picking up the pieces . nina&peter . blitz

We sit in silence for a moment, Peter assembling the experiment, me staring blankly down at my textbooks. I had something open again the anatomy of a frog, but as I stared down at the words I took in absolutely nothing. "Hey Nina..." This time I snap to attention the moment I hear my name uttered. Only it wasn't by the teacher, but Peter. "Are you okay?" There was a seriousness to his tone hidden behind a smile.

And instantly I go to brush him off, forcing myself to smile at him as I flipped my book open to the pages that explained the experiment. "I'm fine, just got a lot on my mind!" The words had begun to feel like nothing more than habit, the same thing I uttered to each and every person who asked me that question. And lately I heard it a lot.

Like most he sent convince by my words.

Unlike most he want ready to back down just yet.

He keeps his voice low, not once stopping as he worked on the experiments preparation, "I know we don't know each other well. But I have two younger siblings so I'm a really good listener. Just throwing that out there."

Instantly the words I am fine jump to the tip of my tongue. But after a moment I pause, staring at the boy beside me. I hadn't spoken much about what happened, avoiding it whenever I could... But what if I wasn't ready to talk about it?

"Thats really kind of you, Peter." I pause for a moment, still debating whether or not to open up to the stranger next to me. "How old are your sister?" I ask, watching as his hands move with ease.

He had a little brother and sister. His sister is just a couple of years younger than Aurora, his brother about to take part in his first reaping. He was terrified for him, and rightfully so. The fear of having a loved one in the reaping was something that was like nothing else. Waiting for that stupid little slip to be read, hoping that it wasn't your name, and then in the back of your mind begging to the gods that it wasn't theirs.

"The first ones are always the worse," I say quietly, remembering the first time I attended a reaping knowing that Aurora's name was in that bowl. I had been terrified, not for myself, but always for her. I had never thought that she might feel the same.

Finishing off the rest of the experiments set up I flip my notepad open to a clean page, digging through my pencil case until I found my black biro.

"Do you have any siblings, Nina?"

"I did, I do," I say almost immediately, flicking a quick glance in his direction. "I had an older sister, but she died from the same illness that took my mother. It is why I am so passionate about medicine- that and the fact that my father is a doctor." For the first time in a long time, I started to feel kind of normal, the conversation flowing with an ease that had started to feel unusual. "I have an older brother, he's kinda a mess, but more that he just doesn't have any motivation to do anything other than play stupid video games and leach off my father." I pause, smiling to myself a little.

"Let's start."