Hello everybody! This is my first fan-fiction ever. And English is not my native language, so please be respectful of that. I don't own The Hunger games, but the characters are mine.

I wake up screaming. Stupid nightmare, again. I hate them; I hate them more than everything. This time, it was Eatheleen dying, a flashback. Again. My poor little sister, dying at age of three.

I get out of bed; still sleepy. The clock is showing 10 o'clock. I dress up in a white and blue T-shirt and dark blue cozy pants. I go to the bathroom and look at the mirror. My green eyes are reddish and bloated. I must have cried in my sleep. Again. I wash my face, removing all the redness around my eyes. I go to the kitchen and open the fridge. I'm so hungry, I could eat a whale. I take a bit of tuna, feta cheese and bread, and put them on a big white plate. I take one half a lemon and squeeze it, pouring it's juice into a glass and adding a bit of water and a sugar cube. Our usual breakfast at District 4. I quietly go to my room on my tiptoes and put the plate and the glass on my little wooden table. I don't want to have breakfast with my parents. I don't even know if they are awake. Even if they are, they would certainly talk about The Hunger Games. I'm one hundred percent sure they will today. It's The Reaping day, of course. It's enough for me that I have to volunteer because of them. I have no intention to talk about it. I eat my breakfast in a hurry.

I hear footsteps behind me. I can tell it's my mom without looking behind. It's her heels that give her away – she always walks in them, no matter when, no matter where. She sits next to me and hugs me softly.

''Today will my baby become a star'', she smiles. As I said, they want me to volunteer for the Games. I don't want it, but I have to. I can't imagine what they would say if I don't. I can just hope someone will be quicker then me. I mumble some confirmation words, hoping she'll understand it as Yes, mom. She smiles. ''Don't wake up dad. You know he likes to sleep longer on weekends'', mom reminds me. Of course I do, I think for myself, how could I forget how angry he was when I accidentally woke him up two weeks ago? I wanted to say, but instead I just nodded. ''And, mom!'', I said a bit louder, but trying not to shout because dad wakes up easily. ''I'm going to the coast, fishing with Marlene'' I informed her. I don't think I need to, but still. Mom turned back and nodded Yes, dear, and walked out of the room. I put on my sandals, take my trident and net. I'm gone to the coast.

On the settled part of the coast, Marlene waits for me. As always. She is the only person I can trust. You should know, I'm very mistrustful of people. I don't talk too much. It has been taken years for me to trust Marlene. It had to be something big, so I could see her as a friend. And it was. It was my little sister, Eatheleen, who made us friends. Marlene saw her once, in the Square. She immediately fell in love with Eatheleen. She helped us with her disease. She gave us medicines when we ran out of it. She played with her. She bought her chocolate, her favorite sweet, even when it was really expensive. She was there to calm here down when she was in pain. She was there to calm us down when she died.

Marlene waves to me as I run towards her. She is the only one in which presence I can act nice. I arrive in front of her.

''Oi, Miss. Pearl!'', I say and salute her as a solider. It's hard to keep a straight face.

''Oi, Miss. Frost!'', she answers with the same salute. We try to keep a straight face, but we can't. We burst out laughing.

''Let's fish a bit'', I suggest. '' If we find something nice, we can get it in our boots''. That's what we do – when we find some good fish, we sell it or wrap it in a plastic bag and put it into the side of our big boots. She agrees and we go to the beach. I unleash our boat and we sit into it, going to the open sea.

''So, will you volunteer today?'', Marlene asks me. She has tried to get in the games, but she never has that luck. Someone was always faster. I'm glad they were. ''Yeah, I guess so'', I answer her, mumbling a bit. ''You?''

''Oh, you already know the answer'', she said casually. Of course I do. Marlene is a career. Nice one, though. She trains with her brother Styx, every second day. He taught me to use throwing knives. I'm quite good at it, but not as good as with a trident. ''I will try, as always'', Marlene said. '' I just hope no one will be faster than me!'' I hope the opposite.

''Styx will try, too?'', I ask and jab another salmon with my trident. I look at it. Nice one, I could earn a lot for it. I put a net I made yesterday in the water.

''Of course he will'', she said with a big smile. ''Oh, I hope we will be together in the games! It would be so interesting!'' She shouts and claps with her hands, head leaning a bit to the side. I don't understand her – what's good at having to kill your brother? I wanted to ask her that, but instead I just nodded. I asked her that once, when we first met – we ended up talking for an hour about how Games are interesting, fun, entertainment, and how it's an honor to be in them. I think I was sick after that.

