Disclaimer: I don't own the hunger games! If I did, it wouldn't be so good, but at least Finnick would've survived.
~I slightly edited this, it's still not 10/10 sorry~
"I swear I saw a different person up there" Theo comments when I walk past him.
"My acting worked, yay!" I say cheerfully turning to him before rolling my eyes and turning back around to sit down. So I could watch the rest of the interviews.
Roland chuckles and gets ready to go on the stage.
"Let's bring out, the male tribute of district 10, Roland Friedgo!"
Roland moved on the stage. He really was into character, you could tell he was embarrassed by the way he held himself. He was walking, slowly and carefully to chairs and he looked like he was avoiding the looks of everyone in the audience.
"Roland! How are we?" Caesar says with gentleness in his voice obviously noticing Roland's nervousness.
"I- um" Roland starts and looked between the audience and Caesar. "Okay" he finishes
Caesar smiles "someone's a bit nervous, anything we can do to make you confident?"
"Umm" Roland fiddled with his hands and looks down and looks to the side where the tributes are, and where I am myself.
We look gazes. Oh, this type of friendship would be very loved by the Capitol.
I see the camera's find me, knowing where he's looking.
I smile. I'll play my part. I give him thumbs up, like I'm saying, he's doing alright.
He brightens up, "no, I'm fine." He quietly says but it's heard by everyone.
You can hear the aw's from the crowd.
Caesar smiles, looking at me then turning back to Roland with a very large smile
"I'll just get on with the questions, shall I?" Caesar asks.
Roland's softly smiles. Showing off, how cute he actually is. Even though he's seventeen, he looks adorable.
I couldn't help admiring him for it.
The Capitol love it, because all throughout his interview, they were silent and had the occasional sighs and aww's. They all thought the same.
The district 10's male tribute is adorable and they couldn't help but love his cuteness.
I couldn't stop smiling the whole interview. I could also see Aurora smirking. We both knew the usually quiet and smart Roland who is too much of a strong person to really be shy and innocent.
Once he came down from the stage, he walked straight over to me and sat down. I give him a smile and nudge him.
"You looked so adorable up there" I say with a teasing grin
"Shut up" Roland commands, he was really embarrassed now.
"No really" I say seriously.
He looks at me "well, thank you then. You aspired me"
I laugh "I didn't do much"
He rolled his eyes "well, you did encourage me on the stage"
"What was I supposed to do, not?"
He shrugs with a smile.
By the end;
Georgia had charmed the Capitol from her generous 'asking the crowd questions' interview.
August had been serious and business like the whole time. He didn't stray anywhere from his normal personality.
He had revealed that, we may or may not have formed an alliance.
When, Niobe came on. She looked scared and she unfortunately made the crowd bored.
Me, Roland, Georgia and August sighed but smiled encouragingly anyway.
She was part of our alliance and I liked her. She was nice.
Fortunately for the Capitol, Theo had made them all excited again.
Like August, he didn't stray from his personality.
He also said that they'll have to decide if they think, there is an alliance going on in the the outer districts.
The show finished after his interview.
We all swore to each other that we will meet in the arena before we separated.
The arena. It starts tomorrow.
I could die in the next week. I might even die tomorrow.
I turn silent when we reach our apartment in the building.
I did say thanks to Baxtin and Aurora's praise, but the rest of the time, I was thinking.
It's all crashing down on me now. The hunger games and what will happen if I go in there.
I might not even survive and see my family again. I'll never see my Sister and Brother again. I'll never see their faces that look so like mine and I'll never see my father. The father that took care of me and my siblings after mother had died, the father who taught me how to butcher, the father that tucked me in at night and read me a story to sleep.
I might never see them again.
I can feel my heart clench and sadden through dinner because of these thoughts.
I try to be happy but the thoughts keep on coming back.
I'll never see Tyler and Mollie again. I'll never smell their warm and welcoming smell of their home again. I won't ever feel the comfort and safety of our small conversations in the stables. I'll never go horse racing with Tyler again and feel the glory of always winning against him. I won't even have tickle fights with him in the hay stacks again. I might not even having the normal girl talks between Mollie and me. I could never see her smile again and I might never read a book to her again.
I'm going to miss them a lot.
I'm also going to miss Katniss.
The comfort from her always helps me in these situations.
But I'm too far away from her now. She's not a house away from me anymore. I can't just walk to the stables and sleep with her.
Not anymore.
I'm laying in bed now.
Roland and Aurora had been concerned for me earlier but I denied them.
We had even watched the interviews recap. I did look bubbly and clumsy. I almost brightened up by that but I remembered why I acted and I instantly had those thoughts again.
I really need air.
I decide and I get up from my bed.
I walked out of my room and tiptoed to the elevator. I know it should have a button to some place that accesses to some fresh air.
I scan the buttons and stop on the button that said 'Rooftop'. Since it's here, I'm guessing, we're able to go to it.
I sigh happily when I press the button and it goes up. I'll get fresh air for the first time since I got here, and hopefully it will help me stop having these thoughts.
Once the door opens I step outside, breathing deeply.
I think of the air out in district 10, the smell of hay and the smell of cattle manure. Despite how the smell would be to people who didn't live in my district, I like it. It's home and It's where I have lived my whole life.
Here in the Capitol, it's free from all those smells, but it's not calming as I hoped.
It's better than inside at least.
I walk forward, going for the edge. Not to jump, obviously. Just to sit on.
"If your going to jump, don't bother" says an awfully familiar voice.
I turn startled by my company.
