As soon as Joey was in his room, the door closed and locked behind him, he undressed and crawled into his bed. The clean-smelling sheets wrapped around him like a hug. He threw all the pillows onto the floor and made a sort of nest using only the blankets, then stared up at the blank ceiling, feeling slightly nauseous.
I'm going to be in the Hunger Games, he told himself. So is Arielle Goldman. I'll never see my mother ever again. Even if I win – which I won't – I still won't see her, because she's fucking dead. I'm going to the Capitol. To die. I hope it doesn't hurt too much. But it doesn't matter much, because I'll get to see my father again, and my sister. And my mother, of course. Mom will be OK in heaven (if that is where I am to go), because she'll be with Dad, and Dad will make her OK. Dad will make her sane. Dad always loved Mom so much … and me … and Grace …
He kept on thinking until his eyes got droopy. His breathing got slower, along with his heartbeat, and the very last coherent thing that ran through his mind before losing consciousness was, I can't wait to die.
"Joey!" yelled a vaguely-familiar male voice, banging on the door. "Joey, get dressed, the Reapings' are going to be on TV any minute now!"
Without giving it much thought, Joey jumped out of bed, to the walk-in closet, and got dressed in a dazed rush. A loose white shirt and jeans. He didn't even touch his hair (which usually got extremely messy after a night's rest) before flinging his door open. Caldwell was stood there, and right away he grabbed Joey by the shoulder and ushered him down the hallway and into a different room.
Aurora and Arielle were already there, seated as far apart from each other as possible on the couch. Caldwell sat in the reclining chair, and Joey decided that it'd be best if he just stood behind the couch.
"—we have all the Tributes from each District on their ways to the Capitol as I speak," said a young man on the TV screen with slick blue hair and a hooked nose. "I can tell from the teenagers who were Reaped that this is definitely going to be a good first Game!"
The screen faded to black, then jumped back into colour, showing a map of Panem. It zoomed into District 1, showing their Reaping. Denise Donovan, 18. Joe Walker, 18.
The screen switched to District 2. Jaime Lyn Beatty, 16. Jeff Blim, 18.
District 3. Ali Gordon, 15. Corey Lubowich, 16.
District 4. Julia Albain, 16. Brian Holden, 17.
District 5. Meredith Stepien, 16. Dylan Saunders, 18.
District 6. Tessa Netting, 15. Joe Moses, 16.
Joey's sighed quietly when it zoomed in on District 7. Arielle Goldman, 14. Joey Richter, 17.
District 8. June Saito, 15. Tyler Brunsman, 15.
District 9. Devin Lytle, 16. Nico Ager, 14.
District 10. Lily Marks, 15. Darren Criss, 16.
District 11. Britney Coleman, 18. Brian Rosenthal, 17.
The screen skipped right over District 12, which Joey knew was an absolute mess. The Capitol had destroyed it because that's where Katniss Everdeen-Mellark was from. Joey was unsure what the Capitol were doing to 12 now – whether they were trying to rebuild it, or just leaving it as a sort of warning to anyone else who should try and start a rebellion.
Instead it zoomed in on District 13. Lauren Lopez, 15. Nick Lang, 16.
"Doesn't that look like a great group?" said the blue-haired man, once he was back on screen. "I'm kind of excited, sorry to say. I wish all the Tributes the best of luck, and I will be seeing you all s—"
An off-screen voice interrupted, "Who d'you think is going to win?"
The man paused, caught off-guard, then smiled and slicked back his hair with his hand.
"Well, I can't make an accurate guess right now," he said slyly. "I will tell you all who I think's going to win after I see them train. Have a good day, everyone. Wayne Flickerman, signing off."
The TV shut off. Joey continued to stare at it in complete horror – he can't do that, can he? He can't tell the audience who he thinks is going to win. That's against the rules, it has to be. The sponsors will only want whoever he chooses. He looked round at Aurora and Caldwell, but neither seemed too shocked.
"I think breakfast is about ready," said Aurora, standing up suddenly. She ushered Joey and Arielle out of the room and into the dining room where they had eaten dinner last night. All of the chairs were empty and the nametags were gone. Aurora sat down at the same place as yesterday, though, so Joey did too.
