ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ᴇɪɢʜᴛ
Author note: We will hate Finnick in this chapter.
It was the last day of training with the other tributes.
Which also meant it was the day you showed the makers what you could do.
Everyone was tense.
And everyone noticed.
There was the smell of fear and nervousness in the air. Either you were scared, nervous, or both. Everyone was practicing like it was their last day.
The coaches watched from above, and most were already taking notes on what they could tell their tributes later. The blond-haired one looked frustrated. He looked down at her while she talked to the girl from District 5.
She should be practicing, not just talking. That might get her killed. He'd been hard on here the last few days, he admitted, but maybe that was only because he saw himself and someone else in her.
She volunteered as tribute, as did she and he.
She was afraid, as she and he were.
She didn't train, as he and she didn't.
She had the Capitol around her finger, like she and he did.
She had good alliances, as did she and he.
They had not betrayed her yet, as she and he had been betrayed.
She didn't die yet, as she did.
She was still alive, but she wasn't.
He didn't want her to make the same mistakes he and she did.
"Why the fuck didn't you train?" His voice was full of anger. It was hard, not soft, as usual. He stood in the living room with his arms folded in front of Mary and a sharp look on his face
"I have, Finnick." She thought he was a little intimidating. If she was honest, she was afraid of him. The last few days had been tough, Finnick was tough, but he never had anger like this. She went to the counter and poured herself a glass of water, which she quickly finished.
"NO! YOU were just talking to that girl from District 5! That was the last day you could train!" Veins popped slightly from his neck.
Mary shook her head, laughing slightly. "I wasn't just talking to Francesca. And besides, I can still train with you tomorrow morning." It came out more snarky than it was intended.
"No."
"What no?" Her eyebrows drew together and fear spread through her body. No? What did he mean by 'no'?
"You're not going to train with me tomorrow. I'm going to take Mikael with me. I thought about that a long time ago. He could win, he has what it takes to win. He's been training, you haven't." Mary shook her head disapprovingly and walked past him and sat down on the couch.
She looked up at him with tears in her eyes that she hadn't noticed yet and shook her head slightly. "What do you mean he has what it takes to win?"
"You're a naive little fucking girl, Mary." Ouch.
"What?" she whispered in a weak voice, and the first tears came.
"You're a child! You have the mind of a child. I think, you think this is all a game, and you'll wake up in the morning. You're not taking it seriously."
She wasn't taking it seriously? This was his fucking seriousness?
"Maybe I have the mind of a child because I am a child!" her voice became firmer and louder again.
"You're not a child. WE are not children. No one here is a child! We are adults. We should act like adults." The mood in the room was tense. Both felt anger and sadness.
"Just because you didn't have a happy childhood doesn't mean others didn't." She sat up from the couch and pointed her finger angrily at him. Mary hadn't had the perfect childhood, but she'd had a nice one, with exceptions. She had heard a lot of things about the Odairs. That they didn't have much money but had many children was one.
"You don't understand, do you? When you live in the districts, like you and me, there are no children. We're dolls! They play with us as if we were chess pieces! When you are born in this world, in these neighborhoods, there are no children. There are dolls, there is a game. That's all. We have no place in this world. We will never have a place in this world!"
More and more tears flowed down Mary's cheeks. She walked toward him with angry steps, angrily pointing her finger at him. "I HATE YOU! I fucking hate you!" Anyone passing by in the elevator would hear the conversation clearly.
"They're going to kill us all! They're going to kill you, and they're going to kill me. Either in this game or after this game." Now, it wasn't Mary pointing at him, but Finnick pointing at her.
Mary looked at him for a moment, perplexed with the news, and shook her head. "That's not true. If we win, we're free." At the moment, she looked like the 13-year-old little girl who was really somewhere insane. Insane that she believed in this bullshit. That she believed in being free after the games. "They said we'd be free. The other winners said it too. They're laughing and happy."
Finnick laughed. He grabbed the glass from the counter and threw it at Mary, who managed to duck in time. She looked at him with wide eyes. He put his hands to his head, upset, and shook his head, laughing. "THIS is why everyone says you're insane. You're so naive. Naive that you believe this shit. When you see us laughing, it's not because we're happy! We have to be! Otherwise, we'll die! We, winners, have to be perfect. I really didn't think it was true about you being insane, but it is."
"I'm not insane," she whispered, as she was still processing what had just happened. "I'm not insane," she repeated.
Finnick smiled slightly and nodded. "Yes, you are. If you weren't insane, would you still be hearing your mother?" Mary blinked in surprise. How did he know that?
"There's a lot of talk around the district. A lot about you. Like how you still hear your mother's voice or even the kids who were laughing that day. Many also say you still see her. I thought they were just rumors, but I'm starting to believe they're really true. It's sad that even your own brother thinks you're insane. That's something you have to get over. Maybe you do have what it takes to win. I mean, you've killed before. So it won't be that hard. Maybe it's fitting that you're insane. I mean, who among us winners isn't a little insane? You'll be one of the ones who's more insane. That's ok too. I wish you good luck tomorrow. There, you can already show a little bit of your insanity to the others, won't you? Goodnight, Mary."
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Author note: I did a trailer for this book, and it's on TikTok. I hope you liked this chapter and hope you have a great day.
TikTok: whyamireadingthis