Little slips of paper... boys and girls... blood... My nightmare had just begun. I am stranded on a platform in the middle if nowhere. A voice is telling me to run, but I don't know where to go, I don't even see whose voice it belongs to. All I see is the ground beneath me, covered in dark crimson red.
I open my eyes immediately and realize it was only a dream. My forehead and palms are covered with sweat. I've had these types of nightmares before, but around this time each year they get worse and worse.
I discover it is still dark outside, so I quietly get out of my bed and put on my sandals, deciding I need fresh air. My little brother wakes up and sits up as I am halfway out of our room. I tip toe over to him and rub his back.
"Shhh... Go back to sleep Brent."
"I can't," he whispers. "I'm scared."
"You shouldn't be. Tomorrow you get to get dressed up and look all handsome in daddy's old shirt, and-"
"B-but I may be picked."he interrupts.
"Brent, listen to me. Your name is in there once. We are lucky enough we aren't as poor as the others, where boys your age you have to sign up for tesserae and enter more than once." I don't want to see him like this. I can only imagine my father like this. His older brother was reaped when they were kids. Unfortunately, my uncle froze to death in the tundra arena years ago.
"Kaya, I don't want to lose you!" He sits up and hugs me tightly.
"Don't worry, you won't get picked. I won't either. My name is only entered five times. We are safe and sound, do you remember that song mom taught us when we were little?" I ask him.
"Yeah, can you sing some of it to me?" he asks hopefully.
"Just close your eyes, the sun is going down. You'll be alright, no one can hurt you now. Come morning light," I stop for moment, hoping he remembers the last few words.
"You and I will be safe and sound." We sing together. He smiles and closes his eyes, probably with a sense of security. I kiss him on the forehead and leave.
It must be midnight, so there is no point of going back to sleep, so I wander off to the beach. My best friend Elliot and I found a secret spot on the beach, which is our secret spot. The electricity fences near the water around district four are almost never on because the peacekeepers don't want to risk the water to accidentally touch the electricity. This spot is never used, because there are no fish to fish for in this area, which means there are no peacekeepers strolling along. If we were to get caught for trespassing, we would probably be whipped, or even killed. As long as no one finds out about this place, it is our safe haven.
As I make my way down the path to the beach, I pass the justice building, where peacekeepers are starting to set up the cameras and lights for tomorrow. I turn away and decide to cut through a small forest to get there.
When I lay my eyes on the calm waves, I sit on the cool, soothing sand. I look up at the stars. I start to drift off into a daydream where there is a world without sneaking around, without people on the virge of starvation, and most importantly, a world without reapings.
As I wander into these ideas, I am startled to the noise of rustling bushes a few feet behind me. I quickly jump to my feet and take to the water. The cool water soaks my clothes and hair. Under the water I realize it is dark out, so I can peek above the surface a little bit and see if it had left. I gently push my feet against the wet sand below me. I see two figures in white jackets sit on the sand. Peacekeepers. As I try and focus my eyes on the jackets, something grabs me and I am submerged under the water again. I kick and squeal for air, definitely exposing myself to the peackeepers. Finally, I am able sit up on the sand as I see what my attacker was.
"Hey Kaya." Elliot rises from the water. Then I hear a giggling noise behind me. Jasmine, Elliot's little sister, wrapped with a white towel around her. I turn back to Elliot.
"You are so lucky Jasmine is here or else I would-"
"Do what?" He smirks and kisses me right on the lips. In the middle I push him back into the water.
"Oops!" I say innocently. Jasmine runs up to the waterline and hugs me. Our two families have been close for years. Jasmine is like my little sister, as I am always looking out for her like I do for Brent.
"What are you doing up so late missy?" She smiles as Elliot gets out if the water.
"As I was leaving, she woke up and wanted to come along with me" Elliot said as he flipped his golden brown hair back. Little Jasmine has never been to this secret spot before, she's only really seen the water when she visits the docks with her class, and when she had her mandatory swimming lessons. She is amazed, and asks Elliot if she can go in the water, and he lets her put her little toes in. "Don't worry, I didn't tell her this is a secret place, I just told her people are sleeping so we need to stay quiet." Elliot explains. I sigh in relief. While Jasmine is searching for seashells along the waterline, Elliot and I sit on the sand only a few feet away from her.
"So today is the big, big, big day!" I mimic District Four's escort. My old neighbor, who moved into the Victors Village, won a few years ago and told me all about her escort, Effie.
"Yes, and may the odds be ever in your favor." Elliot smiles. He leans in and kisses me. This time I don't cut it short, and enjoy every moment of it. We pull back, and watch Jasmine dance along the water. Elliot grabs my attention back, "Hey Kaya, do you ever think about the other districts?" I nod no. He continues, "I was working on the docks the other day and I passed a peacekeeper booth which had this television. There wasn't a peacekeeper inside so I peeked through the glass window and saw a capitol news anchor talk about district four's victors over the years. But I only heard district one, two, and four most of the time. What happened to the others? Why don't they win?" I try and answer, but I can't find the right words. "Sorry, I didn't want to upset you, I just-"
"I'm not upset," I start. "I am just curious like you are." I snuggle up in his arms as we lay on the sand. Jasmine returns with a pretty seashell and gives it to Elliot.
"Thank you Jasmine." He gives her a kiss on her cheek and she cuddles up on the other side of him. We hear her fall asleep as the sun rises over the water. The two of us agree it's time to go, so Elliot picks up Jasmine in his arms like she's a baby. We walk into the little forest and walk out casually. "So Kaya, how many times is your name in today." He whispers as Jasmine is still sleeping.
"Five, no more, no less. What about you?" I hold my breath.
"Ten." He replies.
"Ten? Why would you take more? Why are you risking it?" I am almost in tears thinking about his name being called.
"I thought me bringing in a little more tesserae would help out at home, but don't worry. There are hundreds of papers in that ball." He says that like it's no big deal. That's exactly what I told Brent, one in hundreds of children being picked. "And who knows, there can be a volunteer."
"I-I have to get back home, Brent is probably freaking out. You know, it's his first year and all."
"Okay," he leans over and kisses me on the lips. "I love you."
"Love you too." I reply as I turn away and start walking home,
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So how did you like it? I will post the next chapter soon! I have lots planned for this story :)
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Safe and Sound (The Hunger Games)
FanfictionSixteen year old Kaya Walson is a girl who lives in District Four. She has a twelve year old brother, who will enter his name in the reaping for the first time. Her boyfriend is also entered in the drawing. What will happen in the Seventy-First Hung...
