My best friend's name is Gale Vick Hawthorne. He's the same age as me. He's also in the same grade and class. We do mostly everything together. Sometimes, he'll bake with me, even though I know he doesn't really like it that much. In turn, I'll go out hunting with him. He enjoys that a lot. It's funny, we don't have much in common, but we get on well. He lives across town, but it's not a very far walk. His father works as a coal seller. He makes a lot of money off that, I suppose. Our house is much more grand though. It's sort of set aside from the rest of the town, actually. There are twelve houses in the fenced in area where we live, but only three ever look like they've been lived in. Only us and Uncle Hamernathy live there though. There are lots of houses in towns though, smaller ones, but nice. There are shacks at the brim of town that look like people used to live in. People don't anymore. Sometimes, people will put there animals there, with some straw or hay. The older kids at school will go there sometimes, at night. They say it's spooky, that it's haunted. I'm honestly a bit scared of it. Gale wants to go over there sometimes, but his father, Rory, won't let him. And he can't sneak out because his older sister, Hazelle Posy will rat him out. She always likes to get us into trouble, but I know that she must go out there sometimes, to do what the older kids do out there.
Gale walks to my house each morning, so we can walk to school together. Mostly I'm late, but he waits. It's nice. Today is a beautiful spring day. I like school, but today I am especially anxious to get to school. We're going to be starting The Hunger Games Unit today. It's a very big thing. We'll sit all day in the auditorium for the next week, watching a documentary on The Games. Then for the next three weeks, people from the Capitol will come in and talk to us about it, and we'll discuss it and write things on it. It's very special. The Capitol people do a cycle of all of the 14 places. We get our Unit in the Spring, but other districts will get theirs at another time. It's always a very exciting day, even for those not learning about it. We get to go in first to the school, no one shoves or pushes you, and sit in the auditorium for all day. That's very special. We also get to go home an hour early.
Gale is waiting outside for me and I am just putting on my sweater. Daddy and Mommy look sleepy. They have bags under their eyes. I don't think they had a lot of sleep last night. They both look worried. I don't know why though. I'm slipping on my shoes, anxious to get to school when Mom and Dad both hug me, very tightly.
"Mom! Dad! Are you okay?" They really don't look okay. I hope they're not coming down with a sickness. That would be bad.
Dad manages a half smile. "Yes, we're okay. It's okay. Have a good day today,"
Mom's face has just gotten worse. Suddenly, she stoops down so she's looking into my eyes. Her eyes are very sad. I hope things are okay. "Ambreezia Cae," she starts, and I really am afraid something is wrong if she's calling me by Ambreezia Cae, everyone just calls me Cae, it's so much easier. "I just want you to remember, I want you to remember, that whatever you see, it's not always how it looks. Mommy and Daddy love you." More tears start to pool in her eyes. I nod my head. Mom gives me a last hug and I go out the door.
Gale waits at the edge of the fence. He doesn't like going in the area, I don't know why though.
"What took so long, Ambreezy?" he says, leaning against the fence, smiling, using his special nickname for me.
"Oh, I just think that Mom and Dad are a bit worried about The Unit," I say. Most parents I hear get a little worried, but everyone seems fine by the end of the month, when it's over. Sometimes the kids walk around a bit zombie like after the first week in the auditorium, but then they shake it off and tell us they were playing with us, it's not scary at all. I think this means I should be prepared to be scared just a little. I'm only a teensy bit anyway, I'm more interested.
"My mom and dad too," Gale says.
Perfectly normal.
"Yeah, it always does freak them out," I say as we start to walk. "I hope we get good seats." The teachers assign us seats, because they don't want us to talk too much during the presentation. The best seats, I hear, are in the middle row, middle seat. But I also hear only the teachers pets get them, really. I'm not much of one. Gale is though.
"Hopefully we will," Gale says, smiling.
"You will," I say, "But I'm not much good with the teachers. They all love you though. You're sure to get one of the choosiest spots. They'll probably but me in the back somewhere."
Gale nudges me playfully. "Oh don't be silly, you're not the worst student."
I roll my eyes at him. "You're right, but I'm not the best either. They put the bad kids in the front so the teachers can keep an eye on them and the best kids in the middle. But the okay kids, like me, get the back rows. I hear it's an awful view."
"It won't matter, you'll probably get a decent seat. You do in class most of the time."
"True," I say. We are nearing the school now. Normally we would go to the front, but today we go round to the back, where the special auditorium is.
The Unit begins now.