𝕾𝖔 𝕴𝖙 𝕲𝖔𝖊𝖘..

14 - 𝙾𝚕𝚍 𝙵𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝙰𝚗𝚎𝚠

She didn't remember ever falling asleep. Not until she opened her eyes to be blinded by the bright sun did she realize that so much time had passed. Aria propped herself up on her elbows as she looked around for everyone else on the beach.

Katniss and Peeta were sitting a few yards away, eating some fish. A quick glance at the water revealed Finnick spearing more of the fish with his trident. Marcus was behind her collecting fresh water from the trees with the spile. She was surprised that they had all let her sleep so late. Judging on where the sun was, it had to be mid morning. Maybe even the afternoon

"Hey, sleepyhead," Marcus said as he placed a shell containing water beside her.

"Thanks," she said, sitting up completely and bringing the shell to her lips. She decided to ignore the other half of his comment.

"How's your leg doing?" he asked as he sat beside her.

"Fine," she shrugged. She honestly didn't really know. She hadn't bothered to stand up or walk since the injury had occurred, and she wasn't about to make him more worried than he already was. But she would be lying if she said it was pain free.

"And I see you two didn't kill each other," he poked.

"Not this time."

"I'm surprised."

"I'm surprised he didn't kill me in my sleep."

"You're being dramatic."

The conversation was interrupted by Finnick bringing them two fishes. One for each of them. Marcus thanked him, eagerly cutting into it and beginning to eat it raw. Aria stared at him, a disgusted expression on her face.

"What?" Marcus asked, his mouth full, "I'm hungry and this is better than nothing."

"That's how you get salmonella and die," she said, not even touching her fish. "I think I'll pass."

"Better than starving to death," he shrugged as he took another bite of it.

Aria picked up the fish with an irritated groan, cutting into it and staring at the bright red flesh. Better than starving? Maybe, but still gross. She didn't think she could bring herself to eat it like that. She had never really eaten fish, never having had much access to it in district five. She wasn't exactly sure that eating a Capitol generated one that was raw would be the best way to introduce herself to the food.

"You should at least eat a little," Marcus insisted.

"Yeah, I picked that one out just for you," Finnick said teasingly as he sat on the other side of Aria.

"Aw, you shouldn't have," she said dramatically as she placed a hand on her heart.

Marcus couldn't help but laugh at the exchange, ignoring the glare he knew Aria had sent her. The tension between the two was painfully obvious to everyone except for them. Eventually Aria did eat some of the fish, even if she was gagging the entire time. But it was better than not eating anything.

Katniss and Peeta had notably kept their distance from them. Not that anyone could blame them, since Aria had just made an attempt on Katniss's life the night before. Aria just hoped that they would eventually come around. She didn't want to be in an alliance where only one person tolerated her.

A sharp scream caught their attention. Katniss and Peeta were quick on their feet as they looked across the arena to where the scream had originated from. They walked over to the edge of the shore, Finnick following them. Aria tried to stand, but her injured leg gave out from under her, sending her falling back into the sand. Marcus helped her up, just in time for the dreaded boom of the cannon to fill the air, only to be followed by an abnormally large wave. It hit the cornucopia, disrupting the waves but preventing it from gaining any more traction. The water came up to their ankles before settling back down.