Thank you HogwartsDreamer113, S, Jamez S, Joe, QuinnDeRavensborough and MsMKT86 for reviewing! :)

XXIX.

It's Arden's eighteenth birthday today. A group of us from school hang out on Oliver's ship. Well, it isn't really a ship, but it can't be classified as a boat either, so we called it a ship. Eamon, Austin, Nash, Annie, Rhea, Layla and Shay join the three of us as we celebrate this special day.

We're quite literally, in the middle of nowhere. Somehow, Oliver has set the course to an island off the eastern coast of District Four. This isn't just the destination of a celebration; it's the location of his marriage proposal.

For the past two weeks, Oliver has been a bundle of… energy, if that was the correct way of describing him. One minute, he'd been bouncing up and down like a kid on Christmas morning, and the other minute, he'd be frowning and contemplating whether or not his girlfriend would reject him.

I think not.

I join Oliver at the bow of the ship, leaning on the railing and look off into the distance. I welcome the rocking of the ship and the fluctuation of the waves. A few waves come high enough to lap our feet. I stare out onto the horizon, admiring the light tints or orange and purple that seep into the usual shade of blue in the sky. It's almost sunset by now. Oliver has calculated the time, impeccably.

"You shouldn't be so nervous, you know. It's not like she'll say no to you."

"I know," he sighs. "This sounds so stupid but I want it to be perfect. I want her to remember this day for the rest of her life and I want her to cherish the moment like she'll never see me ever again."

I turn around, so my back is against the front of the ship. We have the perfect view of the others in front of us, messing around in the pool and screaming in laughter. "If you'll remember today, then she will too. She's a girl and trust me when I say this: girls don't miss a single thing."

He chuckles softly, watching as his soon-to-be fiancée throws her head back and laughs at something Austin has said. Even a blind fool would even be able to tell just how in love they were with each other. He watches Arden splash Rhea with water, with a look of adoration and love, and it's almost too sweet.

"I should've asked her out sooner," he says, with an affectionate smile. "She's so beautiful."

"Yeah," I agree. "If you don't propose to her today, I might just sweep her off her feet and she'll come running to me."

I smirk as he turns to me, amused. "She'd never leave me for you," he replies, arrogantly. "She thinks of you as a brother."

Shrugging, I watch as Arden pushes a completely oblivious Annie into the pool. Annie screams in surprise and her squeals become muffled as she falls headfirst into the water. "Does she really?" I ask, with a teasing grin. I let out a bark of laughter when he shoves me. When I manage to regain my balance, I jog towards the others, shrugging my shirt off on the way. "C'mon, Ross, let's crash this party they're having and have some fun."

Within the next few minutes, we spend our time fooling around on the ship, and I've realised that I haven't had so much fun in years. The chlorine-filled pool isn't enough. All of us, save for Annie, who claims that she prefers to have at least someone watching over the ship, end up jumping off and swim in the ocean. The harsh summer sunlight beats down on our skin, and it's no doubt that we'll end up getting horribly sunburnt. It'll be worth it though. The rays of sunlight reflect off the waves, glittering before us. We glide in the water, laughing like we had been born in water.

We finally spot the island that Oliver's been talking about. The coast, from where we view it, is bordered with many palm trees, varying in height and size. The sand is a brilliant shade of white with only the slightest tint of yellow, and I need to squint to see further in through the foliage. I spot several caves here and there, with the water lapping at the entrances. Although it doesn't seem much from the outside to the inside, it resembles much like a tropical paradise.

I watch Rhea from afar. She floats on her back with her eyes closed. A serene smile is plastered on her face as she basks in the glory of the sun. Below the waist, her green dress billows out, only half blending in with the sea.

And then, I turn to look over at Annie. Every few seconds, she alternates between reading the novel she holds in her hands and stares off into the distance. She sits cross-legged by the edge. Her damp hair, usually framing her face, is blown back by the gentle breeze, and her mouth is set in an adorable pout as she returns her attention back to the book.

An angel sent down from Heaven, I think to myself.

I'm brought out of my daze when I'm splashed in the face. Hysterical laughter rings in my ears, as I spit the water out, splashing Shay back. She cackles in laughter. Slowly, the rest of the gang engages into a water fight, having the time of our lives like nothing else matters. And really, nothing else matters at all. There's just a we – a tight-knit group of friends.

Oliver suddenly booms in laughter. He envelops his arms around a protesting Arden, form behind and pokes at her sides. "Get off, Oliver!"

Shay pretends to gag and pulls a face at the happy couple, before sinking back underneath the water and gliding around like a fish. I'm tempted to join her underwater, but decide against it and pull myself up back onto the boat. A grin creeps up onto my face as I sneak behind Annie and clamp my hands onto her shoulders. "Boo."

