Stevon Lumbren, 17 years old, District 12 Male

96 AD

"Stevie!" A boy yells from behind me as I walk out of District 12's sole school building. I am holding my muddy green messenger bag as I feel myself being hugged from behind. It's unfortunately my boyfriend. Kai is a fragile little thing, scrawny but not malnourished like many others in the District from his parents being Peacekeepers. He has dark blue eyes and sandy blonde hair with a smile always on his rosy face, which makes him stick out like a sore thumb in District 12.

I stop myself from sighing and smile at him instead. I am wholly annoyed, but I can't let him see that. While I dislike Kai, I also dislike everyone except myself. I don't have any true friends and no family. All I have are people to help me reach an end goal: simply making living in this god-forsaken place more enjoyable.

"Yes, Kai? And you know I hate you calling me Stevie." I roll my eyes as I look at him out of the corner of my eye.

"Want to have a sleepover tonight? My mom is going to be cooking a nice dinner." Kai says as he lets go of my waist and begins to walk beside me.

He calls it a sleepover like we are still little kids, but whatever, I will still agree to go since it means I get to eat a nice meal. I assume they are having a nice dinner because it is Remembrance day. The day when Panem became a country. Barely anyone celebrates it in District 12, and most people forget that it is a holiday. The only ones celebrating it are Peacekeepers and maybe some wealthy citizens in the District.

"Of course, Kai. Also, we are too old for sleepovers, don't you think?" I tease Kai as he grabs hold of my arm while we walk toward his house. Many Peacekeepers live in one area with better quality dwellings than the rest of the District. My house is a small log cabin with one bedroom, which is enough and isn't too far from Kai's house. It's a good little walk, but nothing too tedious. Most of the District is within walking distance anyway.

"Oh.. yeah." Kai's rosy cheeks somehow turn redder as he looks down at me. He giggles as he runs his long and thin fingers through his curls. Kai may be scrawny, but he is built like a beanstalk. He's a good few inches taller than me. Despite that, I am still physically stronger in our little relationship.

We finally arrive at his house, a big home with four nicely sized bedrooms and a hologram in the living room, which is rare for most people. Kai opens the door and runs into the house, but I don't follow him. Instead, I feel that I am being watched, making me turn around. I see a bony young girl staring at me. She has to be a couple of years younger than me, at least. I've seen her around school, but barely anyone talks to her. She's mousy and insignificant. I can't even remember her name.

Once she notices that I have been staring at her with a straight face, the young girl's eyes widen, and her face turns red before she runs back into her house. I can't help but smirk as I watch her run like a rabbit being chased by a wolf. It makes me feel powerful, and it is frankly hilarious.

"C'mon, the food is going to get cold!" I hear Kai yell from inside the house in a whiney and irritating tone.

"Alright, chill out. I'm about to come inside." I turn the smirk onto my face into a gentle smile and walk into Kai's house, hugging his mother and sitting down at the dinner table with Kai's family to enjoy a meal. The meal consists of cornbread, fried turkey legs, turnip greens, roasted potatoes, and a small chocolate cake.

Happy fuckin' Remembrance day.

Elsha Slater, 15 years old, District 12 Female

96 AD

The boy outside is terrifying. His cold black eyes stared at me like he wanted to come over and beat me up just for daring to look at him. I feel myself tremble as I sit on the floor, pressed up against the front door, and afraid that he will come look after me. But then, I look out the window next to the door and notice that he is no longer there. I feel a wave of relief wash over me, and I sigh before standing up.

"You okay, baby?" My mother says out of seemingly nowhere, which causes me to jump up in the air and scream at her before frowning out of embarrassment.

My mother's eyes widen, and she blinks at me before furrowing her eyebrows. "What's wrong? Is someone being mean to you?" My mother rubs my shoulder as I shake my head at her question.

I've repeatedly cried to her and my father about having no friends and how everyone ignores me. I don't have the heart to tell them that it is because they are Peacekeepers, so no one wants to hang out with me. Other kids won't beat me up or anything like that, even though they easily could if they wanted to. They just act like I don't exist. It gets lonely having no friends... No one to confide in other than my parents. I just wish they weren't so... mean to the people who commit the crimes. Most of the time, they are friendly people who are just really desperate.

It's one of the reasons I don't want to become a Peacekeeper. It's a job where I'd have to be super harsh and authoritarian. That's just not me. I'd rather paint and become a book illustrator or a writer someday. My parents were disappointed when I told them that I didn't want to become a Peacekeeper, but they revealed that they would support me regardless. I am glad that I have them. They make sure that I can do what I love, and they are sweet people when they aren't in that menacing uniform.

"No, I just…. Got nervous." I sigh as I bite my lip before smiling at my mom.

My mother softly smiles back at me before guiding me into the dining room, where the table is already set. 3 plates with forks, knives, and cute little blue napkins for my mother, father, and me. My father turns on the hologram that's projected off the wall as we all sit down in our seats. My mom cooked goat loin chops with gravy, boiled wild greens, and a vinegar pie that's surprisingly really tasty despite the vinegar ingredient.

I bite my lamb chop and turn my attention to the TV. On the hologram, a Panem broadcast is playing. It has been playing on the TV all day, including earlier today at the beginning of school. It's about how Panem came to be a country and about the catastrophe that ended all life besides Panem. A bunch of talk about hurricanes, global warming, and many other natural disasters that threatened to kill the human race.

Despite that, Panem availed out of the ashes and eventually became the country it is today.