Are The Odds In Our Favor? ~Cato~

12. Day Two

I wake up at what looks like the crack of dawn. The sun's still not up yet fully, but I can see the sky getting lighter through the thick leaves.

I didn't sleep well at all. I kept waking up and then it took me a long time to fall back asleep. I rub my eyes and yawn.

I look down and listen if someone is close. I don't hear anyone, so I pack the sleeping bag back in my backpack and climb down the tree. Now the hunt for water begins.

As I'm walking, I eat a small piece of the rabbit meat for breakfast. My mouth is so dry I can't really even taste it. I need to find some water and fast.

I must be really lucky that I haven't met anyone face to face yet. I wouldn't really know what to do. Wait for the person to attack? Or do something before they get the chance? I don't know. Let's just hope I don't meet anyone for some time.

The sun is slightly burning my skin through the cracks between branches as I wander aimlessly through the forest. I don't have any place I want to reach, just water.

And then I see it. Something shining between two trees. I walk closer and see the blinding reflection of the sun in a little pond.

A smile spreads on my face and I run towards it. I kneel down and form a kind of cup with my hands, scooping up the water and drinking it. Then I remember what Beetee taught me. You can never know how clean the water is just my looking at it.

I take out my water bottle from my backpack and look inside. Fortunately, I find a small flask with water purifier. I fill up my water bottle and add a few drops of the purifier in. I wait for a few minutes and drink it. I repeat the process until I can't drink anymore. I fill it up one last time and put the water bottle in my bag.

I stand up, wiping off the dirt from my knees. A light breeze blows at my already tangled hair. The forest is silent, so silent that I can hear my own heartbeat.

Something doesn't feel right.

The sky starts to go gray and a light mist falls upon the forest. I continue walking and the mist gets heavier with every step. I nearly crash into a tree, because I can't see anything. I look down and I can't even see my hands. Sometimes I hear some leaves rustling or a bird taking flight but otherwise, I see and hear nothing.

The fog starts to go into my ears and and every sound becomes muffled. I trip over rocks and branches. It gets harder to breathe and I collapse on the ground, shaking in fear.

I knew that it was weird that I was so lucky with everything. I have food, water and I haven't met anyone. They weren't going to let me go so easily. But it's the Hunger Games, what can I expect.

I try to stand up but I smack my head on something really hard. I fall back down, rubbing my forehead. I feel something on my hand, which means I must be bleeding.

I let out a sigh and put myself into a more comfortable position. There's nothing I can do, just wait it out. I can't just blindly walk through.

The fog starts to rise and I can hear again, soon even see. I look at my hand and as expected, see blood from my forehead.

I look around and see that the pond is in visible walking distance, so I go back to it. I clean out the wound, pick up a big leaf and stick it to my forehead with some resin from a tree.

I sit down on a rock beside the pond, take out my water bottle and some nuts and start eating. The sun is shining once again with some clouds floating around it.

A branch snaps and I whip around. The thing that made the sound is a girl, about 12 years old or so, standing petrified, eyes wide in fear.

"Please don't kill me," she murmurs in fright.

"I won't," I say.

I pause for a second. "Would you like a nut?"

"Um.. okay," she says. She slowly walks towards me, grabs a nut, says a quick 'thank you' and runs away.

Well, that was weird. But I feel so bad for her. She's here all alone plus really young. I finish my nuts and my water, refill it at the pond and throw the backpack on my back.

I notice an injured bird a few feet away from me. I sigh, walk towards it and stab it with my knife. I pluck its feathers out, cut the meat up and roll it up in the plastic. Why is getting food so easy for me?

I walk back to the tree that I was in last night. I make a fire from wood I collected on the way and cook the bird. After it's cooked I bite into a piece. The meat is nice and tender.

I sit at the fire for some time, warming my hands. The evening air is refreshing after that time I spent in the fog, so I take deep breaths.

I can't believe that I survived two days. And not even injured severely. But I have a feeling that the upcoming days won't be so easy. I will meet someone who'll be a threat eventually. Otherwise there's no way I'd be able to win the games.

I put out there fire and climb up the tree. I take out the sleeping bag, slide in it and tie myself up again. The sky gets darker every minute.

The anthem plays and they show who died today. Rade and Cato are still alive. I sigh in relief. I close my eyes and fall asleep.

BOOM!!

I hit the ground hard and a searing pain shoots through my wrist. Heavy rain starts to fall as I lie motionless on the ground. I try to push myself into a sitting position, but something cracks in my wrist and I yell in pain. I grit my teeth and push myself up with my other hand.

I stand up slowly, trying not to move my hand in some way. I look up and see all my things up on the tree. Shit. How am I supposed to climb back up when I probably have a broken wrist? Plus the rain doesn't feel like it's just water, it has something added to it to make it more slippery. Lightning hits and the ground shakes, causing me to nearly fall back down.

I try to climb up the tree but end up hurting myself even more. It's pitch black, the only source of light are some stars shining where there aren't any clouds.

I sit back down, resting my head on the tree trunk. I'm completely soaking wet and shivering from the cold air. Loud thunder rumbles and I curl up in a ball. I slowly doze off.

When I open my eyes, I see outlines of two people standing above me.