I sit, staring at the waves.
There's no point crying over something that has already been lost, is there? I'm not coldhearted—I can't help but miss my brother. Dany should be here with me. He had promised to win the Games, and yet, because of Finnick Odair, his promise was broken.
The wind has dried my tears.
"Annie!"
It's Liliana Medi, one of the few friends I have. She sees me, waves, and begins to run toward me. "I guessed you would be here!"
"Well, you guessed correctly," I tell her, managing to give her a smile.
"What happened to you?" She exclaims, taking in my appearance. "You look awful!"
Trust Liliana to get right to the point. She never cares whether she'll hurt you. She'll always says what's on her mind. That's the kind of person she is, and I'm grateful for it. She constantly tells me that Finnick Odair is the most ugliest person she's had the misfortune of laying her eyes on.
Perhaps our mutual hatred for him is the reason we became friends.
She says that her mother had some history with Finnick Odair's father. After a certain incident that she refuses to discuss with me, her mother had "broken up" with Finnick Odair's father and eventually married her own father. That's why Liliana hates Finnick, she says, because she thinks that her mother would have been perfect for Finnick's father, had they not broken up.
Family feuds are not my concern, so naturally I don't question her about it. Even if our reasons for hating Finnick are different, we still both hate him, and that's what matters most.
"I tripped and fell in the sand," I say, in response to her question. There isn't any point mentioning Finnick to her.
"Really?" She asks, as if she doesn't believe me. At least what I told her is partially true.
"Really," I confirm.
She rolls her eyes. "Has anyone told you that you're a horrible liar, Annie?"
My cheeks flush involuntarily.
"Aww! You're blushing! Don't tell me you're in love with someone!" She gushes.
Finnick Odair is the last person I want to be in love with. "Just because you have a boyfriend doesn't mean that I have to be in love with someone, too" I retort dryly.
Liliana has been dating Spens Dunbryll for over two years, and I have heard rumors that he is planning to propose to her. They are a bit young, but age doesn't matter when two people are in love.
So she says.
"Well, at least you met a boy, then?" Liliana guesses.
And she just has to be right.
Seeing my horrified expression, she beams at me. "Aha! I knew it! Well, who did you meet?"
"Why don't you just guess? Seeing that you're guessing everything right up till now." I am not in the mood to discuss boy problems with Liliana. Especially not on Reaping day.
"You're a little snappy today," she observes.
I shrug. "What do you expect? It is Reaping day, after all."
It's partially true, so it doesn't count as a lie, right? I lower my eyes to the ground.
That is when I notice the piece of knotted rope, lying partially covered in the sand.
"Well, I promised Spens I'd meet him before the Reaping," she says, changing the subject. "So, I'll see you later?"
"Have fun," I say, though I'm no longer listening to her. I bend down and pick up the knotted piece of rope, and it is not until I have finished my handiwork that I realize I have just unknotted every one of the knots. Sometimes, if I'm not paying attention, I don't know what I'm doing.
And yet, my fingers have managed to unknot the very carefully knotted knots.
I wonder who left it here?
Oh well.
I've already unknotted the rope, and I don't remember the exact knots that had tied the rope together.
"Cresta!" A voice calls in the distance.
Groaning, I look up to find Finnick Odair jogging toward me. Why did he have to come back, just after Liliana leaves? "Odair," I acknowledge coldly. "Nice of you to show up again."
He smirks at me, and I give him my best death glare in response.
"Trust me, I don't want to see any more of you than I have to," he says.
Same goes for me.
"But I left a piece of rope here earlier, so I came back to get it," he continues.
Uh-oh.
"Oh...you mean this?" I hold up the piece of rope for him to see.
"You...untied the knots," he says, his eyes widening as he stares at the rope in my hand.
Silence.
What he says next surprises me. "No one has been able to untie those knots before," he muses quietly. "You're really skilled at tying knots, aren't you?"
"You can say that," I mutter embarrassedly.
He bends down to take the rope from me. And, as he does so, his hand brushes against mine. My stomach flips wildly. It's an emotion I've never encountered before, and I feel my cheeks burn. Ugh. I hate him, I remind myself.
I notice that his hand is covered with scratches.
From tying knots, perhaps? Because mine are like that, too.
His hand lingers there for a moment longer, before he draws it away. It's just a stupid piece of rope, I think. He didn't have to make such a big fuss about it.
"I'm impressed," he praises me.
I take it that it's not common for Finnick Odair to praise someone. But I don't care whether Finnick thinks my knot tying (and untying) skills are good. I have to tie knots in order to help my family obtain the food we need—in order to survive. Unlike Finnick, who no longer has to worry about money.
"Well, this time I'll see you at the Reaping," Finnick says finally, when he notices that I haven't spoken.
And so, for the second time in one day, Finnick Odair leaves me sitting alone on the beach.
Except that this time, there are no tears to spill.
Disclaimer: I am not from the Capitol, so of course I don't own the Hunger Games.
Oh my goodness. 9 reviews for the first chapter. You guys made my day! :D (And I know I put in a second chapter already, but I decided to add this one before it.. and I'm planning to rewrite the previous second chapter too, because I think it was a little rushed...)
Special thanks to Me for being the first reviewer!
Who should the boy tribute be?
I have a few ideas, but which of the following would you prefer? Tell me with a review!
1) Spens Dunbryll (Liliana's boyfriend)
2) Finnick's younger brother (still no name as of yet. Possibly Dinah? I'm debating whether to give him a sibling.)
3) A different younger boy