I recognise him immediately, after seeing him on the screen all of last year and being the one to kill my districts tribute last year. It was hard to forget him.
Even his good looks and green marvellous eyes, makes it hard to forget him.
But to me, it was mainly the fact he won last year.
"I'm not going to" I say, still surprised that Finnick Odair is sitting down a little away, on the edge.
"Well if you did, it won't work" he says, looking away and picking up a small pile of rumble.
He gave me a look that said 'watch this' while I stood there, a little confused at what he meant.
He throws the rumble over the edge. My eyes widen when it comes back to him after it travelled a little down.
He had moved out of the way for it when it came past.
"Oh" I say simply.
He scans me for a moment before he says "What are you doing up here, if you're not going to jump?" He says curiously.
He looked sad at the same time.
I shrug and sit down on the edge, beside him.
"I needed fresh air, you?'
Finnick sighs "same"
We sat in silence. It was surprisingly calm. Despite the Capitol's cheers in the distance, that I had just noticed.
How can they be so excited? It's just a game.
I refuse to growl at them. My anger from the reaping is coming back.
I can't wait till this is all over... But what happens after the games. What don't they show on television. The madness and the real sadness of some victors is never shown, but that's all I know about what really happens after the games.
I turn to Finnick, he might have the answer. "is it bad after the games?"
Finnick peers at me for a second, despite we both being the same age. He seemed so much older than me.
He looked like he was deciding if he should tell me the truth or not.
He then looks back at me, looked like he decided to tell me the truth. Even if he didn't, I would think the opposite is really what happens.
"It is"
How bad? Does something bad happen to my family? The thoughts from earlier came back to my mind.
A tear fell from my eye. I'm finally talking about it, about my worries and depressed thoughts. I'm finally crying.
"If I win, will I still have family...?" I told more to myself than to Finnick but he replied
"Yes"
"What's so bad about it, then?" I ask, hoping that he didn't have an answer.
"You are basically the Capitol's property when you win and can't do anything about without destroying your loved ones" he said gloomily.
I stare at him. Did he mean that we aren't our own or something else?
An flashback of yesterday's lunch came to my mind.
...but he's only fifteen, no way would he have been made to do that yet.
He saw the look on my face, he looked almost surprised that I know.
"I should go" I say my voice cracking, now that I knew. I could be a prostitute if I win and even if reject them, they'll do something to my family. The image of Dandelion, Jude and My father dead comes to my mind. I start to move off the edge and toward the elevator.
Maybe getting fresh air, wasn't a good idea.
"Hey!" He took my wrist.
"What?" I mutter, tears flowing down my cheeks. He studied my face, his eyes looked pained but determined.
"If you win." He says, slowly and clearly.
"Treasure your family" he says and let's go of my wrist, watching me for my response.
I bring my wrist to my chest and stare at him confused.
Huh?
"Okay" I slowly say, once again looking at his eyes. They didn't show anything now. He was expressionless, but I don't question him.
I step back and I hurry away from Finnick, going down the elevator.
Treasure your family.
Treasure your family. Thats what he said. What does he mean?
Of course I'll treasure my family, I always do but I could tell there was more to it. His eyes were too serious not to be.
I rack my brain for an answer.
After I arrive back at district 10's apartment and back into my room.I couldn't figure it out. I must be too tired to really think into it... but, what could he have done that he would have to give me that advice.
I did end up finding sleep.
But even my dreams didn't keep away my worries.
I didn't see Roland that morning.
Aldar had come for me before I could.
We were going to the arena already.
We had gone to the roof, i looked at the spot where I official Finnick before I got frozen from a ladder and pulled up to a hovercraft.
A tracker gets inserted into my forearm before I get released and once, Aldar is pulled up. I'm finally guided to a room with food.
It's about forty-five minutes before the hovercraft landed and we were once again guided to another place. The launch room.
The stock yard to districts and I can't help but agree. This is the place where we go before we get slaughtered.
Once I finish getting cleaned and the clothes come.
I can't help but wonder what the arena is.
The clothes are so normal, you would think we're just at home.
It's just a dark grey shirt, tracksuit pants and obviously comfy sneakers.
There's no jacket with it, though.
Aldar doesn't have any clue why.
I sigh. I hope it's not a desert.
Then I wait with Aldar.
"I'm going to miss you" he says "your the first tribute to actually talk to us like normal people"
I look at him, sadly. He's making want to promise him, I'll win.
I don't want to get his hopes up.
As soon as I found out how terrible it could be after the games.
I've been less eager to win the games.
But there's one thing Finnick taught me with that sentence last night and my dreams in the end.
My family will still be there afterwards and like Tyler and Mollie said on the reaping day.
They won't ever be the same.
It doesn't matter if I'm different after these games.
My family matters.
I will win for them.
I will try for them.
I nod and smile sadly at Aldar "ill miss you guys as well"
"Your our little Lexi" he says with a gentle smile
Then a formal voice announces its time to launch. I resist to hiss at the voice, I don't want to go in there, but if I want to escape everything, I'll have too.
I take a deep breath.
It's time.
"Bye" I say to Aldar who waved back with a frown before I headed over to the circular tube.
Once I'm in and ready, the pad lifts me up. I lift up my chin to see if can have a glimpse of the arena but I'm met with darkness.
But then light pores all around me and I'm greeted by fresh air but there's no familiar smell of grass and trees. If there is grass and trees its further away from the middle of the arena. The only thing I can smell is the metallic smell of machinery and concrete.
I SUCK AT DESCRIBING SO SHHH!
next chapter; WELCOME TO THE 66TH ANNUAL HUNGER GAMES!
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