Lillian Derwent, 17

District 4 Female

Lillian paced around the small room, cracking her knuckles in her anxiousness. Ollie was going to be upset with her, she just knew it. And so was Uncle Jake. Lillian had kept the fact that she was going to volunteer from him, and she hadn't thought about the aftermath of that decision until now.

She forced herself to take a few deep breaths and sat down on the floral-patterned sofa just as the door opened. Her friends rushed in, and Winter was the first to draw her into a hug.

"Hey Winnie," Lillian said softly, returning the hug.

"Girl, I am so proud of you!" Winter gushed. "You did great."

"Yeah!" Misty said with a grin. "You were so confident. I never could have done that."

"Thanks," Lillian said, a smile crossing her freckled face. "I was pretty nervous though."

"That's understandable," Luna said, reaching past Winter to give Lillian's hand a squeeze. "But you're going to be amazing."

"Yeah," Oliver said gruffly, and Lillian felt his eyes on her, but she couldn't bring herself to meet his gaze.

Winter gave her another squeeze before stepping back and allowing Misty and Luna to hug her. Lillian hugged her friends tightly, a warm feeling in her chest. Their support meant more to her than they'd ever know.

"Thank you guys," Lillian said, holding Winter and Luna's hands. "I really appreciate it. I love you."

"Oh honey, you're going to make me cry!" Winter gushed, pulling Lillian back into a tight squeeze.

"Could I, um, talk to Lillian alone please?" Oliver asked, rubbing the back of his neck. The girls glanced at each other and nodded, each giving Lillian one last hug before filing out with a wave.

Oliver sat down on the couch and pulled Lillian down beside him. Then he clasped her hands and looked into her eyes. Lillian could see tears pooling in them, and her heart ached.

"Lillian," he said, before swallowing deeply and clearing his throat. "Lillian, I really wish you didn't volunteer, but–"

"I know," Lillian interrupted. "I know you didn't want me to go. But it's important to me!"

"I know," Oliver said, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "And even though I didn't want you to do it, I'll still support you. Because I love you Lillian. I love you so much."

Tears pricked at Lillian's eyelids. Oliver had never said that to her before. Leaning in, she kissed him firmly before pulling him in for a tight embrace.

"I love you too," she said against his shoulder. "And I will come back to you. I promise."

"Don't promise me that," Oliver told her, his voice choked with emotion. "You can't. But promise you'll give it everything you have."

"I will," Lillian told him.

There was a sharp knock on the door, and the two of them stood up. Oliver pulled Lillian in for one last passionate kiss before pulling away and giving her a sad smile.

"I love you," he repeated, and Lillian gave him another quick kiss.

"I love you too."

Oliver was quickly replaced by her uncle, who stood at the door with a frown.

"Lillian…" he said, sounding as if he were in pain.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, looking at her feet. "But the academy chose me, and I want to do this."

He swooped forward and pulled her into a hug.

"It's okay," he said. "I just didn't want you getting hurt. You've been through too much."

Now the tears were falling. Lillian nuzzled into his arms and let them flow.

"Thank you," she whispered. "For everything."

"It was my pleasure," he replied. "Truly. You are an incredible young woman. I am so proud of you."

He gave her a final squeeze as someone knocked again.

"Your time is up!" they called. Uncle Jake hugged Lillian tighter as she cried.

"Be brave," he told her. "You can do this." He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead, the way her mother used to do before she died, which made Lillian cry a little harder.

He stepped back and gave her a sad smile.

"Chin up," he said. "And remember, it's okay to be scared. Use that fear to make you strong. I love you."

"I love you too," she said as he left. Then she walked to the window, wiping away her tears as she went.

The ocean glittered in the distance, and she took a few shaking breaths. She was scared, yes, but she could be brave. She was before and she could be again.

"I'll see you soon," she told the ocean.

Faryn Namon, 17

District 7 Male

Faryn stood very still, his heart pounding in his chest and his hands slightly clammy from fear. When Hans Colfer called Hunter's name, Faryn didn't think. He just threw his arm in the air and shouted. All he knew was that Hunter could not go into the Hunger Games. He simply couldn't.

And now he was trapped in a small box of a room in the Justice Building that smelled as if it hadn't been opened in a year, an hour from a train ride that would take him to his death.

The door opened suddenly, hitting the wall with a thud that made bits of dust rain down. It caught in Faryn's hair as his mom pulled him into a tight hug.

"Faryn, baby," she sobbed, stroking his hair with one hand.

"Mom," he croaked, trying to keep his own tears at bay. "Mom, I…" He tried to explain, to say anything, but he had no words.

"That was a brave thing to do." Faryn's mom released him so that his dad could have a turn hugging him.

"And stupid!" Hunter yelled. Faryn's dad pulled away and everyone turned to look at him.

"I don't want you to die for me," he said flatly, arms crossed.

"And I can't watch you die and do nothing," Faryn snapped. "I just can't, okay?"

