All that I'm after is a life full of laughter
As long as I'm laughing with you
I'm thinkin' that all that still matters, is love ever after
After the life, we've been through
Felicity Blue, 18
District Four female
It's crazy to me that there is basically a whole world that we know nothing about under the surface of the water. It's dark, too dark to really take everything in and experience everything that the ocean has to offer, but that doesn't mean I won't try. Big adventures are kinda my thing.
"Lissy, come on. We can go out farther, we aren't even past the buoy yet," my best friend Rowan urges as he swims forward at a steady pace.
"Well, we aren't supposed to go past the buoy's, it's against the rules," our other friend Sara states.
"Sara, when have I ever followed the rules?" I ask her, diving under the water and swimming fast to catch up to Rowan.
Rules have never been my thing. If you always follow the rules, your life experiences wouldn't be as memorable. I don't have an authority problem, but my mom has had to get me out of a few fishy situations more than once. The way I see it, the world just has so much to offer. If you just stay in your little bubble all the time, you are certainly going to miss out. My mom doesn't seem to think that is an acceptable excuse, though. She is the secretary for the mayor here in District Four and she takes her job very seriously. I guess it works in my favor though because she has tricks up her sleeve that usually keep me out of trouble.
"We should probably swim back now, it's getting pretty late," Rowan says, sliding his blonde hair to the side of his face.
"Are you kidding? We'll be fine," I tell him, tugging on his hand and leading him farther out into the unknown.
"I'm not going any farther!" Sara screams over the loud roar of the waves. I shrug, and finally, stop swimming.
"Don't look so disappointed, Lissy." Rowan teases. He stops swimming and I can see are his eyes as he bobs up and down in the water. He is giving me a look.
"Sorry, I can't help it," I say, getting butterflies. "She is just really perfect. She is nice and sweet and when I spend time with her, she just makes me feel like we are alone, even if we are in a crowd full of people," I say. I look over my shoulder and watch her sandy brown hair head back to shore.
"Don't be so obvious about it this time, I don't want to see you get hurt again. Please just take it slow this time," Rowan says, treading water.
"I will, I promise. You won't have to pick up my broken pieces this time," I say smiling.
I guess you could say that I am a hopeless romantic. I just love love. There is nothing else in the world like it. I think it's beautiful how one thing can make you feel on top of the world and at your lowest. It's just really powerful. I have a habit of falling too hard, too fast. I have had my fair share of heartbreak in my eighteen years. No matter how hard I try or how much I give, no one has stayed. Rowan thinks that I just need to tone it down a bit, and just ease into things. He is probably right, I just have a really hard time pumping the brakes once I get going. This time, will be different.
"The last girl you had a thing for made your life a living hell, I don't want to see that happen again. Girls are crazy," he says.
"Tell me about it, that's why I lean more towards boys. There is something about her, though," I say smiling.
I have never had a problem at school, most people liked me for the most part. When you aren't rude and pretentious like a lot of the other girls at school, people tend to flock to you. The fact that I had a pretty supportive group of friends in school made coming out as bisexual when I was sixteen, that much easier. Of course, there were some people that picked on me, but that was to be expected. You can't please everyone and I am not going to waste this short time that we each get on earth pretending to be something that I'm not. There are so many better and exciting things that I can be doing than worrying about my sexuality and what other people think about me.
"You're so gross, the way you look at her makes me want to vomit," Rowan says, chuckling. "Well, you aren't going to get anywhere with her, swimming in the middle of the ocean," he says.
"I guess you're right, I should probably talk to her. Let's head back," I say swimming towards the shore.
We are swimming side by side, almost approaching the buoy when something brushes my foot. I let out a loud scream as it swims by again, brushing against my other leg.
"Something has me, this is it!" I scream, flailing my arms.
"Be still, don't panic!" Rowan grabs onto my arm and swims as fast as he can towards the shore.
When we get far enough away, we both pause and look back. Two dolphins jump out of the water and dive back in just as quick.
"Dude, you almost got mauled by a deadly, magical dolphin. You should have seen the look on your face," Rowan hold his stomach and falls down into the sand, laughing so hard that he can barely breathe.
