Though now she lived in the districts, she was capitol born. She knew all of his hardships and never looked at him any differently. She handled him with such gentleness, and kindness. She was a rare bird, His Nightingale. Just like he had been for h...
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(Have you ever seen a more fitting photo? I did have to edit some of the colors but. Ah!!)
Juniper caught on instantly. Her emerald green eyes darting over to the Peacekeepers, none of which were paying attention at the moment, and she leaned in and taking a quick sniff of the compact. "Mm, Roses, you can still smell it. It brings back so many memories. It really would be like having you with me, wouldn't it?"
"Well go on," he urged her. "Take me with you."
Juniper wiped away her tears. "Okay, but I'm only borrowing it." She took the compact, slipped it into her pocket, and gave it a pat. "It'll help bring my thoughts into focus. Somehow, winning the Games is just too large of a thing to believe in. But if I say, I need to get this back to you, i can almost wrap my mind around that."
They talked a bit more, mostly about the layout of the arena and where the best hiding places might be, and he got half of the sandwich and all of a peach into her by the time Professor Sickle blew her whistle.
Coriolanus wasn't sure how it happened, or who had moved first but the next thing he knew she was in his arms. Her on her tippy toes as he locked her in a tight embrace, holding onto one another for dear life.
"You're all I'm going to think about in that arena," she whispered. "You're my strength in all of this remember?"
"You sure you don't have a husband back in Twelve?" he said jokingly.
"No," She chuckled. "I could never bring myself to fall in love, when I knew I found the one a long time ago." She said, pulling back enough to look up at him. "My heart has always belonged to you Coriolanus Snow."
And with that, he kissed her. And not just a small peck. A real kiss on the lips. The feel of her mouth, soft and warm against his own, sent sparks all throughout his body. The taste and touch of her making his head spin. Rather than pulling away, he held her even tighter, he knew she was going to be taken away at any given moment and he wasn't ready for her to disappear just yet.
So this was what people were talking about! What poets wrote about. This was what made everyone so crazy!
When they finally broke apart, he took a deep breath, as if surfacing from the depths. Juniper's lashes fluttered open, and the look in her emerald green eyes matched the look in his pale blue ones.
"Forever." He whispered.
Smiling through her tears, she replied, "And Then Some."
Simultaneously they began to lean back in for another kiss when the Peacekeepers laid hands on her and led her away.
"I love you Coriolanus!" She said as they tugged on her arm. "I love you!"
Festus nudged him on the way out of the hall. "That was some goodbye."
