FIFTY NINE

KEEP BREATHING

warning: mentions of sexual assault and abuse.

Air. That was what she needed. She needed air. Her hands push against the grated metal surface, her feet doing the same. Her head surfaces and her lungs burn as she breathes in. Her head snaps to the side quickly and see's him, Finnick, face down in the water. Burned, bloody mutts are scattered across the sewer room, everything in smoking from the explosion of Katniss's holo. Talia hopes they made it out okay. She wades to Finnick and tries not to vomit at the smell of his burnt flesh. His upper back and shoulders are completely singed, his skin mottled and bloody. She pulls his head out of the water, he's unconscious, most likely from a mixture of the pain and from the force of the blast. She drags him, her whole body protesting at his weight, to the edge of the water, where the metal pathway is. She climbs out herself before using all her strength to pull Finnick up. Her back nearly gives way, but she manages.

Finnick's limp body sprawls across the floor and she checks his pulse, its shallow, but its there. She drags Finnick into an upright position, his skin tearing even more against the grated floor. She winces, she hated seeing him like this- if he survived he'd be scarred for life. Her backpack was still strapped to her. She takes it off and searches it for supplies. Finnick's backpack was destroyed in the explosion, and most likely was what saved the skin of his from being completely torn away from the bone. Talia finds some bandages and some rubbing alcohol. She looks at the burns and feels her stomach twisting with sickness.

"I'm so sorry, Finnick," She whispers before pouring alcohol across his back.

He roars awake, screaming in agony. He clenches his fists as she keeps pouring. "Stop! Please, I beg!"

She doesn't stop, finishing the job by ensuring his whole back has been cleaned.

"I'm sorry, but I had to, your entire back is burned and I-" Her voice cracks, and her eyes well with tears, "I'm so sorry,"

He breathes through the pain that was shooting across his back, he'd never felt anything like it. "Its okay," He manages to say.

"I have bandages, but I'm not sure if I should put them on," She says quietly. "Do you think you could walk? I don't want to be down here anymore,"

He nods his head slowly, "If we're near the President's mansion then I know someone who can take us in,"

"Okay..." Talia mutters. She stands up, "Does the person happen to be trained in medicine?"

"No, he's a gamemaker," Finnick says. Talia shoots him a glare. "Was a gamemaker,"

"What happened to him?" She asks as she helps him into a stand. He winces through it, but stands none the less.

"Snow grew bored of the games he made, so like most of the others who work for the President, he was tossed aside," Finnick says. Talia watches quietly as he ascends the ladders. Talia follows when he's clear of them.

"How far away is he from the mansion?" She asks.

"About half a mile out, once we reach the surface and I see where we are, I'll know," Finnick says. Talia nods. She still had one kukri and one pistol, but she was running low on ammo. Talia opens her bag and reveals a hooded poncho made of waterproof plastic.

"I'm going to wear this, as for you, just keep your head low," Talia says as she slips on the poncho.

"We might attract some attention," He says, gesturing to his shredded clothes, you could see his abs through the gaps. She smiles at him.

"Leave it to Finnick Odair to be cracking jokes with half his back missing," Talia says, shaking her head with a smile still on her face. He smiles back, wincing as he does so.

"Lets go," He says softly. Talia nods, she pulls the hood over her head and leads the way out of the station. The floor is torn to pieces- looks like the whole thing was rigged with pods, she hopes Katniss and her team made it out. She hopes Jamie and Bobby made it out.

Eventually they reach the surface after following the train tracks out. Finnick studies the area, but its dark out and a lot of the Capitol still doesn't have power, meaning there are barely any light to lead the way.

"I recognise the building there, I've been to dinners there. Jordan's apartment is a block or two eastward, closer to the mansion," Finnick says.

"It may be dark, but we're moving slowly and this area is definitely going to have much larger Peacekeeper patrols...Is there no one else?" She asks. Finnick pauses, trying to remember people from his years in the Capitol, his years spent being forced into prostitution.

"Jordan is the closest to the mansion," He finally says, "And I can trust him to let us in,"

"You're absolutely sure?"

"I promise," Finnick says. Talia meets his eye and then nods.

"I love you," She says.

He smiles softly at her, "I love you too,"

It takes them 40 minutes to reach the apartment block where Jordan Bardova resides. Talia and Finnick had moved slowly, methodically, so they could avoid Peacekeeper patrols. They used the fire exit at the back of the building for access and then Finnick led the way upstairs to the front door of the apartment.

Talia knocks, her gun in her hand, hidden by the poncho. It takes 30 seconds for Jordan to come to the door. He opens it slightly, a chain across it to stop them from barging in.

"My name is Talia Odair, and myself and Finnick need somewhere to hide," She says, looking at the olive skinned man through the gap.

"I'm sorry I can't-"

Finnick steps forward and pushes Talia aside gently. He looks at Jordan, directly into his eyes, "Please. Remember what I did for you, remember what I helped with. We just need somewhere to rest, and some food. Please...My wife...She's pregnant,"

Jordan's throat clenches at that. He looks at the floor, considering his options. He knew Finnick would never harm him, Finnick wasn't like that. He closes the door, looses the chain and then re-opens it. Finnick and Talia step inside. Talia's eyes widen at the sight. Its beautiful. The whole apartment is black, white and grey with golden accents on everything. Ceiling to floor windows cover the entire wall opposite the door and look out directly towards the Snow Mansion.

