The First Quarter Quell: A 'The Hunger Games' Spin-Off

An Expectation

    She's just standing there, staring at me with a look I didn't expect to see. She smiles at me, which causes me to stumble on my words and I can't figure out what to say next. She raises her brows, still smiling. Does she want me to speak first? I think. Why is she smiling?  Does she want something out of me? I wish she'd stop, it doesn't give me a pleasant feeling. I know it will be good to have a strong ally, however, so I promise myself I won't try to back away.
    She starts to talk after exhaling, still not dropping her smile. I think she finally gets fed up with waiting for me to speak. "Jay, right? I'm Koko."
    "Yeah, that's right. Nice to meet you," I respond in the most awkward way I've ever spoken before. I sigh and look down at the black dress shoes I was put in for the parade.
    "Are you ready for the game? We have our first practice tomorrow if not." I knew she was kidding, but my mind went elsewhere. I realized I wasn't ready, at all. I think she knew too from the expression on my face. "I'm sure you are, you look ready to me," she said trying to boost my confidence. I felt my trust in her building then, creating a slight bond between us. Even if what she said was only to make me feel better about myself, I can't say it hadn't worked.

    The next morning, Hannah woke me up at what felt like the crack of dawn. My eyes squeezed shut as she turned the light on, blinding me. I opened them again, letting them readjust to the harsh white light.
    "Wakey wakey eggs and bakey. It's the first day of training, you don't want to be late." I groaned in response. I've always hated waking up in the morning, early or not. I felt a small pressure added to the foot of my bed and looked over. Hannah had set down an outfit for me. "You'll need to wear this whenever you go into the Tribute Center." I looked at her, questioning it. "Just wear it, okay." She said before she walked out of the room.

    I scanned the room, looking for Koko. I guess she spotted me first because she was already more than halfway to me when I finally did. "Hey, you ready for today?" I say.
    "Today? Yeah of course. It's just training." I guess that was a stupid question. We have bigger battles ahead than this. "Do you see that? They're all watching us," she says, looking up behind me. I looked too, moving next to Koko. A few people were standing in an open room above us with a clear view of the Tribute Center. I noticed they were all wearing suits so I assumed they were important.
    "Who are they?" I asked.
    "I'm pretty sure they're all of the Gamemakers. Even Orion Blight... at the front." Once I spotted him, I turned to Koko.
    "The Head Gamemaker? He looks thrilled." I spun my head back to him, analyzing his face. The corners of his mouth were turned up, spreading far across his face, and his eyes were squinted, creating wrinkles in their corners. "I can't believe this."
    "Not surprising to me, they're always-"
    "May I have everyone's attention please," a voice called. Koko whispered into my ear, "That's the Head Trainer."

    After three days of non-stop training, you don't want to move anymore. All of your limbs feel numb and all of your muscles are sore. Hurting more every single time you use them. Luckily, training ended after yesterday. Well... I'm not sure if lucky is the right word to use. I probably needed the training more than a lot of the tributes. At least I have Koko, though.
    I walked out to the living area to see Sam, Hannah, and Kora sitting on the couch presumably waiting for me.
    "I thought you'd never wake up," Sam joked.
    "You need to wake up earlier than this, boy, private sessions are in about an hour," Kora exclaimed, angrily.
    "It's alright, Kora, he needs the rest," Hannah said, defending me. I looked around confused for a moment.
    "Are the private sessions where we show the Gamemakers a skill and they vote on us based on how much they like it?" I asked.
    Sam answered, "Yes. Isn't it stupid?" Kora gave her a look of disappointment.
    "What am I supposed to do, throw something heavy at a wall? I don't have a skill," I worried.
    It stayed silent for a second. That was until Hannah decided to try and help. "Oh come on, you must have something. Did you practice with any weapons at home?"
    "I did... once. It didn't go so well."
    "Are you good with your fists, maybe?" Hannah asked, trying to relieve the awkwardness of the situation.
    "Uh, I guess. I used to practice punching with bags of sand at home."
    "Perfect, they have punching dummies at the Tribute Center, use them in your session."
    "I don't know... is there any other options? That's kind of boring."
    "What do you think?" Sam intrudes.
    "No..?" I said, knowing well what the answer was.

