A Walk

A/N: Newcomer to THG fanfiction, but NOT a newcomer to the series. *Waves* But this is my first time writing it and playing around with the characters, so hopefully I don't do too horribly. It's kind of a surprise that my first ever THG fanfic is Gale/Madge, since my number one pairing from the series is Peeta/Katniss, but I this idea just wouldn't leave my head. AND I absolutely love Gale as a character, even if Everlark is my THG OTP.

This is a AU, and takes place in a Panem where there are no Hunger Games. There are still Districts, a capital, and the seam and such, but just without the games. I hope you like it :)

"Undersee, I'm not sure about this…."

Madge turned sharply around to face her boyfriend of a few months, Gale, and smiled comfortably, trying to hide her annoyance at the fact that he called her "Undersee."

Calling each other by their last names had been something they did when they weren't that friendly with each other.

But now that they were….seeing each other, Madge had asked if they could start calling each other by their first names instead. Gale had conceded, but once in a while, he slipped and addressed her by her last name again.

Madge had taken notice that it usually happened when he was nervous...though he would never admit that.

"It'll just be a short walk through the district Gale. We don't even have to go all the way through it if you don't want to."

He sighed, running a hand through his dark hair in frustration, his gray eyes narrowed.

"People are going to talk."

"Let them. Who cares what they think?"

Until now, they had been keeping their relationship a secret. It had started when Katniss began some sort of relationship with Peeta Mellark…the baker's son.

It turned out that the blonde boy has had feelings for Katniss since they were young children, always admiring her from a distance.

One day, he had finally worked up the courage to approach her at lunch.

At first, she had coldly brushed him off, and avoided him at all costs. But one day, her younger sister Prim had overheard her and Gale talking about him, and had begged Katniss to at least give him a chance.

The little girl had been tired of watching her older sister being alone all the time, and desperately wanted her to open up a little more.

With Prim being her one, ultimate weakness, Katniss had eventually given in, and reluctantly apologized to Peeta for brushing him off.

And from then on, it all fell into place.

Katniss slowly started to spend more and more time with him, and he managed to break through her hard shell.

They could be considered a couple. Although, the only people who knew about them were Madge, Gale, and Prim. Katniss was too skeptical to make their relationship known to the public, afraid of what people would think of a girl from the seam dating the baker's son.

After Katniss began her relationship with Peeta, Gale had become increasingly more distant, and Madge knew why. She had always expected that he secretly had romantic feelings for his best friend.

So she had tried to comfort him…despite their differences. And eventually, just like Katniss and Peeta had, they fell for each other.

But they faced the same problem Peeta and Katniss face with their relationship: They were afraid to come out and make it known to the public.

Gale, like Katniss, was afraid of what people would think of him, a boy from the seam, dating the mayor's daughter.

That was why they were standing here now, at the edge of town, getting ready to hold hands and walk through District 12 together; to finally come out with it, and to prove to Katniss that the idea of making their relationships public wasn't so bad.

Only now, Gale was getting cold feet.

The man in question put both arms across his chest, stubbornly.

"I think YOU do. What do you think your father will say about this, huh? When he asks you about it while you're sitting at your fancy dinner table, will you confirm what's going on between us, or will make up an excuse?"

Madge frowned. She really hated it when he brought up their social class differences.

"Don't be like that Gale", she pleaded quietly, taking him by surprise by leaning up and planting a kiss on his jaw. "I love you. And I want to do this. Please. I don't care what anyone thinks. I really don't."

And it was the truth. Would she be disappointed if her father didn't improve of their relationship? A bit. But it wouldn't stop her from being with Gale.

And besides, she REALLY didn't think that her father would have much against it. He may be the mayor, but he had a good heart. And Madge had a suspicion that he already had an idea that something was going on between them, with the way she was always seen with him nowadays.

Gale closed his eyes, and let out another quiet sigh, before opening them again. This time, instead of being cautious and calculating, his gray eyes were set in determination.

"Alright. Let's do it."

Madge gave him a soft smile before taking his hand, and together, they began to walk further into the town.

Like she expected, the looks they got from people as they passed them varied. Most people they passed in the seam were a mixture. Some looked simply surprised and confused, while others shot them knowing smiles.

Further into the town square, however, the knowing smiles began to disappear, and instead, were replaced by scrutiny, but Madge didn't care a bit. And she hoped Gale didn't either.

She turned to look at him again. She'd been taking glances and observing him for the whole walk. At first he had seemed tense, but after a little while, he grew to look a bit more comfortable. The stiffness of his shoulders relaxed, and his eyes took on a more peaceful aura.

This comforted her further; the fact that he didn't seem to care what other people thought either.

Soon, the walk came to an end, and they ended up back where they started: at the beginning of the seam.

"That wasn't so bad….was it?" Madge asked cautiously, looking up at her boyfriend.

To her surprise, she could actually see a hint of a smile on his lips.

"No. It wasn't." He then leaned down, kissing her softly. Madge closed her eyes, getting lost in the feeling of his lips moving against her, wrapping her arms around his neck to pull herself closer to him.

After a moment, they pulled away, slowly and reluctantly pulling themselves away from each other.

"I love you Madge."

Madge nodded, a huge smile on her lips. "I love you too. See you tomorrow?"

Gale nodded, a small smirk taking form on his face. "We have to brag to Catnip and lover boy that we came out first, right?"

"Right", she replied, smirking back.

"See you tomorrow."

And with that, they went their separate ways for the night

The End