Survivors

Chapter 24: Jada

Chapter 24: Jada

          I’ve been in the inspection room for what seems like an hour, though I’m almost certain it hasn’t been. The capitol medics are just checking to see that I’m not carrying any diseases. They say it’s better safe than sorry, but I know they think that districts are dirty infectious places. They just want to make sure their precious capitol stays “filth” free.

          “Oh, you're a pretty one,” one of the examiners chimes in a squeaky, mouse-like voice, “No doubt you will be able to pull eyes in the capitol.”

          “Pull eyes?” I ask. Their words seem foreign to me.

          “She means that you'll have no problem at all attracting boys' attentions

          “Oh, she just means that you won’t have any trouble attracting the eyes off all of the capitol boys,” another examiner explains.

          I’m contained on the table for a couple more minutes before I’m finally cleared and released. The first thought that comes to my mind is to find Xain, but then I decide to explore the ship. It’s not every day a district warrior gets to enjoy the luxuries of the Capitol.

          The hovercraft is huge. Every turn seems to reveal something new. There are a lot of different screens broadcasting different capitol media and fights. I turn my attention from the fights and look at one screen in particular. I’ve seen a game like this. It has men using sticks with nets on the end to toss around a ball. I can’t remember the name of the game though.

          “Lacrosse,” I hear a voice and turn to see Kandi approaching me. She is now wearing a white blouse and skirt with a thick red belt around her waist.

          “What?” I answer.

          “The game is called lacrosse,” Kandi smiles and repeats, “It’s very famous in the capitol and many different districts alike.”

          “I’ve heard of it,” I say as I turn back to the screen, “I just have never seen it before.”

          “Well it’s very fun,” Kandi smiles widely, “it’s supposed to be a male and female sport.”

          “Have you ever tried it,” I ask.

          “Yes,” she smiles and looks at me from the side, “but when my family found out, they nearly locked me in my room for intermingling with the players. Capitol girls aren’t really supposed to play sports.”

          She seems saddened when she says the words. I decide to try and change the subject. “Did you always want to be a designer?”

          Kandi smiles again. “Since I was a little girl. I told my family that I wanted to do it because I wanted to be like Honey, but really it was so that I could meet people all around the world.”

          “How old is Honey?” I mistakenly slip out.

          “Just thirty-three,” Kandi doesn’t seem to mind the question. She shrugs as she answers it, which relieves me. “She was almost eighteen when I was born.”

          “Oh,” I say, “I thought you were fourteen.”

          “Nope,” Kandi gives me her full attention now and has a full smile. “I’m sixteen.”

          “Do you enjoy it?” I ask, “Being a designer?”

          “Only down side would be that Honey has to come everywhere I go,” Kandi sighs, but still smiles, “My whole family says it’s for my own protection against the ‘dangers’ that lie ahead, but I know that they mean that they think that the districts are close to dirt. But you know what?”