Waves Breaking Over Rocks Part 1

Chapter 9- The Real Finnick Odair

The Real Finnick Odair

I miss the target a lot. I throw until my arm aches and beyond, but I can barely get close.

It's the last day of personal training. Tomorrow we get a free day to do whatever we want and then...

It's off to the arena.

"Come on, Annie. You know you can do it!" Finnick says, encouraging me. I know I can't do it, though. I throw the last knife, thinking about Cora and Arnav and Finnick and how they all want me to fight. I throw it with all my might.

It hits the target.

Finnick lifts me into the air with his muscular arms, twirling me.

"You did it!" I smile and decide to examine the position of the knife. It hit right in the center of the bulls-eye.

I turn to see Mags standing at the door, smiling mischievously.

"Well done, Annie!" She congratulates me when she sees I've noticed her.

I walk over to her and we hug. I feel triumphant and I wish Cora was here to see this.

The rest of the afternoon, I spend throwing more knives. They all hit, not all of them in the bulls-eye, but in the target, nonetheless. I suppose I can kill people now. The thought makes me want to cry and I almost do, but I remember Finnick's proud face and Cora's demanding expression.

I go back to the living quarters feeling mediocre. My arms hurts a lot from the constant throwing but I don't have any muscles. I crash on the bed like I've done for the past two weeks and weep.

I have that dream again. The one with Arnav and Cora and Mags and Finnick and Tyson. I wake up screaming. The door opens almost immediately and Finnick rushes in.

"Annie! Are you ok?" I shake my head rapidly. I'm not ok. I'm scared. He walk toward me slowly and gets in my bed. I don't turn him away. I don't say no.

"Is this alright?" He asks, meaning being in bed with me. I nod, thankful instead of afraid. I close my eyes and let his warmth envelop me.

No one wakes us up. No one disturbs us. We lie there peacefully, sleeping, until it's time for lunch. I wake up and look at Finnick, who's already awake. He smiles and gets out from underneath the covers. He looks good like this. No makeup, hair messy in a natural way, and no fancy clothes. He looks a lot more realistic this way. Not like the Capitol god, but like a regular human being. An exceptionally handsome human being, but still.

"Good morning, slept well?" He asks.

"I did, actually."

"Well then let's go have breakfast."

"I think its lunchtime." I say.

"Well, I am not going to eat any type of lunch if I don't get my fair share of sugarcubes and coffee." We laugh start toward the lunchroom. There, we don't expect to find Garcia, Tyson, and Mags sitting together eating lunch. Mags looks like she can barely hold her laughter at seeing us walking together. Garcia gasps then giggles then gasps again and Tyson's food falls out of his mouth. Then I understand what they had been thinking.

"It's not what you think!" I try, but Mags is already laughing, whether it is because she doesn't believe us or because she does and thinks we're miserable.

"Well this is sure going on the tabloids!" Garcia tells us. My cheeks glow bright red.

"We weren't sleeping together! Well, we were but I had a nightmare, and- well- you know!" I say, trying to get the image out of their minds.