Alright you guys, so here's the next chapter! It's Spring Break. WHEE! Over a week to lounge around and do whatever! And go to lots of rehearsals, of course. And sleep. Lots of sleeping.
Our friend's cat Phoebe just had kittens! Pictures here: wintermoonfeather. deviantart. com/gallery/36334994
Enjoy!
I jerk awake and sit bolt upright with a gasp.
I take a few deep breaths as I try to calm my racing heart, looking around my room to make sure I'm actually here.
What…was that? A dream…? Yeah, it was only a dream. I flop back down onto my pillow, take a few more deep breaths, then laugh quietly.
Of course it was a dream. As if anything like that could ever happen to me.
I laugh for a few more moments then roll over and look at the clock. 10am. I would've have preferred sleeping another hour, but even if my ridiculous dream hadn't woken me up, I'm pretty sure my alarm clock will arrive any minute now.
I stare at the digits on my clock. That was some dream. Thank goodness that's all it was. Garret, Pisces, Sawyer, Finnick, Sol, Annie…Lana…Evan…
When my door creeks open a few minutes later, I close my eyes and pretend to sleep again. I hear her creep towards my bed, taking careful steps to avoid making the floorboards creek. I can feel she's just inches from my face…
I snap my eyes open and say, "Boo!"
"Eep!" Lana shrieks but can't jump away before I reach out and start to tickle her. "Eee! Heeheehee! Stop it! Heehee! Dylan! Quit!"
Laughing, I sit up in my bed while my little sister gasps, still holding her stomach. "Meanie!"
"Oh you love it."
"You're still a meanie," she says. "Mom's got breakfast ready. Come on, before Evan eats all the omelets."
"Omelets? What's the occasion?"
Lana rolls her eyes. "Duh. Willow Freebird won the Hunger Games yesterday!"
"Oh! You're right, duh!" I roll my eyes. I can't believe I forgot that. "Sorry, I had a crazy dream last night."
She shakes her head. "Now come on, before Evan eats them all!"
Lana runs out of the room to save some omelets and I shake my head, laughing to myself again. I throw the covers back and slide out of bed. I grab the brush off my bedside table and calm down my wild hair before heading for the kitchen. The delicious smell of cooking omelets fills the entire house making my mouth water and my stomach rumble.
Lana and Evan are sitting at the table with Dad and Luke is at the counter helping Mom make pancakes. I pause in the doorway for a moment with my hand on the wall, staring at my family. They're all alive. We're all together. Safe, happy, alive. All of us together in the Capitol. Not district people. Just as it should be.
"Are you just gonna stand there all day?" Evan demands, reaching for my plate. "If so, I got dibs on your food."
"Paws off, little piggy," I say and step into the kitchen.
After breakfast, I head back to my room and change into a light pink midriff top and short shorts, slip sandals onto my feet, grab my bag, and head out to meet my friends. We usually hang out down in Whitepoint Park by the lake, near a picnic table.
The whole city is frenzy since the District 4 girl won the Hunger Games last night. Music plays over speakers, pictures of Willow's face flash everywhere. Store owners are handing out free samples. People laugh and dance and cheer. As soon as we all meet up, my friends and I will join the party.
When I get to the picnic table in the park about fifteen minutes later, I spot Annie's pink hair, Sol's sun-spikes, Pisces' newly indigo-streaked hair, and my boyfriend's simple brown hair. I love that about him. He's never been over dramatic like some people. The most he's ever done to his hair was dye it neon yellow once on a dare.
"Hey, guys!" I call.
They turn their heads and Annie jumps up, waving. "Heeey Dyyyylaaaan!" She shouts. "Happy Hunger Games!"
Pisces grins then adds loudly, "And may the odds be ever in your favor!"
I laugh and bound towards them. Pisces grins at me in the snarky way only he can get away with. "Hey there, Dilly."
"Don't call me Dilly," I say automatically, but I smile at him. "Oh, nice streaks going there."
Pisces takes a moment to flip his indigo-streaked golden hair then folds his arms.
"So, maybe you can help us out," he says. He jerks his head towards my boyfriend, who frowns. "Hothead and here and I were discussing—"
"Arguing," Annie cuts in.
"—which one of us would last longer in the Hunger Games?"
I wince inwardly and take a seat between the two of them. "Well, sorry to say, Garret, but you die before him."
Garret blinks at the certainty in my voice, then frowns. "Hey!"
