I walked through the door with you.

The air was cold,

But something 'bout it felt like home, somehow.

Madge's POV

I can't help but keep my eyes on the ground as I take each step closer to the Hawthornes'. Every move is painful, but it's not what you could call excruciating. I can't really complain, anyway. I'm too terrified. Or maybe I'm excited. I'm not sure.

"Madge," Gale finally breaks the silence. "Madge, look at me." He stops, taking my face in his hands. "There's nothing to worry about."

"Who says I'm worried?" I say defensively, although Gale knows as well as I do how I feel right now.

"Madge." Gale sighs, and I stare past his shoulder where the late afternoon sun bleeds into the clouds.

"Gale," I raise my eyebrows, smiling a little.

"Forget it," he says, trying to look disappointed, but not being able to supress his smile. Below the surface, we're both jittery from excitement, not fear.

"Okay," I grin, and he wraps his arm around my shoulders. We walk in silence, but I like it.

I think he does, too.

I bite my lip as we approach Gale's house. It's not the same one I was used to, of course. That one was lost among the flames that destroyed everything else I'd ever known. I tried not to think about it, but evidently, I can't help it.

It's nice. It looks more like a regular house, not a shack, and it's painted a warm honey color, with green shutters and an equally green door. Lights shine through the square panes of the windows, and the gold doorknob glints in the sunlight.

"What are you thinking about?" Gale asks, smiling gently. I look at him, sighing. "Everything is so normal," I tell him. "I've missed it."

"Welcome back," Gale says, pulling me in for a soft kiss on my forehead. Then he opens the door.

"Oh, look," Vick says, his voice laden with sarcasm. "The ever-smiling Gale Hawthorne has returned."

Gale gives Vick a scowl so contrived that Vick bursts into laughter. "How I've missed you so," he adds. Gale punches him in the arm. I'm not sure what I expected, but I'm smiling.

I walk in after Gale, the combination of the cold air outside and the warm air inside numbing my skin. I breathe in deeply, smelling freshly waxed floors, cinnamon, and sunlight. When I open my eyes, I feel utterly at home.

Gale has already disappeared to God knows where, but I'm pulled out of wondering by a voice that sounds just like his.

"Well," Rory sighs. He must have walked in just now. "If it isn't Madge Undersee."

I break into a grin, for some reason holding back tears, as he tentatively folds me into his arms. I brace myself for the pain that is sure to come; Rory doesn't know about my ribs, does he? But it never comes.

I discover soon that Rory is the kind of person who buries his face into your neck when you hug him, and oddly, it's the most wonderful thing I've felt in a while. He's so much taller than me that he nearly has to pick me up, but I don't mind. As we break apart, I'm laughing.

"You've grown," I laugh, and he laughs, too.

"Well, it's been what, a few months?" he jokes, running his hand through his hair.

"A while, for sure," I nod, wiping now existent tears from my eyes. We stand for a little while in comfortable silence as I take everything in.

The living room is connected to the kitchen in a way where you step off a short ledge to walk into the living room. The kitchen has overhead lights shining over the sink and table, a window above the sink. The counter is green granite, drawers lining the bottom wall. A few photographs hang on the wall, and upon closer inspection, I discover that Posy is the one who took them. Photos of flowers, mostly. I smile.

The living room has two large, overstuffed leather couches placed around a maple coffee table, candles flickering atop of it. Large glass windows face the back of one couch. In the middle of the central wall is a surprisingly sleek TV set, a few remotes on top of it.

I know it isn't the one I watched the Games on when Gale was hurt.

I sigh, as if exhaling removes the memory from me. Wish it were that simple.

In one corner of the wall is a fireplace, the mantel overfilled with ancient picture frames. I'll have to take a closer look at them later. A small orange fire lights up the wooden plank walls. The entire home is a breath of fresh air, so much lighter than the home whose remains are underneath the floor I stand on.

Rory is leaning against the small, square table now, and when I look back at him, his eyes flicker up. He smiles, and for that moment, he looks exactly like Gale. Except happier, I suppose.

"I, um," I smile lightly, "I should go find Gale now."

"Yeah," he nods, muttering as I walk away. "Crazy kids."

"You're younger than I am, Rory," I laugh, turning the corner and suddenly running into Gale.

"What's so funny?" he smiles, pulling me close.

"Rory said we're crazy," I giggle, resting my forehead on his shoulder.

"He's not wrong," Gale shrugs.

I laugh again, feeling high on happiness. We stand for a while, like this, before a thought pops into my mind. "Where's your mom?" I ask.

"Not sure," he murmurs. I've forgotten how his voice feels against my skin. "She's not on my mind right now."

I roll my eyes, smiling. "What is?" I ask, not really needing to.

"You."

"I'm tired," I sigh, lifting my head up to look at him. "Like, really tired."

"Suddenly, so am I," Gale smiles, pushing my hair out of my face. Without a word, he takes my hand. There's something I find beautiful about the gesture, as though we're only five years old, believing we're really in love, for the first time.

