[[Wow, Jeez, sorry that one was late, lists excuses. Also sorry if this one isn't as exciting or thrilling as the last two chapters, I feel so bad but I just wasn't feeling these characters, even though Soren is amazing. I'll get better don't worry. Anyways hopefully excited D4 from me in a week on Monday... Hopefully]]

District 3

Girl-Kseniya

Yup that does it, I'm bored. I can't stand another second of this sitting and waiting. Even on Reaping Day, the most exciting day of the year, I'm still so bored.

Have patience they say. Just relax a little they say. Take some time to smell the flowers they say. I just can't though. It's not who I am.

Since couldn't go back to sleep I was just sitting there on my bed at this ungodly time in the morning. I guess I was too nervous or something, I don't know, but I couldn't do anything about it and I couldn't go back to sleep. So I just sat there. I flicked on the TV. They were playing a condensed rerun of the last Hunger Games, the 63rd, like they do every year during the Reaping.

I watched mindlessly but it didn't pass the time any faster. See my family is better off than most in this poor district so we have nicer things like televisions and showers. We make clocks though. It's boring as heck but everyone needs to tell the time. Sometime they are ornate ones for the capitol with tricky wiring and loud colors and other times its simple nonelectric clockwork for the lower, poorer districts.

My parents always wanted me to be a clock maker too but it's too boring. I want to have fun- do something that people will remember me for. Of course in their eyes that makes me a big disappointment. They want a daughter that can strengthen the family name, to make them proud- basically not me.

Finally I look over at the clock and see that it's almost the time I should be going. I take a quick shower and pull on a pretty, new, yellow dress. I have a quick bite to eat downstairs and finally walk out of that godforsaken house. I'm pretty early but I don't really care.

"Kseniya!"

"Kseniya!"

Thalia and Thorisa, my best friends since forever, tackled me from behind. "You know, even though you have like a hundred clocks in your house, you're still late!" Thalia said finally letting me go.

"Yeah right, you guys are ridiculously early, it's still before 10," I say. It was true, like I would be in that house for any longer than I had to be.

"Tell it to my watch!" said Thorisa shoving it in my face. I pushed her arm back. I could see the watch just fine when it wasn't two inches in front of my face. It was old looking but it had random new parts stuck on it that really shouldn't have been there. Even though I can't stand to be a clockmaker my parents still lecture me about it and that wasn't really the best of watches.

"Did you make that yourself?"

"How did you know?" she asks looking at it quizzically, like she had forgotten she had put her name on it.

"Because it's broken" Right on cue spring popped out pushing some gears out as well.

Thalia laughs, "You should just stick to product testing!"

Thorisa pouts her lip out a bit, "Hey, I just need to brush up on my mechanics!"

"Yeah, sure" I say. Thalia and I exchanging a look, "Come on, we got to go meet Emben by the green!"

"Why so you can smooch him before the ceremony?" Thalia teases.

"Shut up"

…

As soon as I can see that tall dark hair boy standing by the park near the center of town I make a break for it. I run as fast as I can for him.

Nevertheless he hears me coming and braces himself for it and catches me as I hurdle myself at him.

"Gotcha" I say embracing him. Our faces are close and his deep brown eyes inches away from mine.

"More like I got you," he says. He leans down slowly and I go up on my tips toes-

"Grossss!"

"PDA!"

Followed by exaggerated barfing sounds from Thalia and Thorisa. "Do you guys have to kiss like every time you see each other? No 'Hello' or anything?" Thorisa groaned, it looks like she's gotten over her wristwatch failure.

I step back from Emben. I mean we have been going steady for a year now I guess we were getting kind of gross. "Fine" I stick my tongue out at her. "Let's go to our sectors. I'll see you later Emben!"

Thalia and I start walking over to the 16-year-olds sector but we realize that Thorisa wasn't following us. We turn around and see that she's just standing there, looking like a lost puppy.

"Don't you remember, I'm 17 now... I'm in a different sector…" How could we forget? For the last few years the Hunger Games had been scheduled before Thorisa birthday, but this year it was after. Thalia and I ran up and hugged her.

"Don't worry none of us are going to get reaped!" I say trying to console her. She nodded, we were all pretty optimistic. The real tragedy was that she wouldn't have anyone to talk to during that boring capitol movie.

Thalia and I giggled silently to each other and made faces at Thorisa and Emben during the entire ceremony until the crowd got really silent. That meant they were picking tributes.

Our capitol escort was Danishga Dorthat. She was bubbly as every with her neon green and pink hair and her yellow polka-dot dress. She was pretty bubbly and excitable like Thorisa or Thalia but for the wrong things, like the Hunger Games…

"And now, for the female tributes!" the town center echoed… Please not Thalia or Thorisa

Thalia and I held hands. Yes were knew it couldn't be us but still it was nerve racking.

"Kseniya Wallace!"

Thalia's grip tightened.

She had said my name. I lost all feeling in my legs and I stumbled up to the stage. This can't be happening. Everything was silent I could hear the blood pounding in my ears.

From the stage I could see everyone, my parents who didn't really look all that sad that their daughter was just sentenced to death; Emben, still in disbelief as to what just happened; Thorisa, Thalia who both had streams of tears running down their faces.

