The Selection in the Hunger Games

The Tribute Parade - Chapter 13

I was ready. After thanking the girls again, I headed to the tunnel where we would all wait. We were organized by district, placing me, Carter, and Aspen, close to the end.

"You look gorgeous, Mer," he whispered huskily into my ear.

"You look handsome," I replied, rubbing my hands over his demure green suit. "Kamber and Celia will love it." He brightened at the mention of his sisters. "And Carter, liking the makeup."

"They said it would make my eyes pop," he explained with his hands energetically. "I hope Marlee likes it." He stood on his tiptoes, searching for her.

"She'll love it."

Aspen looked between us, questioning with his eyebrows. I shook my head to which he nodded. I hadn't told him who I kissed and I wasn't planning on it. The less he knew, the better. Marlee waved to us from the District 7 section.

The first chariot reared to the front and took District 1. Maxon, Celeste, and now a woman named Tallulah Bell. Apparently more Careers had applied but the Gamemakers declined them to make it "fairer" to the other districts.

Maxon looked very handsome. His hair had extensions, giving him a luxurious mane.They were all adorned with the most expensive items money could buy. That was their Districts production so what else could they do? I thought, shaking my head at Maxon's charismatic and well practiced smile.

Chariot after chariot ran through the crowd, us all watching through the live feed. Thousands of people from the Capital cheered and awed at the tributes, fawning over them. They were like dolls. Covered in so much makeup, surgery, and adjustments that they were hollow on the inside.

Our chariot came and Aspen helped me climb in. The chariot went surging down the path, and after thirty seconds, we were in the public eye. Carter was beaming goofily, waving. No doubt he was going to be a favorite.

I was blown away by the amount of people. There was a difference between on screen and in person. It was overwhelming. I reached out to as many people as I could, waving and smiling, touching hands.

Before we knew it, we were at the end of our stretch and Aspen pulled me into a long, passionate kiss. The crowd absolutely lost it, clapping and hooting like crazy. We finished our path and waited for District 12 to come in behind us.

We trained vigorously for the rest of the week. Aspen was good with blowtorches and Marlee was amazing with the bow. We acted as a team, helping each other out in anyway we could. Every time I caught Maxon's eye, I felt a sense of euphoria that I couldn't explain. I was still too scared to talk to him. I made a promise to apologize to him after the tribute interviews.

"Can I talk to you?" A voice asked obnoxiously behind me. I turned around to see Celeste, the black haired girl from Maxon's district.

"Sure."

"Outside?" she questioned, tapping her foot impatiently. I mentally rolled my eyes and followed her out the door.

"How did you get such a high score?" she asked, practically pushing me against the wall.

"I threw knives at targets," I responded coolly. I knew I didn't like this girl.

"Did you manipulate one of the judges? I tried that but they weren't very romantically inclined." She said it so casually as if she was telling me how her day was going. Not that I would care. "How did you do it?" she pushed.

"I already told you." I brushed past her, unintentionally bumping my shoulder into her as I did.

Her eyes turned villainous as she gripped my wrist. "Don't you dare walk past me like that!" she shrieked, digging her nails into my forearm.

"Leave her alone, Celeste," a voice called from behind us. Maxon.

"No, she-" 

"Leave her alone," he repeated, enunciating each syllable with power. She released me, returning to the training center.

"Let me know if she bothers you again," Maxon said, the sadness returning to him.

"Wait," I shouted, unintentionally loud. "I'm so sorry for what happened the other night. I have a boyfriend, that's why I reacted like that. It had nothing to do with you or the...you know."

He pursed his lips, calculating. "Is that who that is? Aspen Leger?"

I hesitated then confessed. "Yes. Yes, he is," I whispered.

"Oh," he commented, eyes askance. "Well, he's very lucky."

We stood in silence for a few minutes, neither of us knowing what to say.

"We should probably head back in," he stated. Neither of us moved.

"Or we could stay out here," I proposed. "I'm really not trying to see Celeste." He almost smiled.

"Most people don't. Especially after she uses her nails."

"She shouldn't even be able to have knives in the Games. Her nails are enough. Look." I showed him my arm which still had her indents.

He lightly held my forearm, turning it over. "We should probably get you to the infirmary. There's a little bit of blood."

"I'll be fine," I combated.

"Will you at least get a band aid? I'd feel a lot better if you did."

"Fine," I groaned, smiling. "Only because you coerced me."

"Well, that's why they call me Maxon Schreave, master of coercion," he joked, the old twinkle in his eyes coming to life.

"You wish," I bantered. We walked to the infirmary, joking about all of the events that had occurred over the last week. How many times Gavril had winked in the broadcast, chuckled at the name Tallulah Bell. Our relationship was back to normal.

Except something was different. Every time we brushed against each other or got too close, we both staggered away. That kiss could not be forgotten, forging an invisible boundary between us. 

"There you go, ma'am," the nurse said, laying the last band-aid on my forearm.

"Thank you," Maxon said to him as we left the room. "Well, I guess it's back to viciously ignoring each other. It was great talking to you, my - America." I was glad I had trained the dear out of him.

"No," I protested. "We could still talk. I was thinking, maybe we could be an alliance. You know, Marlee, Carter, and Aspen, and I, we could really use you." He winced at Aspen's name.

"America, I would love to be in an alliance with you but I don't really want to work with the guy whose girlfriend I kissed."

"I didn't tell him who I kissed!"

"You don't think he'd figure it out?" Maxon shouted. "Even Celeste could tell there was something between us. It's obvious!"

"Really?" I whispered.

He rolled his eyes warmly at me. "Yes, really. I am a week away from something I've been training for my whole life and all I can think about is you. Your smile, your laugh." He said it with such reverence. "So no, I don't think working together will work."

No one had ever talked about me like that. Most people talked about my looks or how bright my hair was. But he talked about the noises I made and the shape my lips formed. He had only known me for two weeks. Aspen had known me basically my whole life and all he could tell me was how gorgeous I was.

"I - I love your hair," I started. "I think it's a very cool color. And your laugh is interesting but in a good way." He chuckled. "Just like that! I know aligning with us isn't ideal but I want that. I want you to work with us."

"Fine," he groaned, mocking me. "Your incessant begging has rendered me useless."

**How do you think the group will react to Maxon? Specifically Aspen?**

**Tribute interviews next update. Should be interesting**

**How's my Maxon?**

**You guys have no idea how much it means to me that you're reading this. It truly warms my heart and thank you. You are amazing**