Dead in the Water | An Odesta Fanfic

Chapter Forty-Five

The last frost of the season had come and gone, and with every day that passed, the weather was getting warmer. The tips of the trees were turning green with leaves and the grass that covered the slopes around Victor's Village was growing long and wild. The garden in front of Mags' house was sprouting too, green buds peeking up out of the ground in neat rows. Finnick came by most mornings to take care of it, pulling out weeds, trimming branches, and planting new flowers to add to the already flourishing garden.

He used any excuse to stop by, really. He wasn't living with Mags anymore, but he still spent more time at Mags' house than at his own. Between the almost daily sailing trips with Annie, walks with Salmon, and now the occasional visit to the Dunes, the minutes spent at his own house were few and far between. And he found any reason to stop by and fill up those other moments as well – showing up for dinner, checking in on Annie, or, like today, working in Mags' garden. Finnick knelt in the dirt in front of the house, between the bushes and the rows of flowers, tending to the new plants breaking out of the ground.

There was a noise on the porch and the front door opened. Finnick glanced up, expecting to see Mags, but it was Annie there instead, wearing her knit green sweater and half a smile on her face. She stepped outside, humming softly under her breath, quiet and a little off-key.

Finnick grinned. "Good day, Cresta?" he called up to her.

But Annie clearly hadn't been expecting to run into him there. She gasped sharply and jumped back, almost falling over before she realized it was him.

"Sorry!" Finnick said quickly, jumping to his feet. "Sorry, I thought you knew I was out here."

"I didn't – Mags didn't tell me –" Annie was red in the face and a little flustered. "I didn't know you were coming over."

"I'm sorry."

She leaned against the side of the house, still catching her breath. "It's alright. Maybe next time just... announce yourself first."

"How should I do that?"

Annie looked up. "What?"

"How would you like me to announce myself?" he asked. "So I don't surprise you?"

"I really don't –"

"I've been thinking of doing something like Caesar Flickerman – the lights, theme song, all of it."

"Odair –"

"I was worried it might seem a little pretentious, but if you'd really like me to stop surprising you..."

Annie shook her head and smiled – one of those smiles that told Finnick she was trying to be annoyed but couldn't quite manage it. "Are you going to make a habit of this, then? Hiding in front of my house and sneaking up on me?"

"Mags' house. And I'm not hiding." He waved a pair of pruning shears at her. "I'm gardening."

"Another one of your many talents?"

"Not really." he admitted. "But Mags needs the help. I think it's getting harder for her to work on the ground like this, so it's become my job. I help out where I can – or at least, where she can't anymore."

Annie sat down on the front steps, watching him as he turned back to the garden. "That's nice of you."

"It's nothing, really. Not when you think of everything Mags has done for me. I'll never repay her for all that." He shrugged. "But gardening is a start."

Finnick went back to work, and Annie had been quiet for a few minutes before he looked up again. She was still staring at him, her chin resting in her hand as she watched him.