There are five stages of grieving. First denial, then anger, bargaining, depression, and finally, acceptance.
But she wouldn't accept it. Not fully. She couldn't, not with the way Cecil was so brutally taken from her.
Every morning she still found that she needed to pick herself up and will herself to move. Finnick made it easier. If she had a nightmare, he'd be in bed with her the moment she cried out. There was something about having him with her that made her feel stronger; even if it was just the reminder that she could be stronger.
It was the time of year where Four was experiencing it's fair string of thunderstorms. Renata laid in bed, staring at the ceiling as a strike of lightning lit up her room. She braced herself for the telltale clap of thunder, but jumped anyway when it finally sounded. She was sweltering. The air in the room was thick and muggy and she lay sprawled out on her bed, her clothes nearly soaked with sweat. She sighed and got out of bed, changing into fresh bedclothes before leaving her room. The house was quiet aside from the torrential downpour outside, and she found herself standing in the open doorway of Finnick's bedroom.
He was awake, she could tell from his position. He normally slept curled up on his side or on his stomach; he was on his back with his arms tucked under his head.
"Hi," She said quietly, jumping when lightning flashed. She smiled at him when he lifted his head and she wandered over to his bedside. "I couldn't sleep. Could I-"
"Of course," Finnick nodded and he made room for her, smiling when she got into his bed. "I can't sleep during storms either, but I like listening to them."
"I don't mind the rain, it's the thunder I can't stand," Renata sighed, closing her eyes and feeling beads of sweat forming at her hairline. She kicked her legs until the blanket was off of her and sighed when it didn't warrant much relief.
"Usually you're cold," Finnick chuckled, turning on his side to face her, propping himself up with his elbow. "I can crack the window if you want me to." He smiled when she nodded and he got out of bed, grunting as he tugged open the sticky window a crack. "Better?"
She nodded, tracing nonsense patterns on the sheet with her finger. "Heard any news lately?" She asked, the end of her sentence punctuated with a rumble of thunder. "Are you sure the walls can stand all this?"
"They've lasted a good ten years," he reassured her, raising a brow at how flushed her cheeks looked. "Are you alright?"
"I'm burning," She whined, sitting up and tying her wild mane into a bun on the top of her head and laying back down. Her new pajamas were damp with sweat and she wiped a hand across her forehead. "Are you not hot?" She demanded incredulously.
That warranted a charming grin. "I'm always hot," He winked and laughed when she gave him a blank look. "Roll over on your side, hot stuff." He scooted closer to her backside and gently blew cold air on her neck.
Renata shivered and felt goosebumps appear on her pale skin. "Mmm," she murmured, turning her face more into the pillow. She felt the warmth stir elsewhere and she pressed her legs together, keeping her arm over her breasts.
"Is it helping?" Finnick asked with a quiet laugh, noticing the way she was curling into herself. He felt a sense of déjà vu come over him and he furrowed his brow. "Rini?
"I'm fine," she said, her voice muffled in the pillow.
He swallowed and held his breath before brushing his lips over the back of her neck, evoking a quiet sound from the redhead's throat. So that's why she was so hot. He could say the same thing about himself. He moved his body closer to her backside and pressed right up against her, his arm draping over her side. "Renata," He murmured, sliding his hand slowly up the hem of her shirt. Her stomach sucked in at the touch of his hand and did so with increasing speed as he brought his hand higher up her torso. His fingers brushed against her puckered nipples and it was becoming increasingly difficult for her to keep quiet.
"Finnick," She whimpered, pressing back against his body. She shivered and closed her eyes when his hand cupped her breast and gave it a squeeze, his palms tough from work. How long had it been since anything like this had transpired between them? She tried to think straight, but as he moved his hand down into her panties she found that there wasn't much use in critical thinking. His lips on her neck combined with the way he swirled his fingers made her want to cry out in ecstasy, but the sensory overload was too great for her to do much of anything except squirm back against him. "Oh g-god, Finnick…"
Finnick grunted softly against her ear, sweat beginning to bead on his forehead. The way she pressed against his lap was arousing him and he found himself pressing right up against her, his blood rushing with excitement. He remembered the last time they'd done this, and it was entirely too long ago. He'd forgotten the small sounds of pleasure she made when he touched her, the kittenish moans that always made the hair on his arms stand on end. It amazed him how greatly she aroused him. In the Capitol, he simply took something to make himself hard and it got the job at hand done. He was nearly bursting out of his pants and he sat up, pulling his hand free to turn Renata onto her back. The redhead was already moving to take her clothes off and he tugged her pants and her underwear down her long legs. His fingers brushed her inner thigh and it was from there that he could feel the inviting warmth radiating from her core. He needed her.