"Shut up, you were just as scared!" I exclaim, laying back on the sand to join him. It get's quiet for a moment. He turns and looks at me.
"You know Lissy, there are plenty of adventures here. Plenty of things for us to do and more ways than you can think of for us to get in trouble, right here in District Four. You don't have to do this," he says looking away disapprovingly.
"I know, Row. But it's something that I feel like I need to do, and I don't really want to talk about it anymore." I say, rolling off of my towel and getting up. "I'm gonna go chat with Sara, catch you later?" I ask.
Rowan nods and I walk up the squishy soft sand, taking the ocean breeze in the whole way there.
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger
Stand a little taller
Roman Bentley, 17
District Four male
To me, there is nothing better than the sound of the seagulls flying overhead. The sound of their calls are almost relaxing and melodious to me. They just fly overhead enjoying the breeze until they see something that they want to eat, then they dive down and get it. That sounds like a life that I would be okay with living.
"Come on now, boy. You can tie a better knot than that!" my dad shouts from across the pier. I look down on the net that I am making and then toss it aside.
"I'd rather… not," I chuckle at my own pun. "Get it, knots?" I ask my dad, pointing down at the black string and half put together net.
"Oh Roman, just finish the dang net," he says suppressing a laugh and playfully smacking the back of my head. "Carlos and Sophia are up at the house waiting for you. The sooner you finish the net, the sooner you can go be young and dumb with your friends," he says giving me a knowing look.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm going as fast as I can pops," I say smirking at him. My dad walks away, back to his red fold out chair on the edge of the pier and begins fishing again. This is his favorite place to be and I can't say that I blame him.
Being near the water makes me happy, it's the only life that I have ever really known. Making nets and learning how to use the various different tools and weapons needed to keep a fishing business afloat has been my entire life.
I don't remember much from my childhood. That might be because I have purposely blocked the first two years of my existence out. Spending the first two years of life in an orphanage isn't exactly what I would call happy memories. I don't remember much, but I do remember the lack of touch and love that a young child needed. I remember it being cold in there and my mom says that is probably why I like spending so much time outside now.
The day after I turned two, my parents adopted me. I was still too young to have vivid memories of what it felt like to finally have a home, but what I do remember is that there was never a lack of love or affection ever again. Ever since then, my parents and I have been extremely close. There isn't a day that goes by where I fail to let them know how much I appreciate everything that they did for me. They have taught me everything that I need to know to be successful living in District Four and they did it with love.
"Are you almost done, the sun is about to go down. You're running out of daylight!" My dad calls from over his shoulder.
"Perfect timing! Carlos, Sophia and I are going to a bonfire down on the beach," I tell him as I tighten the last knot on my net and head up to the dock to put it with the rest of our supplies.
"Be careful, Roman, I mean it. Stay out of trouble," Pop says crossing his arms. His fishing pole wriggles and he stands up quickly.
"Bye, Pop!" I yell, jogging the few yards from the water that it takes to get to our house. When I get there, Sophia and Carlos are gone and my mom is sitting at the kitchen table. She has her arms crossed over her chest and the house phone is in the middle of the table.
"Where are my friends?" I ask her, sitting across from her.
"They went on ahead to the bonfire, you can meet them in a little bit. I need to talk to you. Your teacher called today," she says rolling her eyes.
"Crap.. what did she have to say this time?" I ask her.
I do very well in school, don't get me wrong. I am a very smart kid and I pride myself in that. However, most of my teachers would describe me as being loud and rowdy. I have never had a problem making friends, so moving me around doesn't help much. They call it being disruptive, but I call it making the learning environment more fun. All my life, my mom has been getting calls from my teachers.
"Just that you were very loud yesterday and you told one of your fellow classmates to stop being a prick," she said shaking her head.
"Mom, we were messing with cactuses. Prick. It's funny," I tell her, laughing at my own joke, again.
She tries to hide her smile, but she fails and bursts out with laughter. She rises from the table and ruffles my hair.
