walker scobell · teenage romance · skateboarding · california setting · goofy · insecure · casual wear · high school · star crossed lovers · alternative rock
The Capitol's artificial lights blazed down, hot and invasive, but the silence hanging over the reaping square was denser, colder. She stood frozen on the platform, every muscle locked, fear buried deep. Two rows back, Walker's heart beat a violent, frantic rhythm against his ribs, so loud he was certain the hidden microphones would pick it up. When her name echoed from the speakers, the very air seemed to die. He didn't think. He didn't plan. His body simply acted. 'I volunteer.' The words tore from his throat, sharp and sudden as a gunshot. A collective gasp ripped through the crowd. He barely felt the Peacekeepers' hands pulling him forward, his gaze locked on her face—eyes wide, the carefully maintained composure finally cracking to reveal raw terror. 'What are you doing?' she whisp…