The sun peaked through my window, alerting me of a bright new day. I cracked open one eye and looked out my bedside window. It seemed to be almost noon, as the sun was extremely high in the sky. Great, I thought, I'm going to be late meeting Lou. I threw off my blankets and ran to my bathroom, trying to freshen up as quickly as possible before I had to leave.
I brushed my teeth, splashed a bit of water on my face, and threw my black hair up in a quick ponytail. I watched myself in the mirror only for a minute, picking out how sad my green eyes looked today. I was like this every year on reaping day. It was lucky I only had one more year of this left and even more lucky this was Louis' last year. I turned away from the mirror and grabbed my jacket from the living room before making my way out the door.
The Seam was quiet, but it normally was this time of year. All the curtains were drawn and no one wandered the streets except for me. I walked quickly through my side of town before heading to the main square, which seemed to be a bit more lively but not by much. As I approached the familiar yellow house in Victor's Village, I saw him. His back was to me but I could practically hear the scowl on his face. His stance was stiff and I could tell his arms were crossed tightly. I caught myself smiling as I got closer to him, only imagining how mad he'd be when I finally showed up ten minutes late.
"Hey Lou!" I said. He turned around and I laughed at his face. He was definitely pissed off, that was for sure.
"It's about damn time Kyla! Can't you ever be on time? I said to meet at noon, not 12:10!" he yelled. He was always so punctual, being everywhere exactly on time whereas I was late to everything, including school. I just smiled at him.
"Calm down, Louis. It least I'm here right?" I said. His scowl didn't lift, but the light in his eyes was starting to come back. He reached down to the ground and picked up a backpack I hadn't noticed before.
"Come on," he said, "I figured we could eat lunch in the park before it's time to head to the square."
We walked slowly, making light conversation on the fifteen minute walk. Louis was my best friend and had been for as long as I could remember. Our parents were best friends and we'd spent many days as children being forced to play together, so it was only natural that we grew close. But as close as we were, we couldn't be any more different from each other if we tried. Louis was tall, over six feet where I was considered short, standing at about 5'3". Louis' hair was brown and shaggy, and he always styled it into a mess. My hair hangs all the way down my back, and is black and full of big curls. Louis is built, probably from doing so much yard work with his parents business whereas I'm extremely skinny with hardly any muscle. People from the Seam tend to be small, as we go underfed most of the time and have to hunt for most of our food. Lou is outgoing, loud, and extremely funny. I'm quiet and extremely shy, and hardly talk to anyone besides mine and Louis' family. Louis and I were different, that was for sure, but entirely inseparable.
We finally reached the park and we sat down at a table close to the gate incase time ran short and we needed to head to the square quickly. Louis opened the backpack and pulled out two turkey sandwiches and two apples. My stomach growled involuntarily and Lou laughed at me. I hadn't noticed being so hungry before. I smiled sheepishly and he handed over the food. We ate in silence for about five minutes before I finally spoke.
"So, how's your dad?" I said. Louis stopped eating and glanced up to meet my eyes.
"He's… better. I think it makes him feel better that this is my last reaping. He won't have to worry anymore, you know?" he replied.
Louis' dad was a previous Victor from over ten years ago. He was always so cautious with Lou and his family, and worried himself sick every year over the reaping. He had three kids including Louis, and he had been lucky enough to never have his children picked for the Games. Louis was the youngest so once this reaping was over, he'd be finished with them for good. I only hoped his name wouldn't be the one drawn today. The odds were in his favor though, seeing as his name was only entered seven times.
"But enough about me. How are you doing?" Lou said. His eyes were dark, full of a kind of sadness I know all too well. He knew how many times my name was entered, which was well over thirty. The odds were definitely not in my favor today.
"Fine," I said sharply. I didn't like to think about the reaping and how many times my name was likely to be picked. I couldn't bare the thought of being drawn and leaving my family and Lou behind. I looked up from the table and saw Louis staring at me.
"Kyla, it's going to be fine. There are so many other kids that could be reaped, too," he said, cupping my cheek with his hand. His hands were rough but I welcomed the warmth, and I leaned into his hand, trying not to cry. It felt like only three seconds later before I heard it. The whistle signaling the reaping. We sat there for a few moments before Louis finally stood up and walked over to my side of the table. He pulled me up by my armpits, making me giggle and when I was up on my feet, I turned to face him and pulled him into a very tight embrace. His big arms wrapped around me tightly and I felt his breath on my neck.
"I love you, Kyla," he said, his voice shaking. Shivers ran down my spine and I felt a heavy lump in my throat.
"I love you, too, Lou." The words hardly came out and Louis only tightened his grip on me even more. I held back my tears and tightened my grip was well, enjoying the moment with him. Another whistle blew loudly in the air and we finally pulled away from each other. Louis looked me in the eyes and he tried to put on a smile.
"Let's head to the square. The quicker we get there, the quicker we can leave."
The beginning of the reaping is always the same. Everyone stands in line and gets their fingers pricked, so the Capital knows if everyone is there. The reaping in mandatory, especially if you're between twelve and eighteen, so naturally all those children's parents are going to attend anyway. But the whole district must attend, too, which I never truly understood. The reaping is always the worst day of the year in District 12. The looks on everyone's faces always threatens my sanity.
After I've been through the queue to be signed in, I make my way to the center of the square. A huge stage has been set up in front of us, where I see Effie Trinket, along with a few other people from the Capital. Effie looks as strange as always, wearing a bright orange wig and a purple dress suit. I roll my eyes and look to my left, scanning the crowd for my parents. When I finally see them, I catch them already staring back at me. I give them a small smile and a wave and my mother waves back. I can tell from here she has tears in her eyes.
"I'll be fine," I mouth to her, trying to give her a bigger smile than before. She understands me but looks away from me, because Effie is now standing at the tall microphone.
"Welcome, welcome! Happy Hunger Games!" she practically yells. Her excitement is sickening. She keeps talking to us but I've stopped listening and started scanning the boys side for Louis. When I finally see him, I don't look away and I hope he'll feel me staring and look at me. The same film starts to play that they show every single year, where the history of the Hunger Games is explained to everyone as if we didn't already know. Louis finally turns around and meets my gaze. He rolls his eyes comically and I hold back my laugh. He smiles at me and then turns back to face the stage. Effie is back at the microphone.
"Well," she said, "ladies first!"
My heartbeat picks up rapidly and I feel my palms start to sweat. The tension is so high and every girl close to me has started to hold their breath. Effie sticks her well manicured hand into the giant class orb and shifts around for what seems like hours before she finally pulls out a slip of paper. She struts back to the microphone, unfolds the paper and reads the name quite clearly. It isn't until I feel the entire square staring at me and hear Louis screaming my name before I realize that the name she read was mine.
"Kyla Guthrie."
