District 10 Pre-Reapings
Bell Dunkin, 17, District 10
Flipping on the light switch in her room, Bell crumples down on her bed in defeat. She's not sure why she expected tonight to be different, but the disappointment of not finding her sister still sits heavy in her stomach like a sprawling pit, consuming her from the inside, out.
"You need to let this go, Bell," comes her brother's voice as he enters her room. "Ash is gone. We have to accept it."
"What are you doing here?" Bell asks, surprised to see Ethan as rarely stopped by the house given that he had his own family and kids now. She had never been close to her brother, seeing as he was 12 years older than her, but he seemed to be dropping by the house more often to check in on their parents.
"The kids made some bread today...I thought I would drop it by for you guys," Ethan shrugs, "Look, I know these past few weeks have been hard for you, but sneaking out at night like this isn't going to make things better. You're only going to worry mom and dad more if they catch you."
In response, Bell simply rolls over to her side, hoping he'll take the cue to leave. It doesn't take long for Ethan to get the message and he leaves without another word, though she's pretty sure she catches a heavy sigh of resignation.
Bell wanted to be happy. She wanted to be happy like Ethan with his new family, but she couldn't be. Not when tragedy seemed to run rampant through her own family.
From the moment Bell and her sisters had been born, life had been difficult. As the smallest and weakest of a set of triplet girls, Bell's survival odds had been slim, at best. Only one of her lungs functioned properly and after battling a myriad of respiratory illnesses the first year of her life, her parents seemed ready to accept that their youngest girl was unlikely to make it.
But Bell was a fighter and pushed through, growing into a passionate young lady alongside her two sisters. For those first twelve years, the Dunkins were finally happy and at peace, until Bell's sister, Natalie fell deeply ill. In an attempt to prevent Bell from catching the illness, Bell was forced to stay at home, unable to say goodbye when her parents couldn't afford Natalie's treatment and her beloved sister eventually passed away.
In the wake of Natalie's death, Bell grew closer with her other sister, Ash, relying on one another for support in their trying times. Together, Bell and Ash found new hope in the form of their friends, who became a beacon of light for the girls as they grappled with the loss of their sister.
Her friends let her vent out her frustrations and saw though her best attempts to build walls around herself. They helped her become the confident, popular, and joyful girl she was always meant to be, until one day, she lost them too.
One night, while home sick, her friends and Ash had gone out, only to be declared missing 24 hours later. A few days later, the peacekeepers found her friend's dead body floating through the river, and not much later, her other friend's body turned up at the same spot. Since then, the peacekeepers have largely given up on searching for Ash, not particularly caring what happened to some poor girl from Ten.
Still, Bell was determined not to give up on her sister, going out every night to search for her. It's why she slept with her light on every night, hoping that Ash might see it and find her way home.
Ethan's words echo through Bell's mind, as she attempts to fall asleep, rolling between her covers. Ash can't be gone, Bell thinks to herself as her exhausted body eventually succumbs to a dreamless sleep.
When Bell finally wakes up, her lights flickering in frenzy from having burned all night, she doesn't have to check her sister's room to know she's still not home.
Jesse Greenfields, 15, District 10
"Jesse...Jesse- can you please pay a little more attention to your surroundings! You have a customer waiting!"
Shaking his head, Jesse realizes he's trailed off into one of his daydreams once again, much to the mild frustration of his mother.
"Sorry, Mom. Sorry, Mr. Vache," Jesse apologizes genuinely, before turning his full attention to the bespectacled man standing before him, "What can I get for you today?" he smiles broadly, always happy to serve a regular customer.
"No worries, Jesse. I'm here to bring home two of those spectacular baguettes, your mother makes" Mr. Vache responds with a knowing wink.
"She really does make the best baguettes," Jesse quips, before pausing for a moment, "Would you like anything sweet to bring home to those sweet little girls? I have a feeling they'd love the strawberry cupcakes Alissa just whipped up," Jesse tempts, motioning to the bright, pink treats resting behind the glass.
"I think Mrs. Vache would kill me for bringing more sweets home, but why not...that sister of yours has a remarkable talent for baking. Heck, if she made them, I'll take a half-dozen for the whole family," Mr. Vache relents with a hearty laugh, as Jesse fills up a box.
It always felt good to put an extra smile on a customer's face.
After sending Mr. Vache on his way with an array of delicious baked goods in each arm, Jesse is decidedly glad he works at his parent's bakery as opposed to the butchery across the street. It had always seemed ironic to be a vegetarian in District 10, a fact often pointed out by his girlfriend, Eliza and his sister, Alissa, but Jesse thinks certain things are just meant to be.
Despite his love of the family bakery, Jesse had ambitions far beyond sugar and flour.
Prior to growing tired of spewing all the Capitol's propaganda, Jesse's father had been a teacher, instilling in his son a love of reading and writing. Together, along with his sister, Jesse began writing his own stories and dreamed of one day being a famed author, known all across Panem. But for now, he found joy in playing soccer with his friends and sneaking out the occasional slice of cake under his mother's nose.
"Jesse, can you be a dear and go help Alissa clean up in the back?" his mother calls out from behind the register, "When you're done, you two can head home with Benjamin for the day."
"Will do!" Jesse replies, stepping into the kitchen where he spots his sister wiping down the countertops, while his younger brother Benjamin unhelpfully splashes around some water in the sink.
"So you've been on Benjamin duty all day?" Jesse teases lightly as he picks up his own wet rag, getting to work on the cooking tables.
"Something like that," Alissa mutters, "He's nine...you'd think he could actually wash dishes and be helpful by now."
"Well, Mom says after we finish cleaning up we can take him home, and then maybe you and I can work on our story a bit more. I've been thinking about some new ideas all day," Jesse offers, "Then we can put Dad on Benjamin duty."
"That sounds amazing," Alissa says, "Race you to clean the mixers?"
"Oh, it's on! Just know I'm totally going to beat you again," Jesse replies, just as he hears a clanging noise erupt throughout the kitchen as Benjamin knocks over a stack of freshly washed plates into the soapy sink water.
"Race you guys to clean up the plates?" Benjamin asks sheepishly.
"Benjamin!" Jesse and Alissa groan in unison.
Needless to say, it was going to be a little longer before Jesse could get to his story.
A/N: I've seriously loved writing all these characters so far and D10 was no exception. A big thank you to chcolate for Bell and SchroedingersKneazle for Jesse! We are getting so close to the end of reapings and I cannot wait for you all to see what I have in store for the pre-games portion of this fic. Hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I did! -Anya