Chapter 1

The constant beeping of Areum’s alarm clock was something she was never really fond of. The shrill sound that erupted from the rectangle contraption always -blocked her relationship with her bed and pillows, but nonetheless she slammed the ‘dismiss’ button and groaned as she sat up on her bed with a loud yawn. Slowly, she took in her surroundings and sighed at the boring room she had been sleeping in for the last 19 years. Nothing had changed. Her bed only changed as she grew taller, but aside from that nothing was changed. The color of the walls were the same. The same goes for the desk, the chair, the television, the music player, and the rug that added a bit of character to the drab white and purple room.

Areum’s trudged out of her bed to the bathroom after slipping her feet into the comfy slippers. As she stared at herself in the mirror, she took in the image of a woman with long jet black hair that cascaded down to the top of her belly button. Her complexion was that of fresh snow and her lips were blood red. Now her eyes, her eyes were an electric blue color that blended nicely with the subtle gray that would appear in certain angles.

It’s been told that she’s the only being with eyes as captivating as her’s, but she found nothing special about it so she would simply brush off the compliment as a useless attribute she so happened to have.

Moving on to her body, she noticed the slight weight gain of her body. Before, her shirt would slightly fold around her stomach area, but now the folds were gone and it seems as if her s had also grown since the top of the shirt seemed to stretch slightly in that area. Looking down to her legs, she pouted at the bruise that had not healed yet due to a bump against the corner of the small coffee table in the living room. With a sigh, she yawned once more before deciding to take a shower after wasting a few minutes of observing herself in front of the mirror.

After her shower, she got dressed in her school uniform and brushed out her hair before heading down the stairs to grab some breakfast. Upon reaching the dining room, she saw her mother placing plates full of food on the table and her father reading the newspaper with the occasional sips of his coffee. Sensing her presence, both parents looked up from what they were doing and sent her a soft smile.

“Good morning Areum!” “Mornin’ princess” her parents greeted simultaneously.

She grinned, “Good morning mom, dad.” Giving both of them a kiss on the cheek, she sat in her designated seat and started piling her plate up with food.

“Is your brother still sleeping?” Her mom asked.

“Probably,” looking up at the clock, she nodded “scratch that, he’s coming down in three.. two.. one..”

On cue her brother, Jun, came strutting into the dining room with his tie loosely hung around his neck, the top two buttons undone, and his book bag lazily slung on his shoulder. “Oh Jun, what did I tell you about dressing like that? You’ll get in trouble with the guards again.” Their mother worriedly nagged. “Honey, say something.” She demanded from her husband.

“Listen to your mother.” He instructed, not bothering to look away from the newspaper.

With an angry huff, she thumped his head and muttered complaints about being married to him while walking to the kitchen to clean the dishes. The children simply rolled their eyes. This happened everyday so it was nothing new to them.

As Jun sat in front of Areum he took a pancake with his bare hands and started munching on it. Disgusted, Areum glared at her brother, “Jeez Jun use the plate and fork to eat, will you?”

Jun simply rolled his eyes and swallowed before retorting, “I’ll do as I please.” Taking another chunk off of the pancake he spoke again, “Oh yeah, isn’t today your year’s occupation test or something?”

“Yeah” she nodded nonchalantly as she cut into her pancake.

Upon hearing her children’s conversation, their mother cheered, “Oh really deary!? It’s that time of the year already? Why didn’t you tell me? I would’ve made a healthier breakfast.”

“Mom chill,” she took a sip from her cup then continued to direct her attention to the breakfast in front of her. “it’s just an occupational exam, I don’t even see the point of having such a stupid test.”

“Princess you know it’s so that-“

“People don’t waste money on doing occupations that aren’t really for them” Areum interrupts her father. “I know, dad, but what if the test is wrong?”

“Oh dear, it’s never wrong. We all love our jobs and it’s because that test helped us make the right choice.” Her mother claimed.

With a roll of her eyes, she wiped her lips then glanced at the clock. “I’ll get going now, the doors are about to open.”

“Me too” Jun stood up from the table, wiping his lips with the back of his hand.

Their parents nodded then waved at them as the front door automatically opened at the sound of the bell. Walking out the house, Jun fixed himself to look as proper as the other students while Areum watched the neighbors’ doors also open and close at the same time as children of different ages spilled out each house. “Hey Jun? Have you ever wondered why for as long as we could remember, each house’s front door opens at the same exact time with the same annoying bell ringing?”

“No, seriously noona you’re so weird, just yesterday you asked why every family only has two kids. Obviously it’s just how life is, like how women can only have one female and one male.”

Areum frowned. She had always been one to question things around her and she was often found weird for it. It had started a week after her 17^th birthday. She’d unconsciously question everything and it irked her every time she couldn’t find an answer to them. With a shake of her head, she continued to walk down the path that led to the campus that would be where she was to take her test.

Upon arriving, she registered her name at the table up front then looked for the high-tech computer that she had been assigned to take the exam on. The task was rather difficult for her as the gigantic gymnasium-sized room had similar looking monitors lined up in rows. Taking a look at the monitor beside her, she noticed that each monitor had a number and so she glanced at the paper work she had been given at the table and read her number.

“Number 96..” She read aloud to herself. With a sigh she walked up and down the rows before finding her assigned seat. Annoyed, she slipped off her bag and sat down on the seat. Tapping the screen, the monitor lit up a sky blue color and greeted her.

Welcome to the Capitol’s Occupational Exam

At which the Capitol shall guide you in choosing the best career for you. 

A/N: Well! There's chapter 1! I Hope you guys enjoyed it! Let me know what you think by commenting! Thank you!