I do not own Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games characters.

Hello! Sorry for the sadder chapter, this one is definitely going to be a lot happier, so I hope you guys enjoy!

Chapter 14:

Annie's POV

Johanna is walking me to AP Psych and I feel the weight of Monday's weighing me down. Finnick and I haven't talked since his party ended two days ago and I am not sure what is going to happen today. Johanna and Clove made me spill everything that happened in the closet, in detail, at least four times. Johanna also finally admitted that she has a crush on Marvel. Clove had a field day of jokes with that one. By the end of it, Johanna was almost taking it back. We are turning down the hallway when Marvel appears out of nowhere.

"Can I talk to you?" He asks. He and Johanna disappear leaving me alone to walk to class.

I continue down the hallway. I reach the doorway and bump into copper-haired, gorgeously freckled, chiseled, Finnick O'Dair. He steps back from me and lets me walk through the door and to our desk. I sit down in the chair and I feel Finnick's gaze burrowing into me. I turn to him and am about to say something but I chicken out and just grab my phone out of my pocket and scroll randomly through marine biology photos. I quickly find a photo of an adorable baby blacktip reef shark and I feel a large smile break out on my face. I feel Finnick leaning and looking over my shoulder at my phone.

"She's a cute little shark," Finnick says.

"You know it's a girl?" I turn to him and ask with surprise.

"Well, she doesn't have a clasper, so yeah."

I grin larger than I mean to.

"What?" Finnick asks with a laugh. "I love marine biology."

"Favorite creature, go!" I say enthusiastically.

"Lionsmane Jellyfish. You?"

"Blotched Fantail Ray," I say. "But really any Ray."

"Hey, are you doing anything after school on Thursday?" He asks.

"No, why?"

"I want to take you somewhere."

"Where?" I ask intrigued.

"It's a surprise. I'll pick you up at three?"

"Yeah, ok," I say dumbly.

"Sweet. It's a date." As he says it, a shy smile breaks out on his face and his eyes stare into mine briefly before darting down to my shoes.

"Good morning class," Professor Latier says. "Today, we are going to be playing a partner game to see how well you have gotten to know each other." He holds up a small box and I can just make out paper slips inside. "I will draw a pair of partner names from the box and they will come and each sit on a stool on one side of the partition. I will switch back and forth between you, asking you each a question about the other. You will each write down your answer on a whiteboard and show it to class. Every question answered right will be worth one point. The partner group with the most points at the end of the class period will get a prize."

"What is it?" Gale asks. I honestly have sort of forgotten that he is in this class, being that I primarily only pay attention to Finnick. I only now notice that his partner is Madge, who I also didn't know was in the class. From the look on Finnick's face, I can tell that he and I are equally surprised at their partnership on the year-long project.

"I'm not saying," Professor Latier says. He reaches into the box and pulls out a slip of paper. "Finnick and Annie," He says.

Finnick and I share a subtle smile before making our way to the front of the class, grabbing a whiteboard and marker, and sitting on our separate stools.

"First question, Finnick, what is Annie's favorite color?"

This is an easy question. I write seafoam green on my board and turn it around. From the sighs from the other kids and Professor Latier's smile, I know that we have the same thing.

One point.

Professor Latier asks me the same question, which I think is a little dumb, but I'm not opposed to easy questions. I write any shade of blue on my board and turn it.

Point two.

Professor Latier asks us each two more questions that Finnick and I get right with ease before the questions start getting more difficult.

"Annie, what is Finnick's worst fear?" I freeze for a moment when I realize that if Professor Latier is staying with his pattern of asking us the same questions, Finnick will be asked this question about me. I am able to steady myself enough to write abandoment/isolation, which earns us another point. Then my hands start to shake and I grip the whiteboard so hard that my knuckles are white. I hear Professor Latier ask the question but my entire body is rigid and frozen. Everyone's eyes are on me, so I force myself to calm down just enough to write my answer in a shaky font, but I can't bring myself to turn the board around. I can't let everyone in hear know it.

"Annie, are you okay?" I hear Madge's voice ask and even though she is sitting in her chair a few feet from me, it sounds like she whispered it in my ear.

The color drains from my face and I try to push the panic brewing inside me down. I cannot do this in front of all of these people. Breaking down in front of Finnick is one thing, but inside of an entire classroom of people who I am very sure are a lot less understanding than he is. I try breathing in and out, listing all of the different types of Rays in my head, but it doesn't work.

I hear the clatter of something falling to the floor and I see Finnick walking swiftly around the partition. He asks Professor Latier something that my muddle brain doesn't hear. He gently guides me out of the classroom and into the hallway. He looks at me, his eyes asking if he can hold me and I nod my head vigorously, longing to be held in his warm, safe arms. He reaches for me and gently pulls me into him, just like he always does. I wrap my arms snugly around his middle. My heart is beating out of my chest, but as I lay my head on his chest and listen to his steady heartbeat, I can feel mine syncing up with his.

"I'm sorry," I say when I have calmed down, which doesn't take long when I am in his arm. I lift my head so I am still in his arms but I can look into his gorgeous green orbs.

"Don't be. I'm always going be here Annie. I got you," He says softly.

We stand there, staring at each other. I remove my arms from his middle. I place one of the back of his neck and gently take the other hand through his soft copper curls. One of his hands moves up and gently tilts my chin up and holds it. He leans down and presses his lips so softly against mine and I feel myself melt into him. I close my eyes and pull him closer to me, holding his lips to mine for a few seconds. When we both pull back, all that I want is for him to kiss me like that again and again forever.

"I think that you are getting over your fear," He whispers.

I smile and kiss him again. "I think I am too."

We walk back into the classroom and sit at our table in the back, watching the next set of partners try to get a better score than us. Which won't happen. We got a perfect score. Under the table, Finnick and I intertwine our hands and we stay like that for the rest of the first period. And then in the second period. We sneak a small kiss before lunch and we stare at each other at our different tables, having conversations with our eyes. When I am laying in bed, my phone goes off. A text from Finnick. It is almost two in the morning when I fall asleep, my phone in my hand, looking at the last text he sent me.

You had better get some rest beautiful. I'll see you tomorrow :) :).

So I finally figured out how to do the separating line. My generation is supposed to be the people who are really good with technology, but I am really horrible with it haha.

What do you guys think about how Finnick and Annie's relationship is developing? Please review or PM what you think of this story, I really want to know.

Stay happy, healthy, and safe,

-Jewel.