I was relatively positive when I woke up in the morning. Happy. Not nervous. Ready.

I was absolutely, and completely ready.

Confused a little too by my 180 degree turn on the whole situation. A day ago I was anxious and dreadful of the announcement being that of a Gathering but now I was not either of these things.

Maybe it was because this was my second Gathering and I knew what to expect. Or maybe it was the fact that I was 100% sure that I was not going to get caught.

Why did I believe that?

Chance? Most people who walked free from their first Gathering didn't get caught in any Gatherings following after. But that was just a probability. The Hunters tried to catch people in their first Gathering because they would be younger and least likely to resist. And with the differing time spans between Gatherings, it was easier to go for the ones who were defenceless. Some people had made it entire life times without experiencing a Gathering, while some had experienced over a handful of them.

Strategy? I had a plan to make it through the 10 minutes in that town square. I was going to do whatever it took to make sure I was out of sight of the Hunters, or anyone else for that matter.

Stubbornness? I had always been stubborn and I knew it too. There was no other option but to not get captured.

Confidence? Confidence was something that came naturally to me . I had to believe in myself in order for it to be done. And now I was confident of the fact that I wouldn't get caught.

All of these things led me to believe that I was prepared and ready but I knew the moment the doors of the waiting building opened and we were released into the square, I would be just as terrified as I was my first time.

Just because my chances of getting caught were extremely unlikely, didn't make it impossible. But I had to believe it was, for my own sake.

After a shower and breakfast, I dressed in black pants and a white cotton shirt. I slipped on my converse, my only suitable shoes, and then made sure to check in before leaving. I didn't want to make the same mistake as yesterday morning.

I locked up the house before leaving, it was 9:30.

I lived fairly close to the town square, only a 2o minute bus ride from my home.

The way our little country was set up was similar to a target.

The outer ring was the Undesirable's sector. The second inner ring was that of the Unremarkable's. The middle ring belonged to the Unexceptional's, that is where I lived.

The next ring was the home of the Untouchables, more lavish and kept that the other sectors.

The final circle in the middle, the centre of the target, was the town square. Not actually a square, but a circle, nonetheless it was the centre of our nation and where the Gathering took place.

I walked down to the end of my street and waited along with a man and his wife for the next bus.

The rattling of the dented, grey metal bus could be heard before it was seen. It came to a screeching halt when it arrived at our stop and we filed on to the semi-full bus.

The bus stopped a few more times in the Unexceptional sector, filling up, and then continuing into the Untouchables sector. The bus was not permitted to stop in any other sector that its own, therefore the drive was smooth and quick.

My hand held the pole that connected the ceiling and floor tightly as we drove. I had given up my seat to a woman with her little boy. He looked about ten.

His eyes were a little puffy and his cheeks rosy, obviously from crying. I had been the same way too when it was my first Gathering. I said a silent wish for his protection.

Outside the widow I watched as the buildings of jewl tones passed by. The Untouchables' sector was extravagant; and that was an understatement.

They lived in flats just like everyone else but their building were taller and much nicer.

Flowers and trees of every colour lined the sidewalks that were in front of the shops filled with clothes, furniture, and food.

It was something that I would never get used to seeing.

Our bus finally arrived at the unloading station and we piled off, now walking to the Unexceptional's sector.

Even though the Untouchables sector was beautiful, the town square was something out of a dream.

It still used the same jewel tones as the Untouchables buildings but everything seemed grander. How that was possible I wasn't sure but somehow it was.

Buildings of amethyst, teal, topaz, Siam, and peridot surrounded the square along with flowers of the same colours. In the centre was a stage with the podium of the King on it. The wood all a dark brown colour. The ground was cobblestoned and little strands of grass poked though the stones.

Voices traveled throughout the square creating a buzz in my ears.

Just ahead of me was a small sign that said Unexceptional's. I directed myself towards that area and stood amongst my classification.

I recognised a few people that I had gone to school with but paid them no attention. I never really had friends. Socialising wasn't really my thing.

The crowd was getting thicker. I was now surrounded by Unexceptional's. I folded my arms over my chest and waited until the announcement to go to our classified waiting buildings was made.

A man who by the way he was dressed, looked to be an assistant of the king, stepped up to the podium.

His hair was red and styled messily, fringe hanging over his pale forehead. I couldn't see his eye colour from where I stood but I imagined them a green or hazel colour.

He awkwardly tapped on the microphone to silence everyone.

"You may be released to your waiting buildings now." He said in a soft voice and I half smiled at what looked like nervousness.

He practically ran off the stage and I smirked again.

Everyone turned around and began to walk to the buildings that surrounded the square.

I followed the people ahead of me into a five storied, turquoise coloured building. The door was framed by small, pretty purple flowers that scaled the wall.

The inside of the building was as lavish as the outside.

Cream coloured chairs lined the walls in every room. White marble tables held crystal vases filled with water. Matching glasses were placed next to it.

Around fifteen people were able to fit in every room.

I took a seat on a wall that faced the door, immediately settling my gaze on the floor.

It was quiet. No one really talked except for to their family members who sat with them. I wasn't that lucky.

The funny thing about being in the waiting room was that you had no conception of time. No clocks were on the walls and watches were not permitted inside the waiting buildings.

