Chapter One: Keep Pandora's Box Closed

One Day Before Reapings

Nascar Galluci, District One Male

"Nascar? You OK?"

I'm sitting on a bench outside the academy with my best friend, Peridot. All I want to do is kill time until Dolores and Luz come out.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just kind of dizzy."

"Well, you have every right to be dizzy after being selected."

The word selected causes doubt to rush through my brain at top speed. "I already told you, I can't do this. I'm not good enough to win."

"Then why would they select you? Do you know how many eighteen-year-olds would kill to be in your position? Literally?"

Before I can answer, the doors to the girls' side of the training facility open, and everyone comes pouring out, including Dolores and Luz, who walk over and sit down next to the two of us.

Before I can shush him, Peridot blurts out the one thing I don't want him to say. "You two are looking at the selected boys' volunteer for the Ninety-Fifth Hunger Games!"

Luz smiles. "Congratulations, Nascar!"

I'm already pale, but I go even paler after that compliment. Great. Now I have three friends who know I'm supposed to volunteer, and who probably are going to kill me if I don't. Sure, Dolores wants to be able to volunteer next year, but still, that's next year. I only have one day. And with my luck, I won't be around to see Dolores compete.

All I can think to ask, however, is "Who got picked for the girls?"

Dolores speaks up. "Some chick named Clara. She's eighteen, and honestly, I think she's in your league…"

"No! I already told you guys this, but I do not want to go there! I can barely handle all the relationships I have now. The last thing I need to add is a girlfriend." That's a bold-faced lie. There are other reasons I don't want a girlfriend, but I'd rather keep those to myself.

Dolores begins to talk again. "My friend Amber is hosting a big party tonight to celebrate the Games. Would you guys like to come?"

Luz nods, but Peridot and I shake our heads.

"I know there's going to be kids who train for the Games there, and I can't stand most of them," Peridot says. "Especially if there's going to be alcohol involved."

"Why? Most of them seem nice enough to me," Dolores says.

"They think I'm a weakling, remember? That I'm soft, just because I'm not like them. That's why I started walking home with Nascar every day: they wouldn't try and beat me up when I was with him. However, I don't want to take my chances with them when they're drunk."

I nod calmly. While I wish I'd been able to let my emotions run wild and beat them up myself, that wouldn't match the personality I show.

"I have to go see Garnet and tell him the news," I say, "Then I have to go home and take care of Merchandise and Jewel."

"Your parents out again?" Peridot says.

"Of course they are." I pick up my water bottle- the only thing I brought with me to training. "I should probably get going. See you guys at the Reaping tomorrow."

As we wave goodbye at each other, I try to force out the idea that this may be one of the last times I ever see them.

Five minutes later, I'm standing in front of Garnet's house.

Garnet is the only one of my close friends who isn't training for the Games. Given his personality, however, it makes sense.

I ring the doorbell, hoping someone will answer. Someone does. However, it's not Garnet, it's his mother.

"Oh! Hello, Nascar," she beams. "You looking for Garnet?"

"I'll assume he's in his room again?"

She sighs. "Of course he is. Do you want me to get him?"

"No, I'll come to him." Garnet may have some friends, but he's not exactly a 'people' person.

I walk upstairs to his room, where he's sitting on the bed reading, as usual. Unsurprisingly, it takes a few seconds for him to notice I'm there. Then, he finds a bookmark, sticks it in the book, and sets it aside before meeting my eyes.

He smiles at me, but doesn't say anything. This is pretty normal for him- he usually wants the other person to make the first move. He can't keep up a conversation very long on his own, so he just prefers to talk about whatever the other person wants to.

"Garnet, I was selected as the District volunteer today," I say.

"Wow! Just- wow," he says quietly. "I'm not a big fan of the Games, but I wish you luck."

"Thanks," I say with a plastered-on smile, "I'm going to need it."

"See you at the Reaping," he says. Sure enough, that entire conversation lasted less than a minute.

"You too."

I say goodbye to Garnet and his mother, and then head for home.

A short while later, I'm home.

As expected, neither of my parents are here. They're out 'running errands,' as Merchandise puts it, complete with ridiculously oversized air quotes.

This means I have to cook dinner, feed Jewel, my baby sister, make sure Merchandise has done his homework… the list goes on.

I'm a terrible cook, but I do know how to make frozen pizza, so I pop one in the oven and set the timer. After tossing a sorry mess of lettuce leaves and carrots together with bottled dressing of some kind to try and up the 'health' factor of the meal a little, I take the pizza out of the oven and pitch everything on the table.

"Merchandise!" I'm yelling down the hall, hoping he hears me the first time. "Dinner!"

"Coming!"

As Merchandise sweeps into the room, I take the bottle my mother left on the counter for Jewel, my baby sister, and begin to feed her. She's only a few months old, but she already looks like she's going to grow up to be a stunner- beautiful green eyes, already growing lots of brown hair, always smiling.

I just have to hope I'm there to see it, I think to myself as Jewel sucks down the last few drops.

I haven't told Merchandise the news yet, but I figured it'd be better to wait until both my parents are home. I only want to have to tell everyone once.

Sitting down at the table across from Merchandise, I chew on the haphazard salad I made, waiting for Mom and Dad to arrive.

It takes almost three hours, two of Jewel's dirty diapers, and one long battle with Merchandise over his math homework, but both of my parents are finally home from their 'errands.'

