Mayor's Daughter

chapter 2

Breathe Madge.

As a child, confrontation was terrifying. At age sixteen, it still is.

The air in my lungs builds up and my heart starts racing at hundred miles per second as my brain becomes a little hazy. Once I had broken a plate; I was six and doing the dishes and it slipped from my hands and shattered on the wooden floor. I saw it fall in slow motion before the tiny fragments collapsed at my feet, making me cry out in panic. To the point where I'd risk cutting my hands collecting the segments of porcelain and throwing them away in the backyard, where no one would find them. At dinner, my mother noticed my injured hands and asked what had happened; my father was baffled at my irresponsibility as I explained what had happened. Since then, I have learned to keep most thoughts and feelings to myself, since I'd be the one to end up picking up the broken pieces.

With my mouth hanging wide open, Katniss and Gale stood in front of my door. I felt like a deer in the headlights. Gale Hawthorne was two years older than me, strong, tall, good-looking and an amazing hunter. Or so I've heard. It's hard not to be intimated considering his towering frame compared to mine. His piercing blue eyes, brown hair and perfectly sculptured face made it impossible not to flaunt over him. I'd never felt such an attraction to a boy before, at least not a strong one. He was beautiful, ripped at every edge but still a masterpiece.

"Madge?" Katniss, with her astoundishing braid said.

It snapped me right out of my train of thought, I recollected my balance and mental composure.

"Sorry, it's been a crazy morning," I began smiling shyly at Gale, which he returned. I handed over the money while saying,"Here. Thank you so much, again. I really appreciate it." I was never one for words, but gratitude towards her was inevitable, she really helped me. The three of us stared at each other for some time before he spoke up, "Pretty dress."

Out of all the things I expected to come out of his mouth, a compliment was not one of them. I felt my cheeks heat up as I blushed a deep shade of red.

"Well, if I end up going to the Capitol, I want to look nice, don't I?" I mentally cursed myself for saying the worst thing possible. It could be a joke, it could be evidence of my talked about snobiness, or it could be the truth. If I was to die, I'd like to look as lovely as possible.

"You won't be going to the Capitol," says Gale crisply. I had nothing to say, my wide eyes just stared down at my feet but I felt him looking at me, at my pin.

"What can you have? Five entries? I had six when I was just twelve years old," he continues. The truth is, I didn't opt for tesserae, I never did. It felt like a stabbing at the heart because sometimes I wish I was poor, to be normal, and I'd seen him around school and the Seam enough to know he must have his name entered more than thirty times. My breath hitched at the thought of that.

"That's not her fault," Katniss says.

"No, it's no one's fault. Just the way it is," Gale responds.

The blood returns to my head and I try to end this incredibly awkward meeting, while my face becomes closed off, for I am embarrassed, and quite angry. It's people like him that make me feel bad for where i come from and the life i live, it upsets me. Being the Mayor's daughter has it's benefits, but it is also not easy. I step forward and place the money in her hand and say, "Good luck, Katniss."

"You too," she says and I close the door but not before glancing at Gale, who stared back at me with apologetic eyes. He has left me in the deep end with ankles made of bricks, yet for some bewildering reason I'd like to meet with him again.

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At around one o'clock my father and I headed for the square. My mother never liked to come, at least not after Aunt Maysilee. She wished me luck and kissed me on the cheek, I knew she'd pray I wouldn't get picked for tears threatened to fall and stain her beautiful face. Her blonde hair hung loose from a bun as she wore the same clothing every day; she too, had bags under her eyes.

There was a dour atmosphere, with the gray skies and the Peacekeepers walking around, everybody had a stern look on their face. The reaping, held in the square, was surrounded by shops which typically let off an inviting sensation. But not on a day like this. It was supposed to be an exciting time with bright banners perched on the buildings, yet with our deteriorating society nobody was in a jovial mood.

When we reached the square my father turned to me and swallowed hard, he grabbed my hand in his and whispered, "Good luck." With that he kissed the temple and headed for his designated area, which was up on the stage.

The people filed in quietly, signed in and were shepherded into roped sections dividing the age groups. As the environment starts becoming more claustrophobic, I spot Katniss and walk over to stand next to her. She continued to look back and around for her sister Prim, I looked to my left and caught a glance of Gale, who was already looking at me. I quickly looked away, half terrified, half excited. I gazed up at him again and there was a small smile playing at his lips.

"You'll be fine," he mouthed reassuringly. Butterflies in my stomach erupted and I once again,  found myself blushing. I turned around to make sure he was in fact talking to me and not Katniss, but she was still trying to locate Prim.

Swiveling my head again I reconnected with his alluring eyes and mouthed back, "Thank you. You too." A smile tugged at my lips as I looked at him.

"Madge," Katniss said diverting my attention to her, "sorry about Gale earlier, he can be quite a pain in the ass."

I laughed slightly at her comment before replying, "It's alright."

There was a question that I had been meaning to ask her after this morning's episode, I wanted to refrain myself from letting it slip, but it rolled off my tongue.

"How many times is your name in there?"

She looked shocked and answered looking away, "Twenty."

I gasped, loudly. "Oh my god Kat-"

"I don't have it that bad. Gale's name is in forty-two times."

My wide eyes conveyed a sense of concern and with staggering thoughts racing through my mind I turned to my left once again to look at the poor boy. I returned to my conversation with Katniss but my father stood on the podium and seized everyone's attention. He was ready to give a speech, and the masses of citizens quieted down.

He spoke of the history of Panem, the tragedies, the natural disasters, and he exaggerates the shining result of our ancestor's suffering, a Capitol ringed with thirteen districts. He explains the Dark Days and the Treaty Of Treason as well as The Hunger Games and it's barbarous rules.

"It is both a time for repentance and a time for thanks," recites my father. After reading the list of District 12's victors and Haymitch Abernathy causing a scene in his drunken state, the distressed mayor introduces Effie Trinket and she trots to the podium and gives her signature, "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor!"

The pink haired enthusiastic lady goes on a bit about what an honor it is to be here, and how grateful she feels although everyone knows she's aching to get bumped to a better district. I am nudged by Katniss and motioned to my left and when I turn my head, I am met with Gale's ghostly grin. Which I return, but it has uneasy written all over it. I whip my head in the opposite direction and stare into Katniss's light brown eyes and smile, trying to bring reassurance.

When it's time for the drawing Effie announces, "Ladies first!" and walks over to the glass ball with the girls' names.

She reaches in, digging her hand deep into the ball and pulls out a slip of paper. We all draw a simultaneous breath. I can already feel my anxiety and nausea and desperation closing in on me.

Effie Trinket walks back to where the microphone is placed, unwrinkles the tiny piece of paper and reads out the name in a clear loud voice.

It's not me, and it's not Katniss.

It's Primrose Everdeen.