MILLICENT "Millie" WATTS, 14
A few weeks earlier….
"How can you be so goddamn stupid Irene?" My dad yells at my mom. I don't know what she did to make him mad this time. Probably just breathed funny.
"Oh shut up Dexter. I got home late from fixing the telephone wires. There was a big accident. Excuse me for not fixing the perfect meal. At least the company likes me."
Both of my parents work for the local utility company in district 5. When I'm not needed at school, they drag me along with them, using me to help climb and fix what they can't reach. They've done this since I was about 7 or 8, never giving me an option. The one good thing to come out of it is that I actually like climbing. Especially on nights like this.
My parents keep bickering back and forth, neither side giving up. Their screams make me want to crawl out of my skin. I can't remember many days when they actually liked each other, but I also don't remember when their fighting started. Quietly, I open my window and jump to the ground, looking for my favorite tree. When I arrive, I make my way to the top and look out at the district around me.
I spot other people and make up stories about their lives. There's the Gallo family, who lost their daughter Bree last year in the games, which she almost won. I imagine that they are trying to pretend that everything in their life is still fine, but the pain of losing their daughter has to eat them up inside. But they won't let other people see it, always putting a smile on their face.
A girl around my age is walking away from a guy who is following her. I imagine that they are dating and just had a fight. He said something to upset her, like insulting her intelligence, so she's walking away while he tries to apologize and win her back. Will she forgive him?
Two friends stagger out of the local bar, unable to hold themselves up. I wonder what they are talking about. How did they become friends in the first place?
I sit in the tree for a while, breathing in the air around me until I know that my parents will be waiting for me, demanding to know where I went. The only thing worse than my parents yelling at each other? Both of them yelling at me?
Day of the reaping…
When Nettle calls my name, I hear my dad scream. "You have go to be kidding me. She's not allowed to go!"
My mom then speaks up. "Yeah right Dexter, like that will be enough to keep Millie out of the games. That's how it works! How did I end up with such a moron?"
They continue yelling at one another as I make my way to the stage, my head in my hands. I can't believe that my last memory with my parents will be of them arguing. Can't we just have one peaceful moment? One nice goodbye?
PEYTON LOCKLEAR, 17
A few weeks earlier…
After school finishes, I toss my backpack over my shoulder and run out to meet my friends, Pascal and Evan.
"Hey, I got one for you," I say. "Why did the student eat his homework? Because the professor said it was a piece of cake."
Most people roll their eyes when I crack jokes, but Pascal and Evan just laugh and laugh and laugh, as if they've never heard anything funnier in their lives. Pascal even doubles over and wipes a tear away from his face.
As we walk to work at the power plant, I see a mother with two young children, reminding me of my sisters, Sasha and Bea, when they were younger. They whack each other's hands and yell for their mom's attention. I remember when they would do that to my mom every single day. She's trying to carry a large object in her hands, but nearly falls to the ground. I tell my friends to wait for me as I rush over to her and pick up the object.
"You really don't have to do that," she says to me, but I don't listen.
"Nonsense, it's the least I can do. Where do you need me to go?"
She leads the way and I follow her to her home and drop off the box on her kitchen table. Before I leave, she gives me a hug and some change. I refuse to let her give me the money. My family isn't poor by any means, but we aren't particularly wealthy, either. Besides, she clearly needs it.
Eventually, I make my way to the plant, where my boss is standing right by the front door with her arms crossed.
"You're late," she barks at me.
"I know, but only by a few minutes. I needed to help someone with—"
She puts her hands in front of me to shut me up. "How many times have I told you to not worry about other people and focus on yourself? How do you think I became the head of this place? By helping others?" She cackles then and points to my station. As I work, I make sure to help the people next to me whenever they have problems they can't figure out.
I wasn't raised like that. My parents always emphasized the importance of helping others, and I didn't have a choice when my parents worked nights at the local hospital and the local orphanage, so I always had to take care of Sasha and Bea. But I never saw it as a bad thing. Not once.
Day of the reaping…
Hearing my name called at the reaping comes as a surprise. It takes a second for me to realize the gravity of the situation. I imagine that my sisters are crying in the background, and I can hear my mother scream, "NO! YOU CAN'T TAKE HIM! HE'S MINE!" As I make my way to the stage, she tries to run to me, but the guards shove her to the ground, muddying her dress.