Chapter 5

For the three hours left leading up to our meeting I sat on my bed trying to work. I'd never felt like this before, my mind couldn't form the sentences for my transfiguration essay, the words turned to squiggles. It was like my brain was pulsing one single word. Finnick, Finnick, Finnick - a constant chant. What did it mean – did I like him. Did he like me? No-one had ever liked me before. I blended in, I never really considered having a boyfriend until then. I couldn't even work out how I could like some-one who stalked me, woke me up and read my diary. I poured my heart into that book and no-one else had ever read it. I cross hatched my lines and had messy writing so perhaps he couldn't read it? But the way he said "I may have read some of that diary" suggested otherwise. His voice was like warm vanilla and honey and I couldn't get it off my mind. What could he possibly see in me in fact? I stood up and walked to the mirror. I'd never considered myself as pretty. I was no beauty queen. My ears seemed too small and my cheeks too puffy. I was fairly short at 5 foot 4 and slightly curvy which could be seen as feminine or just stumpy and plump. I saw my strawberry blonde flyaway strands glint in the light and attempted to smooth some down deciding on a navy bobble hat. Surveying my face I applied some pink tinted lip balm and spritzed my favorite cinnamon spiced perfume on my neck. Hoping I hadn't made too much or too little effort I took a deep breath, pulled on my duffle coat, scarf and mittens and not-so-calmly walked from the mirror.

I stepped out into the snowy grounds and felt bitter cold air rush up my nose. Snuggling into my scarf I carefully made my way to the lake, a giant gleaming and frozen mirror ahead, listening to the soft crunch of the snow beneath my boots. There he was. The solitary figure got bigger with every step I took towards him. He wore only a t-shirt with trousers and was laid out on the bank of the ice lake. Without exchanging words and making no acknowledgment of my arrival, I set myself down about two meters away from him on the crunchy grass. We sat there a while and I just watched him. I figured I was allowed after all the times he watched me. He was so beautiful. The snow had turned his bare arms and hands pink and his hair lay across his deep green eyes.

"I knew you'd come, look, you must think I am so weird. I can't really explain myself or how I feel but maybe I can show you. Lay with me. You zone out from the cold, it makes me feel warm after a while." I followed his invitation and edged closer to him lowering myself into the snow. We lay in more silence. I turned to face him and slowly started to bring my arms and legs up and down etching my shape into the snow. He turned to face me, his eyes a few inches from my own and did the same. We made snow angels. Side by side. They were probably mutated conjoined ones without proper wings. Perhaps they were so close it just looked like one, rather obese angel but we didn't care. Smiles appeared on our faces as we savored the moment. When we reached the bare grass we stopped. I took his hands in mine and rubbed them to warm them up. He moved slowly forward until our noses met. His was cold and pink from cold, mine freckled and pink from my blush and then he kissed me. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before. His lips were so cold yet so warm and my stomach flipped. But it was too short. He pulled away briskly and sat up, looking over the lake.

"I'm sorry" we both whispered in unison.

"Why be sorry?" we said over each other again. I tilted my head at him as he turned and reached out for me again. I shuffled closed and we kissed again. His hands wrapped around my waist and I pulled my mittens off to entwine my fingers with his hair, one hand resting on the back of his neck.

"You smell like apple pie" he whispered as we broke to breath before returning to the kiss.

I briefly pulled back to reply "Apple shampoo and cinnamon perfume?"

"You've ruined it now, I still love it though, please never change shampoo or perfume" his hand twirled around my plait and pulled the ribbon free letting my hair unravel and the fall around my shoulders in a curtain. Who knows when my hat fell off? I felt hand run through it as he pulled in my neck for another kiss.

"And you, smell like an ocean breeze. How is that even possible, so far from the sea?" he slowly pulled back and looked into my eyes. "I don't understand this; I guess I barely know you."

He thought for a moment, deliberating his answer, "You can learn many things from a first meeting. And don't forget, I know you more than you me."

"Well that doesn't seem fair does it? So tell me," I lean my head against his strong shoulders, "What should I know?"

He spoke slowly, hovering over each word. "Okay, I'm just 18, the year above you. I'm in hufflepuff, a bit of a cocky idiot sometimes and like to watch you late at night - but I guess you know all that don't you? Well, my family is a pureblood family. I won't lie; I hate their guts most of the time. I'm an only child and everyone else was in slytherin - no surprise there. Not that all slytherins are bad, they are though. I can't remember them ever saying a kind word to me and I never go there if I don't have to. I normally get by in the summer by staying at friends houses. They send me money; I can't complain there - rich as heck you see. I don't tell many people this, but," he paused and moved closer, "I need you to realize that I'm the confident charmer everyone knows, and if this changes you mind, I'm sorry."

"Oh Finnick," I kissed him softly on the lips and remained close, our foreheads and noses forming together like a jigsaw as our breath mingled, "How could you think we can go back now? I think you're making me fall in love with you." After a pause of contemplation I added, "I don't want you to freeze, let's walk back inside."

He nodded at me and stood up. Holding out his hand to lift me up he held onto it as we walked back to the castle. It began to snow again and somehow, in one morning, he had molded so perfectly into my life that there was no turning back without leaving a Finnick shaped gap. Good or bad in the long run? Who knows, but I loved it and wouldn't change that feeling for the world.

Thank you for reading this, I know it's a longer chapter but it's probrably my favorite one so far. Please review and tell me anything I can do to improve. x