Listen to the Waves
Post-Mockingjay
Wake up, stare at the ocean he had painted on the ceiling, try not to go mad again, silently cry so the baby won't hear, get dressed in the pale blue sundress he loved, stare in the mirror, brush hair, and wake up the little boy.
This was the girl's morning routine and she never missed a beat when the time came to perform it.
Annie's rare green eyes had to behold many painful things that had made her who she was now but none as painful as having to stare at the lonesome shell of a human that would look back at her every day. She didn't know that woman anymore because the only thing that had kept that woman sane was dead and gone, ripped to shreds where maybe few of his remains still stayed in the place where the muttations reached him and sharply ended his legacy.
Finnick Odair died fighting for everything that their whole group stood for and he was definitely the most missed out of the group of rebels that died in the line of duty.
Finnick left her alone with a small baby who she wasn't even aware was there, not that the dead man himself knew either but she knew he wanted to be here with her and their son. Annie had named the baby Torrence after it's meaning of water moving in a strong and unbreakable pace because without a father or a half sane mother, this boy would need all the strength in the world.
Wearing the blue sundress, she crept silently into the peaceful room with the beach on the walls, painted like Finnick time ago like the ocean mural on the master bedroom's ceiling even though if you simply just glanced out a window you could see the real beachside but this was beside the point.
Torrence slept soundly and Annie winced at how much he looked like his father but she swallowed up all her thoughts and stepped cautiously over to the child, somewhat afraid.
The widow had gotten countless letters from Katniss and Peeta, Gale, and even a few from Johanna but they never got any response and they all probably were worried she had died off broken and alone. The Mellark's were the only one's who knew about Torrence considering Annie had sent only a picture, no words, of her holding the newborn with a lost look in her forlorn eyes.
This is probably what made Katniss and Peeta so worried considering they never knew that Annie was pregnant in the first place, nobody did. The baby had been a surprise since the girl didn't even know she was going to be having it and Finnick probably hadn't known either but the little boy was probably the only reason she was still alive.
If Annie had her way, she'd be up in heaven with her beloved husband.
Careful not to hurt him, the woman lifted up her son making him open his large green orbs which made Annie jump but she quickly gasped and regained her balance, not dropping Torrence.
She could've swore she was looking right into the eyes of Finnick Odair and suddenly his laugh filled her head and made her quiver with the sobs that threatened to spill out. She'd never make in on her own like this, she'd need to call Katniss and Peeta sooner or later. Maybe they could move to District 4 as Annie still called it and help keep her from killing herself and help raise Torrence along with their two kids.
The lonely girl could bet that Katniss could recall the screams and sobs that Annie had cried once the full impact of Finnick's death set in, after her son was born. The Girl On Fire had helped her cope just enough to stay on earth before going back home to her living husband and since then she hadn't had any contact with the poor mad girl.
Annie got the small boy dressed and without words, led him outside where the sun was shining and the waves faintly collapsed onto the sandy beaches in the Odair's, as it still said on the mailbox, backyard.
"Mommy why do you take me to the beach everyday?" Torrence asked once Annie had led him so close to the ocean so that the water could just barely tickle their feet.
The sun was still coming up and it casted a beautiful orange like the one Peeta used to talk about, over the widow and her child.
"It soothes me." Annie said with a distant tone, as if she was across the sea away from her son.
"Why doesn't daddy ever come to the beach with us?"
The woman looked down at her small son who held her pale, shaky hand. "Silly, what do you mean? He's always here with us."
Torrence looked confused as he traced random lines in the sand like Finnick used to do to calm Annie. "Then how come I don't see him or hear him? He doesn't talk to me."
"He's very shy when it comes to intimate meetings. I know a special way to communicate with him though." She held back tears as she stared at her wide eyed son.
"How? Tell me mommy!"
Annie stood up as she knew the right thing to do. There was always one place she could find Finnick.
"You have to listen to the waves. Feel the rapids on your toes, take in the ocean. Your father is always there."
"I'm still confused, mommy."
The widow's voice faded as the sentence she was about to say grew on and she walked her child ankle deep in the sea. "I'll show you..." She choked. "Stand here and close your eyes, bow your head, and whatever you do, never let go of my hand."
Torrence followed his mother's orders to a T.
In this moment Annie's life flashed before her eyes like Finnick's did seconds before he left the world. Within moments, Annie Cresta-Odair was swallowed by the water as she fell forward into it. Torrence's worried shrieks could be heard as he helped her up and noticed her sobbing.
"Mommy! Mommy stop!"
"I want him back!" The woman cried as she struck the water.
Her son climbed into her arms as she sat upright in the ocean. "I want him back..." She whispered into the boy's hair.
They sat there in silence, Annie mourning and Torrence coming to realization of what had really happened to his father. Suddenly the boy felt a sudden impulse as if his father was guiding him to save his mother.
"Mommy...listen to the waves for me please. Listen to them for daddy..."
Annie sat there in silence until she had finally had her share if listening to her heart slowly shattering.
"Let's go home."
The two stood and Torrence held his mother's hand tightly and a large wave rolled in behind the pair. The water spread onto the beach way past the feet of the woman and the boy but when they pulled away something was waiting for them.
"Thank you for listening. Stay strong and lots of love ~Finnick" was scribed into the sand.
Annie fell to the ground and took in every word while Torrence stood upright nearby her.
"Thanks dad...because of you, she lives another day."