But trying to look on the bright side of it, this was it. I finally could prove myself to everyone.

Boy: Soren

"You know, everyone's talking about the Hunger Games today, why isn't anyone talking about the fact that the monarch butterflies are migrating?"

I was laying on a blanket spread out on the green near the center of town. My friends were surrounding me looking up at the sky talking about random topics. We always got there super early on Reaping Day before people started filling the town center so we still had our reaping clothes on. But now, sadly, we were starting to get into the deep subjects, as always before the Hunger Games.

Next to me Crystal snorted, "You are such an ADHD child, Soren"

"Yeah come on Soren, don't weed your way out of it, we were talking about our families," said Hinge, "Stay on topic,"

I sighed, "Right, right, my family…" This was a tough one. They were all my friends, but what could I say, that I killed my own mom?

Yeah everyone says it that one of the furnaces exploded in the factory, but I really knew what set it off. She had brought me into work that day when I was 10. Seven years ago, it seems like a lifetime. But I was tinkering around with things, as I did, but something happened. I messed something up, I know it. The machinery broke and with red hot, chunks of metal being shot out in a factory, you can guess what happened. The factory blew up. I remember before though, she told me, "Run Soren! Go as fast as you can! Get out!" and I did. I ran. I didn't even think to help her get out, to make sure that she got out safely. But before I knew it…

Kaboom.

I cough, "I would really miss Festus. You know, my little brother."

Stuart sat up, "You have a little brother?"

I went up on my elbows to look at him "Yeah, dude, I talk about him all the time." I lay back down and sighed, "I can't live without him. He looks up to me, you know?"

Nash scoffed, "I wish I could feel that way about mine"

"You learn to love them eventually; sometimes it takes longer with others. You just have to hope that you can appreciate them before they're gone," I sigh. Festus was 12 this year meaning he'll have to have his name in that glass jar. His chances are slim, but it just makes me a bit worried.

I'm not really listening to the chatter anymore- my mind is too clouded- when I feel the warmth of someone's hand around mine. It's gentle but it still causes me to startle and sit up.

It was Kierra, she's still lying next to me but her eyes are big and sad, she was probably trying to console me or something. She's about to open her mouth to say something but I blurt out, "I-Uh-I gotta go"

"Where exactly?" someone says, but I'm too busying trying to hide that my face is turning red as I'm getting up. I was just trying to get out of there so I wasn't exactly coordinated and I trip on my feet.

I'm now about ten feet away from everyone, "You know… I gotta go". That was embarrassing. I don't like her that much and I've only met her this year, I mean she was my friend but I'm not going to hold hands or any of those things just because it's Reaping Day.

Some people just get so panicked on Reaping day, it's like, "Oh no, there's a one in thousands chance that I might get picked to die! I better do something that I would never do if it wasn't Reaping Day!" I'm pretty sure more people drown in their bathtubs than die in the Hunger Games.

I run into the shopping part of town and duck into any ally way. I mean they are good friends and all but I just wasn't really into the conversation. I take out the small screwdriver I always have in my pocket. If I press a button the head changes from Phillips to Flat, pretty useful. Out of my other pocket (My dress pants pockets are kinda big) I pull out this little gadget I've been working on. It looks a tad like a lady in a dress and I'm trying to rig it so that it lets out a note so high it breaks glass.

Sooner than I know it I see kids in fancy clothes making their way past the ally to the pavilion where the Reaping is going to take place. I stuff my things back in my pockets and head down to my age sector.

As always the ceremony is boring and I hate sitting still. I can't break out my screwdriver and tinker because I know the peacekeepers will confiscate it.

I try to talk to the kid to my right during the boring capitol movie but he just shushes me. Rude. Since District 3 is so electronics based, it's attractive to be smart and handy at electric work because that's what will get you a job and food. But I don't really care how smart or clever you are though, you don't shush me. Some of these people have no social skills.

I turn to my left to talk to the other kid next to me but he quickly whispers, "They're drawing for boy's names Soren, weren't you listening?"

I finally look up at the stage and a girl is up there in a yellow sundress with long light brown hair looking as pale as a sheet. She's a bit overweight which is surprising for this district, but I'm not one to judge- she's eating better than I am.

The Capitol escort, I can't believe that I didn't notice this before, had neon pink and green hair up in a way that it was a big bow on her head. Her clothes were equally bright with strikingly red heels. But what she said caught my attention the most,

"And the male tribute for District 3 is,

Please not Festus. I could see him over there in the 12-year-olds sector. He was idly twiddling his thumbs, so innocent and ignorant of what was happening around him. If only he could stay like that forever.

"Soren Chaseburg!"

Thank god it wasn't him. Wait, no…

A path cleared in front of me and I slowly walked up to the stage, my feet moving like a robot's. This can't be happening. As I go up the stage I can feel the entire audience's eyes on me. I can see all of my friends from school. I see Festus, he's confused, he doesn't really know what just happened. It gives me a big lump in my throat, who'll be there to protect him when him when I'm gone? I have to look away or I'll start crying or something and nobody wants to see that.

I stand still as the ceremony is closing with no volunteers of course. For the first time in my life I am a statue. I start straight ahead. If I even move I'll completely break down. I have to be strong. I have to win.