"Sorry. And what's worse? Pisces would be the one to kill you."
"Hey!"
"Mhmm." I say. "Then Sawyer would kill him."
Pisces brays with laughter and Garret rolls his eyes while Annie giggles.
"What about me?" Sol asks.
"You? You're just an ordinary citizen of the Capitol."
"Hey! No fair!" he protests. "I want to be a victor!"
"Too bad," I say and the others laugh again.
"What's so funny?"
I turn to look at Sawyer who's approaching us, bag slung over her shoulder. Her ivy-green hair is pulled up in a ponytail and she's got brown designs stenciled down her arms. Our resident tree-lover. Must be why she was—
"Dylan was just informing us what would happen if we were all in the Hunger Games together," Pisces says. "Apparently I kill Garret then you kill me. I imagine she's the victor, then?"
"Nope," I shake my head. "After an epic showdown between the two of us, I emerge the victor."
This, of course, sets everyone into fits of laughter.
"You!" Pisces laughs. "That's even more unbelievable than Sawyer killing me! You can't even fight!"
"Can so!"
"Yeah, whatever. You're not your sister."
I roll my eyes. My sister, Rilee, is a Peacekeeper. She's a whiz with knives. She tried to teach me once, trying to see if I was Peacekeeper worthy, but I failed miserably. I wasn't too upset. The life of a Peacekeeper is not for me. All that fighting and killing? Ugh! Living in the districts? No thank you!
"Hmph. well, you asked."
Sawyer sits down beside me, frowning. "Would you really kill me, Dylan?"
"Of course not, gill-brain."
"Why do I have to die before Pisces?" Garret complains and I notice for the first time that he's got new, light blue designs stenciled around his eyes. I'll have to compliment him later.
"It's his way of getting revenge on you." I say.
"Revenge?"
"Oh yes," I say. "Because he's been secretly in love with me for years and you stole me."
Pisces snorts and wraps his arm around Sawyer, practically pulling her on top of him. "No way! There's only one girl for me!"
"Stop!" Sawyer elbows him.
"Get off her," Sol says, frowning at his girlfriend's captor.
Pisces let's go, laughing, then addresses me. "You're never going to let that go, are you? It was a crush, Dylan. A little crush that I'm over."
"You better be," Garret says, sliding one arm around my waist. "Otherwise, you and me are going to have to fight." Then he leans down and kisses me. I giggle.
"Are you sure you want to do that?"
Garret draws back, arching an eyebrow at Pisces.
"You do realize Dylan's already predicted the outcome of that fight, right?"
"You do realize it's go time, right?"
"Bring it!" Pisces jumps up and Garret lets go of me, leaping at him, but Pisces tears off towards the lake.
I smile, watching my boyfriend and my best friend run around. I lean back on my hands, stretching my legs out in front of me. Saywer, Sol, and Annie laugh then Sawyer pulls a book out of her bag and opens it.
"Seriously?" Sol wrinkles his nose. "You're going to read when there's a perfectly good show going on right in front of us?"
Sawyer nods.
"Ugh. You can be such a bore." Annie scoots closer to me. "They're both adorable."
"Yup."
"So, how do the Hunger Games go for me? When do I die?"
"You don't," I say. "You go in next year and win for District 4. You go totally insane in the process, but you win."
Annie sighs. "You're so dramatic."
"Blame my subconscious," I say. "I had this insane dream last night. I dreamed I was in the Hunger Games. All of us were, actually. Pisces and I were District partners from 4. Sawyer, you were from District 7."
She snorts at that.
"And Garret was from district 8. And that bastard up the street from you, Annie, Jules? He was from District 1. A bunch of others, too."
"Whoa. How did Jules die?"
"I slit his throat."
"Nice." She sighed. "If only you could do that for real."
"I could," I say. "I'd just get thrown in jail afterwards. No thanks."
"So, basically, you dreamed this years Hunger Games, but with all of us instead of the actual tributes. Wow, what did you eat before bed?"
I laugh, but before I can explain—
"My money's on Pisces," a voice says loudly from behind. Finnick jogs towards us, eyes on Garret and Pisces who I realize are tussling around in the sand by the water.
"Why is everyone against me today!" Garret's voice cries from somewhere within the tangle of limbs.
Finnick laughs and plops into the sand beside Annie, leaning in to kiss her cheek. "Hey, Annie."
"Hey, Fin," she says. "Dylan was just telling me about her crazy dream."