"And now what?" Hunter shouted. "Now you're going into a death match voluntarily and I'm supposed to thank you?"

"Yes! No! I don't – I don't know!" Faryn ran his hands through his hair, frustrated. "What was I supposed to do?" he asked weakly.

Adaya spoke up.

"You aren't supposed to do anything," she said softly. "It's a shitty situation with no right answer. You've just got to fight to come back to use now."

Usually, their parents would have scolded Adaya for cursing. But instead, they both nodded.

"You have nothing to apologize for. We just want you to be safe," his mom said, taking his hand. Faryn nodded glumly.

"Faryn," Hunter said with a sigh. "I'd rather die than watch you die. And I know you feel the same way about me. There's no…nothing to do. And I hate it." He was crying now, pushing past their mom to embrace his twin.

"And I love you," Faryn said, pulling him in tighter. "And so I had to do this."

"I know," Hunter whispered.

The boys pulled apart as a Peacekeeper pounded on the door.

"Time!" she shouted, and Faryn felt a wave of panic rise in his chest.

"Mom…" he said meekly.

"I know baby," she said back, giving him one final hug. "I know." His father and sister hugged him too, and then they went to the door. Hunter turned and made eye contact with Faryn one last time. He tried to smile, but it was more of a grimace. And then he was gone.

Faryn closed his eyes and took a few deep, rattling breaths, trying to keep himself from crying. He was a tribute now. He had to put on a brave face, even though he was absolutely terrified.

His back was to the door when it opened again, and he barely had time to turn around before Thea was tackling him in a hug. There were tears in her eyes, and she rubbed them away with the sleeve of her sweater.

"Faryn" she murmured. "That was so brave and so dumb. You're such an idiot." Then she hugged him again, hard enough to make his ribs ache.

"I know," he said with a huff. "I just didn't know what else to do."

"You're a strong guy," she said, pulling back. "You know your way around an ax. You grew up in 7. You're familiar with nature. You can do this."

"I guess," Faryn said, shrugging. Thea shook her head.

"No. You CAN do this."

"Okay," he breathed. "Okay."

Thea did make a few good points. But there were tributes who volunteered who were killing machines. They'd trained for years. And the thought of harming another person made Faryn feel physically ill.

Seemingly sensing his thoughts, Thea gave Faryn's shoulder a squeeze.

"Just try, okay?"

"Okay. I will."

"And Faryn?"

"Yeah?"

"Give Gabriel a chance?"

He opened his mouth to question her, but Thea drew him into one more hug and rushed out the door before he could get a word out. And of course, Gabriel was the last one to step inside.

They looked at each other warily for a few moments before Gabriel stepped forward and sat down on the wooden bench in the corner of the room. Faryn sat beside him.

"Faryn…" Gabriel breathed. "You're one of my closest friends, but recently… recently I've been seeing you as more than a friend. And if something happened to you before I got the chance to tell you, I don't think I could live with myself."

Faryn could hardly breathe. All of a sudden, he was seeing Gabriel in a whole new light. His blue eyes looked softer, gentler, prettier. His blonde hair became hair he wanted to run his hands through. He was stunning, practically glowing beside Faryn.

Before he could convince himself not to, Faryn leaned over and kissed Gabriel. His friend squeaked in surprise, but kissed him back. Faryn's fingers curled into Gabriel's hair as he pulled him closer, but a loud knock on the door startled them apart.

Gabriel blinked at him in shock.

"I… I have to go," he finally stammered. Faryn swallowed hard, nodding.

"I know."

"Please come back to me," Gabriel whispered. "To all of us. We need you."

"I will," Faryn murmured. He kissed him one more time at the door and gave his hand a squeeze.

"I've got to come back to my boyfriend."

"Boyfriend, huh?" Gabriel said with a sad smile. "I like the sound of that."

Summer Enderro, 18

District 11 Female

She'd done it. She had volunteered for the Hunger Games. Years of training with Morrison, years of struggling to keep the vineyard operational, years of watching Grandpa Nilo's health deteriorate. It all led to this.

Part of her couldn't believe she'd done it. Another part of her felt content. After all, she'd put a lot of work into achieving this goal. There should be some sense of accomplishment.

But, if Summer was being honest with herself, that pride was mixed with dread. She knew she'd have to kill people. She knew. But it wasn't going to be easy. Lives were worth something, and these were people she knew nothing about. They probably deserved to live.

But her family also had to live. And Summer would choose her family over and over and over again. That's what her father should have done, but now that he was gone, she'd do it.

Though the thought of being her family made her nervous. None of them knew she was going to volunteer, and their potential reactions had her worrying.

The old wooden door slammed open, making Summer jump and a Peacekeeper let out an indignant yelp. Summer's mother stormed in, the sleeves of her bright red blouse unbuttoned and flapping.

"Summer Enderro!" she shouted, eyes wild with anger. "What the hell did you do?"

