Afraid // Sequel to Always

Chapter 7

"One tablet." Finnick held up the reduced size medication. Today I promised him I would take it, but this was only so he would forgive me after finding out I spat the tablet out every time.

"Have you ever even tasted it?" He asked, snapping it in two and dropping it into the glass of water.

"I used to take it, but lately I have felt fine; I don't need it." I shrugged.

"Maybe that's true." Finnick held the glass for me to take.

"But in the doctors eyes, you do."

I sighed, taking the glass from him. He stood there, watching me.

"You're killing me." I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, please, even if you die at least you have me to thank for looking out for you." He winked, smirking.

"Hilarious." I nodded, looking into the glass.

"Take as much time as you need, my friend." Finnick leant against the bench, his arms crossed.

"Wanna sip?" I raised my eyebrows, holding out the glass.

"I'm not the one who needs to be drugged here." He laughed, pushing it back to me.

"Okay, what if I told you I have actual evidence I am getting better..." I put down the drink and rushed upstairs.

"Peeta, do we really have to do this?" Finnick yelled from downstairs.

"Yes, we really do." I yelled back, pulling the box of photos out from underneath the bed. I carried them downstairs and Finnick watched me carefully.

"Framed pictures?" He asked, walking over to me as I set the box on the table.

"More like my therapy. If I ever feel tense or sad, I look through the pictures of Katniss and all our friends, and the memories heal me somehow. I can't explain it...the days where I was actually happy. Helps me realise who I need to be now." I explained, digging for a particular photograph.

"Just look at them?" Finnick picked up a framed picture of Annie, Katniss, himself and I. The four best friends, the two best couples. Finnick was kissing Annie, their arms holding each other. I was taking the picture with the front camera while Katniss was laughing and had her arms draped around my shoulders.

Finnick smiled just looking at the photo. I was sure he understood what I meant.

"Yeah." I answered, watching him study that photo. Once he was out of that world, we started searching through all the photos. There were at least fifty, all of which had some sort of happiness involved. There was one I didn't have in the box, though. I had a picture of Katniss with a white, light fabric dress on, standing by Clove's side as she got married. It was a professional photo taken, but Katniss looked truly beautiful. Her eyes were watching Cato and Clove, a slight smile on her face, her love and thoughtfulness showing completely. It was just as I imagined her to be in our wedding. The wedding that was never to be.

I keep that photo on my bedside table and it makes me stop and stare every time I wake up and see it.

"Peeta?" Finnick paused after about an hour of looking through them in silence.

"What?" I asked.

"I was just wondering if you were willing to be taken out of the treatment?" He asked, a smile curling in his lips.

"What...what are you saying?" I asked, my throat going dry.

"I think I will have a chat with your doctor. No more tablets. No more therapy. Maybe occasional visits to see him, just to check your progress. But otherwise, free...back to living your life again. I know you're not one hundred percent safe, but I can see just looking at you, this will work. You will get better." Finnick finished, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Finnick..." I said, my head spinning.

"Peeta. I want you to get better, it's only know I realised how." He smiled, putting a hand on my shoulder.

But that wasn't enough for what he had just said to me. I grabbed the back of his neck with one hand and pushed him into a tight hug. His arms hurriedly wrapped around my back and I kept one hand to his neck and one to his back. We sobbed, but we sobbed together. We healed, but we healed together. I had realised what my life was, I knew how to fight like Katniss now. I knew what love could do to you, even when you didn't want it to. I knew that no matter what, if you had a true friend, you could never let them go. I loved Katniss Everdeen, and her death had made me give up.

But it made me get up.

It had me hurt.

But now I was healed.

It had made me afraid.

But that was nothing.

"Katniss! It's okay, Prim is happy now." I whispered to her as she screamed awake.

"I saw her, I saw them, they were both dead." She panicked, grabbing a fistful of my shirt.

"They are, Katniss. But you know how to deal with it. You are strong, you are brave, you know that your sister and your mother are so proud of you." I cradled her and kissed her forehead as her heartbeat slowed.

"Please...please stay with me." She sobbed, burying her head in my chest.

"Katniss, there's nothing else I would ever do other than stay with you." I stroked her hair gently.

"That's not what we agreed on." She let out a quiet laugh.

"I'm sorry," I chuckled, "I meant always. Always."

She looked at me and whispered two words in the complete darkness, so simple but made me feel a rush of emotions. Maybe they meant more then she thought, or maybe they meant more then what I thought. But they meant enough in the end.

"Thank you."

The End. But it wasn't really. I still had a long way to go, but at least I knew where I was going.

***

Hello. Thanks for reading Afraid! I hope you enjoyed it, sorry if it was short but I never intended it to be long! I love you all for reading this and even bothering to read the first book! That means so much to me!

I hope you read more of mine, and I promise this is not the last you've seen of me! I love you all.

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See you soon xx