Of course, the second they're both home, they start arguing with each other.

You see, my parents can't stand each other anymore. They've been cheating on each other, each of them trying to one-up the other, for years at this point. I never had the nerve to ask what started it, but all I know is that the last three years have been hell for both of them. They do nothing but argue whenever they're together, but have never gotten around to just getting a divorce and making it official.

My father, Monarch, is staying remarkably calm throughout all this, but my mother, Sariose, is getting increasingly ticked, and starting to get into Dad's face. It's clear that this is going to escalate out of control, and I won't be able to stop it.

Unless I play my final card. I hate having to do this, but it's the only way I can stop their fighting.

Running into the kitchen, I grab a steak knife. Pointing it inward and making sure that everyone can see, I scream, "STOP!"

My parents stop for just a second and stare at me. Then they stare at the knife I have pointed at my own chest.

It feels like it takes forever, but they slowly back away from each other, the hate leaving their eyes. Then they turn away from each other, muttering obscenities the whole time. Slowly, and while making sure they're not going to start up again, I walk into the kitchen and put the knife back.

In spite of everything, I start smiling. I defused that bomb before it went off.

Usually, when the fighting between them gets so bad that even I can't stand it, I leave the house, taking Merchandise and Jewel with me, and wait it out at the house of my head trainer, Ferdinand, who knows about the craziness that goes on at my house.

Just thinking about him makes me feel awkward and weak again. Ferdinand's the reason I've never gotten a girlfriend. Despite being a much better father to me than Monarch has ever been for the past few years, I have a real and serious crush on him. I've never told him that, though, because I don't want to have that awkward conversation with my parents about my sexuality. And with the Games coming tomorrow, I'll likely never get the chance to profess my feelings to him.

However, now that my parents are relatively calm and not in the process of verbally assaulting each other, I can finally tell them the big news.

"Guys!" I yell down the hall, hoping everyone hears me. "I need to tell everyone something, and it can't wait until tomorrow."

Merchandise speeds into the room first. "Did you finally ask your girlfriend out?"

What is it with everyone thinking about me either having or needing to get a girlfriend?

"Merchandise, how many times do I have to tell you? I don't have a girlfriend!"

My parents enter together, glaring at each other, but keeping silent. Jewel, of course, is being carried by my mother, and rests on her lap as she sits down.

Once everyone is seated, I finally spill the beans. "I got chosen as the designated volunteer for the Games. This means I leave tomorrow for the Capitol. If someone else doesn't beat me to the punch, of course."

Jewel, obviously, doesn't seem to react.

Merchandise's mouth falls open.

My mother says nothing, her eyes wide with shock.

My father… he's a different story. He actually stands up and claps me on the back, saying, "That's my boy!"

Then, he pulls me closer, whispering in my ear. "I know you can do this, son. Make me proud."

My mother has overheard this, unfortunately. "Make you proud? How can he do that if he's going to die?"

Wow. Great way to improve my self-esteem, Mom.

However, I know they're going to start up again. It's too late to go to Ferdinand's, as he has a family to take care of as well. Instead, I just exit the room, grabbing Merchandise and Jewel on the way out, and move them upstairs where the arguing is muffled by the walls between us.

Even though it's only around ten o'clock, I go to my room, shut off the lights, and hunker down in bed, listening to my parents' muffled argument downstairs.

I still love both my parents, but living with them is becoming impossible given how terrible their relationship is. However, the Hunger Games, despite the fact that I think I have no shot, could be a blessing in disguise. If I win, it could be my ticket out of here. Not just for me, but for Merchandise and Jewel, too.

But, it's a make-or-break moment. These games will either save or slowly kill everyone I love.

Even though I'm nervous and scared out of my mind for what tomorrow will bring, for the sake of Merchandise and Jewel, I allow myself just the tiniest fragment of hope. Even as I go to sleep, my brain is screaming one thing:

I'll win this, no matter what.

For them.

Author's Notes:

-Sorry for keeping you waiting so long for the first update. I'm still in high school and the quarter closes this week, and a combination of tests, homework, and life got in the way. I'll try to have the next tribute out faster.

-You may have noticed I said tribute, singular. Yes, I'm only going to do one tribute at a time. This is to both speed up the amount of time between each updates and keep my chapter lengths fairly consistent. One of my major weaknesses with writing is that I am REALLY wordy, hence the fact I spent nearly 2,000 words on my first tribute without even getting to the Reaping. Therefore, I'm writing one tribute per chapter to introduce them individually, then getting the Reapings done all at once, and more as a compilation than an in-depth look (idea taken from Krystal Fox's The 71st Hunger Games: In Ruins, which was the first complete SYOT story I ever read and what inspired me to make one of these in the first place).

-Tributes are being done in the order that I got them. Therefore, the next three in line are the D12M, D1F, and D2F. Lined up behind them are the D2M, D3M, D10M, D4F and D4M. All other spots are available, and the form is on my profile! (However, if you didn't see in the prologue, I'm limiting the tribute count to three per author.)

-Thanks to 20 for Nascar. I really enjoyed writing his parents (maybe I have problems) and his opening conversation with his friends. Santiago also wrote the next two tributes that are coming up, but again, first come, first served.

-I'll try to get out the next chapter a little faster. Anyways, see you at Chapter Two- D12M.