She screams an ear-piercing shriek and leaps up, the book flying out of her hands and onto the deck. Struggling to keep my laughter in, I purse my lips at her and frown. "Annie, I thought I taught you better than this. Didn't I always tell you to be aware of your surroundings?"

Annie glares at me, despite the twitch pulling at the corner of her lips. When a chuckle escapes from me, she laughs as well. "It was a good book," she replies.

I don't miss the discreet glance she shoots over at my way and how her cheeks flush red, as she brushes the backside of her dress and sits down. Before I can make a snarky comment, she reaches to retrieve her novel and says, "It's beautiful, don't you think?"

And for a moment, I almost reply, "Yes, you are," until I realise just how stupid I am and that she's staring off at the island before us and smiles, wistfully. I clear my throat, awkwardly and take a seat next to her. "Yeah, it is."

She's off into her own land again, something that's always seemed to be a habit of hers, but for the past few years, she's snapped out of it more. We watch as the rest of our friends make their way up onto deck, screaming like headless chickens. They jump, wrestle and shout like maniacs, and I wonder how in the world I ever got to become friends with such idiots. Oliver grins cheekily, shaking his head, causing droplets of water to fly out of his hair and land all over us.

"Eugh," Annie says, brushing her hair out of her face. "He's disgusting."

"Eh, I can't really argue with that."

Within minutes, our friends appear back on deck, with dry clothes and grins to match with their attire. Oliver stops the vessel, allowing the rest to sprint off onto the island, to explore the wilderness beyond the palm trees. "Aren't you guys coming?" Arden yells up at us from below.

Her boyfriend shoots her a smile. "In a minute, sweetheart."

Turning back to Annie and myself, he runs a hand through his hair and releases a huge gush of air. Oliver groans and digs his right hand into his pocket, fiddling with the box. Raising an eyebrow at his antics, I find it amusing that he's so nervous. "Aren't you going to propose?" I ask.

"Man, I… Oh, God," he says, crouching down in front of us. "I swear this isn't ocean water that's drenching my shirt - it's sweat. I can't stop shaking and I'm pretty sure my heart's beating so fast that it shouldn't even be possible. It's just not possible."

"Oliver, you're like, the 'Finnick Odair' of District Four," Annie starts.

"Hey!" I interrupt. "Are you saying that I, Finnick Odair, myself, am not the Finnick Odair of District Four?"

"Nobody would say no to you," she presses, ignoring my remark. "Any girl who would say no to you would be stupid. She loves you just as much as you love her."

Oliver grins and wriggles his eyebrows. "Does that mean you'd say yes?"

Annie scowls at him for a second. "No."

"Damn," he sighs and clutches at his heart, melodramatically. "You wound me, Annie. I really thought we had something going on here."

I press my fist against the side of his head and push him back, like I'm knocking a door. "Go propose to your girlfriend."

"But, what if she says no?!"

"How about this?" Annie compromises, leaning forward a little and twiddles her thumbs. "If Arden says no, I'll be here to pick up the pieces for you."

She's rewarded with a cheeky wink and a thumbs up, and within two seconds, the guy is on his feet and sprinting off the ship, shouting at the top of his lungs. "I got this, man!"

"He's gone crazy, I swear."

Annie stifles a giggle and stretches her legs over the deck. "I think it's cute. Not Oliver, I mean, but the two of them. They're like, living a fairytale."

"Would you like your life to be a fairytale?"

"I don't know. Obviously, it's never going to happen but a girl can dream, right?"

"Right."

A pregnant silence falls upon us, and for what seems to be the first time, it's not all that awkward. We stare off into the distance, watching our friends fool around. Rhea strikes the most random poses with the two other girls.

"When do you want to get married?"

I turn to look at Annie, surprised at her sudden outburst. "What?" I manage to splutter out, my eyebrows shooting up.

She squirms uncomfortably and chews on her bottom lip. "Most people get married when they're eighteen or nineteen. You're almost eighteen and you haven't had a girlfriend, if you don't count the women from the Capital."

"Oh. Please," I reply, forcing a smirk. "The single life is way too good to give up right now."

I can sense Annie judging me, mentally but I pay no attention to her when I hear my best friend exclaim, "She said yes!" Our group of friends erupts into cheers and whoop ecstatically, pounding him on the back.

And I just can't help but say sarcastically, "Well, isn't that a surprise."

A/N: I kind of just love Oliver :') I apologise for the late/short/crap chapter but I promise I'll make up for it next chapter! The 78th Games are starting - do you think Marlene will volunteer?