Finnick's Story: Mentor • The Hunger Games | IN PROGRESS

Chapter Five: Brynn's Battle

When I entered Sebastian and Brynn's train car, what I walked into was nothing like what I had walked into before.

Where she sat, Brynn's hands were grasping the sides of her head, strands of hair woven through her fingers. Her breathing was frantic; it was clear she had been hyperventilating for god knows how long. Her eyes were wide and wild with dilated pupils. Sebastian was sitting next to her, his hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her down to no avail. All I heard was, "Brynn, it's okay, it's okay," before he noticed me enter the car.

"Finnick, thank god. I--I don't know what happened," Sebastian says, looking unnerved. "She was fine after you left, but a bit ago she just went silent, and then she--I don't know, she started freaking out. I can't calm her down."

"You should have come to get me. How long has she been like this?"

"Ten minutes, maybe; I don't know. But I didn't want to just leave her. I thought I could calm her down."

Quickly, I sit down on the other side of Brynn. Her small body is trembling. I think to myself: I don't have a script for this. But I have to help her.

"I need you to look at me, Brynn," I speak to her, calmly. "Can you do that?"

At first, it's as if she doesn't hear me. But after a moment, she does listen. When her eyes meet mine, they're swimming with such fear and panic that it visibly shocks me. When I spoke with her before, she was levelheaded and calm--almost too calm, I remember thinking. I'm just as confused as her district partner.

"What happened?" I ask her. "Did something scare you? Were you watching the Reapings?"

"We turned on the TV for a little bit. I think we watched one or two of them--the kids were all older," Sebastian explained. "But then we turned it off. She was quiet for a bit after that. Then--this."

"I--Those kids will kill me. I'm too small. They're all going to laugh at me. They'll kill me," Brynn stuttered, her words interrupted by each shallow breath. "They'll kill me, and my parents and brother and sister will watch, and I'll die. I'm going to die. And--And when I die, what will happen to my family? What will they do without me? What will happen to Kara? And Filix? And my mom?"

"Brynn, stop. I know it's scary, but those thoughts will not help you. They'll only hurt you. And I think you know that," I tell her. She hasn't looked away from me since I gained her attention. "I told you earlier that everyone has a chance. No one is guaranteed to die because they are smaller, or younger, or anything. By that logic, I should have died last year. And I know you understood that, Brynn. Remember that."

"I remember. I do. But I can't fight. What if I hide and they find me? Then I'll run--but what if I trip on a rock? What if I climb a tree to get away, but they shoot me with an arrow and I fall? What if they're faster than me when I run? What if--"

"What if none of that happens?" I counter her. "What if you hide and they never find you? What if you run, but they get attacked by mutts because you turned a corner just in time? What if you climb a tree to get away, and get just high enough so they can't reach you? What if you're faster, and smarter, than all of them, and you win?"

Brynn just stares at me. Analyzing me, processing my words. Her thoughts, I'm sure, are running a mile a minute.

"You are not guaranteed to die, Brynn. You are not guaranteed to trip and fall, to get caught, to be outran. The only thing you are guaranteed is a chance. Everyone is. And I'm here to help improve that chance--for both of you."

"But--what if I die? What happens then? Will I just disappear? Will I just be gone, forever?"

"I don't know, Brynn. I've never died. I can't answer that," I tell her. "But wondering about death, or what happens after death, will not help you. Do you want to know what will help you?"