Renata wrestled her shirt off and then she was completely naked to him, her chest heaving with arousal as he undressed himself. She needed him so badly and she hadn't realized it until she'd gotten into his bed. "Finnick, please," she whined, pressing her legs together impatiently.
He laughed breathlessly and parted her legs, holding himself firmly in one hand, slowly rubbing the tip of his length up and down her wet slit. His cheeks were flushed and he moaned deeply, gritting his teeth in an effort to refrain from forcing his way in. He moved to her entrance and he could feel her muscles contracting and relaxing, trying to pull him in.
"Finn!"
Finally he gave in and he pushed himself inside, finding no resistance from her. He knew instantly that he wouldn't be able to stop making love to her, not for as long as he lived. He would never tire of her, he wouldn't stop craving her. "Rini," He breathed, moving in to give her parted lips a much needed kiss. A shiver went down his back when she wrapped her legs loosely around his hips, her feet cupping his rear. The desire to hold her close and never let her go again was overwhelming. He held himself up with one strong hand and slid the other underneath her, holding her up against his chest as he thrust. The rhythm of their lovemaking was ever changing; it followed their very human instincts. Fast, slow, harder, softer; he took his cues from the curly haired vixen.
"I forgot it could be this way," Renata breathed, looking up into his eyes. Everything about him was intense, but she couldn't look away. The storm outside raged on, but she had forgotten it completely. "Oh, Finn…" She moaned and kissed him deeply, one hand threading through his messy hair and giving it a tug. A whine escaped her when he hit her in a certain way and she bucked her hips up to him.
Finnick grunted when he felt the stinging bite of her nails digging into his skin and he moved his hips faster. She seemed to approve of the change. He had to stop when he accidentally slipped out of her, smiling shyly when she gave him an incredulous look. "Didn't mean to stop, love," He murmured and resituated himself.
"Wait," she stopped him before he could move back inside her. She pushed him back and they moved around on the rumpled bed sheets until Finnick was sitting with his back against the headboard and she was straddling his lap. When they resumed it was almost painfully slow, but the two of them couldn't stop the noises of pleasure from escaping their lips. She kissed him and slid her tongue across his, whimpering into his mouth when he cupped her bottom in his hands and moved ever so slightly that he could move faster. "Finnick!" She cried when she broke the kiss, her breasts moving back and forth as she rode his lap, her walls tightening around him. "F-fuck…"
He groaned and felt himself moving toward that familiar sensation. He couldn't stop. He needed release and he needed to give it all to her. His grunts were deep and almost animalistic and he held her hips firmly, thrusting up wildly. It hit him like lightning and left him breathless. Other than the sounds of their panting and the light rain outside, there was silence. The storm was over.
Renata rubbed her eyes as she stood upon the hill in a field. She wasn't sure where she was. Her feet began to carry her down the hill and as she descended, she heard a terrible noise behind her. Someone, it sounded like Finnick, was screaming. She tried to turn around to look but she couldn't, she just kept walking. The further she moved down the hill, the taller the grass was. It was sharp and it cut her legs, yet on she walked. Eventually she broke into a run to try and escape the screaming, crying out in pain when the blades of grass cut her.
The atmosphere of the dream changed entirely. She was still in a field, but there was no screaming. As she began to walk, she found the grass no longer hurt. There were no markings on her legs from before; her naked skin was almost glowing in the sunlight. The grass brushed against the small folds of skin between her legs and she moaned, having to stop her walking. Even as she stood still, the grass kept moving against her until she was whining with pleasure.
