I know, I know! It's really been way too long! Sorry! And I'll be gone all of next week, so I probably won't get another chapter up until after then. Terribly sorry about that too!
Annie's POV
Sleeping at home is District Four would be great if CeCe was next to me. Finnick says she's dead, but I don't believe him. Mother cries a lot, but she always does that. Dad hasn't said a word to me since the train, but he's always been the silent type.
The truth is CeCe is dead. At least to them; I don't believe them. And why should I? They didn't tell me about all of this. This being the destruction of my home.
So, naturally, I'm not going to bury my sister the minute they tell me she's gone. Of course, I must bury her next week because that's when the funeral is. Even if I refuse to believe she's dead, I must attend her funeral. But then I must search for her the minute afterwards. In the sea caves. In the fountain. Everywhere I can think of. Because I'll either find her, her body, or her voice.
If she can start to speak to me like Caleb does then maybe she really is dead. Because I know he's dead. I'm just not so sure about CeCe.
I should probably get up out of bed; the emptiness of it is dragging me down. Like a current of things I can't explain.
The floor doesn't sway under my feet like I'm used to. I look outside and see the beach instead of the dock. My room is my own and I absolutely hate it. Dad is gone to work because it keeps him sane. Mother is in bed because she isn't.
I eat my breakfast and then retreat back into my room. I keep describing things as mine, but I don't feel at home. I feel lost in this huge house.
I don't even know which house is Mags, although I could probably make a good guess. I'm guessing it's the one who's shingles are falling off and the paint's peeling.
After sitting on my bed for a couple of hours, I start to wonder where my Trident boy is. He's probably trying to fix District 4 and I should be helping him. Quietly I slip out the door so as to not wake my mother.
The gentle sea breeze barely reaches me up here. It's like a little hint of the slaps I get from being actually on the water. Walking out of the Victor's Village, I really see how bad District 4 is. Everything's just been demolished. The fountain where Caleb and I used to search for coins is just a pile of weathered concrete. Simple things such as street lights have been knocked down and the light's shattered. The carts in the market are set up and everybody is stocking up on food again.
There's dozens of people surrounding the Justice Building, which is apparently being painted. I start to approach but then I see that most people there are Peacekeepers. I see Marie painting the door and she waves to me, then throws her paint brush down and sprints towards me. She wraps me in a tight hug until I have to gasp for air.
"You're back!" she screams.
"Finally! I thought Finnick would never let me go back!" I exclaim, breathlessly.
"Holy Fish! You met Finnick Odair! What's he like?"
"Uhh… he's a person… What do you mean?" I ask.
"Well, is he nice? Or silent? Or does he talk your ears off?" she asks, desperately anticipating my answer.
"Why don't you meet him?"
Her reaction is so loud that I simply cannot describe it. After escaping dozens of stares from grumpy Peacekeepers, including her dad, we both set out to find Finnick.
We trudge through all the rubble that clutters the street until we simply can't take it anymore. Both of us abandons our shoes under a rock and make a break for the ocean. She gets there first and lets the water lap at her feet, but I run straight in. When I look back, I'm probably about fifty feet from the shore. Marie's frantically calling to me.
"What are you doing? Come back! Quickly!"
Reluctantly, I swim back, regretting not just ignoring her for a few minutes. "What?" I ask when I reach the shore.
"What if there's another wave?" she says, "What if it happens again? You'll be dead!"
I'm completely stunned. I thought everyone knew that Snow did it, that the wave wasn't natural. But if a Peacekeeper's daughter doesn't know, then I don't know who would. "Oh…right…" I say, scanning the horizon as if searching for another gigantic wave.
"No more swimming!" she says, pointing her finger at me. I agree, although somewhat questioning her doubt in my ability to survive.
"Okay, okay then, let's go find Finnick," I say, grabbing my shoes and grudgingly putting them back on.
We head back onto the road and towards the Training Center, where I'm guessing Finnick will be. I'm not wrong; he's up on the roof rafters, nailing two boards together.
We wave at him. "Finnick!" I yell and he looks down. Marie motions for him to come down, but I'm already halfway up the building, it us just a frame, after all.
"Hey Annie," Finnick says, "Glad you came, I was getting bored."
"Don't you always find a way to entertain yourself?" I ask a little too innocently, swinging myself up to sit beside him.
"When I'm left with nothing but my imagination?" he whispers, hammering in a nail way too close to my hand.
"You have an imagination?" I try to act surprised.
"Oh, shut up!" he smirks, handing me a spare construction hat. I put it on and then tap his head.
"Do they really work?" I ask him.
"Does what work?"
"The hat, you know this one."
"Oh! Yeah they work. If a brick gets dropped on your head then you won't die," he says, seriously.
"Don't be silly, there's no bricks here," I say, pointing around at the pile of supplies.
"Okay, falling shoes then," he says, pulling my shoe off and dropping it on a Peacekeeper's head. We both turn away and stifle our laughs behind our sleeves, but the evidence is in the fact that I'm only wearing one shoe. The Peacekeeper hands the shoe to Marie and points his finger at us.
"What was that for, Annie?" Marie shouts at me, half laughing herself.
"Yeah, what was that for, Annie," Finnick says before kissing me on the top of a half finished building.
"Hey guys," Marie yells from down below, "It's been three minutes; people are starting to stare."
"Let them stare," Finnick says, kissing my forehead, but then returning to his work. I help Marie up and we both work on the roof with him until the sun goes down and we can't see our hands even if they were two feet in front of our face. When we're finished the roof is no longer a collection of beams, but actually resembles something solid.
Finnick and I walk Marie home and then make our way to the beach.
"Marie says no one swims anymore," I say, jumping in.
"I've noticed," he sighs.
"Cheer up; once people see you in the water, they'll be dying to get in," I say, splashing him in the face with sandy water.
"And then we'll have to find somewhere else where we can hear each other speak," he laughs.
"What? I can't hear you," I shout, diving under the water and swimming towards a buoy. He dives under and follows, coming up right in front of me.
"Can you hear me now?" he whispers in my ear.
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