"Go catch up with your friends, Cora." she says.
I stare at her waiting for her to realize her mistake. When she finally realizes what she just called me, she stops dead in her tracks.
"I'm so sorry. I was just looking at pictures of her with Sophia, she is still heavy on my mind today," she says, a sullen look spreading across her face.
"Don't apologize, momma," I tell her giving her a hug.
Cora was my little sister. She was born when I was only eight years old. She was the apple of my family's eye, including mine. It was nice to know that I wasn't alone anymore. Cora was smart and so adorable, I remember being so obsessed with her and being so excited to teach her how to swim.
When she was two, she got sick. Since her body was so little, it didn't take long for the illness to win. She passed away three months after they first found out she was ill. My parents handled it just as any other parent who lost a child would for the first few years. They realized that I still needed them though and turned their anger and pain into more love and appreciation for me. We started spending more and more time together. I will always wonder what if, but I refuse to live in the past.
"Run along, Roman," she says, kissing my forehead.
I change into my swim trunks, and head out the door to go meet my friends at the bonfire.
Thinkin' 'bout the better times must've been outta my mind
So I'm runnin' back to tell you
All that I'm after is a life full of laughter
Felicity Blue, 18
District Four female
"You know that your mother would not be happy about you being out this late at night, Lissy. It's dangerous," Saundra says, brows furrowed.
Sandra is one of the many helpers that we having living with us. I'm closest to her, though. She is basically my second mom. It's not that my mom doesn't love me because she does, it's just that her job requires her to be gone for long periods of time and I never see her. It's nice to have another woman around that I can talk to about things.
"I'll be back before you know it. The reapings are tomorrow and I really need to talk to Rowan," I tell her, tightening my red ponytail.
Saundra nods, giving me the okay to leave so I head out into the night. I love wandering around at night. It's peaceful and all the hustle and bustle has finally died down by now. I have always had somewhat of a short attention span, so the dead of night is when I focus best. I love walking along the water and just looking up at the stars. This has been a nightly routine for me since I can remember.
Rowan and I are supposed to meet at the boardwalk to talk about a few things, but he is always late. If you think I am a troublemaker, you should spend a day with him. He is always getting into something.
I walk to the boardwalk and sit down on a bench that sits directly in front of the now still Ferris wheel. It looks different with all of the lights turned off.
"Boo," Rowan covers my eyes with his hands before walking around to join me on the bench.
"What took you so long? You had me thinking that the Peace Keepers got to you," I tell him.
"Excuse me, Lissy. It's the middle of the night and most people are sleeping at this hour, including me!" He exclaims.
"The reapings are tomorrow," I tell him, looking out at the waves colliding with the shore.
"You mean today, in five hours to be exact," he states, avoiding eye contact. "Please tell me that you have changed your mind," he says, fear in his voice.
"I'm sorry, but I just feel like this is something that I really want to do, I think that I have what it takes. You have to believe in me on this one, Row," I tell him. "Please don't be mad."
"I am not mad at you, I'm just concerned and a little upset. Our life is so great here, why change it?" he asks.
"I have the opportunity to make my life better though, Rowan. For all of us, and it would be a crazy adventure in the process," I say smiling.
"Lissy, you can't even kill a fish, you would be live bait in there," he says, playfully punching my shoulder.
"It would definitely be tough, but I can overlook the fact that I will be killing people," I say.
"Whatever you say, Lissy. Have you heard from Sara?" He asks, changing the subject.
"Not a thing, but I'm not upset. I didn't like her that much anyways," I lie.
"Yeah, Whatever. You would love a potato if it loved you back," he jokes.
Everyone thinks that one day, Rowan and I will wed. It's not going to happen, though, we just don't see each other that way. He is my best friend in the entire world and I love him more than anyone, but just not in that way.
"Who is there?!" A voice shouts from the darkness. All of a sudden, Rowan and I are blinded by a bright light.
"Shit, Run! I will see you later at the reapings. I love you, Lissy," he says pulling me in for a quick hug before we both spring our separate ways.
