The Supreme Games - Book One

|34| Reaping D10

Isabelle's P.O.V.

Well, this is just great.

Falling into a mud puddle right before the reaping is just fantastic.

I have it all over my overalls, in my hair and on my face. I taste a bit of dirt in my mouth and immediately spit it out.

This is the problem with living in District 10. Taking care of the animals everyday is giving me nothing but a smelly body and stained clothes.

Realizing what time it is, I run as fast as I can to my house. I only live a quarter of a mile away, so it's not that far of a run.

Before I enter my house, I take off my muddy boots and place them on the porch steps. My mom's biggest pet peeve is bringing dirt into the house. Ironic.

I dash into the bathroom to take a quick shower. When I turn on the shower, I'm greeted with freezing cold water. Shivering, I quickly soap my body and wash my hair from the mud. I try not to take too long of a shower because water is expensive and if I stay in there any longer, I'm pretty sure I'll get hypothermia.

Wrapping a towel around my bare body, I rummage through my closet, trying to find something decent to wear. I only have one jean dress, so that's what I wear. Living on the farm doesn't allow me to dress up nicely, so because of that I don't really have any "fancy" clothes. I decide to put on black pants underneath because it's a bit chilly today.

After putting my wet hair into a ponytail, I go downstairs to bid my mom a farewell. I'm not feeling too hungry, so I skip breakfast, but I do get a glass of juice. I see my mom come out of her room, so naturally I smile at her.

"Morning, mom." I greet her. She yawns and then smiles back at me.

"Morning, Izzy."

She looks awfully tired. My mom works way too much for my comfort. We barely have any money, so I help around whenever I can. After a bit of small talk, I decide to head to the square.

"Well mom, I'll see you later. Wish me luck!"

"Good luck!" She says, right before I close the door.

↞↠

Titus's P.O.V.

I huff in frustration when my collar won't cooperate with me. I hate dressing up, although, I am excited for the reaping.

When I think I'm dressed well enough, I go outside to get some fresh air. But as soon as I open the door to my backyard, I'm greeted with the smell of cow poop and musty wood.

I let out a really loud groan. I hate it here in District 10. I'm originally from District 4, but when my parents died from a boating accident six years ago, I had to come and live here with my aunt and uncle. I would much rather be in District 4. I miss swimming in the water, never having to work. Even though we weren't necessarily rich, we had enough money to live off of. I miss the hot sand and the salty water. I miss fishing and tying knots. I miss all the friendly shops I often went to.

But now I'm stuck here in this miserable place.

I plan on volunteering this year, for the benefit of myself. I already know how to fight, how to wield a weapon. District 4 gave me strong arms from all the swimming. District 10 gave me the ability to yield pitchforks, just as if it were a trident.

Oh, how I miss my tridents.

If I win, which I plan on doing, I'm moving back to District 4 by myself. I don't need any relatives from here to come with me.

When I go back inside, I grab an apple and make my way towards the front door. My aunt scurries into the kitchen quickly. "Wait, Titus! Aren't you gonna say goodbye to—"