Caldwell sat beside Joey, too. He and Aurora started piling their plates with bacon, eggs, waffles and pancakes, but neither Joey nor Arielle touched anything.
"Come on, you two, you've got to eat and g—" started Aurora, but Caldwell put up his hand and she stopped, looking disgruntled.
"Let them be." said Caldwell simply, biting a piece of bacon.
When Caldwell had finished eating, he told Aurora to bugger off and brought Joey and Arielle into the TV room. He sat on the recliner and they sat on the couch. He stared at them for a long time, making Joey feel very self-conscious.
"The Hunger Games are scary," Caldwell said eventually, "but so is everything else in this world, isn't it? You were terrified on your first day of school, right?"
"But we weren't in danger of dying at school!" Joey said loudly, and without thinking.
Caldwell shrugged with one shoulder and sighed. "You're right," he said. "I don't know how to be a mentor."
"Be honest with us," said Arielle. Joey looked over at her. He'd never heard her speak before. "How did you win?"
"I didn't, remember?" said Caldwell. "I just got randomly chosen to mentor, maybe because my grandfather was in the Games, I don't know …" He exhaled heavily. "The Hunger Games is scary, right? Like Joey said – you're constantly in danger of dying. But you've got to get over it. Don't live in fear. If you train, you can win."
Arielle shuddered and raised her hand as if they were in school. Caldwell nodded at her. "Do you – do you think me and Joey should be allies?" she asked nervously.
"That's your choice. Oh, hey, look – we're almost there!"
Joey stood up and walked over to the window. They were going so fast everything was a blur. They definitely weren't in District 7 though; all the forest was gone, replaced by cement buildings. They slowed down and Joey moved aside so Arielle could see too. There was weird Capitol people outside, waving and screaming at them. Arielle walked back over to the couch. Joey smiled slightly at the Capitol people.
The train stopped and they hopped off on to the paved streets of the Capitol along with Caldwell, Aurora, and a few others. Peacekeepers pushed people out of the way and brought Joey and Arielle into an extremely tall building.
The elevator zoomed upwards so fast Joey's ears popped. When it stopped, he tumbled forward and would have smacked his head on the unopened door if Caldwell hadn't grabbed the back of his shirt.
"Have you been drinking?" he mumbled in Joey's ear. Keeth snorted. Blushing slightly, Joey shook his head.
"Follow me," said Aurora, when the elevator finally opened. Joey, Arielle, Caldwell, Keeth, Odyssey, Phavia, Arny, Fronk and Giovanna all followed her around the place. Joey didn't pay attention until she said his name.
"This is Joey's room," she said, motioning toward a door. "And right here, right across from it is Arielle's."
"I'm really tired," Arielle said.
"Me too," Joey said quickly.
Aurora frowned. "Oh, all right," he mumbled disappointedly. "Go have a nap, both of you. I'll come and get you once dinner's ready." She turned around and began walking again, and, sighing, the others followed.
Except for Caldwell, who leant down in front of Joey and Arielle, and whispered, "No funny business. Stay out of each other's rooms."
"Of course," said Joey honestly, then Caldwell turned and followed Aurora.
"Jerk," Arielle mumbled once Caldwell was out of earshot. Joey turned to her, utterly surprised.
"What'd you just say?" he asked.
Arielle looked a little uncomfortable. "Not you," she said, fumbling with her hands. "Caldwell. I don't like him."
"Why?"
"Because."
"That's not a reas—"
"Lay off it, Joey," Arielle snapped, then went into her room, closing the door on Joey's face. He stood there for a minute, frozen in shock, then began laughing and went into his room, shutting the door quietly.
Joey hadn't realised he'd fallen asleep until he was awoken up by Aurora shaking his shoulder.
"Joey," she whispered, "Joey, wake up. It's almost dinnertime. You've got to get ready."
He sat up groggily and yawned. "Get ready?"
Smiling evilly, Aurora motioned toward the bathroom. "Your dinner clothes are waiting for you in there," she said, then stood up and left the room. Joey cursed quietly, then got up and went into the bathroom, where a horrendously fancy suit was waiting for him. He sighed and stepped in the shower; this one was even harder to figure out, but it did most of the work for him. Eventually, when the shower thought he was clean enough, the water turned off and he stepped out, shivering.
