Trigger Warning: Mentions of suicide

He didn't hear the rock hit the bottom. Finnick peered over the edge, trying in vain to see if he could make out any of the rocky shore below. At this time of night, the cliffs, the beach, and the waves melted into varying shades of dark. He kicked another rock over the edge, not even hoping this time to hear it bounce against the cliff face during its fall.

The fishermen's children had told stories about Sirens Cove for generations. Most of them, those of mermaids and selkies and a dozen other impossible creatures, Finnick knew were nothing more than legend. Others were undeniable facts. The kids who had drowned a few years ago. The early victor who had leapt from this spot to her death. He had once heard that you could still hear her screams, but he understood now that that had been nothing more than the O'Flannagan brothers having a bit of fun with him. Anyone who wanted to die that badly would only be grateful for the single, merciful crack that lay below.

"Get away from there. We have that fence for a reason." He turned, towards the voice, immediately raising a hand to shield his eyes from the flashlight. "Finnick! What do you think you're doing out there? I figured it was stupid teenagers!"

"I'm sorry," he said.

"Well, get back over here! I'll not leave you alone like this."

"I wasn't going to jump."

Rhonda came a few steps closer. "And I never said you were going to. Come on, let's get you inside. A cup of tea and some conversation will do you a world of good."

The chill in the air only hit him as he climbed over the fence that Mags and Rhonda had paid for after what the living victors referred to only as 'the suicide.' Finnick followed Rhonda to her door in silence. He dreaded the conversation that awaited him. The woman wouldn't allow him to escape without a talking-to from her wife, and Mags would not approve of his actions tonight. Rhonda held open the door to the two women's home as she hurried him inside. "Come along, love, the living room's warmer."

"Thanks." More out of habit than conscious thought, he slipped off his shoes before following her.

"Mags? We've got company. I found Finnick out and about."

He heard Mags' cane before he saw her. Finnick looked down at his bare feet to avoid her gaze. He could feel her eyes on him, and his cheeks burned. "What's wrong?" Her words were somewhat garbled, but he understood her perfectly.

"I was out by the cove. Rhonda saw me and told me to come inside."

"He was out past the fence," she added as she pressed a warm mug into his hands. Finnick blew cold air onto the tea before taking a sip of the still-hot liquid, watching as Rhonda helped Mags onto the couch. He saw the smile of gratitude that passed between them, and his heart ached. It had been almost three weeks since his conversation with Snow, almost four since he'd last seen Annie. He missed her so much it physically hurt. He didn't want to eat, or sleep, or do anything but be with her. As he watched Mags and Rhonda, he saw everything he wanted, everything he couldn't have. Yes, the Capitol had once desired Mags, but she'd long since lost her appeal. He couldn't wait another thirty, forty, fifty years to be with Annie. He couldn't wait a day.

"You, child, need to figure out what's really important." Mags nodded in agreement. "You can't just sit here, or worse yet up on that god-forsaken cliff, and waste your life away."

"I can't let her get hurt."

"You can't stop it," Mags said. He looked at her questioningly.

It was Rhonda who elaborated. "Finnick, Annie's a victor now. The instant she came out of that Arena, Snow owned her, and you can't change that, none of us can. What you can change is how you approach this."

How did they not understand? "I can't let her get hurt because of me."

"She's a big girl. Treat her like it," said Mags.

Rhonda had always been the gentler of the two women. "You can't make this decision for her, Finnick. The two of you need to talk about this. Right now, you're both hurting yourselves, and none of us want that."

His hands shook around the cup, and he focused on stopping himself from spilling the hot liquid onto his lap. "I… I think I can do that."

Mags smiled and nodded at him, and for once, Finnick felt like he'd done something right. Rhonda looked between the two of them. "I'd like you to stay here tonight. I don't want to be making another trip out to those terrible bluffs tonight."

He'd forgotten what it felt like to feel warm and content as one fell to sleep.

Finnick woke with the dawn, just as he always had. A victor's life hadn't been enough to break him of the habit. He made his bed and went downstairs quietly, careful not to wake Mags and Rhonda. He needed to talk to Annie today. This couldn't go on any longer. He finger-combed his hair and found his shoes, but before he could slip them on, he heard a soft, hesitant knock on the door.

He knew that Mags and Rhonda were the first stop on the milkman's route, but Finnick hadn't realized that he came so early. He figured he'd say a quick hello to the man, but instead, he found himself looking into a pair of sea-green eyes. "I got a call last night. Rhonda said we should talk."

She'd barely finished her sentence when he pulled her into his arms. He kissed her forehead, but she pushed away from him gently. "Finnick, we need to talk."

"I think I should start with I'm sorry," he said. She nodded, and this time, it was her pulling him down to kiss his cheek.

A/N: Thirty chapters? Really!? Yay! Thanks so much to everybody for reading. I really hope you've enjoyed reading these as much as I have writing them!