Dean Jacobs:
"Come on mum we need to get a move on. Dont want to be late do we?" I say moving to mum side and grabbing her arm to steady her. She is only 38 but it is like she is 70. Creaky joints, grey hair, wrinkles. All the signs of an old person. But mum is not old she is just stressed. After dad and Linda died she has never been the same since.
“Late. We shouldn’t even be going. It’s horrible.” she mumbles getting up from her chair. We make our way out the house and to the town centre where the rest of the district is waiting for the Reaping to begin. The huge stage is set and ready for the ‘show’.
“Hello dean.” doctor Adam’s says. He’s become a great friend recently as he’s been helping mum a lot.
“How are you feeling?”
“Well okay at the moment I suppose. You?”
“Oh yes. I’m used to this by now. The waiting. Just wish they’d get it over with now don’t you?”
“Ruddy waste of time.” mum grumbles looking through the crowd for no-one in particular.
“Now now. Come on we should all get into the spirit of things. After all that is what they want. And besides who knows? We may win this year!” he disappears into the thriving crowd and is lost from sight.
Everyone seems a little impatient as we wait for it to begin. I’m so nervous. Even though I try and stay strong for mum on the outside on the inside I’m almost close to tears. What if I get picked? My name was in twice thanks to the tesserae. I didn’t have the biggest chance ever but I didn’t have a 0% chance either.
Suddenly the crowd erupts as Effie trinket appears on stage in her oddly colored clothes and striking neon yellow hair.
“Welcome welcome and happy writer games and may the odds be ever in your favor!” she waves her hands about in a strange fashion and she’s talking far too excitedly for it to be real.
The great orb is brought onto the stage by the people from the capitol and then they walk away stiffly like robots. They always made me feel so uncomfortable.
“And the male tribute for district 3 is…
I hold my breath and hold mum tighter, more to make me feel better rather than her. The silence goes on forever and ever as we wait to find out who the unlucky person may be…
“Dean Jacobs!”
Crap. That’s me. I sigh gathering everything I can to make myself seem okay and begin to make my way towards the stage. Mum suddenly grasps me in a rib-cracking hug.
“Don’t worry.” she says in a whisper. Then she turns me around and prods me towards the stage. I walk up the hollow wooden steps and take my place next to Effie trinket. She smiles nicely at me but it doesn’t quite reassure me.
“And now the female tribute for district 3 is…”
Everyone holds their breath, all but me. I couldn’t care less anymore.
“Stephanie Avril Byrns!”
A girl younger than me that I almost recognize steps forward. I can see a smaller girl following her with her hair cut short on top of her head. The younger girl is crying and wiping her tears on her pretty pink cotton dress but her sister puts a hand on her shoulder making her and she stays put at the front of the crowd while Stephanie comes up the steps.
I notice her purple pink tank top is faded and slightly muddy. Her hair a tangled mess at her side. She obviously didn’t care what the world thought of her. I didn’t really make much of an effort either. I didn’t think I’d get picked so I just spiked my hair as I always did and shoved on my hoodie and shorts. Nothing special.
I looked over at the little girls face, still crumpled with tears then I looked to where I had stood just moments ago with my mother but she had gone. Back to the house I expect. She wasn’t a fan of the games.
I turned my head a fraction more and caught sight of Stephanie’s face and it mirrored mine exactly.
Complete numbness and worry.
