THE SIREN'S SONG 𓇼 F. ODAIR

36 ~ the proposal

"Has she eaten today?" Finnick asked.

"No," Pearl sighed. "I made her eggs for breakfast and a salad for lunch, and she didn't touch either of them. Did she eat dinner last night?"

"No."

Finnick and Pearl whispered to each other in the garden as Carolina sat on the pier. All she had done for the past couple of weeks was stare blankly at the ocean with a bottle of wine wrapped in her arms and replay Charlie's death in her mind over and over again.

The knife stabbed straight through the boy's neck. His body went limp on the ground. Blood pooled around his lifeless figure.

When the cannon boomed in her mind, Carolina started hysterically screaming again.

Pearl and Finnick rushed over to sit on either side of Carolina, but she didn't look at either of them. She didn't even notice they were there. When her screams died down and she caught her breath once again, Carolina took a swig from her bottle of wine, and the images repeated themselves in her head.

"Lina, say something," Finnick said calmly, wiping a tear from her cheek. Her eyes remained straight ahead, focused on nothing. "Let me know you're still in there."

Carolina remained mute. She hadn't said a single word since she was in the mentor room.

"Lina?" Pearl asked. She waved a hand in front of her face, but when Carolina didn't react, she sighed. "I have to go. My parents leave for work soon, and I have to watch my siblings."

Pearl hugged Carolina, expecting to not be hugged back. But, Carolina leaned into the girl slightly and turned her head to face the crook of her best friend's neck. When she pulled away, Pearl had the ghost of a smile on her face.

"Happy birthday, Lina. I love you," Pearl whispered before turning around and walking towards her house.

Finnick ran a hand across her cheek before whispering, "What do you want to do today?"

Carolina blinked and took another swig from the bottle.

"I, um, I asked someone else to visit you today," Finnick said. "I know you aren't ready for visitors yet, but I think she could really help you."

Finnick combed his fingers through her hair and kissed her temple before standing up.

"I'll get you back," he whispered more to himself than to her. "For now, let's just eat, okay?"

Carolina nodded, finally looking up at her boyfriend with bloodshot eyes. She stood up and followed Finnick into her house and to the kitchen. When he put a sandwich in front of her, she ate it in its entirety.

By noon, Carolina was back in her spot by the pier, staring out at the sea again with a bottle of wine between her thighs. She was alone again while Finnick was at Fletch's house. He said he would be back in two hours, but thirty minutes after he left, someone sat down next to Carolina.

"Hi, Carolina," a soft voice spoke.

It wasn't Finnick's voice nor was it Pearl's voice. Carolina turned to look at the woman sitting next to her. She was holding two wine glasses and handed one to her as if they were old friends. Carolina didn't recognize her, but something about her seemed so familiar.

"My name is Mona," the woman said. "I thought that– I thought that sharing my grief might help you with your own."

Mona looked about the same age as her mother and had curly blonde hair and striking blue eyes. She was smiling, but her eyes didn't match her expression. They were sad. Carolina quickly realized why the woman looked so familiar.