He put on the suit, groaned at his appearance in the mirror, then walked out into the hallway where Aurora was waiting. Beside her stood Arielle, in a purposely tight-fitting white dress, but Joey barely even glanced at her. He was a little angry at her, to be honest, though of course he'd never let it show. He followed Aurora to the dining room, ate everything that looked even slightly appetizing, spoke his stylist, Arny, and then excused himself to his bedroom.
"Get a good sleep, kid," Caldwell called as Joey was walking away.
It was as though Caldwell jinxed him. Joey undressed into just his underpants, then crawled in the soft, sweet-smelling sheets, and waited for sleep. The room was incredibly dark, though it felt odd, because he was used to the gentle breathing of his mother. He sighed. None of this had bothered him the night before; he'd slept as easily and as soundly as a cat. But now …
Eventually, sleep came. It felt like a very short time before there was a knocking on his door, and Caldwell was throwing clothes at him, demanding that he get dressed quickly because they were already running late. Joey did as told, putting on the T-shirt and jeans that Caldwell had given him, then following Caldwell to the dining area. Aurora and Arielle were already there, and began eating as soon as Joey and Caldwell were seated.
Once they were finished, Aurora ushered Joey and Arielle down hallways and into the elevator, to a place apparently called the Remake Centre. Arielle went with Keeth whereas Joey was whisked away by Arny, to a pure white room where Fronk and Giovanna were waiting.
Joey didn't argue when he was told to undress, and bit his tongue while they plucked and waxed his bodily hair. It was strange, and quite painful, and he wondered vaguely how much pain Arielle and all the other girls had to go through, if this is what the boys had to go through. While Fronk was busy with Joey's eyebrows, Giovanna began applying a goopy blue cream onto Joey's hands.
"What's that for?" said Joey to Giovanna, without giving it much thought. He was unsure whether or not he was allowed to speak.
"Your hands," said Giovanna, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "They're rough and dry."
"Sorry," Joey muttered.
Fronk chuckled under his breath, and said, "Tough guys have calloused hands, Gio."
Giovanna rolled her eyes.
After another ten or so minutes, Fronk and Giovanna stepped back. They both gave Joey a thumbs up before walking out of the room, leaving Joey standing alone wearing only a white robe. He waited patiently, slightly confused, until Arny entered, her hand on her chin. She didn't speak, but just circled Joey slowly, thinking hard.
"Lumber," she murmured, more to herself than to Joey. "Forests. Trees. Paper." She looked at him. "Right?"
"I – uh –"
"Right!" Arny answered her own question, before snapping her long fingers. Fronk and Giovanna came bustling back in holding a sort of creamy-coloured suit between them. They handed it to Arny, who motioned for Joey to drop the robe. He did so, blushing ever so slightly.
He was dressed in the suit, which, Joey realised, looked to be made of papier-mâché. It certainly didn't feel that way, but that's how it looked, and Joey thought it was much cooler than dressing up like a tree, which, according to the book Joey had read, is what Tributes from District 7 did in previous years. Arny, Fronk and Giovanna all admired their work, though Arny didn't seem completely satisfied.
"Hair," she stated.
"Yes, I was just thinking that!" said Giovanna excitedly.
"No!" said Joey, backing away when Arny came forward. "I mean – uh – please, ma'am, please don't cut my hair."
Arny frowned. She opened her mouth, but Giovanna interrupted.
"Oh, come on, boy, you'll love it!"
"Please," Joey repeated, his hands up in surrender.
"Are you sure, Joey?" said Arny, raising a perfectly-plucked eyebrow.
"Oh, Arny," Giovanna rolled her eyes once more. "Don't tell me you're going soft! You're allowed to do whatever you wish to the boy, no matter how hard he cries!"
"I do not wish to upset him –"
Fronk cut in, "He asked you nicely, Arn. Don't torture the kid. Leave his hair the length it is, and just style it up nicely."
"You've both gone soft!" Giovanna spluttered.
"Fronk is right," said Arny, nodding at the tall man, before grabbing a small jar of what looked to be clear jelly. He grabbed a handful, squeezed it so it oozed through her fingers, then nodded for Joey to take a seat. He did, and cringed heavily as Arny began applying whatever it was into his hair.
A/N: Hey, so, I know Tessa Netting isn't really a StarKid, but whatever. Review if you'd like!
