I'm so sorry that I didn't update yesterday or the day before yesterday.. my teachers were bombing us with homework and projects... and I started playing piano for choir, but im starting to fail at it so badly so I need to practice more... I swear you guys are on a scheme to make me guilty for not updating :) THANK YOU FOR YOUR WONDERFUL SUPPORT~ YOUR SCHEME SUCCEEDED... NOW I FEEL AWFUL FOR NOT UPDATING~
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Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games.. Suzanne Collins does :)
Finnick's POV
After Mags, my agent (who used to be a celebrity in her time), had gently reminded me to protect his public image, I went downstairs to make breakfast. Drowning in disappointment in myself, I bustled around to kitchen to find something to make waffles and my specialty, blueberry pancakes with. Who could have imagined that Finnick Odair enjoyed and had a talent in cooking? Oh, wait... I had a talent in everything.
My phone rang and to my horror, I saw that it was Annie. I debated on whether to pick up or not, and to expect any further complications I picked up.
"Hello?" said Annie softly which I didn't expect.
"Hey," I called breathlessly. "look, I'm..."
"No, before you start saying anything, I want to say I'm sorry," interrupted Annie. "I wasn't acting like myself yesterday. I was so upset, that I just lost control."
I was immediately filled with guilt. "Annie, it wasn't your fault, please, please, please, don't think that. Anyways, I've heard worse in my lifetime."
Annie laughed quietly, her musical tinkle brightening my mood. "Also, thanks Finnick for confronting me about it instead of cheating on me behind my back. I appreciate that you respected me enough to not lie to me."
"I would never do that!" I said in horror. "You mean too much to me."
"Right," said Annie uncertainly. "have a nice weekend Finnick."
I could feel the conversation, or more importantly our chance of being friends closing. I could either walk away right now and regret it for the rest of my life or clear some things up. "Wait," I called. I could feel Annie's hesitation. Before she could hang up, I continued quickly. "I'm sorry, Annie. I'm so confused right now." When only silence met my ears, I took that as a sign to go on. I couldn't believe I was going to say this to Annie, but I always told her everything, and I wasn't going to stop now. "One thing I can tell you for sure is that I love you so much, and I'm sorry that I hurt you. I need time to think this one out and clear somethings before I go on in my life." I felt like I had to say more, but nothing came into my mind. "Idiot! You have kept your mouth shut!" I scolded myself. "I'm sorry.. I'll just be leaving now," I said awkwardly. I waited nervously for Annie's reply. After a long silence, Annie's gentle voice came out.
"Finnick, I know that this is a huge step in your life. You are one of the most caring people I know, but maybe not the best long-term relationship guy. You're trying to change that, and I respect you for that." Annie took a breath, and continued. "I want you to know that I love you so much Finnick. I'll be right by your side when you go through this, and be ready with my arms wide open to build our friendship again at the end of this climb," she finished softly. The line went dead and I stood in the kitchen grinning like an idiot. That was all I needed; that sweet Annie wasn't mad at me and was willing to be friends, maybe more. Right now, I just needed time to think and make breakfast.
I heard Katniss bellow in anger upstairs at her phone that had been ringing like crazy for forty five minutes. I listened with a grin as Katniss began her screaming match.
Katniss's POV
"Shut up!" I screamed when my phone rang for the fiftieth time in a row. When it refused to stop, I seethed and answered it. "What the hell do you want?!" I bellowed at the caller.
"Someone's grouchy today," muttered the voice of Madge from the other line.
"I'm not grouchy!" I yelled.
"Sure..." said Madge, amusement creeping into her voice.
"You woke me up in the morning just to tease me?" I demanded, lowering my volume by a notch.
