Haunted | The Hunger Games

District 4.

District 4 had always been my home- the waters were my life, and I couldn't imagine being away from it.

Oh, shoot, introductions. 

I'm Alexandria Sandersons, but who names their kid Alexandria? Call me Alex. As I may have mentioned, I live in Panem-- in District 3. I had only turned 16 when all of this happened. 

Now, you see, I had considered myself lucky.

I had never been picked for the Games. The Hunger Games. 

The Hunger Games is a brutal game. A killing game. And from all the times my name had been on a single piece of paper, I hadn't been picked. Not once. 

Now, I'm not complaining.

I'm not even sure I'd be coming out of that Arena alive.

But that all changed.

Anyway, it was the day of the Reaping. Ah, the Reaping. I hated the Reaping.

The Reaping was the day a person from the Capitol would pick a name from a big glass bowl- one girl, one boy- therfore choosing the two people who'd be sent to participate in the Hunger Games.

I had nothing to worry about.

Right?

Right?

... Not.

I, Alexandria Sandersons, was scared. Paranoid. Anxious. 

The first thing I did was wake up before the sun had risen, then wander off to my 'secret' spot: a rock cliff towering over the green-ish blue waters. 

My feet hanging loosely from under me, I stared out in to a distance, thinking. 

What if I get picked? What if someone I know gets picked? What if one of my friends gets picked? What if my younger sister, Hope, gets picked? What if--

"Oy! Alex!" 

I jump a bit, turning my head so quickly that I feel as though I had crinked my neck. 

Running up to me was my best friend, Fredrick Summers. Fred was... a special snowflake. Yeah. That's good enough. He could be considered handsome-- heck, he was called one of the most handsome in our District-- with his eyes the same color of the ocean and brown hair. 

"Freddie." I said, giving him a wave and a small smile. 

Fred jumped next to me. "The plane has landed!" he hollered, a cheeky smile coming on to his face. "You excited for today, buddy?" 

I frowned, bumping my shoulder with his. "Why in the world would I be excited for today?" I mumbled. 

"Oops, that came out wrong." Fred said, his smile widening a bit more. "But I've got a surprise for you, Alexi!"

I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, watching as Fred fumbled for something in his pants pocket. 

Then, he pulled out something that hung from a piece of thread, smiling proudly. 

It was a sea-shell, hanging from some blue thread. Fred had even managed to etch a letter A into the shell.

"Happy sixteenth birthday, Alex!" he said cheerfully. 

I laughed. Fred always managed to cheer me up, no matter what circumstances. 

"Freddie, my birthday was three days ago!" I say with another laugh as I slide the necklace on.