Outlaster- A Hunger Games Tale

Chapter 8- Backstage

~This chapter is set during the interviews and is only pinpointing the most interesting subjects~

Ryan made his way off the stage and walked over to sit down in a small room off to the side. Rian was curious about the boy. She'd never said a word to him - she hadn't even known they had such similar names. She approached slowly. From what she'd seen on stage, she assumed he was lively and friendly, so she wouldn't have much trouble talking to him.

"Hi," she greeted, making her way up to him. Ryan was staring into space, distracted, so it took a while for him to notice her.

"Oh, hey," Ryan returned shyly. "Why is she talking to me...?" He clutched his locket in his right hand.

They two stood there in complete silence for a few moments, waiting for the other to talk.

"So..." Rian said, looking around nervously.

"This is awkward," Ryan told her as he got up. "I'm gonna go."

"Yeah... Bye." Rian sat down. "That was strange." She sighed and watched as the other contestants passed by.

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Q'uira exited the stage, still a bit flustered. She sat down and got lost in her thoughts, barely noticing Jay passing by to do his interview.

"What if they know who I like from what I said? My whole life would be over!" She turned towards the stage anxiously. She tuned out most of Jay's interview, not expecting it to be that interesting, but one thing got her attention. Caesar had just asked Jay the same question he'd asked her. Q'uira's mind started spinning when she heard the word "yes" come from Jay's mouth.

"Yes? What the heck is 'yes' supposed to mean?" Q'uira got up and started pacing the room. Her thoughts were buzzing around her head too loud to let her hear the rest of Jay's explanation. That one little 'yes' had made all the difference to her. You could still hear the 'ooh'ing of the crowd by the time Jay had walked off the stage.

"Hey," he said to her, scratching his head and blushing.

"What did you mean by 'yes'?" Q'uira asked, still pacing around the room.

"Uh, what?" Jay seemed as confused as she was.

"Flickerman asked if you liked anyone, and you said yes. I think you said something else, but I didn't hear-" That's when Jay leaned in and kissed Q'uira, breaking off her rant. When it ended, the room was totally silent.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to do that-!" Jay's face was creased with worry.

"What! No, no, you're fine. I mean, that's one way to get me to shut up!" Q'uira laughed, blushing.

Jay smiled and asked, "Wanna go out sometime?"

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After Paul's interview, he walked into the same room all the other tributes were seated in. He looked around, seeing all the dirty looks being thrown his way. He also noticed Mailery in the corner. She was crying.

The girl looked up at him, and it only made her start bawling more.

"What have I done?" Paul's eyes watered. He ran out of the small room and sat alone in the hallway.

After a minute, Q'uira appeared from around the corner. She was holding a tissue box.

"Hi... do you need a tissue?" The girl chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. "What is it with everyone and crying today...?" She set the box down and sat next to him, not knowing if he wanted comfort or not.

"I don't know what I'm going to do! I can't ally with her. It'll only slow me down!" Paul grabbed a tissue and started to clean himself up.

"I have an idea... Jay and I are teaming. What if Mailery joins us?" Q'uira said to the distraught boy, putting her hand on his shoulder.

"That would be better than just leaving her alone," Paul remarked thoughtfully.

"Yeah, and then you won't have to kill her. You'd already be dead," Q'uira laughed.

"What?" He looked up, confused. Q'uira gave him an apologetic smile.

"I'm joking. No one knows what's going to happen in there. It's all a mystery." She stood up. "I need to go. My mentor wants a meeting with us ASAP. Think about what I said, okay?"

"Bye." Paul watched as she walked away. He was left there, alone, with his thoughts.