DUSTYN CHASE | DISTRICT TWO | FIN

His hair was a victim to the sun's harsh power, almost turning white at certain point of his life because it absorbed so much of the light. His hair would be almost brown if he stayed inside more, but something about the warmth and adventure that lies on the other side of his front door is too hard to resist. As if it called his name, begged him. His father's cloudy blue eyes are one of the only features he was given by him. They were so warm and inviting he could have probably melted chocolate with them. He did melt a lot of girls' hearts with them. His nose is thick and pudgy, as are his cheeks. His full lips are soft to the touch, and well taken care of, mainly because he can't stand chapped lips.

Underneath the plain shirts and sweats he wears to train in is a body that he has worked hard to achieve. Instead of focusing on the weapons and killing like his father thought he was doing, Dustyn built his body to it's physical best. His arms and legs were bold and strong; his core was hard and toned. His body was one of the few things he could be proud of.

On most days, he wore simple clothes, ones he could move in. Not because he wanted to, but because he was wanted to. Of course, in school, he was allowed to wear the things he wanted, even though his father was never crazy about his choices, but he wore plaid button down shirts, and denim pants. He would also wear sunglasses in the lighter months of the year, but it was mainly because he thought he looked cooler in them. His mother, an owner of a dress shop, made him countless suits to wear to banquets and parties, and he guessed he never wore one more than once. She would always sell them out after he wore them for a discounted price, and make him another when it was needed.

Dustyn was always known for his sweet exterior. One of the first things people noticed about him was how genuinely nice he was. In fact, the reason he was so nice was because he wanted to make people feel the opposite of how his father made him feel. He was extremely sensitive, and easily offended. He always seemed to get his hopes up, even when he told himself not to, and it almost always blew up in his face. He liked the idea of making other people happy. He had a soft spot for girls, probably because he preferred his mother's attention over his father's. He was taught to be chivalrous and to be a gentleman, and he followed through. He treated all girls like princesses, regardless of if he was romantically evolved with them or not.

Dustyn was always afraid of responsibility. He never liked to be in charge because the pressure of leading was too much for him. Even in games he played as a child with his friends, he always stuck as the hero's sidekick, and never tried to be the super hero. He didn't like that all eyes would be on him, and that they would all watch him if he failed. Failure was too big a part of his life for him to ever risk it. Or anything, really. He was a borderline pacifist. He never argued because he knew he would lose. He never took a chance because he was scared he would get hurt. His life lacked adventure, and it was one thing he both craved and was also too afraid to fight for.

He was never the smartest of people. Actually, he was far from smart, especially as a child. Several learning disorders kept him from learning anything that wasn't fairly obvious, and even some things that weren't. He liked to keep his disorders a secret from the world so that he wasn't made fun of because of them. He had a lot of secrets, and was always very sneaky. He considered his fox-like nature his greatest attribute, and also thought it would be what got him out of the arena safely. He was so elusive that he had to purposefully make noise so that people would notice him before he scared them.

Namely, his best friend, Bette. The two grew up together, and he trusted her with everything. She was the only person that knew of his learning disorders other than his teachers and his mother. He also shared the majority of his childhood experiences with her, due to the fact that she was his neighbor. It was destined that they be there for each other.

Dustyn Kovius Chase was born on a very particularly sunny day in May, to a very wealthy business couple. His mother owned her family's dress shop, and was quite famous for the elegant gowns and suits she produced. His father was the president of his law firm. He was always a very traditional person, a fine specimen of a District Two career that grew up. He held very high standards for Dustyn, standards that he was not able to meet. He favored his mother, because she always seemed to have the right words that helped him understand. And she didn't hate him. His father didn't hate him, but he had always envisioned his son being more like him, a capable and promising career. Dustyn never understood why people wanted to base their entire lives on training for something that probably wasn't even going to happen to them. It was a waste of their childhood, something they could never get back.

He still trained, but only because his father made him. Outside of the confined buildings he hated so much- the training center and school -he was a very bright and curious child. One that loved to explore with his one true friend. Bette moved next door to him in the second grade, and the two became inseparable. They would go on adventures where Bette pretended to be an explorer, and Dustyn would always be her very obedient friend, fetching everything the eight year old told him to fetch. They were wrapped around each other's fingers.

Things never changed between the two of them. As the years went on, even when one of them was faced with trouble, the other was always there. Bette even helped Dustyn with his homework because he couldn't do it on his own. People often thought they were a couple, but Dustyn never really thought of his friend in that way. The girl had been with him for so long that it wouldn't have made a difference to him, anyway.

After they reached high school, and began having relationships, Dustyn couldn't help but compare all of his girlfriends to Bette. They were never as good as her, and even though he treated each of them like royalty, they weren't his best friend. He didn't have memories of riding bikes with them when they were children, or holding signs up in the windows to each other before going to bed.

When Dustyn was fourteen, his father got a second chance at the only thing he had ever wanted. Dustyn's brother was quickly proving that he was going to be a better career than he ever was. Carson was perfect. He loved his little brother, even though he received attention from his father never gave to Dustyn. He still had his mother when he needed to talk to a parent, like he always had. It was good to have his father off of his back, as well. He saw no reason to hate or be jealous of his brother, so he wasn't.