A/N: Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I was studying for my SATs (It's an American test to get into colleges, for those of you who don't know what that is). But anyways, here's the next chapter!

Lily smacks my head with a fluffy pillow. I groan, and pull the blanket over my head. I'm too tired for this. "What? Too early?" She asks, playfully. I groan in agreement. She shrugs, "Fine then. Go back to sleep." It's no use though. I'm up, and I don't think I'll be able to fall back asleep. She lays her head on my chest. I twirl a strand of her brunette hair on my finger. She really is very pretty. I think she kissed me last night, but that might have been a dream. I'm not really sure. Grant happens to choose that moment to burst into the train car.

"Well you two. Save some energy for the arena." I sit up and throw that pillow at him. But he dodges it skillfully. We both stand up, and Grant takes in our lack of substantial clothing - I'm in my boxers and Lily's wearing my shirt. "I bet you two had fun last night. Get changed quick. We have things to do today." Grant waits outside the car, and I think about changing in the bathroom to give Lily her privacy. She really doesn't seem to care that much, and just takes her - well my - shirt off, throwing it on the bed. She rummages through the drawers, and puts on a green shirt that matches the color of her eyes and a pair of short shorts. I've seen Annie's mother scold Annie for wearing clothes that short, but I guess Lily's mother doesn't care, or Lily doesn't care. I throw on some clothes - I don't really care what I wear. "There we go. Come on now, we're going to look at the other tributes that got reaped." Grant brings us into the lounge car that has a gigantic television.

"I really hope there isn't a lot of competition this year." Lily says quietly agree with her. I haven't really thought about killing people, but I guess I would if I needed to. Grant plays us the reaping clips: Districts 12, 11, and 10 have nobody special, as usual. Districts 10 through 12 seem to be the laughing stock of all the districts, since they never win. Twelve has had two victors in the history of the Hunger Games: One of Mags' friends named Ella who won the 12th Hunger Games, and Haymitch Abernathy- whose name I only know because he won the Second Quarter Quell. We learned about him in school. Apparently now he's a drunk guy. There's a few people who look possibly talented: A girl from District 8 that was a volunteer, a boy from District 6 that looks like he's all muscle, and a girl from 3 who doesn't even seen upset to be going into the arena. Both tributes from District 2 seem pretty scary though. Lily was right about the tributes from District 1: They're both thirteen years old, and look young. But I can tell that they're still lethal. They go to an academy to prepare for the games. That in itself is worrying. "Where's Mags?" Lily asks.

Grant responds, "She's still asleep. She's older. She needs her rest." The way he says it isn't condescending or rude at all, he's just stating a fact. "The only ones that stuck out to me were the girl from 8, the boy from 6, the girl from 3, and both from 2 and 1. The ones from District One really worry me. I don't think they'd let thirteen year-olds into the arena unless they were really good." I agree with him, and he makes a good point. I guess know who I need to keep my eye out for then. "You guys should just relax for a bit. Once you get to the Capitol it's going to get pretty stressful."

Lily and I do everything while doing nothing. We play card games, watch television shows, and just talk about everything. Except the games, and the future. That's not even a question whether or not to bring it up. We just don't. On the last night before we reach the Capitol, we just lay together, not ready to face our fate. "You know," she tells me, "I kissed you on the second night. But I don't think you remember. I'd really like to do that again." But this time, I initiate the kiss. I've never kissed anyone before, just because the opportunity has never come up. But this feels right. Her lips are softer than I had imagined, and taste like mint toothpaste. I think I'm doing okay, because I feel her smile into the kiss. When I pull away, she just grins at me, her cheeks flushed. "I think I liked that one better."

I laugh in agreement. "Me too." She curls up her tiny frame against me, and hums quietly of song song I've never heard of. "Has anyone ever told you that you're beautiful?" I ask her. Everything about her seems perfect, from her soft wavy hair to her full lips and bright eyes. Her body is perfect too: she's healthy looking and a little muscular. She places her soft hand in mine and shakes her head no. "Well you are." I say, and I kiss Lily's forehead. I lie awake for a while, but she drifts off to sleep fairly quickly. Her rhythmic breathing and the rise and fall of her chest makes me fall asleep in no time at all.

Mags comes in to the room, fairly early to wake us up. She doesn't make any offhand comments about Lily and I curled up, and I appreciate it. Mags just tells us to get dressed quickly, because we'll be in the Capitol train station in less than an hour. I put on my button down shirt from reaping day, and one of the pairs of pants I see in the drawers. When we pull into the station, the crowd goes wild. Tons of insane looking people - some look weirder than the ones in Juliette's magazines - line the streets cheering. I'm sickened. Why root for your favorite kids, if they're gonna die? I try to act happy for the cameras which must be somewhere, filming. The train goes through a glass tunnel, and I see the gigantic buildings that seem to touch the sky. It's like nothing I've ever seen before. I hate to say it - but the Capitol is breathtaking. We're escorted off the train and into the Training Center buildings. Ariel, Grant, Mags and I are staying on the 4th floor. That may not seem like very high up - the building goes to floor 12, but the tallest building back in Four is the Justice building. It has three floors, and a basement. District four is considered pretty wealthy, in comparison to the other districts, but our houses aren't large in height, they're large in how big the rooms are. The victor's village homes have two floors, which is a rarity.

