The last day of training went by smoothly. Well as smoothly as it can when everyone in the room with you is thinking about either dying or killing you in the games, which start the day after tomorrow. A rather cheery thought. Xavier and I are set as official allies. The Careers and I are set as a behind the scene alliance. And then Rae and I have a sort of alliance. More like an understanding though. Whereas Tyler made an official alliance with William. His alliance is so much simpler. I talked it over with Tyler and made it clear to him that I would protect him if I could, and that if it came down to just us, he would be the one going home a victor.
"It's okay Annie." He told me once I told him I would protect him. "I can take care of myself." His light blue eyes shining. He put a hand on my shoulder. "I'm okay with what's about to happen." He shrugged a little. "Well, not okay with it, but I've accepted it. The odds are not in my favor and if I die, I die. There's really nothing more I can do than to give it my best shot." I took a moment to really look at Tyler. He had changed. He was not the scared little boy that panicked at the sound of his name being picked just a few days ago. He had grown up. Fast. Too fast. He is supposed to have a life, be a kid and enjoy it. But just like everyone else who enters, and exists the games, growing up fast is a requirement. Tyler smiled at me, and tears sprung to my eyes. "Annie, it's okay. Really. Please don't cry." Tyler's voice shakes a little, but not like he's going to join me in crying, like he's worried.
"This just isn't right." I manage to choke out. "You shouldn't be here. You should be home, playing on the shore and going to school. You should be growing up and having fun being young."
Tyler dips his head a bit and nods at my reasoning. "And what about you Annie?" I look up at him. "You should be with your family."
"They don't need me."
"How do you know?"
"Well, I mean, they'll get on without me just fine. My mom has Don, and they have Brooke."
Tyler glances at the wall behind me and sighs shaking his head lightly. "That's not the family I was talking about." He says under his breath. Then he looks back at me. What other family is he talking about?
"What do you mean?" I ask.
He sighs again, then rolls the sleeves up on his dark gray top and just looks at me. His light brown hair almost a bit golden colored now, probably from Capitol products left over in his hair from the Tribute Parade. It dips lightly into his eyes which makes them stand out greatly. He doesn't look scared. He stands, and with me sitting down, he's taller than me so I can look up at him. He doesn't look like the thirteen year old boy from District 4 anymore. He looks like a young man forced to grow up because of the Capitol. He shoves his hands into his pockets and walks out to his room. An image of Finnick pops into my head, was this what he was like? Tyler is just a year younger than he was. I don't really remember who Finnick's district counterpart was. She was a year older than Finnick or a year younger. Somewhere around there. She didn't last very long.
I lay down on the couch in the main lounge. It's some kind of red velvet, but also leather for easy cleaning, and if I was correct, the seats were heated whenever someone sat down. It made it very easy to drift off on.
I saw home. I saw the ocean from my favorite spot on the beach, where I'd sit all day until sunset with my ropes and beads and shells… most nights waiting for Finnick to come home. Waiting for him to come back to me. Watching the sky change into a painter's pallet; a mixture of yellow, red, and purple and a deep indigo reflected from the water and the oncoming night sky. Feeling the sand turn cold beneath me. Knowing it was time to go home. Knowing that he hadn't come home that night.
I felt a hand on my face and my eyes flashed open. Finnick was sitting next to me. But I was in my room.
"How did I get in here?"
"I carried you."
I feel myself blush slightly. "How long was I asleep?" I ask noticing that I am now in a pair of green silk pajamas generously provided by the Capitol. A short sleeve button up top with some kind of collar, and the bottoms are shorts, the kind of shorts I'd wear to the beach, just silkier.
Finnick looks at his watch. "Five hours? Around there. You missed dinner. Talika was going to wake you up by I told her to let you sleep."
My stomach grumbled then. "And if I'm hungry now?" Finnick smiled.
"Come on." He said standing up and reached out his hand. I took it and he pulled me out of bed. We didn't stop at the kitchen though. I was about to question it when Finnick guided me toward the elevator.
"Finnick!" I whisper-yelled. "We can't use the elevator! It's against the rules." Finnick just smiled.
