Welcome back! I can't wait to start with the games and everything. I'm thinking about writing a train chapter for each district, so tell me what you think. This character is pretty cool, so I hope you like him. I'm going to start trying to write the chapters as long as I possibly can.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games or any of the characters if I ever use them. I own no Finnick. :'(
Axel Lokester- District Five
"Thirty, thirty-one, thirty-two," I count my pushups.
There is a knock on the door. I pop up and answer. It was my sister-in-law Lia. "The mayor is at the door, he just wants to remind you about tomorrow," she says.
I groaned. He comes and talks to me almost every day. I won't change my mind. "Coming," I say exasperatedly.
I go to the front door. "Hello Axel, I'm just checking to make sure that you still are going to volunteer tomorrow?" He says nervously, almost as if he thought I would change my mind.
"Yes, I'm still going to. Is Melanie still going to be safe from the reapings when she gets older?" I ask.
He nods. "Well, then I guess I'll see you tomorrow." I slam the door in his face.
I can hear him sigh from inside. A few years ago, the mayor and I made a deal. He wants our district to have some honor and pride for once. He wanted someone from our district to win the games. But majority of the people in our district are weaklings, no offense. Anyways, I am very athletic and have had a small training system going on, which is much stronger now. He asked me to volunteer when I turned eighteen. At first I wasn't going to agree, but then I thought of Melanie. She's my now six year old niece, who I love more than almost anything. Someday, she will have to have her name put in the reaping. And if I didn't comply with the mayor's demands, you could be sure that she would be picked. So we made an agreement. If I volunteer, Melanie won't have to participate in the reaping and would still get the tessera. It's a perfect answer.
Since that agreement, I've been training like a career tribute. That way I can win, and it will be like nothing has happened. And maybe we can even have a little more money, which won't hurt. We aren't really poor, but we aren't really rich. I go over and help Lia set the table for dinner. Then Kevin comes home from work and we are like a family. Lia is very obsessed with the idea of family dinners and such. She's almost like my mother, since my own died when I was two. Kevin acts as if he is my father, since father left when Kevin was twelve. And Melanie is almost like my sister. Sometimes I can imagine that we are an actual family.
"Are you excited or nervous for the reaping tomorrow?" asked Kevin.
I shrug. "I dunno. Hey after dinner, I'm going out with Nick and Angela," I say.
"Okay."
A normal dinner is tessera bread and some sort of beet or turnip. Today we have the bread and an apple, which is a pleasant surprise. Our district specialty is power, so we don't have all those exotic foods like in district eleven or ten. I finish up my food and wash off my plate. Then I grab my jacket and head outside.
I ran over to Nick's house and knocked on the door. He came out. "Shhh, my baby sister's asleep," he scolded.
"Oops, sorry," I say back, but I don't really care.
Then we walk to Angela's house and get her. "What are we going to do?" She asked.
"A lot of kids from school usually hang out at the sweet shop in the square before dark, so we can go there," I suggest.
They both shrug. I really don't care about the kids at my school, but there are going to be girls there. We go one to the shop. All the kids are hanging around outside. I remember when we used to save up every single cent we could to buy things here. Now, it's just a hangout. I see all the pretty girls huddled around each other. I walk on over to them. I flip my hair and smile. I act flirtatious and charming the rest of the night.
-Reaping
I wake up with a feeling of dread. I don't want to go into the games, but I don't really have a choice. I pull myself out of bed. I get dressed and ready to go. Kevin comes to me. "Here, take this. It can be your token in the arena."
He hands me a locket. Inside are pictures of Lia, Melanie, and himself. "Thanks," I say.
Then we all go to the reaping. Right before we have to separate, I hug Kevin and Lia and kiss Melanie on the top of the head. Then I march over to my section and try to look cool, while in reality, I'm a little nervous. There's a reason districts one, two and four usually win. That's because they're stronger, faster, and better.
The mayor comes up and says the treaty of treason. Blah blah blah, whatever. Then the escort comes to announce the girl. It's time to see who my competition is. It's some girl name Adeline. She doesn't look like too much competition. She's seventeen. Then the escort picks the boy. It's some fifteen year old. The mayor was right, without me, no offense, but district five most likely would not have a winner.
"I volunteer as tribute!" I shout.
I wave my hand in the air. If they don't see me, Melanie will most definitely get picked for the games. But they do see me. They call me up and ask me my name. "Axle Lokester," I say with mock confidence.
"The tributes of district five!" The escort says excitedly as she raises up our hands.
-Goodbyes
All my family comes in to wish me good luck and say their goodbyes. Even though they knew I was going to do it, they still look so worried. They shouldn't worry, I've been training for years, I can do this. I have to keep telling myself this too. "I love you guys. I will put all my effort into coming home. Lia, take care. Kev, bro, no matter what, I'll always be with you. Mel, honey, I'll miss you. Be a good girl and don't forget to smile. A smile will always look good on you," I say.
"Where are you going?" She asks, smiling.
The young girl is still to naïve and little to know such things. Not for long though. "I'm going away for a little bit."
She hugs my legs tight. "Goodbye then, I'll see you soon."
I nod. "Do you still have the locket? Keep it with you, always," Kevin says.
"I will."
We hug and then they have to leave. My next visitor is a surprise, my father. "Son, good luck," he wishes.
"Dad? What are you doing here? We haven't talked for years and now you come back? We are just fine without you in our lives," I say.
My mother died two years after I was born. When Kevin turned twelve, my dad left us to fend for ourselves. We didn't need him, we were perfect without him.
"I just came to say goodbye," he says innocently.
"Bye,'' I say.
He comes and hugs me. It's weird, that's the first time I remember hugging my dad.
(A/N) Awh, that's sad. Sorry again that it took so long! I've been busy. I still need more characters! PM me for more info. Thanks for reading and hopefully reviewing. Just by the way, I am getting a little fed up with all these flirty boys and even girls. No offense, those I've gotten so far can stay. But if I get another flirty person, I will do some extreme editing to him. And I really need more characters that have less of a chance at winning. Thanks! I promise to update soon!