"What happened to your back?" Jordan asks as Finnick moves past him.

"An explosion," Finnick replies, he sits down on one of the couches.

"I don't know much about treating burns, but I have plenty of salves and medicines," Jordan says, he looks over at Talia, looking her up and down, he could see the glint of the gun in her hand. His eyes snap up and meet with hers. "I have food too,"

Talia nods, she puts the gun in her thigh holster and walks towards the conjoined kitchen.

"I'll find that medicine," Jordan says, walking to the bathroom. Talia opens the cupboards, looking for food. Theres no tins or packets of anything. Jordan must eat only fresh food. She opens the fridge and finds raw, fancy looking fish on trays with different sauces. She takes it out and carries it over to Finnick.

"Ah, sushi," He says as she places it on the coffee table, "Any guesses as to where the fish is from?"

"Home," She says quietly. She hopes home still existed, she hopes they'd be able to return to it soon, she hopes she can raise her family there. As if the thoughts trigger something within her, a thump hits her stomach.

"The baby," She says, looking down, her hands cupping her bumped stomach.

"Something wrong?" Finnick asks.

"No...Well, I don't think so...She, she kicked," She says.

"She?" Finnick asks.

"Just a thought," Talia replies, smiling across at Finnick. Jordan returns then, holding a box of different balms and bandages and tablets.

Talia eats cold pasta and bread in the kitchen while Jordan works away at Finnick's back. Finnick bites a pillow to stop the screams. Talia stares out at Snow's mansion. Snow was there, inside that place, probably enjoying a cup of tea in his rose garden. It makes Talia's blood seethe.

"He's already out,"

The sudden presence to her left makes her jump. She almost drops the glass of water she holds, but manages to grip it just before it can fall. Her eyes look over at Finnick, his whole upper torso was covered in bandages.

"I'm glad he's getting some rest," Talia says, turning her eyes back to the lit up mansion. "He told me you were a gamemaker...Which games?"

"Finnick's," Jordan says. Talia's throat clenches. He looks at her, at her white knuckles. She wanted to hurt him. He didn't blame her. "And a few after, not yours though,"

"Why does he trust you? What did he mean at the door?" She asks.

Jordan looks down at the china cup he was holding, his hand was shaking. He puts the cup down on the counter behind him and then looks back out at the mansion too. "After Snow got rid of me and replaced me with someone else, a much younger person with a much more vivid imagination, I was left with nothing. Theres not much else to do in the Capitol. Most of the gamemakers end up working behind the scenes of the games, or they join Snow's council if he favours them. He wasn't happy with me in the end and I turned to gambling. I lost everything. See, there is poverty, hunger...Abuse...Here, the President and his council just do a good job of covering it up. Finnick saw it, all of it. Thats partially why Snow made him do what he did,"

"Snow's deception cuts deep," Talia remarks before taking a gulp of water, "So, how did you meet Finnick?"

"He saved my life. I was...I was working in a club, dancing...You know, the naked kind," Jordan says. Talia nods, she'd heard of these Capitol clubs that were often called "funhouses".

"Well, some of the men get...Too close..." He pauses, blinking, as if a memory was playing behind his eyes and he wanted to be rid of it, "I was giving a private dance to a group of men, they expected special privileges, and I told them no, that wasn't part of the policy. I left the room and found the manager, but the manager didn't care, forced me back in the room and told me to keep 'entertaining' because 'it was all I was good for'. So, I danced more, watched them inject morphling into each others arms. They drank too. Then the guy who was paying for it all told the others to leave him alone with me. Thats when he...He pinned me down...Forced himself on me,"

Talia's lips part with a deep sigh, the tale was all too familiar to her, assault and abuse happened often in the Districts, and it seemed to happen a lot here too. She looks at him, his eyes welled with tears, his hand shaking at his side.

"Finnick was meeting a client in the club that night...He heard my muffled screams, he kicked in the door and tore the guy off me...The damage was already done but he stopped that...that monster from completely breaking me," Jordan explains. Talia's eyes flicker over towards Finnick, sleeping quietly on the sofa, before looking back. "Your husband is a brave man. A strong man. As are you. Pearl of Panem,"

"I'm sorry for what happened to you," Talia says quietly, she wanted to kill whoever did that to Jordan. Her anger rose within her, but Jordan's eyes met hers.

"I can imagine what you're thinking. I think it often too.  I would love to harm the man who did that to me, and I would love to harm those who left me there and let it happen. I didn't go back to the club after that night. In fact, Finnick helped me start my own business, and I live a lavish enough life. My extra wealth is spent on helping victims like me, men, women, children who have been harmed like I was," Jordan tells her.

"Have you...Found peace?" She asks.

"Some days I cannot bring myself to get out of bed, the burden is too much. It sits like a weight on my chest. Then other days, the thoughts never even come to mind. I just remember that I was saved, and there are others out there, waiting to be saved too," Jordan says, "Just keep breathing,"

Talia nods, "Thank you for sharing that with me...I understand it couldn't have been easy to talk about,"

He nods in reply, looking at the mansion again, "What are you planning on doing?"

Talia follows his eyes, to the mansion, "What I have always planned on doing...Kill President Snow,"

________________

y'all didn't really think I was gonna kill them, did you?

well, to be honest, i thought long and hard about it, and there was two ways this was gonna go. i chose this way.

thank you for reading and i hope you enjoyed!

~cupidlies
❤️