UNDERDOG | FINNICK ODAIR

Chapter 9

Focusing during training was hard when Finnick Odair was on my mind. He and I were practicing our hammock making which I was good at, but as always, Finnick was better.

I didn't mind, I knew my strengths and he knew his. It had been this way for as long as we had been close friends.

Hammock making may be easy but certain knots were tricky. It didn't help that there would be certain distractions. I would be all in the groove and suddenly I would look over and would notice Finnick glancing at me. Eventually I got frustrated.

"Will you stop that?" I asked as I knotted off a end. "Stop what?" He asked. "Stop looking at me like that." I said untangling the rest of the grass like thread.

"I'm only enjoying the view." He said taking his string and he started to separate it from itself.

"Pfff. Yeah, more like being creepy." I said with a chuckle.

"What? You don't think you're worthy of my gaze? " He asked.

"Leave it to you to ignore every thing I just said and interpret it to suit you." I said with a sigh and a eye roll.

He smiled but as the District two tributes walked out of hearing range he dropped it, "Listen, there is a meeting the day after our scores that might be interesting. Abernathy from 12 told Lacey to pass it on to us" Finnick whispered lowly, becoming serious. He tied off the end of his hammock seconds before me.

"Can we trust him?" I mumbled back.

"I think so. Abernathy only told certain districts, the ones he could trust. I just wanted to give you the option of going or not. I know how uneasy secrecy makes you."

I looked in his eyes, "I'll go, and it doesn't make me uneasy. Not anymore, not after everything Snow has taken from you, and from me." I whisper as Atala called for lunch and everyone scrambled to the doors, ready to be out of here for an hour.

They led us to the next room over where carts of food had been wheeled in. We gathered food for our plates and sat down at the long table some tributes had put together.

I sat down next to Johanna (who was now fully clothed thank goodness) and Finnick was on the other side of me. I looked around to make sure everyone else was eating before chowing down myself.

Finnick became engaged in conversation with Brutus and Johanna was chatting it up with Chaff. I was left to myself but it was a good thing. I was able to just sit there and listen for the first time since this morning.

Everyone around me spoke about their prospects of winning. No one was sure who would win but they were more certain of who wouldn't make it past the first day. Beetee, Wiress, Seeder and the morphlings high on the list.

Finnick noticed my unease about the subject and set his hand on top of mine where it rested on my knee.

I was glad that he was here with me. I would be so lost without him and I'm sure he knew that. I think maybe that was Annie's grand scheme all along, to bad she had to die for us to figure it out.

After lunch was over we went back to training. I was watching Brutus, Chaff, and Peeta throw knives, most hitting the target. I decided to show off a little to the other competitors. I grabbed a knife on the rack and came up behind Peeta.

"Can I try?" I ask quietly, not wanting to scare them by coming from behind.

They turned to face me, "Sure just don't think that you're going to get it on your first try, sweetheart." Brutus said, backing up to let me have a clear shot at the target.

I smiled and stepped forward. "I'm sure it can't be to tough." I angled my arm, and sent the knife fly towards the center. Years of free time with Finnick and shear boredom had taught me a few tricks and knife throwing was one that I was good at.

"Yeah, not tough at all." I said with a smirk at Brutus who looked mildly frustrated.

After a few minutes of showing the boys how good I was, it grew boring so I walked around searching for something else to do.

I spotted Katniss all by her self so I decided to join her in making fish hooks. I sat on the floor next to her as she struggled to bend a nail correctly. 

"Here let me." I said reaching for the nail. I pressed it on the floor and it bent much easier. "You try." I said giving it back. She was able to get the shape.

"So... Whats your story with Finnick. Are you two... together?" Katniss asked tentatively.

"No." I said with a laugh,  "we're just very close. He's my best friend, we've been through hell and back together."

"Because of the games?" Katniss asked.

"Because of everything.... Finnick and I, we just found a sense of comfort in each other. It's hard to find someone who's gone through the same amount of shit we have." I explained.

Katniss nodded in thought, "That woman you volunteered for, Mags? What about her?" She asked.

"Oh, Mags. She's a wonderful woman. She's taken care of my family since forever. She had a stroke seven years past which messed up her talking, but she can communicate with my mom like no one else can and after my Nona died, well it was a big help for me to know my mom had a friend." I said.

"What happened to your mom?" Katniss asked.

"She kinda fell of her rocker after my dad's death. It hit her really hard so she was pretty much out of it for most of my life. Luckily my Nonna was there to take care of us. But she died... almost eight years ago." I said finished with telling my story.

"What about you? What's your deal?" I asked, ready to turn the spotlight to her.

The next two days passed by super fast. We trained and perfected until the day of the dreaded scoring, when we were judged on how well we performed in front of judges.

For mine I decided to just show them my knife throwing skills. Which I had been working at on and off for the past two days.

"District four. Beck Delmare!" They called out when it was my time.

I felt Finnick squeeze my hand as I stand up. I walk in, surveying the judges above me. All of them much more sober and serious than I remember. I walk to the weaponry area and grab the slim knives I'd been practicing with.

I stand in front of a target and center myself. I hurl the knife forward and it hits the middle of the inner circle. I do this five more times and each time my aim is true. I turn to the judges and see them nodding in thought.

"Thank you, you did well. You may go."