What if the odds were in our favor?

The reaping

I am jolted awake at the crack of dawn by the sound of Mrs Alberta's croaking voice.

"Up and at em kids! Today is the reaping! 12-18 year olds, put on your best clothes and be outside soon! Younger kids, be outside soon too, in your normal clothes!" She croaks, her voice booming over the speaker.

The glow of the sunlight flashes from the broken ceiling tile, and I recoil from the searing glare of the sun.

In the group home, there are two gigantic rooms that house children. One for boys, and one for girls. Because of this, we are forced to get undressed and dressed in front of each other. Me, lavender and Lily always take turns getting dressed under the covers.

I watch as all the kids in the room get out of their beds with a somber look on their faces. For the 12-18 year olds, this look is mainly worrying that they will get chosen, and for the kid younger than that, the look is mainly sorrow for the kids that will get chosen, whether they are from the group home or not. Lily slowly gets up, and immediately hugs me and Lav.

"Please don't get chosen." Lily cries, with tears streaming down her youthful face.

"Don't worry Lily. There is practically no chance we will." Lavender says, smoothing Lily's hair in an attempt to comfort her.

"Yes Lily. Listen to Lav, we won't get chosen." I reassure Lily.

"okay." Lily says, clutching us tighter. While we are hugging Lily, me and Lavender exchange a glance at each other, that can only be interpreted as deep worry.

Me and Lavender have 6 outfits between the two of us, we share all of them since we are around the same size. The only storage area we get is a couple drawers next to each bed, one of those drawers houses clothes, and one of them houses the only possessions we have. We also have the white nightgowns that each child is supplied with in the community home for sleep. We have 4 outfits between the two of us for everyday use, which we alternate wearing, and two outfits that are for reapings. My outfit is a brown button up shirt and a pleated brown skirt(distract 7's color is brown) and Lavender is wearing a bronze colored dress. I use my fingers to comb out my tangled hair and eventually it becomes halfway decent, I put my hair into two braids and lavender keeps her hair down. Lily gets dressed in her regular clothes, and I braid her hair into one long braid down her back.

Another understanding me and Lavender have about the hunger games is that if one of us gets reaped and dies, the other one has to start taking out tesserae or start hunting, depending on which one of us it is. I watch some of the 12 year olds getting ready for the reaping, trying to hold back their tears.

I really hope they don't get reaped.

I really hope nobody in the community home is reaped

I wish nobody was reaped

But the reality is here, smacking me in the face like a fist.

I feel like the fist would hurt less

Me and Lav and Lily finish getting ready and people in the community home start to empty out and we all stand outside of the community home until everyone arrives, and then we all start walking to the senate where the repaint is held. Older kids hold the younger kids hands and older kids exchange somber glances at each other. My fingers lock with Lily's and Lavender's. I spot a lone 12 year old from the community home walking to the reaping, and a wave of despair washes over me at the thought that this 12 year old doesn't have anybody's hand to hold onto.

Soon, we arrive at the square. Lily tightens her grip on me and lavenders hands, but we both have to remove our interlocked fingers from her tender hands.

"Please don't go!" Lily cries, her big brown eyes staring up at us in despair

" Lily. We will be fine. We'll see you after the reaping, okay?" Lavender says.

"You promise?" Lily says, wiping away her tears.

"We promise." I promise. We give Lily one last long hug before she is led away to stand on the perimeter of the square where all of the people who can't be reaped stand. She stands with the younger kids in the community home and Mrs Alberta, along with the couple other workers from the community home. After me and Lav get our blood drawn and then head to the middle of the crowd, with the other 15 year olds. I stare at all of their faces, petrified. I grab Lavenders hand and squeeze it as tight as I can. I see our escort, Rumina Winslow stand on the stage, her flamboyant hair and outfit coming along with her. I know what's going to happen, it's the same thing every year.

First, the stupid mayor comes on the stage and rambles on about the stupid history of Panem, and then reads all the victor's from this district. Even though all of them are dead. then they play the stupid video about the hunger games , and then they reap the stupid female tribute cause of "Ladies first" apparently amd then they reaps the stupid male tribute and then she makes them stupidly shake hands and then they have to go to the stupid capitol while they await their impending doom, and then they go into the arena and stupidly die in the bloodbath at the hands of one of the stupid careers.

Did I mention how stupid it is?

The mayor comes on the stage, and says the same stupid speech he always does. I wonder if he is lying, or he is really that brainwashed. He reads all the past victors, in District 7's history, we have had exactly 6. And all of them are dead, cause the quarter quell 5 years ago or the capitol executing them.

Afterward, Rumina Winslow plays the dumb video while mouthing the words under her breath.

No doubt in my mind she is brainwashed.

I stare at the female reaping bowl, it has thousands of slips, and 20 of them have Iris Goldenstein in pretty cursive handwriting. Rumina gently places her hand in the bowl, her fingers plastered with rings swirls the slips together.

Please not me. Not me. Please not me or Lavender. I would give anything for it to not be or Lavender. Please not me. Please not me. Don't be me. Please don't be me. Please not Lav.

Rumina finally settles on one slip, and she delicately open it and reads out the name on it

"Iris Goldenstein."

I guess luck isn't on my side today.