Summer's eyes widened. Her mother rarely yelled like that, and she cursed even more rarely. She was obsessed with the image of perfection. Losing her temper did not support that image.

A Peacekeeper shut the door behind them as Summer's mother stared her down.

"Mom," she started, but Raina Enderro held up a hand.

"What where you thinking?" she gasped, voice croaky.

"Mom, we can't afford to keep the vineyard for much longer, and take care of Grandpa Nilo. We need money. We need help. And I'm going to get it."

"By dying?" she screeched. "No. Absolutely not. I forbid it."

"I already volunteered," Summer snapped. "You can't stop it. I'm helping us. You just don't get it."

"You worried about things you could not control, and now, you're going to die," her mom snapped.

"I can control it!" she shouted. "And I'm not going to die."

They stared at each other in silence for a few moments before Summer's shoulders slumped.

"Where are the twins?"

"They don't want to see you," her mom said flatly. "And frankly, neither did I. But I decided that someone ought to see you off."

The door opened again, letting another young woman into the room. Summer smiled slightly when she saw her. It was Priscilla. Her long black hair was in a braid that hung over her shoulder and was tied with a white ribbon. She wore a white dress with little blue flowers patterned across it, and her long eyelashes were wet with tears.

"Cilla," Summer breathed, and then pushed past her mother to embrace her girlfriend. She'd told Priscilla her plan the evening before, when Summer walked her home. Priscilla was upset, but ultimately, she'd understood. Summer had never felt for grateful for her then she had in that moment.

But now, Summer felt even more grateful. Her mother wouldn't make a scene in front of Priscilla, and Summer needed her girlfriend's support.

Mrs. Enderro whipped around to stare at Priscilla, who ignored her boss and threw herself into Summer's arms instead.

"I can't believe you did it," she whispered.

"I had to do it," Summer replied. Priscilla nodded.

"I know."

"Summer!" her mother screeched. "Who…? What…?"

"Mom," Summer said slowly, taking Priscilla's hand in hers. "This is my girlfriend, Priscilla Whitehall."

"Girlfriend?" her mother croaked. "Whitehall? When—"

"We've been dating for a little over a year ma'am," Priscilla said, and Summer grinned, pride swelling in her chest. "I'm sorry we weren't able to be properly introduced sooner."

Priscilla had always been quiet and non-confrontational. She and Summer first connected when a manager was yelling at Priscilla for doing her work wrong. In fact, he'd been in the wrong, and Priscilla had stopped him from harvesting grapes that were far from ready. Summer had jumped in and fired him on the spot. Through their time together, Priscilla had grown more comfortable asserting herself, but she was still rather quiet. So having her stand up to Summer's raging mother so gracefully was impressive. But then again, her girlfriend was full of surprises.

Raina Enderro had been rendered speechless, so Summer turned her back to her and faced Priscilla instead.

"Cilla," she said. "In the time I've known you, I've been happier than I've ever been in my life. I love you with my entire being. Will you marry me?"

She dropped to one knee and pulled out the ring she had purchased. Priscilla and her mother gasped in unison.

"Yes," Priscilla said with a sniffle. "Yes, of course!"

Summer slid the ring onto her thin finger and then stood up, pulling Priscilla into a deep kiss. Her nerves, her mother, the dusty room she'd been shut in; all of it faded away. It was just the two of them.

But eventually, they had to separate. Priscilla placed a hand on either side of Summer's face and gave her a quick peck.

"You've got this," she said. "And you're going to come back to me."

"Of course I will," Summer replied. "Of course."

Summer's mother had left at some point during their kiss, and Summer couldn't tell how she felt about it. But that was something to process on the train, because Priscilla was leaving, and now Morrison was here.

Summer gave the old man a smile and a firm handshake.

"Thanks Morrison," she said. "I couldn't be here without you."

"You did good, kid," he told her. "You really do stand a chance. And don't worry about your mom and the twins. They'll come around, and I'll keep an eye on 'em. Priscilla will too."

"Thank you," Summer said. She pulled a hastily-scrawled letter out of her pocket and looked at it. She'd written it this morning, for her grandpa to read. His dementia was getting worse and worse, and he was starting to see Summer as her father. She hated it. She was not her father, and she never would be. But she loved her grandpa dearly, and he deserved to know what she'd done, even if it registered differently.

"Morrison, would you… would you deliver this letter to Nilo Enderro? He lives in a government home."

"I will," Morrison said, taking it from her. "Best of luck Summer." He gave her shoulder a squeeze and then stepped back out into the hall with one final nod.

Hey everyone! I just got off my third plane flight of the week, so I've had a LOT of time to write. And so, here is another chapter. I promise I'll stop bombarding you soon.

All three of these guys had romantic scenes, so I'd love to get some feedback on how, someone who has never been in a relationship nor been kissed, did with those scenes. And any other feedback is welcome too!

I'm a little too tired to come up with questions tonight, so...

Have a nice day, be kind to each other, and never stop reading!

- Fiona