TylerBooke&WrenGearheart: Part 3; Little Favours

Wren felt different today, like she had changed overnight. Several emotions filled her from tip to toe; excitement, anxiety, happiness, and despair. They all intermingled leaving very little room for air in Wren's lungs. Yesterday, she had met a guy who was two classes above her and talked with him for a long time. And he seemed to possibly like her. After all, he did want to meet her here today. That was the excitement and happiness that consumed her. The anxiety and despair was the thought of the events to come in 24 hours; Reaping Day. She, along with all the citizens of Panem would either be standing in their town's square or watching on the television who would be selected. Some were excited and tuned in closely like the Capitolites and those in the upper districts. Others were biting their nails and holding their breath to see if they or their loved one was next in line to walk to their death. Who knew, tomorrow, Wren could be giving her dad one final goodbye and would be sent off to the Capitol to be glitzed and glammed, trained, scored, interviewed, and finally sent into the arena to fight to the death. Was she ready for that? No, no child or adolescent could be, not even the Careers were prepared for that.

Wren wore an outfit to keep her warm and she walked up to the school. It was odd to be here on a Saturday of all days. She didn't like being here on the weekdays as it was, let alone a time when she didn't have to. The air had an odd smell of petrolium, pollution, mud, and yesterday's rain. It was strangely familiar and even comforting to her. It was the smell of her home. Could this be the last time she smelled it again? No, she was being stupid. Of course, it wouldn't be. There were hundreds of thousands of eligable girls in District 8. It couldn't be her.

Wren walked up to the place he said to meet, hold the souvenier she had made him in her hand hidden in her pocket. Her face lit up and her mind cleared mostly of the things that troubled most of Panem at the moment when she saw Tyler. It was surreal how well they had connected yesterday and she couldn't help but feel a little anxious at seeing him. In the past, Wren had only used boys as prizes to prove herself above other girls and also for company and attention. It wasn't because she was vain or childish, but because it was a form of entertainment and practice in her ways of pursuasion and bargaining. In district 5, she had to find some way to entertain herself.

Tyler spotted her and his face lit up. "Hey,"[/color] she said to him. "Ready for tomorrow?"[/color] She knew that it was a bad idea to talk about the Reaping but it was on her mind and Wren always said what was on her mind whether it would help her or hurt her. She really had no filter for those sort of things.

A scoff escaped Wren's lips. She was far from ready. She was fourteen. He was sixteen and a boy. He could probably survive much longer than she would. Modesty irritated her because she felt if you were good at something, you should be proud of it and not pretend you weren't. But maybe he was just trying to make her feeling better or even flirt. She decided not to get irritated with him. Stress was high and she didn't want to take out her worries on him. It was great that he was even there for her to vent to or avoid unpleasant thoughts with.

"Doubt it,"[/color] she replied, nonchallantly. She decided to give him the carved little bird to drop the subject she now wished she hand't brought up. Then she fished through her pocket and pulled out the carved bird and handed it to him, feeling slightly bashful. "So, I made you something. Like I said I would,"[/color] she added, not wanting to sound gushy but keeping a promise. Wren hated being vulnerable or emotional and wasn't the type of girl to cry, or let anyone see her cry for that matter. She didn't want people to know what she was thinking or feeling. That was her business and even she didn't think about it if she didn't have to. Why were emotions so complicated? Why couldn't everyone just say what they were thinking without fear of being judged or things not going according to plan. But no, Wren couldn't think about those things now. She wouldn't think of anything now; not the Reaping Day, not her feelings, not the future. Wren would just enjoy today and choose not to worry.

Tyler fished something out of his jacket and put it in his hand, which was so warm compared to hers. Boys' hands always were. She looked at what he gave her. It was a black stone and it represented the story he had told. It was so thoughtful and special and even beautiful. Beauty wasn't something you'd typically see in District 5 but this was. She was yet again at a loss for words. This was so thoughtful, more thoughtful than anything she had ever gotten, even from her dad. He always tried his best with gifts but they never had money for anything special and he didn't have the intution on those things that her Ma once did. He always got things she would never use but it wasn't from carelessness or inattentiveness, but from just not knowing. Wren figured most boys were this way but obviously she was mistaken.

Finally Wren gathered her thoughts to form words. She looked at him with a look that she couldn't even determine if she could look at herself. "Tyler, you didn't have to do this..."[/color] and when he insisted, she gave her opinion of it. "It's beautiful and so thoughtful. Thank you,"[/color] she said sincerely. "You don't know what it means to mean."[/color] She closed her small fingers around the stone, holding it tight in her palm. She would never let it go. Ever. And she wanted to thank him but there were no words for it but giving him a hug would be too pushy right? She looked down at her shoes, bashfully, and looked up at him, giving a flirty, warm smile. "So you really like what I made you? I didn't get a lot of time to make it."[/color]

"Yeah, it was tough to find a model to look at to carve it but I found one eventually. They aren't easy to find here."[/color] He seemed so sincere and unafraid of saying how he felt. Wren kind of wished she was the same way. It was difficult for her though. When she was trying to get what she wanted, she was never herself. Now that she was supposed to be herself, she wasn't sure who that was. Tyler mentioned running out of time too. She figured he probably did it last minute or something because he would feel bad not getting her something. Even though it was extremely obvious, it was only slightly evident to Wren that he might like her. Okay, maybe it was more obvious than that but she didn't know how to act confident with a boy that liked her when she might have feelings back. If she didn't have feelings for him, this would be easy but she couldn't even admit it to herself.

"Don't worry. I won't loose it."[/color] She was completely and whole-heartedly since about it. Wren wasn't letting go of it, not ever. Even if she ever became a tribute, she would keep with her until her last breath.

When Tyler hugged her, at first she tensed up but relaxed almost instantly when she realized that she wanted him to. She brought her arms inward so he could hug her and she let his warmth engulf her. They finally parted and he reciprocated his thanks. He made an awkward joke that she felt was lame but she giggled a bit so he didn't feel embarrassed.

"So, what do you wanna do? Walk, talk, maybe go into town or somewhere?"[/color] She had to find something to do to keep them busy. Just standing there was a bit awkward. If they could talk and get to know each other and maybe keep their feet going, making their friendship would be a whole lot easier.

[/color] she asked. If he had, hopefully he liked it so they could go there. It was one of Wren's favorite places to go. If he hadn't been before, it would be so special for her to show him. She basically grew up there and the traders were practically family. Wren learned all her charisma from them and was one of the best bargainers there, which was impressive for her age and gender. If she could choose to be at one place in the entire district 5, it would be the Black Market. It was her home away from home. She loved the excitement, hustle, and bustle. The smells, sights, and sounds were the closests thing to sentimental for her as she could get.[/justify]

Wren could hardly supress her excitement. She got to see Tyler and go to her favorite place! This was a great day! She was already forgetting about the Reaping tomorrow. "Been there? I practically run the place! How do you think I'm so charming?"[/color] she asked, flirtatiously. "So do you want to go?"[/color] To her, the Black Market was home and an adventure all in one. She was so excited to show him her little sanctuary.