Maybe that's exactly what we are. A new burst of hope fills me as he pulls me into his room, shutting the door softly.

"I'm home," I hear a voice announce, pulling me out of slumber.

"There she is," Gale says, his voice evidence that he was woken up, too.

"Mm," I murmur, suddenly not interested in Hazelle's whereabouts. "Don't go."

"You're the one who was wondering," Gale teases, pulling me toward him.

I bury my face in his chest, breathing in his smell. "Let's play a game."

"What kind of game?" he asks, an edge of mischief in his voice.

I ignore the innuendo and turn so that I'm laying on my back. "You ask me a question," I explain, "and then I answer. Then I ask you a question."

"Do I have to answer?" he gives a half-smile, twisting my hair in his fingers.

I roll my eyes. "I'll start. How do you feel right now?"

"Incredible," he says. "Wonderful. Brilliant." I smile up at him, and we share a moment before he continues. "My turn."

"Shoot."

"How do you feel? Give me a complete answer."

"Damn, you sound like a ninth grade English test," I laugh. Taking a deep breath, I consider his question.

"I feel really happy to be here with you," I say, and he smiles, though I know he's expecting more. "I feel really sorry to have turned your life upside down and everything. I..."

"You what?" he whispers after I don't open my mouth again. "Madge."

"I want it to work out with you," I sigh shakily, on the verge of tears again. "I'm just scared."

"Don't be," he says simply, drawing circles on my hipbone with his thumb. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"Don't say that," I tell him. "I'm not going to hold you to something like that. You're not perfect. If we..." I swallow thickly. "If we don't end up...working, I doubt it'll be just one person's fault."

"You're not holding me to anything," he says. "I'm not going to hurt you because I don't want to." He leans down and places his lips on mine, and my body instantly responds. I jump, shivering, when he bites my lip, tracing it with his tongue.

Eventually, I smile, pulling away. "It's my turn now," I remind him.

"Fine," he says in mock annoyance. "What else could you possibly want to know about me?"

A question surfaces immediately, though I'm not sure how to word it. "The first time I saw you," I begin, "I was with Katniss. We...we walked past your house."

He nods, and I continue. "You were sitting there by yourself."

"That's not unusual," he says. "Angsty teenage Gale preferred to be unsocial."

I want to laugh at the remark, but I don't. "You were crying."

"That," he says pointedly, "is rather unusual. Even now."

"So why were you crying, then?" I ask.

"I think I remember what you're talking about," he says quietly. "Pretty sure I was just feeling like a failure."

"Why?" I ask, this remark feeling like a stab in the chest.

"I didn't feel like I was doing enough," he says, as though it was the simplest answer in the world. "The kids were still starving. Ma was still crying."

I absentmindedly trace the smooth remnants of a burn scar under my shirt. "I know the feeling," I say, and I'm not sure whether I meant for him to hear.

"Of what?"

"Wishing you could stop drowning but not remembering how to swim."

"Madge," he says, taking my hand and gripping it firmly. "There's nothing you could have done to stop him."

"I didn't know that back then," I say. "I thought I could have."

"You can't save the world, Madge," Gale chides softly. "I'd quit trying."

"This isn't about me, I'm sorry," I sigh. "We were talking about you."

"I'd rather talk about you," he says. "I could do it all day."

I smile weakly at him.

"My turn," Gale says, his voice suddenly brighter. "Do you wanna go say hi to my mom?"

"Sure," I respond. He kisses me lightly before we get out of bed. For a moment, I feel normal. I wouldn't mind feeling this way for the rest of my life.

Gale's POV

"It's okay," I whisper into Madge's ear as we walk out of my bedroom. I'm not exactly sure why she's so nervous, but I can feel it. She gives me a stiff smile, her arms awkwardly braced across her stomach.

"Hey, Ma," I say cheerfully, and my mother gives me a warm smile. "You're back," she says, wrapping me in her arms.

"I sure am," I smile. "I brought someone with me."

The slightest flash of negativity crosses my mother's face, but she smiles all the same. "I heard," she says. Looking past me, she calls, "Hello, Madge."

"Hello," Madge responds, and I turn around again. Why the hell does she look so uncomfortable? I mean, she knows about my mother's disapproval of her actions, but the way Madge is acting, it's like my mother had formally delivered her a death threat.

My mother gives Madge a careful embrace, but soon enough, Madge returns her arms to their previous position.

"How have you been, Madge?" my mother asks.

"Surviving," she says dryly. Dammit.

"Madge! Madge! Madge!" Posy barrels through the front door, making a beeline for Madge. The near-tangible tension that filled the room the moment before is gone.

Madge smiles as Posy runs toward, but then visibly winces as Posy squeezes her waist a little too hard. I'm about to say something when Madge shoots me a look, so I keep my mouth shut.

"I'm so glad to see you," Madge grins down at my sister. "It's been a long time, huh?"

"The longest," Posy nods. I didn't really realize until now how strange this must be for her, to see someone as a picture on her wall for so long, and within months she's staying at her house.

I, personally, am taking it quite well.

"Come on," Posy says, as excitable as a five-year-old on Christmas morning. "Sit with me."

