lover/fighter - Finnick Odair

Chapter 50 - Love is a tough business

Everything is good. Something that is seemingly easy to say, although characterized by the fact that it is usually voiced in situations where you actually mean the opposite of what you actually say. A phrase to appease, either others or perhaps yourself.

But right now, for once, everything really seems to be as it should be, even if this situation is only temporary. It is nevertheless special, especially for someone who does not often experience such a state of calm and contentment. When the worries and problems, along with all the other shadows of life, are left behind and only the light shines on your face, this is probably the simplest, but at the same time the most perfect form of joy you can feel, at least for those who know how to appreciate it.

Everything seems so simple and uncomplicated, and Rhea actually likes things to be simple and uncomplicated. For the longest time, she thought that getting involved with a troublemaker like Finnick would be anything but easy. And it is true that he certainly enjoys keeping the people around him on their toes, but there is also an almost overwhelming peacefulness that is very difficult to disturb.

It's as if he has two very different poles of energy within him, one energetic, bright, curious and playful, and the other calm, level-headed and extremely composed. It is the way in which both sides harmonize perfectly with each other that makes him an incredibly balanced person.

That's why it's not surprising that he bounces back comparatively quickly here in District 4, even after everything the Games have thrown at him again. It's impressive how he's coping with it all, and you can almost see how it's getting just a little easier for him from day to day.

It's reassuring, and even if you can't say that everything is perfect, things are just fine the way they are. The sleepless days at the graves of the fallen tributes have given them the time to overcome their inhibitions about talking about what happened. It also felt absolutely wrong to sit there, in the face of the victims, and just continue to keep everything quiet.

Linus believes that talking is the best therapy, even if many in the Capitol laugh at this, because words are nothing more than smoke and mirrors there, and usually of little value. But this isn't the Capitol, so they talk about lots of things, because that's what she's here for. They retreat to the beautiful little corners of District 4 and talk their worries off their chest, with the sea as their only listener. And the terror of the Games that hung so heavily in the air slowly dissipates.

Finnick is slowly getting better, at least that's how it seems to Rhea as she looks at his relaxed figure lying next to her in the sand. By now she is no longer surprised to find him napping in all sorts of places and at all sorts of times. Apparently Finnick has no problem falling asleep for a little while in every possible environment, except at night and in something that actually resembles a real bedroom.

Now that she sleeps just two rooms away from him every night, it's not uncommon for her to hear him restlessly wandering around in the middle of the night. Down the wooden stairs, into the kitchen, eventually back again. Down the wooden stairs again, making rounds through the living room, out the back through the patio door. Once, when she didn't hear him come back for a long time, the little sprout of worry wouldn't let her sleep until she went to check for herself. She didn't even have to set foot off the wooden terrace, as she could easily make out his figure from there, sitting on the dune in the grass and staring out at the horizon.

It's no wonder that sleep overtakes him again and again during the day, even if it's certainly not so restful that it could really adequately replace sleep at night. It's a paradox, but to compare his situation with what is generally considered normal would be presumptuous. Unfortunately, nothing really makes it better. According to Finnick, the stronger sleeping pills from the Capitol's repertoire he tried years ago had some effect, but he quickly stopped taking them because the side effects were not worth the little improvement.