Enchanted; A Finnick and Annie Fanfic ♥ (Currently Revising/Editing)

Chapter 18: It's Part Of My Therapy

Starting the day after out wedding, Finnick was thrown into crazy training. I literally only got to spend time with him during meals and at night, but that was okay. Whenever I talked to him, he was different. He was always happy because he knew soon, the Capitol would be destroyed. And he would be a part of the team that took President Snow down. Just the thought of contributing to that cause made him radiate life. And when he was happy, I was happy.

Sometimes I would sit in the training area and watch him. They would run a lot, and they would practice combat skills on little blocks made to look like the streets in the Capitol. Sometimes they would battle directly with Peacekeeper dummies, while other times they'd battle Capitol-made creatures called mutts. Those were the days I'd always leave and stay with Prim and her mother in the hospital, because they were the hardest to watch.

About a week after the wedding was one of those days, so Finnick came to the hospital to pick me up for lunch. There weren't many patients who needed care that day, so Prim brought her scruffy cat, Buttercup, and we played with him all morning.

Finnick held my hand on the way to the dining hall and told me about his day. Apparently Katniss and Johanna were told they couldn't come to the Capitol unless they trained, so they were placed with a bunch of beginners who were at least 3 years younger than Katniss.

"Sometimes, I'd just sit and watch them when I got a break. It was hilarious." He laughed to prove his point, and I laughed too. I told him about getting to play with Buttercup today, and he promised to take me for a walk above ground before he went back to training, and by that time, we'd reached the dining hall.

Finnick never let go of my hand. He balanced our trays of food in an awkward way so that he could carry both and still hold onto me. I liked that, because at least I got to hold onto him whenever I did see him. We sat down at a table with Delly Cartwright, a girl who made it out of District 12 and has been helping Peeta recover from the torture the Capitol put him through. She's really sweet to everyone, even people she doesn't really know, and she always finds something nice to say. Today she told Finnick that I looked stunning, and he agreed with a kiss to my cheek.

I never talked much at meals because there were always so many people around. I usually just ate quietly then rested on Finnick's shoulder, day dreaming about the wedding or other good times Finnick and I had.

Katniss, Johanna, and Gale soon joined us. Everyone seemed to scarf down their food today, since a new shipment of beef had come in from District 10. There was a happy vibe in the air that you could feel radiating off of everyone. Finnick even told a funny story from when we were younger, back in District 4.

"It wasn't even my hat, you know. It was my father's, so of course I had to swim after the stupid turtle and get it," he said. And everyone at the table laughed.

I even chimed into to the story, since I had been there. "It slapped him in the face about four times before he even got the hat back." Everyone laughed harder.

And then all of a sudden, the laughter stopped. At first I thought I'd said something wrong, but then I saw him. Standing behind the empty seat beside Johanna, surrounded by large guards, was Peeta Mellark. Katniss almost choked, and the rest of us were dead silent.

Finally, it was Delly who broke the silence. "Peeta! It's nice to see you out...and about."

I noticed his wrists were shackled with a short chain between them. Johanna noticed about the same time I did, because she asked, "What's with the fancy bracelets?"

Peeta replied, "I'm not quite trustworthy yet. I can't even sit here without your permission." He sounded sad, but desperate. I felt so sorry for him.

Johanna patted the seat next to her and said, "Sure he can sit here. We're old friends." Almost as soon as he sat down, Johanna spoke again. "Peeta and I had adjoining cells in the Capitol. We're very familiar with each other's screams."

And that's when the dining hall goes away. I'm back in the Capitol, trapped in a cell, forced to please men who hurt me and tell me horrible lies about Finnick. We all screamed, for different reasons. All I could hear were screams and electric shocks, and lies whispered to me.

I felt someone's arms encircle me, and at first I was scared, but then I heard Finnick's gentle voice. The Capitol started to fade, and slowly, I was brought back to reality. Our entire group was quiet except for Johanna, who I heard say, "My head doctor says I'm not supposed to censor my thoughts. It's part of my therapy."

If anyone else said anything, I didn't hear it. I heard Finnick whisper to me, rub my back and kiss me gently. Slowly, I removed my hands from my ears and opened my eyes. I leaned on Finnick's shoulder, and he held me tightly. He shot an angry look at Johanna, and I looked around at everyone pretending to eat, staying silent.

Until, of course, Delly broke the silence again. She said, "Annie, did you know it was Peeta who decorated your wedding cake? Back home, his family ran the bakery and he did all the icing."

I didn't know that. Finnick smiled down at me, encouraging me to say something. I swallowed and looked over at Peeta, carefully avoiding Johanna, and said, "Thank you, Peeta. It was beautiful."

"My pleasure, Annie," he replied, and the way he spoke was so gentle I'd almost forgotten how tortured he was.

Finnick turned his head to me and murmured, "If we're going to fit in that walk, we better go." He picked up both of our trays and carried them in one hand. He wrapped his other arm tightly around me. Just before we were about to walk away, Finnick turned to Peeta and told him it was good to see him.

"You be nice to her, Finnick," Peeta said, pointing at me, "Or I might try and take her away from you." Normally, someone would say something like that as a joke, but Peeta's tone was so cold about it.

Finnick either didn't pick up on the coldness or chose to ignore it. Lightly, he said, "Oh, Peeta, don't make me sorry I restarted your heart." And after a concerned glance at Katniss, he lead me out of the room.

As soon as we were away from everyone and heading outside, Finnick whispered, "I'm sorry, Annie."

I shrugged, and quietly replied, "She said it was part of her therapy."

"Yeah, but part of yours is to not think about all of those things."

I stopped and looked at him. "Says who?"

He smiled. "Says me." He gently kissed me on the forehead before we started walking up the flight of stairs that lead outside.