Blaine was so grateful for that contact. He had been immersing himself in the Games, watching one brutal scene after another. It had probably started to mess with his head a bit. Having someone there to help him through it meant alot, even if they were still basically strangers.

"Yeah," he said. "It doesn't usually end that way, but I don't think they had Tributes who were in love before." He had no way of knowing that the love story had been a sham, it seemed real enough to him.

"I couldn't imagine what they were going through. I... I really hurt someone I love back home, and that was bad enough. But to have to consider killing them?"