"You go ahead," I tell her, knowing Posy wants to be alone with Madge. "I'm going to go for a walk."

"Okay," she smiles. I kiss her forehead lightly, and Posy snickers. I shoot her a look, ruffling her hair, and then I walk out the door.

"I'll come with you, Gale," Ma suddenly says.

"It's alright, Ma," I tell her, "you were out all day. Sit down."

"I said I'll come with you," she mutters briskly, pulling on the jacket she'd taken off twenty minutes ago. "It's a nice evening."

Madge looks uncomfortable. This is not how I wanted things to turn out.

Just before my mother turns the doorknob, she whispers, "I think we need to talk about some things."

Madge's POV

The uneasy feeling Hazelle (would she even let me call her that anymore?) has left me with is solidified when she closes the door. Even Posy seems to have noticed. "That's weird," she says, her grip on my wrist loosening. "She's not like that when I bring friends home."

"I'm a little more than friendly with your brother, Posy," I remind her.

"I know," she sighs, shrugging. "I just wish my mom liked you, that's all."

"She does," I insist, though it's half-hearted. Posy raises her eyebrows, and my heart sinks a little more.

"Maybe she's afraid you guys are going to...you know," she suggests, her cheeks darkening. It takes me a minute, but then I burst out in laughter.

"Don't worry, Posy," I tell her. "I'm hardly in the shape for anything physical at the moment. It all hurts. Very much."

"Gale wouldn't hurt you."

"Oh my goodness, Posy Hawthorne," now my face is turning red, "I am not discussing this with you. Your mother need not worry about a thing."

"Maybe you should sleep on the couch, then? So she knows that?"

"What did I say?" I laugh, though I don't have the heart to say, sure, Pose, I'll just not sleep in Gale's room. Because I want to.

"Oh-kay," she sighs. "I just want us all to get along."

"I know." I lean down and hug her. "Come on, let's sit down."

Posy and I sit on one of the overstuffed couches, and she pulls a soft fleece blanket over us. She leans on my shoulder, but shifts uncomfortably. "What's wrong?" I ask.

"Oh, nothing," she sighs. "I just hate how the leather on these couches sticks to your skin."

"Look at you," I chuckle, tucking a strand of her dark, straight hair behind her ears. "Complaining about a leather couch." It brings back a memory of a younger Posy complaining about how hungry she was.

She must have thought of it, too. "I know," she says. "It's really nice, the house. It took Gale forever to build it."

"Gale built this?" I ask, looking around. I shouldn't be surprised, honestly. But I kind of am. "How long did it take?"

"A year," she says. "It only has one floor, but it took a lot of time to get the water and lights and things running."

"Interesting," I murmur.

"Not really," she shrugs, cozying up to me. "I'm really tired. Madge, are you and Gale going to get married?"

"What kind of question is that to ask when you're tired?" I smile down at Pose. "I don't know."

"Do you hope so?"

"I don't - I'm not sure, Posy. We haven't gotten that far yet."

"I hope you do," she says softly. "Wouldn't that be so weird? I had no idea all this time that you and Gale had been friends."

"We weren't exactly friends," I stress.

"Hope we are now," another voice says; Gale's. "How are you guys doing?" He sits down next to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders, reaching to tickle Posy. "We're good," she says. "Madge was just telling me how you guys are going to get married."

I interrupt with a groan, but Gale interrupts with raised eyebrows. "Is that so?" he asks, looking at me playfully. "When's the big day?"

"I was saying," Posy sighs dramatically, "she was telling me how you guys are going to get married someday. That's what Madge said."

"I did not," I shot back, but I was fighting a smile. "I said I didn't know. And if I did know, it wouldn't be for a long, long time."

"Why wait?・Gale teases. "We're not getting any younger."

"Shut up," I laugh.

"It's not like I'll ever love anyone else," Gale adds, and I wish he hadn't. I thought we had silently established that we weren't sure on the whole love/in love thing.

"I think I might love you," I whisper, leaning with my lips against his neck. "Just wait for me."

He's serious now, but doesn't look hurt. "I do love you,"he says. He pauses to kiss me. "Still," he breathes shakily, "I'll wait for you."

Posy pretends to be distracted by her fingernails. Gale and I quickly part. "Do you have any movies?" I ask. "Let's watch one."

So we do.

Posy falls asleep just as the credits start rolling. Gale turns off the TV.

The silence kind of hurts; I don't know why. So I ask him, "Did you have a nice talk with your mom?"

"Yeah." He pauses, taking in a nervous breath. "About that."

I raise my eyebrows at him, panic flaring in my stomach. "About that," I repeat.

"She's not too happy about you staying here."

A/N: Sorry this took so long! I was crazy busy with finals and everything and then couldn't find the inspiration. I know you may have expected more but I've been in a writing mood lately (I've started an original book about myself actually), and I'll try to get the next chapter of "Heat" up soon. "Extracurriculars" will be my last priority as it's only been a couple weeks since that one has been updated. But don't worry, I won't let y'all down!