The Bender Games

Chapter Seven

The Bender Games

Chapter 7: Benjamin.

         I have to say, I was kind of reluctant to see Benjamin. He told me he was going to help me, but I wasn’t sure what kind of “help” he was talking about. I barely even said one word to the guy, and he wishes to help me? I don’t get him. At all. Even though my feelings towards him were shifty, I still took the elevator up to the roof an hour after practice. So I had time to eat, change, and walk out. No one even asked questions, not even Monica. I don’t think anyone even noticed.

         I didn’t matter though.

         The only thing that did matter was that I wanted information from Benjamin. He seems to be my key for the games. If anyone should know anything about what to expect from the Bender Games: it’s Benjamin. He was only fourteen when he won, and no one still knows why. He went up against some of the best benders anyone has ever seen, they were all praised for their excellence. And yet somehow, the youngest competitor there was completely relaxed when he went in. He never got a single scar. Some say that the competitors just randomly dropped down to the ground, And Benjamin won by default.

         I am still uneasy about seeing him when the elevator begins to climb. Maybe if I press the down button, I could go back before he notices. A weird feeling begins to form in my stomach, and I don’t know why. So when the elevator dings and opens, I feel like my stomach has dropped.

         My legs feel like lead when I force myself to walk on the roof, but once I’m up here, it doesn’t seem so bad. A nice, warm breeze rushes on my face, and I am greeted with the open sky. Its sunset right now, so the clouds are beautiful pinks and oranges. I roam my eyes around and can see the city lights. I make my way to the edge of the roof, and look down. Twinkling lights from cameras and other things are glittering in my eyes. Buildings below me are lit up with strange, multicolored lights. It seems so beautiful from up here.

         “Don’t try to jump.” Someone from behind me says. I turn to see Benjamin behind me, his hands in his pockets.

         “I wasn’t going to.” I reassure him. He chuckles.

         “Even if you were going to, the force field wouldn’t let you.” He says. I frown at him, and look down again. Now that he said that, I can now barely see a pinky film around me. So the capital has created a force field to keep its contestants from jumping, how nice. I nod my head. Benjamin comes up next to me and leans his elbows on the railing.

         “It’s a nice view.” He says. I nod my head. “Would be cool to live here all the time, don’t you think?” I nod my head again, waiting for him to just cut to the chase. “And you can even see it sparkling on the sea.” I nod again. “The last time I was here, the roof was always crowded, but I guess its different this year.”

         “Benjamin, can you just get on with it? You said you were going to help me. How? And why me? Wait, no, here’s an even bigger question, why are you even here? You’re a victor, you didn’t have to come. So why would you volunteer yourself to come back?” I blurt out without realizing what I was saying half of the time. Then as soon as I said it, I immediately regretted it. “I’m sorry.” I apologize.

         “Don’t worry about it, I was just waiting for you to snap anyway.” He jokes. I gape at him. He sees my expression and laughs. “I’m joking, relax.” He tells me. I roll my eyes at him. “And don’t worry about all of those questions. I will answer any you’ve got while we train.” He tells me.

         I frown at him. “Why? We’ve spent the whole entire day training.” I say. “Why do we need to train even more?

         “Because, you haven’t been in the games, I have. You need all the knowledge I can offer so you can get back home.” Benjamin’s light blue eyes bore into mine as he takes a small step forwards. “Ariel, I saw what happened at the drafting.” He informs me. I feel my face turns red, I don’t know why I get embarrassed whenever someone speaks about my brother’s outburst. “You have something to fight for, I don’t. And I saw you trying to help that little girl, Luna. Its people like you I admire, and people like you who deserve to win. So I need to train you for the games. But we need to do this in private. I already have a huge target on my back from returning as a veteran. The last thing I want to do is give you one too.”