Never Let Go (Book 2)

Chapter 18

"Clove, do you really think this will work?" Marvel asked once we were far enough from the city to be watched too closely. I had made sure to dress like any other person out for a run in district 1, which was oddly over the top in my opinion. Dressing over the top to blend in.

"Honestly, it just has to Marvel. If it doesn't, I'm as good as dead. Do you know what happened to Cato's brother?" I asked, unsure of how much Marvel actually knew about the hatred Mr. Hadley held for my family.

"Not really, I know that he and your sister were together for years, and then they ended up being the tributes the same year, and sadly only one person can survive the games," he replied sadly, suddenly looking down.

"Well, my sister, Bri, and Cato's older brother Liam had been together as long as I can remember, and then came time for the reaping. Everyone loves a good story, so they were picked as the volunteer tributes that year. What else says capital dominance than forcing kids to kill the person they love?

Anyways, on the final day as you know, Liam killed himself by eating poison fruit in the arena. And my sister lived, becoming the Victor. She was destroyed by her grief for him. They should have been able to grow older together, have kids, enjoy their lives, but that all ended. After the games, Mr. Hadley was disgusted by my family even more. His son had sacrificed his life for an orphaned girl that he was convinced was just using Liam. When we were here for the Victory Tour, Mr. Hadley refused to even shake my sisters hand. He always blamed her for Liam 'disgracing the family'" I recounted, attempting to gauge Marvels reaction.

"Well damn. Sounds like Mr. Hadley is a giant douche. 'Disgracing the family'? That's the biggest load of shit. He's obviously never been in love."

"I guess. Ever since then, I haven't trusted him. Actually, I don't know if I've ever trusted him. I remember when Cato and I were super young, he was always doing things that just, weren't right in my mind."

After that, we fell into a silence as we jogged back to the village. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence, but more of a mournful one on my part. Talking about Liam and Bri always makes me upset. That could be Cato and I some day. I don't want the same thing happening again, I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I made it out without him. I would be another Victor who might not even last until their first mentoring year.
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Upon our arrival back to the house, I immediately noticed many more people rushing about, with Edrina standing in the center of the foyer. When she saw me walk through the door, she ran up to me, exclaiming how I had given her a heart attack, and that they didn't know where I was. Apparently mine and Marvels "short run" had actually been over an hour long, and although it was a Saturday, we had important business to attend to. Planning for the next gala that was a month away, but that didn't matter, "preparation is key" according to Edrina.

After getting my ear chewed off for at least ten minutes about how irresponsible I was for not leaving a note, I decided it was time for a shower, and excused myself. When I arrived back to mine and Cato's shared room, I found myself pleasantly surprised that he had already woken up, showered and was now reading a book. For a moment, I just paused, observing the scene in front of me, thinking how perfect this moment was.

"I didn't take you for the lurking in doorways kind of girl Clover," Cato chuckled, never looking up from his book. I immediately blushed before entering the room and grabbing clothes to go shower.

"I wasn't lurking. I was just observing."

"Ah yes, that's why you were standing in a doorway, saying absolutely nothing. You might want to work in your stealth skills soon, otherwise any living thing will know when you're watching them," he replied, to which I shut the bathroom door and proceeded to enjoy the hot shower that my muscles so desperately needed after all of the tension that had been building up from the past few days. I'm a week we would be attending a different school, still in district 1, but not under the same scrutiny that I was facing now, as the only person who hadn't attended the academy.

After I was in the shower for far too long, made obvious by my pruned and bright pink skin, I finally turned off the water, exited the shower and got dressed again. The mirror was coated in steam, so I had to wipe it with my towel to see my reflection and brush my hair.

I was surprised when I saw myself. I guess I hadn't taken time to see just how worn out I truly looked. My eyes looked tired, with darkness forming around them, the bruises to my face were starting to fade even though it had only been a day. I guess Mr. Hadley wasn't as physically strong as he'd like to think. I laughed to myself at that.

After drying my hair and rearranging it into a tight, high ponytail, I left the bathroom, ready to take on the world.

In two days time, I was going to truly shake up the world, and it might be make or break for me, but for once I'm taking control of my life.

Cato's dad had to be stopped, and I'm the only person to do it.
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Hey guys! This update isn't quite as long as I wanted, but I feel like this was a good stopping point. I'm so sorry for all of the time that it took me to publish this. November 26, 2018 was the last time I published something other than an apology. Wow. Now it's May 10, 2020. So much mayhem is out there in the world, COVID-19, murder hornets(?), but through all of it, remember that books unite us. In nine days Suzanne Collins is releasing a prequel to the Hunger Games, isn't that freaking awesome?! I'm so excited for it. Anyways, to anyone who does read this update, I do recommend reading the past like, three chapters. It's been so long since I wrote that even I needed to reread to see where I was. It might be obvious, but I really just go in whatever direction, I don't really... have a plan. I know I'm a horrible author.
Anywho, I've spent a bunchhhhhh of time reading books during this period of social distancing and I will plug my book instagram just this once, it is brinleysbookshelf on Instagram, and has become one of my favorite hobbies.
How are you guys doing? How are you coping with social distancing, now that we're in the second month. I'm in New York State and just found out that the state will be on pause until my birthday, fun.
I don't know the words to use to thank all of you for your support and belief in me, from my broken little self writing the first book as an escape from the reality of my struggle, to now, some people have been through it all with me. I will be honest, my mental health comes in waves, and my updating comes in waves, but I don't want to disappoint you guys, so I will do my best to update regularly. This has been a really long update but I want you guys to all know this, you are appreciated and I could not do this without you all reading.
I love you all, and until next time...
~Brinley