lover/fighter - Finnick Odair

Chapter 48 - To the sea, to the night, to happiness, to death.

Trigger warning: implied/referenced  suicide

====================

After Rhea's unexpected adventure at the Games after-party, peace returns for a while. As she was the first one in the office the morning after, she was spared the walk of shame, but at least Elaine immediately sensed that something was up.

After struggling to squeeze the information out of her friend, she was both shocked and pleasantly surprised. A little jealous perhaps, because she would be lying if she claimed that she wouldn't fancy a night of partying and having fun again. But right now, it's not about her.

No, instead she is genuinely pleased that Rhea seems to be doing really well at the moment. And that's not just an empty statement, because in a way that's hard to describe, Elaine's close friend of many years seems to be on a real high right now - she can clearly feel it. After all, she has known Rhea for several years and she has never been like this before.

Rhea has always been the focused, determined and hard-working go-getter. Something Elaine has admired her for from the very beginning, but it has also always made Rhea extremely stuck in her ways. You could say that she is blocked, something prevents her from moving off her usual paths, which has often made her life seem very monotonous. Of course, none of this has completely disappeared overnight, but it almost seems as if she is now suddenly casting interested glances at the stranger on the side of the road.

Elaine doesn't boast about many things, in fact she sees herself as absolutely ordinary in pretty much everything. That's not a bad thing, after all, in the society she grew up in, the overriding aim in life has long been to stand out as little as possible. Everyone just wants to be part of the crowd and blend in without attracting attention, because any step outside the pattern is likely to get you into trouble.

Elaine always thought it was stupid. She understands the reasoning behind it, but actually she always dreamed of breaking out. In her way of thinking, she simply didn't fit in. That always annoyed her and then she met Rhea. In a way, you could say that they are opposites, because Rhea has the extraordinary abilities. She has the capability to do things that many people can't do, but mentally restricts herself from really living that out to the full.

However, the one thing Elaine can proudly claim to be is a good friend. She could probably never devote several years of her life to intensive study like Rhea did, she's just too impatient for that. But instead, she has a good sense of what people need. Rhea likes to call it emotional intelligence, in the firm belief that it is far more important than what is usually understood by "being smart".

And for this reason, Elaine has no choice but to keep gently nudging her friend in the right direction, even if this direction is currently leading away from her. She has to admit that it makes her a little sad, because since this period of change has begun in Rhea's life, things have changed for her too and Rhea's frequent absences are more noticeable than she would like to admit.

Nevertheless, she does not hesitate to encourage Rhea to give in to this change. It may well be that the practice is her life's work, but Rhea's life is only just beginning and that can't be the end of it. Maybe this is the farthest she'll ever get in the Capitol, but outside the Capitol, anything is possible if you have a chance to get out.

That being said, no one who has really been following the events can deny that none other than the handsome and sometimes a little too charming victor from the fishing district must be largely responsible for this new mood. So Elaine does her best to talk Rhea out of feeling guilty about leaving her own business to fend for itself so often, and instead persuades her to follow her inner urges back to District 4, even if it means having to stay behind again without her.