Xzavier Thomas POV
My life is a District One soap opera. I never knew my parents, since my mother ditched me on a doorstep when she got Reaped. She ended up winning, so it was probably Acee Hal, but I haven't looked into it. She wants me, she can come get me. The doctors at the hospital where she left me named me Xzavier, and I took Dr. Thomas' last name, since he was always nice. Then he kicked it and I ended up on the streets. I wander around scrounging a living and occasionally hanging out with Gio, one of our few underground trainers. He lets me train since he thinks I might have a chance if I get Reaped, and he wants to see someone he trained win the Games. The Reaping was in a few hours, and I might have volunteered if it wasn't the Quarter Quell and all.
I took my place at the edge of a row and watched Snapdragon fish around in the girls' bowl.
"Celeste Ligon!" she called.
A girl about the size of a breadbox walked onstage. She looked about twelve years old.
What the heck, Three? You voted for that? That's just low, I thought. The poor girl was crying and trying to hold Snapdragon's hand.
Snapdragon picked out the boys' slip.
"Xzavier Thomas!"
Okay, what the serious heck, Three? Nobody even knows about me. What, did Gio forge a ton of votes for me?
I stood by Celeste and stared stonily at the audience. Life never did anything for me anyway. Might as well get a little revenge. I might not win, but I was ready to take a few Tributes with me. I might even sniff around the Capitol a little and sneak a peek at my mother.
The door to my holding cell opened, and Gio came in.
"Hey, Gio!" I greeted him.
"What happened? How'd you get roped into this? Nobody even knows your name," Gio said.
"I know, right? Might as well go with it. I learned from the best," I said.
"You flatter me," Gio said with a hand over his heart. "Here, don't forget about me when you win." He gave me a necklace with a ninja star on it.
"Sorry it's so dull. Wouldn't want them to take it," he said. I slipped it over my head. It matched the tattoo on my arm.
"Thanks, Gio," I said. "At least someone cares. I'll bring it back to you as soon as I can."
Celeste POV
ERROR
What do I do what do I do? I thought in a panic. I might be all right with numbers. I might be good with the Periodic table. But computers… why did I have to live in Three?
I tapped random buttons and hoped something would work. The computer started squawking, and Cirque came over to look.
"Can you please help me?" I squeaked. Cirque peered at the screen and tapped a few buttons.
"It was just a firewall error. Here, I'll take care of that."
"Thanks, Cirque," I said. "We could hang out sometime if you want to."
Cirque fiddled with her shirt. "Uh, thanks, Celeste, but I'm pretty busy." She walked away quickly.
I watched her go. Nobody ever wanted to hang out with me. Usually I was too shy to ask, and when I did, they always had a polite excuse. Maybe it was because I was so stupid with technology, or maybe it was because I was clumsy. Whenever I found a friend, I did my best to keep them, but they always drifted away after a while.
"Time to go!" Miss Othmar called. My classmates and I filed out of school and down to the Reaping Center. The last two Reapings I was shaking like a leaf, but I wasn't really worried this time. Everyone probably voted for some smart eighteen-year-old who might actually win. Nobody would vote for dumb old me.
I waited eagerly for Snapdragon to take the stage. She always had the best outfits. She didn't disappoint. She had on a white dress with a huge skirt covered in blinking lights. She looked like a traffic sign. She reached into the girls' bowl.
"Celeste Ligon!" she said.
I froze. Me? I'm only fourteen. I can't even fix a circuit. Who would you send me? I seemed to float to the stage, crying softly the whole way. I reached for Snapdragon's hand, but she didn't notice. She called something, and a boy joined me. I tried to take his hand too, but he ignored me. I found myself sitting backstage, and my parents came in. They were holding each other and crying.
"I love you," my mother said. My father hugged me like he could hold me so hard the Games would stop. He tried to say something, but it seemed like his voice wouldn't work. My mother pressed something into my hands just before they left. After they were gone, I remembered it and looked down.
It was a model circuit board. My favorite.