"No, in fact I called to have a chat about the new headline on ," Madge said seriously. "I suggest you check it out. Remember Katniss, you have a reputation to keep." Madge hung up with a disappointed air to her voice and I immediately began furiously typing on my laptop. What I saw made my eyes grow as big as saucers. On the homepage, it showed.. the little interaction me and Finnick had yesterday on my front porch. How did they get a picture of that? Did my house have secret cameras insulated all over the place? I shuddered at the thought.
Yet, I knew that I couldn't be mad at them for posting that. I was the one who had done it; if I didn't want it to be known to public; I should have not done it at all,
I sat limply on the bed remembering last night's events. I felt dirty and contaminated. I felt a surge of disappointment in myself engulfing my senses. Yesterday, I had being snogging my best friend's ex the day he broke up with her. True, my encounter with Cato yesterday had left me feeling an urge for physical comfort, which was highly unlike me, but that was no excuse for doing what I did.
Finnick walked in, with his phone clutched tightly in his hand. "You saw it?" I whispered hoarsely.
He growled, "How did they get a picture of that? Do they have no respect for our privacy?"
"Yesterday was a mistake," I said softly, refusing to meet his eyes.
"At least Cato will see this," said Finnick, trying to lighten up the mood. "By the way, do you and Madge always have a screaming match every morning?"
I managed to let out a hollow chuckle. "Yeah, she's an early riser..."
"And you are really cranky in the morning," finished Finnick.
"Am not!" I said indignantly. "I'm perfectly capable of being civil to the people around me in the morning."
"Uh huh," said Finnick disbelievingly, "keep telling yourself that."
A small smile started to creep up my face. "So what's the plan today?" I asked, curious to find out what Finnick had planned to get revenge on Cato.
"Well, yesterday I made some phone calls, pulled some strings, and made some more phone calls," explained Finnick.
"That explains everything," I said sarcastically.
"You know that I'm an Abercrombie model and I have a photo shoot today," continued Finnick with a nonchalant air. "Well, I convinced," he winked at me suggestively, emphasizing the word convinced, "let you be my girl counterpart for this Summer swimwear sale photo shoot."
I knew that photos of Abercrombie models, especially for Finnick, usually was composed of a lot of kissing and lack of clothes. "No," I said firmly.
"C'mon," Finnick whined, "I told them to limit it to holding hands and posing together."
I bit my lip, unsure of what to do. I refused to make a mistake like yesterday, but holding hands couldn't hurt, right? What would the old Katniss do? She would have kicked Finnick's butt yesterday and kicked him out of the curb and would have went to sleep without blinking an eye. "You've changed.' I told myself.
"Fine, but no kissing," I said, hoping that I wouldn't regret this decision later on.
"Perfect!" purred Finnick. "The picture will be out in two days, being broadcast to every Abercrombie store."
"I'm not sure whether to be happy or upset about that," I said, raising my eyebrows.
"Be happy! You're modeling with The Finnick Odair," said Finnick pompously. "Now hurry up and get ready to roll."
Cato's POV
I was purely pissed. There was no other explanation for how I was feeling right now. How dare she kiss Finnick? She was MINE and ONLY mine! How dare she trample all the things we shared in our relationship? 'But you guys aren't in a relationship...you dumped her remember?' reminded a tiny voice in my head. I let a roar of frustration and punched the bathroom door, creating a large hole on the wooden door. I stepped in and tore the towel rack from the wall and threw it against the beige wallpaper in the living room. I looked around the room frantically to find something else to obliterate and take my anger on. To my dismay, I found nothing. Dishes, vases, and paintings lay cracked on the floor, every door on the first floor had a large hole through it, chairs lay in a fetal position with broken legs, and basically, the entire house was a havoc. I calmed my breathing and assessed the damage, finding it more serious then anything else I had done before.
My physique trainer, Brutus, sitting on a chair (the only that wasn't broken) with a crossed leg, was watching me with an amused expression on his face. He smirked at me. "So, you done yet?"
I growled and glared that him with intensity, hate radiating from my eyes.
"Stop growling, you sound like a dog," he said, carelessly examining his fingernails.
