The first rays of sunlight gleam onto my face and wake me from my slumber. I yawn and get out of bed. Usually, I would be smiling, but not today. Today is the day of the reaping. It's hard on everyone in District 11, especially the families of children from the ages of 12 to 18. I sigh. This will be my 5th year of the horrid reaping. I quickly get dressed and walk out of my room and into the bathroom. I comb through my shoulder-length dark brown hair. I try styling it over and over again, but eventually give up.

"Lola Heavenbee, get down here and eat your breakfast!" my mother calls from downstairs.

"Coming, Mother!" I scream back at her.

I rush down the stairs and into the kitchen. I sit at the small table across from my mother. My dad is at her side and my older brother is next to him. They all look worried. My brother, who is 18, has his name entered 11 times. Mine is only entered 5 times, since my brother wouldn't let me enter my name for tesserae. We ate our breakfast consisting of bread and a few berries I picked the day before in the meadows outside of District 11.

"My! Look at your hair!" my mother squealed at me. "What on Earth did you do to it?"

"I tried to style it," I replied with a shrug.

I finished my breakfast and walked out the door heading for the meadow. The meadow, the only place where I am truly happy. I smiled at the thought and started jogging, my basket swinging along on my wrist. I easily wiggled through a small hole in the electric fence that was never turned on. I was small and fast so it was easy for me. I walk until I find the stream. This is where my best friend, Liam, and I would meet every day. I sit there thinking of how many times his name is entered. He's 17 and has to provide food for his 4 siblings, himself, and his mother since his father died from a harsh whipping after being caught by a Peacekeeper trying to sell some salmon he caught in the stream. His name is entered 12 times.

"Hey Lola!" I hear someone call from behind me.

I smile. "Hey Liam!"

I turn around and see him inches away from me. My olive skin fails to hide my blushing

Liam lets out a slight chuckle. His dark hair blowing in the wind. The sun shines perfectly on his tan skin. It's obvious why all the girls at school fall head over heels in love with him.

"It's reaping day," Liam stated, obviously trying to make me not feel so embarrassed.

"Yep," I sighed.

"How many times is your name entered?" he asked me.

"Only 5 times," I reply.

We start to pick a few berries that are scattered among the meadow. After our baskets are full, we sit in the tall grass, the sun shining down on us. By the looks of where the sun is, I would say it was around eight.

"I guess I better go to get ready for the reaping," I say while stranding up. The reaping wasn't until noon and, I didn't need that much time, but I still left.

While I walked away I heard Liam call out, "Happy Hunger Games!"

"And may the odds be EVER in your favor!" I shouted back.

I walked to the town square and to the back door of the bakery. I knock four times on the door. The baker answers the door. When he sees me, he silently walks to one of the shelves, and grabs four fresh loaves of bread. I hand him the basket and walk away with the loaves of bread in my hands. I get home, set the bread on the counter and walk into the bathroom to find the wash bin ready for me. I quickly wash up and wrap myself up in a towel. I walk into my room and find an outfit set out on my bed. It was a beautiful dress. The dress started of a dark grey at the top. There was a silk ribbon cutting this part off from the rest. Under the ribbon was a lighter shade of grey then a shade between white and grey. At the bottom was a shade of dark blue. I quickly dressed into it and examined myself in the knee-length dress.

I checked the time. It was almost noon. I quickly strapped on a pair of sandals and raced down the stairs. My brother was already waiting for me. He wore a simple blue button-down shirt with black pants and black dress shoes. We walked to the Town Square with our parents in silence. After getting our fingers pricked, my brother and I went off to our separate sections. He went to the front of the group with all the 18 year old boys while I went towards the center with all the 16 year old girls. I stood there waiting nervously.

"Attention, Attention!" the District 11 escort, Holly Monique, spoke in her silly Capitol accent into the microphone. "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be EVER in your favor! Now here is a video all the way from the Capitol!"

The video was about five minutes long. Nobody ever pays attention to it though. It's just the same thing every year. It tells about how the Hunger Games were created and blah blah blah.

Next, the mayor comes up and gives a speech about pretty much the same thing. I look over and see Liam giving a sign of boredom at me and can't help but giggle.

"And now we shall choose our tributes for the 68th Hunger Games!" Holly Monique's voice rang out across the square. "Ladies first!"

I clenched my fists. My name is only five in thousands. I don't know why I'm worried but I just am.

Holly dips her hand into the glass bowl and pulls out a slip of paper. She walks back to the podium and reads the name,"Clara Newman! Come on now, don't be shy!" A 17 year old girl walks up to the stage. She's shaky, nervous, and looks like she's on the verge of tears.

"Now onto the boys!" Holly Monique exclaims. She pulls out a paper and hobbles back over to the podium. "Liam Router! You are the boy tribute for his year's Hunger Games!"

I freeze.