A/N: Here it is, the first real chapter of "If I Die Before I Wake!" Thanks to everyone who submitted, and now you can see two of the characters come to life! By the way, I'm sorry Jace's section is so short. His interview will definitely make up for it!


District 1 reapings: Desiree Gem

The first thing that I see when I wake up is my algebra textbook, right where I left it last night: on the floor. Unfortunately, I see it too late, and since I'm already getting out of bed, I end up toppling forward and smacking my head on my bedside table. This means that the first thing I feel is a throbbing ache in my skull.

Perfect.

I stomp down the stairs, not caring that everyone else is still asleep. They'd better get up soon, though, or they'll miss the Reaping. As a family of Victors, that's one thing that we definitely can't afford to do.

As I'm waiting for the toast to pop out of the toaster, Saul appears, no doubt awakened by the racket I've made. Tousle-haired and groggy, he blinks at me in sleepy confusion.

"It's Friday, right?" he asks.

"Duh. And yesterday was Thursday. Tomorrow will be Saturday. Just like every week." My brother can be so dumb.

"So there won't be any training tonight," he concludes, crestfallen. Since he turned ten, he's been hanging out in the Training Stations whenever he can. I usually couldn't care less about what he does or where he goes, but I have to admit that it's a little gratifying to see him following my example.

It's not long before everyone's in the kitchen. My parents are wide-awake, just as I wish I weren't, and their tense expressions remind me that today's the Reaping. My heart beats faster with excitement. I've been waiting for this day for months—how could I have forgotten? The honor, the privilege, everything!

"Reaping day," I hum as I put my dirty dishes in the sink.

"Desiree." My mother's voice is harsher than I've heard it in a while; usually she only sounds like this when I've gotten in trouble. "It's not something to celebrate."

I turn back around. The looks on my mother and father's faces are difficult to read. "I know that," I lie. As I head back upstairs, I wink at Saul. We both know that our parents are too old-fashioned.

Since District 1 has the earliest Reapings out of all twelve, I have to hurry. I've picked out a red dress, tiny little thing, especially for today. Despite knowing that I should be quick, it takes me a half hour to get ready. By the time my makeup is perfect and my hair is smoothed down the right way, it's eight-fifteen.

My family is waiting for me at the foot of the stairs, not bothering to hide their impatience. Saul glares at me and tells me that I've made us all late. I don't even bother to respond.

In the streets, we join the flood of people heading for the square.

"Hey! Desiree!"

I turn to see my friend Umbra waving me over. She's standing arm in arm with Vivi, her twin sister. Both of them have white-blonde hair, but that's about where the similarities end. Umbra is stockier and quite a bit more talkative, wearing enough makeup to paint a house. She's more like me, I guess, in that she's been known to throw punches when she doesn't like what's going on. Vivi, on the other hand, is rail-thin, with dark brown eyes that stand out in her startlingly pale face. She doesn't really talk much, except to answer questions in class: she loves to learn above all else.

That includes learning about how to rip out an opponent's throat, of course.

When we get to the square, filing into the fourteen-year-olds' pen, we don't even get a chance to talk before Mayor Tate begins his annual speech about what an honor this is. I've practically got it memorized by now, so I hold a whispered conversation with my friends instead.

"Magnus is holding a party tonight," hisses Umbra, naming her older brother. "He's invited half the boys in his grade. Are you coming?"

"Well, duh," I say, rolling my eyes.

"Provided none of us get reaped," Vivi reminds us.

"Oh, yeah. About that," I begin, suddenly a little embarrassed.

"What?"

"I've been kind of… thinking… about volunteering."

Umbra snorts loudly enough that the escort glares at her. "Really, Desiree? Like you'd stand a chance. We're only fourteen; wait a few years."

"I don't want to wait. Who are you and what have you done with my friend? I thought you'd be arguing with me, saying that you want to volunteer!"

"I just don't want to get myself killed." Umbra's voice is tartly snappish. The mayor finishes the Treaty of Treason and starts in on his personal comments.

"I'm the fastest and the strongest in our age group," I say. "And I've made up my mind."

We all turn to the stage as the escort, a man with purple hair and a face tattooed with stripes named Lenno, moves over to the girls' reaping ball. Reaching in, he pulls out a slip and reads the name. "Ruby Karat."

I bounce on the balls of my feet as Ruby, blonde curls bouncing infuriatingly, takes her own sweet time climbing the stairs. She shakes Lenno's hand.

"Any volunteers?" Lenno asks.

My hand shoots up in the air, but Umbra beats me to it. As we try to stare each other down, Vivi bites her lip uncomfortably. When Umbra starts to go toward the stage, I know I have to speak up.

"I want to be the tribute," I demand loudly. Everyone stares and I feel my face growing warm. "Well, I do," I say.

"What's this?" says Lenno, eyebrows raised. "You're the Gem girl, right? The daughter of the Victors?" I nod. "Well then, by all means, come on up!" I jog forward and take my place, grinning smugly. This is going to be so much fun.


District 1 Reapings: Jace Avery

It's nearly eight thirty-five when my alarm clock goes off. It's really a challenge to throw on blue jeans and a white polo before my dad is yelling up the stairs for me to get down there now!

I don't even have time for breakfast. Just an apple and a quick glass of water and we're out the door. Reaping day is always a rush; usually our family is much more relaxed.

"It would help, Jace, if you got up earlier," says my mother, when I complain.

"It's not my fault that we're the first District!"

"That's completely beside the point," says my father, checking his watch and pulling me towards the square. "Hurry up."

We take our places. My parents, as Peacekeepers, stand around the outside of the crowds, and I duck under the rope for the fourteen-year-olds just as Mayor Tate finishes his speech. I'm still half-asleep, but I notice an argument going on between two girls who both try to volunteer. It's Desiree Gem, the most annoying girl in our grade—though not bad looking—who eventually stands beside Lenno.

"Arcturus Flan," says our escort, reading off a slip of paper. The kid, a thirteen-year-old with a shock of black hair and green eyes that peer out from behind his round glasses, lopes onto the stage. Desiree eyes him distastefully. "Volunteers?" Lenno asks.

On a whim, for no reason other than that I'm having a very bad, awkward morning, I raise my hand. At Lenno's encouraging nod, I move up, but my foot catches on the last step and I sprawl forward, clumsily catching myself a second before I would have fallen flat on my face. I hear snickers.

"And your name is…?" Lenno asks, seeming a little embarrassed for me.

"Jace Avery," I tell him, blushing, and he claps me on the back.

"Tributes, shake hands."

Desiree's eyes flash and, in a completely different manner than her usual I'm-going-to-kill-you attitude, she shakes my hand with a flirtatious wink. I'm confused. She cocks her head prettily, in a disconcerting way.

"You're so dead," she spits out under her breath, smiling cheerily.

At that moment, I completely agree.