"Oh?" Finnick looks at me.
"We were all in the Hunger Games. Except for you and Sol. You were a mentor and he was just an ordinary Capitol citizen."
Finnick frowns. "How come I can't have fun?"
"That's what I wanted to know," Sol mutters.
"So, who wins?"
I shrug. "Garret and I are allies, then Pisces kills Garret, Sawyer kills him, and I kill her. Annie wins the next year."
"And apparently I go completely psychotic." Annie says dramatically.
"That's never going to happen," he says, glaring at me as if I'd somehow sentenced her to some horrible doom.
"Hey, easy up, Nick," I say. "It was just a dream."
"Good," he says, then nods towards the boys. "You may want to do something about that."
I put my fingers in my mouth and whistle sharply. "Boys! Boys! Knock it off! Garret wins!"
"Ha!" Garret cries and wriggles away from Pisces. "You heard her! Now I am the victor."
"No fair!" Pisces protests, scrambling up. "I almost had him!"
Garret bounds back over to the group and flops down next to me. "Now! Where were we?"
"Oh stop," I say as he leans in.
He laughs and slides his arm around me. I rest my head on his shoulder.
"Kollin, we'll finish this later," Pisces vows.
"You mean I'll kick your butt later."
"You wish."
"Boys!" Annie says, tossing sand at them. "That's quite enough!"
"Hmph," Pisces says but then he notices Sawyer buried in her book, and grins. This won't end well. He stands up and creeps around behind her. Sol glares warningly but Annie shakes her head, motioning for him to keep quiet. Sawyer, still absorbed in whatever she's reading, doesn't even notice. Pisces grins wickedly.
"Sawyer…" I say softly.
"Hm?" she says, not really paying attention.
"Run."
"Hmm—eeeeeeeeeeek!" She screeches as Pisces picks her up by the waist and starts running toward the water with her slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. She screams as he runs, hurling curses and beating him with her fists because she's had the sense to drop the book.
Annie leaps up, laughing, and chases after them, just a second behind Sol. "Don't worry, Sawyer, I'll save you!"
Finnick, of course, follows her. "We'll get Pisces, you rescue Sawyer!" he tells Sol.
Garret and I glance at each other then both of us burst into laughter. Listening to the sound of his laugh makes me smile even harder, but as I think back on my dream, my smile falters. I lost him there. He died. And then I hallucinated for months and months, hearing his voice in my head whenever I was upset. I close my eyes and hug him, squeezing tightly.
He makes a small "oomph!"
"Geez, Dylan, bear hug much?"
"Sorry," I say. "Just thinking. …I'm glad we're not in the arena. I never want to lose you."
"Hey, I'm not going anywhere," he promises, then puts his hand under my chin, tilting my face up. "But it's your fault, you know, saying I'd die first."
"Not first," I say. "Sixteenth."
"…What?"
I quietly explain my dream and how he died, then how Pisces died, and then Sawyer and how I hallucinated, how Lana and Evan ended up dead because of me, and Annie going crazy. When I'm done, Garret shakes his head.
"You dream the craziest shit, Dylan, I swear. Me, from District 8? What's that all about?"
"Sorry." His easy attitude about all this makes me feel better. What was I getting all worked up for, anyway? It's just the Hunger Games. It'd probably be fun. If I could fight.
"Besides, it was just a dream. …As if you could actually win the Hunger Games."
"Hey!"
"Sorry, Dilly, but it's true."
I elbow him playfully.
The sound of squealing brings our attention back to the water. Sawyer has been released and she stands on the edge of the crystal clear lake, sopping wet, shouting curses at Pisces who's now holding a squealing Annie hostage while Sol and Finnick chase after him. The two of us laugh quietly, but our laughter increases as Sawyer storms over to us, holding her book. The water has totally ruined her makeup, the brown designs are smeared.
"Shut up you hyenas! Ugh!" she screeches. "Now I totally have to redo everything before I can go party! Ugh! I'll be back later! Don't you dare leave without me!"
"Wouldn't dream of it," Garret promises.
She humphs angrily again, stuffing her book in her bag, and storms away. We wait until she's out of earshot before we laugh again.
Everything's perfect. I'm exactly where I belong. And actually, now my dream is starting to fade. I can't remember the little details anymore. I don't even bother trying to find them. Garret's right. Just a silly dream… That's the last time I eat caramel cookies and watch Hunger Games recaps before bed!
Review, tell peoples...that whole shabang...