"For you yes. For me, I can come and go as I please." He steps in when it dings on our floor. "Come on Annie." He stands there waiting for me. He's not dressed in much either. A pair of loose tan khakis and what looks like a dark blue undershirt. No shoes, no coat. His hair is a bit messy, but not like he was just out with-a-client-messy. Normal Finnick running-his-hands-through-his-hair-because-he's-stressed-messy. "Trust me." He's more serious this time.
I give a sigh of defeat, and step into the elevator with him. "Nice pj's by the way." I can hear the smirk in his voice.
"How exactly did I get into them Finnick?" I ask trying to sound annoyed. He just looks at the elevator doors as they close and smiles.
He then surprises me when instead of pushing the ground floor button he holds down a button labeled "R", just under the button "12". The elevator takes us up. Up up and up. With every floor we pass, I can see more and more of the Capitol. It looks like a never ending city up until the eighth floor. At the ninth I can see the bed of water that surrounds most of the city. At the tenth, I can see the mountain peaks become more mountain like. And by the twelfth floor I can see everything. But the elevator doesn't stop there.
"What does 'R' stand for?" I ask Finnick.
"Roof." He says smiling at me. Then the elevator beeps as it comes to a stop and the doors open. I look to Finnick and he gestures for me to walk out first. So I do. Outside the elevator I step into some kind of greenhouse. The walls and ceiling are made of glass, and there are plants everywhere. The greenhouse itself is quite small, but a set of glass doors catches my attention at the end of the row. I walk towards them and come out to a patio. It's a great deal cooler out here, but not unbearable. There are rows of flowers that line the outside of the greenhouse. There are so many colors, some colors of flowers that I'd never seen. Some look unreal, maybe Capitol enhanced. Some were stripped, some were poka-dotted, some had a gradient of colors, and some, my favorite, were just a solid color with a slight change in color towards the center. She stopped at one flower, one she'd never seen before. It looked so fragile, and stood out from all the others. It had delicate white-light blue petals, with a glowing center that was a mixture of pink and yellow. I knelt down to it's level to get a better look. I could feel Finnick move to stand behind me.
"It's called an orchid." He said keeling down as well. "They don't grow in District 4."
"It looks altered."
"It may be. But it's still a beautiful flower." He said quietly. His hand then came up to my head and brushed some hair behind my ear. I looked over at him questioningly. He just stared at me. His eyes seemed ablaze, and it set off a small spark somewhere inside me. I could feel myself blush a bit, so I quickly stood up and went to the edge of the roof. The streets were buzzing with life, even in the dead of night. There was no moon tonight. Just stars that could not be seen because of all the city lights. I can hear Finnick moving behind me.
"This place is crazy." I say under my breath. Finnick sighs, and puts his hands on the railing to support himself as he dips his head down as if in deep thought. "Finnick, is something wrong?" I ask.
He laughs a little, to himself it seems. "No, nothing is wrong. Well, nothing besides the fact that you're going to the games. Everything is just peachy." That last sentence held Finnick sarcasm. Not easy to pick up, but doable once you've known him for a while. Finnick then reaches into his pocket and pulls out something small and white.
"I thought you gave those up." I said teasingly. He looks at me and smiles.
"Never." He said and popped the sugar cube into his mouth. I feel myself smile back. I can't deny it, Finnick is a gorgeous guy, but I always thought his smile was his best feature. I guess a lot of Capitol people thought so too, his smile is on a lot of campaign boards here. A sickening thought crosses my mind before I can stop it: do his clients think his smile is his best quality? Probably not. My face cringes a bit. I didn't want to think about this, not here when I was with him.
"Want some food?" Finnick asks looking out over the Capitol night life.
"What?"
"Food. You said you were hungry."
I did didn't I? "Oh yea. Sure."
He looks down at me, and takes my hand. But not before noticing the slight cringe my face still holds. He doesn't mention it though.
Finnick leads me down some stairs, but still on the roof, and there, tucked away behind the green house, is a little homey looking backyard scene. Some grass, probably a rug of some kind, a picnic bench, and a blanket laid out on the ground with two lit candles, and a basket of food. Above us are twinkling lights strung from the roof of the green house to the higher edge of the roof 30 yards to the north.
"Wow." Is all I can manage.
Finnick smiles. "This way Ms. Cresta." I follow him to the blanket and sit with him as he pulls out some sandwiches and fruit.