I run through the night, back to the safety of my home, thinking about what the morning will bring the whole way.
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, stronger
Just me, myself and I
Roman Bentley, 16
District Four male
"You look great, Roman. Stop worrying." Sophia says. She is sitting on the floor in front a floor length mirror in my parent's room, curling her long black hair.
"I don't care how I look, it's just the whole idea of it. It scares me," I say, picking at my nails.
"Well, odds are, neither of us will get picked. Have you ever taken out tesserae?" She asks me.
"No, Why would I?" I ask. "I live a very comfortable life here, and my family provides more than enough food. It's just the whole picture that I have in my head of what it would be like to actually be in the arena. I don't like it," I tell her.
She finishes curling her hair and cleans up the mess sprawled out in front of her before sitting down next to me on the couch at the end of the bed.
"We're gonna be just fine, let's go join Carlos and your parents and eat breakfast. It's going to be a long day," she says.
My mom has pancakes, waffles, and fresh fruit on the table. Carlos and my dad are already digging in when we sit down.
"What took you so long?" Carlos asks, winking in my direction.
I kick him under the table. Sophia is my best friend, nothing more. Carlos won't let it go, though. He thinks that something is going on and finds any excuse that he can to make us uncomfortable.
"Sorry, I was up there rehearsing my speech to finally win over you mom," I tell him.
"Ooh, good one. You're usually good at comebacks, that was weak. I'm disappointed," he says, shoving a forkful of pancake into his mouth.
"Enough you too, we have to get going. I'm grilling some fish for lunch when we get back," my mom says.
I finish my food and straighten my blue tie, and head out the door with my friends.
I've never seen so many scared and nervous faces. The crowd is moving fast, getting everyone to there rightful place. I stand with the other sixteen-year-old boys, Carlos to my left and we both don't really know what to say, so it's just quiet. The Escort bounces across the stage on what seem to be some sort of moon shoes. He is wearing a neon blue suit, paired with a starfish tie. Clever. His hair is the same ugly yellow color as the starfish on his tie.
"Welcome to the District Four reapings! My name is St. Bart and I am so excited to see who will be representing us this year in the games!" He yells into the microphone.
"Let's get right to it!" He bounces over to the girls bowl and fishes out a slip of paper.
"Lana Rawlins!" He shouts.
"I volunteer as tribute!" A voice comes from the eighteen-year-old girls. A girl with reddish hair and bright green eyes stands there, almost as if she is regretting what she just did. She seems to get it together fairly quickly and walks up to the stage with a smile on her face.
"Oh, would you look at that, a volunteer!" The man says. " Do you have anything that you would like to say?" He asks her.
"I am really excited to bring my district respect and for the adventure that I am about to embark on," she smiles into the camera.
"How charming, What is your name?" He asks.
"Felicity Blue, but you can call me Lissy," she takes a step back as if to say that she wouldn't like to speak anymore.
"Onto the male tribute!" He says, bouncing across the stage once more.
"Roman Bentley!" He says.
My knees get weak and Carlos steadies me. I feel like I am going to cry, but I refuse to let all these people see me as weak so I keep it together. I can't believe it. Out of all the males in the district, my name is chosen. I walk up to the stage and join my district partner but I don't wish to speak. I don't think I could if I tried. The escort it talking, but it sounds like I am underwater, I don't want to go. They lead us into a building and close the doors.
Now it's up to me.
Hey faves. :P
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I honestly had so much fun writing this one. There were so many water and ocean puns and it was just so fun. I also really enjoy these tributes. Thank you to FabulousAbby and Z-fun2001 for submitting.
Hopefully the district five reapings will be up tomorrow night, but don't hold me to that. Or do. I won't tell you how to live your life.
If you haven't checked it out yet, my best friend Caleb and I are writing a Collab on his page called Thunder and Lightning. You should read it. :) I'm posting once a week over there until he gets back from Australia. It hasn't even been a full week yet, and I just miss my bestie so much xD
Anyway, let me know what you think.
Favorite so far?
What is your favorite candy? :) (Just for fun.)
XOXO
Jenna.