"Maybe it's been years
since I genuinely smiled.
Maybe it's been years
since I wanted to be apart of anything."
Dexter Lowhill, District Elevens sixth winner of the 69th Hunger Games at the ripe age of eighteen years old.
It was his last reaping for...
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"Life isn't fair, Dexter."
Dexter stood in front of the mirror, wincing as Marina fussed over his parade outfit. He and Eris were matching, of course. Dexter's clothes were a darker shade of brown than Eris', as Marina always commented how darker clothes looked better on Dexter. Flowers were embroidered onto the bottom of Eris' dress and slowly made their way up while Dexter had his flowers on his sleeves and pant legs, making their way up as well.
But of course, Marina undid the first few buttons on his shirt and patted his jaw. "You look lovely, my love," She assured the younger man.
Dexter smiled a little and leaned into his designer's touch. He's always liked Marina more than anyone. She was the sweetest person Dexter had ever met but still held herself together.
"Archers probably going to make fun of me as soon as he sees me in this on TV," Dexter mumbled, scratching at his exposed collarbone. The shirt was sheer, so he was pretty much half-naked on live television.
"I'll make sure to scold him when I see him again," Marina assured. She pinched Dexter's cheek making him wince, lightly tugging her hand away making Marina smile widely, but there was a little shake to it. She was nervous. She was always a little nervous, especially after hearing her favorite winner get called into the games once more.
"Okay, have fun," Marina whispered, pulling Dexter into a bone-crushing hug which he reciprocated.
Dexter doesn't get many genuine hugs. He gets them from Archer sometimes. Once he got one from Finnick, but it was a side hug, which didn't even count, even if Dexter thought about it a lot. But Marina's hugs were the best. She was like a mother to Dexter, a mother that Dexter never got to fully have. She was always warm and smelt of a million different perfumes, and Dexter secretly adored it.
"I won't have fun," He mumbled into the crook of her neck.
She scoffed, pulling away and cupping his face once more, like a mother would to her bruised child. "Go talk to Finnick, he'll cheer you up," she whispered with a teasing wink.
Dexter rolled his eyes, his cheeks going slightly pink before pulling away from her grip. "Bye, Mar," he called out, too far to hear her voice anymore.
He found Eris pretty quickly. She was with her mentor- technically, Freesia was both of their mentors at the moment, as Chaff and Seeder couldn't fill in while Dexter's old mentor was rotting away in a coffin. They were talking quietly, waiting by all the carriages.
"You take forever," Eris announced once Dexter had walked beside her. "How long does Marina take to get you all pretty, Jesus," she mumbled.
Dexter cracked a smile while Freesia shook her head. "Be nice to Dexter," she reminded.
