There's a long pause before Katniss answers, kicking her feet up so that the splash resonates in the caves and distracts momentarily from her silence. But it can't last long, even if she's still racking her brain for something to say. "I don't know," is what she finally settles on, words moving slowly. The answer is probably not satisfying to Gale, but it's honest and in the end that is all she has. Katniss has never known how to make her words beautiful like Peeta does easily as breathing.