𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐒 𝐒𝐈𝐑𝐄𝐍 | 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝘂𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀

TWO

When I was younger my father would take me to the lake near the Paths during the winter. I remember it being completely empty, only the sound of chatter from the nearby restaurants or the sound of snow crunching underneath boots could be heard. In his hand, he would carry two leather boots with blades welded underneath them. Those days would be the ones I looked forward to the most during winter when no one could really surf as the snow fell from the sky in intricately designed snowflakes.

I would lace the skates up before stepping onto the ice, the leather moulded to the shape of my feet. The first few years of this tradition were spent mostly falling and getting up, but as I grew older I started mastering the art of gliding across the frozen water and even managed to do some jumps and spins which I learnt from the books father would show me from our library.

There was this one time where I was trying to learn a jump. I read about it and naturally, as the most unique jump out of the six, I wanted to try it out the most. The first time I attempted it, I thought about how I was going to execute it so much that when I took off from the ice, I was unable to move any of my limbs and came crashing back down, it was like fear had suddenly paralysed me.

This is how I feel like now.

My whole body freezes, my mind unable to comprehend what is going on. There's a lump in my throat and my breathing hitches as I look around me, the other thirteen year olds distancing themselves away from me, all except Cordelia. She looks just as shocked as me. I look back at the stage where I see my face on the big screen as Stella waits patiently, looking at me.

I take a deep breath before I take a step out, putting on my bravest face. I know they are televising the reaping right now and as afraid as I am, I have to make it look as if I'm not afraid; that I do not know what fear is. If I am to do anything other than that, I would be doomed. I would appear weak and would easily be seen as prey by the other tributes.

All eyes are on me as I walk slowly to the front, peacekeepers following me behind until I reach the steps, climbing on the stage as Stella smiles at me, motioning me to get closer.

"Oceana, is that right?" Stella smiles, looking at me as I nod. "And how old are you?"

"Thirteen," I reply, barely managing to find my voice as I look at the crowd from the stage, praying that no one would be able to see how scared I am.

"Well, you are a very brave lady," Stella says, putting a gentle hand on my shoulder before returning her attention back to the crowd. "And now for the boys!"

I'm still putting a brave face on as I look into the distance, trying to avoid looking at the crowd. I can see the Cliff from here and my hiking trail, I also see the town centre and a little bit of the ocean. I look at Stella once again, she has just picked a paper slip from the glass bowl containing the names of the boys. I compose myself, ready to see who my fellow tribute is.

She takes a moment before reading the name out loud in her clear and booming voice. "Gill Wade."

I try and think if I know who he is but I don't, so I pay attention to him as he steadily makes his way to the crowd. He is in the front, so I guess he is 17 or 18. He doesn't look any taller than six feet with a strong build and blonde hair. He also doesn't look scared, in fact, he looks quite the opposite– confident.

The mayor then steps forward to read the Treaty of Treason, which he does every year. It is lengthy and dull and by this point I zone out.

What am I supposed to do now, as a tribute in the Hunger Games? What are my skills that would help me win the games? Would I be able to win the games? Do I even have skills? I should've taken the academy more seriously as opposed to fooling around. What would happen if I were to die? And what would be the odds of me dying? Very high, I assume. I need to stop thinking. If I think for any longer I will not only break character but also drive myself insane and into a downward spiral of fear.