Chapter 2

When Gaston brought the food, he brought the food. I couldn't believe it. There was food I didn't even recognize. If I was going to die, I was going to live while I could. I began to drink something hot that felt like melted gold. Jack ate something that looked like gelatin cake. I ate chocolate that had something inside of it. Izabelle daintily wiped her now red lips with a napkin. I wiped my fingers on the tablecloth, earning a smile from Jack and a groan of disgust from Izabelle.

"You're a young lady, act like one."

I finished the drink.

Jack said sarcastically, "Well, we've never seen such a display of delicacies. We can't help ourselves."

North takes a quick swig from a bottle of Vodka and passes out. Izabelle said, "Well, in order for you to win, you have to know one thing."

"What's that?" Jack asked.

"Stay alive."

No, duh.

"What about the chariots?" I asked.

"What about them?"

Jack answered for me, "We're tired of being represented with bright colors mismatched together. We don't create the patterns, we create the clothes."

"Well, I'll have to talk to your designers about that then." She said without a hint of truth in her voice.

Eventually, Jack and I are left alone in one of the train cars.

He said, "I tried to talk to you two years ago."

"Huh?"

"Two years ago, when you lost your sister. I tried to talk to you at school, but you didn't say anything to me."

"What were you going to say?"

"That you were strong."

"How am I strong?"

"You lost everything but you still managed to live. You're incredible, Elsa."

"Thanks but…"

"I'm not done, Elsa. And then, you stand up for that little girl."

"That could have been my little sister before…"

"I know, and I'm surprised you did it for someone you didn't know."

"I wish I knew her a little better."

"She was my step sister."

"What?"

"Remember that person the yelled, 'Kai, no!'"

I nodded.

"That was me, trying not to have a panic attack."

That earned a laugh from me.

"So, that was your little sister?"

He nodded. I grabbed the chain around my neck.

"She gave this to me."

"Can I see it?"

I walked over to him and he examined the small snowflake charm.

"Mom gave that to her for her birthday."

"Jack I can't make it out of that arena alive."

"Elsa, why not?"

"I have nothing to live for."

"Maybe you just don't see it."

I then got angry.

"You take a…a walk in my shoes! I've lost my mom and dad to a reason I don't know, and my little sister to the Hunger Games, and I couldn't even volunteer for her! And then, there's people like you who have it so lucky and don't even realize it! I sacrificed everything for your sister!"

"If you can't see that I'm going to die too then maybe you really are blind."

I wanted to say something, but I could make no words. He was right. We were both in the same situation.

"I…I'm sorry Jack."

Then, tears start to flow from my eyes freely. I don't know why, but Jack wrapped his arms around me.

I then realize one thing.

Jack Frost loves me.

When we reach the Capitol, people are lining the streets, waving at us. North commands us, "Wave to the people."

I obey, knowing I have nothing to lose. Jack stand next to me and smiles and waves. The crowds burst into cheers. I see two children play fighting with swords and a knot develops in my throat. They don't know what they're doing. They think they're just reliving a TV show.

We're immediately brought into the eighth level of where we would be staying. The bigger number of your District, the higher level you are. I have a fear of heights, so I'm glad I'm not in District Twelve. Izabelle is now wearing a green and purple outfit complete with little birds on her wrists.

She says, "Well, Miss Winters, this will be your room." She points to the room on the right. "I'll retrieve you when your designers get here." She drops me off and shows Jack to his room.

I look around the room. It is very impressive and I'm surprised the lengths they go for comfort for people who will most like die in the Bloodbath. I pick up the remote on the side table and press the button. The entire wall changes from a city view to an icy haven, with frozen vines with drops on the end and a frozen waterfall. It's so beautiful. I take my hair down and let it tumble around my shoulders. I decide to try and look around everywhere. I find in the main room a queen size bed, a mini fridge, the bedside table, a microwave and some other things that I didn't have in 8. I walk into the bathroom and see a pure white toilet, a bedazzled sink, a line of white towels. The ice wall was in here too. Everything was absolutely beautiful. I had it exactly perfect. And that scared me. I was still in my simple blue dress and I knew it was about to stripped away from me.

I sit on the bed and wait, knowing there's not much else I can do. Izabelle eventually knocked on the door and said, "Darling, are you decent?"

"Yes."

She walks inside, wearing a yellow outfit, red lips, and pure white face makeup.

"Come on dear, your prep team is here."

"Prep team?"

"They prep you for your designer."

I don't want to know what "prep" means.

I'm led into a small room with a thing woman who I think has had about three too many face lifts. Her wild black hair is around her shoulders and her eyes and lips are painted a deep red. Her dress matches that color. Izabelle introduces her as Gothel. There's also a woman who is supposed to have horns. Her face is a tinted green, she wears complete black, and snakeskin covers her horns. Izabelle calls her Maleficent.

Gothel says, "Well, she's already thin, so we won't need much adjustment there. Maybe we could expand this area a little bit." She motions to my breasts.

Maleficent says, "No, I think we need to keep those the same. They conflict nicely with her thinness."

I suddenly really like Maleficent.

Izabelle says, "Jack's designer, Aster, is dying to meet you."

I say, "Well I haven't even met my own."

