lover/fighter - Finnick Odair

Chapter 18 - Sea-weary soul

The next morning, Rhea paces nervously in her room. She would have liked to just go back to sleep, but her inner clock woke her up too early, as usual. Now she waits impatiently to finally get a notification telling her that someone is coming to pick her up to take her to the train.

She was hopeful that she could leave without having to face anyone in this house again, but by now it's light outside and her chances of doing so are diminishing with each passing minute.

But she also doesn't dare to leave her room. After all, she doesn't know how long she'll have to wait for her liberation, and even though she's regained her composure in the meantime, she can well do without spending even a minute longer in a room with Daphne.

Her few belongings, are already waiting at the door, so when the message finally arrives, she doesn't waste a second. Quickly and quietly, she takes the now familiar path towards the exit.

She has almost made it, but then not just one but almost the whole group suddenly comes towards her, presumably on their way to breakfast. Rhea can hardly believe her bad luck, but she is determined not to let on. She pretends that last night never happened and politely says her goodbyes again.

"Oh, what a shame you have to leave so soon. We had so much fun. Sure you don't want to stay?" asks Daphne sardonically, after Rhea has already turned to leave.

She has tried her hardest not to look at her adversary the whole time, to pretend that she is mere air. Now she has to grit her teeth. She turns around, looks evil in the face, and only answers grimly, "I have plans of my own."

Daphne wrinkles her nose and they stare at each other for a moment. "Of course, well have fun then," she says, turning in a dramatic motion and strutting away. As she does so, however, she doesn't loosen the tight grip she's had around Finnick's wrist the whole time and pulls him along with her, after he gives Rhea a last fleeting glance over his shoulder.

Before that, he'd been averting his eyes from her the entire time, and that brief moment isn't remotely enough to interpret what might be going on inside him. She would have to find out at another time.

She then makes her way to the station without looking back again. As announced, one of the monstrous vehicles is waiting outside to pick her up. Rhea had hoped a little that it would be Hunter again, who also brought her here. She could use a little distraction right now.

Instead, it's a different peacekeeper at the wheel this time. He's very quiet and doesn't seem to think much of small talk, but he's polite and that's good enough for her.

A little later, she's finally on the train, which leaves the now snow-free station for the Capitol.

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Rhea slumps backwards onto Elaine's old sofa. Her legs hang over the armrest on one side as she traces the wafer-thin cracks in the ceiling with her eyes.

The apartment is located outside the city center, but not yet in the really run-down parts at the edge of the Capitol. Everything is a bit old, and sometimes there are the usual problems with electricity, water and so on. It reminds her a lot of how she used to live. No comparison to her lifestyle today, but it could have been worse.

She has offered Elaine so many times to find her something better. Something bigger, because she lives with her sick mother, after all. She also refused the offer to support her further financially and threatened to resign if Rhea dared to simply increase her already comparatively generous salary.

To a small extent, the reason for Rhea's efforts may be regret, because she had to tell Elaine a few years ago that she would not be able to help the aged lady. There are many things she can fix, but for Elaine's mother, it's decades too late for that.