This meant that you had no clue what time it was but also that you didn't know if you were the first group to go, in the middle or the last.

The Hunters liked to run the Gathering at their own speed, putting different time periods between releases and changing the order of the classifications.

I sat there staring at the ground for a while before the clinking of a glass caused me to raise my eyes.

A woman was getting a drink while others stared at the ground or watched her.

I scanned the room and made eye contact with a boy around my age. His irises were a hazel colour that went beautifully with his slightly tanned skin. His brown hair was short, wavy and fluffy, the fringe covering part of his forehead.

He wore black pants like me but with a black leather jacket over a black shirt. His body was slim but I could tell he was lightly muscled under his tight jacket.

I internally scoffed at his outfit choice. All black to make himself seem tough.

I realised that we had been staring at each other for a while now and quickly looked back down to the floor.

My recollection of time was gone. What felt like minutes could have been hours and what felt like hours could have been minutes.

I wasn't sure how long we sat there but I jumped when the door opened.

A man with a blonde buzz cut dressed in Hunter apparel, which normally consisted of Army green pants and black shirts walked in.

"You are being released now." He said quickly before turning around and briskly walking out.

Everyone glanced at each other before standing up and following him out of the room.

We followed him down a hallway and a staircase until we were all gathered in the front lobby of our building.

The Hunter stood at the door facing us.

"As you know you will have a minute once I open these doors to get a head start. The nine minutes after that will be the Gathering. Good luck." He said before turning around and pushing open the doors.

This was it.

People pushed forward, grabbing onto their children or loved ones and running out of the building.

I did the same, elbowing myself out of the mass of people and into the square.

It was dark outside. We must have been in there all day.

I let my feet push off the pavement in a sprint once I had passed the people at the door and launched myself towards an alleyway between two buildings.

I had remembered it from my first Gathering.

I knew it would make the perfect hiding spot.

The cobblestones threatened to trip me as I ran but soon enough I threw myself into the alley and behind a barrel.

It must have been a connecting alley to a restaurant because the smell of old food and a fish skeleton of the ground provided for a displeasing place to crouch down. But I didn't have a choice.

The barrel was halfway into the alley so that I wouldn't be seen from the entrance.

I breathed heavily, my heart rate increasing. This was it.

I knew the first person had been caught when I heard the pleas and cries for help.

Others began to scream and run out in the square while I cowered in my hiding spot.

Everything went into chaos at this point. The Hunters went around looking for their catch as the ones they chased after ran.

I cringed as I heard a woman scream close by as a Hunter caught her child.

I couldn't see but from the sounds of desperation she made I knew what had happened.

This was the worst part, seeing families torn apart. No one had a choice.

The sounds of footsteps at the entrance of the alley cause my heart to break into a sprint. Perspiration dotted my forehead and my body trembled. No...no this wasn't happening.

The footsteps got closer, so close I could hear the person breathing until suddenly they stopped.

I pressed my back into the brick wall behind me and shut my eyes tightly.

Before I registered they had left the footsteps turned and began to walk the other way, back out into the square.

I let out a ragged breath.

That was so close. Too close.

I dropped my head back against the wall and tried to regain my breathing pattern.

I wonder how much time was left.

I had counted to 254 in my head when I heard a scream from near the alley.

"MAMA! MAMA!" Cried the voice.

I leaned forward onto my knees until I was in a crawling position and inched forward, barely peeking my head around the side of the barrel.

A little boy around the age of 12 was fighting off the Hunter that had caught him.

The boy pried at the Hunters arms uselessly.

This wasn't fair. He was just a kid.

I watched in horror as the Hunter tried to grab the boys arms causing the kid to fall down.

I leaned forward even more.

No.

The Hunter fought with the boy who was now kicking and screaming.

"STOP MOVING KID, YOU'RE ONLY MAKING IT WORSE FOR YOURSELF."

"Leave him alone." I whimpered to myself.

The boy let out a fast kick into the Hunters rib cage and the Hunter yelled out in pain before launching himself on top of the boy, pressing the child's face into the stones.

I didn't even think about what I was doing but it was too late.

My body took control and bolted out of the alley and over to where the boy fought weakly on the ground.

"Let him go! He's just a child!" I yelled at the Hunter before prying his arms off of the boy.

"RUN" I yelled at him and he nodded before leaving without a second thought.

"Fine. You'll just have to take his place." The Hunter growled at me and yanked my arms behind my back.

I looked to make sure the boy had escaped before letting the Hunter take me. I wasn't strong enough to fight him off.

He pushed me forward and towards a red jewel building.

I resisted only slightly, his harsh grip on my arms hurting me.

He shoved me through the door and through the building until we came to a black door.

He kicked it open since both of his hands were occupied securing mine and forced me out into what looked like an abandoned courtyard.

The walls made up part of the courtyard, the open space was just a wall of trees that led to what looked like a forest.

Buses of the same army green and black as the Hunters parked in the grass before the trees.

Hunters swarmed the space, pushing their catches into the back of the buses.

My head moved from side to side erratically as I tried to look at my surroundings but before I knew it, a black curtain in front of me was flipped aside and my body was thrown into the back of a bus.

This was it. The impossible was possible.

I was caught.