Brutus, a 35-year old man, was the only person I knew that didn't flee when I had my tantrums. Being a muscled man, Brutus was the same size as me, which was pretty hard to match, since my body was like the figure of a god, maybe even better.
"Shut up," I muttered.
"I refuse to do so; however I highly advise you to follow your own advice," said Brutus in a mocking tone.
That man was this close to making me break his neck. I narrowed my eyes at him. "Get out before I do something I regret." I started to stomp upstairs when Brutus opened his annoying mouth again.
Brutus had obviously chosen to ignore my threat. I had to admit, the guy had the nerve. "You're jealous," he said in a matter-of-fact-tone.
"What?!" I yelled, spinning around to face him. I could feel my face heating up to a brilliant red color and my steam coming out of my ears. My vision saw red, and I grabbed for his neck, but surprisingly, Brutus stopped me with his hands. He twisted my arm, flipped me on the ground, and pulled me into a headlock. I looked up in shock; the dude was stronger than I thought. I refrained from flailing to preserve some of my dignity or what was left of it.
Brutus pulled his mouth into a snarl. "Listen to me Cato. Lesson one, your anger does not become you. Lesson two, never underestimate your enemy. Lesson three, you are jealous of Katniss and Finnick. Lesson four, your ego is too big for your own good." Brutus stood up and brushed his pants. "I'll send someone to clean this up," he said cooly. Without looking at me, he stepped outside my house, slamming the door behind him.
Katniss's POV
Before I knew it, I was in a navy, white polka dot triangular bikini, with my dark hair curled in waves, "hanging out" with Finnick who was in a pair of blue swim trunks. We were supposedly "flirting" with each other. Finnick was pretending to kiss me, except he got a little too close. I kicked him the shin as a warning, and he grimaced in pain.
"Oi!" called the camera director. "You guys are a couple! At least look like you aren't trying to kill each other."
I sighed and fluttered my eyelashes at Finnick. This was going to be a long day.
Finnick's POV
I thought that this photo shoot was going to help me sort my thoughts out a bit. Boy, I was wrong. I shut my eyes, trying not to imagine Katniss in her bikini. I headed to a bar near District 12 School of Panem since District 12 was a place that was fighting for survival not drinking or sightseeing Finnick Odair. I wanted privacy, and I had a feeling District 12 was the perfect place.
I stepped into the dark, gloomy bar, reeking of dirty flesh and fresh vomit. The entire place was built of wood, that was slowly rotting from many years of use. A moody music, which to my luck was from Katniss's new album "Broken", was playing in the background. As I expected, barely anyone was there, except for a few, dark figures sitting solitarily at different tables. I walked over to the bar and slumped down on one of the stools. A young bartender, that looked about 19 or 20 years old, came over. "What can I get for you?" he asked.
"Vodka," I answered hoarsely.
He grimaced, "We don't have money for that sort of liquor."
"What do you recommend?"
"White liquor," he replied. "it helps wash away the pain faster."
"I'll take one." I said. One turned to two and two turned to three, which turned to five. ;
Business in the pub seemed to go slow, and the bartender leaned against the bar and started up a conversation. "Finnick Odair didn't seemed to strike me as a guy that got drunk," he said casually.
"You know me?" I asked surprised, feeling a little dizzy in the head.
The bartender smirked, "I recognized you from the moment you stepped into the doorway." When he saw my panicked expression, he quickly added, "I didn't call the press or take sneak shots of you. Celebrities are humans too and humans sometimes need privacy."
I relaxed, "So what's your name?" I asked curiously, taking another gulp from the glass. Now, the walls around me were starting to spin and my eyesight began to turn blurry.
"Why should I tell you?"
"It's only fair since you know mine," I replied cooly, or at least I thought I did.
"Gale Hawthorne," he answered simply.
