"Primrose Everdeen!"
Effie Trinket's shrill voice calls out my name to all of District 12. I freeze in my spot. How could my name have been called? It's only been put in the bowl once. What are the odds of my name being called? About 1 out of 1,000. How could this be happening? I feel tears rise up in the back of my eyes and my heart is pounding against my ribcage.
"I volunteer!" calls out another, more panicked voice. Oh, no, it can't be. It just can't be. I whirl around and see my sister, Katniss, stepping through the crowd of District 12 citizens. It is. "I volunteer as tribute!" Her eyes are filled with tears and her voice is hoarse.
Everyone stares in shock; District 12 has never had a volunteer before. But I can't let my sister die for me. "Katniss, no!" I run through the crowd and reach her. I stare into her gray eyes and notice Peacekeepers working their way towards us out of my peripheral vision. "You can't do this, I won't let you."
"But you won't survive," she says. Geez, that's encouraging, I think sarcastically. "I have a better chance than you do. I'll go."
"No! I can't let you! I'd rather die than see you gone," I say. I know I'm weak, and I won't survive even one day in the Hunger Games, but it is better than watching Katniss be killed on live T.V.
She looks me in the eyes, and I can tell that she knows I won't let her go. She thinks about it for a moment, and then nods slowly. She wipes tears away from her eyes and then the Peacekeepers get here. They pull Katniss away from me, separating me from one of the only people I care about. Everyone around me moves away, clearing a path leading to the stage that Effie is standing on. I lift my head up and tuck in the back of my blue button-up shirt. I walk past everyone and to the stage. I go up the steps and reach Effie. She smiles at me, although why, I don't know. I wouldn't smile at anyone if they were about to be sent to their death.
"And now for the boys," Effie continues. She reaches her hand into the second clear bowl and pulls out a slip of paper. She unfolds it and reads the name out loud. "Peeta Mellark!"
A boy with golden blonde hair and bright blue eyes- not unlike mine- stands in the center of a parting crowd. I recognize him from the bakery; he's the baker's son. He decorates the cakes and stuff. Peeta has a look of utter shock on his face. I feel bad for him. Nobody volunteers to go in his place. As he walks up to the stage, everybody averts his eyes. He walks up the steps and joins me next to Effie.
"District 12!" Effie starts, "Your tributes for the 74th Hunger Games!"
Nobody responds, as if Effie had never said anything at all. Until one person brings 3 fingers to their mouth and then raises their hand in the air. Another person follows the first. Then more. And soon, everyone is saluting to us as Effie and Haymitch Abernathy stroll through the large double-doors. We follow them in, and Peacekeepers bring up the rear.
Inside is a room I've never been in before. The walls are dark and mostly undecorated. Peeta and I are sent to 2 separate rooms. I sit down on a couch and wait. I don't know how long I wait, there's no clock in sight. After I start to get worried that nobody's going to come, I hear a knock on the door, and my sister and mother are escorted in by Peacekeepers.
Katniss runs over and hugs me tightly. "Prim? It's…" She stops herself, knowing very well that there's nothing that she can say to comfort me. So she just holds me, letting tears stream down her cheeks.
I never see her this way. Since our father died, she's been the strong one, holding our weak family together. But I guess this is different. I know how much she loves me. If I had to part with her like this, if I had to watch her die on national television, I don't know if I would be able to hold myself together, either.
"Please, Katniss," I say. "Take care of mother. She needs you to stay strong."
Katniss looks at me and nods slightly. Then she backs away, giving our mother a chance to speak to me.
My mother bends down so she is at my level. Her hair is blond and pulled into a tight bun. Her face is worn from age and stress, but I think at one point she must have been beautiful. Her bright blue eyes are filled with worry and grief. She pulls me into an embrace, and it is a few seconds before we pull away from each other. Then she leans in close, and whispers in my ear just a few, simple words.
"I love you."
I smile at her through the tears, and she gives a small smile back. Then the Peacekeepers come and pull them out of my presence. And I'm alone again.
I'm in the room for a bit more, until Effie comes in. She explains to me about how Peeta and I will be taking a train to the Capitol. I zone out for the rest of her speech, thinking about everything that has happened during the past few hours. I can't even focus on Effie, despite her colorful hair and face and everything else. Then after a moment, I realize that she's stopped talking. She looks at me expectantly.
"Sorry, what did you say?" I ask her.
"I asked you if you were ready to go," Effie says.
I nod and look at the floor. I'm about as ready as I'll ever be.