The "apartment" isn't like anything I've ever seen. At home, my house is pretty big. But the living room area is about the size of half my house. There are tall ceilings, and big floor-to-ceiling windows, so we can see the whole Capitol. There's buttons and remotes for everything. "Isn't it lovely?" Ariel gushes, "And even though you'll only be here for a week, you get to live in luxury. And you get to see the Capitol!" I think I see Grant roll his eyes. Mags and Grant - they look much less enthusiastic to be here. Not that I blame them for that. Lily's rushed off to be made over by her prep team. Girls take a lot longer than guys to be 'Capitol-ready'. About an hour later, I'm brought downstairs to be washed and shaved by a prep team. I don't have any facial hair, and they let me keep all my body hair. I still have to strip down in front of them, and I think that's uncomfortable. They don't seem to mind as much as I do.
I soak in a tub with a green liquid, and then I'm introduced to a tale, pale man with bright pink spiky hair and thick black eye makeup. She introduces herself as my stylist, Celia. She sits me down on a chair. "Well, you're from District Four. And their specialty is fishing. So this year, it was pretty easy with what your costume should be. We're doing clothing that look like it's from the sea." She pulls out a rack. Celia shows me what I'll be wearing. They have me in what appears to be a plain white v-neck tee shirt. When I look closer, I see tiny ripples in the fabric. Like the ocean. There's also a pair of green pants that match Annie's eyes. Annie. I really miss her. "Like it?" Celia asks me. I nod and give her a small smile.

I see Lily about a half hour later. They put a lot of makeup on her. She still looks great, just in a different way. Her hair is in loose waves down her back. She wears the same color dress as my pants and it has that ripple pattern on her clothes. I feel eyes on us. "Why is everyone staring at us?" I ask her.

Lily shrugs. "We're dressed sort of normally compared to everyone else, but that's not it. And they're not looking at me. Finnick. You're hot. Accept it." I stare at her for a little, unsure how to react. Did she just call me hot? I never really cared about my looks. I am physically fit from fishing and swimming all the time, but I don't exactly have girls throwing themselves at me.

"They're looking at you." I tell her. Lily doesn't have time to respond, because we're shoved onto a horse, and the Tribute Parade begins. We're the fourth chariot. When the horses move, the clothes move with the wind. We look like the waves in the ocean. Lily and I smile and wave at them. When the chariots stop, I think I see the boy from 7 roll his eyes. President Snow makes a short speech about how courageous we all are, and Happy Hunger Games! Even though he's the most powerful man in the world, he seems untrustworthy, and just plain old evil. But then again, I guess the wealthy, extravagant Capitol citizens don't see him that way. They've never had to worry about being reaped. The chariots are brought out of the stadium.

Ariel, Mags and Grant come over to us. Ariel is gushing about how the crowd "simply adored us" and Mags just smiles supportively. Grant pats me on the back. The four of us, and Lily and my stylists have a large dinner after, with so many different types of food that I really can't keep track. I don't even know what half of the foods are. They're all delicious, and everyone seems to be enjoying it.

After dinner, I shower and change into sweatpants and some shirt lying around. I'm too stressed to deal with fashion right now. I walk into the living room, and see Grant on the couch talking to someone. I can't see who it is, but I can tell it's not Mags or Ariel. Grant runs a hand through his hair. "I'm scared to confront him about it- Yeah, but I can't keep doing this… I just can't deal with this anymore… I know, I know. I've heard that a thousand times… This is so screwed up… Don't hate me for saying this, but you got it lucky." I decide to walk into the living room. Grant sees me and nods, smiling. "Hey Finnick, come here. This is a good friend of mine."
I sit down next to Grant on the couch, and smile nervously at the man grant was talking to. He looks familiar, I know he's a mentor. But I can't remember who he is, or which Games he won. He looks a few years older than Grant, but very tired. "My name's Haymitch. I'm a mentor." Oh. That explains it. Everyone remembers the winner of the Quarter Quell. Haymitch turns to Grant. "Look, it obviously sucks. But the alternative is worse, trust me."

"Haymitch was explaining to me that it's easier to be a victor during the Games if you're in the Capitol, and not back at home." Grant explains, but he doesn't look me in the eyes. I can tell he's lying. I don't ask. Mentors are weird. District 4 is pretty kind to them, but from what I've heard, in other districts, a lot of people are scared of them. They have killed people. I was a toddler when Grant was in his Games, so if I've seen them, I don't remember. I can't imagine him killing anyone. Then again, I can't imagine Mags killing anyone either. There's never been a victor in Hunger Games history that's won a Games with clean hands.

"So, Finnick?" Haymitch asks me. He looks tired, and a little drunk. But he's nowhere near as drunk and crazy as everyone makes him out to be. "Do you have a strategy? Are you good at using any type of weapon?"