The name Gale struck a bell in my clouded mind. Gale... he was someone's ex-best friend... someone I knew. I couldn't exactly put my finger on the person. "I have a feeling I know you."
Gale's expression suddenly turned defensive. I felt a brick wall spring up, masking Gale's emotions. That seemed familiar too... I looked at Gale closely. Olive skin, dark hair.. and gray stormy eyes... The answer hit me like a lightning bolt. "You know Katniss!" I exclaimed.
Gale's expression turned hostile. "Correction, I used to know her. Now I don't know who she is anymore."
I racked my brains trying to put together what Katniss confided in me about Gale. "You guys stopped being friends... why?"
"That is none of your business," he replied curtly. "Anyways, why is Finnick Odair wasting his time at the District 12 bar?"
"Read the news," I said, burying my face in my hands.
"I did, and I can't say I'm happy about it, but I want to hear the story from the person himself."
I felt a surge of respect towards Gale. He was one of the few people I knew that didn't make immediate assumptions about me after hearing a rumor or a fake tabloid. I took a deep breath and started explaining, each word feeling like a hammer against my skull. "The part about Annie and I breaking up is true, but I wasn't cheating on Annie with Katniss." I heard a sigh of relief from Gale. I raised my eyebrows at him and he motioned for me to go on. "I was just so confused. I used to have very strong feelings for Katniss, but that disappeared as soon as I laid eyes on Annie. But now.. I'm not sure about it anymore. I cut it with Annie because I don't want to hurt her anymore with my actions. Annie is just too important for me to let go, as a sister, friend, or a lover." I groaned in frustration. "I don't know what to do!" I yelled tearing out my hair.
There was an long, thoughtful pause between us. Then Gale whispered, "Don't make the same mistakes I did."
I looked up from my misery. "What do you mean?"
Gale suddenly took a special interest at the wood on the bar. "When Katniss and I first met, we were like allies that slowly turned to friends, and for me, to love," he said softly.
"Join the club," I muttered.
"I knew that she would never return my feelings," he continued, "but I never gave up on her. I thought she would never love another guy and I would be the closest thing to a boyfriend for her. Turns out I was wrong."
Things began to piece together in my mind. "She met Cato," I whispered.
"Yes," Gale said bitterly. "she was singing in the streets one day and Haymitch found her and signed a contract with her. She was shipped off to that Capitol school and I began to see her less and less. Every time we saw each other, she looked happier. Then I found out that Katniss fell in love with Cato."
"Ouch."
"I can't say that I wasn't surprised," said Gale, "Katniss never let anyone in through that mental barrier of hers, except for Prim, and maybe back then, me. It took me 2 years to get halfway to where Cato got in a month. After seeing that for 6 months, I snapped. I called Cato and her names that I now, I would give anything to take that back. Then, I kissed her," he finished faintly.
I stared at him with my mouth open. "You what?" I slurred.
"I freaking kissed her! She was quiet all through my rambling and slapped my face when I kissed her. Then, she just walked away. I should have told her right then that I was sorry. But my stupid pride didn't let me approach her for the last 4 years. I couldn't face her again after what I did. I so freaking wanted to be by her side when Cato broke her fragile trust, but I didn't. Now, it's too late." Gale looked at me straight in the eyes. "Don't do what I did, Finnick Odair. You'll regret it after, and it might be too late to turn back time."
I considered those words for a while and stood up abruptly. I needed more time to figure out my life, but wasting my time at a bar wasn't going to make itfaster. Before I turned around, I looked at Gale who was looking at me with a wistful face. "It might not be too late," I whispered. I scribbled down Katniss's number and address on a piece of paper and squeezed it in Gale's hand. I walked out the door, glancing back one more time, and found Gale looking at me with a curious face with what seemed like respect.
Sorry for not updating so soon :(( i never promised anything before through this fanfic, but i PROMISE now that the next update will be faster :) keep those amazing reviews up ^.^ thanks and until next time~~
