What kind of bubblegum have you been blowing lately

Fletcher Gemmerson, 18.

District 11 Male.

Lights. Cameras. Action.

It was finally my moment, the last round of District 11 Nationals. The show choir competition that I had been training for my entire life, ever since I was young. It didn't matter anymore, the way people called me mean mean names for being gay. I was in the spotlight and nobody would stop the Starlights. That was the name of my crew and we were all in it to win it. And I had a solo… I would be performing Defying Gravity from the hit musical Wicked. It's always been my favorite musical because I deeply related to the character Elphaba, a girl trapped in green skin because I too know what it's like to be an outsider.

"Something has changed within me," I was absolutely flawless as I uttered the first moments of the song, it was finally my chance to be the star that I always knew I could be, "Something is not the same."

I looked back to see the rest of my glee club members, Alexanda, Mia, Jonas, Tyler, Kayla, Samantha, Claire, and Charles standing behind me, chanting "MVF" which meant "Most Valuable Fletcher." This gave me the confidence that I needed to continue the song.

"I'm through with playing by the rules of someone else's game. Too late for second chances, too late to go back to sleep. It's time to trust my instincts, close my eyes, and leap…"

I sang through the rest of the song as everybody clapped and then it was finally time for the finale, "So if you care to find me, look to the western sky, as someone told me lately everyone deserves the chance to FLY! And if I'm flying solo, at least I'm flying free. To those who ground me, take a lesson back from me. Tell them how I'm defying gravity. I'm flying high, defying gravity. And soon I'll match them in renown. And nobody in all of Oz, no wizard that there is or was, is ever gonna bring me down! Bring me down! Owooooooh!"

The audience was going crazy before it was time for the next song which was Bad Romance by Lady Gaga which we also performed perfectly, this time all together.

"Ga ga ooh la la, want your bad romance."

And then it was almost time for the results, "The winner of District 11 nationals is…"

I was so nervous.

"The Starlights!"

OMG! We won! I am so surprised right now, this is literally crazy. And I got the award for the best solo. This is the best moment ever.

And then I was reaped.

Dinosaura Fuel, 17.

District 7 Female.

I am Dinosaura Fuel. What a fucking good name. I am from District 5. But those people were too squeaky and thin for me (my alter ego) to devour which was what brings me to District 7.

I will tell you about the story of how I was Reaped, but first let me give you a rundown of myself.

I have a very tragic backstory. I grew up in District 5 and my parents were working in one of the many factories of Five. I was visiting on a bring your kid to work day trip (I was five) when a wastespill happened. It killed my entire family. Sad.

Another thing about the toxic waste is that it gave me powers. To transform. Into a toucan. It's fucking wonderful SHUT UP it makes me angry and bloodthirsty IT IS NOT FUNNY WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING?

Well, I will not give you the saddest part of my backstory now because you're laughing at me. Please consider: FUCK YOU!

I eat people. Grr. People taste good. I don't like people. Kids are so fucking annoying, I swear.

Case in point. There's a bunch of people on the streets right now. Playing soccer. Just seeing them makes my sociopathic self seethe. I am dressed as a lumberjill and am in District 7. This does not mean that I am nice like Jill (or get fucked up and possessive at dark).

One of the kids run up to me. "Hi!" he says. "Do you want to play—"

"I've HAD IT ROUGH," I yell at them through my perfect face. "SHUT THE FUCK UP OKAY?! I DON'T WANT TO FUCKING DEAL WITH YOU!"

The kid goes white and begins to sob. I just roll my eyes and push them aside into the fucking gutter. They fall through the grates. His fellow friends rush to the gutter to help him out, but I just throw out a scoff. Pathetic.

He's lucky that this is District 5 and not District 7, because if it was District 7, then… I'd gobble him up. (A/N: pls don't take this the wrong way, Dinosaura is not a cannibal, she is a humanoid froot loops toucan).

And then I was Reaped. Whatever. I am literally so ready for the Games.

Mirabella Silvers, 12.

District 11 Female

"PEW PEW PEW" Damn, it sure is tough work being a paid assassin. Especially when you are only twelve years old which is quite young. At least I am good at math.

"NINE PLUS TEN IS TWENTY ONE!" I screamed at the top of my lungs so that I could show off my math skills once again. I am so effin' good at math it is kind of crazy how good at math I am. Everyone wishes they were as good at math as I am which is very good if you were curious how good at math I am.

"You have to infiltrate the Hunger Games." My boss said.

Okay.

Needle Andthethread, 17.

District 8 Male.

"OH SHOOT!" my brother was caught in the part of the machine that goes brr

He then passed away which made me sad. I proceeded to cry for a bit and then I was reaped.

Ploni Almoni, 15.

District 9 Male.

Ingredients:

500g strong white flour

10g table salt

1 x 7g sachet fast-action dried yeast

Step by step

Best eaten on the day it's baked. Can be frozen

In a large bowl, weigh the flour. Rub in the salt at one edge of the bowl and the yeast on the other side, as the salt can stop the yeast working.

Add 350ml tepid water and mix together to form a coherent dough (use your dough to mop up any flour sticking to the bowl). Cover your bowl with a damp tea towel or clingfilm and rest in a warm place for 30-40 minutes, or until it has noticeably increased in size.

Wet the fingertips of one hand and slide between the bowl and dough. Fold the dough in half. Turn the bowl 90°; repeat until you have removed all of the air and it's noticeably smooth. Cover and rest for an hour, or until at least doubled in size.

Tip: For baking and bread making, use digital scales for accuracy when weighing ingredients.

Scrape the dough on to a floured surface, flour your hands and shape into a ball.

Place the dough on a heavily floured surface (like a chopping board), loosely cover and leave it for a final hour, or until it has doubled in size and springs back when pushed. (I like to use a proving basket, which makes a lovely spiral pattern on the top of the loaf.) Preheat the oven to 220°C, fan 200°C, gas 7, at least 20 minutes in advance.

Give your bread a few shallow slashes with a serrated knife. Bake on a lightly oiled baking tray on a low-to-middle shelf for 35-40 minutes, until a deep golden brown – don't be scared to let it get a good dark crust. If your oven cooks unevenly, turn the loaf so it browns all over.

If you're used to making bread, you might find this a bit wetter than your average bread recipe. Remember, wetter is better. Have a play when you're shaping the dough, roll it, stretch it and bash it around – you'll come to know what a developed dough feels like, so you'll know when it's ready.

Rate this recipe out of 5 stars.

BASIC WHITE BREAD

In-text: (Basic white bread, 2021)

Your Bibliography:

.uk. 2021. Basic White Bread. [online] Available at: . /recipes/bread/basic-white-bread [Accessed 22 January 2021].

Thank you so much for all those submissions I am so happy that we are done with Reapings! So excited for the Games soon!