The New Games: A Hunger Games Story

Chapter 19: Saying Goodbye

Chapter 19:

My jaw drops when she tells us. My mother breaks into tears. My father is trying to hold them back as well as Miya is. Malik is crying, running towards mom and dad. I'm trying to hold it in, to be strong. But I'm having a hard time. I get all choked up and have this horrible feeling in my throat you get when you hold back tears. A tear runs down my check and lands on my hands on my lap.

Miya hugs me and I hug her back. I can't focus right now. I can barley think. The only thing that's running through my mind is Ariel's voice saying,

"One of the district 12 tributes competing in the 1st annual New Games is....."

The first district 12 tribute is, I hear Ariel say it over and over again.

"Kamela!"

It's me. I am going into the arena. I am going to the Capitol. I am going into who knows what kind of climate or terrain to fight for my life. To fight to get back to district 12.

"Congratulations!" Ariel exclaims. She comes over and hugs me and Miya, who is hugging me.

Ariel gives a small speech to my family, but I only pick up bits and pieces.

"Think of it as an honor." And "Don't be sad, please don't cry." Or "Everything will be fine." And "I'll keep you updated from the Capitol of what's going on with Kamela."

I finally am able to think normally, or somewhat close to normally, to hear the last bit of what Ariel has to say.

"Now, you get to say your goodbyes." She gets up and leaves the room. "Oh!" she says quickly before she leaves, turning around. "And please try to keep this as secret as possible until we tell you it's okay. We will let you know more details of how this is going to work out for the next few weeks." She says. "Okay, I'll be back in about a half an hour to get Kamela so we can head off to the Capitol! You have until then to say your goodbyes."

Then Ariel and the peacekeepers leave.

I could run and escape, if there weren't peacekeepers all over district 12, and if I didn't have the fear of them hurting my family because of me.

So I just say my goodbyes. After I'm done I go into the back room for some alone time. I still have 15 minutes until Ariel comes back. I just need to think for a second.

I think of Talon. Of what he said to me. That if I got picked, or he got picked..... Talon. Oh no. No, no, no, no, no. He didn't get picked. He didn't. But I don't know for sure. I wasn't even thinking about that. He can go in too. I wish I could tell him. That I'm going into the arena, so he doesn't have to know from watching it in district 12. So that he didn't have to question.

I know that if he was going into the arena I'd rather know, than having to guess if he is or not. He probably won't be able to leave his house, no one probably will. That would hint who is in the Games or not. I remember Ariel talking about this. She said, well out of the bits and pieces I got, that only the people that were not eligible for the Games may leave their homes for the next few weeks.

Any other details that she might have said I missed.

I walk back out into the living room. My family is still there, my mother's eyes are puffy from crying. My father is sitting next to her, he's also been crying, not as much as mom though. Miya and Malik are sitting on the other couch. They have both been crying too. Then I start to cry and I can't hold it in this time, no matter how hard I try, I just cry and cry. My family hugs me tight.

I break away from the hug and look at the clock. She will be here in about 5 minutes.

I just really want to see Talon right now. I miss him, I want him to know what's happening. I think about him until I stop crying. I hear a knock on the door. Ariel comes in.

"Hello again!" she says cheerfully. "Oh, I hate to see people like this." she says, seeing us all sad and crying.

We must look awful, I must look awful. Especially for being a tribute.

She comes over and hugs us.

"Alright, I hate to do this, but I'm afraid Kamela is going to have to come with me." Ariel says, taking my arm and leading me out the door. "Don't worry! You'll see her soon!" Ariel says right before she heads out the door with me.

We get into her car, which are not very common in the area of district 12 where I live, since everything we need is so close by us. Then we drive to the train station and get in the Capitol train.

We use district 12 trains to get around the district, if we are going to a different part of it, which is too far to walk, but we rarely ever even see a Capitol train. It's so much nicer than a district 12 one. And it's even nicer on the inside.