AN: A rather short chapter, but I hope you like it. Thanks again for reviewing, lots of love!
Chapter Eight – Finnick
"I'm sorry you had to miss out on half a day's worth of training," says Annie as we cuddle up in bed that night.
"It's not your fault, sweetheart," I assure her with a warm smile. "As long as you're okay, that's all that matters to me."
"I love you," says Annie quietly, resting her head on my chest with her sleepy eyes closed.
"I love you too, beautiful," I whisper back, kissing her head and stroking her long hair before I close my own eyes and fall into a deep nightmare-filled sleep.
We spend the remaining two days of training by each other's side. We move from station to station together, alternating between combat practise and survival lessons. We start to mingle with Katniss and Peeta. Katniss gives us all archery lessons, and Peeta, who is somewhat of an expert at painting, teaches us how to camouflage ourselves so we can hide from other tributes in the wilderness. We build a fire together, and stand in a line to see who can throw a spear the furthest. Katniss is understandably a little shaky – it was a spear that killed her friend Rue in the arena last year – and so hers flies way off course, but she quickly redeems herself when she manages to knock Peeta to the ground at the wrestling station. Annie and I show them how to make fish hooks, and they share their extended knowledge of plant life with us, since they're from District 12 which is mostly forest. By the end of it all, I'm happy with what Annie and I have achieved - I receive a ten in my individual evaluation and she receives an eight. But I still get the feeling that Katniss doesn't trust us.
It's Friday now. The day before we enter the arena. Tonight, we have our interviews live on air with Caesar Flickerman to discuss our game-plans and why we think we deserve to win. It's our last chance to really get the sponsors' attention, to tell them why they should spend their money trying to keep us alive rather than some other poor, helpless tribute. We're supposed to spend the day having one-on-one coaching with our mentors, to rehearse what we're going to say and how we're going to act before our stylists whisk us away and glam us up until we're ready to be shoved on stage in front of an entire theatre full of the richest, most affluent citizens of the Capitol.
"Any plans for tonight?" Lux asks us at breakfast.
"Wing it," I say simply, scooping up the remainder of my cereal from my bowl.
"I thought so. What about you, Annie?"
"Pretty much the same," she says.
Lux nods.
"Leave them be, they know what they're doing," says Harvey, reaching for more salt to sprinkle over his fry-up. "They don't need us anymore. Let them spend the day together."
So that's what we do. We ask Tressa to send for two masseuses, who come to our room and set up massage beds beside each other. Annie and I hold hands as all the knots in our back and shoulders from training are ironed out with warm scented oils and a good rub-down. We then receive leg and foot massages, followed by head massages. Afterwards, we're so relaxed that we just feel like curling up and napping, but that would waste our precious limited private time left together, so instead, we start running water into the circular jacuzzi-style bath tub and add so many bubbles that by the time we enter it, there's more foam than water.
I think about all the Capitol films I've seen during my work here, where couples sit in a bubble bath, each drinking a glass of champagne with a strawberry in it, the woman's hair tied up elegantly as they exchange dirty talk in slow, seductive voices. That image couldn't be any more different to the bath that Annie and I share.
We laugh and squeal as we splash each other, getting water all over the floor. Annie gives me a bubble beard and leans back to admire her work.
"Hot," she smirks.
I splash her for her cheek and she lets out a delightful giggle that brings a smile to my face. I grab her slim body and pull her towards me. I start tickling her, but I'm careful to hold her above the water so she doesn't go under and choke.
"Don't you talk to me like that, Annie Cresta!" I jokingly scold her with my bubble beard still clinging to my face.
Annie laughs so hard that eventually, she stops making any noise.
"Finn... st-stop!" she howls, desperately trying to escape my tickle attack.
After a few more seconds, I let her go and she returns to her original position, still giggling.
"Your turn," I smile, smothering the bottom half of her face with bubbles.
She shakes her head and makes a noise like she's blowing a raspberry – I must have got some bubbles in her mouth. The funny sound sets me off into a fresh round of laughter. She splashes me again, sending a good amount of water overboard. There's a knock at the bathroom door.
"What's going on in there? You better not be making a mess!" Tressa's distressed voice just makes us laugh even more.
When we get out of the bath, we quickly gobble lunch down so we can go back to our room and be alone together. We play fight. We make a den with our duvet, pillows and cushions. We watch a trashy Capitol talk show and re-enact the situation in our fake Capitol accents (a woman's husband was leaving her for her brother). We sit at opposite ends of the room and throw each other gummy candy and try to catch it in our mouths. We make love. We snuggle. We clasp hands.
"I meant what I said on Monday night," I say in a serious tone. Annie looks up at me. "When we go in there tomorrow, I'll risk my life for Katniss. But I can't put her safety before yours. I love you too much to just let you go."
