We all stand in our rows waiting to see who will be called waiting to see if we are the ones to die next. My uncle, Haymitch Abernathy, 'winner' of the Second Quarter Quill, sits on the stage in his chair as Effie speaks. His eyes drift to me and I can see his worry. I'm finally of age for the reaping and it scares him and my father both. I know my father, Thomas Abernathy, stands in the back somewhere staring at me. I can feel his eyes staring at the back of my head, but I don't turn around. Effie begins to walk over to the girls bowl and everything from the day before runs through my head.
{Flashback}
I sit in the grass with Jackson, my brother, staring at the fields that stretch past the fence and into the trees where the land meets the sky. I look at him out of the corner of my eye and see he's twisting strands of grass together.
"Don't volunteer." I tell him and his head turns my way.
"What?" He asks me.
"If my name's drawn don't volunteer to take the other guys place mom and dad need you more than me." I tell him and he shakes his head.
"How can you even stand thinking about the possibility of your own name being drawn your first year Haz?" He asks his voice dull.
"I don't know I just have this bad feeling about tomorrow." I whisper softly.
"Everyone gets it. It's called fear sis." He tells me.
"Jack; this, this is something different." I explain quietly looking at him with worried eyes.
"Your name won't be pull you're one slip out of some hundred slips you'll be fine for now." He says before he gets up.
"We'll see." I mumble before I take one last look at the forest and get up.
{Flashback over}
Effie sticks her hand in the glass bowl and waves her hand around before she snatches a slip up and clicks her way back to the microphone. We all wait silently some of us holding our neighbors hand and others of us just staring at the ground.
"And this years district twelve female tribute is..." She says as she opens the paper her eyes widen a bit, but she schools her expression quickly. "Hazel Lacy Abernathy." She calls out and everyone turns to look at me. I stand stiff staring ahead knowing that by now the cameras will be focused on me. I slowly turn to my left and look at everyone. Through the girls and boys, I can see my brother staring at me, his face shocked. I slowly walk between the rows of girls and turn right towards the stage. I slowly walk up the stairs, but I risk a glance at my uncle to see him watching me intently.
"Wonderful, wonderful. May I welcome our forty seventh district twelve female tribute." Effie calls out before pointing me to my spot slowly. When I reach my spot, I look at everyone and even though I wear a long knee length faded purple dress with black flats I feel as if I'm naked for all to see. Effie draws the boy's name and he starts to make is way up. I can't hear anything as I turn to the boy as he makes his way up the stairs on the other side of Effie. I've seen him in school before and sometimes when I do deliveries for the baker.
He's a tall well-built guy with dirty blonde hair with streaks of brown running from his roots. He wears simple black dress pants and a white button-up shirt with a pair of black boots on his feet. As Effie speaks next to us and we both extend our hands before shaking them then we turn to everyone. I scan the crowd till my eyes land on my parents. My mother's face is pressed into my father's shoulder who is as pale as the clouds in the sky.
"Come now." I hear Effie say. I turn and follow her into City Hall but not before I send my uncle a pleading look begging him to save me but all he does is lower his eyes to the concrete floor underneath his feet. When Effie leaves me in another empty room I lose my composure for a second my worry and fear getting the best of me. I hear the doorknob beginning to turn and school my composure once more. When the door opens my mother, father, and brother come in before grabbing me quickly and squeezing me in a hug.
"No." My mother sobs into my shoulder.
"Alice calm down Hazel doesn't need tears love." My father states and my mother calms down a little as she moves to my brother. My father kneels in front of me and puts his hand on my shoulder before speaking in a low but completely serious tone I've never heard in his voice at all in my life. "Haymitch will help you Haz but you've got to keep a level head while in that Arena. You've watched the games ever since you were born so use what you've learned in the past while watching those gruesome so-called games, so you can survive them. Be smart and follow your instinct it's usually right." He tells me before he slips something into my hand. I slowly look down to see a long silver chain with a closed watch attached to it. I slowly flip open the lid to see a picture of our family, including Haymitch, smiling up at me. "I had it made for your thirteenth birthday, but Jack told me you had a feeling your name was going to be drawn and your gut is usually right Hazel. If your gut's telling you something listen to it, usually your gut feeling is right Hazel trust yourself and you might be able to make it out alive and come home." He explains sadly but I nod my head understanding what he means. I hear the door being opened again and I start to freak out. The Peacekeepers are coming too quickly I need more time I may not make it back out. I doubt myself but the gift from my father my doubt has lessened but I still need more time. I throw my arms around his neck and let one tear slide down my cheek and onto his shoulder before he's being ripped from me.
"I love you guys." I call after them before the door is slammed shut. After a second of just standing there I look around the room and frown. The room looks like an office with a dark spruce wood, I think, table and red carpeting. I slowly walk over to the window and look out it to see Peacekeepers standing outside my window. I hear the door behind me open and spin around quickly to see the baker standing there.
When the door closes he speaks. "I thought I should come here and say thank you for helping me and good luck." He tells me. I give a small smile.
"Thanks, I honestly thought I wouldn't get any other visitors." I admit as I wring my hands together.
He chuckles. "You've got a few." He tells me and my eyes widen with surprise. He pulls a bag out of his coat pocket and hands it to me as his other hand lands on my right shoulder. "Good luck, Lacy." He whispers before he leaves. I open the bag to find four chocolate chip muffins and two sugar cookies. I smile to myself before I hear the door open again. I drop the bag on the desk to my left and wait to see who's next to see me. When the door opens completely it's the mayor's wife. I stare at her blinking a few times in surprise. All she does is smile at me as she closes the door. She walks over to me and wraps me in a hug and I return it even though I'm confused about why she's here.
When she pulls away she looks me dead in the eye. "You shouldn't have been drawn it's only your first year."
I smile up at her and sigh. "It's the way of the games." I tell her and she shakes her head.
"It shouldn't be." She tells me and laughs a little.
"I think I'll make it I'm not what everyone thinks I am." I tell her and she raises an eyebrow questioningly. "I'm strong and I'm smart. I know my plants and I'm a quick learner." I list out. "I'll survive." I assure her and she nods her head.
"Good luck." She says before she turns around and leaves. I stand in the center of the room and look around till the door opens again but this time it's Effie.
"Time to get going." She says and I nod my head.
I follow Effie to a car with my fellow tribute next to me. When we get in I say nothing and just stare ahead. When the car stops we get out as pictures are taken and people yell at us which I ignore. I walk up to the door, but Effie grabs my arm and stops me. I turn around and stare into the rising sun till Effie let's go of me. I quickly head inside and when the door closes I turn to Effie as she rambles on.
"Where is my room?" I interrupt her. She sighs and points to her left.
"Down the hall." She tells me bluntly and I hurry past her to my room. Once I get in I close my door and throw myself onto my bed.
I do plan on making another chapter... maybe more, I'm not sure. I have no clue when I'll post the next one. This chapter has been sitting in my flashdrive for the past year and a half.