I don't own THG and a BIG thank you to for-prim for being my lovely beta and helping me get my tenses together
Finnick sighed as he pushed the door open into the bookstore, and he almost immediately regretted it. The air was musty around him as a bell rang to notify a worker. Apparently this was the only place where he could get a first edition copy of the book that Mags kept talking about. He wanted to surprise her for her 90th birthday with it, she had always joked that she was afraid to start a book because she was worried she wouldn't get to finish it before she passes. Finnick appreciated her sense of humor; he just wished it were about something other then her life, which he doesn't even want to think about. He knew what her favorite book was and he was determined to give it to her. Plus he could always say that the bright side is she'd already read it a hundred times, so she definitely knew the ending.
However, as he looked around at the messy shelves and stacks of books he thought it might be harder to find than he had originally anticipated. He wandered the aisles wondering how anyone could possibly find anything on the crammed shelves. Surprisingly, the aisle went on for a long time. The store itself was very narrow, but he hadn't accounted for how deep it would go. He looked around for an employee. He was hoping to make this trip a quick one. He only had an hour for lunch and that particular bookstore was all the way across town. The store was eerily quiet and there were no other customers; Finnick's frustration grew as the aisles bled together and no one was in sight.
"Hello" he shouted into the silence.
Suddenly he heard a loud crash. Finnick immediately headed towards the sound- what he saw surprised him. A young woman on a step ladder was clutching the shelves so hard her knuckles were white. Her eyes looked to be tightly shut and there was a pile of books at her feet that Finnick deduced to be the cause of the crash. Finnick was confused at the sight- surely this wasn't the first time a customer had tried to find assistance. Besides, hadn't she heard the chime when he opened the door?
"I'm sorry, excuse me, I didn't mean to frighten you." Finnick said, concerned for her.
The young woman seemed to relax at the statement, releasing her death grip on the shelves. Her eyes remained closed- she took a deep breath before opening them.. She slowly and carefully went down the stepladder as though she was terrified of falling, even though it was only a few short feet off the ground. She exhaled when her feet touched the floor. She turned towards Finnick who had been silently taking in the woman before him. He was struck by how big her eyes were- they were a beautiful green color and they were now solely focused on him. She began to speak in a quiet, but clear voice.
"I'm so sorry about that. I guess I just didn't hear the bell. Sometimes that happens when I'm shelving. I just get so focused on the task that everything else kind of.. " she trailed off, her eyes dropping to the floor. She shook her head and then looked up once more at Finnick. She cleared her throat.
"I'm sorry, how can I help you?" she asked politely
"I called the other day and spoke to a man named Cinna about a first edition of The Awakening by Kate Chopin. I was wonder-" a smile took over her face as she cut him off.
"Oh, yes! Cinna went ahead and put that up at the front!" she said eagerly
"Great." He smiled at her excitement and stepped to the side and gestured for her to lead the way. She moved by him and talked over her shoulder.
"It's kind of surprising that a man called in for The Awakening." Finnick raised his eyebrows at the statement.
"Really? Why is that?" He questioned, taking in her long, long brown hair that trails down her back. The woman moved behind the counter and began to dig through a box of books.
"Well," she began, "It's just that it's The Awakening and most men don't have the best reaction to it." She straightened up like a shot and faced him, flustered, "Not that you wouldn't or couldn't enjoy it, frankly I think it's great when men read feminist works, it's just not the norm for this book. But, it's wonderful and I certainly recommend it…" She trailed off as a blush creeps up her face. He hated to admit that it made her look rather cute.
"Honestly, I have no idea what this book is about. I'm getting it as a present for my nanny," Finnick said.
"Your nanny?" The young woman asks in disbelief.
"Yes, my nanny." Finnick said, squaring his shoulders and holding his head high. He loved Mags. She had taken care of him most of his life and he had no shame, but rather pride in her being his nanny. Surprisingly the woman just smiled a small smile and went back to digging through the box.
"That's really sweet of you. Has she read it?" She asked
"Yes, it's actually her favorite book, so I though it would be nice to get a first edition for her."
"That's a terrific-I got it!" The woman exclaimed. Finnick chuckled at her excitement. Her cheeks colored at the sound and she placed the old book on the counter. Her hands ghosted over the cover, tracing the letters of the title. He noticed how entranced she seemed. He knew Mags loved this book, but he didn't realize how powerful it apparently was. The effect it held over this young woman intrigued him more than he wanted to admit. Once again she seemed to snap out her trance and grabbed the sheet of paper inside.
"It says here that this was pulled for a Mr. Finnick Odair," she said and looked up at him. "I'm presuming that's you?"
He chuckled and said, "Yes, indeed." She smiled at the sound of his laughter.
"Well, allow me to ring you up."
"Wait," he said. She paused and looked at him with such a worried expression he wanted to laugh.
"Is something wrong?" She asked nervously.
"No, I just... I was just wondering if you could tell me about the book?" She smiled and for a moment he could swear an almost devious smirk graced her features.
"How about you just read it?" she suggested.
"Fair enough, fair enough," Finnick decided to turn a little bit of his charm on, not too much though, he didn't want to scare the poor girl, "Why don't you read me a little bit of it?" To his surprise she didn't seem shocked or scandalized, but rather she just smiled again and picked the book up and began to flip through the pages.
"Chapter six…Aha!" and then she began to read and Finnick could swear he actually felt his heart stop beating for a moment.
"The voice of the sea is seductive; never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander for a spell in abysses of solitude; to lose itself in mazes of inward completion. The voice of the sea speaks to the soul. The touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body in its soft, close embrace."
She stopped and looked up at him. He couldn't speak. He didn't want to speak. He didn't want to leave this moment. Her eyes were on his and he never wanted that to change. He gulped and then-
The damn chime went off as a customer entered the store, ruining Finnick's perfect moment. The woman looked down and immediately began to ring him up without a word. Finnick realized he had to speak if he ever wanted to see her again.
"Umm," he inwardly chided himself for his amazing communication skills, "that was lovely. Truly. I can already see why it's her favorite." The woman looked up at him as he handed her his debit card. Their hands didn't touch, but he wanted them to. It was then or never, and Finnick had certainly never been one to let an opportunity pass, particularly when it came to women.
"If I read it, will you talk with me about it?" She froze as she began the process of smoothing out the receipt for him to sign.
"Excuse me?" she asked, as though she couldn't possibly have heard him correctly.
"If I read the book, will you talk with me about it?" He picked up the pen on the counter and signed his signature as he waited for her response. It was taking too long- he was used to women jumping at the chance to spend time with him
"Okay," her soft voice broke into the air.
"Okay," He smiled at her. He then waited as he expected her to rattle off her cell phone number or write it down to give to him, but she did no such thing. She just looked at him. He wanted to sigh- to tear his hair out. Why wasn't this going as planned? He finally just gave in.
"How can I reach you?" He asked, flustered
She looked confused for a moment and then she said, "I'm here aren't I?" Finnick looked at this wonderfully strange creature before his final words.
"You certainly are…" he trailed off hoping she would at least pick up the hint to give him her name.
"Annie. Annie Cresta." She smiled.
And that was that.