Izabelle laughs and says, "Ladies, prep her and both designers can meet her sense of humor!"

I'm instructed to strip off my clothes. Instead of acting sheepish and refusing, I just listen to them. I feel exposed to everything. They put me in a bath and exfoliate everywhere. Maleficent clips my choppy nails as Gothel washes and brushes my hair. My hair is soon smooth and let down around my shoulders. My nails have never looked better, and they've only clipped them.

Once I'm out of the bath, they put a soft white robe on me and I'm seated in a chair. Maleficent puts something hot on my leg, then puts a white cloth on it. Suddenly, she rips it off, pulling out my hair and my three layers of skin with it.

"Ow!"

"Sorry dear, I thought you would be used to it."

"We don't do this much in 8."

Both women nearly faint. Gothel begins to pluck my eyebrows. I hate this so much. My legs feel like spaghetti after Maleficent's done. My eyebrows feel sore. They push me up to a mirror. My eyebrows are much thinner and my hair doesn't look rough anymore. My skin is glowing, I think.

Then Izabelle walked in. "Elsa, you look absolutely lovely and Tooth hasn't even gotten a hold of you."

"Tooth?"

"Your designer, dear!"

As if on cue, a woman with pale skin, green hair, yellow feathers in her hair, and her outfit was obviously made to give her a hummingbird like appearance. Her teeth were perfect, her eyes were purple, and her eyelashes had glitter on them.

She says, "Are you ready for this?"

She's holding a zip up bag with my clothes inside.

"As I'll ever be."

She unzips the bag and I see the most hideous dress ever. It's very short, probably going to show 50% of my butt, sleeveless, is mainly white, but has a snowflake on the shoulder, and has white stripes leading from the side to about the middle.

Tooth said, "I figured, how do I represent an area about clothes with clothes? So I decided to go a little deeper and not focus on the District, but the people from the District. And it just worked out so well because Frost and Winters."

"I think I got it."

I can't stop staring at the dress. Tooth says, "Come on, I'll help you get it on."

She pulls me into the next room. She slides the dress on me and I'm correct. The dress is absolutely too short for comfort. She puts a pair of powder blue heels on me, which make me 2 ½ inches taller. My hair is put into the same style as on the Reaping, which I'm thankful for, and snowflakes are in it. My makeup is a deep blue that makes me look thirty years old. I feel hidden underneath all the makeup.

Jack and I meet by the Chariots. He looks at me with disgust.

"Elsa?"

"Yeah Jack?"

"Just making sure it was you."

"You look pretty hideous yourself."

He was put in a blue shirt that revealed his arms, and a pair of long blue pants. The Chariot is the most beautiful thing in the Arena. There are two white horses, which are harnessed with blue to our white and blue Chariot. The Chariot is decorated with bushels of blue and white roses.

Jack is instructed to get in, and then he offers his hand to me. I take it, but release it almost as soon as I get in. Izabelle chastises me.

"Elsa, no, no, no we need the romance! Everyone will love it. Hold one another's hands!" Jack grabs my hand. His grip is strong and I love it.

Tooth approaches me. "If anything weird happens, just go with it!"

"Wait, what?"

The Chariot takes off. 1 is a beautiful blond dressed in rubies and a brunette in emeralds. I want to look at the others, but I can't take my eyes off of that girl with the blond hair. She smiles and waves like she's enjoying this. I automatically hate her.

The horses trot along. Jack whispers, "Smile, they'll love it."

I put on my best superstar smile and wave to the screaming fans. They scream even louder. Suddenly, the Chariot began to change color. It was actually transforming. I touched the once wooden vessel, which was now made entirely of ice. I gasped, but continued to wave. Everyone loved it. Jack caught a red rose. Just as I was blowing a kiss, Jack put the rose behind my ear. I turned and looked at him. He kissed my lips, hard and true. I wanted to be angry at him. But I kissed back. The crowd went absolutely mad. Jack raised the hand we were sharing. He was good at this.

I see President Snow, with his striking blue eyes and snowy white hair. I continue to look straight ahead as I see even some of the grand high ones cheering. I'm still a little dazed from the kiss, but I convince myself it wasn't real. It was for the sponsors.

The Chariots turn and come to a stop, where we are supposed to get off.

When we reach the sitting room of floor 8, North, Izabelle, Tooth, and Aster are all watching the news report from Caesar, who this year has decided to be a crimson red.

Caesar said, "Look at District 8, it's absolutely incredible! Look at the Chariot! Is it…is it freezing? I have never seen a more magical display! And look at their clothes; I'm completely breath-taken! Oh…did he? Did he just kiss her?! It looks like we have a romance! I just can't wait to interview them! It's wonderful! Jack Frost and Elsa Winters are the tributes who changed 8!"

Izabelle squealed.

"This is fantastic!"

Jack said, "I think we got a few sponsors."

I just nod and walk into my room.

Soon, someone knocks.

"Elsa, it's Jack."

"Come in."

He walked in, sat by me, and said, "Listen, I'm sorry about the Chariots."

"Jack, I'm 99% sure I love you."

"You do?"

I nodded.

I kissed him. He said, "I love you Elsa."

"Give me you Jack."

"Of course."

What happens next? :) I'll update ASAP! Please review!