I look at my golden watch with tridents instead of hands. It's showing 12 o'clock.

''I think we should go now, The Reaping's at 1 –, I said. Marlene agreed and we row to the beach. I look at my bucket. There are about 3 or 4 salmons, a bit of tuna and a big catfish. Good ones today. I put a salmon in the plastic bag and put it inside of my boot. Marlene and I go to the Main Peacekeeper, and hand him our buckets. We got a good amount of money for them, enough to buy almost everything we fished.

''Se you at 1'', I said and waved to Marlene. She returned me with a wave and blew a kiss at me. I pretended to catch it, like we did when we were young. We laughed and went home.

Mom is flying around me, combing and drying my just washed ash blonde hair. She sometimes mumbles something like will that knot from hair ever untie or is Meredith's hair cursed?. I'm already used to this so it's not a problem any more. When she finally finishes my hair, it's silky and shiny. I like the way it falls down to my shoulders. Dad keeps telling me that I'm the prettiest girl he knows. Mom covers my tanned face with some her light cream which Marlene's mother bought her for Christmas. She puts on me pink lip gloss, that I have used only twice or thrice. I don't like to have make-up on, even this little. It's like I have something heavy on my face. I really don't like it, but I don't complain. I know mom would say something like Oh, shut up, you're more beautiful with it, sweety! While mom's trying to find some nice, matching ballet shoes for me, Dad gives me my most beautiful knee-long flowing dress. It's apple green and has short sleeves and a sky blue silk scarf with yellow flowers around the waist. I put it on. Mom screams with enthusiasm: ''Marlene, my dear! You look a-m-a-z-i-n-g!'' I look at the mirror. I don't see anything a-m-a-z-i-n-g.Just a girl in a beautiful dress and nice hair. Maybe that's the definition of a-m-a-z-i-n-g. I put on green ballet shoes my mom found from thin air and we head to The Reaping.

''Hello, ladies and gentleman! Hello and welcome to the 71st annual Hunger games! '', said our mayor with a big grin. He always looked strange to me. Maybe that's because he loved The Hunger Games more then anything. On the chair next to his was a strange-looking woman, Luverie Inight, escort for District 4. She had a bow made from her own neon green hair, her eyes were bright pink and lined with black and dark purple eye shadow. Her lips were the same color as her hair and she was wearing a black, slim dress with a giant, pink dolphin on the top.

''First, let me read the history of Panem, as it's a must'', the mayor said loudly and started to read. Same story every year. Really boring, if you ask me. But if you ask Marlene, she will tell you that's it's the most interesting story she ever heard.

After a split-second after the mayor finished the story, Luveria stood up and screamed in high-pitched Capitol accent: ''Happy Hunger Games and may the odds be ever in your favour, my dear people! I'm sooo pleased to be here today! I bet you're all excited! Let's do this!'' She clapped a few times and went to the glass ball with girls' names in. ''Ladies first!'', Luveria screamed. I looked at my mom. She was telling me to volunteer, no doubt. I saw that one million times. Let somebody be faster then me, please... please...

''Meredith Frost!'', she screamed.No, no, no, no! Odds are not on my favor today. Now, nobody can be faster than me! I looked at my mom as I climbed the stars. She looked so proud.

''I volunteer!'', said Marlene, almost casually. I heard some other voices saying it as well, but she was faster. Mom was shaking her head so fast, she looked like she had had an electroshock. I'll have to say that I want to go into the Games. Or mom will... well, I don't know what she will do, but I don't want to know.

''No, I have to go to the Games!'', I said with a fake confidence. Luveria looked satisfied. I looked at Marlene from the corner of my eye. She looked a bit angry about the fact that I was in the games and she wasn't, but she was smiling.

''The fame must be ours, eh?'', asks Luveria with an a fake grin. I mumble some affirmative words, not knowing exactly what I said. ''Boys, it's your time now!'', she shouted and put her hand in the giant glass ball.

I don't even know what name she said. Maybe even before Luveria said the name, Styx shouted: ''I volunteer as a tribute!'' He didn't have the same casual voice, as Marlene. He seems to have an enormous wish to be in the Games... oh, no. No, no, no, no. That means...

That means we will be in The Hunger Games together.