lover/fighter - Finnick Odair

Chapter 46 - A wild night out

Rhea turns in the same direction Effie is looking with such interest. Just in time to witness the arrival of the couple who have caught the attention of the District 12 escort. She finds a finely dressed Finnick, with his chiseled smile like you see it in TV interviews, and a stupidly grinning blonde on his arm, draped in a dress that looks like candy wrappers. That's exactly what Rhea sees, a huge piece of candy on legs, with a look on the face that immediately disturbs her.

Of course, he wouldn't be here alone. She expected it and mentally prepared herself for it, or at least tried to. But seeing it right in front of her is far worse than anything she'd imagined, and unpleasant memories come flooding back, especially of the time with Daphne, because the image in front of her is worryingly similar to the one from back then.

Finnick, on the other hand, immediately drops the put-on expression from his face when he realizes who he has in front of him. He only recognizes her when he sees her face, because her outfit in no way resembles her usual style. He swallows and has to get himself under control quickly, because this wasn't the plan. He wanted to keep her and his clients away from each other at all costs this time and yet he fails again.

Cynthia Armstrong, 20 years old, is the only daughter of the Armstrong family, which owns the most prestigious and in fact the only luxury car company in the Capitol. Her parents are among the richest of the rich and their little angel has always been given everything money can buy without having to ask for it. So Finnick is not surprised that a girl who has never questioned all this is unable to come to the conclusion that her presence here was secured by her parents' money. What he still doesn't understand is why any parents would make such gifts to their children. The idea has always been completely incomprehensible to him, because it happens quite often.

The only positive thing is that he doesn't have to hang on the arm of a client three times his age again. Rhea would probably never ask, but he wouldn't know how to explain it either. In any case, it would be pretty awkward.

Ever since he got here, he'd been casually looking out for her while Cynthia chewed his ear off. She has this incredibly annoying giggle, like a high-pitched squeak that rings in your ears, and she giggles non-stop. Listening to her is tiring, so Finnick asked her if she'd like a drink. He thought he could excuse himself for a moment to get it for her and catch his breath, but it seems Cynthia has no intention of letting go of him for even a second.

He then spotted Haymitch and Beetee at the bar. At events like this, he has been taking the opportunity to get a little breather from stressful clients by introducing them to some of the other victors for years now. Even if they don't care enough about any of the others to forget about him, at least for a little while the spotlight is off him.

That's why he headed towards them without hesitation. On the way, he recognized Effie, the escort from District 12 who constantly has to look after Haymitch, in conversation with another woman who was standing with her back to him. Effie spotted him first and shortly afterwards her conversation partner also turned to the new arrivals.

He had expected some other escort, but it's Rhea who is looking at him. For a brief moment, he curses himself and wonders how it can be that he didn't recognize her right away. Only then does the visual impression sink in and he has to admit that he was simply looking out for the wrong thing.

The trend in the Capitol, especially among younger people, is to show as much skin as possible. Short skirts, wide necklines, the clothing really only serves to preserve the last bit of decency, even if almost nothing is left to the imagination. It may be different for some, but Finnick has never found it particularly appealing. Perhaps it is also because this permissiveness only reminds him again and again of how this city treats him, how he is perceived here and how much he dislikes it.