Waves Breaking Over Rocks Part 2

Chapter 17

Annie

"The wire's gone slack!" I exclaim when the force that pulls it tight disappears.

Then something horrible happens. Johanna turns on Katniss and knocks her to the ground, pulling out a knife. I scream and run, like I did in my first Games.

Fear courses through me. I need to find Finnick. I need to make sure he's safe.

"Finnick! Finnick!" I scream. I don't know if I'm being chased, and I don't know if I'm even headed to the right direction. All I know is that I have to find him before the others do. "Finnick! Finnick!"

I'm going to die. At first I think: Well, I can die. It will just be easier for Finnick to win.

That's when I realize I don't want to die.

"Finnick! Finnick!" I'm afraid. The darkness of the artificial night is frightening when you know who could be hiding in there.

I absentmindedly put a hand on my stomach and keep running, avoiding the shadows.

"Finnick!" I scream. "Finnick!"

"Annie!" I hear. It's almost a loud whisper, a scream from afar. My Finnick is nowhere to be seen, but I can hear him calling my name. I run in that direction, following his yells. I run so fast I don't have breath to spare, and when I arrive at the spot where Johanna attacked Katniss, I don't have the air to yell anymore.

My legs give out beneath me and I fall, fall, fall...

But my eyes never close.

I see the night sky and count the stars, over and over, hoping to Leave. I count the stars over and over in vain, until the night sky changes. I know I'm dying, then. I know it because the sky explodes.

But my eyes stay open.

Everything is blurry, the edges starting to fade. I welcome the chaos, because it means peace at last.

I barely see the giant claw coming at me from the sky, lifting me into the air. It's over. I'm leaving.

I don't know when I lost consciousness. All that I know now is that I'm not in the Arena anymore.

There are machines hooked to my body, pumping fluids into my veins. The ceiling is completely white, along with the floor and the walls. I turn my head around to the right, instinctively, hoping I see green eyes. But there's no one there.

I try to think straight. It's very difficult. Earlier, I noticed morphling was one of the fluids in the machines. I suppose that must be it.

I need to get out of here. I need to get to Finnick. What if he's already gone? What if he's...dead?

I try getting up, even though it hurts like hell. That's when I notice I'm tied to the bed.

"Well, well... Look who woke up."

The feeling of relief when I see his eyes is overwhelming. I don't even know why. When have I ever not woken up to Finnick at my side?

"Morning, love." He greets me.

We're in our room in our mansion in 4, alone. Or so I thought.

"Look who is also awake." He added.

The room looks the same as it used to, with one exception. There is a crib on one corner of the room. And, in the crib, there is a little boy. His eyes are open wide, looking around the room. They are green, turquoise green, like the sea. His head is full of golden locks, curls that fall and brush his cheeks, which are rosy. The boy stands up and grabs the side of the crib, before falling back down again. Instead of crying, though, he giggles.