"Ladies First!" Effie Trinket squeals. I roll my eyes. I hate this country, Panem. Nothing but terrible and horrible things happen here. My heart is always either broken or cracking. I can never understand why we can't leave. This country, once America, home to the free and the brave, now completely and utterly destroyed.

"Please don't volunteer for me if I get called up." My little sister, Sara pleads. Her short blonde hair is tied up in a braid with her hands to her sides. I smile slightly and take her hand.

"No promises, my young one." I murmur. She's only seven years old, so young and beautiful. My mother died a long time ago as well as my father. My aunt has total ownership of us now and I love her dearly but I still am never going to let little Sara fight in the deadliest arena yet. The Hunger Games. Those horrible and terrible games that seem to never end.

"Girls, pay attention." Aunt Mia snaps. I sigh and listen, acting like I care. I stare over at the boys section. Each boy, their eager and nervous faces. I catch a glimpse from one in particular though I have only seen him in school few times, he seems to be focusing on me. Watching me. I smile a little and turn back to Effie.

"And the lady of district twelve, the lady tribute, is Jadie Andrews!" she squeals. My heart drops, my hands automatically shake with no end. Jadie Andrews is me. I slowly walk up to the stage, pushing Sara off of my arm. I fight back tears as I take the microphone and say some things about battle strategies though I don't pay attention to what words flow out of my mouth. I back away.

"Now come the gentlemen!" she calls. I notice Sara crying and my aunt hugging her but her cheeks are wet and red as well. Effie pulls a name out of the ball and calls it out clearly. "Blake Maddison." The boy that was staring at me looks over at my eyes, his bloodshot. Stiffly, he comes up to the stage and does not speak.

"Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor!" She summons Blake and I to stand close to eachother and we shake hands, both of our grips tight because both of us are equally freaked out about what will happen next. When I take my hand back, I notice that I am still shaking. Effie summons us to the Justice building and I go there willingly because I want to say goodbye to Sara and my aunt.

I lean back against the white sofa and am not surprised when Sara comes racing into my arms, sobbing. I pat her on the back and then pull her away so she looks into my eyes. "I need you to be brave, Sara. Do you understand me? I need you to be as brave as you can. Be brave for both Aunt Mia and yourself. I also need you to pray that I can make it out of there saftely and if I don't, pray that someone else with a good heart and soul will. Please Sara, I need you to understand these things. I love you more than the sun. You're the greatest thing in my life right now Sara." She continues to sob but nods. "Can I count on you?" I ask.

"Yes, Jadie. You can count on me. Please try to win. Promise me that you'll try." she pleads.

"I promise that I will try. Now, I need to talk to Aunt Mia okay?" I say. Sara cries once again.

"But I don't want to leave you!" she sobs.

"I swear to God I will try to make it out. If you get lonely, think of all the good times we've had. With Father in the Spring time, and Mother in the Winter when we baked. I love you so so much."

"I love you too, Jadie." she cries. We embrace one last time and then she walks out but is quickly replaced by Aunt Mia.

"You have to keep her safe Mia. You have to make sure that she is healthy because God knows that I will most likely not make it out of here. I need to count on you." I say sternly. She pulls me in for a hug and I give it to her.

"I will. And I need you to promise that you'll try. Try to win, don't ever and I mean ever give up. Always move forward." she says.

"I will. I love you but I have to talk to Blake. Pray for both me and him okay? And if I die, pray that he makes it out. Please."

"I love you too. And I will do all of those things, Jadie. Goodbye." She gives me a kiss on the forehead and walks out, crying. I can barely hold on myself. I breathe in deeply as I walk towards Blake who is laying on the couch, playing with a button on his jacket. When he sees me, he sits up quickly and tries to smile. I take a seat next to him and we sit in silence for a while until he finally starts a conversation.

"So that little girl, the one who came to visit you, that was Sara right?"

I'm surprised she knows who my sister is. "Yes. She and I are really close." I answer. I'm horrible at talking to people. I always have been.

"And your aunt, Mia, she was younger than your mother, right?" Wow okay he knows my family pretty well.

"Yeah. She was the youngest." I answer quietly. He thinks about this.

"I have a question and its sort of stupid but what's your favorite book?" he says. I sigh in relief as we change the subject.

"Romeo and Juliet but not for what reasons other people love it." I answer. He nods. "What about yours?" I ask.

"I'm a fan of all of William Shakespeare's novels. Like yours, Romeo and Juliet is my favorite but only for certain reasons."

"What did you think about that play?" I ask.

"I thought that a lot could've been avoided. If they both would've never gotten involved with eachother, none of the major drama would've been caused." he answers thoughtfully. His brown eyes stare at mine.

"I do as well but at the same time, if you're meant to fall in love with someone, you will. But I also think that since both of them were so young, they probably would've met someone else. Someone better." I say.

He nods slightly then asks, "Another question. What's your favorite color?"

"Green. Not bright green but a dark, deep evergreen green. What about yours?"

"Brown. Deep and dark brown like an oak trees leaves in the fall." he answers.

"That's interesting. I've never known anyone to consider brown a favorite color." I say thoughtfully.

"Well, brown is your eye color, therefor, it is my favorite color." he says. I blush and he smiles.

"Come on you two! Time to aboard the train!" Effie hollars. Both Blake and I walk to the train side by side and take a seat next to eachother.

"Okay, my turn. What is your favorite animal?" I ask.

"Cougar." he answers. "And yours?"

"Cougar as well." I say.

"Okay, favorite season." he says.

"Winter. The beautiful snow blanketing the ground, is just amazing. Yours?"

"Same." he answers. I smile and look out the window.

"Thank you for helping me be happier about this whole Hunger Games thing." I murmur.

"You helped me too. You're very interesting to talk to and its not every day that a beautiful girl talks to a geek like me." he says. I can't help but laugh at that comment. He's far from being a geek. His dark brown eyes, his toned abs, his muscular arms, and that smile. Oh I love his smile.

"You are not a geek. You are actually probably one of the most interesting guys I've met. Do you hunt?"

He leans in to whisper the answer in my ear. "Yes. I do. And you?"

"I do." I answer. I do. Did I seriously only say those words? No yes or no just I do? Wow Jadie good job.

"Favorite weapon to use?" he asks.

"Bow and arrows are easiest for me. What about you?"

"Knife and swords." he says. I nod and turn to the window revealing a snow covered mountain. The day is fading and darkness overpowers the sky. My eyes feel heavy and I lean against his shoulder.

"Can I just sleep here this way today?" I ask. He smiles.

"Yeah." he answers. Then I hear him whisper a line from Romeo and Juliet. "Goodnight Goodnight! For parting is sweet sorrow, for I will bid you goodnight until it be morrow." I manage to smile before I fall asleep. Tomorrow we will arrive in the Capitol. That's when the real games begin.