I shrug. "I know how to fish. That's because I'm from District 4. I know how to make nets and fire, using ropes for things, and I can use spears and tridents. I can use knives too, but I can't throw them."

Haymitch nods, thinking about something. He turns to Grant, "I've seen spears. I don't know about tridents. Anyways, If you could-"

Grant laughs, cutting him off. "Wrong place, wrong time. Finn, you should head to bed. It's getting pretty late, and you have training in the morning." I leave them alone. As I'm walking back to my room, I hear Mags and Lily talking in hushed tones about something. I guess nobody really has much to say to me. I think about what Grant said to me about Lily - about how she won't win. I wonder if he feels the same way about me. I don't think I could kill anyone. Just having to live with that seems really painful. I crawl into bed, and try not to think about the arena. Or the Hunger Games. I just try to get a good night's sleep. It takes me a while, and it feels like as soon as my eyes close, Ariel comes in, telling me in her over-enthusiastic voice that it's time to wake up.

I stumble blindly to the bathroom, and try to wash my face and comb my hair. I put on the uniform that all the tributes wear- Lily and I have a '4' on the sleeves of ours. I grab a piece of fruit called a peach - it's sweet and delicious and grown in District 11, and Ariel brings the two of us downstairs. Almost everyone is there already.

I look around at all the stations. I really don't want to make friends. I decide to walk over to knot-tying. The Capitol attendant tells me about different knots, but I don't really listen. I already know. When I was younger, I would teach Annie how to swim, and she would teach me how to turn knots into nets. Whenever I was impatient, or bored, or scared, I would just tie knots to keep my mind distracted. I decide to look at everyone else, and what they're doing. Both of the thirteen year-olds from 1 are throwing knives. They aren't that good. I wonder what they're good at, if anything. The girl and boy from 2 are talking to Lily and they're giggling about something by the weightlifting station. I wonder if she's going to join the Careers. The girl from 3 and boy from 6 are both and hand-to-hand combat. They're really good. I go back to tying my knots, and don't even notice someone sit down next to me. "I don't even know why they try to fight now. There's tons of time for that." I turn around, and the girl from District 8 is talking to me. She reminds me of Annie. I wouldn't be able to say why, but every girl reminds me of Annie. I'm not sure why. I tell myself its because I miss my best friend, but I don't know if that's the whole truth. "I'm Emily." She says.

I smile at her, looking up from my knots. She blushes. "I'm Finnick." I tell Emily. She seems nice. Training goes by quickly. During lunch, I decide I'm going to sit next to Emily, but Lily has other ideas.

"Finnick!" She calls my name, so high-pitched it hurts my ears. "Come sit with us." I take my tray of food, and sit down next to her. She's acquainted herself with the tribute from Districts 1 and 2. I go along with their conversation, nodding and adding half-hearted comments to make it look like I care. I don't want to make allies. There's only one winner.

I try to learn skills during training. When it's time for my private session, I go 8th. I throw knives, and make some ropes. At the end of my session, I use the trident to spear through some mannequins. They seemed pleased. I get a nine. Lily gets a six. We don't talk about it. The next day, Mags helps Lily with her "sweet" interview tactic. Grant decides I should do "funny and flirty". Celia, my stylist puts me in a pair of black pants and a blue-green button-down shirt. Lily goes before me. She's all smiles and giggles. I know she's not really like that.

Then, it's my turn. I shake hands with the famous Caesar Flickerman. Like every year, he's wearing a sparkly blue suit that matches the color of his hair. He introduces me, we talk about my time in the Capitol, and my high training score. "So Finnick," Caesar says, leaning forward in his chair, "Tell me. Is there a special girl back home?" I shrug. "Come on, you're a handsome young man! Not even that girl who yelled out to you when you were reaped?" The crowd cheers. Annie.

"Well, I guess. I mean if anyone, it would be her. That girl, her names Annie. And I really care about her. She means the world to me." The crowd goes wild. When I get off the stage, Lily grabs my collar.

"What the hell? Do I mean anything to you?" She asks me. "We've kissed - we actually kiss a lot - we sleep in the same bed for crying out loud! And you're strung up on some twelve year-old back home." I look around, and all the other tributes who are still waiting, are staring at us.

I sigh, leaning back on a wall. "Look, Lily. I like you. I really do. I've known you for what- a week? And this is a fight to the death. There's only one winner. Even if we were together, that would end because two weeks from now, one or both of us will be dead." I look over and see Haymitch clapping quietly. Lily shoots him a look. We say our goodbyes over dinner. Mags kisses me on the forehead. Grant tells me to kill it, no pun intended. Ariel simply says good luck. Late that night, I hear someone come in. It's Lily. She just walks over to me and kisses me.

"I can't sleep." She explains. "I need you."

I tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Lily - I have someone back home I really care about. I can't kiss you again."

She frowns. "Why do you care about that now? You might not even see her again. Besides, she'll never have to know." For some reason, she makes sense. And when she asks, "Make love to me?" I don't say no.

A/N: Did you like that? Reviews = love!

You should check out my other fic, Secrets. It takes place 8 years after this, and it's from Katniss' point of view.