    There were only 4 more tributes left until it was my turn. One tribute from District 6, the two from District 7, and Sam. I don't know how anyone in District 12 could wait this long for their turn. I was sitting down, fidgeting, and not being able to stay still; too anxious to relax. I didn't want to go into my private session and punch dummies for my skill. Nothing's interesting about it unless it's karate or something, and I don't know karate. During training, I had been practicing throwing a spear, but I only got on the target three times and only one of them was kind of close to a bullseye.
    Should I try again in my private session? Is that too risky? Punching a dummy is boring.
    All of a sudden, Sam starts to get up out of her seat. "Good luck to you," she says.
    "You too," I say as she's already leaving the room. I'm up next, I thought. What do I do?

    As I walk into the Tribute Center, I notice all of the Head Gamemakers up in the little box again, waiting for me. Orion must've heard me walk in, because he turns to me, raising his brows.
    "State your name, district, and the skill you'll be demonstrating," he says sternly. His voice made my teeth grit, pressing down harder by the second until it hurt. Once I couldn't anymore, I relaxed my jaw and spoke.
    "Jay Thorne, District 8. I'll be..." I thought about it again, contemplating what would be best for me. If throwing the spear was more entertaining, and I remained relaxed, I could do it. It would work, I've gotten centimeters away before. I finally made my decision. "I'll be spear-throwing."
    "Delightful!" he said in response. "Grab a spear and start then." I slowly started walking towards the rack of spears, grabbing one with shakey hands. I raised it above my head, arm bent behind me, just like the Head Trainer told me. This is how I almost got it before, following her every direction. With my dominant foot, I stepped forward, launching the spear towards the target. It swiveled through the air, faster than I'd ever thrown it. Then it hit the target, right in the center. Bullseye. My jaw dropped, I couldn't believe it. I did it.

    Back at the apartment, everyone sat in the living area. Hannah, Kora, Sam, and the rest of our prep teams. We were all eager to see what the Gamemakers thought, as were every tribute and team in the building. No one was sure what they thought of anyone. The room was silent, however. Everyone was so nervous that they didn't speak.
    About another fifteen minutes passed before we heard the television turn on. There, was Lucky Flickerman announcing that all of the votes were in. He started with District 1...
    "Levi Corwin with a score of... 9." That scared me. District 1 scoring high isn't a surprise, but knowing that the people I'm going against could be stronger than me makes it worse.
    He continues, "Holly Bancroft, also District 1, with a score of... 10." It had only been two names and the suspense thing he was doing was already getting old.
    "From District 2, Chris Elrod with a score of..." he pauses for suspense again, reading out the number before saying it. "10 as well! Also from District 2, Chris' sister, Ren Elrod with a score of... 9. Looks like you've got some competition, Ren," he said, laughing at his own joke. It was sick, forcing siblings to be rivals. "Next, from District 3, Blayne Wraith with a score of... 7." Koko's up next. I straighten up in my seat, curious to see her score. "Koko Lauree, the female tribute from District 3, with a score of... 11." I stare at the screen for a while, pleasantly surprised, missing the next few scores. From that moment, I knew I had a strong ally.
    Eventually, he got to District 8, calling my name first. Everyone was huddled around, waiting to hear a bad score. "From District 8, Jay Thorne with a score of... 9." The air was suddenly filled with gasps, every single one sounded the same: surprised. Kora tapped on my shoulder, implying she was proud. The noise quickly fizzles out as Lucky says Sam's name.
    "Sam Barlowe, District 8, with a score of," he didn't pause this time. "9."
    We all ignore the rest of the scores as we celebrate ours, higher than most. I never thought I'd be up there, but I guess my mother was right, you just have to believe in yourself.