I take a bite of my sandwich and let out an involuntary moan. Out of the corner of my eye, with his back to me, I can see Finnick freeze for a moment, he shakes a little, then returns to normal. "What kind of sandwich is this?" I ask with my mouth full.
Finnick smiles at me. "Brown sugared salmon, and some kind of cheese coated rice sauce, on toasted wheat bread." It was heavenly.
"This is really good." I say taking in another mouthful.
"Glad you like it. It's my favorite food they serve here."
"I've only ever heard about what salmon is like, but this is exquisite."
We finish our food with small conversations. Finnick gives me advice every now and then about how to get the best score possible in the private training. He tells me what to expect for the interview. Basically screaming people with an IQ no higher than 100 dressed up like clowns on drugs. Then for Caesar, he is a smart guy. He melds easily with Capitol citizens but also helps out tributes and Victors when they're at a loss for words. "So his job is just to make us look good?" I ask.
"In a way, yes. He will help make you memorable. Not that you need it."
"What do you mean?"
"You've already made such an impression on the Capitol from the parade."
"That was days ago. I'm sure these people have the attention span of a puppy, much less a good memory. They'll just see a pretty girl in a dress. They won't remember the real me."
Finnick pauses. "Then give them something to remember."
"Like what?" His eyes darken slightly, and he leans in close. Close just like last night. My heart beat picks up drastically. What is he doing? "…Finnick…" I breathe out. "Wait." And just like that, he snaps back to his original sitting position, a light flush on his cheeks.
"What?" He asks.
"What are you doing?"
"What I'd be doing if neither of us were ever reaped. Only this would be on the beach back in District 4."
"Huh? You'd be trying to kiss me if we were still at home?"
He looks into my eyes for a moment or two, actually I'm not exactly sure how long we sat there looking at each other. He leans in once again, not as close though, and moves it so his mouth is next to my ear, and he breathes one word that would forever remain implanted into my heart.
"Yes."
My breathing increases, and I feel goosebumps raise everywhere. My cheeks feel hot and my mouth feels dry. I move my tongue out to lick my lips. Finnick sees this and his eyes darken again. His hand reaches up to cup my face. He doesn't look anywhere but my eyes, and occasionally my lips.
"Finn.." I can't think of words to form a sentence. He smiles at me. I can feel his breath on my face. I move in a little more. "I didn't know." That's a little bit of lie, I suspected from time to time, but dismissed it.
"I didn't either." He laughs lightly. "Only recently when I'd watch you with someone else, or if you were threatened, I realized it was something more than what we are." He closed his eyes and let out a shaky breath.
"Won't this upset people?"
Finnick pulls back suddenly. "Like who?"
"Snow. Your clients."
Finnick shuts his eyes tight and leans back slightly. "They don't have to know."
"No. Of course they don't have to know, but they will find out. They know everything Finnick whether we like it or not. They probably have cameras focused on us right now. Did you ever think about that? They could make things so much worse in the games for me than they need to be. I've already got a lot on my plate Finnick I don't need another complication!"
Finnick looked a little pale. "Annie I-"
"Goodnight Finnick." I turn and stomp off toward the elevator. I can hear Finnick groan behind me cursing himself. Part of me is wondering why the hell I just did that. I'm going to die anyway so why not have some fun beforehand? But if Finnick thinks I'm really going to die, is he just being nice to me before the games? This would make for a wonderful Capitol story: Finnick Odair's secret lover dies in the Hunger Games!
I get back on the lift and hit the number 4. The ride is slow and agonizing. It's quiet on our floor, just like it was when Finnick and I snuck out. It really was a great dinner. I sigh and make my way back to my room, passing the Tribute Memorial on my way and watch a moving picture of Finnick's head smiling back at me. I stick my tongue out at it. Childish, I know. But it made me feel better.
I crawl back into my bed and hide under the covers. I'm tired of the Capitol and wish I was in the games already. They drag this out way too long, and I'm sure some Capitol citizens would agree with me. Of course, they have different reasons to want the games to come quicker. I just want to get in there, and die protecting Tyler. I don't feel tired. But I close my eyes anyway. Hoping for some relief from this nightmare waiting to happen.