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004. don't want the world to see me ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
ESTHER BELIEVED SHE COULD HAVE DONE MUCH BETTER AT THE INDIVIDUAL ASSESSMENT. Finnick noticed how down the girl was about her performance when she returned, barely able to look the man in the eye from disappointment. All in all, Esther earned a private score of seven, whilst Finnick earned an eleven.
Just from her last games, she saw how much of a difference there was in competition, whereas she had earned a nine last time. It wasn't because her skills weren't good, but they weren't the best compared to the others, especially the careers pack and most of the older competitors. Being the youngest victor had its disadvantages. If she couldn't even score amongst the top five of the scores within the personal assessments, what would that mean for the games?
Without Finnick or her escort knowing, Esther managed to sneak out of their room, aimlessly roaming the halls of the training centre where all tributes stayed. Your room associated with your district, such as District 12 earned the penthouse of the building. Esther guessed it was because of the poverty the District suffered from back at home, giving the tributes something 'special' before meeting their inevitable death.
Esther was deep into her mind, almost seeing the flashbacks occur in real time, the people she had killed and lost appearing right before her eyes. She heard their yells, begging for her help, but by the time she reached them, they were already gone—becoming a faint whisper in the wind. The blonde hated how much her eyes frequently swelled with tears, although no one blamed her. For being sixteen and undergoing what she had to endure, it was torture.
"Thought I was the only one who walked these halls," said a voice, slightly knowing Esther out of her dazed state. A tear trailed down her cheek from how fast she spun around, coming in contact with Atlas. Once she became known of the fallen tear, she raised her hand hastily, wiping it before Atlas had the chance to see—yet, it was too late. Atlas tilted his head, holding the same composure as he did when first making eye contact with the girl back in the training room. "What was it—nightmares? Big brother too busy to tuck you in?"
Esther clenched her jaw at his taunts, her eyes narrowingly pointing towards the boy without realising, although she hadn't expected anything more from the boy from District 10. Atlas smirked at the growing annoyance in her expression, wanting to see what courage she had within herself. "What's it to you anyways?" She spat. "It's not like you care. You're probably rooting to be the one who kills me."
The boy shrugged his shoulders, inching towards the girl slightly, causing Esther to take a couple of steps away. Atlas's lips twitched up at the sight. "Good." Esther frowned, waiting for Atlas to explain further. "You don't trust easily. That's a good thing to have in here." Atlas sounded as though he was talking from experiences, although Esther remained silent. "One minute they're your allies, and then next ... they take the first chance they get to kill you."
