The Girl With The Shimmering Smile

The Private Session

TW for minor sexual assault in the first paragraph! Feel free to skip it if you have a hard time with the subject. 

I woke up gasping for air. It was only a nightmare but I felt sick to my stomach. I hated how most of my dreams were about old men touching me. It had happened a few times back home. I had only laughed at it and tried to find an excuse to leave. This was my chance to never go through something like that ever again. When I win they'll respect me. They will be scared knowing what I'm capable of. Winning The Hunger Games was my ticket to finally have some control of my own life.

The next time I woke up was much more peaceful. Ruby had knocked on my door telling me it's time for breakfast. I slowly got up from the comfortable bed and walked towards my closet. I got dressed in the training uniform we always wore. It's nothing special but I liked how.. normal I looked. I braided my hair in a fishtail braid. It was my favourite hairstyle but mother usually didn't let me have my hair up. It's much prettier to have it let down, she said. But there will be no cameras today. It will be me and the gamemakers, and I can do whatever I want.

I entered the living room and saw everyone waiting for me. I gave them a smile and asked how everybody was doing. They all looked pretty stressed and Marvel didn't even crack a joke like he usually does. Poor boy must be really stressed out. I sat down and had some eggs with a glass of orange juice. I wasn't really hungry and I knew it had something to do with the mood in the room. I awkwardly poked on my egg with a fork. Marvel had about four plates with different dishes so at least there's nothing wrong with his appetite. I saw how Gloss gave Cashmere a silent look. They spoke to each other without any words, this can't be good. Cashmere cleared her throat which made everyone's attention turn to her. "So Glimmer. You will be using the bow in there like we talked about yesterday" she said. I reluctantly nodded and Gloss started talking. "Marvel, you will be using the spear. Make sure you hit the targets in the heart or the head. You can't afford to miss". Marvel nodded enthusiastically but I saw how he got a little paler. I made a mental note to talk with him later, making sure he knows he can do this. I might have hated him before but he's been so kind to me since we came to the capitol. Not like the stupid jerk he was back home.

We said goodbye to our mentors and entered the elevator. District 1 always has their apartment on the first floor so it didn't take long until we entered the training center. I stepped out and started walking towards the waiting room. Marvel and I were the first ones to arrive. Good, I needed some alone time with him. I sat down on one of the benches and gesticulated for Marvel to sit down with me. He smiled and immediately sat down. I leaned my head on his shoulder. They were much more muscular than they looked. "Hey Marvel.." I started carefully. "Mm yeah?" he said and turned his head to look at me. "You know you can do this right? I've seen you with the spear, you're extremely good" I said. He looked at me and cracked up in a genuine smile. "Hey you're not so bad yourself princess. At least not with the weapons you like". He almost whispered the last sentence and I knew what he wanted me to do. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the comfort of having him close to me. That was until the door flew open and Clove stormed in. I jolted from Marvel's shoulder in pure shock. She looked mad as hell. Moment ruined thank you Clove. I felt my nervousness coming back. A few seconds later Cato walked in. He looked almost as angry as Clove did. Maybe they had a fight? I waved to them but none of them looked at me. Slowly the other tributes started dropping in. It started to get real and I still wasn't sure if I should do what Cashmere told me or what my heart told me to do.

They called out my name first. I stood up and Marvel gave me a quick squeeze to my hand. It was enough to make up my mind. He believed in me. I hope Cato didn't think Marvel and I were a thing or else my plan would be completely ruined. I walked through the doors and was greeted with an enormous room. It had all kinds of weapons and targets. I looked up and saw a little pink room with all the gamemakers. They were eager to see me as I was the first one up. I took a deep breath and started walking towards the weapons. I picked up a mace and also hid a knife in my shirt. The gamemakers gave me a clear and I walked up towards them. "Glimmer Belcourt, district 1" I said while giving them a wink. They looked pleased with it so I started walking towards the stimulation. It all started to become a blur after that but I remember how I had started the simulation. The targets came from everywhere but I slung my mace and hit every single of them. I had to duck and throw myself on the ground in order for them to not hit me. This simulation was not a toy. I'm glad I hid a knife in my shirt since I had to use it on the last target. I finished "him" by stabbing it right in the heart with my knife. It felt good. I felt powerful for the first time in my life. A rush of adrenaline pumped through my body and it felt like I could do whatever I wanted. I looked up where the gamemakers had been watching me and they looked down at me with pleased looks. I thanked them and was dismissed from the room.

Later that day we all sat together in the living room. It was time to release the scores. Marvel had looked very pleased when he got back to the apartment. I'm sure he did great. I decided to not tell Cashmere about my change of weapon. I didn't want her to lose her trust in me. The host of Hunger Games, Caesar Flickerman, appeared on the tv. We all held our breath and I took Marvel's hand in mine. He gave me a smile and squeezed it. "As you know, tributes were rated from the scale 1 to 12 after three days of careful evaluation" Caesar began. This is it. This score is going to change everything. Sponsors are going to want to interact with you and sponsor you if your score is high. Usually the careers score somewhere between an eight and a ten. "From district 1... Marvel, with the score of nine" Caesar's voice echoed. I saw how a big smile started to form on Marvel's face. A nine is a really good score. I gave him a long hug before it was my turn. I felt hopeful. It went very well in my private session. "From district 1... Glimmer, also with a score of nine". I felt how Marvel gave me a hug but I was shocked. I thought I at least deserved a ten. Maybe they didn't like the fact that I used a mace instead of the bow. A nine is a really good score, but I literally smashed it in the private session. Our mentors started gratulating us both but we soon got quiet to hear what score the other tributes received. I heard Caesar giving both Clove and Cato a ten, that's good. We have a really strong pack this year. Marina received an eight. The girl from five got a five. Thresh received a ten. That's bad. He's definitely our biggest threat. Rue got a seven?? How on earth did she get such a high score? I wasn't too worried though since she would be very easy to kill. The boy from 12th, Peeta, received an eight, probably for his strength. Finally Caesar was about to give the last score to Katniss, the girl from 12th. They called her "the girl on fire". Such a dumb nickname. Maybe I'll burn her in the arena so she's really on fire, it would be kind of poethic. "And finally.. From district 12.. Katniss Everdeen. With a score of... eleven". Are you kidding me? How did she even manage to get an eleven? They never gave anyone higher than a ten. Forget Thresh, I will kill this girl with my bare hands if I have to.