at the memory of the feast.

Riley looks at me quizzically and I realize I never actually explained what I had been doing in the games before I met up with her. So, I begin to tell her everything, going from the explosion and my ear to Auggie dying (bless his soul) to the boy from District 1 to the bread. It all led up to what happened with Thresh and how he felt like he was paying off a debt.

"He let you go because he didn't want to owe you anything?" Riley asks, still confused.

"Yes, I don't expect you to understand it because you've always had enough. But if you'd lived in the Seam, I wouldn't have to explain it." I say bluntly.

Honestly, screw capitalism.

"Oh..." Riley trails off, unsure of what to say.

"It's like the bread and how I never seem to get over owing you for that." I say.

"The bread? What? From when we were kids?" She says, scrunching her eyebrows. "I think we can let that go considering you just brought me back from the dead."

"But you didn't know me. We had never even spoken. Besides, it's the first gift that's always the hardest to pay back. I wouldn't even have been here to save your life if you hadn't helped me then." I say honestly. "Why did you, anyway?"

"Why? You know why." Riley says.

"No, I really don't." I say back, lifting my head to meet her gaze.

"You know, I was right." She chuckles, noticing that I was sincere.

"About what?"

"Remember what I said about you not knowing the effect you have on people?"

"Wasn't that your way of calling me whiny and needy?"

"What? No!" Riley exclaims, sounding offended that I had even suggested that. "You thought I was calling you whiny?"

"Um... maybe? I don't know, it seemed like it at the moment." I say sheepishly.

"Maya, I was trying to say that you were so oblivious to the fact that so many people were head over heels for you." Riley sighs, exasperated.

"What? There's no way." I say, not believing her. I was just an antisocial loner from the Seam who only had one friend, two if you counted Sarah.

"Loads of people. Charlie Gardner, Josh Matthews, me..." She trails off after that.

There's a pause as I let her confession sink in. So that's why she helped me. To be honest, I hadn't even really noticed her at all until after that fateful day. Ever since then, I always subconsciously looked for her in the halls at school. And whenever Prim would drag me to admire the cakes in the bakery, I didn't protest much in the hopes of seeing the little baker girl that had saved my life.

Riley studies my face, waiting for me to say something. Instead, I lean forward and capture her lips in a sweet kiss. I had never kissed anyone else before, considering I never really talked to anyone besides my family and Lucas. But as our lips molded perfectly together and I felt her fingers digging into my hair, I knew Riley was the only one for me.