Her blue eyes flew open and she swallowed, blinded by the morning sun that filled the room.
"Morning," A muffled voice murmured. There was a brush of stubble against her inner thigh and Finnick smirked up at the redhead. "I was wondering when you would wake up."
Her cheeks burned bright red and she smiled shyly, moving to close her legs. She squirmed when he stopped her. "I was having a nightmare-"
"I know," Finnick mused, moving his face back between her legs.
She gasped and arched her back, moaning. "And then I guess when it changed is when this b-began?"
He grunted, too consumed in pleasing her to give word of response.
They showered together after she finished, managing to clean the grime from their bodies without any dilly-dallying other than a kiss or two.
"You ready for today?" Finnick asked, already dressed as he sat on Renata's bed. He watched her thumb through her closet absentmindedly, clad only in her undergarments.
"What's today?" She pulled out a blue dress and pulled it on, frowning at her hair when she looked in the mirror.
"You haven't been listening," He raised a brow. "The Victory tour stops here today. Katniss and Peeta apparently made quite the buzz in District Eleven."
"Hopefully they make a buzz here?" She guessed, grinning when he nodded.
Renata stayed by Finnick as the crowd waited for Katniss and Peeta to make their speech. She bounced up and down on the balls of her feet nervously, feeling the tension in the crowd.
Finnick's hand slid against hers and he looped his fingers with hers, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "You okay?"
She nodded, smiling. She wasn't sure how she would react seeing the people she had unknowingly bet Cecil's life on. Before she could wonder any further, they came out on stage and the district gave them polite applause. When they began speaking, however, the mood quickly turned sour.
"What the hell are they saying?" She muttered to Finnick, who was staring at the two on stage intently. The crowd was muttering their disapproval, drowning out the young girl's words.
"Capitol bullshit, of course. Listen to her," He shook his head and then his body turned rigid.
Renata followed the direction he was looking and gasped when she saw someone in the crowd giving Katniss the three fingered salute. The Peacekeepers guarding the stage started towards the person, and without thinking Rini thrust her hand in the air.
Finnick looked at her with bewilderment and he did the salute as well, and then suddenly everyone in the crowd was participating. The crowd was bending and swaying like a wave about to break on shore and the Peacekeepers couldn't do anything about it. They couldn't gun down the entire district.
"Liars!" Someone yelled, and the crowd thundered with agreement. The Peacekeepers were pushing people back, but the damage was already done. Riots were breaking out and the citizens began destroying all the equipment set up. They pushed over the screens that projected the pictures of the fallen tributes, Ellone and Alan.
"Rini, we need to go," Finnick hissed, grabbing her arm.
"No!" She cried, adrenaline coursing through her veins. There was a fire inside her; she felt a connection with everyone. The anger she thought had passed was coming back to her. She needed to break something. She cried out when Finnick wrenched her away from the crowd and began pulling her through the crowded streets. "Stop! Where are we going?"
"Be quiet," He barked. "Keep your head down." He pulled her for what seemed like an eternity as they wound their way through the streets in District Four.
She was panting by the time they descended the stairs behind a building and came to the door of what she assumed to a cellar. "Finn, where are we?" She followed him through the door and blinked when the darkness suddenly changed to light. The room was bigger than she had first assumed, and it was filled with people she had never seen before.
"Welcome to the rebellion, Renata."
Gahhh hello! I couldn't wait to get this chapter posted for...reasons! Also because now it's going to jump into the exciting stuffs, so yay! I'm gonna try and update as quick as I can while balancing school and work and whatnot.
Also! I have posted a brand spankin new story! So if you like, maybe check that out and let me know what you think? :) I'm not planning on putting this story on hiatus for it or anything like that, I just had this idea for a while!
Hope you enjoyed the chapter!
-Kelsey xx
Ps: Maddie Rose has made a trailer for Sinking Ships! It's spectacular! Watch and enjoy! (Yes that is Holland Roden when I use Lily Cole as Rini, but there are more things with Holland and wow she makes a very good Rini anyhow :3) If you google Sinking Ships fanfiction youtube it should be the first result that comes up, or I believe there is a link to Maddie Rose's youtube account on her profile!